The prince is more stable

Chapter 113 The Origin of the Liao Envoy
When doing things, you don't necessarily have to have some purpose related to interests. It's also okay to do it purely for fun.

As long as it makes you happy, you can do things that harm others and yourself.

There are not so many goals in life that can be achieved step by step. The old line in Hong Kong dramas, "As a human being, just be happy", is actually a truth that has been proven thousands of times and is applicable everywhere if you think about it carefully.

Zhao Xiaoqian was originally talking nonsense with Qian Zhongshen, but the more he talked, the more interesting it became.

Especially imagine Xiao Guangjing being kicked out of the gambling house with his bare bottom, that scene...

After I go back, I will probably be nicknamed "The Shame of Liao".

This just echoes with Zhao Xiaoqian, the "Light of the Song Dynasty", and everyone is shining in their respective fields.

It is really difficult to walk from the city gate to the inn.

Before they had walked halfway, everyone was feeling a little exhausted, and Zhao Xiaoqian was certainly not feeling much better.

So under Qian Zhongshen's pitiful plea, Zhao Xiaoqian went with the flow and proudly agreed to ride in the carriage.

The Guanyi Inn is located next to the Honglu Temple on Yu Street and was specially used by the imperial court to receive foreign envoys.

When everyone got off the carriage, officials from the Ministry of Rites and the Honglu Temple were waiting for them at the door.

Zhao Xiaoqian smiled and invited Xiao Guangjing in. A sumptuous banquet had been arranged in the inn.

What follows is a national-level social reception banquet.

Both sides gave speeches, toasted each other, introduced their own officials and entourage, etc.

Ever since Xiao Guangjing was taught a lesson by Zhao Xiaoqian outside the city gate, his attitude has become much more polite. At the banquet, he would stand up when he should and hold the cup when he should, and no longer acted like he was bullying the weak.

There was no way, the historian named Huang Zhen from the Song Dynasty was also at the banquet. Xiao Guangjing noticed with his sharp eyes that the historian was not holding a wine glass in his hand, but a stack of white paper, as if he was ready to write furiously at any time and make you infamous for eternity.

Xiao Guangjing was really a little scared. He didn't care about his reputation in history books. What he was afraid of was that the King of Liao would be unhappy.

Halfway through the banquet, Zhao Xiaoqian, who was drunk and flushed, was patted on the shoulder several times.

Wei Jie stood behind him with a smile and quietly handed him a piece of paper.

Zhao Xiaoqian took it, glanced at it quickly, and curled the corners of his mouth slightly.

Written on the paper was the detailed information of Xiao Guangjing.

After the envoys of the two countries met, the first stage was to understand each other and test each other.

After gaining an in-depth understanding of the other party and grasping their strengths and weaknesses, going to the negotiation table is actually the final step.

Therefore, after Xiao Guangjing entered the city, he found Zhao Xiaoqian's information. Similarly, Zhao Xiaoqian also wanted to check Xiao Guangjing.

After taking a casual glance at the information on the paper, Zhao Xiaoqian had a general idea of ​​Xiao Guangjing's background.

What’s interesting is that this Liao envoy was actually a playboy.

Such a serious and important matter as the negotiations between the two countries was actually handed over to two playboys. If Zhao Xiaoqian was not one of the parties involved, he could not help but sigh, "What a joke."

Xiao Guangjing was twenty-five years old and came from a very rich Liao noble family.

His father was named Xiao Wuna, who was granted the title of Prince of Lanling in the Liao Dynasty. He was in charge of Huanglong Prefecture and served as the commander of the Northeast Road Army. He was also responsible for monitoring the Jurchen tribes.

The King of Liao valued Xiao Wuna very much, and even often compared Xiao Wuna to Di Renjie, who assisted the emperor in the Tang Dynasty. Judging from his official position of holding military power in the northeastern route of the Liao Kingdom, Xiao Guangjing's father was indeed a very important figure in the Liao Kingdom.

This time, the Liao Kingdom sent an envoy to the Song Dynasty and chose Xiao Guangjing. To put it bluntly, it was for Xiao Wuna's sake that they let his son come to gain experience. After all, the Song Dynasty was weak and this trip was not challenging at all. Xiao Guangjing was equivalent to using a wooden sword to chop monsters in the novice village, purely to gain experience points.

As for the character analysis of Xiao Guangjing...

