Emperor Taizong's Growth Plan

Chapter 187 Another Man Robber Comes!
In the early years of Yuanzuo, the auspicious day was good.

It was just dawn on the first day of the first lunar month, and all the officials had to gather early in front of the square of Xuanzheng Hall.

On the square, all the guards of honor were displayed, and the flags and flags fluttered with the wind.In the majestic and majestic Yunguo Palace, there are lights and festoons everywhere, and the majestic atmosphere is full of festiveness.

King Qi looked around, sighed slightly, and said helplessly:
"I thought I would be able to take the opportunity to escape the tedious etiquette during the New Year in the palace when I went to Yunguo this time. Unexpectedly, it is still a virtue to be here in Yunguo!"

The deputy envoy of the mission Feng Chu heard the words, chuckled lightly, and said jokingly:

"The national system of the Yun Kingdom also inherited the Central Plains, so there is naturally not much difference between it and Jinling City... But if you have to say it, Your Highness will not go to greet the concubines and concubines in the harem this year. It can be regarded as a steal."

Although the Xia Kingdom mission was a foreign minister, since they were in Yun Kingdom, they would naturally come to see them on such an important festival as the New Year.

Well, it just happened to arrange the welcome banquet of the Xia Guo Mission and the banquet given by the officials at noon, which saved a lot of trouble.

King Qi didn't answer, but looked up at the majestic Xuanzheng Hall in front of him, and said in a heavy tone:

"If you have to choose this king, I would rather not steal this leisure..."

Feng Chu took a look at King Qi's expression, and immediately knew that he had made a slip of the tongue, so he shut up and stopped talking.

Just at this time, the time has come.

On the Meridian Gate, bells and drums were ringing immediately, and ritual music was played.The tall and tall general of the Imperial Army flicked his whip, and the officials shouted "Squad", all the officials of Yunguo slowly walked into the Xuanzheng Hall, and knelt down in line according to their ranks.

The Xia Guo Mission was a foreign minister, so naturally they did not salute, but bowed respectfully to show their honor.

Xiao Cheng was dressed in a black mian suit, wearing a twelve-pronged tiara on his head, and a wrathful dragon sword on his waist. Surrounded by the servants in the palace, he walked slowly to the throne of the Xuanzheng Hall.

After Xiao Cheng was promoted to the seat, Qu Cheng, who took over as Shangshuling after Ma Minwen resigned, stepped forward, kneeling and holding a congratulatory form.Li Cao officials immediately stepped forward to take it, and after reading the congratulatory form of the whole auspicious words, all the officials followed the old practice, kneeling three times and knocking nine times.

After this set of etiquette, it is considered to be the end of the New Year greetings to the emperor.

Xiao Chengduan sat on the dragon chair, looked around at all the officials in the hall, and immediately put his gaze on the most conspicuous Xia Guo mission in the hall, and said with a light smile:

"Where is His Royal Highness Xia Guoqi?"

King Qi frowned, took a step forward, bowed slightly, and said neither humble nor overbearing:

"I have seen His Majesty the Emperor of Yun Kingdom!"

"I didn't expect that the chief envoy of Xia Kingdom would be His Royal Highness King Qi!" Xiao Cheng said while looking at King Qi.

Xiao Cheng looked at the information collected about King Qi from Dongchang.

Yu Zhaoling, the nineteenth prince of Xia Kingdom.Her mother's family background was mediocre, and after she became an adult, she served in the army in the northern border of the Xia Kingdom. She was one of the few princes in the Xia Kingdom who joined the army.

His personality belongs to the kind of people who are famous for acting out of line and not following the rules.Talent is not evaluated for the time being, but it is extremely courageous.

The generals in the southwest of Xia Kingdom were directly slaughtered by him under the tremendous pressure from Xia Kingdom's government and opposition.Otherwise, if those generals were still there, the people in the counties in the southwestern part of the Xia Kingdom should have started an uprising long ago.

Compared with Xiao Cheng, his various ways of dealing with the enemy are more like what a time traveler should have.

On the other side, King Qi also raised his head slightly, looking at Xiao Cheng.

Rao had known about it long ago, but now when he really saw Xiao Cheng, he couldn't help being surprised.

Although the young emperor in front of King Qi was dressed in imperial clothes and looked majestic, his too young appearance told him that this young emperor was only fifteen or sixteen years old.

