Chapter 68: A Grand Banquet at the Hua Residence (1)

Early the next morning, an unusual atmosphere filled Chang’an City. Eunuchs and guards hurried about, busy purchasing various items as they came and went from Wubenfang.
The docks outside Chuncheng Gate in Chang’an were also filled with colorful boats, laden with seasonal fruits, vegetables, and delicacies from various places. These were loaded onto carts and transported in large numbers to Wubenfang inside the city.
All the dance halls and music studios closed their doors as well. They had received invitations from the Taichang Temple to gather their famous dancers and musicians at Wubenfang at dawn. Meanwhile, dozens of renowned taverns also ceased operations, with hundreds of chefs invited to Wubenfang.
All attention was focused on Wubenfang. As dawn broke, firecrackers exploded and drums rang out inside. Teams of eunuchs and guards distributed cakes and candies from house to house.
“Today is the birthday of the Third Madam. Let’s celebrate together!”
This mysterious Third Madam quickly became the topic of conversation throughout Chang’an. Some said she was Wang Yuanbao’s new concubine, the richest man in Chang’an, but this was immediately disputed—why would court guards and eunuchs help celebrate her birthday?
As more information came to light, her true identity gradually became clear. She was actually the third sister of the Imperial Concubine, named Hua Hua. The emperor himself had arranged this birthday celebration, the first of its kind since the Tianbao era. It was said that 2,000 invitations had been sent. It seemed she had no regard for social status—officials above the seventh rank, princes and nobles, prominent families, high-ranking officials, and wealthy merchants from Chang’an were all included in the invitation list.
To prepare for this celebration, 500 eunuchs and 1,000 guards were dispatched from the palace. From dawn on, the street in front of Yang Hua Hua’s residence was closed off, turning it into a parking area for horses and carriages.
Two days earlier, businesses in Chang’an’s East Market were already booming as wealthy families bought fine silk fabrics, precious perfumes, and jewelry for this rare gathering of elites.
But the most spectacular sight was the parade of gift-bringers. Although the invitations stated that gifts could be delivered later, many officials and nobles still rushed to present their gifts on the day of the birthday.
Yang Hua Hua gladly accepted them, opening a side door specifically for the gifts. Soon, a queue of gift-bringers stretched two li long—filled with rare antiques, famous paintings, silk fabrics, gold, silver, and treasures, piled up like mountains.

The entire morning, Yang Huahua spent time among various birthday gifts—gold, silver, jewels, and countless expensive presents piled high. She picked up one and then set down another, her heart overflowing with joy. Her family had been poor in the past; her husband died early, and she raised their son in great hardship. Her desire for money had always been her greatest dream. Now, that dream had become reality. The gifts she received that day were worth tens of thousands of guan, and more would follow, bringing the total to at least another hundred thousand guan. Her 29th birthday would completely change her life. “Ha! Ha! Ha! I’m rich!” Her room echoed with her loud laughter. She picked up a brocade bag with a tag that read, “A gift from General Li Qing’an of Anxi.” “What could this guy have sent?” she murmured as she opened the bag. Inside was a set of the four essential writing tools. Though of high quality, it made her laugh and sigh at the same time. How odd of him to give such a peculiar gift! Yet there was a small box among the writing tools, sparking her curiosity—what could it be? … Starting at noon, impatient guests began arriving, spending the afternoon idly in Yang Huahua’s mansion. It wasn’t until late afternoon that the number of guests peaked. Carriages came from all directions in Chang’an and stopped orderly on both sides of the road under the guidance of the local officials. Most guests brought their wives and daughters. The men were dressed similarly—in ordinary clothes with gauze hats—but the women moved gracefully, their footsteps tinkling softly. Despite the cold winter, most of the noblewomen wore open-fronted long dresses and short sleeves, with fur coats over them. Adorned with jade belts, they looked delicate and radiant. From afar, Yang Huahua’s mansion appeared a dazzling sea of green and red. Li Qing’an arrived at the busiest time. Although Yang Huahua had repeatedly told him not to prepare any gifts, it was customary to give gifts on birthdays, and he didn’t want to go empty-handed. So at noon, he went to the Western Market and bought some gifts—mostly high-quality writing tools—and asked the shopkeeper to deliver them to Yang Huahua along with his invitation. “Younger brother Li, General Li!” As Li Qing’an approached Yang Huahua’s mansion, he suddenly heard someone calling him from behind. Turning around, he saw Yang Zhao. He was still limping, but seemed much better, probably because his wife had forgiven him the previous night. “Brother Yang, why did you come only now?” Li Qing’an said with a smile as he stepped forward and bowed. “I came early. I was waiting for you here.”

