Chapter 19: Appointing the Prince (3) ()

At the time of Wu, the crescent moon was like a sword, splitting the deep night. The faint white moonlight reflected into Li Ke's study from the window. Under the hazy light, the interior decoration was vaguely seen extremely luxurious. A row of nanmu carved bookshelf in the middle was filled with classics, history, and classics from famous artists. In the most eye-catching place were "Yu Liaozi", "Wuzi", "Six Strategies", "Wu Jing Zongyao" and other military books. Li Ke put the "Sun Tzu Art of War" halfway in his hand on the table. He walked to the window and looked at the stars in the night sky and recalled the scene of the morning court. If the memory was smelly, in his feeling, the scene of the morning court was like the fragrance of wine, sweet, warm and spicy and lonely. The iron-like fact that Li Shimin made Li Chengqian the crown prince make Li Ke feel a little regret and a little worry while being happy for being named King of Han.

The years are shook, but the fragrance is so perfect. Li Ke sighed and shook his head. Because of the past few days of learning martial arts and swords and military strategies, Li Ke has become accustomed to a tense and busy life. At night, he did not practice the method of luck as usual, and his master Liu Wen did not appear in his study. Because there are things more important than practicing swords waiting for him to participate, to be precise, this matter is more important to Li Chengqian. Li Chengqian was enthroned as the crown prince, and Li Shimin specially ordered a banquet to hold a banquet in Tai Chi Hall to enjoy with the people. All civil and military ministers above the fifth rank in Beijing can attend. This is the first time since Li Shimin ascended the throne, such a grand banquet was held, so Li Shimin attached great importance to it. After his ascension to the throne, the war was quelled and the Turks were comforted. He also wanted to use this grand banquet to soothe the hearts of the ministers.

When Li Ke thought of the banquet, he was a little excited. He was still a childish nature. He always had curiosity and expectation for things he had never experienced before. The moonlight at night seemed to be in a stunning position, and it penetrated through the gaps of the big red velvet curtains, shining through the colorful glass decorations on the table, contrasting with a little bit of gorgeous light. Li Ke looked at it and came out for a while. When he thought it was getting late, he called Lan'er and the palace maids to serve him in dressing. When washing, Li Ke specially dressed himself up. From today on, he was the King of Han of the Tang Dynasty. He wanted to be a respected and loved Han king.

The banquet was held in the Tai Chi Palace Hall. The golden roof and red doors were quaint, which made people feel solemn towards the Tai Chi Palace. The carved railings and painted buildings around them, the eaves were high, the red walls and yellow tiles were magnificent, and from any angle, they all showed a grand momentum. The tables and chairs in the hall had been arranged, and all civil servants and generals were dressed up to attend the banquet, and according to the size of the official position, they sat one by one. To the north of the hall, there was a wide rostrum. There were five chapters of tables and chairs on the rostrum, prepared for Li Shimin, Empress Changsun, Concubine Yan, Concubine Yang and Concubine Yin, and then the relatives and nobles of the royal family, such as Prince Li Chengqian and Li Ke. Li Ke and Li Tai sat at the same table. Just like yesterday, when Li Tai saw Li Chengqian, his face still couldn't hide his anger. Li Ke saw it, but he kept silent and greeted everyone's luggage with a smile.

The frontier on the left side of the steps are Feng Deyi and Xiao Yu's seats. Gao Shilian and Changsun Wuji sat on the right side of the steps together. To Li Ke's surprise, they were just enthroned by the crown prince in the morning. During the banquet, Li Shimin had already equipped Li Chengqian with the Eastern Palace ministers Kong Yingda, Linghu Defen, Yu Zhining, Zhang Xuansu, Zhao Hongzhi, Wang Renbiao, Cui Zhiji and others. At this time, they had already surrounded Li Chengqian, with respect on their faces and didn't know what they were saying. Li Ke thought, this might be Changsun Wuji's idea,

He was sure that Li Chengqian would be crowned as the emperor, so he had prepared these people long ago and sent them to Li Chengqian just after the crown prince was enthroned. And being able to appear at tonight's banquet was also a way for him to win over these people, allowing them to attend such a grand banquet, so that they would feel grateful to Li Chengqian, which would be even more useful to Li Chengqian. Thinking of this, Li Ke really admired Changsun Wuji a little. He did nothing and always thought about things far away.