At the age of fifteen or sixteen, he had already dealt with the powerful ministers who wanted to usurp the throne and regained power.When the country was in danger, the imperial conquest was fought in person, defeating the two countries of Xia and Li in a row, and the country was about to fall.Now, taking advantage of several opportunities to attack Buddhism, it can be regarded as completely clearing away the obstacles in the country.

King Qi looked at Xiao Cheng with yearning in his eyes.

This is the real power of the emperor!
Xiao Cheng didn't know the complicated thoughts in King Qi's heart. After pondering for a moment, he chuckled again and said:

"I will not mention all the things in the past. His Royal Highness King Qi, the contract has been established. From now on, the two countries, Yun and Xia, wish to have a good relationship between the two countries forever, and there will be no more wars!"

King Qi came back to his senses, bowed his head and said:

"As His Majesty Yun expected, Xia and Yun will form a marriage relationship, and they will be like a family, and there will be no estrangement and disputes."

A group of hundreds of officials, that is, the Xia Guo Mission, congratulated in unison at this time:

"Congratulations to His Majesty! Congratulations to the people of the world!"

Hearing this, Xiao Cheng laughed loudly, looking happy for the peace between the two countries.

In fact, we all know that the purpose of this contract is to tear it up.

Perhaps Xiao Cheng, who had just traveled to this point back then and was still in jeopardy, all he could think of was to guard the land in the south of the sky, to have fun all day long, and to be the emperor of his Yun Kingdom.

But today, it is impossible to say that Xiao Cheng, who holds a golden finger in his hand, does not have the wild desire to send troops out of the Central Plains and dominate the world in his heart.

The peace treaty between Yun and Xia is just a piece of paper that is bound to be broken.

By the time the court was over, it was almost noon.According to the usual practice, the emperor would host a banquet for all officials.

In the Yunguo Imperial Palace, in the Linde Hall, which is specially responsible for entertaining officials, various meals are placed on the desks one by one.

But to the surprise of the envoys of the Xia Kingdom, they discovered that there were no futon cushions next to the desks near the gate of the main hall.If someone is dining here, they need to sit on the floor.

Li Cao officials in charge of the reception led the Xia Guo Mission to the front of the hall. As soon as they sat down, they saw many young officials in the hall. eager to try.

Feng Chu frowned, the smile on his face remained unchanged, he leaned slightly to King Qi's side, his lips moved a few times undetectably, and his voice was slightly vague:

"Your Highness, something is wrong!"

King Qi's eyes were fixed, but he didn't make a sound.

At this moment, under the gaze of the crowd, a well-looking young man walked up to Feng Chu, the deputy envoy of the Xia Guo Mission, saluted slightly, and said:
"Please enlighten me, my lord!"

The smile on Feng Chu's face stagnated, his eyes blinked, and he said:

"Give, teach... what?"

Um?Are the young officials of Yunguo so wild!Want to beat yourself, the deputy envoy of the Xia Kingdom, in the palace?This is a bit out of martial arts.

I wasn't the one who led the army to attack Yunguo, the Lord is sitting next to him, you go and beat him!

King Qi frowned slightly, and subconsciously looked up at Xiao Cheng.

I saw Xiao Cheng leaning on the armrest with one hand, looking at them with great interest.

Seeing this, Zhang Zhao stood up, cupped his hands and said:
"Forgive me, everyone, I forgot to explain it before! The rules set by the Emperor Taizu of Yunguo back then were to test the talents and learning of hundreds of officials in the court. The banquet on the first day of the first month of each year allowed hundreds of officials to exchange experience with each other. Shi Kao debates cross-excuse each other, and those who lose slightly must give up their seats!"

Zhang Zhao pointed to the unpadded desks at the gate of the hall, and said:

"If you are defeated, and you have never won the position of any adult, you need to sit on the ground over there!"

The corner of King Qi's mouth twitched, and he couldn't help saying:

"really?"

Are you sure that this broken rule is not something we came up with on the spur of the moment to punish us?

Zhang Zhao nodded and said solemnly:

"For 600 years in Yunguo, everything has been like this."

This rule is naturally true, but ordinary officials in previous years just regard this rule as a joke that can be played among a few friends.

After all, as long as they still wanted to hang around in the court and didn't want to be put on by others, few people would be so stupid as to grab the seats of those big figures in the palace.

But this year, when the Xia Guo Mission came, it was naturally different.

