"Sit down, sit down. As I said just now, there are no outsiders present, so there is no need to be too reserved."
"Yes, yes, I would like to thank His Majesty the Emperor."
When Sakai Hoshino saw Liu Mingzhi suddenly talking about the topic of military equipment rewards, his exquisite and graceful body also trembled slightly, and a hint of joy flashed in his eyes.
She hurriedly picked up a piece of watermelon from the fruit plate and handed it to Liu Mingzhi's hand with a bright smile.
"Liu Jun, don't just talk, eat a piece of watermelon to moisten your throat."
"Okay, you eat too."
"Sakai He, you have been talking for so long, do you want to quench your thirst with a piece of watermelon?"
"No, no, your majesty and aunt, just taste it carefully. Bongchen drinks tea, and Bongchen prefers tea."
Liu Mingzhi took a bite of the watermelon and crossed his legs with a satisfied expression.
"Sakai He, do you know why the civil and military officials in the imperial court have not discussed a specific result regarding the reward of military equipment to your Japanese country?"
Sakai He frowned instinctively and shook his head at Young Master Liu with a puzzled face.
"My ministers are stupid, so please ask His Majesty the Emperor to clarify some of my doubts."
Sakai He said this not because he was pretending to be confused, but because he really didn't know what Liu Mingzhi and the civil and military officials in Dalong Palace were thinking.
If he could guess what Mr. Liu was thinking, he would have already thought of ways to prescribe the right medicine.
Why should I be bored in Honglu Temple as anxiously as I am now, aimlessly waiting for Liu Mingzhi's final answer.
Liu Mingzhi spit out the watermelon seeds in his mouth and threw the watermelon rind on the table.
Upon seeing this, Sakai Hoshino immediately picked up another piece of watermelon and handed it to Liu Mingzhi, but Liu Mingzhi stretched out his hand to stop it.
"Hoshino, put it back. Just eat a piece to satisfy your cravings."
"Hey, would you like some pastries, Mr. Liu?"
"No, you don't have to serve me in every detail. I will tell you what I want to eat."
"Yeah, Hoshino understands, then He'er, you two can get down to business."
Liu Mingzhi nodded lightly, picked up the dry tobacco bag on the table again and skillfully filled it with shredded tobacco.
Sakai He was very eye-catching. When he saw Liu Mingzhi packing the tobacco, he immediately took out the fire stick from his sleeve, blew it and lit it, then put it forward.
"Your Majesty the Emperor, please."
"Um."
Liu Mingzhi blew out the smoke gently, got up and walked towards the courtyard.
Upon seeing this, Sakai Hoshino's aunt and nephew immediately got up and followed him.
"Congratulations Sakai, whether it's the credentials presented to me by your envoy, or the words of entreaty you personally said after you came to the palace to see me.
The meaning expressed in it is that I hope that I can reward you with a batch of excellent dragon weapons to solve the predicament that your Sakai family is currently facing.
Am I right?"
"That's right, that's true."
"That's right, then the key issue that led to the delay in reaching a conclusion on the reward issue has arisen.
What is the number of troops that your Japanese mission calls a group of troops?
In order to come up with a final result, all the civil and military officials of the Manchu Dynasty had different opinions and discussed it over and over again, but they still could not come up with a more appropriate number of troops and equipment for you."
After hearing Mr. Liu's explanation, Sakai He couldn't help but look stunned.
"Ah? Is that so?"
"Yes, otherwise what do you think?"
Sakai He scratched his head in embarrassment, a look of regret flashed in his eyes.
Does it turn out that the root of the problem lies with you?
"Because of this incident, the civil and military officials in the court had no choice but to divide into two groups.
Some officials think that you caused this situation because of your negligence.
Some officials thought that Sakai Ga was deliberately confusing the public and wanted to use such vague words to ask for more troops.
One person can sympathize with you and think you have made a mistake unintentionally, while the other person cannot sympathize with you and thinks you are greedy.
Officials from both sides insisted on their own opinions, and for a while they could not come up with a specific result."
Sakai He's expression flickered, and he hurriedly followed Mr. Liu and shook his head heavily.
"Your Majesty, please tell me clearly that I have absolutely no intention to confuse the public or to be greedy.
It is the minister who is negligent, it is the minister who is negligent."
