Noon the next day. Wu Nian held a banquet in the palace, accompanied by cabinet ministers, six ministries, five temples, the Metropolitan Procuratorate and other senior government officials, and entertained Ding Chengyuan.
The palace hall is magnificent.
A eunuch with a strong build, fair face and no beard, wearing court clothes.
A graceful and beautiful palace maid.
Delicious delicacies prepared by the chef of the imperial dining room.
And the top imperial wine in Han Dynasty.
Everything shows the luxury of this banquet.
As the Minister of Rites of Chu State, Ding Chengyuan has seen the world. He is no stranger to this palace banquet. But he was worried.
He was afraid that Wu Nian would say something suddenly like yesterday at the court meeting, and he would not be able to answer.
That is, the Hongmen Banquet.
But things were completely different from what he imagined. This is not Hongmen Banquet, this is a good banquet. Wu Nian showed his royal bearing and introduced the high officials of the dynasty present to Ding Chengyuan one by one.
The end. Wu Nian took the initiative to raise his glass and toasted Ding Chengyuan a glass of wine. After putting down the wine glass, Wu Nian said with emotion: "I was born in commoners, and I relied on the sharp sword in my hand. I fought in the north and south for more than twenty years, stabilized Liaodong, attacked Goguryeo, went south to Fusang, and annihilated the Meng Yuan Dynasty."
"To the south, I am alone."
Wu Nian was very satisfied with his ambition. He only drank one glass of wine and seemed to be too drunk. He raised his eyes and asked Ding Chengyuan, "What kind of person does Mr. Ding think I am?"
Ding Chengyuan reacted very quickly, clasped his fists and said: "The King of Han is a true hero. Both Emperor Gaozu of the Han Dynasty and Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty are not as good as the King of Han."
"Hahahaha." Wu Nian laughed loudly, showing a proud look. All the high officials in the court fell silent, even the upright Zuodu Censor Wang Youxiao.
No one stood up and criticized Wu Nian for getting carried away.
After laughing, Wu Nian said: "Ding Gong is overrated. Although I am not bad at civil and martial arts, I am not as good as Han Gaozu and Tang Taizong."
"It's absolutely true." Ding Chengyuan insisted on his opinion and said seriously.
"Hahahaha." Wu Nian laughed loudly again.
The opening was perfect and the atmosphere was harmonious. Later, Wu Nian, Ding Chengyuan and the Manchu officials exchanged cups and watched the singing and dancing again, and they were very happy.
The end. Wu Nian raised his glass and said to Ding Chengyuan: "Dong Ding. May the two countries be reconciled from generation to generation and be good neighbors forever."
Ding Chengyuan raised his glass, shook it with Wu Nian, and then drank.
immediately. The banquet is over. Wu Nian was too drunk and was helped away by the eunuch. Ding Chengyuan was arranged by officials from the Ministry of Etiquette.
Ding Chengyuan's mission this time had actually completed his mission and he should have returned.
However, Wu Nian stayed with him for a long time, either drinking and banqueting with him, or climbing high with him to look far away.
Ding Chengyuan is the minister of the Ministry of Rites, but he is a noble among the nobles. He is top-notch in reading, poetry and calligraphy. When Wu Nian climbed high and looked far away, he also asked him to write poems and leave calligraphy treasures.
He was also given gold, silver, pearls and jade, which were very valuable.
The so-called effectiveness of what goes up and what follows.
The officials of the Ministry of Rites were also very polite to Ding Chengyuan. His food, clothing, housing and transportation in Guanyi are of the highest quality.
However, the situation took a turn for the worse five days later.
This morning.
The palace hall.
Wu Nian was wearing a dragon robe and sitting on the throne, with civil and military officials from the court standing on both sides. Standing in front of him was a man whose appearance was very different from that of a Han Chinese, and who was wearing the clothes of a Slavic aristocrat.
It was the special envoy of the Slavs, the Marquis of Tedun.
