LFHYB -Chapter 53 Li Erlang’s First Hunt of a Great Tiger

The few of them were all young scholars with sincere hearts and idealistic spirits. The four words “that’s all” rang in their ears like a bronze bell being struck.

The warm spring breeze of April brushed against their faces, carrying a faint chill.

Xue Shou tightened his cloak and said, “The Grand Canal and the Great Wall, you could say there’s some reason for building them, though a bit rushed. But the palaces… does His Majesty really think there aren’t enough palaces?”

Du Ruhui sneered, “Are the capital’s palaces not big enough? If they weren’t, didn’t he just build Xianren Palace and the Western Garden in the Eastern Capital three years ago?”

Fang Qiao frowned. “Aside from the small palaces built along the canal when His Majesty toured Jiangdu, in the Changfu Garden north of Jiangdu alone, there are Guiyan Palace, Huiliu Palace, Jiuli Palace, Songlin Palace, Fenglin Palace, Da Lei Palace, Xiao Lei Palace, Chuncao Palace, Jiuhua Palace, and Guangfen Palace—ten palaces in all.”

Li Xuanba said calmly, “Yangzi has Linjiang Palace, Weinan has Chongye Palace, Linhuai has Duliang Palace, Zhuojun has Linshuo Palace, and last year Jinyang Palace was built in Taiyuan—but His Majesty still feels it’s not enough.”

Li Shimin leaned back in the carriage seat, hands clasped behind his head, staring blankly at the shaking carriage roof.

Li Xuanba drew his gaze back from the outside.

“His Majesty manages palaces every single day.” The long list of palace names they had just rattled off like menu items had all been built since the first year of the Daye era.

And now it was only the spring of the fourth year of Daye.

[Brother, at the end of the Tang, Pi Rixiu wrote in “Reflections on the Bian River, Part Two”: ‘All say the Sui fell for this river; to this day a thousand miles rely on its waters. Were it not for the water palaces and dragon boats, even the merits of Yu would not compare.’]

Li Shimin banged the back of his head against the carriage wall.

Huh? Our Great Tang hasn’t even come yet, and this is already the end of the Tang?!

[Pi Rixiu was mocking Emperor Yang of Sui for his extravagance, but later generations ignored ‘were it not for the water palaces and dragon boats’ and only sighed, ‘even the merits of Yu would not compare,’ treating the poem as praise for Emperor Yang of Sui. If Pi Rixiu knew how later generations evaluated his poem, he would probably bang his head on the ground and wail endlessly.]

Li Shimin rubbed the back of his head, glancing plaintively at his brother, who looked perfectly calm—completely unreadable—while internally he was fuming and chattering away.

[Pi Rixiu lived during Huang Chao’s rebellion, witnessing firsthand the collapse of the glorious Tang dynasty. Compared with Du Fu and others during the Anshi Rebellion, who watched Tang decline but still had hopes for its revival, Pi Rixiu faced pitch-black despair.]

Li Shimin’s head throbbed.

What is the Anshi Rebellion? And who is Huang Chao? Was the Tang really destroyed just like that? No hope at all?

Why do I have to hear about the rise and fall—even the outright collapse—of the Tang before it’s even founded???

[After Tang collapsed, what came next? The Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms—a period even darker than the Wei, Jin, Northern and Southern Dynasties, so cruel it is almost invisible in movies and novels. Pi Rixiu stood right on that borderline.]

Li Shimin’s pupils nearly trembled.

What?! Darker and crueler than the Northern and Southern Dynasties?? Xuan, you must be joking, right? You’re joking, right?

Ah no!! And there are three outsiders in the carriage!! I can’t even tell Xuan to zip it!!

[All of Pi Rixiu’s poetry centered on loyalty and filial piety, expressing his frustration at the state of affairs, scolding corrupt officials and a dark society, pointing fingers at incompetent emperors. Yet his poem, mocking Emperor Yang of Sui to criticize the Tang emperors of his time, ended up elevating Emperor Yang in posterity. This is a bizarre kind of ‘mocking the past to reflect on the present.’]

Li Xuanba looked unflustered on the surface, but his mind wandered, full of sighs and musings.

As a seasoned “Taizong hater,” he knew that most people cheering for him in the comment section were staunch believers in the “Ten Sages of the Online Temple.” He understood why later generations praised Emperor Yang of Sui.

Crimes were committed in the present, but glory would be enjoyed for a thousand years. The people of Sui bore the suffering, and posterity enjoyed the benefits—of course they would hype it up.

