CH 48.2
Chapter 48.2 – At The Banquet (2)
Of course, the one who spoke was one of the envoys of Rong State. It wasn’t the chief envoy, but a large man who looked rough. He was holding a porcelain bowl in his hand, but it was filled with wine instead of rice. He drank it up after he spoke, then picked up the wine jug and shook it. He looked dissatisfied and said, “You people from Liang are so stingy, you only prepared this much wine for the banquet. Just two bowls and it’s all gone, what a bore.”
The expressions of many officials in the hall turned ugly, but the Crown Prince remained calm. He glanced at his Royal Father sitting at the central seat, then told the palace attendants, “Go and bring a few jars of wine, prepare two jars for each of the envoys.”
The palace attendants withdrew and soon came back with jars of wine bigger than a bucket. Two of those were more than enough for them to drink.
The large man who caused a fuss earlier curled his mouth. He lifted a jar and opened the seal, then gulped it down with his head up. The wine spilled all over his chest, and he looked really rough and wild, lacking any etiquette. It was almost as if they were on a liquor store by the street, without any semblance of being on a palace banquet.
The officials of Liang State became more and more dissatisfied. Lu Qipei heard many people muttering “the barbarians have no manners” and the like.
Rong State’s chief envoy did not stop him. After having his drink, the large man jumped out of his seat and waved at the group of dancers, saying, “Shoo shoo, what’s so good about this soft song and dance? Let me perform something for you to see.”
The conditions in the north were difficult, so the barbarians’ traditional arts naturally had a kind of valiance to them. It was rare to see songs and dances in their banquet; instead, wrestling was the popular choice of entertainment.
The large man also called out for a partner to wrestle with him. In Rong State, this was not considered disrespectful. Instead, it was considered as adding luster to the host’s banquet, a sign of closeness and friendship.
However, the two countries did not have a harmonious relationship. When this large man stepped out, it was obviously not just to add luster to the banquet. From his expression, everyone could only see clear provocation.
The young bloods were bristling at the scene and almost stood up.
But the Emperor never said anything. The Rong State’s chief envoy also saw that the disturbance was coming to an end, and called the large man back. Then he got up and bowed towards the Emperor at the central seat, “Your Majesty, please don’t be angry. Us children of Rong are used to being rowdy and cannot stand the quiet banquet. They’re just trying to add to the fun.”
These words were secretly criticizing the Liangs. The Emperor raised his eyelids and looked at him, “Guests should follow the host’s customs. Does the envoy actually not understand something like this?”
The chief envoy didn’t care about this scolding, he just wanted to get the Emperor to say something. “Forgive us, Your Majesty. We are boorish people who don’t understand song and dance. But song and dance are just small things, they aren’t important. It’s just that it has been a few days, and Your Majesty has not seen us or responded to the letter of credence. We don’t know when we will get to see Your Majesty again after the end of the banquet today… Forgive me for the offense, but my Emperor is still waiting for me to return.”
He was asking to discuss the terms in the letter of credence, but speaking like this at the palace banquet really seemed quite aggressive.
Lu Qipei looked at the chief envoy on the opposite side of her. His face might look sincere, but she couldn’t see the same sincerity on his face when it came to creating an alliance and making peace.
It wasn’t just Lu Qipei; everyone in the hall could more or less sense their disregard for peace. But if it weren’t for the peace talks, then why did these envoys come here? Did they have nothing better to do and came to Liang just to eat and drink!?
Many people were muttering that in their heart, including the Emperor who also couldn’t understand what they were doing.
But no matter what the other party was planning, the plainly visible loss they would make was not something that could be accepted. Of course the Emperor could not agree to those absurd alliance terms. He looked at the Rong State envoy with a majestic gaze, “Does the envoy think We1 would agree to this kind of letter of credence?”
Even though he stayed silent, his mouth was still smiling, as if he didn’t intend to respond to the Emperor’s words.
The atmosphere in the hall suddenly became tense. Finally, it was the Crown Prince who broke the deadlock by saying, “The envoy should understand that it’s impossible for our Great Liang to agree to such terms. You were the ones who took the initiative to come. Since you want to negotiate, you should show some sincerity.”
Just as he was about to speak, he felt his robe being pulled. He looked down and saw a youth’s stubborn face, his black eyes staring at him for a while. He was helpless and looked down for a moment, then opened his mouth and said, “Rong State has just been established, and we still need to recuperate. We came here with sincerity. But the people of our country refuse to give in to Liang State, and would not yield on the terms of the letter of credence.”
Although this was said bluntly, it was at least to the point, and everyone couldn’t help becoming a bit more serious.
Then the envoy continued, “As an envoy, it’s also difficult for me to come here with such a letter of credence. How about this, if Your Majesty would permit it, the two countries might as well compete a few times. If Liang state is better, then we also would have nothing to say.”
As soon as this was said, the hall was immediately filled with comments, mostly criticizing the barbarians for overestimating their strength.
Taking advantage of the commotion, Qi Yang leaned towards Lu Qipei’s ear again and asked, “Ah Pei, what do you think these Rong people are planning?”
Lu Qipei only felt a blast of hot air blowing on her ear, making her subconsciously shrink back. She replied, “I don’t know. What competition? I just think these Rong State people are no big deal.”
After she said that, she felt a gaze cast on her. She traced the source and saw the foreigner youth’s provocative gaze.
