Chapter 1047: Brother Lang’s wives and concubines shocked the Tang Dynasty

At three quarters past four, the carriage from the Honglu Guesthouse drove into the imperial city on time.

Lin Lang was wearing an ochre dragon robe from the Song Dynasty with gold edges and a black jade belt around his waist. The dragon pattern moved slightly with his steps, giving off a faint sense of majesty.

Chu Yiren wore a nine-dragon and four-phoenix crown, and a crimson Song Dynasty empress's robe with phoenix patterns embroidered on the hem. When she stood side by side with Lin Lang, they were indescribably well-matched.

The rest of his wives and concubines also wore gorgeous clothes according to their ranks and followed closely behind. Before they even reached the palace gate, they had already attracted the attention of the guards and palace servants.

At the corner of the palace wall, Emperor Gaozong of Tang, Li Zhi, and Empress Wu had already been waiting for them at the steps of the Linde Hall.

Li Zhi, dressed in his ochre-yellow official robe, saw Lin Lang's carriage stop. He disregarded the imperial protocol and was the first to descend the stairs, laughing resoundingly: "My dear brother, you're finally here! The Queen and I have been waiting for you for a while!"

Lin Lang helped Chu Yiren get out of the carriage. Seeing Li Zhi personally welcoming him, he quickly stepped forward and bowed as expected of a monarch of the same rank. He said with a smile, "Brother Emperor, why did you have to come all the way here to welcome him? I'm so embarrassed."

He glanced at Empress Wu, who was standing beside Li Zhi. Seeing her in a purple robe and a phoenix hairpin, her expression was both feminine and graceful, yet also dignified. He nodded slightly, "Hello, sister-in-law!"

Empress Wu smiled and said, "Your brother is still thinking about the table tennis you mentioned yesterday. He can't wait to play with you. I wonder if you brought it with you?"

Lin Lang replied, "I brought it. How could I forget what I promised my brother?"

"That's good!" Li Zhi said, his eyes fell on Lin Lang's dragon robe. He looked it up and down with interest, clapping his hands and smiling, "My dear brother, this 'Shanghai Dragon Robe' is quite unique."

Lin Lang chuckled at the words and pointed to his collar: "My royal brother, please forgive me for laughing. Our country values ​​culture over military. Compared with the dragon robes of the Tang Dynasty, our dragon robes are loose and gorgeous, but they are not as neat."

As they were speaking, Chu Yiren had already walked forward with Lin Lang's other concubines and bowed to Li Zhi and Empress Wu.

Empress Wu's eyes lit up, and she walked around Li Zhi and went straight to Chu Yiren. She circled around her, and her fingertips gently brushed the tassels of her nine-dragon and four-phoenix crown, exclaiming in amazement.

"Sister, your dress as the Queen of Shanghai is so beautiful! This crown, this robe... the style is so gorgeous! Although the robe of the Queen of the Tang Dynasty is expensive, it lacks such a lively dragon and phoenix ornaments. It looks more like..."

The Fifth Queen pondered for a moment and then laughed, "It's like wearing the 'Nine Heavens Fairy Palace' on your head!"

Chu Yiren felt a little embarrassed by Wu Zetian's gaze: "Your Majesty, please accept my compliment. I am only wearing the clothes prepared according to the customs of my hometown. I am sorry to have embarrassed you."

Empress Wu, however, took Chu Yiren's hand and said warmly, "What are you talking about?"

"I think the regulations of this 'Shanghai Kingdom' are truly wonderful!"

"Let's go. We're having a banquet in the Pepper Palace today. I need to ask my sister about the etiquette of this crown and attire. Also, last night I heard from His Majesty that my dear brother wants to install 'luminous lights' in the palace."

Chu Yiren smiled and replied, "It's a solar street light."

"Yes, yes, yes." Empress Wu was so happy to see Chu Yiren smiling.

Empress Wu was holding Chu Yiren's hand and talking excitedly with Li Moli and others. A group of palace maids and eunuchs surrounded them, and the whole hall was filled with the sound of clothes and rings. A palace friendship that transcended time and space quietly began in this laughter.

After everyone entered the Linde Hall, Lin Lang snapped his fingers like a magic trick.

The rosewood pool table fell to the ground with a loud bang, and the lacquer surface glowed with a warm luster under the candlelight. Then colorful billiard balls, cues, copper racks and velvet chocolate powder boxes poured out like water, startling the palace maids and eunuchs in the hall so much that they all took half a step back, gasping one after another.

Li Zhi and Empress Wu were stunned by the look.

