Only when Su Qi'an stepped into the imperial city could he feel the hugeness of the imperial city.
In front of them is a passage with no end in sight. On both sides of the passage are towering city walls. At a rough glance, they are at least forty or fifty meters high.
The city wall is like two giants, wrapping this passage. There is a feeling of depression when walking.
The carriage walked for about ten minutes before walking out of the thick and tall city wall passage.
At the end of the passage, Su Qian got off the carriage at the greeting of the imperial guards. In front of him was a huge open square.
This square is so big that it can easily accommodate tens of thousands of people, and there is a Forbidden Army handler every five meters around the square.
The steps in the square are one level higher every 100 meters. As far as the eye can see, there are about four or five steps, with ninety-five steps on each level.
In the middle of the steps, nine stone dragons are carved, which means the Nine-Five Supreme.
At the end of the line of sight, there is a huge and magnificent palace, which looks very majestic.
This is the place where His Majesty entertains ministers and holds banquets.
This is just a palace, so huge. There are at least a dozen palaces like this in the imperial city.
The scale of each building is so majestic, and a glimpse of the leopard can clearly see the hugeness of the imperial city.
Under the leadership of the imperial guards, Su Qian walked slowly towards the palace at the end of his sight.
It looked like it wasn't far away, but it took about ten or twenty minutes to reach the entrance of the palace.
The Imperial Guard stood at the door, not going in, but waiting for the announcement.
After a while, a chamberlain came out. After communicating with the imperial guards, he came to Su Qi'an and said respectfully.
"Uncle Dongshan, your majesty and others have been waiting for you for a long time. Come and take a seat with us.
Su Qi'an nodded, and Su Yong quickly followed behind him. At a banquet like this, it is allowed to bring entourage.
However, there is a strict limit on the number of people, only one person, and the entourage will be searched very strictly again before entering the palace.
Only when safety is ensured will they be allowed in. Even if they enter the palace, the entourage cannot move around at will.
He could only stand behind his master and not make any rash moves. Once he found someone who had overstepped his bounds, the imperial army responsible for protecting the safety of the palace would directly take action and shoot him.
The palace is very large. Directly in front of it is a high platform. In the middle of the high platform is a dragon chair. Sitting on the dragon chair is a middle-aged man in his fifties.
This man was not wearing a black dragon robe, but a white robe, but the material of this white robe was quite luxurious.
The whole body is made of silk. The cuffs and chest of the robe are all made of five-clawed golden dragon made of gold. Although he is over fifty years old, he does not look old. His majestic eyes make people dare not look at them. See.
Every move he made showed an extraordinary bearing. This person was none other than the Emperor of Great Liang, His Majesty Su Xuanyong.
Su Qi'an walked to the middle of the palace, saluted Su Xuanyong respectfully, and said loudly.
"Su Qian'an pays homage to His Majesty. Long live your Majesty. Long live your Majesty."
Su Xuanyong, who was sitting on the dragon chair on the high platform, nodded slightly, indicating that he would stand up.
"Uncle Dongshan, there is no need to be polite. Please take your seat quickly."
Su Qian stood up and took a seat behind the second long table on the left.
Looking around, he realized that he was not alone in this banquet.
At a cursory glance, there were at least twenty long tables on the left and right sides of the palace. Among the people who came, the only one with the smallest title was Earl Su Qian.
Most of the rest are marquises or dukes.
Looking around, there were many people coming to this banquet, including some acquaintances.
At the auction a few days ago, people like Wang Zhenshan, Chu Guogong, and Wenxuan were among them.
At the northern battlefield, some young princes such as Zheng Liang and Chen Dao were present, but they did not sit alone, but with their elders.
Judging from the elder's age, Su Qi'an probably had some guesses that he was the Duke of the country.
Among these people, Zhao Guogong, who had a grudge against Su Qi'an, was among them.
For Zhao
Su Qi'an ignored the sharp look from the Duke of Guo.
On this occasion, Duke Zhao would not be stupid enough to attack him.
What caught Su Qi'an's attention the most was that on both sides of Su Xuanyong, the second prince and the fourth prince also arrived.
To be able to let the prince attend the banquet, in a way, this banquet is very important.
Not long after Su Qi'an took his seat, Su Xuanyong's voice suddenly sounded.
He said to Su Qi'an, "Dongshan Bo, your six poems are famous in Kyoto, and even I am attracted by them."
"I took a look at it, and it seems that I have only finished half of your sixth poem. I have a gracious request, could you please fill in the first part if you have time?"
Su Qi'an held up his hand and said quickly, "Your Majesty said this politely. It is an honor to be appreciated by Your Majesty. When the banquet is over, the first part of the words will be sent to His Majesty."
"Haha, that's good. Thank you very much, Uncle Dongshan."
With that said, Su Xuanyong raised his glass and gestured to Su Qi'an. Seeing this, all the princes and princes below stood up and toasted to Su Qi'an.
Su Qian's face was calm and he accepted everything one by one, but his heart was not so calm.
"It's not a good thing to be paid attention to by His Majesty right from the beginning." Su Qi'an thought to himself.
