Three days later, there was a grand banquet for Beili's envoys in the palace.
Ning Chengzhi asked Gu Shubai to accompany Gu Huaijiang to the palace for a banquet, but Yufu did not stop him.
The center of this palace banquet was on everyone in Guhou's mansion, and both parties knew this well. Before Yufu entered the palace, Elder Ji and others ordered people to send news secretly.
In the room, Yufu let Lianzhu and others dress her up, while checking many news, there was a clear smile on her face.
Yao Lan was picking out jewelry for her, and when she saw her smile, she immediately understood, "Miss, what's the matter?"
"Master Ji and the others have already convinced Emperor Ning that the atmosphere at the palace banquet tonight must be much more relaxed. After tonight is over, we can leave tomorrow."
"Really?"
Everyone was very happy, Lianzhu, Lianbi and others couldn't wait to go to Beili for a long time, knowing that the affairs of the court can be easily resolved, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
Yaolan picks and chooses from Yufu's jewelry box, the red gold dotted emerald nine phoenix hairpin on her head, the peony flower with silver thread pearls on her temples, the hibiscus flower on her forehead...
Finally, when he found the necklace on his body, Yu Fu said, "Go and take out the seven-treasure necklace that the former great general gave me, I want to wear that pair."
Yao Lan was taken aback, "Miss, didn't Mrs. Chen say that Miss's clothes and jewelry should not be used in the past, but Beili's?"
Yu Fu smiled, "The seven-treasure necklace was left by my late wife, it was a gift from the general, it is different from other jewelry. I wore this necklace when I entered the palace for the first time, now It may be the last time I entered the Dongling Palace, and I want to wear it again."
Yao Lan nodded, "Okay, I'll go and find you, servant girl."
The drums were played grandly, the feast in the palace had already started, all the courtiers and Ning Chengzhi had arrived at the Golden Palace, and officially received Bei Li and his party as state guests.
Yufu stepped in slowly from outside the hall, and the wide sleeves of the Beili palace dress with bright yellow patterns were blown open, making it so majestic that one dare not look directly at it.
Behind her were Gu Huaijiang and his son, Chen Jingxing, Ji Chengfa and others, as well as a group of Beili's envoys and attendants, majestic and solemn.
Ning Chengzhi's eyes fell on Yu Fu, and he suddenly remembered what Yin Shuo had said to him when he entered the palace quietly half an hour before the banquet—
"Your Majesty, will Your Majesty allow Gu Hou and his son to leave Dong Ling at the palace banquet tonight?"
Ning Chengzhi was dressing up in the bedroom, preparing to attend the state banquet tonight, but he didn't want Yin Shuo to suddenly break into the bedroom and startle him.
He hurriedly said: "Why did you come into the palace? It is the utmost humaneness for me to allow you to preside over the funeral of the old prime minister. How dare you come to the palace?"
Yin Shuo cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, I have no choice but to tell Your Majesty a few words, if it's too late, it's too late!"
As soon as Ning Chengzhi heard it, he knew it was about tonight's state banquet. This matter was related to Dongling's safety. He didn't dare to drive Yin Shuo out casually. After hesitating for a long time, he decided to listen to what Yin Shuo had to say.
Yin Shuo said: "Your Majesty must not let Gu Hou's family leave. They hold a grudge against His Majesty, but it was the people from Beili who saved them. Think about it, Your Majesty, Princess Yufu is the heir apparent of Beili, and Gu Hou and his son treat her like their own." She is like a daughter, and she will definitely help Bei Li to defeat me, Dong Ling in the future!"
Ning Chengzhi shook his head, "No, I have already discussed this with Mr. Ji and the others. Gu Hou is not this kind of person. Besides, Bei Li has never fought against foreign countries for many years. Dongling used force, I believe in his loyalty to the late emperor."
A cold light flashed in Yin Shuo's eyes, "Your Majesty believes in Gu Hou, and also in Gu Shubai and the others? Gu Shubai escaped from the dead, and it is not known whether Gu Hanmo's arm can be saved after being cut. They will not Do you hate His Majesty? And Princess Yufu, the Princess has always held a grudge against His Majesty's intention to marry her by force, will she really not start a war against Dong Ling when she returns to Beili?"
