By the time he finished discussing the details with Wang Xijue, it was already evening. Zhu Yijun was in a good mood, but he was still hungry. Looking at Wang Xijue's protruding cheekbones, he knew that Wang Xijue had been thinking about these things for the past few days, so he didn't have the mood to eat and looked like he was malnourished. Thinking of buying Wang Xijue's heart, he said to Wang Xijue, "It's getting late. Don't rush back, Minister Wang. Stay and eat with me."
Wang Xijue was overjoyed — this was a good time to get close to the Emperor!
Zhu Yijun's meals were not as extravagant as he had imagined. The Emperor's meals were not very delicious. In the beginning, it was the Chamberlain of Dependencies' job to cook for the Ming Dynasty's Emperor, but their cooking skills were so bad that the people in the capital said that one of the four most unreliable restaurants in the capital was from the Chamberlain of Dependencies. The news of the Chamberlain of Dependencies' poor cooking skills had spread to the common people. One could imagine how sullen the Emperors, who had never experienced hardship, felt.
Starting from Emperor Mingwu, the Emperor began to ask the eunuchs around him to provide him with delicious food. To the eunuchs, the Emperor's orders were like the heavens, so they would do their best to collect delicious food. Once the Emperor ate, the Emperor would stop working and scram! How dare you feed me pig food for so many years!
Now, preparing the Emperor's meals was the job of the eunuchs around him. The eunuchs prepared the Emperor's meals and carefully selected delicious food for him. When the Emperor was satisfied with the food, he would naturally be willing to spend money. It was common for these eunuchs to take a little bit of it.
However, there was no doubt that these servants were loyal to the Emperor. The food was also well prepared. Wang Xijue carefully ate a few mouthfuls of the golden dish called Riches and Honor. It should be the broth blended with broth and finely processed chicken shredded. As soon as he bit into it, he felt that it was incomparably delicious and his appetite was stimulated. He ate a few mouthfuls fiercely and accidentally choked. He coughed a few times and his face turned red.
"Hahahaha! How long has it been since Minister Wang had a full meal? The salary of the Cabinet's First Assistant shouldn't let Minister Wang go hungry, right? "
Zhu Yijun sat in the seat of honor and laughed heartily as he watched Wang Xijue's ugly eating behavior.
Wang Xijue hurriedly apologized, "This old official forgot himself."
Zhu Yijun waved his hand and said with a smile, "It's fine, it's fine. Eating is to eat to one's heart's content. Moreover, there are only you and me here. It's not a formal occasion, so you can eat as you like. We won't blame you. This Hall of Golden Jade is not bad, right? Zhang Cheng, have someone bring another serving for Pavilion Elder Wang! "
Wang Xijue quickly said, "No, no, no. Don't bother Your Majesty!"
"It doesn't matter. Since this Emperor is treating you to a meal, how can I not let you eat and drink to your heart's content?" Zhu Yijun waved his hand nonchalantly. "Just eat and drink to your heart's content."
"This old subject thanks Your Majesty for your grace!"
Wang Xijue's heart relaxed, so he relaxed and ate for a while. After filling his stomach and satisfying his appetite, he put down his chopsticks contentedly and thanked the Emperor for his reward.
Zhu Yijun was almost done. He had only eaten two bowls of rice. When he was satisfied, he said to Wang Xijue, "Is Wang Qing satisfied?"
"This old subject is very grateful for Your Majesty's food!"
"Hahahaha! Don't be courteous with me. Just tell me what you want to eat. As long as I have it here, I will definitely satisfy you! "
Wang Xijue hurriedly said, "This old subject doesn't dare to trouble Your Majesty with my appetite."
"It's fine. I just happened to earn a small sum of money recently, so I don't lack money."
Zhu Yijun drank a mouthful of soup in satisfaction, wiped his mouth, and said meaningfully.
Don't lack money?
Wang Xijue suddenly felt that he had heard something funny. When did the Daming Imperial Court not lack money? Since Emperor Jing of Ying Zong, when did the Daming Imperial Court not lack money? Especially you, Emperor Wanli. Every day you say you lack money, every year you say you lack money. When did the words' don't lack money 'come out of your mouth? Could it be that the Emperor opened a mine of gold and silver?
"This old subject doesn't quite understand Your Majesty's meaning …"
Wang Xijue asked tentatively.
The corner of Zhu Yijun's mouth curled up, and he said softly, "Well, it's normal that you don't understand. I didn't understand at first, but now I understand. You can eat without worry. No matter how much you can eat, you can't eat more than ten million taels of silver in one go, right? Hahahaha! Eat as much as you want! "
More than ten million taels of silver?!
Wang Xijue's mouth suddenly opened wide.
"Your Majesty just said … more than ten million taels of silver? Your Majesty, don't joke. This is the total financial income of the Daming Imperial Court for three years. If I have more than ten million taels of silver now, the problems of the Daming Imperial Court will basically be solved! Your Majesty, please don't make fun of this old subject! "
Wang Xijue had a look of "don't lie to me".
Zhu Yijun laughed and said, "Zhang Cheng, show Cabinet Elder Wang Xiao Ruxun's battle report."
Xiao Ruxun?
Wang Xijue's eyes flashed — he had heard this name a lot these days. The new star of the army, especially good at fighting. But what did this guy have to do with more than ten million taels of silver?
Zhang Cheng quickly brought a battle report and handed it to Wang Xijue. Wang Xijue took it with both hands and looked at Zhu Yijun. Zhu Yijun pursed his lips and signaled him to read it. Wang Xijue opened the battle report and read it carefully. When he saw the numbers, he was so surprised that he directly stood up from his seat.
"The Wei Nation compensated eight million taels of silver and a silver mountain?!"
Wang Xijue lost his composure and shouted.
Zhu Yijun finally laughed heartily.
"Your Majesty! This … "
Zhu Yijun laughed enough. He stood up from his seat and walked to Wang Xijue's side. He took the battle report and said with a smile, "Now do you understand why I said that? To tell you the truth, I didn't believe it at first, but it was signed in black and white, so I couldn't not believe it. Who would dare to deceive the Emperor in this kind of matter? "
Wang Xijue immediately swallowed back his doubts.
Yes, in this kind of matter, unless one had the ability to turn stone into gold, who would dare to deceive the Emperor? Wouldn't they be executed?
Then, was it true?
The Wei Nation compensated eight million taels of silver, which would be paid over five years. The Wei Nation compensated a silver mountain of Ishikami that produced one million taels of silver. The Daming Empire had the right to mine for 50 years. The Wei Nation opened its trade port, and the Daming Empire's merchants didn't need to pay customs when they went there.
These were the key words in the battle report.
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