The imperial court meeting held in the fourth year of Tianbao was the most successful. The envoys from the small foreign countries who came to pay tribute were all full of awe and worship for the Tang Dynasty after seeing the many novel machines of the Tang Dynasty. They also expressed their loyalty to the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty on behalf of their Kings.
Most of the envoys proposed to purchase the advanced machines of the Tang Dynasty in court to promote the economic development of their countries. In addition, dozens of small countries in the middle of the river in the Western Regions proposed to let the Tang Dynasty pave the railway to them so that it would be convenient for them to trade with the Tang Dynasty and promote the economic prosperity of both sides.
Of course, all this made Li Longji very happy. He promised these small countries in court that not only would he sell them many advanced machines, but he also promised to pave the railway all the way to the middle of the river within five years, so that these small countries, who were good at doing business, could better trade with the Tang Empire.
In addition, after the railway was laid, the elite troops of the Tang Dynasty could more easily enter these small countries. Thus, these small countries would be completely included in the sphere of influence of the Tang Empire and further radiate its influence.
After the imperial court meeting, the envoys of the various countries had to attend the celebration banquet held by the Tang Empire. This time, a lot of tempting food and spirits were served at the banquet. These delicacies and spirits from later generations were all invented and promoted by Ang Lee himself. The envoys of the various countries who tasted the delicacies all praised the delicacies and spirits and asked for the recipes so that they could make them according to the recipes when they returned to their countries.
However, the recipes and spirits were technical assets that could not be casually disclosed to outsiders. Even if the envoys of various countries asked for them, they could not do so. In particular, the production process of spirits was quite complicated. In the whole world, only Ang Lee's workshop could brew spirits. It was a unique business, so of course, it could not be disclosed to outsiders. Otherwise, how could it earn small amounts of money from these countries in the future?
In order to show the national strength and hospitality of the Tang Empire, and to make friends with these affiliated countries so that they would always be loyal to the Tang Dynasty, Li Longji ordered a three-day banquet with the best food and wine to entertain these guests from afar.
At the same time, the three-day banquet was also to keep these guests with delicious food and wine so that they could participate in the following artillery exercise to show the strength of the Tang Empire and further let these affiliated countries not have any disloyalty to the Tang Dynasty. Otherwise, they would definitely be ruthlessly attacked by the Tang Empire.
During the three-day banquet, Zhao Yefu, Li Hanlu, and Li Ya 'er all attended. However, they still went to Ang Lee's courtyard to rest every day. They did not want to stay in the Honglu Guild. After all, there were more envoys this time, and the Honglu Guild was quite chaotic. It was not a good place to live. They went to Ang Lee's courtyard to live, which saved the imperial court's administrative costs to a certain extent and relieved the pressure of receiving guests in the Honglu Guild.
Through these days of getting along with each other, Ang Lee no longer felt awkward when he stayed in the same room with the five little girls. He could play cards with the five girls very well, which was also a happy and harmonious atmosphere.
"Big Brother, the imperial court of the Tang Dynasty is really hospitable. They held a banquet for three days in a row. I've gained a lot of weight."
Li Ya 'er touched her belly and said with a smile. In these days, she ate heartily. She ate so much at the banquet that she almost brought it back.
"The Tang Dynasty is very powerful. It's not comparable to a small country. These few meals won't make us poor. If they keep holding banquets like this, I won't go back to Dongnu Province. I'll eat in the imperial palace every day."
Zhao Yefu joked with a smile.
"Okay! Big Brother, let the emperor treat us every day. We won't go back. We'll stay in Chang 'an City. We'll eat in the imperial palace during the day and come back to chat with Big Brother at night. "
Li Ya 'er interrupted with a smile.
Li An smiled awkwardly and looked at Li Ya 'er. "Rather than freeloading in the palace, you might as well freeload in this side courtyard. Isn't the food personally cooked by Eldest Brother more delicious than the food in the palace?"
"Yes, yes, yes. Don't go. Stay with us. Our husband is very powerful now. You can eat for a hundred years with your attendants. You won't be poor."
Yan Ruyu sincerely asked them to stay.
"Okay! Sister-in-law, we'll stay for a few more days. We'll definitely spend more time with you. "
Li Ya 'er replied with a smile. She wanted to stay, but she knew that Li Hanlu must go back to lead the tribe. She had to go back to help. It was impossible for her to stay for long.
