Chapter 35: Princess Guantao
From the letter A Jiao wrote to Zhou Yang, I knew that A Jiao was very attached to Zhou Yang, but she didn't expect that she was so strong that she had to play with her as soon as she met. She had to play with some scissors and stone cloth and had a bit of a ladylike image, but she wanted to play with Cuju.
What is Cuju? The most popular entertainment activity in the Han Dynasty is the favorite of men. Has anyone seen women playing Cuju? It didn’t before Gillian, but after Gillian, because Gillian set a precedent for women to play Cuju.
Gillian must do what she has determined, otherwise she will use any trick, crying, acting coquettishly, threatening, and complaining... She will use any method she can think of.
Furthermore, the Han Dynasty's Cuju is somewhat similar to the modern football gameplay. When Zhou Yang, a hardcore fan, heard that he played Cuju, he couldn't help but feel excited. He could use this to miss the scenery of the stadium.
"It's here!" Gillian took Zhou Yang to Cuju venue and stopped.
Cuju Field is actually a piece of sand covered with fine sand. On the edge of the field, there is a wooden board with a hole the size of a basin in the middle. There are two stages of playing Cuju, one is the ground stage and the other is the "shooting" stage. On the ground, you have to kick it with your feet, similar to the gameplay of football. The difference is that there is no goal. When you kick it in front of the board, you have to grab it with your hands and shoot it like a modern basketball. Cuju passes through the hole in the board and is considered to be a score.
This is an entertainment activity that emerged during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. It has been spread throughout the Tang and Song Dynasties during the Qin and Han Dynasties and has been passed down for thousands of years. It is one of the most famous entertainment activities in the Middle Ages.
Cuju was particularly prosperous in the Han Dynasty. In Chang'an, there were countless Cuju venues, which were more than football fields in modern society.
"It's just the two of us, there are not enough people, how can we play?" Zhou Yang wanted to regain the feeling of galloping on the court back then.
There are two ways to play Cuju. One is the ten-player game, that is, ten people per team, which is not much different from modern football. The other way is to play five people per team, and the two teams will fight, and whoever scores more points will win.
"We are the two of us!" Gillian didn't do things according to the rules, just be happy.
Gillian was extremely happy and took out a Cuju from the cabinet next to the venue and threw it in her hand: "We're starting to play!"
Cuju is actually a sphere. Cuju in the Han Dynasty is very rough. It is sewn together with two pieces of leather. It is not so round, but a flat and round sphere. Gillian kicked Cuju hard, and Cuju rolled towards Zhouyang, and a slight sound was made on the sand.
This kind of gameplay is too playful. Zhou Yang didn't have much interest. He just kicked Cuju and rolled back to Ah Jiao. The footwork he practiced to play football back then was still there. Ah Jiao's eyes were straight: "Zhou Yang, you are so awesome. Your kick is even more powerful than those who play Cuju!"
He kicked Cuju again, and Jiao screamed and covered her feet with her hands: "Ouch! It hurts so much! It hurts so much!" The tears in her eyes kept rolling, and she tried hard to hold it down, but it didn't fall.
"Dislocated?" Zhou Yang was shocked and asked hurriedly.
"No, it hurts!" Gillian has a strong personality. Although it was unbearable for pain, she did not cry: "Cuju is so hard, my feet hurt so much! Don't worry, it will be fine after a while."
There were two pieces of leather outside the Cuju in the Han Dynasty, with hair stuffed inside. Once it was tightened, it was heavy and hard, and it had no effect on men and was a burden on women. This is the reason why women did not play Cuju.
Who said that Gillian didn’t have the intention of a daughter? Isn’t this very comforting? Zhou Yang helped her: “Master, don’t kick me, find something else to play.”
"No, I have to kick it! Humph, I don't believe it. If you guys can kick it, I can't kick it!" Gillian's charming image disappeared instantly, and she looked like a big man: "I must kick it well!"
After just kicking her twice, she screamed and kicked her for a while. She didn't know what she looked like. Zhou Yang advised: "Master, there are many ways to play, so you don't have to play Cuju."
Gillian was serious and completely unreasonable: "I'll just play, just play! I have to play!"
