At this moment, the entire palace was decorated with lanterns and colorful decorations, and it was full of joy.
As early as half a month ago, Zongzheng Temple, Guanglu Temple, Taichang Temple, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and other relevant ministries and temples began to make preparations. The ministers knew that the Holy Drunkard did not care about drinking, so they planned this birthday banquet with all their heart. , using all kinds of silks and satins, all kinds of lanterns and colorful tiles to decorate the palace with flowers and auspiciousness.
The officials and their family members who are eligible to participate in the night banquet this time are all above the fifth rank, but they are not limited to civil servants, but also military officers, casual officers, honorary officers, and noble officers. All officials above the fifth rank in Beijing are eligible to participate.
However, depending on the official position, the number of family members brought is limited. Even so, the scale will immediately expand several times, and the number of people attending the banquet will be thousands.
Moreover, most of the courtiers were quite sensible, and they basically just brought their wives with them to attend the Queen's small banquet in the side hall, in order to become familiar with the circle of ladies in the capital, and at the same time, they could also inquire about news.
The reason why Li Jinglong wanted to bring Li Hongbi with him was because His Majesty the Emperor issued a special decree and Li Hongbi had to come.
Zhu Neng was more conservative and came alone. With his cautious temperament, he learned that something big happened at the banquet tonight, so he didn't bring his wife and son.
The group of three people quickly arrived at the main hall of Qianqing Palace, where the Dog Emperor entertained hundreds of officials.
As soon as he arrived here, Li Hongbi saw many familiar people, all of whom were injured.
Needless to say, guys like Qiu Fu and Li Yuan, even if they are strong, they are still too much to bear after being beaten with thirty sticks.
When they saw Li Hongbi, these guys all snorted and turned away, obviously angry.
It's really hard to talk about holding a grudge, but being angry is still really angry.
If Li Hongbi and Zhu Gaoxu hadn't done something wrong, how could they have been brought before His Majesty the Emperor and beaten thirty times.
To put it bluntly, these noble military ministers have all become fish in the pond, which makes everyone feel uncomfortable.
Li Hongbi chuckled lightly, not wanting to cause more trouble, and began to find his place.
In front of the throne in the hall, there is a table for the emperor's royal banquet. There are also seats for vassal kings and first and second-rank civil and military officials. They are the core and powerful figures of the Ming Dynasty, and ordinary officials are naturally not eligible to enter.
Secondly, on the east and west sides under the eaves in front of the main hall, there are banquet tables for the six ministers, the censor of Zuodu, the censor of the capital, and the censor of the capital.
Finally, on the left and right sides outside the Dan Palace, positions were set up according to official position and grade.
Because Li Hongbi was a lowly official, he was naturally not allowed to enter the main hall. However, because of his status as the eldest son of Cao Guogong, he was arranged to sit at a table at the back of the entrance of the hall, surrounded by some ministers and deputy censors. Such a powerful official of the third or fourth grade could not help but make him feel a little uncomfortable.
At this moment, the lights in the palace are brightly lit, just like daytime. The maids coming and going in colorful clothes, with exquisite clothes and beautiful faces, are all busy preparing delicacies and wines, making people linger like butterflies in flowers.
Moreover, Li Hongbi was keenly aware that the eyes of these palace maids looking at him were a little fiery, and the faint blush on their faces became more rosy, and they would secretly glance at him from time to time.
Seeing this situation, Li Hongbi couldn't help but sigh.
This man is so handsome, especially extremely handsome, which is also a distress!
Li Hongbi did not dare to mess with the maids in the palace, because they were all the women of the Dog Emperor in name.
Besides, no matter how young and beautiful they are, they can't compare to those girls from Shili Qinhuai!
Not only is she beautiful, but she is also considerate and speaks nicely...
What's more, their beauty is far inferior to that of their own little wives.
Li Hongbi felt a little troubled when he thought of this.
Damn it, why doesn’t the Dog Emperor start the banquet?
I'm still waiting to go on a date with my little wife!
At this moment, I heard a person next to me smile and say: "Although there are many rules for giving banquets, His Majesty is always easy-going, so Prince Hongbi does not need to be too nervous."
Li Hongbi turned around when he heard this.
I saw that the person next to me had a plain face, was cold and thin, and was not very old. However, he showed that he had experienced many vicissitudes of life, as if he was a noble and elegant scholar who had seen through the hardships and hardships in the world. He was very extraordinary.
"This lord is..."
"My dear, Yang Shiqi, is the editor and editor of Hanlin Academy."
