Liu Xiyao didn't want to share a table with Wang Yongji.
He was the general and Wang Yongji was the governor.
It was against the rules for the two of them to sit together.
Although we are not following the rules today, I still feel a little uncomfortable.
Furthermore, he was a surrendered bandit general, while Wang Yongji was a provincial governor who came from a decent imperial examination background.
Sitting with him not only makes it difficult to eat or drink well, but also causes psychological pressure.
But he couldn't avoid sharing a table with Wang Yongji because there were no vacant tables on the scene.
Unless...you eat while standing.
"His Majesty has arrived!" The eunuch next to him shouted as Liu Xiyao just sat down.
He hurriedly followed everyone to welcome the emperor.
After the ceremony, Chongzhen signaled everyone to sit down again.
Everyone else sat down immediately, but Liu Fangliang stood there like a piece of wood, motionless.
Gao Yigong tugged at the corner of his clothes and whispered, "What are you thinking about? Sit down!"
"Oh...Oh!" Liu Fangliang woke up as if from a dream and hurriedly sat down in his seat.
Chongzhen pretended not to see it, and sat down and said: "You are all the pillars of the country and the hope of the Ming Dynasty. This time, to recover Liaodong, we need soldiers to fight hard in the front, and we also need ministers to support us in the back."
"Before we go out to fight, I have prepared some wine. I hope you will not dislike it."
"Your Majesty, you really humble me!" Cabinet Chief Minister Fan Jingwen was the first to speak up: "I haven't even had time to express my gratitude yet, how dare I despise you?"
"Yes, yes, what the Prime Minister said is right! We thank Your Majesty for his grace!" The others echoed.
"Okay!" Chongzhen said confidently, "I won't go home until I'm drunk today!"
Amid the sound of zither and harp, everyone was toasting each other.
After drinking for half an hour, Chongzhen left on the pretext of something.
There is no need for too much communication between the monarch and his subjects at the dinner table. Some things are just face-saving matters and should be stopped at the right time.
And with him present, everyone couldn't let go.
Sure enough, after he left, the civil and military officials put aside their worries and started drinking heavily.
Li Ruo Lian was wearing the clothes of an ordinary guard and stood in the distance, recording the situation at the scene one by one.
During this time, he asked the eunuch to help him get two chicken legs to eat.
I don't know how long they drank before the civil and military officials said goodbye and left.
In the evening, Gao Yigong and Liu Fangliang had a drink in a room at the inn.
After drinking for a while, Gao Yigong suddenly put down his glass and leaned over to Liu Fangliang's ear and whispered, "Brother Liu, are you okay?"
"I...what can happen to me!" Liu Fangliang replied unhappily, "This little bit of wine can't make me drunk!"
"Then why were you in a trance at noon? Was he shocked by His Majesty's appearance?"
"You can eat whatever you want, but you can't say whatever you want! This is the capital city where Jinyiwei are everywhere. Be careful not to get beheaded for saying the wrong thing!" Liu Fangliang glared at Gao Yigong fiercely.
"I understand, I understand!" Gao Yigong lowered his head and took a bite of food, then asked in a low voice, "Brother Liu, why were you absent-minded at noon?"
"I..." Liu Fangliang hesitated, "I feel that your Majesty's voice is somewhat familiar."
"Familiar?" Gao Yigong was puzzled at first, then said with disdain: "It's normal to have ear problems when you get older. Eat some Poria cocos, it's good for your ears!"
"Go away," Liu Fangliang gently pushed Gao Yigong, "I've had good hearing since I was a child, it's impossible that I heard it wrong."
He glanced around and asked cautiously, "Do you remember when I was captured and taken to Beijing?"
Gao Yigong nodded: "I remember! At that time, everyone thought you were dead, so I burned two baskets of paper for you!"
The muscles on Liu Fangliang's jaw trembled uncontrollably, and he gritted his teeth and said, "Don't make fun of me with this!"
"Okay, okay," Gao Yigong put away his mocking smile, "Go on, I'll listen."
Next, Liu Fangliang confessed everything that happened after he was captured and brought to Beijing and then tried in the imperial prison.
Gao Yigong almost dropped his jaw.
He put down the bowl and chopsticks in his hands and stammered, "In other words... the man in black who interrogated you at that time was most likely the current emperor?"
"Yes!" Liu Fangliang nodded firmly, "Although several years have passed, that voice has always been lingering in my mind and can't be shaken off! So when I heard that voice again, I was stunned."
Gao Yigong thought for a long time and then stood up suddenly.
"You...what are you going to do?" Liu Fangliang was shocked by his actions.
Gao Yigong bowed deeply to Liu Fangliang and said, "Brother Liu, can you tell me the truth?"
"What truth?" Liu Fangliang was a little confused.
"Have you already defected to the imperial court and become His Majesty's internal supporter?" Gao Yigong asked.
"No!" Liu Fangliang denied directly, "I, Liu Fangliang, would never do something like being in Cao's camp but having my heart in Han! It was like that back then, and it is still like that now!"
Gao Yigong stared at Liu Fangliang's face for a while, then suddenly smiled and said, "Don't be nervous, I'm just asking casually, drink!"
Liu Fangliang snorted, raised his glass, clinked glasses and drank.
The next morning, Chongzhen summoned Wang Yongji to the Palace of Heavenly Purity.
The Minister of War Wang Jiayan and the Chief Minister of the Cabinet Fan Jingwen were also present.
"Your Majesty, I, Wang Yongji, kowtow to you. Long live the emperor..." Wang Yongji knelt down and saluted after entering the Qianqing Palace.
"Get up!" Chongzhen ordered calmly.
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
"Governor Wang," Fan Jingwen asked, "the pacification of Liao is a major national event, and we cannot afford to be careless! Tell us about your strategy for the pacification of Liao!"
"This..." Wang Yongji looked embarrassed. "I do have a plan, but it will take several days and nights to complete it! And we can't just rely on the plan to pacify Liao. We need to take it one step at a time."
Wang Jiayan coughed lightly and said, "Just tell me the overall strategic plan, no need to go into details! We just want to find out if there are any obvious loopholes in the strategy, and we also want to know the approximate time of pacifying Liao."
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