Shao Song

Vol 2 Chapter 17: Have a banquet

     At the end of February, the imperial court, Wu Jie and Zhang Jun, issued an decree, and both parties received the decree and naturally hurried to the capital.

Among them, Zhang Jun came from Xuzhou, the journey was almost half shorter than that of Wu Jie, but he arrived early in March, and then he got the order that he would wait until Wu Jie arrived and summoned him, so he just bought a mansion in Beijing. Live at leisure and look around for news.

  Tokyo City, especially Tokyo City, which has a population of nearly 400,000 at this time... When is there no news?

   Therefore, Zhang Boying only inquired a little, knowing what should be known, what should not be known, true and false, all.

   Then, he started...open the door to welcome guests!

   That's right, Zhang Taiwei suddenly opened the gate of the mansion and set up a flowing water banquet.

First, entertain the neighbors and neighbours. Regardless of whether it is high or low, it is only based on the seniority and age in the village. The elders are at the top and the younger generations go down. Zhang Jun himself is only sitting at the middle-aged table. His nephew Zhang Zi Gai and Zhang Ziyi also sat down.

In this round of reception, the dishes on each table are no more than 20, but they are all fresh vegetables in spring, plus chicken, fish, meat and eggs. The amount is sufficient. The wine is also a mixed wine brewed in the village during the New Year. In the twelfth lunar month out of the cellar, called the kind of wax wine.

   So on the first day, everyone in the neighborhood praised Zhang Taiwei.

On the second day, it was different. Zhang Boying continued to host a banquet. This time he invited middle and lower-level officers from the military in and out of Tokyo. Caizhan reached the level of a formal banquet of thirty, and the proportion of meat dishes was also higher. For some, I also invited a formal chef to cook two hard dishes per table, namely grilled lamb chops and stewed elbows. The wines have also been replaced by good wines sold by vendors in ordinary restaurants.

   In addition, there are special storytellers in front of the courtyard before the banquet, telling the story of "Journey to the West".

On the third day, the banquet continued. This time, the banquet objects were mainly officials and scholars who knew each other...Zhang Jun spent four full years in Huaidong, of which three years were set up by the system. Don’t have too many civil servants who have had contact with him. Although it is a sensitive period, many people still talk about a clear conscience, and then come over in person.

And this time, the number of banquet dishes has reached forty, which is a luxurious level. Each table of dishes is prepared by professional experts who are invited, and since he is a literati, Taiwei Zhang also specially invited Kako. , A poem was issued, let these people compose poems, and the vocabulary of the poems they did was collected, and they were engraved and printed.

   Of course, the drinks are more refined.

   On the fourth day, the Tokyo city was already looking at it, and the banquet was held as always.

This time, the people who came here were all local high-ranking officials and officials from serious backgrounds, as well as some well-known scholars. The number of dishes reached the extravagant number of fifty, and the drinks were the kind that could be called famous names. The chefs were all. The decent celebrity chefs invited by the main restaurants in the surrounding restaurants also have half of the dishes made by famous chefs.

   There are storytellers, raps, and acrobatics before the feast; performances and dances during the feast; acrobatics, pots, and poems after the feast.

   So far, this can be regarded as a serious feast that can be recorded.

   On the fifth day, after the banquet, it still kept going.

   And on this day, the people who came mainly were the old deceased Zhang Taiwei from the Western Army, the old ministry that was promoted and dispatched by the headquarters, and a few civil servants recommended and appointed by him. In other words, those who came this time could be regarded as Taiwei Zhang's true ‘private affair’.

   It stands to reason that at this level of banquet, you can close the door and think about what to do. But in fact, Zhang Jun still opened the door and arranged the banquet clearly.

The dishes are still fifty, and the drinks and entertainment are the same as yesterday. The chef has not changed. But after the banquet, these Zhang Taiwei’s personal relatives were all donated a lot of money and silk. My concubine goes back... For example, there is a Guangzhou boy called Liang Jiaying, the so-called last jinshi, the kind who read the mansion newspaper in the army, just happened to come here to report here in Tokyo, and then prepare to go south to assist Yue Taiwei in countering the rebellion. Just because it was Taiwei Zhang who entered Taiwei as a security guard, he was also invited over, but he was seen by countless people, holding a pile of money and silk, and came out of Zhang Taiwei’s house with two beautiful concubines. , Finally hired a donkey cart and went back to his residence in a daze.

   also made many people jealous.

