Datang: Ten Years of Proton, Leading an Army of Millions to Return

The palace maid was about to be dragged away. Anyone with a discerning eye could see that Concubine Lan was taking the opportunity to show off her power. Just as Sister Yuan was hesitating whether to admit her mistake, Li Kuan suddenly made a move that shocked everyone.

In full view of everyone, he swaggeredly picked an orchid, and then put it on Sister Yuan's head!

Before anyone could react, Li Kuan said, "This flower is nice."

Everyone was confused for a moment. When did orchids become a reward?

Guo Shoujing also wondered

"Your Majesty, what do you mean?"

“The cure for the plague was due to the blessing of God on Yan and the well-being of the people. I just did my little bit and I don’t dare to take credit for it.

"My sister is naughty by nature. When she saw the orchids planted by Concubine Lan, she liked them very much, so I came to reward her."

As soon as the voice fell, Guo Shoujing reacted immediately. Curing the plague was indeed a great achievement, and it stands to reason that he should be rewarded accordingly.

But Li Kuan was now the emperor of Dayan, and he was already powerful enough. Guo Shoujing would feel distressed if the money in the national treasury just flowed out like that.

No matter who picked the flowers, they can neither be eaten nor feed the army.

It's better to be a smooth favor.

"Your Majesty is the emperor of Great Yan, a rare talent in Great Yan. His sister likes orchids, so what if Your Majesty reluctantly gives up her love? This orchid was indeed a gift."

Changle and others laughed secretly, and could not help but admire Li Kuan's wisdom and intelligence.

Everyone was a little confused. After such a great achievement, he just wanted to eat a flower. Isn't Guo Shoujing too stingy? Lan Fei's face was even uglier:
"How come I have never heard of the orchid reward? Moreover, even if it was your Majesty's order, this servant dared not inform me, and should be punished. If you can't even teach a scary person a lesson, then where will your Majesty and I put our dignity?"

"This..." Li Kuan looked embarrassed again. Guo Shoujing beside him thought for a moment and continued:
"Your Majesty is not only gracious, but also has great literary talent that I admire greatly. Your Majesty is like clouds and water that can carry a boat, but can also capsize it. Your admonitions to the officials and the people are the foundation of the country."

"And every time there was a famine, Your Majesty would sympathize with the people and order tax reductions, which shows that Your Majesty is kind-hearted. The people also praised Your Majesty for loving the people like their own children."

"Now that all nations have come to pay homage to the Tang Dynasty, Your Majesty did not punish me for a flower, which shows that Your Majesty believes that people are more important than flowers. If other small nations knew about this, they would surely be convinced."

"If your majesty insisted on making twenty canes for the maids because of an orchid, and if someone spread the news, it would make the monarchs of those small countries confused and wonder why in your majesty's heart, people are not as important as a flower. Your majesty has always been wise, so there is no need for me to say more."

That’s right, that’s right. With all the nations coming to pay tribute, it’s a good opportunity to publicize the power of our Great Tang. How could we make a mistake because of such a small matter?

Li Kuan cried out that he was confused and began to thank Guo Shoujing from the bottom of his heart for coming.

The palace maid also knew that she was able to escape today because of Li Kuan, and she looked at him with admiration and gratitude.

At this moment, Concubine Lan looked like a deflated balloon, her face looking extremely ugly.

But she was still unwilling: "Your Majesty, you must be your concubine..."

"That's enough. You still don't understand? I have made my words so clear. Do you want me to have a reputation of being unrighteous in front of the monarchs of those small countries?"

Li Kuan snorted coldly, and Concubine Lan immediately knelt on the ground. Guo Shoujing stepped forward and suggested

"The monarchs of those small countries are only temporarily scared. If you want them to submit to Your Majesty forever, you have to use both kindness and force. In my opinion, it is not easy for the envoys of those small countries to come to Yanyun City. It is better to order all the flowers in this imperial garden to be picked and rewarded to them."

"Oh," Li Kuan became interested, "Oh, it's nice to show flowers to the envoys."

"Your Majesty. Those small countries are all barbarians with no moral integrity. In addition to using force to scare them, we must also let them understand the culture of our Central Plains."