"Brother, is this the billiard case you mentioned?" Li Zhi approached the billiard table, his fingertips stroking the dark green tabletop, which felt as dense as velvet. His eyes fell on the copper bag embedded in the corner of the table, his face full of disbelief.

Empress Wu also moved lightly with her lotus steps, her phoenix eyes fixed on the round and translucent colorful balls, and her fingers under the embroidered handkerchief rubbed them unconsciously, as if she was pondering the mystery of these objects.

Lin Lang picked up a white ball and handed it to Li Zhi. "Brother, this is billiards. The white one is called the mother ball. The other colored balls are divided by color and number. The one who hits the corresponding ball into the pocket wins."

As he spoke, he gestured to Pan Xiaoting to arrange the colored balls into a triangle according to the Black Eight rules.

Pan Xiaoting's fingertips were like butterflies, placing the balls neatly. Finally, she gently pushed the triangle frame and said with a smile, "Your Majesty, please tee off!"

Lin Lang's fingers gripping the club suddenly tightened. He turned to Li Zhi, who was watching with bated breath, and said with a smile, "Look, my royal brother, this is called a tee shot. Hitting the ball requires both force and skill, just like deploying troops requires assessing the situation."

Li Zhi stared at Lin Lang's billiards playing posture, studied and watched carefully, and was very interested in billiards.

Lin Lang leaned over to set up the cue, and with a crisp "bang" sound, the white ball hit the array of colored balls like a meteor, and the orange number 2 ball fell into the pocket.

"This is a side-spin pull," Lin Lang stood up and pointed his cue at the table to explain, "After the cue ball hits the target ball, it will spin and move in the opposite direction."

He turned to look at Li Zhi, whose eyes were wide open. "My Royal Highness, you know this is similar to preparing a backup plan when deploying troops."

Li Zhi leaned closer, his eyes fixed on Lin Lang's demonstration. He laughed loudly, "There's so much skill in playing table tennis? Quick, teach me how to exert force!"

Lin Lang was playing billiards with ease, and said with a smile, "Look, my royal brother, when playing, your elbows should be level with your shoulders, and when exerting force, it's like pulling a strong bow. Using the opponent's force to counterattack is the essence."

Li Zhi was humble and eager to learn, and he stood aside and watched very seriously.

When it was the turn of the nine-ball goddess Pan Xiaoting, she swung the club and shot a goal, which made Li Zhi cheer loudly.

Empress Wu stood aside and exclaimed, "I never thought that Concubine Pan, a woman of such skill, would have such an accomplishment in the art of table tennis. This is truly beyond my expectation."

While hitting the ball, Pan Xiaoting replied with a smile, "You are too kind, Madam Queen. Table tennis is not just a men's sport in Shanghai. We women can play it too, and there are even professional tournaments."

Empress Wu was eager to try and exclaimed, "Oh? Then I, the mother of a country, can also play billiards?"

Chu Yiren, who was standing by, lied, "Sister-in-law, table tennis is an aristocratic sport in Shanghai. Of course, you can play it."

After hearing this, Lin Lang smiled and said, "Come on, everyone, move aside. I will conjure up a billiard table from my personal space for the entertainment of the Emperor's wife and Gu's concubines."

After saying that, Lin Lang took out a billiard table, billiard balls and cues from his personal space.

Empress Wu smiled broadly, her eyes filled with joy and admiration. She looked at Lin Lang and said, "My dear brother, you are so thoughtful. You have allowed me to play with such a rare thing in my lifetime."

"Sister-in-law, if table tennis can be promoted in the palace, it will add a lot of fun to palace life."

The palace maids and eunuchs standing by opened their eyes wide with curiosity and shock, but they did not dare to talk about this thing they had never seen before.

Although the guards tried their best to maintain their composure, they could not hide their surprise when they looked at the brand new billiard table.

Chu Yiren walked over to Empress Wu with a smile and said softly, "Sister-in-law, this table tennis game is so versatile and fun. If you give it a try, you'll definitely like it."

Empress Wu nodded slightly, walked to the table, and picked up the club under Pan Xiaoting's guidance.

She leaned forward slightly, imitating what Lin Lang and Pan Xiaoting had done just now, and tried to hit the ball with force.

With a "bang", the white ball rolled on the table but did not hit any colored balls.

Empress Wu couldn't help but feel a little annoyed, and chuckled, "It seems that this thing looks easy, but it is not easy to play."

Zhou Mengyao encouraged her from the side, "Your Majesty, this is a good first try. Table tennis requires hand-eye coordination. Practice a few times and you'll definitely get the hang of it."

Li Zhi said excitedly, "Queen, I find this power application quite interesting. Once you become proficient in it, perhaps we can have a unique competition."

