After the triumphal ceremony, in order to show his kindness and honor, the emperor would hold a state banquet in the palace to honor the heroes who had made great achievements in the dynasty and show their kindness and honor.
Although officials of the fifth rank and above are eligible to participate in a banquet of this level, they can only stay in the outer hall as a foil. Only the protagonists of the triumphal ceremony and senior officials of the third rank and above can really have dinner with the emperor.
For example, there are about six ministers, ministers, ministers of Dali Temple, Yin of Shuntian Prefecture, etc.
Naturally, Lu Chen would not be absent.
Not only that, with his achievements second only to Gu Simiao, he sat on the lower right side of the empress, only a few steps away from her.
Gu Simiao, who was sitting on the left side of the empress, was not even that close.
One after another exquisite dishes and cups of mellow wine were brought up by the palace maids and placed in front of everyone. Then the beautiful, gentle and charming dancer floated in and danced in the hall.
Everyone enjoyed the food and watched the dance. From time to time, they raised their glasses to the Empress, Holy King Cangming and Gu Simiao, and their words were full of praise.
But in this increasingly lively atmosphere, Lu Chen frowned slightly, his eyes became more and more distracted, and his attention was not at all on the beautiful dancer not far away. He seemed to be thinking about something.
Although his hands were picking up food, they were only mechanically putting the food into his mouth.
It tastes like chewing wax.
"Lu Qing."
The empress soon noticed that he was restless and thoughtful, and she immediately called out softly.
Lu Chen quickly came to his senses and turned to look at the empress.
However, before he could speak, the empress smiled and said:
"Lu Qing is so absent-minded, but he is thinking about matters in the court?"
Ahem
Hearing her question, Lu Chen couldn't help but cough twice, and a hint of imperceptible embarrassment flashed in the corner of his eyes.
He has already taken care of official business and other matters.
And it's not just messing around, but handling it as properly as possible.
In fact, since he took charge of Yuzhou, he has never slacked off in his official duties and has always tried his best to do his best. Although there is a reason for wanting to die from overwork, he also has the idea of benefiting the world.
After all, these two things are not in conflict, and can even be said to complement each other. They can not only do what they can for the suffering people living in this ancient world of high martial arts, but also create opportunities for the road to immortality. Why not? ?
Although the affairs assigned to him by the Engineering Department were relatively heavy, and he received special care from the empress, he also had to take care of the affairs of the Civil Affairs Department.
But compared to having an overview of Yuzhou's military and political affairs, he handled all the affairs of Yuzhou in an orderly manner, laying a solid foundation for the subsequent stability of the people and the development of people's livelihood. The six subjects were naturally not difficult for him.
Just now, he was simply thinking about Daxia's official title system and distinguishing the relationship between official titles and titles.
But of course it was impossible for him to say such a thing. It wasn't his first time riding a king anyway, so it didn't matter.
So he nodded slightly and took advantage of the donkey tunnel under the slope to say:
"To be honest with you, Your Majesty, the minister is not very capable and handles official duties very slowly on weekdays. He is not as fast as his colleagues. No matter how diligent the minister is, he cannot ensure that all the affairs of the day can be properly handled. When he was on duty yesterday, , there are some official documents piled up in Weichen's office that I haven't had time to process."
"Originally, Wei Chen thought that after the triumphal ceremony was over, Wei Chen would immediately go back to the public house to work so as not to delay state affairs, but he didn't expect that."
Regarding Lu Chen's entanglement, the empress shook her head and said softly: "Lu Qing, don't worry, you have only been in the court for a few months, and the affairs in the court are complicated and heavy. It is normal to go slower. This does not mean that you are incapable. It just means that you are not capable enough." You are just pursuing perfection, so don’t be too harsh on yourself, and”
Having said this, she inexplicably narrowed her eyes, then looked around, and her tone became somewhat meaningful.
"Doing things slowly is not necessarily a bad thing, and doing things quickly is not necessarily a good thing."
Click
Hearing these hidden words, some courtiers involuntarily tightened their grip on the wine glasses in their hands.
The empress said again: "Okay, Lu Qing, today's feast is a celebration banquet for the heroes who have made great contributions to the dynasty. Lu Qing, you are one of the great heroes who killed the Demon Queen's gang members. If you can't immerse yourself in it, this feast will What’s the point?”
"Put down your official duties for the time being, relax a little, and enjoy this rare celebration."
The boss has already mentioned this, what else can Lu Chen say?
I had no choice but to calm down and nod in agreement.