It was Gillian's personality to insist that Qingshan would not let go. She was serious and would not end if she didn't play Cuju. Zhou Yang had a headache. After pondering for a moment, he coaxed her: "Master Weng, Cuju is too hard, I won't play it today. It's not too late to play Cuju again after making a softer Cuju."
"Can Cuju be softer?" Gillian blinked her bright eyes and looked at Zhou Yang with great anticipation.
Zhou Yang nodded and said, "Yes! The two pieces of Cuju are not round enough to be sewn together, so it is difficult to kick. If you sew more pieces of leather together, it will be even more round. You don't need to stuff your hair inside, blow the pig's kidneys and stuff them inside, and it will be light and soft."
Zhou Yang made a slight change based on the experience of modern balls to make it more suitable for the situation at that time.
Unexpectedly, as soon as Zhou Yang finished speaking, Gillian's wonderful eyes suddenly became brighter, even more dazzling than the scorching sun in the sky. She grabbed Zhou Yang: "Zhou Yang, you are so amazing, you can think of such a wonderful method! Let's kill the pig, and do Cuju!"
"Do it now?" Zhou Yang was already regretful.
Gillian pointed his head hard: "Yes! Do it when you think of it. What's wrong with that?"
It’s Gillian’s personality trait when she thinks about it. Zhou Yang regrets it. If he had known this, why would he talk more? Zhou Yang was also very grateful. Fortunately, he didn’t say that humans had a way to land on the moon. Otherwise, Gillian would argue with her and ask Zhou Yang to send her to the moon. How could it end?
He pulled Zhou Yang and left the Cuju field. After walking a few steps, he met a servant. Gillian waved at him: "You, hurry up, go and kill the pig!"
"Kill the pig?" This servant Su Zhi Jiao has many kinds of tricks and has many strange ideas. She is not surprised anymore, but she still hears two quartzs and doesn't understand why.
"Go quickly! If you don't kill pigs, I'll kill you!" Gillian couldn't stop rolling up her sleeves, as if she was about to take action.
How powerful is Gillian's torture methods? The servants in the mansion knew about it. They were so scared that they turned pale: "No!" They quickly slipped away.
Chen Xu walked over quickly. Before he could speak, Gillian rushed over and grabbed his arm: "Brother, go kill the pig!"
"Kill pig?" Chen Xu turned into a wooden stake in the blink of an eye.
"Brother, are you going? If you don't go, I'll kill you!" Ajiao stabbed Chen Xu hard in the chest with her right hand.
"Why do you want to kill a pig?" Chen Xu finally realized that he had to ask clearly about this: "Giao, don't mess around if you're okay. Mr. Zhou has arrived at the mansion and has not had tea yet. My mother asked me to invite Mr. Zhou to have tea."
Gillian didn't care about those: "It's important to eat tea, or killing pigs?"
"This..." Chen Xu answered speechlessly.
Zhou Yang was speechless when he heard this. If this Gillian hadn't seen it with his own eyes, he would have thought that the historical books had exaggerated it.
"Giao, why do you want to kill a pig?" A woman full of love sounded.
Zhou Yang saw a woman in her thirties standing at the door, wearing a gorgeous deep dress, with a palace bun on her head, and a golden step on her bun, decorated with pearls and flowers, and her pearls are jewel-like. Her face is pink and tender, her eyes are as bright as autumn water, shining and clear as the spring. The charm of that spring makes people feel heart-pounding, her eyebrows are as dark as the moon, and her nose is exquisite. Her figure is graceful and her curves are exquisite. The temperament of a mature woman is as tempting as ripe grapes. What a beautiful woman.
She is Gillian's biological mother, Emperor Wen's daughter, and the eldest princess Liu Piao.
"Mother, if I want to kill pigs, I will kill pigs!" Gillian not only did not answer her questions, but also became even more arrogant.
Zhou Yang shook his head secretly. This Gillian is really speechless, and something that makes Zhou Yang even more speechless is still coming.
"If you like to kill pigs, just kill them. Why are you standing there? Go and kill pigs! Hurry up!" Liu Piao didn't think about it, and directly agreed with Gillian's idea. He waved his white jade hand and scolded the servants: "One or two, standing like wooden stakes, aren't you smart enough!"
"No!" The servants took the order with a loud bang and walked away quickly.
Chapter completed!