Hanlin editor, Yang Shiqi!
It turned out to be him!
Li Hongbi was a little surprised and looked at the cold official in front of him.
Yang Shiqi, the first of the three wise prime ministers, served as a cabinet minister in five dynasties for more than 40 years. His longest tenure was the longest in the Ming Dynasty. He served as the chief minister of the cabinet for 21 years, and served as minister of the cabinet together with Yang Rong and Yang Pu. The government, also known as the "Three Yangs", assisted Emperor Renxuan in creating the "Government of Renxuan", and was a famous Xianxiang of the Ming Dynasty!
From his frequent appearances in Ming Dynasty TV series, it is not difficult to see that this man is not a simple character!
In fact, the reason why Li Hongbi knew him was because he watched a certain popular TV series in later generations and couldn't help but favor Du Niang.
Facts have proved that Du Niang is very powerful and Yang Shiqi is also very good.
Li Hongbi smiled and said: "Hongbi doesn't know much about palace etiquette. If there is anything inappropriate, please ask Brother Shiqi to give you some advice."
Yang Shiqi nodded with a smile.
He is very optimistic about Li Hongbi.
Just because he was young, he was able to train three top talents and took the top three places in the Yingtianfu Township Examination in one fell swoop!
You must know that the Yingtianfu Township Examination is a place where Nanji’s humanities gather, and it is also a place where talents from the south of the Yangtze River compete.
He, Yang Shiqi, was from Ji'an Prefecture in Jiangxi Province, and he took part in the provincial examination during the Hongwu period, but unfortunately failed, not even passing the examination!
One can imagine how perverted those talented people in Jiangxi are!
But the Li Hongbi in front of him actually did it. He trained three disciples and won the top three in the provincial examination in one fell swoop, giving those talented Jiangxi students a slap in the face.
The facts are before us. No matter how Li Hongbi did it, it is undeniable that this boy must have great talents!
One was interested in making friends, the other was happy to make friends, and the two quickly became familiar with each other.
"Brother Shiqi, Hongbi remembers that you are also one of the cabinet bachelors, so why are you sitting outside this hall instead of inside?"
Li Hongbi said something rudely, because he really didn't understand it.
In order to appease the southern gentry, Emperor Dog specially ordered Xie Jin, Hu Guang and other cabinet ministers to sit in the palace with all the important officials in the court, which was considered a favor to them.
But it happened that Yang Shiqi also entered the pavilion, but he sat next to him, which was a bit embarrassing.
Everyone is a cabinet bachelor, why should you treat them differently?
Hearing Li Hongbi's words, Yang Shiqi's expression suddenly dimmed and he smiled self-deprecatingly.
"There are not enough quotas for the official title, so my position was moved outside..."
There is no doubt that this is being targeted by Jie Wen Gou!
Li Hongbi became even more confused. This shouldn't be the case!
Yang Shiqi is also an official from Jiangxi. How could Jie Wengou target and suppress him like this?
"No, what does Jie Wen Gou mean?"
"Isn't this intentional to embarrass Brother Shiqi?"
Jiewen dog?
When Yang Shiqi heard this, he immediately became happy and smiled on his face.
"Ahem, Hongbi, don't talk nonsense, it's so indecent!"
Although he also thought that the nickname was very appropriate, he couldn't say it openly!
Li Hongbi curled his lips in disdain. He and Xie Jin had already forged a big feud. How could he be afraid of this stubborn dog who bullied the weak and feared the strong?
"Brother Shiqi, tell me what's going on? Is it possible that there is a fight for power within your cabinet?"
The cabinet's struggle for power took place in the middle and late Ming Dynasty, when the power of the cabinet reached its peak. For the so-called first and second assistant positions, the brains of those cabinet ministers were about to be beaten.
But it's different now. You don't have much power in the cabinet, so you're starting to fight for power?
Yang Shiqi smiled bitterly and said in a low voice: "I came from a poor background, and I was promoted to an official position, so... I'm not valued!"
Oh, I see.
Li Hongbi nodded.
It turns out that Jie Wen Gou targeted Yang Shiqi because of this!
Just because Yang Shiqi did not come from a professional background, he was despised and despised by others.
Jie Wen Gou was a serious Jinshi, and he came from a family of officials, so he naturally looked down on Yang Shiqi.
"Jie Wen Gou is a little too much!"
Seeing Li Hongbi fighting for himself, Yang Shiqi felt a warm current in his heart.
But when he thought of his current situation, he could only shake his head with a wry smile and let out a long sigh.
"I've been walking on thin ice in my life..."