Translator notes:
Of course, the one who spoke was one of the envoys of Rong State. It wasn’t the chief envoy, but a large man who looked rough. He was holding a porcelain bowl in his hand, but it was filled with wine instead of rice. He drank it up after he spoke, then picked up the wine jug and shook it. He looked dissatisfied and said, “You people from Liang are so stingy, you only prepared this much wine for the banquet. Just two bowls and it’s all gone, what a bore.”
The expressions of many officials in the hall turned ugly, but the Crown Prince remained calm. He glanced at his Royal Father sitting at the central seat, then told the palace attendants, “Go and bring a few jars of wine, prepare two jars for each of the envoys.”
The palace attendants withdrew and soon came back with jars of wine bigger than a bucket. Two of those were more than enough for them to drink.
The large man who caused a fuss earlier curled his mouth. He lifted a jar and opened the seal, then gulped it down with his head up. The wine spilled all over his chest, and he looked really rough and wild, lacking any etiquette. It was almost as if they were on a liquor store by the street, without any semblance of being on a palace banquet.
The officials of Liang State became more and more dissatisfied. Lu Qipei heard many people muttering “the barbarians have no manners” and the like.
Rong State’s chief envoy did not stop him. After having his drink, the large man jumped out of his seat and waved at the group of dancers, saying, “Shoo shoo, what’s so good about this soft song and dance? Let me perform something for you to see.”
The conditions in the north were difficult, so the barbarians’ traditional arts naturally had a kind of valiance to them. It was rare to see songs and dances in their banquet; instead, wrestling was the popular choice of entertainment.
The large man also called out for a partner to wrestle with him. In Rong State, this was not considered disrespectful. Instead, it was considered as adding luster to the host’s banquet, a sign of closeness and friendship.
However, the two countries did not have a harmonious relationship. When this large man stepped out, it was obviously not just to add luster to the banquet. From his expression, everyone could only see clear provocation.
The young bloods were bristling at the scene and almost stood up.
But the Emperor never said anything. The Rong State’s chief envoy also saw that the disturbance was coming to an end, and called the large man back. Then he got up and bowed towards the Emperor at the central seat, “Your Majesty, please don’t be angry. Us children of Rong are used to being rowdy and cannot stand the quiet banquet. They’re just trying to add to the fun.”
These words were secretly criticizing the Liangs. The Emperor raised his eyelids and looked at him, “Guests should follow the host’s customs. Does the envoy actually not understand something like this?”
The chief envoy didn’t care about this scolding, he just wanted to get the Emperor to say something. “Forgive us, Your Majesty. We are boorish people who don’t understand song and dance. But song and dance are just small things, they aren’t important. It’s just that it has been a few days, and Your Majesty has not seen us or responded to the letter of credence. We don’t know when we will get to see Your Majesty again after the end of the banquet today… Forgive me for the offense, but my Emperor is still waiting for me to return.”
He was asking to discuss the terms in the letter of credence, but speaking like this at the palace banquet really seemed quite aggressive.
Lu Qipei looked at the chief envoy on the opposite side of her. His face might look sincere, but she couldn’t see the same sincerity on his face when it came to creating an alliance and making peace.
It wasn’t just Lu Qipei; everyone in the hall could more or less sense their disregard for peace. But if it weren’t for the peace talks, then why did these envoys come here? Did they have nothing better to do and came to Liang just to eat and drink!?
Many people were muttering that in their heart, including the Emperor who also couldn’t understand what they were doing.
But no matter what the other party was planning, the plainly visible loss they would make was not something that could be accepted. Of course the Emperor could not agree to those absurd alliance terms. He looked at the Rong State envoy with a majestic gaze, “Does the envoy think We1 would agree to this kind of letter of credence?”
Even though he stayed silent, his mouth was still smiling, as if he didn’t intend to respond to the Emperor’s words.
The atmosphere in the hall suddenly became tense. Finally, it was the Crown Prince who broke the deadlock by saying, “The envoy should understand that it’s impossible for our Great Liang to agree to such terms. You were the ones who took the initiative to come. Since you want to negotiate, you should show some sincerity.”
Just as he was about to speak, he felt his robe being pulled. He looked down and saw a youth’s stubborn face, his black eyes staring at him for a while. He was helpless and looked down for a moment, then opened his mouth and said, “Rong State has just been established, and we still need to recuperate. We came here with sincerity. But the people of our country refuse to give in to Liang State, and would not yield on the terms of the letter of credence.”
Although this was said bluntly, it was at least to the point, and everyone couldn’t help becoming a bit more serious.
Then the envoy continued, “As an envoy, it’s also difficult for me to come here with such a letter of credence. How about this, if Your Majesty would permit it, the two countries might as well compete a few times. If Liang state is better, then we also would have nothing to say.”
As soon as this was said, the hall was immediately filled with comments, mostly criticizing the barbarians for overestimating their strength.
Taking advantage of the commotion, Qi Yang leaned towards Lu Qipei’s ear again and asked, “Ah Pei, what do you think these Rong people are planning?”
Lu Qipei only felt a blast of hot air blowing on her ear, making her subconsciously shrink back. She replied, “I don’t know. What competition? I just think these Rong State people are no big deal.”
After she said that, she felt a gaze cast on her. She traced the source and saw the foreigner youth’s provocative gaze.
Translator notes:
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