Alas, the Grand Canal and palaces built by Emperor Yang were already destroyed in war; if they had survived to become historic landmarks, his evaluation might have been higher.

Building dozens of palaces in three years wasn’t enough—better to build hundreds, one in every city.

Many compared Emperor Yang of Sui to a low-budget version of Qin Shi Huang.

Qin Shi Huang spent over a decade building roads and the Great Wall, renovated old palaces of the Six States while touring the country, often sleeping outdoors in tents. As the first emperor of a unified dynasty, he built new palaces in Xianyang; Epang Palace had only its foundation laid.

Qin Shi Huang? Not even worthy to tie Guangshen’s shoes.

Li Xuanba mused: [People later often said the Sui fell because it offended the Guanlong faction. The people couldn’t survive, farmers rebelled everywhere; didn’t the Guanlong faction advise Emperor Yang to lighten taxes and corvée? They did, but those who advised were all killed. I wish those Guangshen fans could travel back to Emperor Yang’s time, see which time traveler could prevent the Sui’s fall. They think way too highly of themselves, too little of the universe’s great god. Brother, what are you doing?!]

Li Shimin turned and repeatedly banged his head against the carriage wall.

Fang Qiao, Du Ruhui, and Xue Shou, who were enraged moments ago, were startled: “Li Er, what’s wrong with you?”

Li Shimin muttered, “What am I? What can I do? If Xuan doesn’t shut up, I’ll just bash my head in right here.”

The three looked at Li Xuanba in a daze.

Li Xuanba blinked, expression still calm—serene, quiet, obedient.

Li Shimin rubbed the red mark on his forehead, complaining, “Xuan, can you pick your moments? I may have a big heart, but I’m still young! My internal energy isn’t cultivated enough! What if I expose myself!”

Li Xuanba’s gaze drifted slightly: “What did I do? I didn’t do anything.”

Li Shimin grabbed his brother’s small sunken face: “Xuan! Li Sanlang! Li Dade!”

Although the three didn’t know what was happening, they hurried to stop Li Shimin from “bullying” his brother.

“Li Er, what are you doing?”

“Why so angry? Let go first!”

“What’s going on? Why suddenly all this shouting?”

Li Shimin was pulled away by the three.

Li Xuanba touched his cheek, seeing his second brother was truly angry, and explained, “I didn’t say anything I shouldn’t. Why are you overreacting?”

Li Shimin angrily lifted his foot. Fang Qiao quickly pressed it down.

Having known Li Shimin and Li Xuanba for a few months, Fang Qiao and Du Ruhui had already guessed that these two brothers probably had some kind of way to communicate that outsiders couldn’t perceive.

Du Ruhui said, “Li San, don’t go too far.”

Xue Shou glanced at the others. Why was he the only one completely confused? What exactly did you all know?

Seeing the isolated expression on Xue Shou’s face, Fang Qiao explained, “Li Er and Li San are twins. Twins seem to have a way of communicating that outsiders can’t understand.”

Xue Shou was surprised. “Is there really such a miraculous thing?”

He studied Li Shimin and Li Xuanba, clicking his tongue in amazement.

Xue Shou didn’t ask Li Xuanba what he had said to make Li Shimin “fly into a rage.” Since it was a private conversation, even if Li Xuanba said “it’s nothing that can’t be told,” it was probably not something they could pry into.

But although he had read about the strange telepathy of twins in books, seeing it in person today still made him very curious.

Young people’s emotions changed quickly. Although the affairs of the common people made them angry and sad, they all knew that, given their current positions, all they could do was feel that way. None of them were easily swayed by emotion, so they used the “argument” between Li Shimin and Li Xuanba as a distraction.

Curious, Xue Shou asked, “Do you mind if I ask how far your telepathy goes?”

Li Shimin said, “It’s just… a vague feeling of some things.”

Xue Shou felt that the twins’ telepathy was probably more than just “vague,” but since Li Shimin had said so, and although he felt an instant rapport with Li Shimin, they had only recently met, so it wasn’t appropriate to probe too deeply. He smiled and let it go.

Li Shimin reminded Li Xuanba, “Stop talking, do you hear me?”

Li Xuanba said, “Okay, okay, alright.”

While the others weren’t paying attention, Li Shimin reached out and grabbed Li Xuanba’s face. “Half-hearted!”

Li Xuanba sighed. “Alright, fine.”

Only then did Li Shimin let go.