Ning Chengzhi frowned, and said impatiently: "Even if Yufu resents me, what can I do? She is the majestic prince of Beili, so I can still hold her down?"
"Of course your Majesty can't detain Princess Yufu, but your Majesty can take hostages to threaten the princess. Think about it, Your Majesty, as long as Gu Hou's family goes to Beili, the princess will have no scruples about Dong Ling and can use force at any time. If Gu Hou's family stays In Dongling, if the princess wants to use force against Dongling in the future, she will have to consider the safety of Gu Hou's family, isn't this more useful than a diplomatic relationship that can be reversed at any time?"
Yin Shuo's words were sincere, and Ning Chengzhi fell into deep thought.
After a while he said: "You're right. When Xikun sent a princess to make a marriage, didn't you just turn your back on it? Only Guhou's family staying in Dongling is the best way to check and balance Beili."
…
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty?"
Ning Chengzhi woke up from the memory, only to see the palace servants beside him reminding him softly, "Your Majesty, invite the envoys of Beili to sit down!"
Ning Chengzhi hurriedly said: "Ah, yes, yes, please take a seat, Princess Yufu, and all envoys, please take your seats."
After Yu Fu was seated, Ning Chengzhi was about to order Wu Yue to perform, Yu Fu looked up and smiled and said: "There is no need for Wu Yue, these few days we have been waiting for Emperor Ning to summon Dong Ling's Wu Yue Le watched it over and over again. Surely Mr. Chen doesn’t want to watch it anymore, does he?”
She looked at Chen Jingxing, who was beside her, and Chen Jingxing immediately agreed, "Yes. Dongling is here to establish diplomatic relations. Her Royal Highness, as the prince, is busy with affairs in the middle school and has no time to delay too long. Emperor Ning has made us wait for a long time. Day, don't waste time now, okay?"
Ning Chengzhi forgot to eat and sleep, discussing over and over again with the court ministers how to negotiate with the Beili envoys, but the Beili envoys were watching a song and dance performance in Guhou's mansion.
No matter how you hear these words, it makes people angry. Ning Chengzhi took a lot of effort to keep the corners of his mouth from drooping, and forced a smile, "Since the princess and all the envoys have watched enough of Dongling's dance music, then Just let it go."
Yu Fu smiled and said: "It is for this reason that I have come here with enough sincerity. There is no evidence to say what I said, so let Master Chen and Emperor Ning talk to the ministers."
Chen Jingxing immediately got up from his seat, the Golden Hall was filled with awe, everyone stared at Chen Jingxing and waited for his next words.
Chen Jingxing said loudly: "Dongling is a water town in the south of the country. There are no vast pastures and grasslands, so it is difficult to breed strong and strong flatterers. I have thousands of vast pastures in Beili, and carefully bred horses can travel thousands of miles a day. Once the two countries are established Friendly contacts, I, Bei Li, will send a hundred thousand-mile horses to Dong Ling to help you improve the bloodlines of your war horses."
As soon as he said this, the generals in the seat were immediately excited, and even Gu Shubai couldn't help but glance at him.
The land in the south is small, and it is a fact that there are no good horses for combat. Gu Huaijiang also allocated a lot of funds in the army to let people carefully breed horses, but for so many years, there has been little effect.
Once Chen Jingxing's words come true, it means that Dong Ling's war horses will soon surpass Xi Kun's war horses in a few years, and will have a great advantage over Xi Kun's cavalry at that time.
Although Ning Chengzhi didn't know much about military affairs, he knew what a generous condition this was from seeing the excited generals in the audience.
Chen Jingxing didn't seem to notice the reaction of the ministers in the audience, and continued to read: "Beili has precious medicinal materials such as high-quality bird's nest and snow lotus, as well as artillery and crossbows. We are willing to open the five trade gateways and Dongling Hu City, and guarantee that in the advanced weapon transaction, the price Dongling gets will always be lower than Xikun."
There are generals in the seat who can't help but stand up.
The price of weapons sold by Beili to Dongling will always be lower than that of Xikun, so Dongling can buy a large number of artillery to fight against Xikun's invasion. People in Xikun can't get such a low price if they want to buy them. Press one head.