After hearing this, Empress Wu's eyes flashed with a gleam of unwillingness to admit defeat. She adjusted her posture and hit the ball again.

This time, the white ball happened to hit a colored ball, and the colored ball slowly rolled towards the pocket.

Everyone held their breath and watched the trajectory of the ball. Finally, the colored ball fell into the bag.

"Good!" Cheers suddenly rang out in the hall.

Pan Xiaoting smiled and said, "The Emperor's sister-in-law is really smart. She got the hang of it so quickly."

Empress Wu held the cue, a happy smile on her face, and said, "This table tennis is really interesting. My dear brother, this thing from Shanghai has really brought me a great surprise."

Lin Lang bowed and smiled, "It is my honor to win the favor of the Empress's wife. If she likes it in the future, you can find more interesting items to present to her."

Empress Wu smiled happily and said, "That's very good."

Lin Lang ordered: "Concubine Mu, Concubine Pan, you play with the emperor's sister-in-law, and I will play ball with my brother."

"Yes." Mu Xueman smiled sweetly and bowed.

Lin Lang smiled and handed the club to the stunned Li Zhi: "Brother, please practice for a while. The more you think about it, the more interesting it becomes."

Li Zhi couldn't wait to take the cue and imitated Lin Lang's previous grip, but because he used too much force, the cue rubbed against the cue ball, making a harsh "hiss" sound.

The colored ball remained motionless in its place, and the hall was suddenly silent. Only Empress Wu dared to cover her lips with an embroidered handkerchief and smile secretly, her shoulders trembling slightly.

None of the eunuchs and palace maids dared to laugh.

"Don't worry, my royal brother." Lin Lang stepped forward quickly and adjusted Li Zhi's grip angle. "When exerting force, you need to be like drawing a bow, with a relaxed wrist and a heavy arm."

He held Li Zhi's hand, guided the cue and pushed the ball out. The cue ball flew out like an arrow, crashing into the pile of colored balls. The red balls and flower balls scattered in all directions, and the two balls fell into the pocket.

"Great!" Li Zhi laughed loudly, his eyes blazing with excitement. "I'll come again!"

This time, Li Zhi kept his composure and hit the cue ball steadily with the club head. Although his accuracy was not good, he finally hit the colored ball. The "pop" sound of the collision made him very excited.

For a moment, the Linde Hall was filled with cheers, the sound of golf clubs colliding, and the crisp sound of balls falling into pockets.

Lin Lang and Li Zhi were smoking Zhonghua cigarettes while Lin De was playing billiards. It was really something.

At another billiard table, Pan Xiaoting gently and patiently taught Empress Wu how to play billiard, which made the future empress of the Tang Dynasty very happy.

The emperor and generals forgot the palace rules and etiquette, and gathered around this strange table from a thousand years later, immersed in unprecedented joy.

There was a crisp "bang" sound, and the white ball hit the array of colored balls like a meteor, and the orange number 34 ball fell into the pocket.

Li Zhi smiled from ear to ear, "My dear brother, how was my shot?"

"Royal brother, this is called great power working miracles!"

"Haha..." Li Zhi and Lin Lang laughed at the same time.

At this moment, Chu Yiren took out a Polaroid camera from her personal space and took a photo of Lin Lang and Li Zhi who were playing billiards.

With a "click", the sound of the camera and the flash light, the guards in the hall were like frightened birds. They drew their swords to protect the emperor and rushed towards Chu Yiren, mistakenly thinking that she was using a hidden weapon to assassinate the emperor.

This sudden action instantly broke the harmonious and warm atmosphere.

Li Zhi, bewildered, shouted hastily, "Back off! How dare you draw your swords against my brother-in-law and his wife?!"

After hearing this, the guards looked terrified and quickly put away their swords and retreated.

Empress Wu, Zhou Mengyao and the others were all stunned, some unable to react to what was happening.

The timid Li Moli immediately hid behind Chu Yiren.

I have to say that Li Moli knows how to "cling to others".

Lin Lang hurriedly said with a smile: "Brother, don't be angry. It's okay, it's okay. Come, Queen, give me the camera."

Chu Yiren followed her instructions and handed the Polaroid camera and the photos she had just taken to Lin Lang.

Lin Lang handed the photo that was being displayed to Li Zhi and said, "Brother, look, this is a photo of you and me."

Wow! Li Zhi was shocked when he saw it.

He had never seen such a magical thing as a photograph. His eyes widened as he asked hurriedly, "Brother, what is this? How can it instantly capture the image of you and me on this piece of paper?"