After all, they were considered guests, and the seats Yun Guo arranged for them were all at the front of the hall.

With this position, not only can you show your face in front of His Majesty and the big shots in the court, but you don't have to worry about being put on small shoes.Moreover, the ruling and opposition parties were also dissatisfied because Xia Guo provoked the war, and they were happy to see Xia Guo's mission lose face.

It's an elegant thing to say, and even if Xia Guo suffered a disadvantage, it was because Xia Guo didn't have a well-educated person, so he couldn't accuse Yun Guo of deliberately making things difficult.

Hearing this, Feng Chu couldn't help but look at King Qi at the side.

King Qi didn't speak, but nodded slightly at Feng Chu.

It's all at the cusp of this crisis, compared to losing a seat, it's more disrespectful to avoid the challenge!

Feng Chu looked helpless, so he had no choice but to bite the bullet and say:
"I don't know what this lord wants to compare to?"

The young official raised his head slightly and said:

"How about writing a poem each?"

What else could Feng Chu do, he could only nod in agreement.

A smile flashed in the eyes of the young official, and he said in a loud voice:
"Dragon sits on a dragon's plate, and the immortals line up with egrets. Give a feast with jade and sweet wine, and bring incense to your sleeves. When you are close to Juntian, you will show your kindness. The virtuous and talented are valuable, and you are ashamed of being humble."

When everyone around heard the words, their whole body trembled, goosebumps stood up, and they looked at him with expressions of astonishment.

This rhetorical and gorgeous poem cannot be said to have any profound meaning.The meaning expressed throughout the text is to flatter the emperor and thank the emperor for giving him the opportunity to show himself in front of everyone.

Such an accumulation of rhetoric requires constant scrutiny of the poem. It is impossible to come up with it here, and it must have been prepared long ago.

Now here brazenly chanting such verses loudly, it's not because of Feng Chu's remaining position!Looking at the young official on the dragon chair with a slight smile on the corner of his mouth, the emperor of Yunguo knew the real purpose of this young official.

Feng Chu opened his mouth, then looked at the young official, and said rather complicatedly:

"Dare to ask this lord, his name."

A young man who can flatter so shamelessly and seize every opportunity to express himself to the leader will surely be able to make a good appearance in the future!
Now that he was asking about his name, he might not be able to get in touch with this young official when dealing with Yun Guo in the future!

The young official took a cautious look at Xiao Cheng, who was at the top, and seeing His Majesty looking at him with a smile on his lips, he was overjoyed, and quickly said loudly:
"Yan Song, I have met you all!"

On the dragon chair, seeing Yan Song in the hall expressing himself so deliberately, Xiao Cheng suddenly couldn't help laughing, and turned his head to look at the other side of the hall.

At the place Xiao Cheng was looking at, a young official with a thin figure and a solemn expression looked at Yan Song's unconcealed joy at this time, his brows were frowned, and his expression was slightly unhappy.
-
In the Yongxin Hall of the Harem, Concubine Zhang sat at the head, looked at the concubines of the Harem who were present, and said with a light smile:
"Today, entrusted by His Majesty, please gather everyone together, it will be considered lively!"

As mentioned before, in order to cover up his plan to dig a tunnel and get out of the palace, Xiao Cheng's cheap Laozi made an absurd and lustful appearance to confuse Wang Xiao.

As a result, in the harem, apart from Concubine Zhang who was born in the Ailao clan and had raised Xiao Cheng, there were more than 20 concubines of the late emperor.

At this time, all these concubines gathered in Concubine Zhang's Yongxin Palace.

It's just that among these concubines, most of them put on a forced smile, and they didn't look happy for the new year.Many people looked at Concubine Zhang, as if hesitating to speak.

Concubine Zhang has been in the palace for many years, she was able to treat these late emperors and concubines submissively, so she can see their thoughts at a glance.

She glanced at the concubines lightly, and said with a light smile:
"On the first day of the new year, be happy."

Concubine Zhang paused, and said again:

"By the way, Your Majesty is benevolent and doesn't want a palace wall to hinder the family happiness of mother and child. After today's banquet, everyone is allowed to leave the palace and go to the palace to cultivate and cultivate."

Xiao Cheng didn't have any feelings for the concubines, and he hadn't even met the brothers a few times, so he naturally didn't want to sit with a large group of strangers on New Year's Eve.