The conditions proposed by the envoys of Beili are not only generous, but they are all improving Dongling's military strength and combat power. Why
Chen Jingxing continued: "There are ten thousand taels of gold, one thousand pieces of silk, ten carts of precious medicinal materials, etc. as gifts for the establishment of diplomatic relations between Beili and Dongling, and they will be delivered to Dongling within half a month."
He said so much in one breath, and finally breathed a sigh of relief, "The above are the conditions set by Her Royal Highness, as long as Emperor Ning approves, everything will be handled immediately. The only condition we have for Dong Ling is that Master Gu and his family will follow us. Leave Dong Ling."
The courtiers who were so passionate just now calmed down immediately, waiting to see how Ning Chengzhi would respond.
Before Ning Chengzhi could open his mouth, Ji Xuanxian had supported Elder Ji to stand up tremblingly, "Your Majesty, I think that the conditions offered by Bei Li are very generous, and His Majesty can agree. Not only should he agree to let Gu Houye's family leave, but also We should prepare corresponding generous gifts in return for Bei Li. For example, Bei Li wants to give us lower prices for weapons, and we should also lower the prices of porcelain and woodware when doing business.
Ning Chengzhi almost couldn't help but glared at him.
He is still hesitating whether to let Yufu take Gu Huaijiang and the others away, this Ji Daogong is good, and he also helps outsiders to let him post things out.
Old Chen Ge originally thought that Yufu's condition was to take away Gu Huaijiang's family, at most he verbally promised not to use force against Dong Ling in the future, but she had prepared so many generous conditions.
He knew in his heart that Yufu was doing this to reassure these veterans, and was also indirectly assuring them that he would not easily attack Dong Ling in the future.
He helped Chen Chuxiu's hand to get up and said: "I second the proposal. Your Majesty, the conditions offered by Princess Yufu show sincerity. Once we have those excellent war horses and advanced weapons, Dongling's military strength will definitely go to a higher level. .At that time, we won't have to worry about Xikun's invasion year after year. Your Majesty, please agree!"
"The minister seconded the proposal!"
"The minister also seconded the proposal!"
All the ministers were attracted by the conditions Chen Jingxing said, and Ning Chengzhi naturally knew that the other party's conditions were good, and the only thing he wanted to exchange was the lives of Guhou's family.
But when he thought of Yin Shuo's words, he still hesitated.
Under everyone's expectant eyes, Ning Chengzhi slowly said: "Beili's terms are indeed sincere, but—"
Yu Fu glanced upwards, and everyone's expressions changed.
Hadn't the palace banquet been discussed a long time ago? Why did Ning Chengzhi say no
Master Ji frowned at him, Chen Ge looked at him worriedly, and Gu Shubai also became nervous.
I only heard Ning Chengzhi say: "But Lord Gu is Dongling's military general after all, and now he is charged with the crime of collaborating with the enemy and treason, so he left Dongling and went to Beili for no reason. I'm afraid it's not good. ?”
"It's bad, this is not His Majesty's tone."
Yu Fu suddenly heard Gu Shubai behind him speak softly, she turned her head to look, Gu Shubai said: "This must be said by Yin Shuo and His Majesty."
Yin Yan had just passed away and his bones were not yet cold, and Yin Shuo himself was still under suspension for review, so he still had the heart to deal with the Guhou family
Yu Fu's eyes were gradually frozen, and a chill appeared suddenly.
Gu Shubai got up and said: "As a courtier of Dongling, Your Majesty may not allow my father and son to leave Dongling, but our Guhou Mansion will never accept any unreasonable crimes. No one in the Guhou Mansion, including the Gu family army, is collaborating with the enemy and treason. The truth cannot be confused. Your Majesty ordered people to investigate for so long, but have you ever found any real evidence? My Guhou Mansion is loyal to Your Majesty, but Your Majesty wants to kill all of my Guhou Mansion because of some fabricated evidence. Is it our fault?"
Ning Chengzhi was at a loss for words for a while, in fact, he didn't really want to kill Gu Hou's family, it was Yin Shuo who came up with the idea to force Yu Fu to come back—
Yufu really came back, but unfortunately when he came back, it was not Princess Zhenjiang, but Crown Prince Beili.