On the sixth day, with the attention and expectation of the entire Tokyo city, the banquet continued. This time the direct control officers of the Imperial Front were Yang Yizhong and Liu Yan; the internal servants Lan Gui and Feng Yi; and the Minister Lu Haowen. Zhao Fen, the eldest son of Zhao Ding, the prince and minister of the capital, arrived at the same time as several commanders in and outside the city.

At this time, even the table is not on, just divide the order and eat, the number of dishes is no longer meaningful, persuaded two rounds of wine, another round of dishes, the drinks are all with Lanqiao Fengyue, dozens of dancers dance in court ...I don't know if Zhang Taiweixiao knows what the eight yi dance in the court is about?

On the seventh day, under the anticipation of the people, Pingzhang’s military affairs were important matters: Lu Haowen, Governor Zhao Ding, Deputy Prime Minister Liu Ji, Privy Envoy Zhang Jun, Deputy Privy Envoy Chen Gui, and Yuying all ruled Wang Yuan and the Chinese Army. The left deputy governor Wang De and Wu Pan arrived at the same time.

   At this time, the whole Tokyo city watched a top banquet that had not been staged in Tokyo city for a long time with a very complicated mood.

   The banquet is divided into four sittings... the so-called first sitting, sitting again, sitting upright, and sitting down.

   Sitting at the beginning and sitting again are fruit products. Each time there are two rounds of dishes, totaling four rounds, namely dried fruits, vegetables and fruits, honey fruits, and salted fruits, each with eight products.

   Then is sitting, which is a formal banquet. There are fifteen rounds of wine cups. Each round is a celebrity chef's main course, and each main course has a corresponding ceremony, appetizers, and mouthwash.

   After fifteen rounds of wine cups, I took a rest. At this time, the dishes became clear. It was the forty dishes of the previous banquet.

   It goes without saying that the wine is all in Lanqiao Fengyue, and water. At this time, everyone noticed that the water used in the whole process was actually the water taken from the pressure well, and there was no spring water or old well water.

On the eighth day, because all the previous guests had arrived, Zhang Jun was full of confidence at this time, but he personally wrote the eighth invitation, but instead of finishing the invitation, he received an invitation...it’s the official home of Zhao. The second official Feng was sent to send the invitation, and asked him to go to the palace for a banquet with Wu Jie, who had just arrived in Tokyo today.

   Zhang Jun was caught off guard for a while, but he had no choice but to leave immediately.

  According to the invitation, this imperial right army first joined the imperial rear army commander Wu Jie in front of Tongtianmen in the north, and then followed Feng Yi to the direction of Hanfang Garden.

   Hanfang Garden, also known as Ruisheng Garden, is known by its name. It is also the private real estate of Zhao Guan's family.

   However, because this real estate is outside the city, it has been flattened in Jingkang, leaving only a rough outline, but now it has been taken out by Zhao Guanjia as the venue for the Tokyo Little Cuju League.

The so-called Little Cuju League is a new competition system formulated by the court based on the excellent Cuju League last year. However, the Cuju game is divided into spring and autumn seasons. Starting from mid-March on spring, the divisions will conduct round-robin competitions, and the points will be ranked; in autumn, it is the season. In the playoffs, the first eight teams competed in a series of eliminations to determine the first place in the league. In this regard, Zhao Guanjia also specially gave a title to be called the champion; and in the end, it was Kaifeng Mansion, Jingxi, Jingdong, Yu Yu. The four champions of the battalion army will win the World No. 1 Cuju Tournament... At that time, Zhao Guanjia will personally award the world’s No. 1 Cuju team.

Going back to the front, I only said that the two handsome officials were forced to suppress the panic. They followed Feng Yi to Hanfang Garden and transferred to the big cuju court shaped like a cauldron...Of course, this is said to be designed by Zhao Guanjia. He always likes to do something. It's meaningless... and then went straight to the house on the top floor.

And this simple house with a viewing platform at the highest point has another famous room, called a box, because Zhao Guan’s family has booked a large box in the middle of the north facing south, and pointed out the left and right boxes to several clerks and two. A national leader, so no one of high officials and nobles does not want to have a box here.

