But then again, Concubine Pan at least knows that matters of the court must be handled by someone of the prime minister level, which is also considered progress, right? I wonder if his uncle has given any advice from a distance?

Just when Emperor Zhao was in a dilemma, Lü Benzhong on the side could no longer bear it and blurted out from upstairs: "Emperor, kick this villain out! He was as famous as the prodigal prime minister Li Bangyan back then, nicknamed the Flatterer! He relied on flattering Emperor Zhezong to overturn his own father's case, and relied on flattering Cai Jing and his son to become an official. Finally, he relied on flattering Liang Shicheng to become the prime minister when Emperor Taishang Daojun fled south at the end of Xuanhe, and then he was promoted to the position of prime minister during the Jingkang period... Even Emperor Taishang Yuansheng looked down on him!"

Lü Benzhong spoke out loudly, but the ministers around him pretended not to know. Even the two queen dowagers turned away immediately after feeling a little embarrassed... Only Concubine Pan was still holding onto Emperor Zhao and refused to let go.

But what's interesting is that Prime Minister Cai Mao didn't care about Lü Benzhong at all. He just listened to what he said quietly, and then continued to respectfully present the wooden box in his hand, which can be said to be spitting in his face: "Your Majesty, Lü Benzhong's intention is nothing more than to accuse me of fraud and bringing in fake things without permission, but please think about it, your Majesty, I came here because Empress Dowager Yuanyou returned from Yangzhou and Yangzhou no longer needed garrisons, and there was only a difference of one day... Then I dare to ask how I could fake an ancient object in just one day? Your Majesty, this jade seal was indeed swept out by the waves in the Huai River where you were about to fight."

Zhao Jiu finally became a little annoyed and turned his head to signal.

Ren Baozhong understood and immediately went over Lieutenant General Lu Ben to take the wooden box. After checking it, he respectfully held the jade seal in his hand, which looked like a real antique, and presented it to Emperor Zhao.

Zhao Jiu took the jade seal, flipped it casually, was stunned for a moment, but turned it back directly, holding the jade seal for a long time without saying a word. After a long while, he opened it again and took a glance, but turned it back again, and then fell into a long silence again.

At this point, if the hard wings on both sides of the official's hat had not been shaking, proving that his strange movements just now were real, everyone would probably have thought it was a static picture.

But then again, seeing Emperor Zhao's attitude, the atmosphere around them gradually reversed. Concubine Pan was excited for a moment, and the ministers around her gradually became uneasy, so much so that a few people who were not focused on their own strength also gradually turned their heads to look - to put it bluntly, this emperor should not be controlled by such a thing, right?

Especially since Concubine Pan was so obvious about this, I'm afraid she had asked her family to communicate with her in advance for the sake of her own son.

"Cai Qing." After an unknown amount of time, Zhao Jiu finally smiled and held the imperial seal in his hand. "You really gave me a surprise!"

Almost everyone around was stunned, except Cai Mao, who could not help but bowed and kowtowed in public.

As for Concubine Pan, she became obviously nervous with anticipation.

"Give Cai Qing a seat." Zhao Jiu turned around and told the stunned Lu Benzhong, then looked at the others and responded slowly. "It's just a little thing, let's wait and see what happens."

Having said that, the official pointed his hand forward, then sat upright and did not move. Everyone upstairs, no matter who they were, did not dare to neglect them. Even Cai Mao, who had hurriedly retreated to the edge of the tower and sat down, also sat upright and stared at the strange things in front of Xuande Tower.

At this time, the people watching below were still in a daze due to the perspective problem, but they forced themselves to suppress their thoughts and focus on the Xuande Building on the Imperial Street. Many of the imperial elites were stunned, and then suddenly realized - it turned out that Emperor Zhao was really making a lantern, a giant lantern that was not displayed at night for the entertainment of the people, but in broad daylight.

However, this headlight was not covered with a paper cage, but a frameless cage made of precious thick silk. It had been spread out on the Imperial Street, stretching over ten feet square. But no one knew how to cover it. Should a temporary frame be built?

The bottom was not an ordinary tray, but a huge basket surrounded by sandbags, which could accommodate several soldiers standing in it and blowing air.

As for why a blower is needed, it is because the basket does not contain a small candle, but a huge simple stove with its own blower, and the stove is filled with high-quality coal and charcoal soaked in precious oil wax... There is also a chimney on top as a finishing touch.

The stove was lit, and with the strenuous assistance of the soldiers, the artificially tilted chimney was directly aimed at the boneless satin cover that was stretched out over a certain area.

The next moment, when the crowd was still watching the excitement, many people on the Xuande Building had already stood up out of control... just like when they watched Marat's Hemisphere.

It’s simple. Some smart people have already realized what this thing is. It’s just a big Kongming lantern!

However, Kongming lanterns can fly into the sky.

That’s right, it’s one of the time travelers’ weapons, the hot air balloon... After Emperor Zhao fell ill, he finally realized that he couldn’t be busy with the official business of an official all day long, but should do the time travelers’ official business and the official’s idle business.

So he picked up his science and technology revitalization plan again.

Actually, Zhao Jiu had wanted to make a hot air balloon when he was in Nanyang, but he always failed even in small experiments... The reason was simple, he was an engineering student majoring in signals and systems, not materials, chemistry, or welding, and he really had no idea how to make fireproof materials, so almost every experiment ended with the silk getting burned.

As for the so-called fire-resistant cloth, which is asbestos cloth, it is too expensive and too rare these days. Once it is enlarged, it seems a little out of touch with reality.

Of course, Zhao Jiu put a lot of effort into this time. On the one hand, he was preparing to make a big news as a tribute to the Lantern Festival in the eighth year of Jianyan, so he prepared to use ceramic chimney appliances to protect the flames. On the other hand, he asked people to carefully investigate the rumors about fire-proof materials other than "fire-proof cloth" while he was "sick".

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