Du Ruhui laughed. “Sometimes I really wonder what Li San said to make you so worked up.”

Li Shimin sneered, “You really want to know?”

Fang Qiao covered Du Ruhui’s mouth. “No, he doesn’t want you to know.”

Fang Qiao recalled what Li Xuanba had predicted and broke out in a cold sweat.

Li Xuanba said, “In a few years, I’ll definitely tell you.”

Du Ruhui pushed Fang Qiao’s hand away and complained, “Why are you covering my mouth? Li Er and Li San aren’t stingy people.”

Fang Qiao pressed a hand to his forehead. You have no idea how powerful Li San is!

Fang Qiao had already begun to suspect the truth behind Li Shimin’s sudden excitement.

Given Li Xuanba’s personality—able to drop a prophecy on someone the first time they met—he had surely told Li Shimin even more prophecies.

Fang Qiao felt frustrated. Prophecies aren’t that difficult, are they? So why does Li Xuanba make it look as easy as eating or drinking?

Li Shimin said, “Right, they aren’t stingy. If Xuan believes it’s okay to tell you, he will.”

Li Xuanba looked at his older brother. “Brother, do you really agree to me telling them?”

Li Shimin said, “Hmm… generally speaking, it’s better if you don’t. But if you think it’s okay, then go ahead. I don’t care either way.”

Li Xuanba teased, “You don’t care now… will you not care later too?”

Li Shimin smiled and ruffled Li Xuanba’s hair. “I don’t know about later, but I definitely don’t care right now.”

Li Xuanba sighed. “Speak properly, don’t ruffle my hair.”

Li Shimin rubbed his head with both hands. “I will. You may be strong, but you’re still my brother. What’s wrong with me ruffling my brother’s hair?”

Xue Shou once again felt completely out of the loop. What kind of riddle were these two playing?

He looked at Fang Qiao.

Fang Qiao sighed. “Just get used to it. They are twins, after all.”

Du Ruhui laughed. “They have their way of talking, and we have ours. Didn’t we just say we’d compose poetry? Let’s continue!”

Xue Shou asked, “You still have the energy to compose poetry?”

Li Shimin, teasing his brother, said, “Why not? There are so many things in the world that leave one unhappy. If you dwell on one grievance for too long, you might just grieve yourself to death. Solve what can be solved, leave aside what can’t. Eat when it’s time to eat, drink when it’s time to drink, play when it’s time to play. Worry won’t change the situation, and neither will happiness. So why not be a little happier?”

Du Ruhui smiled faintly. “Li Er speaks reasonably.”

Fang Qiao shook his head with a bitter smile. “In generosity of heart, I often find myself lacking compared to you.”

Xue Shou sighed and cupped his hands. “Li Erlang, I have learned from you.”

Li Shimin nodded modestly and said proudly, “Glad to hear it, glad to hear it. I have many more virtues—you’ll learn them in time.”

The three of them laughed heartily, and even Li Xuanba couldn’t help but laugh.

He thought of the historical records of Tang Taizong, famous for showing off, saying: “My accomplishments, great and small, how could they all fit in bamboo and silk books?”

Next time his brother said that, he resolved that he would silently complete the sentence in his head the moment his second brother spoke the first word, and he wondered if his brother would still have the audacity to finish it aloud.

He truly looked forward to it.

…

Arriving at the Imperial Garden hunting grounds, Li Shimin immediately cast aside all unpleasant matters, just as he had said.

While Li Xuanba was communicating with the garden officials, he had already dashed out like a hunting dog unleashed.

By this time, there was no scholar who couldn’t ride a horse. But Li Shimin’s speed in a gallop was so fast that he instantly left Fang Qiao, Du Ruhui, and Xue Shou behind, with only the guards from the Duke Tang Mansion managing to keep up.

The three looked at each other.

Li Xuanba rode over slowly, and Xue Shou anxiously said, “Li Sanlang, Li Erlang has vanished in an instant. Should we send someone to look for him?”

Li Xuanba said, “No need to worry about him. The guards are enough.”

No sooner had he spoken than Li Shimin charged out from the forest.

In front of his horse was a panicked rabbit, fleeing without direction.

With his bow already drawn, Li Shimin released the arrow. It pierced the poor rabbit’s neck, pinning it to the ground.

Li Shimin slowed his pace, hooked his feet in the stirrups, grabbed the reins with one hand, and swung sideways to snatch a rabbit from the ground. With a tug on the reins, he swung back onto the horse.