   As of today, it is not the official match day, but the day when the box is openly bought before the official start. There is only one exhibition match to add to the fun. The so-called buying and selling is a very popular behavior of gambling sales in the Song Dynasty, which is roughly equivalent to bidding for later generations.

   "Good job!"

Outside the box, Yang Yizhong was dressed in plain clothes, leading seven or eight big men to stand upright, seeing the two of them only silently, and in the box, Zhao Guanjia held the youngest princess Yiyou personally, beside the Buddha and God. The little princess, plus two imperial concubines, four or five companions, greeted people casually when they saw them. "Sit down and watch a game and wait for the results of the sale."

   The two looked at each other, they could only go forward to salute the official and the two noble concubines in turn, and then carefully sat down on the table outside the box.

   The game seems lacklustre.

Of course, it is also possible that the game is good, but everyone’s mind is not on this. The two handsome officials need not say much, and the two imperial concubines are also in no interest, but each lead a little princess to sit idle, Zhao Guanjia I even clung to the smallest princess Yiyou to tease... Everyone occasionally had some words, but Zhao Guanjia didn't mix it up. Although Pan Guifei was more aggressive, it was difficult to say much because of the presence of the two foreign ministers. The others waited. , Just echo.

In this way, when a Cuju game was about to end, Feng Yi opened the door and presented a piece of paper. Zhao Guanjia just hugged the little princess and laughed and said, "These sons said that they had fled north and south, and most of their wealth was gone. , But still so much money... Boying, take a look with Jin Qing."

   Zhang Boying hurriedly picked up and went to see it with Wu Yan, but it was really emotional.

It turned out that according to the paper, the rich and powerful people who were interested in buying this Hanfangyuan Cujuchang box were veiled and bought here. Nearly a hundred boxes were bought one by one, and the transaction price continued to rise, ranging from dozens of boxes. As many as thousands of guanxi, in the end, the total price was nearly 50,000 guanxi! On average, each box earns 500 guan!

It’s okay for Zhang Jun. It’s the first time that Wu Jie entered Beijing. He was holding this piece of paper and looking around. He only felt that this weird semi-open box was not worth five hundred dollars at all. How could it be sold? Five hundred points out? It was also a moment of speechlessness.

   But at the same time, Zhang Boying turned around and laughed: "The official said earlier that I naturally want to buy a box closer to the official."

   "I left it for you." Zhao Jiu casually answered, but sighed for a while. "It's just that I didn't expect to be able to collect so much money... This Cuju field, I only visited twice, mainly designed by Chen Xianggong and looked after by Yan Dayin, because it is my private property, so it is my personal status. I borrowed money from Guozhang Wu to renovate, and spent more than 10,000 in total. This was a profit of 40,000 before the start of the competition."

After listening quietly, Zhang Jun laughed again immediately: "Look at Yichen, if this Cuju plug continues like this, the officials are afraid that they will make a fortune...not just boxes, but just build some shops and restaurants around Hanfang Garden for rent. Going out, the annual rent is another big bag."

  The yellow-faced Wu Jie immediately woke up, and then nodded again and again.

   "I am more greedy than you think." Zhao Jiu continued to hold the little princess in the seat and laughed. "I am also going to start the Cuju betting in the Kaifeng Mansion Division. A bet is allowed in every game..."

   Zhang Jun was startled slightly, and couldn't help but ask sideways: "The minister has just thought about this, but the officials...will the ministers and censors allow the officials to do this?"

"This kind of thing is unavoidable. If I don't do it, some people will do it privately. At that time, it will still be miserable. It is better to find a good name to sit in the house in person. Expenses for the Northern Expedition..." Zhao Jiu said so, but soon he shook his head again. "But I also know that Yushitai will not allow me to get involved in this kind of thing after all. Therefore, I am going to put the gambling in the Kaifeng competition area, and the property rights of various Cuju stadiums, connected to the Beijing Dongxi Road competition area. The property over there will be given to you Zhang Boying."

   Zhang Jun was stunned, and Wu Jie was even more at a loss.

   "Nothing else." Zhao Jiu, who was dressed in casual clothes, looked at the end of the game below, and stood up directly holding the little princess. "Leave it to Han Shizhong from Jingxi. If Guanzhong does this, I will give you Wu Jinqing and Qu Duan... Yue Fei and Li Yanxian shouldn't want them."