After hearing Lu Chen's words, Gu Simiao's mind gradually came back to the scene where he saved the young man who looked ordinary at the time when he was training in Beiji. .
The words she said to the boy on a whim at that time were also dug out from the depths of her memory.
At this moment, the gentleman Zhicheng sitting opposite her gradually overlapped with the young man with vague impressions in her mind.
"It was just a casual remark at the beginning, but he actually devoted everything to it, just to accumulate karmic merit and help me achieve the great road."
"This man is so stupid."
The wine in the glass swayed gently, and after a ripple, her soft little face was reflected again.
At this time, she didn't even see a trace of her usual coldness.
Recalling what Saint King Cangming had told her on the way back to the capital, Lu Chen's bizarre rise from openly being loyal to the empress in the court to having the empress return to power, she couldn't help but raise the corners of her mouth slightly.
"But I don't hate fools."
However, with all her attention on Lu Chen, she didn't notice that the empress sitting at the top glanced at her imperceptibly.
"Speak."
When everyone was changing cups and cups again, the empress suddenly spoke.
"Gu Aiqing, four days ago, your mother asked to see me. For Lu Qing's sake, I met her. Then she cried to me and said that you actually didn't like Zhao Feifan, the eldest son of the Zhao family, and even treated him extremely. In order to avoid him, he even found excuses to join the army in a dangerous and unpredictable desert state."
"And when you first left the sect and returned to Nanpi, a fellow sect brother often came to look for you. He traveled with you in the rivers and lakes, slaying demons and defending the Tao. Your mother said that he was the one you liked. Later, the reason why you agreed to Zhao The extraordinary pursuit was because after she learned that Zhao Feifan fell in love with you at first sight, she was afraid of the power of the Demon Queen and in order to protect the Gu family, she forced you to die and asked you to cut off contact with your fellow disciple and marry Zhao Feifan. , is that what happened?”
As soon as these words came out, the surroundings instantly became quiet.
Almost all the courtiers looked at Gu Simiao at the same time.
Lu Chen, who had just poured himself a glass of wine, had no reaction when he heard these words. Instead, he chatted with the Holy King who had taken off half of his mask. He was obviously completely unaware of this kind of thing. No interest whatsoever.
In fact, he didn't have much ill feelings towards the Holy King, the number two backstabber.
After all, if you think about it carefully, he is truly unparalleled in loyalty. In order to help the empress control the world, he not only led his army all the way to support the empress in taking control of the entire Sili area, but also later brought some loyal ministers and generals in Cangming Realm. He was transferred to the empress and put under her command. As soon as something happened in Huangzhou, he immediately led his troops there.
Moreover, Fu Huan and others helped him a lot in Yuzhou. As long as he gave an order, Fu Huan, Fang Yu and other soldiers from the Yuan Cangming Army would go through fire and water for him without hesitation.
Although it actually didn't matter whether they helped him or not, it was better not to help him, but this friendship, no matter how much he regretted the opportunity to directly ascend to immortality, he still had to remember it when he calmed down after the incident.
Therefore, Lu Chen was not that repulsive towards Fu Hua and his old boss.
After all, they don’t know anything about the system.
The Holy King glanced at Gu Simiao curiously, but only glanced at it and looked away.
Obviously, like Lu Chen, he was not very interested in this kind of gossip.
Gu Simiao couldn't help but be startled when she heard the topic that the empress suddenly mentioned.
After reacting, he couldn't help but be speechless to his mother.
It was obviously her initiative to arrange for her to meet Zhao Feifan, and then she tried every means to get herself to meet Zhao Feifan, rejecting Brother Tian Lei who had taken good care of her when he was a member of the sect. However, in the end, the responsibility fell on her. Completely lost to Zhao Feifan.
To be honest, although Zhao Feifan is not a good person or talent, this pot really does not belong to him.
It's all the fault of her heartless old lady, otherwise she would still be the same [Canglian Sword Immortal] who was dedicated to exterminating demons and defending the Tao, often wandering around the world with like-minded righteous people, just to rid the world of all evil spirits. 】.
The empress' words made her subconsciously think back to the past.
After a moment, she couldn't help but sigh sadly, and then subconsciously glanced at Lu Chen. Seeing that his expression didn't change at all, she couldn't help but raise her brows slightly.
"Reply to His Majesty."
Gu Simiao nodded and said, "Mother is right. Wei Chen does not like Zhao Feifan. The reason why he made excuses to join the army in Huangzhou was to avoid his entanglement."