He laughed, shaking the rabbit in his hand. “Got the first catch!”

Xue Shou rubbed his eyes. Had all the arrows just shot hit the ground?

Du Ruhui clapped and praised him, “Li Er, to have such archery and horsemanship skills at your age—you’ll surely dominate the battlefield in the future!”

Li Shimin tied the rabbit to the horse’s rear. “I could ride across the battlefield right now… but alas… Father always says I’m too young and forbids me from going to the frontier.”

Li Xuanba said with exasperation, “You really want to go?”

Li Shimin laughed. “Why not think about it? Enough talking—let’s go! There are plenty more prey out there!”

Seeing Li Shimin already hitting rabbits, Xue Shou, Du Ruhui, and Fang Qiao’s competitive spirits were ignited; each of them started flexing and preparing.

Surely, they couldn’t lose to a nine-year-old child, could they?

All four spurred their horses into the forest, while Li Xuanba, surrounded by a group of guards, slowly rode along.

His riding skills were okay, but archery… forget it!

Li Xuanba didn’t just miss because he couldn’t aim; he literally couldn’t pull a bow strong enough to hit the prey.

If only he had a gun—then all he’d need to do is aim, and his hunting results wouldn’t necessarily be worse than his older brother’s.

Too bad, even as a time traveler, he had no idea how to make guns.

He did remember the recipe for black powder, but the little power it gave off was disappointing.

He had no idea how ancient people made the truly powerful gunpowder. Maybe when the Li family was on the verge of rebellion, he could experiment.

Anyway, no rush. His older brother could topple this chaotic era without him.

“Third Young Master, there seems to be a ferocious beast ahead,” one guard said.

“How do you know?” Li Xuanba asked.

The guard replied, “It’s too quiet nearby.”

“Then let’s go around…” Li Xuanba began.

Before he could finish, he heard his older brother shout fiercely, “There’s a tiger ahead! Don’t move! Watch me!”

Li Xuanba’s hair stood on end, and he cursed, “Is my brother crazy?! Forget me—get over there quickly!”

Of the guards surrounding Li Xuanba, only two stayed; the rest galloped quickly toward Li Shimin.

Li Xuanba also spurred his horse in a panic to catch up.

The wild animals in the hunting ground had been tamed and had lost their wildness, so they weren’t dangerous to humans armed with bows. But even tigers in modern zoos could kill, and Li Xuanba couldn’t understand how his nine-year-old brother had the courage to confront a tiger alone.

By the time Li Xuanba arrived, Li Shimin was already dodging and weaving around the tiger.

Li Shimin led, the tiger chased from behind, the guards pursued the tiger, and Fang Qiao, Du Ruhui, and Xue Shou watched anxiously from the side.

Seeing the tiger, the three were just about to discuss how to safely surround it and capture it when Li Shimin lightly kicked his horse’s belly and charged out alone.

The three nearly fainted from fear atop their horses.

“Li Sanlang, try to stop your brother!” Fang Qiao cried anxiously.

Li Xuanba yelled at Li Shimin, “Brother! I’ll write to Mother about what you’ve done today!”

Li Shimin’s smile faltered.

He twisted around, firing arrows in quick succession; two arrows struck perfectly, piercing the tiger’s wide, copper-colored eyes.

The tiger immediately covered its eyes with its paws, rolled on the ground, roared with mouth agape, and went into a frenzy.

Li Shimin turned his horse, dropped the bow, and picked up a spear, throwing it toward the tiger.

Meanwhile, the guards following the tiger, afraid to shoot and accidentally hit Li Shimin, drew their swords and approached the tiger.

Riding close to the blinded, frenzied tiger, they slashed downward with their cavalry sabers, then guided their horses past, brushing the tiger’s body.

Each pass left a streak of blood on the tiger.

After the guards formed an “X” pattern and all brushed past the tiger once, it had no strength left.

Li Shimin’s spear struck, piercing the tiger’s neck from behind.

The tiger roared once, then collapsed, motionless.

Li Shimin raised his hands in triumph. “Success!”

Li Xuanba jumped off his horse, ran to Li Shimin’s horse, grabbed his brother’s leg, and dragged him off the horse.

Li Shimin protested, “Hey? Be careful, I might fall!”

“Careful? You’re having fun fighting a tiger alone, huh? With all these guards around, you have to show off? If your horse slipped, were you going to feed the tiger with a sliding tackle?!” Li Xuanba yelled, spittle flying on Li Shimin’s face. “Are you trying to get yourself killed?!”