So in order to avoid trouble, Xiao Cheng simply skipped the ceremony of meeting the kings, and just had a New Year's Eve dinner with Concubine Zhang, Nan Rongshu, and Yang Yuhuan.

All the concubines live in the harem, and they don't see their sons a few times throughout the year, and they haven't seen each other at this time of the new year, so they all look depressed.

But hearing what Concubine Zhang said, all the concubines' eyes lit up, and they looked at her in disbelief.

"Your Majesty, can you really leave the palace?" A concubine couldn't help trembling.

Concubine Zhang nodded and said:
"Your Majesty has issued an imperial decree, so naturally there will be no false ones!"

When all the concubines heard the words, their faces immediately showed joy, and some couldn't help themselves, their eyes were red, and they knelt down on the ground, saying repeatedly:
"Thank you, Your Majesty, thank you, Your Majesty!"

"Thank you, Empress Dowager, for your kindness!"

Living in this deep palace, separated from his own flesh and blood, the loneliness is unbearable.At this time, when they suddenly heard that they were able to leave the palace, these concubines were naturally ecstatic and extremely excited.

Seeing this, Concubine Zhang frowned, raised her hand and signaled the maid to help the crowd up, and said in a deep voice:

"Emperor Ji Rou Ning is still here, don't lose your composure!"

When the concubines heard the words, they were startled, and couldn't help looking at the three beautiful women with different temperaments sitting next to Concubine Zhang.

Needless to say, Nan Rongshu and Yang Yuhuan were sitting on the left of Concubine Zhang.On the right hand side, wearing a light blue palace dress and emerald jewels, a woman with a gentle temperament and beautiful facial features sat quietly aside.

This woman is Xia Guorou Ningdiji who was invited by Concubine Zhang.

Although she has not officially entered the palace, even the half of the Queen's ceremonial guard has been given, and her identity has been settled. If she is invited into the harem, no one will say anything.

Concubine Zhang saw that the emotions of all the concubines gradually stabilized, so she opened her mouth and said:

"After leaving the palace, the palace maids and eunuchs who should have the corresponding positions will be allocated as usual. After leaving the palace, you still need to be careful, so as not to lose the royal dignity!"

He is willing to let them out of the palace because His Majesty has kind thoughts in his heart.But there are some things that require her to be the villain, lest someone really go too far after leaving the palace and do something that would lose the face of the royal family.

All the concubines were oppressed by Concubine Zhang for half their lives, and they knew her very well, so they naturally understood the meaning of her words, and quickly responded respectfully.

"Please don't worry, Empress Dowager!"

Concubine Zhang nodded, looked at Emperor Ji Rou Ning with a gentle expression, and said:

"Let Di Ji laugh!"

Yu Yingyao shook her head slightly, and said in a very gentle voice:
"His Majesty Yun Huang has kind thoughts in his heart, and there is nothing ridiculous about the true feelings of the concubines."

Such a woman with a gentle temperament, appropriate words, and a gentle tone, even Concubine Zhang, couldn't help but feel joy in her heart, and the corners of her mouth couldn't help but lift up when she saw her.

On the other side, Nan Rongshu and Yang Yuhuan looked at the woman with a beautiful face and a gentle temperament, and they couldn't help but feel good about each other, and the alarm bells rang in their hearts.

Here comes another man who robs me of a man! *2--
"May I ask this lord, when will our diplomatic mission enter the palace to meet His Majesty?"

In the State Guesthouse, a man in the official uniform of the Li Dynasty asked the officials of the State Guesthouse.

Hearing this, Cao officials shook their heads and said:
"Today, on the first day of the first lunar month, His Majesty has a banquet for all the officials, and there is really no time."

Among the missions, several young officials frowned and couldn't help saying:

"I heard that the Xia Kingdom Mission only arrived in Zhongqing City the day before I waited?"

Li Cao officials nodded and said casually:

"Yes!"

"What about them?"

"Let's go to the palace to have a banquet together today, let's pay homage to His Majesty!"

When Li Chao's envoys heard the words, they frowned immediately.

Another Li Dynasty official couldn't help saying:

"Then I'm only one day late, so I don't need to go to the banquet?"

"There is no summon in the palace, so naturally there is no need to go to the banquet."

When the Li Dynasty official who asked the question heard it, he was furious and said:

"In order to congratulate His Majesty the Emperor of your country on the New Year, I hurried all the way for fear of missing it. How did I not get summoned when I arrived in Yun Country?"

