After Zhang Juzheng received the oral order from Emperor Jiajing to grant a banquet, Zhu Ping'an also received the oral order from the eunuch.
"Your Majesty, please give me a meal?"
After receiving the oral order, Zhu Ping'an was very surprised. What day is today? Why is Emperor Jiajing giving a banquet today
When Zhu Ping'an heard from the eunuch that Yang Guoliang and Zhang Juzheng were also given the banquet, he understood why Emperor Jiajing gave the banquet.
Because of preaching.
He and Yang Guoliang were responsible for giving lectures yesterday, while Zhang Juzheng was in charge of giving lectures this afternoon.
This afternoon, during a break in Zhang Juzheng's lecture, Zhu Ping'an and Li Chunfang went over to meet Zhang Juzheng. After all, they were colleagues from the Hanlin Academy, and he and Li Chunfang were both in the Western Garden's Sizhi, so it was reasonable for them to go over and stand by him.
It makes sense that Emperor Jiajing gave a banquet to the lecturer who gave lectures to the prince. In this respect, Emperor Jiajing was very similar to modern parents. He invited the teacher of his child to dinner to express his gratitude and ask for his care.
It seems that all parents in the world are the same.
Zhu Ping'an couldn't help feeling a little emotional.
In the evening, as the sun set and the ground turned golden, under the envious gaze of Yuan Wei and others, Zhu Ping'an followed the young eunuch to Zhishan Palace for a banquet.
Zhishan Palace is located near the concubines' bedrooms. Along the way, I met many palace maids who were brightly dressed and beautiful.
Do not look at anything indecent.
You can't take advantage of the harem. Today you are a maid, but tomorrow you may become the mistress of the harem. How can you watch it? You have to know that Emperor Jiajing can't tolerate even the slightest grain of sand in his eyes.
Life is precious, do not look at it inappropriately.
Zhu Ping'an reminded himself to keep his eyes straight ahead and just look at the road under his feet as he followed the young eunuch to Zhishan Palace.
Zhu Ping'an's caution is justified.
In fact, there were many eyes hidden in places that Zhu Ping'an could not see, recording Zhu Ping'an's every word, action and move in notebooks, and soon these notebooks recording Zhu Ping'an's words and deeds were sent to the desk of Emperor Jiajing.
The same treatment was given to Yang Guoliang and Zhang Juzheng, who came to Zhishan Palace from the other two routes.
After walking for about ten minutes, Zhu Ping'an saw the Zhishan Palace which was just around the corner.
Zhishan Palace is surrounded by a pool of water. Duckweed and green lotus grow naturally in the water, which is emerald green and clear. There are clusters of flowers and plants on the shore. The wind blows the flowers, and thousands of them bend down on the branches. The petals fall on the ground like a flower carpet, which is very beautiful.
Unlike the golden glazed tiles in other palaces, the dome of Zhishan Palace is made of red glazed tiles, which look even more red in the afterglow of the setting sun.
"Master Zhu, please come this way." The young eunuch led Zhu Ping'an through the hall and came to a room.
The room was spacious and elegantly furnished, but it only had a low, long table with a futon cushion behind it.
"Master Zhu, please take your seat." The young eunuch placed the cushion in the middle position behind the table and invited Zhu Ping'an to take his seat.
"Thank you, Grandpa."
Zhu Ping'an bowed to express his gratitude, then knelt down to sit at the table. To be honest, Zhu Ping'an was used to sitting on a chair or stool, and didn't like the kneeling position. It was ok for a while, but if he sat for a long time, his legs, feet, and buttocks would become numb.
Judging from the layout, I am the only one in this room. It seems that Zhang Juzheng, Yang Guoliang and others are also in the same place, alone in another room.
Zhu Ping'an had often seen banquets with separate meals, but this was the first time he had heard of a banquet with separate seats.
However, Emperor Jiajing was the most powerful person in the entire Ming Dynasty, and he could give whatever banquets he wanted.