Li Shimin wiped his face with his sleeve. “I have control…”

Li Xuanba spat, “Control my foot!”

His heart felt like it was about to jump out of his throat.

He had seen Li Shimin’s “recklessness” in the historical records before and had only marveled at Emperor Taizong’s greatness.

Now, seeing his nine-year-old brother provoke a tiger—even a tamed one in a hunting ground—Li Xuanba’s hair almost stood on end.

He recalled all the things his brother had done according to the history books.

Forget battlefields—even as emperor, this overly enthusiastic hunter would abandon his guards to wrestle bears on horseback.

Are you a wild man?!

Or did wild men teach you this?!

Humans evolved brains to seek benefit, avoid harm, and use tools. You fighting a bear with bare hands—are you trying to devolve into a caveman?!

Li Shimin said awkwardly, “Hey, hey, I haven’t wrestled a bear.”

Li Xuanba snapped, “Yet!”

Li Shimin covered his ears. “Stop, stop! I never personally acted as bait, chased rabbits and deer alone in the imperial garden, or fought bears alone—don’t scold me for things I haven’t done!”

Li Xuanba shouted, “It hasn’t happened yet!”

Everyone present froze.

Xue Shou looked at Fang Qiao in disbelief. “Li Sanlang… this is… this is…”

Du Ruhui raised his voice: “Li San, stop! There are outsiders here!”

Li Xuanba shifted his tone: “When you were a child, you stole needles; when you grow up, you’ll steal cattle! If you dare tease a tiger now, you’ll definitely do these things when you’re older! I’m just preparing for the future!”

Li Shimin rolled his eyes. His brother’s transition was way too abrupt.

But looking at the approving eyes of the onlookers, Li Shimin helplessly realized that although his brother’s reasoning was clumsy, everyone actually believed his nonsense.

Ah, judging by Fang Xuanling’s sweating face, perhaps only Fang Xuanling didn’t buy it.

Li Shimin lowered his head and said, “Yes, yes, I’m wrong. I will reflect on it. Don’t worry, I won’t take any more risks in the future.”

Li Xuanba gritted his teeth: “Just wait, I’ll tell Mother! You’ll get a beating!”

Li Shimin sighed: “Fine, go ahead and tell her.”

Anyway, Mother wouldn’t get the letter for many days. Even when she came to the Eastern Capital, it would be many days later. Even if he got scolded, it wouldn’t be for a long time.

The future could wait. For now, he just needed to appease his brother so they could continue hunting.

Wow, I’m amazing! I actually hunted a big tiger!

Seeing that Li Xuanba seemed to have calmed down, Li Shimin hopped over to the tiger: “What a pity the tiger’s skin is torn. A-Xuan! Father will definitely envy me when he sees the tiger I hunted! Hmph, since he didn’t come hunting with me, the tiger’s got nothing to do with him!”

Li Xuanba had just calmed down, and now he was holding back his anger again.

This second brother hasn’t reflected at all, has he?!

Not only had Li Shimin not reflected, but Du Ruhui and Xue Shou also dismounted to admire the tiger, praising Li Shimin with envy.

Although it had seemed dangerous just now, thinking carefully, the tiger’s leg had already been a little lame and couldn’t run fast. That was why Li Shimin was able to stroll the tiger around, then take the shot straight to its eye.

Once they calmed down, they realized that Li Shimin wasn’t reckless—he was genuinely confident and had prepared everything before taking action.

Li Erlang truly is remarkable!

Li Xuanba stayed away from the tiger, leaning against a tree, pouting.

Fang Qiao came up beside him and whispered: “Will he really always be this reckless?”

Li Xuanba ground his teeth: “Even when he’s old and dying, his personality will be exactly the same!”

The same cheerful nature, the same vanity, the same wild recklessness!

What Tang Taizong? Now he’s a mischievous child; in the future, he’ll be an unstoppable old rascal! Forever young at heart!

Fang Qiao chuckled: “That’s not bad either.”

Li Xuanba glanced at Fang Qiao, then shifted his gaze back to his second brother, who was dancing absurdly next to the tiger and trying to pull Du Ruhui and Xue Shou into the dance.

“Hmm, for you all, it’s indeed not bad,” Li Xuanba said calmly.

Fang Qiao looked at the child surrounded by people, enjoying himself.

This child… is really going to be his future lord? Truly a young hero.