Chapter 457: The Prosperous Dinner Party and the Emperor’s Little Brother
Hanjing, on the west side of Dali Palace.
Inside a majestic and gorgeous palace with a plaque named "Jinxiu Weiyang".
There is a palace feast being held.
The Young Emperor of Dali hosted a banquet for the Confucian scholars from Linlu Academy who had come all the way. Senior civil and military officials of the fifth rank and above from Liting, as well as nobles above the viscount level were all present to take care of Confucian scholars such as Zhao Rong and Gu Yiwu.
When Zhao Rong entered the palace in the evening, he did not bring Xiao Qian'er and Su Xianzi with him, but only Li Bai.
The latter disguised himself as a guard and entered the palace together. Zhao Rong knew that he liked to drink, so he would definitely have enough wine in Dali tonight. In Li Bai's words, "You have a conscience."
Gu Yiwu and the students of Zhengyi Hall did not bring any accompanying female relatives.
At that time, they were thinking about socializing with men, and it would be quite inconvenient to bring women along with them.
However, when they arrived, Zhao Rong and Gu Yiwu looked at each other.
At the banquet in Weiyang Palace, except for the unmarried young emperor and the unsmiling regent Li Mingyi, most of the high-ranking civil and military officials brought their wives or children and other family members.
And not long after Zhao Rong started the banquet, he felt that the atmosphere in Dali seemed to be quite open...
But it didn't matter. At the subsequent feast, a beautiful lady with long sleeves and good dancing was arranged for them to accompany them, and they were fed wine by the glass.
But at the banquet in Weiyang Palace, the Dugu family who listened behind the curtain did not come to attend.
Thinking about it, as a widow and a queen whose mother had divorced her, she had to try her best to avoid such lively and social banquets.
In addition, you should avoid being alone with strong men on any occasion, just like you did when you greeted Zhao Rong and others outside Hanjing at noon today.
It is said that there is a lot of trouble at the widow's door.
Zhao Rong said secretly.
Well, beautiful widows are even worse, and beautiful widows who are rich or powerful... Zhao Rong is willing to call it a killer.
His experience in reading history showed that men in any dynasty throughout the ages would be extremely interested in any gossip about widows.
Therefore, if a widow like the Dugu family is even a little careless, such as summoning a military commander or minister to talk, accidentally closing the door or something.
If some provocative words leak out, it will probably spread throughout Hanjing overnight and arouse heated discussions among the people of Dali.
And if this incident happened to the Empress Dowager Dugu, it would definitely be recorded in the unofficial history, for future generations of Dali to talk about with pleasure after dinner.
By then, there are probably countless little stories that can be imagined behind the closed door.
The legend is vivid and vivid, which is called three people becoming a tiger.
Well, even if the time to open the door is short, no matter how short it is, you can still get things done, right?
Zhao Rong couldn't help but nodded.
Good guy, if you look at it this way, the ministers in the imperial court are probably afraid of talking to the Dugu family. They are frightened. If they accidentally connect it with a word about speed, maybe they can make out the idiom.
Paying homage to history?
At this time, as the Dugu family was not present, Zhao Rong and Gu Yiwu looked at each other, then looked away, and went to take their seats.
They were not in a hurry.
The Empress Dowager is pushing hard for the matter of enshrining Zen. Time is tight. We invite them here tonight and they will always meet and talk.
At this moment, facing the group of Confucian scholars, the little emperor seemed particularly enthusiastic, speaking one word at a time, and even let Zhao Rong and others sit very close to each other.
Especially Zhao Rong.
The highest person in the hall is of course the little emperor, and the person on the lower left of the person is Zhao Rong.
Opposite him, on the lower right side of the little emperor, sat Li Mingyi, the regent of Dali. He was tall and burly, with a face that showed no anger or authority.
Not long after, the dinner began, and graceful dancers slowly entered the room.
Zhao Rong, Gu Yiwu and other Confucian scholars were served by beauties and others, drinking and eating.
No one started to talk about the matter of Feng Chan, they seemed to have forgotten about it and only focused on the dinner.
