At this time, Emperor Zhao Jiu, who had previously been "missing his mother too much and was afraid that he would faint from tears when they met", finally showed up, which made the ministers and other accompanying officials almost ecstatic.
Besides, people like Empress Dowager Zheng, Concubine Wang Gui, and Concubine Qiao Gui were all capable of playing the leading female roles in Zhao Ji's terrifying harem. They were very thoughtful and did not mention the snow in the north, but only talked about the journey. How could they not accidentally ask about the new customs and the customs of the new emperor? Even Empress Dowager Wei, after experiencing the incident on the river, was much more careful.
Besides, all the officials were present at the time, so naturally everything was in place, and both sides did not lose face... As for Empress Dowager Zheng, she did not even dare to let the official kneel down to pay her respects, and had the two noble concubines hold him up long ago, fearing that the official would 'faint from crying'; as for Empress Dowager Wei, although she wanted to step forward to talk, after several years, she felt that the other party was almost the same as before except for his appearance, and instead felt a little timid.
So, in the end, the banquet went on as usual.
However, although it was called a grand banquet, because the palace was really simple, there was no formal etiquette. The empress dowagers and noble concubines sat at the top, the emperor and the two noble concubines plus the other miscellaneous royal family members who came back sat on one side, and several ministers sat opposite. As for the low-ranking civil and military officials, they were sent away early... The scene was really like a family banquet after the arrival of a female elder from an ordinary official family, where there was no need to be shy.
However, what was interesting was that once the banquet started, those perfunctory procedures were gone. Up and down, left and right, men and women, no one picked up their chopsticks or bowls. They all just looked at the official thoughtfully. But the official had nothing to say and just sat sideways. It was a really awkward scene.
Finally, after a long pause, Queen Mother Zheng had a mission to perform, so she had to speak up no matter how difficult it was. She gritted her teeth and said, "Your Majesty... when we set out from Wuguo City a few months ago, the two retired emperors did not know about the peace talks yet. They just climbed onto the shaft of the carriage and repeatedly entrusted you with words, asking you not to forget the letter sent by Zheng Yinian. In fact, as long as you are a Taiyi Palace envoy, you will be able to stay safe... Your Majesty doesn't know that your eldest brother almost fainted from crying in front of the carriage, and was also whipped by the Jin people. We had no choice but to swear on the spot that if we didn't save him, we would all become blind."
Zhao Jiu was stunned for a moment, nodded, but said nothing.
Seeing this, men and women, civil servants and military officers all felt their scalps tingling and their hearts chilled, but they really didn't know how to continue. Queen Mother Zheng tried hard to speak, but as soon as she opened her mouth, she couldn't help but burst into tears.
Empress Dowager Zheng was the empress dowager after all. When she returned this time, she had no worries except the snow in the north. The other noble concubines and imperial concubines also thought of the snow in the north and could not help but burst into tears. However, they did not dare to cry too much, for fear of angering the official and causing their sons to not come back and they would not be able to take care of them in their old age.
The scene froze for a moment.
After a while, just as Lü Haowen and Zhao Ding stood up and prepared to respond, Empress Dowager Wei was the most confident. She couldn't help but put on a smile and tried to mediate the situation: "Brother Nine, you are too wronged... I heard people say on the way here that you usually only light one candle in the palace. I thought it was a rumor, but now there is a banquet in Gyeongbokgung Palace. Sure enough, there is only one candlestick on the table with one candle, and the food is all pork, chicken, and fish. It's nothing like your father's banquet in the evening, which was almost daytime, and a hundred sheep were needed for one meal."
As soon as these words were spoken, the atmosphere became frighteningly cold.
Not to mention the prime ministers, chancellors, and ministers, some of whom sighed slightly in the twilight, even politically savvy people like Empress Dowager Zheng knew that Empress Dowager Wei had said the wrong thing.
However, she was Empress Dowager Wei, the biological mother of this body. After a pause, Zhao Jiu finally spoke with a smile while leaning to one side. "What the Empress Dowager said is absolutely right. If it weren't for the fact that the night was almost as bright as day and a hundred sheep were not feasted at night, how could you have become the king of a fallen country? And you even took your whole family to Wuguo City? And if I didn't feel that even lighting a candle was a waste, how could I have started a new business and become the king of a revived country?"
"The emperor is simple and frugal." In the dead silence, it was Queen Mother Zheng who spoke up for the pale Queen Mother Wei. "That's why he can accomplish great things."
"It's not simple." Zhao Jiu put away his smile and sighed in response. "It's just that we should oppose Cao Cao every time, and then things can be accomplished!"
This time, even Empress Dowager Zheng turned pale. However, Empress Dowager Wei had very poor political literacy. After she recovered, she still didn't understand.
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