An envoy arrives
A flock of geese flew south, the sky was high and the clouds were vast, the wind of late autumn was cool, the ginkgo trees turned yellow, and after the cool breeze, the golden leaves were scattered all over the ground. The ministers attending the court couldn't help but shiver their necks and talked about the sudden change in the weather. Zhong Yujing walked towards the palace hall on the golden leaves all over the ground.
The ministers stood in the hall awaiting the emperor's arrival, while Zhong Yujing watched from the steps with her head bowed. The atmosphere that day was quite somber. News that the Qing Kingdom's envoys would be visiting the Qi Kingdom had spread like wildfire. Officials had already heard of it, and it had quietly spread through the hall. The ministers were whispering and discussing the matter in all sorts of different ways.
Zhong Yujing sighed inaudibly, but raised her eyes to look for a figure in the crowd. She scanned around but couldn't see him. Then she changed her mind and looked towards the corner of the hall. Sure enough, Shangguan Yichen was standing with one leg crossed over the other, leaning against the hall pillar behind him with his majestic figure, his hands on his chest, his eyes closed, pretending to be asleep.
Zhong Yujing couldn't help laughing and chuckled. He looked around again, but saw that the ministers were still discussing passionately and no one was looking in this direction. He felt relieved and glanced at the man again. He thought, the emperor is in a state of panic this time and will not come up with a strategy until he thinks of it. He can still continue to sleep for a while.
A few days ago, the Qing Kingdom suddenly sent an envoy to visit. The envoy respectfully handed over a letter written by Emperor Qingfeng in the court hall, "Your Majesty has ordered me to hand this letter to Emperor Hong of Qi Kingdom to open it personally!"
Emperor Hong opened the letter and read it. Emperor Qingfeng expressed his deepest affection in the letter. He said that although Qing and Qi were thousands of miles apart, their customs, geography and national customs were very similar. They were now the two strongest countries among the ten countries. Emperor Qingfeng had wanted to visit Qi for a long time, but had no special opportunity. So he first sent an imperial envoy to Qi to convey Emperor Qingfeng's good intentions and continue to discuss friendly matters.
Emperor Hong closed the letter. Emperor Qingfeng's words became more and more polite, but Emperor Hong's brows were getting tighter and tighter. Qi State had lost two princes, one was loyal and virtuous, and the other emptied Qi State's treasury. Meanwhile, Qing State had destroyed eight countries. Even though they had not confronted the Qing State head-on in the past because Qi State was strong, things were different now. Even a fool would know that it would be better if Qing State did not come looking for them. Once they did, it would be no good.
Emperor Hong could only suppress his expression, relax his brows, and say with a polite smile, "Please ask the envoy to report back to Emperor Feng. I am grateful for his concern. I also have the same intention. I hope to discuss the great interests of our country together soon."
The envoy bowed and left.
A few days later, the Qing Kingdom sent word that an important envoy, sent by Emperor Qingfeng, would soon arrive at the Qi Kingdom to discuss state affairs and the future of both nations. The Hong Emperor's heart, which had been hanging for days, finally settled down; his worst-case scenario was finally coming true.
"Qingguo and our Daqi have lived in peace for several years and have never had any contact. Why did they suddenly send an envoy to visit? The visitor must have bad intentions!" Situ Tingwei sighed.
"So what? Our country is rich, powerful and has a long history. Why should we be afraid of a new country rising up among the princes?" General Wang was unaware of the deficit in the national treasury. Although he had not fought a war for a long time, his ambition remained undiminished.
"Oh, General Wang, you don't know. Although the Qing Kingdom has only had two generations of monarchs, it was able to destroy eight countries during the last generation of monarchs. It is enough to show that its strength should not be underestimated." Fang Taibao frowned.
Minister of Justice glanced at General Wang and said, "Whether a country's strength poses a threat cannot be judged based on age. For example, a aging general will eventually retire, and a brittle general cannot be compared with a young and strong general. The old generation will always have to make way for the new generation."
