kingnovel Chapter 799 Fulin Gift - Xingxuan Yinhe Lamp
Chapter 799 Fulin Gift - Xingxuan Yinhe Lamp
After the banquet began, no food could be served and officials and envoys were not allowed to pick up their chopsticks.
Since it is a birthday banquet, the most important part is presenting gifts.
The emperor, the empress, and members of the royal family were the first to present gifts.
Then came the officials.
If the gifts presented by the officials were ordinary gifts, they would be accepted by the palace servants and the names would be recorded. There was no need to announce them specifically.
If it is a special gift, it can be presented at the birthday banquet.
However, such "special gifts" are rare and must be reported in advance before they can be presented at the birthday party.
Otherwise, with so many officials attending the banquet, the birthday party would be a complete mess.
The last people to present gifts were envoys from various countries.
The gifts brought by the envoys are also state gifts.
This gift is actually very particular.
The cultures of different countries are different. Due to these differences, the birthday gifts offered by different countries are also strange and varied, which is worth pondering.
——If a country’s gift is good and is presented with sincerity, the Ministry of Rites and the Honglu Temple will take careful note of it in preparation for return gift.
As for the poor relative like Japan who came to take advantage of us...
Even the Ministry of Rites and the Honglu Temple were reluctant to say much.
......
Unexpected, yet seemingly expected.
This year's gifts from various countries are much heavier than in previous years.
Even Japan, which has always been as stingy as a mouse, presented "valuable gifts" - rare seafood, strange fruit seeds, exquisite lacquerware, and... Japanese swords inlaid with jewels.
The words spoken by the Japanese envoys from the Great Zhou Dynasty could not be said to be bad, but there was always an indescribable taste in them, which made all the officials frown.
But the Japanese envoys were still diligently introducing those Japanese swords.
He said: "This sword is harder than fine iron and can break anything."
He also asked the military officers of the Great Zhou to come forward and give it a try.
General Lin's face darkened on the spot, and he showed none of the joy that a general would feel when seeing a sharp blade.
He said in a deep voice: "Japanese envoy, if this sword is not a gift from your country, it must not be brought into the palace. In my opinion, you can skip the sword test. If you really want to compete, I will send someone to test it with you after the banquet."
After saying that, he looked at the empty seat next to him.
Lu Botang, the loudmouth, is not there when he should be.
The Japanese envoy shook his head after hearing this.
He is just a gift giver, he doesn't know how to play with knives.
But if the knife is not tested, how can the people of Da Zhou know that the blade is sharp? How can he ask the emperor of Da Zhou for rice seeds...
The Japanese envoys were in a dilemma.
That’s right, there is a reason why Japan is willing to offer such generous gifts this year.
Even several other countries are like this.
In today's Great Zhou, there are existences that make them jealous.
For countries like Japan and Silla, a rice yield of 1,000 kilograms per mu was like a dream and very unreal.
Although those Hu countries were not suitable for growing rice, they were rich in cotton. In the hands of the Zhou people, cotton could be woven into soft clothes, but they could not.
One letter after another was read out with great emotion by the officials of the Honglu Temple.
Box after box of precious gifts were carried away by palace servants like a stream.
But the emperor never gave up the two things these foreign countries wanted from beginning to end.
The attentive ministers noticed that the emperor and the empress dowager looked at these gifts with a nonchalant look, as if they didn't care at all.
It was not until the blue-eyed envoy from the Arab Empire delivered his gifts that he asked a question.
——"Your Majesty, where is the God of your country?"
"Clang-"
Someone knocked over a wine cup, and a palace servant immediately stepped forward to clean it up.
The emperor's expression remained unchanged, and the officials had different looks, with a hint of curiosity in their eyes.
Yes, they are curious too.
Where is Lord Shen, who said he would come to the banquet?
Where is Earl Yongning, who is preparing to return to the court in a forceful manner?
Where is Yu Jiusi, the eldest grandson of Earl of Yongning, who brought down Ning Shunyou and Lu Sichu?
Some people even sang the song of doom in their hearts - a tree that stands out in the forest will be destroyed by the wind. They had also heard about the incident at the Tong'an Bookstore.
Although I don't know what evil wind is blowing this time, Shen Zheng was definitely blown away.
What about the first female official appointed by the people?
How about making friends with the Yu family?
How about gaining His Majesty's appreciation?
People are afraid of being famous, pigs are afraid of being fat, maybe it's just fate, but not life...
The emperor took in the expressions of all the officials.
Ji Benchang and Yue Zhenchuan looked at each other and thought to themselves that this was not good - in order to avoid unnecessary trouble, the emperor had restricted Liang Fu, Shen Xingjian and Wei Que to attend the banquet, for fear that some short-sighted people would ask questions.
But who would have thought that the person asking the questions was not an official of the Great Zhou Dynasty, but an envoy from a foreign country?
What a good thing!
How to answer this!
Ji Benchang's eyes twitched and he kept winking at the officials of the Honglu Temple.
The official from the Honglu Temple did not dare to look at the emperor's expression and whispered something to the Arab envoy.
After hearing this, the Arab envoy frowned slightly. Before he could open his mouth again, officials from the Honglu Temple stepped forward and wanted to take him away directly.
The emperor raised his hand.
He asked, "There are many officials in our Great Zhou, and there are also several officials with the surname Shen. Who is the official Shen you are asking about?"
"Woman." The Arab envoy had a straight face and spoke directly: "The women of the Great Zhou are talking about a god who is a female official. She is very powerful and wants to come to the capital."
The official of the Honglu Temple couldn't bear to listen any longer, so he closed his eyes and reminded: "Lan Qiyehu, it's 'Shen', Lord Shen, not Lord Shen..."
The Arab envoy nodded and looked at the emperor: "Lord Shen."
The emperor looked down at him and asked, "Did you hear the people talking about this?"
The Arab envoy nodded again, "I have been listening since entering the capital."
A trace of imperceptible sadness slipped across the emperor's eyes.
Seeing that the emperor stopped talking, the officials of the Honglu Temple tried their best to persuade the Arab envoy to leave.
After this incident, the atmosphere in the hall gradually fell to the bottom. The civil and military officials all had their own thoughts, and they even forgot that there was still an envoy from one country who had not presented a gift.
The blond and blue-eyed Fulin envoy thought for a moment and slowly stood up. The gift from Fulin was also carried into the hall.
Long before, everyone had heard about the gift from the Fulin Kingdom - it looked like a gem, but was more precious than a gem.
Of course, this gift was presented as the finale, and it was impossible for the Fulin Kingdom to present only this one thing.
After announcing a long list of flashy gifts, the official from the Ministry of Rites paused, cleared his throat and said, "The eighteenth gift from the Fulin Kingdom - a set of Milky Way Longevity Cups made by Xingxuan of the Holy Mountain."
You know what, this name is really scary.
Even though they didn't see the real thing, the officials were still frightened.
"I heard that there is a holy mountain in Fulin, and only the holy son of Fulin's royal family can enter. On the holy mountain lives the god who protects Fulin..."
"Isn't this... a little too mysterious?"
During the conversation, the box containing the longevity cup was picked up by the messenger himself. He faced the main seat with a proud and determined smile on his face.
"Click——"
The box is opened.
The lamps had not been taken out, and only a few people were able to see clearly what was inside the box.
The Queen Mother glanced into the box, and after taking a close look at what was inside, her pupils suddenly shrank and she grabbed the Emperor's arm.