It is said that the goddess Li is beautiful and has a slender waist. She is famous in Wangque, ranking first among all the countries under the mountain. And most of the li girls with slender waists are also good at dancing, and the dancers trained by the Dali court are even more outstanding.
Zhao Rong couldn't help but take a few more glances, talking about the women's dancing...
Qingjun's waist is also very thin, and she should look good in dancing, but she doesn't seem to have learned much, and she probably isn't as good as her cooking skills. As for Xiaoxiao, uh, dancing? Does jumping count? She is quite good at jumping.
Yes, I even kicked him while sleeping...
The young Confucian scholar secretly thought about the women in his heart, compared them, and felt a little regretful.
But even so, he didn't pay much attention. He still thought that his girls were good, and dancing seemed to be very tiring, so Qingjun Xiaoxiao wanted to show off their feet... Zhao Rong was quite reluctant to let them go.
Just like that, inside Weiyang Palace.
Strings, songs, fine clothes, beauties and wine, poems and songs.
For a time, it was bustling and lively.
However, Zhao Rong didn't drink much, so he tried to stay awake and observed everyone in the hall.
Although the banquet was noisy at this time, there were some scenes that he found quite interesting.
For example, the little emperor sat at the head of the table, wore a purple five-clawed dragon robe, and often made noises to stir up the atmosphere at the banquet, just like a little adult. The civil servants who were born as Confucian scholars were also very cooperative, but most of the noble military generals dealt with it absentmindedly.
Li Mingyi, who was at the bottom, was dressed in a simple python robe, didn't talk much, and was minding his own business.
But in the main hall, many eyes fell on Li Mingyi involuntarily, especially those noble generals.
Sometimes when the little emperor was talking, he couldn't help but look sideways at Li Mingyi and check his expression and reaction.
It's just that the latter is stern most of the time, except for glancing at Zhao Rong from time to time...
"Mr. Zhao." At this time, the little emperor raised his glass and said with concern: "You have worked really hard on this journey. On behalf of the people of Dali, I would like to toast you with this glass of wine."
He is young and speaks in a childlike tone, young and green, but his face is serious.
Zhao Rong nodded, took the wine glass from the beauty who was sitting next to him, clasped his hands together, and responded, "I don't dare take it seriously. It's all within my scope."
The little emperor seemed to have thought of something and couldn't help but said: "Mr. Zhao, your two masterpieces of poetry have spread all over Hanjing. I...I have read them many times, and the more I read them, the more I am amazed."
As he spoke, the young emperor couldn't help but put down his wine glass, raised his head slightly, stared upward, and recited: "...The crowd has been searching for him for thousands of times... Suddenly looking back, that person is there... But in the dim light...
In a dimly lit place..."
The little emperor had a singing voice that was suitable for poetry, and he spoke every word with a look of admiration on his face.
At this time, he turned his head happily and stared intently at Zhao Rong, who was raising his eyebrows. "Mr. Zhao, this artistic conception and rhythm are so beautiful. Many poems I have read before can match it. This... this is a legend.
Does Nanshan appreciate poetry?"
Zhao Rong did not answer immediately, but focused on other places.
He looked at the excited young man in front of him, and then at the expressions of the ministers in the hall. It seemed that everyone knew the poems he had written.
Spread throughout Hanjing?
Zhao Rong was slightly confused. Was this done by the Dugu family, or was it done by Li Mingyi to help him become famous?
No wonder he was so popular when he entered the city today. It turned out that it was not all because of his handsome face.
The young Confucian scholar rubbed his face, coughed, and shook his head: "Your Majesty, thank you. It's just that I happened to have some inspiration on the shoulders of the seniors who were standing on the mountain."
The little emperor shook his head, "Mr. Zhao is too humble. The teachers were all amazed by this poem. I heard from people below that you were writing the poem for the famous Fairy Su from Ziwei Pavilion. That fairy
What a blessing to have Mr. Zhao take pity on me."
Zhao Rong lowered his head and drank.
However, the little emperor continued to sigh: "The lights, moon, fireworks, and sheng flutes in the upper part of the word interweave into a scene of joy, and the dazzling groups of beauties written in the lower part are all just
Designed for that one special person."