Naturally, she couldn't dismantle my mother at this time.
No matter how much she said she was her mother, no matter how much she didn't like her, she could only hide from her, and there was no way she would take the initiative to harm her.
"That's it"
The empress picked up the wine glass on the table that contained milk, which was extremely rare in Daxia, took a rather decent sip, and then whispered:
"I didn't expect that a peerless person like Gu Aiqing, who is famous all over the world, would have such a bitter past. He was forced by the Demon Queen to separate from her lover. But now everything has passed. Now that the Demon Queen is dead, the rest of the party will be executed. No one can stop you from becoming a Taoist couple with your lover."
At this point, she paused for no reason, her moving eyes moved slightly to the side, and then she continued: "And Gu Aiqing has made such great contributions to the court, I will never treat you badly. The injustice Gu Aiqing suffered in the court back then , I will make it up for you, tomorrow, I will personally decree a marriage, so that Gu Aiqing and her lover can finally get married."
"Your Majesty has misunderstood."
Gu Simiao denied it calmly: "Weichen and Senior Brother Tian just have a good relationship, they are not lovers, and"
"Since getting engaged to Zhao Feifan, Wei Chen has never seen Senior Brother Tian again."
Hearing this, the empress couldn't help but be startled.
At this time, Gu Simiao said again: "Maybe my mother misunderstood our relationship when she saw Senior Brother Tian and I were getting close. In fact, Wei Chen never said that Senior Brother Tian was Wei Chen's crush. Wei Chen explained to her, But she didn’t believe it at all, and that’s why she had this misunderstanding, so please don’t blame my mother.”
As these words fell, the melon rotted away so easily.
"I see."
The empress' complexion returned to normal.
He picked up the milk on the table again and drank it in one gulp.
"Then, does Gu Aiqing have a loved one who was forced to separate because of Zhao Feifan's incident? If so, you might as well tell me, and I will definitely hold an unprecedented grand wedding for Gu Aiqing."
Hearing this, Gu Simiao felt funny.
This little girl
He was clearly a wise king who was able to hide the truth from the Demon Queen's nose. After continuously accumulating strength, he counterattacked and killed the Demon Queen at the last moment and took back the world. After taking power, he also showed the wisdom and martial prowess of an emperor who is the lord of the resurgence. , but he showed his flaws in such a trivial matter.
Shaking her head, Gu Simiao said calmly: "Replying to Your Majesty, since I came to Huangzhou, I have put my children's personal affairs behind me. For me at that time, in addition to respecting the king and fighting against the barbarians, I would kill all the foreigners. Other than that, the only thing left is martial arts.”
After hearing this answer, the empress still looked calm.
"That's a pity. Gu Aiqing's focus on martial arts is somewhat similar to Xiao Aiqing's focus on the holy way. Are you, like Xiao Aiqing, prepared to use Tao as a companion to seek the truth of heaven and earth?"
"That's not true."
Gu Simiao shook her head again.
"Wei Chen can't compare to a wonderful woman like Xiao Shangshu, who is a scholar of heaven and earth. Her dedication to martial arts is just a helpless move by Wei Chen, and"
At this point, she suddenly narrowed her eyes, and a meaningful smile flashed in the corners of her eyes.
"Wei Chen just doesn't have a loved one who separated because of Zhao Feifan's incident. It's not that he doesn't have a loved one."
Click
"oh?"
The wine glass in the Empress's hand shook, and then she asked in surprise: "Does the Gu Qing family have someone in mind?"
Gu Simiao smiled slightly, nodded and said, "Yes."
After a pause, she suddenly picked up the wine glass and arched it towards the empress.
"Your Majesty's kindness, Wei Chen appreciates it, but let's forget about the marriage. Although Wei Chen has a deep affection for that person, he has extremely lofty ideals in his heart. For him at this time, the love between children Growing up will only slow him down, so Wei Chen doesn't intend to reveal his feelings until he realizes his ambition."
"Of course, as a human emperor, your majesty is the king's land in the world, and the king's ministers are on the shores of the land. Your majesty can decide the affairs of the world with one word, and no one can violate it. But as the saying goes, forceful melons are not sweet. "Wei Chen admires and likes him as a person, not his body, so please, Your Majesty, please don't mention this matter again, and don't ask who that person is, Wei Chen doesn't want these things to bother him."
As soon as she finished speaking, the little hands under the empress's dragon robe tightened inexplicably.
"Okay, just follow what Aiqing said and just pretend that I haven't said anything about this."
(End of chapter)
