Ang Lee chose Gibraltar as the venue for the celebration because he did not want to attract too much attention in other people's capitals. Another reason was that Gibraltar was the only territory of the Tang dynasty in Europe. It was also an important fortress of the Silk Road in the West. It played a huge role in stabilizing the Silk Road, so it was very meaningful to celebrate there.
Another reason was that this was Li Xiaolu's hometown, so Ang Lee had a special feeling for this place. In addition, there was a beautiful cave that was warm in winter and cool in summer. It was the perfect place to celebrate. Therefore, the celebration was held in this beautiful cave.
The light in the cave was not very bright, which was the most regrettable part of the entire cave. However, Ang Lee must have brought along generators, electric lights, and other equipment when he went out. Therefore, it was not difficult to make the banquet venue brighter.
After Ang Lee gave the order to hold the banquet, his subordinates had already begun to decorate the cave. A lot of equipment was moved in. They even built a few small houses inside the cave and some houses outside the cave.
For example, the toilets must be placed outside the cave. This way, the environment inside the cave could be better protected. Otherwise, if the toilets were built inside the cave, the cave would be greatly polluted. It would not be good if the toilets were built inside the cave.
The pollution in the kitchen was also relatively large, so it also had to be built outside. However, the cold dishes and other food that had already been prepared naturally had to be placed inside the cave for better preservation. This kind of cold dish would not produce smoke, so naturally, it would not pollute the environment inside the cave.
In order to add a little atmosphere, Ang Lee not only let his subordinates deploy lights in the cave, but also set up many lights of different colors. In this way, the monotonous cave would become magnificent and people would feel very comfortable staying inside.
Those who could attend the celebration banquet were all senior officials who had followed Ang Lee for a long time. Naturally, the people around him could not participate. Even Li Xiaolu, who had served Ang Lee for a long time, could only accompany Ang Lee instead of sitting at the table.
Because the cave was not very spacious, there were only five tables. There was a big one in the middle and four smaller ones around it. There were dozens of people celebrating. Of course, this was the number of people inside the cave. There were hundreds of people celebrating in the shade of the harbor. However, the environment there was far less than here. The temperature inside the cave was most suitable for human comfort. Only those with the highest official position and the greatest contributions could enjoy such good treatment.
"Ladies and gentlemen, the construction of the Maritime Silk Road is the century-long plan of the Tang dynasty. It is a major event that concerns the future generations of the Tang dynasty. Now, through the efforts of this official and all of you, the construction of the Maritime Silk Road is finally completed. You are all great contributors. On behalf of His Majesty, I would like to reward you."
Ang Lee stood up and loudly encouraged the morale.
All the officials also stood up and saluted Ang Lee with cupped fists. Everyone's face was full of happy smiles. After all, the Maritime Silk Road was finally completed, and they were all great contributors who were bound to be recorded in the annals of history. So, how could they not be happy and excited?
Seeing that everyone was in high spirits, Ang Lee raised his cup and said, "Everyone has worked hard all the way. Come, let this official drink first as a toast."
After saying that, he raised his head and drank all the wine in the cup.
Naturally, no one dared to refuse. They all drank the wine in their cups happily and then laughed heartily.
After drinking dozens of cups of wine, Ang Lee was a little drunk. And this state was when Ang Lee was the most excited. He dared to say what he usually did not dare to say.
"To wine and song, life is short! For example, the morning dew, the passing days are bitter. Generosity, sorrow, unforgettable. How to relieve sorrow? Only Du Kang. Indigo Collar, my heart is long. But for the sake of the king, I ponder until now. The deer's cry, eating the apples of the wild. I have guests, playing the flute and blowing the sheng. Clear as the moon, when can it be cleared? Sorrow comes from within, unbreakable. Crossing the border, wasting each other's existence. The contract is broad, the heart is full of old kindness. The moon is bright, the stars sparse, the crows fly south. Circling the tree three times, what branch can I rely on? The mountain is not too high, the sea is not too deep. The duke of Zhou feeds, the world returns to the heart. "
Ang Lee used the alcohol to recite Cao Mengde's short poem in one breath. Moreover, he recited it very loudly so that everyone present could hear it clearly.
"Good, Cao Mengde's poem, a good poem."
Some of the officials smiled and agreed, praising Ang Lee for reciting it well. But there were also some officials who looked nervous, and a few timid officials even used the excuse of going to the toilet to slip away.