"There will be an artillery exercise outside the capital tomorrow. I'll be in charge of the overall situation. Envoys from all countries will go to watch. You'd better be there!"
Ang Lee suddenly changed the topic.
"Artillery exercise? Big Brother, the emperor suddenly held a banquet for three days to buy time for you, right? "
Li Ya 'er frowned. She knew that in the past, the banquet only lasted for one day. This year, it became three days. It was a little abnormal.
"Ya 'er is so smart. It's true. The emperor suddenly asked me to organize an artillery exercise, but he suddenly told me a few days ago that the preparation time was too short. It was impossible to complete the tasks. Therefore, the emperor held a banquet for three days to give the troops enough time to practice in advance. These days, we'll attend the banquet in the imperial palace. The soldiers of the artillery troop are all practicing artillery shooting dozens of miles away to ensure that there won't be any problems on the day of the exercise. It will take some time for the craftsmen to prepare all kinds of items. In short, the artillery exercise tomorrow will be very exciting and shocking. It will definitely be a loss if you don't watch it."
Ang Lee told the truth without hiding anything and asked the three of them to attend on time.
"Big Brother, don't worry. I'll definitely watch the fun. It's getting late. I don't want to play anymore. I'm going back to my room to sleep."
Li Ya 'er threw the poker cards on the table, turned around and ran away.
"Wow, this little rascal. She'll definitely lose with this bad hand!"
Ang Lee glanced at the poker cards on the table and shook his head with a smile.
After playing for so long, everyone was tired. Seeing Li Ya 'er throw away the poker cards and run away, they all put down the cards and got up to leave.
"Madam, pack up. I'm going to see the three babies."
Ang Lee turned and walked to the bedroom on the left. In the past few days, Ang Lee's greatest joy after returning home was to look at his three lovely babies, Tang Er, Man 'er, and Guo' er.
The name Tang Er had been decided two years ago. Guo 'er was decided a few months ago. Man' er was named a few days ago. After all, her mother was called Man Man.
Looking at the three sleeping children, Ang Lee's heart burst with endless tenderness. To be able to look at their babies was the greatest joy in life for any parent.
"Husband, it's getting late. Why aren't you sleeping?"
After Yan Ruyu tidied up, she walked into the bedroom.
"Madam, tomorrow is the big maneuver. I still have to think about it. You rest first. I'll go out for a walk."
Ang Lee walked out of the main house and walked toward the orchard. In the entire courtyard, Ang Lee's favorite place was here. Every time he needed to think deeply, Ang Lee would look for inspiration in the orchard.
"Hanlu, you haven't rested yet."
Ang Lee walked into the orchard and accidentally saw a familiar figure standing in the pavilion looking up at the starry sky.
"You haven't slept either?"
Li Hanlu turned around and looked at Ang Lee calmly.
"Tomorrow's big maneuver is extremely important. I have to think about all the processes again to see if there are any mistakes."
"Assistant Minister Li is cautious and anticipates the enemy's moves. How can there be any mistakes? It's really a terrible thing to be your enemy. "
Li Hanlu still looked at Ang Lee calmly.
"Hanlu, I was the one who caused the heavy losses of the Nu Du Division. Do you hate me very much?"
Ang Lee asked.
Li Hanlu sighed and looked into the distance. She said, "Back then, Father didn't listen to my advice and insisted on invading Yuzhou. We were in the wrong first. Moreover, you had already sealed our escape route, but in the end, you let us live. How can I hate you? If I hated you, why would I live in your courtyard? "
"Really? You really don't hate me at all? "
"No."
Li Hanlu said these two words and gently brushed past Ang Lee. She left the orchard and returned to her residence.
Ang Lee stayed in the orchard for less than an hour. After thinking through all his thoughts, he walked back to his residence.
The next morning, all eight artillery brigades participating in the maneuver were in place. There were more than two thousand soldiers and four hundred cannons. In addition, there were one thousand cavalry and two thousand infantry. The total number of soldiers in the maneuver was more than five thousand, which was a relatively large scale.
After all the troops and horses were in place, the ministers led by Right Prime Minister Li Linfu led the envoys of various countries to the viewing platform to observe the exercise.