"Hiss, looking back suddenly...the place where the lights are dimly lit..." He analyzed it in a decent manner, and said with emotion: "Moreover, if there is no her in the dim lights, what is the meaning and interest of everything!
"
"Mr. Zhao! Is this the far-reaching meaning you wanted to express when you wrote this poem?" The delicate and thin little emperor's face flushed with excitement, and he looked at Zhao Rong with admiration in his eyes.
Zhao Rong: “…………”
He couldn't help but glance at the little emperor's expression, and wanted to say...well, it's not.
But it still stopped.
You guys like to make up your mind so much, but I can't help it.
"Ahem." He didn't say much, but gently bowed his hands towards the little emperor and the ministers.
"By the way, there is another song about Li Meiren." However, the little emperor did not let him go, and continued to chant excitedly: "Li Meiren from the North Country...the crescent moon with bright eyebrows..."
Zhao Rong was a little embarrassed, how could a good dinner be like an idol meeting?
Well, "About the fact that the little emperor of Dali is my little fanboy"?
He suddenly understood why in his previous life, poets such as Li Bai and Su Dongpo were said to be stars of their time. These powerful poets and lyricists were indeed superstars in an era when entertainment was scarce...
so.
Bring it to you.
Nowadays, Zhao Rong has become a "superstar" in Dali, and it doesn't matter...
The little emperor reached out to grab Zhao Rong's hand enthusiastically and excitedly, but Zhao Rong was very experienced in this and felt something was wrong for a long time, so he shrank his hand calmly.
However, the young man was in a state of sexual distress and didn't pay much attention to it, but continued:
"Mr. Zhao, you don't know that this song "Li Meiren" is very popular in the music studio, and it is very popular with Sister Xianyue... the female officials."
Halfway through his words, the little emperor realized that there were words that were not in line with his status as an emperor, so he quickly changed his words.
After he finished speaking, he looked sideways at the imperial uncle.
The latter didn't respond, and the young man took a look and breathed a sigh of relief.
At this time, Zhao Rong had no choice but to co-author.
The ministers at the banquet catered to each other one after another, and it was very lively.
The little emperor seemed very happy tonight. There was no mother at the dinner, and the emperor's uncle didn't care about him being close to Zhao Rong, so the little emperor couldn't help but drink a few more glasses of wine.
In addition, these two poems that seemed to describe the charm of women also made the young man yearn for it. These descriptions made him somewhat confused about beautiful women.
At this time, the beautiful sister sitting next to him stretched out her jade hands to pour wine for the little emperor.
He took it in a daze, and his eyes happened to catch a glimpse of these beautiful hands. He felt very beautiful, and seemed to want to recite a poem.
It's just that the little emperor was young and had little education, so he couldn't say anything good, so he had to give up. However, the young man couldn't help but stretched out his hand and squeezed the beautiful hand of the wine companion out of curiosity and ignorance.
The latter smiled softly.
The little emperor was stunned and felt that his body was strange, but this feeling was also very beautiful.
The young man blushed and quickly retracted his hand.
Zhao Rong couldn't help laughing when he saw this scene.
The little emperor noticed Zhao Rong's smile and became even more embarrassed. He quickly drank to cover it up, but choked a few more times.
Zhao Rong smiled and shook his head, thinking that this boy is a bit cute. He is obviously the emperor of Dali, but he is not shy even touching a woman's hand. Is this the first time?
On the side, Li Mingyi, who had been sitting upright, glanced sideways and said nothing...
Not long after, the feast was coming to an end, and Li Mingyi stood up.
"Mr. Zhao, Mr. Gu, please come with me."
With a calm word, he got up and went to the back hall of Weiyang Palace.
Zhao Rong and Gu Yiwu looked at each other, stood up and followed...
Everyone in the hall noticed this scene, but no one said anything and continued the banquet.
Here, as soon as Zhao Rong and Gu Yiwu entered the back hall, they only saw a thin purple gauze curtain at the top of the main hall.
Behind the purple gauze curtain, a young woman in white clothes with a white veil could be vaguely seen, sitting and waiting.