The celebration banquet was not very grand, partly because the Empress Dowager had just passed away this year and was still in mourning.
Secondly, the emperor's health has not been very good in recent days, so he instructed the inner court to keep the banquet simple.
Since it was a celebration banquet, all the noble ministers had to attend. All those above the fifth rank had to attend, but they were not allowed to bring their families.
The celebration banquet was different from other banquets. It was only for honoring meritorious officials and celebrating the great victory of the Zhou Dynasty.
After Prince An and Xiao Xiao returned to the court, they immediately went to the palace to see the emperor. The emperor was very pleased and kept the two of them to talk for a long time.
Around the hour of You, before it got dark, the Wanshou Hall, where the celebration banquet was held, was already brightly lit. Ever since Zi'an had been in charge of the harem and had cut expenses, the palace had been frugal for a while. But ever since Hu Huanling became the empress and then named Concubine Xi the empress dowager, the wind of luxury began to prevail again.
Indeed, Hu Huanling's dowry was not small. She picked out a part of it to keep with her, and gave the rest to the emperor.
Hu Huanling is considerate, virtuous, generous, and most importantly, generous.
The Hu family has plenty of money and is the richest family in the world, there is no doubt about that.
The silver she brought as a dowry made the emperor very happy for three days.
Because the emperor was in a good mood today, he showed special mercy and pardoned Prince Nan Huai, allowing him to enter the palace to attend the banquet.
King Nan Huai had become a laughing stock. He had created pressure in the capital, just like the thunder and lightning, strong winds and heavy rain before a summer rainstorm, but in the end, not a drop of rain fell.
Some vulgar people even described him as having a stomach full of rage, which in the end only let out a fart, which was silent.
Moreover, his fiancée Sun Fang'er eventually became a royal concubine. Prince Nan Huai was cuckolded from the soles of his feet to the top of his head. When people talk about him, they all smile with their hands covering their mouths.
He came very early tonight, wearing a dragon robe suitable for princes. He had lost a lot of weight and looked timid. He was not generous when he met people and kept dodging them, looking very pitiful.
People are sometimes so strange. When a person is in high spirits, many people will dislike him. But when a person in a high position suddenly falls into the dust and becomes as humble as a stray dog, sympathy will arise spontaneously.
Perhaps, it is not sympathy, but the desire to show how humble and benevolent he is.
Many ministers came over to greet him and offer words of comfort.
Prince Nan Huai showed great gratitude and bowed repeatedly, without any airs of a royal prince at all.
When Murong Jie arrived, Prince Nan Huai was talking to the Minister of Revenue. Prince Nan Huai lowered his head, listening attentively, nodding from time to time, and sometimes showing a humble smile.
On the other hand, the Assistant Minister of the Ministry of Revenue was arrogant and proud, and acted as if he was bestowing favors on King Nan Huai. Later, he even patted King Nan Huai on the shoulder, with the arrogance of a person of higher status teaching a person of lower status.
Murong Jie pretended not to see it and was surrounded by the crowd and walked in.
As soon as he came in, no one gathered around Prince Nan Huai, and they all came forward and said words of congratulations to Murong Jie.
Murong Jie had a gloomy face the whole time, which was consistent with his usual image and everyone was used to it. If he suddenly became in a good mood and talked and laughed with everyone, everyone would be scared instead.
King Nan Huai hesitated for a moment and then stepped forward to pay his respects.
"Seventh Brother!" He bowed humbly, his back slightly hunched. Murong Jie looked at him closely and found that the hair on his temples was slightly frosted.
He is only over 20 years old this year.
"Hmm!" Murong Jie made a sound from his nose, and there was also some sound in his throat, which he tried his best to suppress.
He was never a humble and respectful person.
Even if it appears so on the surface, it is not so deep down.
Not many concubines attended the celebration banquet. The emperor only brought Empress Hu Huanling, Concubine Yi, and Sun Fanger.
