According to the tradition of previous years, Emperor Jian'an would hold a 'family banquet' in Qianqing Palace every New Year's Eve.
All the Zhao royal family still in the palace will be called together to celebrate the festival with them.
Even some princes who have been crowned kings will occasionally get permission from Emperor Jian'an to return to Daliang and attend such banquets.
At this time, the main hall of Qianqing Palace was decorated with lights and colorful, full of excitement.
The princes who were summoned back to Daliang, as well as the royal children who had no presence like Zhao Hongming, all looked excited.
In their eyes, this was a family banquet held only once a year by the emperor of Wei Dynasty, and it was the centerpiece of the Wei Dynasty temple.
If you are lucky, you might be able to get a panacea, or be allowed to enter the Cangwu Building to choose the best skills, or you might be rewarded with gold or silver...
One outstanding performance can change the fate of oneself or one's subordinates.
For them, this family dinner is a rare opportunity.
Not to mention those ambitious princes.
But to be fair, Zhao Hongming was not interested in this kind of 'family banquet'.
There were too many familiar and unfamiliar people in the so-called 'family banquet' in front of us, and there was no 'home' atmosphere.
Inside, Zong Zheng, many concubines living in the palace, the recalled second and third princes, and now King Bi and King Dai were all present.
Logically speaking, these people are all relatives of Zhao Hongming, but to be honest, even if they live together in the palace, they don't have much affection for each other.
It's not much different to say they were just acquaintances.
Therefore, this kind of 'family banquet' may not be worthy of the name in Zhao Hongming's eyes.
"Your Majesty, the Queen is here."
Around the time of Shen Dynasty, Emperor Zhao Meixu of Jian'an and Queen Tu Huali walked into the main hall of Qianqing Palace together as Feng Dabao sang.
Many concubines, princes, and princesses who had been waiting for a long time stood up to greet him, shouting long live the mountain.
"Let's all get back together." Jian'an Emperor Zhao Meixu waved his hand and led the queen to the chief position.
After Emperor Jian'an took his seat, the rest of the people who came to the banquet took their seats one after another.
Zhao Hongming raised his head and looked at his father, who had a similar appearance to him and whom he rarely saw.
I just feel extremely strange.
He looked away, his expression becoming neither sad nor happy.
In the main hall, those closest to the Emperor's throne are the Prince's family.
Then came Zong Zheng, the concubines, the princes who had been crowned kings, and then came these princes who had not yet left the imperial court, and some other clan members.
Zhao Hongming's ranking is not high, so his seat is relatively close to the back, in a corner where no one is paying attention.
Other princes might be unhappy because of this, but Zhao Hongming didn't care much about it, instead he was happy.
After Emperor Jian'an took his seat, he began to say some words of encouragement.
It's nothing more than what achievements the court has made this year, what kind of development the Zhao family has, and what prospects there will be in the new year.
Finally, I expressed some emotions about life and said some wishes for family harmony.
After all the congratulations were said, the family banquet officially kicked off.
The eunuch of the imperial dining room who had been waiting outside the palace for a long time, under Feng Dabao's order, brought bowls of dishes and placed them in front of everyone's tables.
Soon, as the family banquet progressed, several ambitious princes, including the prince, the fourth prince, and the seventh prince, successively greeted Emperor Jian'an, reciting poems or making objections in an attempt to win Emperor Jian'an's attention.
Emperor Jian'an was naturally not disappointed in this special season, and even played games such as guessing coins, thumb battles and drinking orders.
Later, Zongzheng also participated.
But he played a more refined game - guessing allusions.
What Zong Zheng said about guessing the allusions was that he randomly told some riddles and asked the people present to find the corresponding allusions. It was difficult or easy.
It should be regarded as both a game and a test against others.
Emperor Jian'an prepared some jade pendants, jade bracelets, elixirs, swords and other small gifts as rewards to liven up the atmosphere of the banquet.
Therefore, under the stimulation of Emperor Jian'an, many princes, princesses, and princes who returned from abroad were eager to try it.
For the ambitious among them, rewards may not be of particular concern. What they care about is whether they can please Emperor Jian'an.
Zong Zheng stroked his goatee, pondered for a while and said: "Don't fall into a beauty trap, just make a comment in the Analects."
After he finished speaking, Zhao Hongming felt that what he heard was in a fog and he had no idea what he meant.
"The Analects of Confucius·Ji Shi: When you are young, your blood and Qi are not yet determined, and the warning lies in the color."
Soon the fourth prince Zhao Hongli guessed the answer to the riddle.
"Good deeds are rewarded!" Emperor Jian'an said with a smile.
The young eunuch guarding the main hall held a jade box and presented it in front of Zhao Hongli.
He took the jade box and opened it to see that it was a marrow-cleansing pill.
Zhao Hongli was quick-thinking and reacted immediately. This was an affirmation of what he did in the study that day.
He said excitedly: "Thank you, Father, and I wish Father a long life."
With Zhao Hongli taking the lead, the others were all excited and eager to give it a try.
"Puppet, hit Mencius."
"Mencius King Hui of Liang said: 'The one who first made the figurines has no descendants!' They are used to resemble people."
"Eager to learn, say a sentence in the Analects."
"The Analects of Confucius states: Know it silently, be tireless in learning, and never tire of teaching."
"All the people are soldiers, just say the art of war."
"Sun Tzu· Marching Chapter, order them with words, and unite them with force."
…
The riddles were told one by one, and then the princes and princesses such as Prince Zhao Hongwen, Second Prince Zhao Hongwu, Seventh Prince Zhao Hongsheng, etc. all answered the riddles correctly, which was quite a harvest.
The atmosphere on the court became increasingly lively.
Suddenly, the eighth prince Zhao Hongguang, who was sitting behind Zhao Hongming, looked over and lowered his voice: "Fifth brother, why don't you come up and say a few words? I see you are just eating there."
Zhao Hongming spread his hands and said honestly: "I don't know how to play this game. What a joke."
"When you encounter obstacles everywhere, say something in the Analects."
At this time, Zong Zheng said another riddle.
The Eighth Prince's eyes lit up and he said: "Fifth Brother, I know this question. The Analects of Confucius·Zizhang: The Master's wall is many ten years old, but if you can't get in through the door, you can't see the beauty of the ancestral temple and the wealth of hundreds of officials. Fifth Brother, hurry up, go and say it .”
"Uh..." Zhao Hongming didn't expect that the eighth prince would tell him the answer to the riddle directly and let him show off. But after a while, he felt a little embarrassed and said, "Eighth brother, the answer to this riddle is too long."
Not long after he finished speaking, the Seventh Prince took the initiative and told the answer.
Seeing this, the eighth prince's eyes seemed to be full of hatred, and he missed the opportunity in vain.
Zhao Hongming picked up a braised pig's trotter and started to chew it seriously, which was quite out of tune with the intense atmosphere in the entire hall.
After chewing the pig's trotters, he picked up a whole roast duck, dipped it in the dipping sauce, and tore it into pieces carefully.
Zhao Hongming was eating and said with a smile: "Eighth brother, you know the answer to the riddle, why don't you tell me?"
The Eighth Prince Zhao Hongguang winced and said, "There are so many people, I'm a little scared..."
Hearing this, Zhao Hongming suddenly became happy.
The eighth brother is one year older, but as expected, there is still no change, he is still as timid.