General Wang refused to give in. "Master Situ's words are extremely offensive to me. You seem to be comparing the old generals to the Qi Kingdom and the rising generals to the Qing Kingdom. Could it be that the Minister of Justice is trying to substitute the Qing Kingdom for the Qi Kingdom?"
Minister of Justice's eyebrows suddenly rose, and he puffed his beard and glared, "What nonsense! What are your intentions in taking things out of context and slandering court officials?"
The two adults were on the verge of a fight and were about to stir up a storm. Liao Taibao appeared at the right time and stopped them, saying, "I'm afraid you two adults don't know that the envoy sent by Qing State to negotiate peace this time is their Dingyuan Marquis." The ministers who were hiding far away for fear of getting into trouble came forward and surrounded Liao Qingyan. Si Tu Tingwei and General Wang also stopped fighting and listened attentively.
"Oh? Where did Lord Liao hear this? Is the disappearance reliable?" someone in the crowd asked.
"It's absolutely true! My nephew is in the reception team and is waiting outside the palace." Lord Liao said solemnly.
Everyone exclaimed in surprise, and there was another uproar and heated discussion.
"I heard that this Marquis Dingyuan is a relative of the royal family of Qing State and a descendant of the Zishu family. The fact that Emperor Qingfeng sent him to negotiate peace this time shows that he attaches great importance to this matter." said a minister.
"That's not true. I heard that although this Marquis Dingyuan is a relative of the Qing Kingdom, he is not valued by Emperor Feng. I guess it's because of his distant blood relationship." Another minister stroked his beard and said.
"Qing State must be coveting our Qi State's territory and intends to divide it, but now it has sent an unappreciated official to negotiate. What is its intention?" someone asked.
"Their tactics are to make you unpredictable by mixing truth with falsehood. Just like the letters from Emperor Qingfeng, the words are so polite, without mentioning the intention at all. They are just empty words, making a feint to the east while attacking in the west. The more this is the case, the more suspicious it becomes." Someone analyzed.
"In that case, we must be extremely vigilant in this matter to prevent any fraud." An old minister concluded worriedly, his forehead twisted like a rope.
All the ministers nodded in agreement, and for a moment, the atmosphere in the hall became solemn and uneasy.
Just as he was sighing and thinking, Emperor Hong walked slowly out from the back hall. When the ministers saw him, they all dispersed and went to their own seats. Zhong Yujing saw that the moment Shangguan Yichen appeared, he opened his eyes as alert as a lion and walked proudly towards the front row.
In a short while, everyone in the hall was seated. Emperor Hong slowly sat down on the dragon throne, glanced down the stairs, and gave Eunuch He a look. Eunuch He said in a pinched voice, "Go to court~~~"
Emperor Hong said, "You have all heard the news that an envoy from the Kingdom of Qing has arrived today." Countless heads in the hall nodded. Emperor Hong continued, "The messenger just announced that the envoy has arrived outside the palace gate and is on his way to an audience. He will enter the court shortly to pay his respects. You will all meet with me, this ambassador from the Kingdom of Qing, who has come from so far away. Let's hear what is so important about Emperor Qingfeng that he has to come to Daqi so many times to convey his message."
There was another round of whispering in the hall.
Suddenly, they heard a noisy voice outside the hall. The ministers turned around and saw that the hall door was wide open. Several guards and lieutenants led a man in. Zhong Yujing looked towards the hall door and saw that the man surrounded by guards was wearing a black felt fur robe with a lustrous color. There was shimmering light when he moved. He was wearing a pair of brown official boots and walked forward slowly, neither fast nor slow. His posture was elegant and his face was clean and beardless.
When the ministers saw the newcomer, they knew it was the long-awaited envoy from the Kingdom of Qing. They all stepped aside, clearing the middle path. The envoy walked straight ahead and in a moment, he was at the center of the steps. He bowed and saluted, and his voice, like the sound of knocking on celadon, slowly said, "I, the envoy of the Great Kingdom of Qing, Marquis Dingyuan Zishu, am here to pay my respects to His Majesty the Emperor Hong of Qi."