Sun Fang'er was dressed very simply today, in a dark blue silk palace skirt with a cloud pattern, without any embroidery. As she walked against the wind, she looked emaciated and her face was extremely pale.
She followed Hu Huanling without looking around. Walking side by side with her was Concubine Yi. Today, Concubine Yi was wearing a scarlet satin pleated skirt embroidered with delicate peonies. She had her hair in a bun and her hair was lazy, which made her look indescribably charming.
Hu Huanling was dressed formally, a queen's ceremonial court gown, embroidered with delicate flying phoenixes. She had an oval face with light makeup, dignified eyebrows and eyes, and a queen's ceremonial crown on her head. She was indescribably graceful and elegant. If no one told her, who would have known that she was from a merchant family
The emperor was wearing bright yellow official clothes. He moved a little slowly and his complexion was worse than in the past few days. However, because he was in a good mood, his eyes and brows were smiling, so he looked energetic.
Following behind the emperor were General Xiao Xiao and Prince An.
Both of them were still wearing silver armor, looking dusty. Their faces had been washed, but their aged look could not be concealed.
There were some scars on Prince An's face, but they had healed, leaving only faint marks. He looked somewhat different from the gentle and elegant man he used to be, and now he looked wild and domineering.
Xiao Xiao was still calm and reserved, but because his fighting spirit had not yet dissipated, he always gave people a sense of fierceness.
When the two of them entered the capital, the emperor immediately issued an edict to allow them to enter the palace and did not allow them to meet anyone in private, and they were not even allowed to return to the palace.
Now when the two of them saw Murong Jie, they just nodded slightly.
All the officials bowed and shouted "Long live the emperor" three times, and the atmosphere was very lively for a while.
The emperor smiled and invited everyone to take their seats and toasted his meritorious officials.
After the Xianbei were pacified, there was a temporary ceasefire in the northern desert. The emperor felt much more relaxed and felt that his previous actions were somewhat biased.
Therefore, after three rounds of drinking, he held Murong Jie's hand and said to all the officials with a look of satisfaction: "When the late emperor was alive, he praised the Seventh Brother highly, saying that he was intelligent, generous, virtuous, and a great general, and could become my right-hand man in the future. Now, the Seventh Brother has lived up to the late emperor's expectations and has made great contributions to the court and the Great Zhou."
Some of the old ministers present, and even the older generation of the royal family, such as the King of Yuedong, knew that the late emperor was indeed fond of Murong Jie, and at one point, he had considered making Murong Jie the crown prince.
Of course, Murong Jie was neither the legitimate son nor the eldest son, and there was no precedent for enthroning him. In addition, the crown prince at that time, now the emperor, was also very outstanding, so the late emperor did not insist.
The emperor was so excited that he said, "As long as I am here, I will never doubt the regent, nor will I remove him from his position. He will work with me to govern the country of Great Zhou."
After hearing this, Murong Jie looked respectful, but his eyes were slightly cold.
What is the purpose of praising him so highly? Is it possible to work together to govern the Zhou Dynasty without removing the regent
Prince Nan Huai remained silent tonight. He drank when he wanted to drink, and listened quietly when the emperor spoke, like an invisible man.
The emperor's emotions were getting more and more intense. When he was about to summon the dancer, he heard panic and noise coming from outside. He could vaguely hear the third prince shouting, "Xia Lin is dead, Xia Lin is dead."
The emperor stood up suddenly and his expression changed drastically.
Everyone looked over and saw that the Third Prince had collapsed on the ground, his face pale, and he was yelling incoherently, "How terrible! I went to visit him, and he said a few words, and suddenly he vomited blood and died..."
The servants around him covered his mouth tightly and tried to drag him away.
However, the third prince seemed to be frightened and struggled desperately, crying and shouting loudly.
Eunuch Lu beside the emperor walked over quickly and said angrily, "Why don't you take the third prince back quickly? Do you still want his head?"
(End of this chapter)