The intelligence from the Imperial City Bureau was vague, with only a few sentences. To sum it up, this person was a complete playboy. He had all the bad habits that a playboy should have, such as bullying men and women, and teasing cats and dogs. He had done all of them.

With the information handed over by the Imperial City Bureau, Zhao Xiaoqian had a clear idea in his mind. Zhao Xiaoqian had a general impression of Xiao Guangjing, but his father's identity caught Zhao Xiaoqian's attention.

Northeastern Army Commander, "monitoring the Jurchen tribes"...

"Xiao Wuna", Zhao Xiaoqian remembered this name deeply in his heart.

The atmosphere of the banquet was quite harmonious. Of course, there were also some awkward moments, after all, both sides had some unpleasantness outside the city gate.

Zhao Xiaoqian and Xiao Guangjing tacitly agreed not to talk about business, and even rarely exchanged normal greetings. It was just you toasting me a glass and I toasting you back, and the two of them forced out ugly smiles and spoke dry and meaningless words.

Such as "The weather is so nice today", "The road is not easy to walk on", "Why are you wearing mink fur when it's so hot?"

Friends who are often taught by Japanese teachers know that this kind of lines are exactly the same as those in Japanese action movies. Impatient friends pinch their hearts with one hand and press the fast-forward button with the other hand.

After the banquet, Qian Zhongshen arranged for the Liao envoys to stay in the inn, and Zhao Xiaoqian no longer worried about them. Before leaving, he called Qian Zhongshen to a secluded place and quietly instructed him to ask the officials of the Honglu Temple to accompany Xiao Guangjing to have a good stroll in the city of Bianjing in the next few days.

Zhao Xiaoqian emphasized the word "stroll". Qian Zhongshen seemed to understand and then looked embarrassed.

Zhao Xiaoqian was very dissatisfied with Qian Zhongshen's attitude.

Others have come to extort money, but you still want to maintain the so-called demeanor and face of a superior country. You deserve to be bullied for more than a hundred years.

No longer relying on Qian Zhongshen, Zhao Xiaoqian personally set up the trap for Xiao Guangjing.

…………

After throwing the Liao envoy into the inn, Zhao Xiaoqian no longer cared about him.

Next is a cooling-off period for both parties. Let them hang out for ten days or half a month before making any decisions.

When Zhao Xiaoqian returned to the palace, he looked exhausted. He was a little drunk from the wine he drank at noon, so he lay down in the room and took a nap before he recovered.

After waking up in the afternoon, the maid came to report that a idler named Zhang Xiaoyi was outside the door asking to see him.

Zhao Xiaoqian immediately put on his clothes and went out.

Yes, Zhang Xiaoyi was taken in by the Imperial City Bureau, or to be more precise, by Zhao Xiaoqian.

Originally, Zhao Xiaoqian planned to make him a spy for the Imperial City Bureau and he could also receive a monthly salary, but Zhang Xiaoyi refused. He was originally an idle man in the city and had a natural resistance to the government.

Later, Zhao Xiaoqian changed his words and asked him to work for him, and Zhang Xiaoyi agreed.

Zhang Xiaoyi was against the government, but not against Zhao Xiaoqian. The two had come into contact several times, and Zhang Xiaoyi could see that the Prince of Chu was not a bad person.

The key point is that when they say they will give money, they really do, not a penny less.

Working for such a person makes me feel at ease.

From then on, Zhang Xiaoyi was responsible for finding out all kinds of rumors and intelligence about the people in Bianjing city. He only reported to Zhao Xiaoqian, but was unwilling to have any intersection with the Imperial City Bureau.

Today Zhang Xiaoyi brought two people, two people that Zhao Xiaoqian really needs.

The people were standing in the side courtyard of the palace. It was not the first time that Zhang Xiaoyi came to the palace. He had been here several times before to report intelligence. He was very calm at this time and comforted the other two uneasy people from time to time.

After Zhao Xiaoqian arrived at the side courtyard, the three of them saluted him together, and then Zhang Xiaoyi began to introduce the two people.

"Liu Ah Da, the chef at the Zanhua Tower in Zhouqiao, is responsible for carving radishes. A plate of his crispy radishes sells for ten coins."

"Sun Museng, a tombstone carver on the outskirts of West City, has been in this business for three generations. It's said that the dead who have had their tombstones carved by his grandsons are all blessed with good fortune and will become kings, dukes, or prime ministers in their next lives..."

Zhao Xiaoqian glanced at Zhang Xiaoyi and asked, "Is this a five-star review from the customer himself?"

(End of this chapter)