Zhang Jun and Wu Jie wanted to speak, but when the match was over, Zhao Guan's family got up, and they had to press their own minds temporarily, and left Hanfang Garden with Zhao's family and returned to Tokyo, and came to the palace in the afternoon... from the north. Enter Gongchenmen, turn to Huamen to enter the Houyuan, and finally come to a pavilion next to the fish pond and mulberry forest in Yingyangmen.

  At this time, the two imperial concubines and the three princesses turned out of the Yingyang Gate and entered the harem to rest, but Zhao Guan's family sat down in the pavilion and asked them to sit together.

Wu Jie is still worried. It's really the first time he has come to Tokyo. He doesn't understand anything and can't inquire about anything. It is Zhang Jun, who knew this place is the best place for officials to stay in private. It is also the favorite place for officials and important ministers. The place of conversation, even people who have drunk here in person, is a little more stable.

After a while, there were three pots of wine served, naturally Lanqiao Fengyue, and then there were a few dishes of fresh vegetables and homemade stir-fries on the table. There were meat and vegetables, about ten cups... Immediately, Zhao Guanjia poured it by himself. He drank himself and moved his chopsticks directly, which formally started his banquet today.

   Zhang and Wu didn't dare to neglect, they followed suit one after another, but they didn't dare to relax at all, it was hard work.

   However, after drinking for three rounds, and after a little greeting, the official Zhao finally started talking about business: "Do you two know what I call you to do?"

   Wu Jie immediately put down his chopsticks, almost as if jumping up, trying to leave the seat and kneel, but Zhao Jiu raised his hand to stop him, and then could only sit down again, carefully facing each other:

   "It is said that after the impeachment of the Ministry of War and the impeachment of the impeachment, the army discounted too much money."

   Zhao Jiu nodded, then looked at Zhang Jun again: "Where's Boying? You came so early, you know more than Jin Qing, right?"

   Even so, Zhang Jun, who had always been prepared before, was speechless for a while.

   It was Zhao Jiu, who couldn't help but chuckle when he saw this: "Is it hard to say, or knows too much?"

   Zhang Jun was embarrassed for a while.

"But someone told you that the imperial court should fully fight corruption in the army? Someone told you that the officials wanted a drink to release their military power? Or the Zhao official wanted to deceive Wu Jie and Zhang Jun into Beijing under house arrest, and then purge the army behind the imperial camp. Right Army?" Zhao Jiu laughed while picking up dishes.

Wu Jun was in a daze for a while, but Zhang Jun finally opened his mouth, but he was still embarrassed: "Let the officials laugh. At that time, the officials were unwilling to see the ministers. The ministers really couldn't. They had to find someone to ask about them. This was a mess. speech."

   "It's okay." Zhao Jiu took a sip of spring wild vegetables and slowly swallowed it, before he said indifferently. "What's this? I've heard it even more excessively, saying that the official Zhao's will has been laid down. Everyone in the world who has embezzled more than ten thousand dollars will have no essays and martial arts, peeling the skin and filling the grass to show the world... Don't you say you haven't heard?

   Hearing this, Wu Yan and Zhang Jun relaxed and laughed.

Instead, Zhao Jiu suddenly sneered: "This is all due to the high-ranking officials in the city who have nothing to do. Therefore, thinking about the law and spreading rumors is hoping to attract my attention in this way, and then ask the officials to do and ask. Money spent... but I don’t know. I’ve been determined to pay attention long ago. I would rather subjugate the country than give these people a small amount of salary or rewards. Not only that, I will send people over now and copy these rumors. The heaviest family, to replenish military capital."

   The two handsome officials were immediately stunned, because Yang Yizhong, who had been standing by the side, slightly arched his hands after hearing this, and unexpectedly led the soldiers directly to the direction of Yingyangmen.

   "Boying." At this moment, Zhao Jiu turned around and looked at Zhang Jun again. "Are you really believing these rumors? That's why you got rid of the previous drama?"

   Even now, how dare Zhang Jun cover up, he immediately got up and bowed his head in embarrassment: "Let the officials laugh."

   "If I accept your invitation today, how many dishes are you going to use to entertain me?" Zhao Jiu was interested and kept asking.