Just take responsibility for eating.
After Zhu Ping'an took his seat, before he could even sit down, he heard footsteps and saw Huang Jin walk in accompanied by several eunuchs.
"Meet Mr. Huang."
Zhu Ping'an stood up from his seat and bowed to Huang Jin.
"Lord Zhu, there is no need to be so polite. You are all honored guests of the palace today. Please take your seats." Huang Jin walked up with a smile and held Zhu Ping'an's hand.
After Zhu Ping'an sat down, Huang Jin said, "Today, the emperor is fasting, so he will not eat with you, Master Zhu. The emperor said that you have made great contributions in preaching the scriptures, and he has told me to entertain you, Master Zhu, and make sure you eat and drink well. Haha, the emperor also said that this way you can eat more easily."
Bigu fasting? !
Well, Emperor Jiajing was really serious about his cultivation. Zhu Ping'an had only seen scenes of fasting in modern fairy tales before, but he didn't expect to meet someone who practiced fasting in real life.
In fact, what Emperor Jiajing said was very true. If Emperor Jiajing had not come, the meal would have been easier. After all, serving the emperor is like serving a tiger. No matter how brave you are or how good your appetite is, you will feel pressure when eating next to a tiger.
"I thank you for your great grace." Zhu Ping'an bowed in the direction of Emperor Jiajing's bedroom, then bowed to Huang Jin and said, "Thank you, Mr. Huang."
"Haha, Master Xiao Zhu is too polite. Please serve the meal."
Huang Jin smiled slightly, then nodded to the young eunuch who was accompanying him.
"yes."
The young eunuch nodded in response, turned around and walked to the door, told the eunuch outside to start serving the meal.
"Master Zhu, I will go and greet Master Zhang and Master Yang as well. If you need anything, just tell them directly." After ordering the meal to be served, Huang Jin smiled and bowed to Zhu Ping'an to say goodbye.
"Goodbye, Mr. Huang." Zhu Ping'an bowed in return.
After Huang Jin left, the eunuchs brought in the imperial meals one by one and placed them on the table in front of Zhu Ping'an.
Eunuchs brought dishes one after another.
Hot dishes, cold dishes, soups, snacks... ...soon, the table in front of Zhu Ping'an was filled with food.
In particular, there was a large plate of hand-pulled lamb in the middle of the table, which exuded a meaty aroma that went straight to the tip of the tongue. When it was placed on the table, the lamb ribs were still trembling slightly, the meat was red and white, fat but not smelly, and the color was attractive. Wisps of meaty aroma slowly drifted out along the crispy and tender lamb... ...
There was also a dish of dipping sauce next to the hand-pulled lamb.
This dish attracted Zhu Ping'an's attention as soon as it came out.
It was as if I was back in school, when I traveled to Ningxia on a budget with my roommates. The three of us got lost and rode for a whole day before finally arriving at a small town. At the entrance of the town was a street stall selling mutton with our hands. The primitive feeling of eating mutton with my hands for the first time, and the taste that made me more and more greedy the more I ate, is truly an unforgettable memory.
"Master Zhu, please enjoy your meal."
The imperial meal was soon served, and the young eunuch stood aside and invited Zhu Ping'an to eat.
This table of imperial meals, with more than 20 dishes, was extremely sumptuous. However, I don’t know if the eunuch forgot or what, but this extremely sumptuous imperial meal was missing chopsticks... ...
Coincidentally, Zhang Juzheng's table of equally sumptuous imperial meal happened to be missing chopsticks.
"Thank you."
Zhu Ping'an, who was attracted by the hand-pulled lamb, said thank you when he heard the words "please take your time". He couldn't wait to grab a lamb rib by the bone, dipped it skillfully in the sauce, and started to eat it with relish.
As for hand-pulled mutton, the most authentic way to eat it is with your hands. Emperor Jiajing is not here anyway, so why bother with so much detail
Didn't even notice there were no chopsticks on the table.