In order to make it easy to see every corner of the maneuver field, the viewing platform had been built very high, as high as a ten-story building. The material used to construct this viewing platform was the reinforced concrete that Ang Lee had just developed. It was extremely sturdy and stable, and it definitely wouldn't collapse just because there were too many people present.
"Wow, this viewing platform is so high! Right Minister, what material is this made of? It doesn't look like stone! "
An envoy from the Western Regions had just walked up to the viewing platform when he was stunned by the tall and sturdy building before him.
"Haha! This is reinforced concrete, many times harder than stone. Moreover, such a tall building can be completed in half a month. "
Li Linfu proudly smiled, his smile very sweet and very friendly.
Ministers like Li Linfu who loved to smile were the best at entertaining guests. This was because a smile could often close the distance between them and allow them to quickly become familiar with one another.
"Reinforced concrete? What an amazing material. It's so amazing that such a tall building can be built in only half a month. "
"It's really the Tang Dynasty. Only the Tang Dynasty can build such an amazing building. Long live the Tang Dynasty."
The several envoys from the Western Regions sincerely admired the Tang Dynasty and the technology and culture of the Tang Dynasty.
Ten stories was not a small number. Just climbing the stairs was enough to tire people out, especially these envoys who had never worked before. Their physical fitness was generally relatively poor. After climbing one-third of the stairs, they were too tired to continue climbing. They could only take a break and then continue climbing.
It took a long time for a large number of Tang Dynasty officials and envoys from various countries to climb to the viewing platform that was ten stories high and go to their respective positions.
In order to make the viewing platform better able to see the maneuver in the distance, the viewing platform at the top was designed with steps. There was a step every five feet wide, and the height difference between each step was nearly one foot. In this way, the entire viewing platform at the top could be very good at looking into the distance without worrying about the people in front of it blocking the view.
After all the envoys from various countries were seated, Li Linfu ordered that each of them be given a monocular with a magnification of ten times.
Moreover, these monoculars would not be taken back after they were given out. They would be gifts from the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty to the Kings of various countries. After they finished using them, they only needed to take them back to the Kings.
In addition to these monoculars with a magnification of ten times, there were also some large and wide-angle monoculars with a magnification of fifty times fixed on the viewing platform. These monoculars could only be placed in fixed positions and could not be moved, let alone taken away.
"Wow! What an amazing thing. It can see so far. "
After learning how to use the monoculars, the envoys of various countries were all stunned.
"There are even bigger monoculars here. They can see farther."
"Your Excellency, these monoculars are really amazing. They can actually see so far. Can you sell some to us?"
One of the emissaries made a direct request.
Li Linfu smiled slightly. "These monoculars are not for sale. However, the monoculars in your hands are gifts from His Majesty to your Kings. You must not break them. Remember to bring them to your Kings."
"Oh, thank you, Emperor of the Tang Dynasty. Long live the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty."
"Your Excellency, don't worry. We will definitely take good care of these monoculars. When we go back, we will definitely give them to our Kings. The Kings will be very happy. This will be the best gift our Kings have ever received."
Many envoys said excitedly. Although the cost of the monoculars was very low, these envoys did not know that. They only saw the powerful function of the monoculars and thought that they were very precious.
Of course, in addition to the envoys of various countries, there were also several Kings and Princes who came to watch the maneuver. These people were of higher status, so naturally, they were arranged to sit at the front. Even most of the officials of the Tang Dynasty had to sit at the back.
Li Huaijie was the King of Khitan, Li Yanchong was the King of Xi, Zhao Yefu was the Queen of East, and several other Kings were sitting at the front, on the left and right sides of Li Linfu. In order to take care of them, they were equipped with additional fixed telescopes with a magnification of fifty times.
Each King had to bring a few subordinates to serve behind them. However, Zhao Yefu did not bring any subordinates. Instead, he asked Li Hanlu and Li Ya 'er to accompany him. However, except for the Kings, the servants behind them did not have seats. They could only stand and watch the maneuver.
"Wow, this monoculars is amazing. I heard that it was invented by Big Brother. When I go back, I must ask Big Brother to give me the best one. "
Li Ya 'er played with the telescope with a magnification of fifty times beside Zhao Yefu and said proudly.
"Yes! There are many mountains in our Dongnu Province. We have to guard against the invasion of Tufan at all times. We need such monoculars very much. When I go back, I will ask Mr. Li for a few more. "
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