Liu Mingzhi's footsteps suddenly stopped, his brows furrowed and he puffed out the smoke from his mouth.
"It turns out you really were negligent."
"Yes, yes, the minister was negligent. He was not rigorous enough in his work. I hope that His Majesty the Emperor will forgive the fault of the minister."
When Sakai Hoshino saw his nephew's fearful and uneasy expression, a trace of distress flashed through his beautiful eyes, and he immediately stretched out his hand and gently pulled Liu Dashao's sleeves twice.
"Liu Jun, He'er is still too young after all and can't think things through when doing things.
I hope Mr. Liu will forgive He'er for his fault for Xingye's sake, Xingye begs you."
Liu Mingzhi smiled lightly, nodded, and gently patted the back of the beauty's white and tender hand.
"Xingye, no one is a saint, and no one can make mistakes. Don't worry, I won't be angry."
"Hey, thank you Mr. Liu, thank you Mr. Liu."
When Sakai He heard his aunt justifying his words, he quickly nodded in agreement.
"I would like to thank His Majesty the Emperor. I would like to thank His Majesty the Emperor."
Liu Mingzhi's heart moved, and he couldn't help but recall the situation Liu Song reported to him on the night of the palace banquet.
He sighed with a sad expression, and glared at Sakai He, pretending to be unhappy.
"Alas, Sakai Ga, you are the same. Every time you request military equipment from me, you always express your request in front of envoys from other countries.
Your Japanese country is a vassal state of our Great Dragon Celestial Dynasty. Aren’t the other countries tributary states of the Great Dragon Celestial Dynasty?
Under such circumstances, how can I favor one over the other?
Have you ever thought about what the envoys from other countries would think if I agreed to the request of your Japanese mission on the spot?
Can't you come and ask to see me in private? For Hoshino's sake, how can I turn you away?"
When Sakai He heard Young Master Liu's angry words, his mind suddenly flashed back to what Liu Song had said to him that night at the palace banquet.
‘If Your Majesty alone agrees to the request of your Japanese mission, how can you explain it to the missions of other countries?
Do you understand what I mean?
The secret must not be leaked, Sakai Kingdom allows you to understand it yourself.’
Those words lingered in his mind, and Sakai He's eyes suddenly showed a slightly tangled look.
Combined with what Young Master Liu said just now, he recalled what Liu Song said to him that night at the palace banquet.
He now wished he could give himself a slap in the face right away.
Master Liu hinted at me in this way, why didn't I understand what he meant?
Sakai He felt as much regret as he wanted in his heart now, and sighed with an extremely regretful expression on his face.
"Your Majesty, the ministers are confused, the ministers are confused."
“It’s not too late to make up for the situation before it’s too late.
So far, the officials have not discussed how much military equipment should be awarded to your Japanese mission.
Some say three thousand, some say five thousand.
Some say it is ten thousand, some say it is twenty thousand, or even more.
In short, there are many numbers, and I am afraid it will be difficult to determine an accurate number in a short period of time.
However, prolonging the delay is not an option. I can only go out incognito and patrol here in Hoshino, and summon you when the envoys from other countries are not paying attention.
Now can you tell me the approximate number of your troops?"
Sakai He's face lit up and he took a deep breath.
"Your Majesty, the minister has the courage to speak out. If the minister says too much, I hope Your Majesty will not take offense."
"Say it, I'm listening."
"What the minister has in mind is that there are 30,000 swords of all kinds, 20,000 pairs of fine armor, 10,000 pairs of ordinary armor, 8,000 bows and crossbows, 3,000 chain crossbows, and 50,000 arrows of various kinds."
Young Master Liu was choked by the smoke in his mouth and coughed a few times. He frowned slightly and looked at the trembling Sakai He.
Oh my god, you really dare to speak.
Thirty thousand weapons, twenty thousand fine armors, ten thousand ordinary armors, eight thousand crossbows, three thousand serial crossbows, and fifty thousand arrows.
Do you know that these armaments together are enough for me to recruit an elite army of 50,000 again?
Do you know how much money these standard weapons and equipment are worth together?
Who do you think this young master is?
What about attacking local tyrants?
Why do you want a reward? It's obvious that you are cutting off this young master's flesh.