Zhang Jun became more embarrassed: "The minister originally wanted to find an old servant in Taishi Cai's mansion to get a rule of 180 dishes in Taishi Cai's mansion, but he hasn't gotten all together. If the official family really goes, it will only be one hundred twenty and thirty. The appearance of the dish..."

   "How do you get together?" Zhao Jiu dropped his chopsticks and shook his head again and again. "When Mr. Cai Taishi Feng Heng Yu was a big student, there was a group of people in the kitchen who specialized in making steamed buns. Some people rolled noodles, some squeezed them, and some even specialized in cutting green onions... That kind of luxury, one was too overwhelming, and the other was Feng Heng. At the time of Yuda, the momentary illusory scenery under the raging fire of the north and south was something to meet but not to ask for."

   "Yes." Zhang Jun finally sighed. "The minister is actually looking for a gimmick. The main reason is to ask the official to come to the court to give a report, and the minister has other explanations."

   "Naturally." Zhao Jiu shook his head more and more. "You are in Xuzhou, and you like to replace the money you have saved with gold and silver as much as possible. The silver is specially melted into a large silver ball of nearly 100 catties, one thousand six hundred and two, and you have a helpless nickname... this In four years, I saved a total of 57, and this time I directly sent 50 from Xuzhou overnight; I saved 8 thousand taels of gold, and this time I sent 6 thousand taels. See what you mean, it should be prepared to take advantage of the banquet. I, then resigned from the position of commander, and beg for a long-term wealth, right?"

   Wu Jie was stunned to hear, but Zhang Jun could only kneel directly in the pavilion while sweating.

   "The official sage."

   "You still don't know what I am asking for..." Zhao Jiu sighed. "I thought I asked those people to go to your banquet, because I acquiesced in your disposition, right?"

   Zhang Boying hurriedly explained: "When the minister saw that the official family was so miserable, he had long been uneasy. I am afraid that he would be wrong about it."

   "You don't always get the wrong idea." Zhao Jiu shook his head. "On the day of Huai Shang, you never made a mistake... Boying, and Jin Qing."

   "The minister is here." Wu Jie also quickly got up and knelt down to Zhang Jun's side.

"I admire the utilitarian science, and I can barely be regarded as a utilitarian, but the so-called utilitarian is the kind of person who encounters so-called structural contradictions and always thinks of disregarding propriety, justice and shame in order to get the most benefit in the end..." Zhao Jiu Looking at the dishes in front of him, he sighed. "The Western Army has the status of a vassal. I could reorganize and abolish it in Kansai that day. Once I leave, I will return to the original state. I know this kind of thing and I am extremely worried. As for Boying, I have always been greedy for money and have been suffering for many years. When I was farming, I took the opportunity to occupy the land, and changed my station to make it easier for the servants to build a mansion for myself, eat empty salaries, convert the estimated money to the full, and accept bribes. I also know in my heart that I have been accumulating dissatisfaction... There is nothing to hide ~www.wuxiaspot.com~ But I am dissatisfied and worried, but it is not because of what I have suffered here, but how you are, so my heart cannot be calm, but I say, after all, you are handsome ministers, and your subordinates are after all imperial battalions. The main force, if it continues to be ruined in this way, when the Northern Expedition, while having no combat power, while intending to preserve, what should I say?!"

   Zhang Jun and Wu Jie were stunned, and immediately faced each other... Obviously, Wu Jie really didn’t understand this official, and Zhang Jun was really at ease for a long time, and he would be wrong.

"Otherwise? I really want to fight corruption at this time, why don't the whole army fight together? Really want a glass of wine to release the military power, do you have to let Han Shizhong come first?" At this point, Zhao Jiu looked at the dozen dishes on the stone table. But the tone gradually became cold. "I call you, in fact, there is only one sentence... If you can make a contribution in the Northern Expedition in the future, then the impunity of the army, and the troubles of your Zhang Boying, I will finally deal with it, but I will only forget the past. Because after all, they came from an extraordinary time. But if the Northern Expedition makes mistakes in your family, don’t expect to retreat after paying the money and resigning, because I will make you unable to eat. Go!"

   Zhang Jun and Wu Jie were relieved together, and then panicked again, so they prepared to express their opinions together. Unexpectedly, the Zhao official family didn't give them room to speak at all.

   "Get up and eat." Zhao Jiu said coldly. "After eating, I will tell you how to temper these two armies!"

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