“Oh? Does Brother Yang have something urgent?”
“Come with me!”
Yang Zhao pulled Li Qingan to a corner and whispered, “When will you return those sisters to me?”
Yang Zhao had been preoccupied with this all night—he hadn’t even had the chance to enjoy those sisters yet before Li Qingan took them away.
The more he thought about it, the more worried and angry he became. He tried hard to control himself, waiting for Li Qingan’s reply.
Li Qingan was stunned. “Brother Yang, why didn’t you say earlier? I thought you didn’t want them anymore.”
“What happened?” Yang Zhao’s heart sank instantly.
Li Qingan said regretfully, “I didn’t have a place to keep them, so I gave each of them a hundred taels of silver and sent someone to take them back to their hometown in Youzhou last night.”
“What!”
Yang Zhao flew into a rage. He grabbed Li Qingan by the collar and shouted, “You bastard! How dare you send them away? Bring them back at once!”
Li Qingan pushed Yang Zhao’s hand away and smiled faintly. “It’s just two women. Brother Yang, do you really want to fall out with me over them?”
“You scoundrel! Who do you think you are? Can you compare to my two beauties?”
In his fury, Yang Zhao nearly lost his sanity. He roared recklessly, “Go and get them back right now! Otherwise, I’ll make sure you pay for it!”
“Fine! I’ll send someone to chase after them. Whether we can get them back is uncertain. County Magistrate Yang, pray for the best!”
With that, Li Qingan pushed him aside and headed toward Yang Huahua’s residence.
“Li Qingan, if you don’t return them to me, we’re done!” Yang Zhao shouted angrily from behind.
……
“Congratulations to Deputy Minister Yang of the Ministry of Revenue and his third wife on her birthday. Gift: a pair of white jade gui.”
……
“Congratulations to General An, Commander of the Beiyang Army, and his third wife on her birthday. Gift: five thousand taels of gold and three hundred pearls.”
At the entrance of the mansion, the host read out the names aloud. Since Yang Huahua was a widow with no men in the family, her cousins Yang Xian and Yang Qi stood at the door to welcome guests. Additionally, her elder and middle sisters stood at the inner door to receive female guests.
“Five thousand taels of gold!” Gasps of astonishment filled the air. Yang Xian and Yang Qi stepped forward together and bowed to An Lushan, saying, “We’re ashamed for not welcoming you personally. Truly ashamed!”
Their snobbish behavior drew disdainful looks from others. An Lushan chuckled and said, “It’s just a small token of appreciation. Nothing to worry about.”

An Lushan had already staked his future on the Yang family. He knew well that rising to power and gaining wealth didn’t necessarily require great achievements; seizing opportunities to win the emperor’s favor could sometimes be even more useful. The fact that the emperor himself was celebrating Yang Huahua’s birthday meant the emperor was the true focus of the banquet. If not now, when would he invest effort?

An Lushan then introduced a general in military attire behind him to the two Yangs: “This is my top general, Shi Siming, the commander of the Pinglu troops, who has also come to wish the third madam a happy birthday.”

Shi Siming was around forty years old. He was also a Hu person, originally named Gan. He was tall and strong, brave in battle, and especially skilled with the bow. At the beginning of the Tianbao era, he went to the capital to hand over captives and demonstrated his exceptional archery skills by hitting targets from a hundred paces away before Emperor Li Longji, earning high praise from the emperor, who called him the best archer in the world and bestowed upon him the name Shi Siming.

Shi Siming had been friends with An Lushan since childhood and enjoyed his trust. Together with Cai Xide, he became An Lushan’s right-hand men. He had just brought three hundred Khitans to the capital as captives the day before, coinciding with Yang Huahua’s birthday. Yang Xian and Yang Qi, being simple-minded, didn’t recognize Shi Siming’s status and merely bowed to greet him, to which Shi Siming nodded slightly.

“Lord Yang, I wonder who has sent the most gifts this time?” An Lushan asked in a low voice.

Yang Qi whispered in An Lushan’s ear, “So far, it’s Marshal An who has the most. But there are rumors that the Prince of Qing has also prepared generous gifts.”

“The Prince of Qing?” An Lushan was surprised. What did the Prince of Qing want by aligning himself with the Yang family?

“Marshal, the Prince of Qing has arrived!”

A magnificent carriage adorned with gold and silver slowly approached. Yang Xian and Yang Qi went to greet him. “Your Highness, we failed to welcome you properly at the entrance.”

An Lushan, however, did not enter the mansion but stayed aside, watching as the Prince of Qing’s carriage arrived. The obese Prince of Qing, Li Cong, was helped out of the carriage. As the eldest son of Emperor Li Longji, he held a high status. Logically, after Li Ying was deposed in the 25th year of the Kaiyuan era, he should have succeeded as crown prince, and many high-ranking officials supported him in taking over the position. Unexpectedly, it was Li Heng, the third son, who suddenly seized the crown prince position.

Li Cong became disheartened. Over the years, he had indulged in wine and women, even drawing some criticism from Li Longji. However, after the Wei Jian and Du Youlin cases broke out, Li Cong suddenly realized that Li Heng’s position as crown prince was not secure after all. A glimmer of hope rekindled in his heart—he might yet succeed to the throne. He began to change, abandoning his dissolute ways, no longer indulging in wine and women, and became generous and respectful toward scholars. He also made friends with several important officials at court, including Zhang Yun, the Minister of Revenue, who secretly supported him—the only high-ranking official capable of challenging Li Linfu.

Today was Yang Huahua’s birthday, and in Li Cong’s eyes, it was an opportunity to please his father. He had long hinted that he would offer generous gifts to celebrate.

Li Cong bowed slightly and said with a smile, “Hehe! How could Li Cong fail to attend the birthday celebration of the Third Consort? I’ve brought a modest gift.”

The host took the gift list and announced loudly, “The Prince of Qing comes to offer his congratulations! His gifts include 10,000 mu of farmland, three farms, and 500 slaves.”