At this time, the second prince and the fourth prince, who were sitting next to Su Xuanyong, spoke in compliments almost in tandem.
"Haha, father, Uncle Dongshan is not just a talent, he is a versatile person in both civil and military affairs. Such a talent, I think, must be reused."
"What my second brother said makes sense, and I think so too. I heard that Uncle Dongshan suppressed the local bandits in Xizhou until they dared not resist. The local people are very grateful to Uncle Dongshan."
"Well, I know this. For this reason, Xizhou Mu recommended to me that I be promoted to the earldom of Dongshan, and I agreed. Do you think it's not enough?" Su Xuanyong asked softly.
"That's right, my child is here. Please ask your father to promote Uncle Dongshan to another level and be promoted to Marquis."
"I also agree with the fourth brother's opinion. With the ability that Dong Shanbo has shown now, he should be made a marquis." The second prince continued to add on the side.
As soon as these words came out, the expressions of the Dukes and Marquises below all changed a little.
Obviously he disagrees. Although there is only one word difference between Earl and Marquis, the rights they have are completely different.
Not to mention anything else, the biggest difference is that once you become a prince, you have the right to form an army.
That is to say, military power. Counts like Su Qian are usually surrounded by guards and other protections.
But guards are guards after all, and there are strict restrictions on guards, which cannot exceed one hundred people.
The Marquis is different again. The army he can form can reach up to five thousand people. Although there is no war in peacetime, the army he forms will naturally be under jurisdiction and surveillance.
But once you have an army, the feeling of having military power can make others fearful.
If this Su Qi'an was just an ordinary scholar, he would have been granted the title of Marquis, but his earls were all built bit by bit on the battlefield.
At that time, with a lone army of several thousand people, he turned the rear of Da Rong upside down.
Now, once he is granted the title of Marquis and forms a real army, the combat power will be unimaginable.
Zheng Guogong, Zhao Guogong, and Chen Guogong looked at each other, leaning against Su Xuanyong on the stage, and seemed to have strange expressions.
The next moment, Duke Zhao's voice suddenly sounded.
"Your Majesty, I feel that it is inappropriate to grant a title of marquis."
As soon as these words came out, everyone's eyes fell on Zhao Guogong. Su Xuanyong on the stage raised his eyebrows and said softly.
"Oh, why does Zhao Qing object?"
"Your Majesty, I am opposed to Dongshan Bo being granted the title of Marquis for three reasons."
"First, the issue of making a marquis is based on military merit. His Majesty Dongshan Bo's performance in the northern battlefield has been rightly recognized by His Majesty. Now that the title of a marquis is based solely on the talent of a scholar, it is bound to cause controversy."
"Two, Uncle Dongshan was promoted from the second level to the first level in just a matter of seconds.
In just a few months, he was granted the title of Marquis again. There has never been such a precedent in our dynasty. "
"Third, according to my understanding, Uncle Dongshan has formed a so-called village protection team in Xizhou, which is mainly composed of villagers. The number of people is at least more than a thousand. If he is granted the title of marquis this time, I think Uncle Dongshan will definitely directly and legitimately kill him. Expanding into an army, what is the hidden intention behind this?"
"Your Majesty, please be aware of this and think twice."
What Duke Zhao Guogong said is very serious, especially the third one, which completely points to Su Qi'an's evil intentions.
If he was convicted and charged with conspiracy, this banquet would probably end in Su Qi'an's death.
Su Qian's face was calm, and he was about to speak out to refute, but it was the second prince Su Zhe who spoke first.
"Duke Zhao, I think your words are a bit serious. According to my understanding, the Duke seems to have a deep conflict with Dongshan Bo."
"My lord, what you said is hard not to involve personal revenge."
"Zhao Guogong, I don't agree with what you say. As early as last time, I felt something was wrong about Dongshan Bo, whether he should be granted the title of uncle or the title of marquis."
"We all know that based on Dongshan Bo's last military exploits, he is more than enough to be named a marquis. Now Dongshan Bo has once again proved his talent. I, Daliang, are always thirsty for wise men. What you did today, Duke Zhao, is really a bit narrow-minded. "
The one who spoke was the Fourth Prince Zhao Tai.
Not only Zhao Guogong did not expect this scene, but also many dignitaries present looked solemnly.
As a powerful official, how could he not know about the discord between the second and fourth princes? But now, both princes are speaking out for one person, and it is self-evident what is behind this.
At this point, Zhao Guogong's eyes flashed, but he still gritted his teeth and insisted.
"Your Highnesses, I have absolutely no selfish motives."
"Your Majesty, what I said from the bottom of my heart is that becoming a marquis is a big deal. Even if I have grudges with Uncle Dongshan, I can still tell the difference between right and wrong."
"Your Majesty, think twice! Don't let a second Marquis of Laiyang appear!"
The last words of Duke Zhao directly made the atmosphere in the palace suddenly become much lower.
Even the two princes were speechless by Duke Zhao's words.
Everyone's eyes were looking at Su Xuanyong on the stage.
That kind of low pressure makes people feel uncomfortable.
Because Marquis Laiyang was a name that everyone in the palace kept secret.