Looking at the envoys of the Li Dynasty who looked angry, Li Cao officials showed a hint of sneer in their eyes, and then said:

"According to the etiquette, you should go to the banquet. But because His Majesty is busy today, you may not know that you are coming, so you have not invited me. You don't need to worry, just wait at ease, His Majesty will summon you!"

"We are the Da'an Shangguo mission, representing the face of a country. Is this rudeness the attitude of Yunguo towards the mission?" The young and impatient Li Dynasty official's voice was full of anger and viciousness He looked at Li Cao's officials intently, and even had a faint gesture of making a move.

Li Cao officials frowned, also dissatisfied in their hearts, and said in a neutral way:
"What's the matter, the mission you came to last time didn't see His Majesty either."

You, Li Chao, are the ones who have been beaten up, and you pretend to be some kind of uncle in Zhongqing City.Still going to Daan to go to the country, who will recognize it!

"you……"

"Enough!" The chief envoy of the mission, the clan of the Li Dynasty, Aohou Lihu, stopped him with a sound.

Hearing this, some indignant officials among the missions of the Li Dynasty stopped immediately.

Li Hu didn't seem to see the ridicule and disdain of the official from Yunguo at this time, and said calmly:

"I am here at the king's order to sign a peace treaty with Yun and Xia. There is no delay in such a major event. I will trouble you to report it for me as soon as possible."

It was related to the relationship between the two countries, even if the court of Yunguo looked down upon Li Dynasty with contempt, it would not be possible to use this method.It's nothing more than these difficult low-level officials in Yunguo taking the opportunity to deliberately make things difficult.

A weak country has no diplomacy, this sentence can be applied anywhere!

The Li Dynasty's national power was greatly damaged, and now it can only rely on the defense line of Anpei County to maintain it.In order to prevent the Yun Kingdom from raising troops and free up its hands to restore its national strength as soon as possible, it is natural that it will not be hardened.No matter how much humiliation he receives, can he still turn the table over?

Hearing the head envoy of the Li Dynasty bow his head and give in, the low-level official of Li Cao suddenly felt relieved, his face softened a little, he nodded and said something polite, and said:

"The responsibility lies, so I dare not neglect it!"

Li Hu's expression remained unchanged, and he said to Li Cao officials again:
"It's work!"

Li Hu's face darkened slightly after sending away the courteous officials who appeared to be obedient and courteous, but in fact they were incomparably rebellious.

In the Li Dynasty, he, Li Hu, was one of the nine ministers, the clan of the Li Dynasty, how could he be so humble?
"Aohou, you just..." an official of the mission couldn't help but said.

With a sullen face, Li Hu said:
"These brats are very difficult to deal with! Guochao is currently in a weak position. In order to gain a breathing space, he can only be submissive and be a villain. Remember, if you can't bear it, you will make a big mess. You are already in the city of Qing in Yunguo. You must not spoil the affairs of the country because of a moment of indignation!"

When the officials heard the words, they lowered their heads rather aggrieved, and they should have said so.

Li Hu took a deep breath, turned and walked towards the room.

When he turned around, Li Hu suddenly glanced at Chen Liyan, who had been standing aside just now, with a cold and ugly look.

At this moment, Chen Liyan looked at the humiliated colleagues around him and felt their humiliation.These colleagues would think of him from time to time, and look at him with eyes full of anger and anger.

He knew very well that this was not directed at him, but to vent his anger at his father, Chen Feng.

Ever since his father Chen Feng's defeat in the war caused the country to suffer heavy losses, he has often seen this kind of look.

And it was the second time in just a few months that he felt the humiliation that made these colleagues go crazy, the disgrace that everyone in the court of Yunguo despised and ignored.

Chen Liyan narrowed his eyes slightly, took a few deep breaths, stood up suddenly, and walked slowly to the courtyard full of young colleagues.

Seven or eight guards of the Li Dynasty Mission wearing armor and covering their faces with iron armor, exuding an inexplicable cold aura, saw Chen Liyan leave suddenly, and quickly followed behind him.

Walking to a place where no one was around, Chen Liyan suddenly paused, and said in a voice that only a few people around him could hear:

"Are you ready?"

"Don't worry, Major General, nothing will go wrong this time!"

"it is good……"

(End of this chapter)