Yu Fu stood up and looked at him, "Even though Lord Gu is Dong Ling's courtier, now that I, Bei Li, offer such generous terms, I just want to ask Ning Emperor for a few people, and Ning Emperor refuses to give it?"
Pei Zheng hurriedly got up and said, "Your Majesty, why don't you ask Gu Houye what he means. Gu Houye is a veteran minister who has been loyal to Dong Ling for decades. If he is tired of court battles and wants to return home early, will His Majesty force him to stay?" ?"
He cleverly described Gu Huaijiang's departure from Dongling for Beili as returning home early, and this reason made Ning Chengzhi even more speechless.
Everyone's eyes immediately fell on Gu Huaijiang. Gu Huaijiang got up slowly from his seat, bowed his head and bowed his hands, "I have fought for the late emperor and your majesty for decades, and I feel that I am worthy of the people of the world, and worthy of the monarch. I am not young. Gradually, I am getting old and sick, and even though I have a few sons under my knees, they are useless and unfit to be used by Your Majesty. Please, Your Majesty, for the sake of my decades of saddle horse, let my father and son leave Dongling!"
Gu Huaijiang himself said so, what's the point of forcing someone to stay
The courtiers all quietly discussed that instead of leaving a general who had given up on the court, it would be better to let him go in exchange for friendship with Bei Li, and in exchange for Bei Li's good horses and weapons.
"Your Majesty, please allow Your Majesty Gu Houye!"
Most of the courtiers spoke out, trying to persuade Ning Chengzhi to agree to Bei Li's conditions, but Ning Chengzhi gritted his teeth and refused to let go.
Yu Fu looked at him coldly, and after a while he said: "Gu Hou is not only Gu Hou, but also the chief general of the Gu family army. I don't need to say how much the Gu family army is loyal to the general. You adults should also know. Have you ever thought about it?" , once Gu Hou leaves Dong Ling, will the Gu family army's military spirit also leave Dong Ling?"
The Gu Family Army is the mainstay of Dong Ling's army and an indispensable lifeline. Once Gu Huaijiang leaves the Gu Family Army, it is really hard to predict what will happen.
Yu Fu thought to himself: This sentence is still not Ning Chengzhi's own words, but Yin Shuo's words.
Yin Shuo was in the prime minister's mansion, but his will was transmitted to the golden palace to control Ning Chengzhi through many courtyard walls and palaces.
The person in front of him was not Ning Chengzhi, but a puppet controlled by Yin Shuo.
Yu Fu suddenly lost the patience to negotiate with him again, and suddenly said: "Emperor Ning is now worried that the Gu family army will leave, isn't it too late? Back then when you were going to ransack Gu Hou's house, you would have thought that the Gu family army would Abandoned with the court?!"
Yu Fu's words made the hall fall into silence again, and Ning Chengzhi's face turned red with embarrassment, "At that time, I lacked consideration, but now it's different, I have canceled my intention to execute the whole family of Marquis Gu's mansion. I promise not to do it again." Kill Gu Houye and others, as long as they don't leave Dong Ling."
Yu Fu sneered, "Emperor Ning means that he doesn't agree to my Bei Li's conditions, he doesn't want to make friends with me, Bei Li, doesn't he?"
"No, I am naturally willing to make friends with Beili, and I am willing to exchange on the same terms. But the Guhou family..."
Ning Chengzhi gritted his teeth, "They can't leave with you. Apart from this condition, you can ask for anything else, and I will never refuse."
Yu Fu refused to budge, "Except for this condition, I don't want anything else."
The two sides fell into an unexpected stalemate, and neither was willing to give in. The eyes of the two met as if sparks exploded in mid-air.
Just when Ning Chengzhi could hardly resist, Yu Fu suddenly laughed.
"Well, since Emperor Ning refuses to back down an inch, there is nothing to talk about. I will leave Dongling and move south today. When Beili's army occupies half of Dongling, I will invite Emperor Ning to use the people of Guhoufu to come Change!"
Ning Chengzhi's face suddenly changed, and all the ministers were equally panicked.
"Princess, absolutely not!"