Everyone turned their heads to look at him and whispered to each other, saying that this must be the Marquis Dingyuan, but they didn't expect him to be so young.
"I heard that Marquis Dingyuan of Qingguo was an old minister in his sixties, but why is this a young man?" Censor Song whispered.
"Your Excellency the Censor, you don't know that the Marquis Dingyuan you are talking about is the father of the person in front of us. After the old Marquis Dingyuan passed away, his son inherited the title of Marquis, so both of them are Marquis Dingyuan of Qingguo." Minister Sun approached Censor Song and said quietly.
"If that's the case, then this father and son must be a pair of highly valued people. Otherwise, how could Emperor Qing pass on his power to his descendants?" Censor Song asked again in confusion.
Minister Sun stroked his beard and pondered, "I've heard that the one favored by Emperor Qing is the old Marquis Dingyuan. This young Marquis Dingyuan..." Minister Sun curled his lips and shook his head, "His behavior and style are completely different from his father's. He has none of the old Marquis Dingyuan's character. He's even misbehaving and quite unruly."
Song Yushi smacked his lips and said, "He is truly an unfilial son. No wonder he is not valued by the Qing State."
Minister Sun stroked his chin again and said, "But what's most puzzling is that this young marquis usually only loves to sing and dance, and never pays attention to state affairs. But now, this time, he has taken the initiative to come to our Daqi to lobby for political consultation. Don't you think it's strange?"
Censor Song raised an eyebrow at this. "Oh? Could it be that this young marquis has turned over a new leaf, suddenly changed his mind and decided to work hard to restore his father's long-lost reputation?"
Minister Sun pursed his lips and said, "It's hard to say. Can such a dandy young man ever settle down and be quiet? This young marquis is said to be quite talented indeed. Although he is young, he has already left behind countless masterpieces, which are widely praised in Qing Kingdom and have spread his fame far and wide. He is also generous, giving his works away free of charge to his concubines in the teahouses and brothels. They then turn them into lyrics and music, which are sung in the streets and alleys. These poems and songs are deeply loved by women, and they have been sung by young ladies. Some even threatened to spend a fortune just to see him, but he flatly refused. He said, it is hard to meet, and it is hard to part, but it is better not to meet. If we are destined to meet, we will meet without any effort. This has made the young ladies obsessed with him and never forget him."
Censor Song suddenly narrowed his eyes and squinted at Minister Sun, saying, "I never thought that Lord Sun, at his age, would be so familiar with all the interesting stories in the world. He knows them in great detail. We juniors can't even compare to him. We have to admit that we are inferior to him."
Minister Sun was neither embarrassed nor annoyed. Instead, he smiled complacently and said, "My little dog loves to make friends with people from all walks of life. He always has some firsthand knowledge of strange things. I often talk to him about them, so I know a thing or two."
Censor Song found this quite amusing, and he thought to himself that when he grew old, he would like to be like Minister Sun, forever retaining a youthful heart. Minister Sun then continued, "So, this young marquis has completely devoted his heart and soul to the hustle and bustle of life. As for the country? That doesn't seem to be his passion."
During their private discussion, Emperor Hong and Marquis Dingyuan had already exchanged pleasantries, but when Emperor Hong got to the point, he asked, "Emperor Feng has frequently communicated with me through letters, and today he has specially dispatched Marquis Dingyuan to visit my great city of Daqi. This has been a long time in the making. I've heard that the customs of the Qing people are very similar to mine. I'm a straightforward person, so Marquis Dingyuan, why don't you speak frankly? What exactly does Emperor Feng intend to do?"
Marquis Dingyuan's eyes lifted slightly, his gaze melting like spring snow. He parted his white teeth and said, "Emperor Feng has ordered me to bring a message to Your Majesty. May Your Majesty be willing to cede ten cities, or surrender without a fight?"
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