"For example, this orchid is one of the four gentlemen among flowers. It symbolizes nobleness and the character of scholars. Your Majesty, if you give it to the envoys of those small countries, they will surely be influenced by our Central Plains culture. Then, the customs of those small countries will gradually move closer to that of the Tang Dynasty, and they will be completely convinced by our Tang Dynasty."

Guo Shoujing said slowly.

"Your words make sense, Principal Guo, you are really quick-witted. Okay, I will follow your instructions this time."

The original incident was turned into a happy ending thanks to the cleverness of Li Kuan and Guo Shoujing, except for the troublemaker Concubine Lan. Li Kuan scolded her in front of foreign officials, which made her completely lose face.

After glaring at the palace maid, Concubine Lan ran away in shame.

After Guo Shoujing left, Li Kuan squatted down and pinched Sister Yuan's little face:
"My dear, if I'm not mistaken, you probably picked these flowers."

How could Li Kuan hide Sister Yuan's thoughts? Besides, little Yuanyuan was not a child who liked to lie. The reason why she didn't admit it just now was because she was frightened by Lan Fei's beating.

She stamped her feet and snorted coldly:
"Humph, it's all because of you, this stinky brother-in-law, who broke his promise. He said he would play with Yuanyuan, but she couldn't find you at all. I just missed you, this..."

"Your Majesty, don't blame Yuanyuan too much," Changle consoled.

"It's my fault for not being able to persuade her in time. I thought that Lan Fei would turn a blind eye to such a small flower, but I didn't expect that she could be so unreasonable. If I had been able to take good care of Yuanyuan at that time, this incident would not have happened."

"Changle, this is not your fault. Yuanyuan is a smart little girl. I was away for only a short while and she sneaked onto the battlefield."

Li Kuan was helpless and pinched Yuanyuan lovingly again, "General Yuchi, I know you are helping my sister Yuan, I thank you here.

"You and I have fought for our lives on the battlefield, so why talk about these useless things?" Yuchi Gong smiled heartily, but soon sighed.

"But I, Yuchi Gong, have fought on the battlefield for most of my life. Today, I finally showed my respect, but I was not appreciated. If it weren't for your resourcefulness, I would have been suppressed by the so-called Concubine Lan."

"General Yuchi, you are the pillar of Dayan and a meritorious official of the country. You don't need to argue with those people."

Li Kuan said to Sister Yuan, "Yuanyuan, apologize to General Yuchi, and then go apologize to that sister."

The maid lived in the palace, so she must understand the ways of the world.

When the sister of the Great Yan Emperor apologized to her, she immediately became extremely terrified.

Li Kuan smiled:
"Don't worry, although my daughter Yuanyuan is a little naughty, she is very kind-hearted. She did something wrong, and it's only right for her to admit it."

Little Yuanyuan did everything Li Kuan said, and then he came to Li Kuan carefully and said, "Brother-in-law, I was wrong this time, but I really miss you. Can you come home and play with me?" Princess Changle also said, "Yes, you and Ruxue are busy, and Yuanyuan is actually quite lonely. If I'm not mistaken, this little girl should be thinking about you while she is picking flowers."

Li Kuan sighed. He was really too busy these days. He recalled those lazy days. He actually missed them a lot. So he picked up Yuanyuan:

"Yuanyuan, be good. This is your brother-in-law's fault. I will take you home now and spend time with you in the future."

………………

Inside the Li Mansion.

Although yesterday's experience was not very pleasant, Li Kuan had promised himself to make time to accompany Sister Yuanyuan. In addition, Xiao Yuanyuan was the kind of person who was "happy and fat", so she got up early the next morning at dawn to go play with Li Kuan.

Li Kuan neither stayed in the room nor lay in his rocking chair that day. Instead, he was digging the soil and sowing something.

Xiao Yuanyuan ran over happily and climbed onto his shoulders.
"Brother-in-law, what delicious food are you preparing for Yuanyuan?"

This little ancestor is getting fatter and fatter, and it seems that he is growing up well.

Li Kuan put her down and said, "You are such a smart kid, you only know how to eat. But this is not something to eat."

"It's not food, what is my brother-in-law busy doing?" Xiao Yuanyuan's mouth shrank. "I don't care, my brother-in-law should make me candied haws as soon as possible."

"Okay, okay, I'll give it to you after I finish growing the orchids. I'll go with you, my little ancestor, to make candied haws, okay?"