It is different from meeting Ding Chengyuan. Wu Nian went straight to the point and said: "The alliance between the Slavs and the Mongolian Yuan has been fighting against me one after another. Aren't you afraid of being slaughtered by me, the Marquis?"
The King of Han opened his eyes and showed his murderous intent.
The Marquis of Terdun was an excellent diplomat rather than a soldier, and he was immediately in trouble with his scalp, which he couldn't bear. He forced himself to calm down and said, "This moment, that moment."
"The Han people have a saying. There are no eternal enemies, only eternal interests."
"This time I am sincere."
After saying that, he bent down towards Wu Nian.
"Hey." Wu Nian smiled and sneered. But the murderous aura dissipated slightly.
Marquis Tedun breathed a sigh of relief, bent down further and said: "My Emperor, I know that the Han Dynasty is strong and powerful. It can keep pace with the Slavs. But when two tigers fight, one of them will be injured. It is not good for anyone."
"The two heroes stand side by side in the north, while the sheep are in the south. It would be better for the two heroes to turn south."
"Our emperor requested that Princess Jenny be presented to the King of Han. The two sides formed an alliance to attack the Chu Kingdom. After that, Hangu Pass was used as the boundary to divide the Chu Kingdom into two halves. The west side belongs to the Slavs and the east side belongs to the Han Kingdom."
"I don't know what the King of Han wants."
Most of the civil and military officials in the Manchu Dynasty used the eyes to look at the nose, and the nose to look at the heart.
Several generals sneered.
The Slavs said the same thing last time.
But last time it was the Slavs who were up to no good. The purpose was to divert the direction of Han's attack and reduce the pressure on the Mongolian people.
But this time, it should be sincere.
It is true that the Han Dynasty was too powerful and could not be wiped out at once.
First, the soft persimmon of Chu was bitten, and then the two countries fought again.
Wu Nian looked curious and asked: "Is Princess Jenny beautiful? What color is her hair?"
Marquis Tedun was caught off guard, but quickly replied: "According to the Han people, he has bright eyebrows and white teeth, and a pretty face. His hair is black."
"Oh." Wu Nian said, showing interest. But in the end he said: "This matter is of great importance. Let me discuss it with the important ministers and then reply to you."
"It should be so." Marquis Tedun bowed deeply.
immediately. Wu Nian asked officials from the Ministry of Rites to invite Marquis Tedun to come down.
What a coincidence.
Officials from the Ministry of Rites placed Marquis Tedun next door to Ding Chengyuan.
...........
Guanyi.
Ding Chengyuan's small courtyard, inside his bedroom.
Ding Chengyuan was watching from outside while he talked to Xu Chengen, the deputy envoy's doctor in the military department.
"Master Xu. Wu Nian has not summoned me for three days. The officials of the Ministry of Rites of the Han Dynasty have also become much colder to me. Moreover, my request to return to the Chu Kingdom has also come to nothing. Is there something unexpected?"
Ding Chengyuan's face was ugly, he was pacing back and forth with his hands behind his back, and his tone was very heavy.
It is important for the two countries to maintain good relations.
Net worth and life are two.
As a minister of Chu State, he performed very well. But he was prejudiced against Wu Nian in his heart.
Although Wu Nian had great talents.
Brave and good at fighting, with extraordinary physical strength.
But he was born in civilian clothes and killed brutally.
Moreover, Wu Nian killed Chu's envoys once in Beishan Fort. I don’t know what happened now. What if Wu Nian killed him?
Death is in vain.
Xu Chengen was sitting on a round stool with an ugly expression on his face. But he is an official of the Ministry of War. Although he is not as noble as Ding Chengyuan, he is more knowledgeable and calmer.
"There must have been something unexpected. But Wu Nian didn't kill us immediately. There was room for maneuver. Let's calm down first and send people to find out the news. Only when we know what happened has happened can we deal with it better."
"You can't mess up your position."
Xu Chengen said in a deep voice.
"Master Xu is right. I will send someone to find out the news immediately." Ding Chengyuan's eyes lit up when he heard this, and he nodded.
