met free Page 1705
Page 1705
But when they arrived in Daliang...
Zhao Yuan became emperor.
Only a few dozen palace maids remained in the palace to serve Li Shishi.
Therefore, this task was transferred to the Liang King's Palace.
Chapter 1729 Founding Emperor
On this day, officials were not required to attend court.
Zhao Yuan continued to feast with his officials in the main hall.
Zhao Yuan was originally a man of extravagant nature.
But after becoming emperor,
They were forced by financial pressure to advocate thrift.
Like most founding emperors,
Every dynastic change leaves everything in ruins and needs rebuilding.
The founding emperor had no choice but to set an example by his own actions.
The abolition of agricultural taxes and all corvée labor in Daliang further increased the pressure on the national treasury.
Therefore, Zhao Yuan voluntarily reduced the expenditures on the imperial palace.
The number of palace maids and eunuchs was reduced.
Fortunately, afterwards,
Zhao Yuan set up a bank.
This solved the problem of the palace's expenses.
There is still a large surplus.
The palace is no longer funded by the national treasury.
Instead, it was extracted from the profits of the Royal Bank.
As long as you are not greedy or take advantage of others
Zhao Yuan did not oppose officials' extravagance.
The Song Dynasty was known for its extravagant lifestyle.
All the wine vessels in the seventy-two official stores were made of silver.
The people in the city were also used to living beyond their means.
This is also one of the reasons why commerce flourished in the Song Dynasty.
The Great Liang Dynasty had just undergone a change of dynasty.
Even Zhao Yuan couldn't change this trend.
There is no intention to change it.
People risked their lives to follow him and conquer the country.
It is precisely for the purpose of enjoying wealth and luxury.
He couldn't very well not let everyone enjoy it,
Therefore, they ignored Zhao Yuan's extravagant lifestyle.
This can be seen as a way of expressing a stance to everyone.
However, the expenses in the palace were very frugal.
The round table and tray invented by Zhao Yuan were introduced into the imperial palace.
Many round tables had been set up in the banquet hall early on.
Who sits at the same table with whom?
Which table is at the front?
The mere arrangement of seating turned the officials in charge of the banquet's hair white.
Zhao Yuan was naturally seated at the same table as the military officers.
After everyone was seated, Li Kui began to speak.
"Is today's drink 'Hero's Wine'?"
"After drinking the hero's wine,"
"Let's have some other drinks,"
"It's so bland it tastes like bird food."
Wu Song also said, "Tie Niu is right."
"After drinking the hero's wine,"
"Other alcoholic beverages taste bland and tasteless."
"It's hard to swallow."
Zhao Yuan laughed and said, "I sent five hundred catties of the first batch of Hero Wine to the palace."
"If the Emperor hasn't finished bestowing the rewards,"
"Today's banquet,"
"There should be some 'Hero's Wine'."
Li Kui shook his head and said, "There are so many people."
"How could a few hundred catties of wine be enough?"
"There will be new wine next time,"
Give me some more.
Zhao Yuan asked curiously, "I just sent you ten catties of wine a few days ago."
"They're not all gone, are they?"
Li Kui scratched his head and said, "Eat some every day."
"We finished eating it yesterday."
Zhao Yuan had been serving wine to everyone for no more than five days.
It turns out that Li Kui drank more than two catties of wine every day.
Zhao Yuan invited them to a banquet that day.
Wu Song, Li Kui, and others all got drunk after eating just over two jin (1 kg).
Zhao Yuan glared at Li Kui and said, "You're not drunk every day, are you?"
Li Kui patted his chest and said, "How could that be?"
"I just drink a little over a pound of strong liquor with each meal,"
"Otherwise, those ten catties of wine would have been finished long ago."
"Let's drink two or three jin of liquor now,"
"You definitely won't get drunk,"
"I was thinking of seeing how much 'Hero's Wine' I could drink today."
He ate more than a pound of liquor with his meal in one sitting.
Everyone was stunned by Li Kui's bold words.
Zhao Yuan was stunned for a moment, staring at Li Kui.
"From this day forward, no drinking alcohol is permitted every day."
"When drinking alone at home, one should not consume more than half a jin (250ml) of alcohol."
"We also can't invite people to banquets every day."
Li Kui opened his mouth as if to speak,
Upon meeting Zhao Yuan's stern gaze,
I had no choice but to shut my mouth again.
"Even a hero can't stand eating like that."
"We risked our lives together to conquer this land,"
"Seeing the world unified,"
"We were just about to enjoy wealth and luxury together."
"You eat and drink so much,"
"My body won't be able to take it in a few years."
"Twenty or thirty years later,"
"We're going to have a drink together,"
"I don't want anyone to be missing."
When everyone heard King Liang say this,
They were all secretly moved.
But Li Kui, that rascal, spoiled the mood by haggling over the price.
"My body is stronger than an ox,"
"Or should I just eat half a pound every day?"
Zhao Yuan glared at Li Kui.
"Eat half a pound every other day,"
"Or you can eat four ounces a day, the choice is yours."
"If you can't control yourself,"
"I'll have someone keep an eye on you."
Upon hearing this, Li Kui quickly waved his hand and said,
"Don't keep an eye on me,"
"I only eat four ounces a day,"
"Without wine, food doesn't taste good."
After Zhao Yuan arrived,
I said a few words casually,
Then he announced the start of the banquet.
One after another, exquisite imperial dishes were served.
Some of these dishes are special to the Mid-Autumn Festival.
For example, crab stuffed in orange, or crab stuffed in orange.
Take the large, ripe oranges with the stem still attached.
Cut off the top and remove the pulp.
Only a little juice remained.
Then place the crab roe, crab oil, and crab meat inside the orange.
The original cut section was covered with the cut-off orange top, still with the branch attached.
Place it in the small steamer.