Orchids, why does my brother-in-law plant these? Looking at the suspicious Li Kuan, he said:
"Didn't you pick someone else's orchid last time? Now your brother-in-law will plant it for you. When you grow up, Yuanyuan can pick as many as she wants."

"Although my brother-in-law is busy and doesn't have time to spend more time with others, I will do my best to get whatever Yuanyuan wants and likes. I will never let Yuanyuan suffer the anger of that vicious old woman again."

Her round face suddenly turned red, and her eyes were a little sour. How could she like orchids? The reason she picked the flowers was because her stinky brother-in-law refused to pay attention to her.

She shook Li Kuan's neck:
"Then brother-in-law, don't be lazy, plant them for me quickly. If you still refuse to pay attention to me, I will pick them all."

"Okay, okay, I'll plant it for Sister Yuan."

"Also, my brother-in-law still has to make me some candied haws, and I want two bunches."

"Okay, two bunches of candied haws."

The two laughed wildly, and the Li Mansion was filled with laughter.
……

today
The sky is clear and auspicious clouds are rising, which is a sign of good fortune for China.
Guo Shoujing got up early today and asked the maids to change into dignified dresses.

Now Li Kuan, the greatest contributor to the defeat of Goguryeo, has returned, and Heshen has also prepared everything that needs to be prepared in an orderly manner.

Today is the day for celebration and to receive tributes from all nations. Guo Shoujing is the prime minister of Dayan. How can he be worthy of himself if he doesn't show off today?
Li Kuan prefers a leisurely life. Most of the time, he just wants to be a salted fish in peace and contentment.

However, his strength does not allow him to keep a low profile or not show off. Moreover, today's grand occasion can be regarded as a once-in-a-century event. It is the time to show the power of the Great Yan nation and the prestige of the Han family, so he has also made careful preparations.

Of course before leaving, unable to resist the pestering, he prepared several more candied haws for Xiao Yuanyuan.

After he promised to bring her something fun when he returned, Sister Yuan let him go and agreed to his suggestion to temporarily go find Princess Changle.

As for the envoys from small countries, although many of them had objections to the strength of the Tang Dynasty before, and some even harbored evil intentions, now that Goguryeo has been defeated and subdued, what else can these small countries think?
In addition, they had been in Chang'an for some time. Although they had been mentally prepared, the prosperity of Dayan still far exceeded their imagination. They were unable to move just by walking to the palace gate.

"So good, so big, so prosperous!"

The envoys from these small countries were stunned by the scene before them.

"Such a tall tower, such a magnificent building, in their minds, even if it is the place where gods live, it is no more than this."

The capital and buildings that he once took pride in, compared to Yanyun City and the Daming Palace, are nothing.

Many envoys from small countries spoke hesitantly in broken Chinese while swallowing their saliva carefully.

Because the sound is too loud,

One envoy was afraid of losing face, so he looked around for signals, and the other envoys did the same.

Under the careful guidance of the officials of Dayan, they finally started walking towards the main hall. Along the way, many people whispered to each other:

"Wow, Dayan's palace is so beautiful, more than ten times more beautiful than my Silla's palace."

"In the past, when Mobei was in a famine, we had to gnaw on tree bark and eat grass roots. The amount of food in Yanyun City and the deliciousness of the food are simply beyond our reach.

"I also saw many new and wonderful things on the street. They are both beautiful and practical. We don't have them in the Western Region at all."

"There are so many people living in Yanyun City, but not only are they well fed, but they also wear gorgeous and beautiful clothes. This is totally incredible."

The envoys from the small countries were discussing anxiously, although the aspects of their vehicles were different.

But to sum up, Dayan is awesome, Yanyun City is awesome, and their previous evil intentions were so absurd and ridiculous.

At this time, Guo Shoujing was standing on a high place, looking down at them.

He frowned and asked Heshen beside him in confusion:
"Sir, why are all these envoys opening their mouths wide and looking panic-stricken? This doesn't seem to make sense!"

"Master Guo, don't worry. Most of the envoys who come to pay tribute are from small countries. When they see the prosperity of Great Yan, they will naturally forget the basic etiquette for a while."

"I heard that an envoy from the Western Regions was so moved that he burst into tears after eating a chili pepper. He said it was the best thing he had ever eaten in his life."

(End of this chapter)