At the beginning of the dinner, Li Ke retracted his mind. Because it was a banquet, the atmosphere was naturally much relaxed than when he was in court to discuss politics, and the ministers couldn't help but laugh in groups. Even the eunuchs and palace maids had smiles on their faces, which set off the high-hanging red palace lanterns. The entire palace was immersed in a prosperous scene of the whole country celebrating and dancing. At this time, "Your Majesty is here!" Wang De's loud voice made the hall quiet suddenly, and everyone stopped talking. His eyes turned to the door of the hall. Li Shimin walked into the hall with a smile on his face, slowly climbing onto the rostrum under the gaze of everyone, followed by Empress Changsun, Concubine Yan, Concubine Yang and Concubine Yin.

Li Shimin, who ascended the rostrum, did not sit down immediately. He faced the audience and said loudly: "Since I ascended the throne, Luo Yi rebelled first, and then Turkic Jieli went south, making every people in Chang'an City unable to sleep or eat. Now, the war has been quelled and the Turks have withdrawn. It is a day for the whole country to celebrate together." Then, Li Shimin glanced at Li Chengqian, who was proud of his determination, and said: "This morning, Li Chengqian was made the crown prince in Taiji Hall, and the Tang Dynasty also had a future crown prince. It is a festive day. Therefore, I held this banquet in Taiji Hall to celebrate, to celebrate with all the ministers and to enjoy the people."

"Thank you for your holy grace." Everyone said in unison, looking at Li Shimin gratefully.

"Okay! Don't say much! Dear subjects, don't be restrained, let's start a banquet." After Li Shimin finished speaking, he sat down at the table. For a moment, firecrackers, bells and drums outside the hall sounded and announced the beginning of the feast.

Soon, all kinds of food and wine were served on the table by the palace maids. Although Li Ke’s daily meals were not considered delicacies, they were also delicious foods. However, compared with the wine and food at this banquet, it was obviously much better. Although it was a state banquet held in the Tai Chi Hall, during the Zhenguan period of the Tang Dynasty, the level of the state banquet was even worse than that of ordinary families. From this, it can be seen that Li Shimin’s thrift was evident.

In order to make the grand event more grand, a performance was also arranged during the banquet. On the aisle in the middle of the hall, beautiful female artists dressed in beautiful clothes, with a flower crown and a veil. Their wonderful performances made the banquet climax. Li Ke looked at the lively scene in the hall, and a sentence flashed through his mind: The excitement is theirs, I have nothing. Thinking of this, Li Ke felt sad and looked at Li Chengqian. Li Chengqian was accepting the toasts from some ministers with a proud look on his face. Li Ke looked at Li Tai again. Li Tai looked low and his eyebrows were slightly frowned, like the discordant notes in the music, and seemed out of place in the high atmosphere in the hall. The lively people were lively, and the lonely people finally returned to loneliness. Li Ke drank a glass of wine and couldn't help but feel a little disappointed with attending such a banquet.

Li Shimin sat high on the rostrum. Although he was so famous, he felt a sense of feeling. Since he ascended the throne, the war was quelled and the Turks withdrew from the army. The most important thing about rest and recuperation was money. Holding such a grand banquet was just a dish on one side, but the cost was quite high. Thinking of this, Li Shimin became much heavier and drank a few more cups. Empress Changsun saw it and wanted to say a few words but didn't know how to speak. Li Shimin smiled faintly: "The queen doesn't have to worry. I'm happy today, so I'm fine." Empress Changsun smiled gently, no longer forced, and her eyes crossed the rostrum and fell on Li Chengqian under the stage, with a hint of pride in her eyes.

Li Chengqian was busy drinking and socializing with a group of ministers, but he did not notice that Empress Changsun was looking at him, but Li Ke noticed that facing the delicacies of mountains, seafood, golden cups, and fine wine, he felt a little sorry for his father's waste, so he looked at Li Shimin on the stage, but unexpectedly ran into Empress Changsun's motherly love naturally revealed when he looked at Li Chengqian. Li Chengqian was unaware of it. While Li Ke was feeling for Empress Changsun, he suddenly thought of his mother, so he quickly turned his gaze to Concubine Yang. Concubine Yang was also looking at him, and the expression contained in his eyes was exactly the same as that of Empress Changsun just now. The difference was that Li Ke felt a concern for him from Concubine Yang's eyes.

"Mother, I'm fine." Li Ke's lips moved, but he didn't let him say anything. Concubine Yang immediately understood and nodded to him with a smile. Li Ke also smiled and felt warm in his heart.

When the feast was over, it was already late at night, but the palace was still brightly lit. Li Ke returned to his residence and thought that due to the banquet, he and he had not practiced luck today, so he endured sleepiness and entered into a state of meditation. He only went to bed and rested until dawn.
Chapter completed!