"Assistant Minister Li, why did he suddenly recite a short poem? And he recited it so well. This is Cao Mengde's poem!"
A minister who walked out of the cave carefully discussed with his colleague next to him.
"Isn't it? Cao Mengde is a treacherous minister who usurped the Han, and Assistant Minister Li is only below one and above all. Now that you've successfully opened up the Silk Road on the Sea for the Great Tang, your status has become even more exalted. Could it be that Assistant Minister Li wants to imitate Cao Mengde and use the Son of Heaven to order his vassals?
The colleague next to him said.
"Shh, keep your voice down. You can't say such things casually. If you make a mistake, you will lose your head. We are all low and humble officials. How can we manage such a big thing? Maybe Assistant Minister Li is just happy for a moment and doesn't have any ulterior motives. In short, we can talk about it in private. Don't talk nonsense in front of others!"
"I understand, of course I understand. I'm really worried about those who said Assistant Minister Li recited it well just now! What if someone … Oh! It's really unimaginable! "
"That's right. Fortunately, we didn't say anything. No matter what happens, it won't involve us."
"Yes, yes, yes. Let's go back early! No matter what they say, we don't say anything. "
After the two timid officials discussed for a while, they stepped back into the cave and continued to attend the banquet.
It was no wonder that some officials were frightened. Ang Lee's status was very high at this time. It was indeed comparable to Cao Mengde in the past. Although he didn't have much military power, Ang Lee had a lot of strange high-tech in his mind. Among the many officials of the Tang dynasty, there were many who were convinced by Ang Lee. If something happened to the imperial family, it would be hard to say what would happen!
Of course, Ang Lee was just in a good mood and casually recited the ancient poems. He didn't think so much and didn't think there was anything wrong with him reciting ancient poems. As for other people's thoughts, Ang Lee didn't care so much. With his strength as his backing, Ang Lee never worried that he would be in danger, nor was he afraid that someone would frame him.
The temperature in the cave was very cool. Therefore, even if he ate a lot of food and drank a lot of wine, he didn't feel hot at all. His body was really comfortable.
In such a comfortable environment, Ang Lee's mood was naturally better. Then, he recited a few more poems. There were poems written by the ancient people and many poems from the Song Dynasty. Some of the officials hadn't heard of the poems before, so they thought that Ang Lee wrote them. In fact, Ang Lee didn't write any poems. He recited all of them.
"The great river flows to the east, the waves wash away all the heroes of the ages. In the west of the old fort, people say, Zhou Yu of the Three Kingdoms, Red Cliff. Stones flew into the sky, raging waves beat the shore, rolling up thousands of piles of snow. The mountains and rivers were picturesque, and there were many heroes at that time. Thinking of Gongjin, when Xiao Qiao was married for the first time, she was heroic. Feather fans and silk headbands, as they talked and laughed, the oars turned into ashes. My thoughts wandered in my homeland, I was full of emotions and laughed at me, I grew gray early. Life is like a dream, I returned a bottle of wine to the river moon. "
At last, Ang Lee recited a poem that he liked very much. It was also a very good poem. However, because the Tang dynasty didn't have popular poems, many officials expressed their doubts. They felt that Ang Lee's poem was catchy, but it was not a poem. However, because Ang Lee's status was too high, no one dared to ask anything. They just said it was good.
"My colleagues, today we must eat and drink well. The Silk Road on the Sea of the Tang dynasty has finally been opened. After all the meritorious officials return to Chang 'an, His Majesty will personally reward you. I hope that you will continue to work hard in the future and make greater contributions to the Tang dynasty."
Ang Lee began to repeat what he had said at the beginning of the banquet. Obviously, he was a little drunk. Otherwise, he wouldn't be so long-winded.
The officials who attended the banquet were very cooperative. They all sang praises. Some people who were also a little drunk began to talk without thinking.
The banquet to celebrate the opening of the Maritime Silk Road lasted for no less than six hours. All the officials who participated in the banquet had eaten their fill. Many people had eaten until they were full. The atmosphere of the banquet was lively and cheerful. It could be considered a very successful celebration banquet.
Of course, since it was a celebration banquet, those who had made contributions naturally needed to be rewarded. However, Ang Lee could not give them a lot of rewards. After all, Ang Lee, like them, worked for the imperial court of the Tang dynasty. If there were to be large-scale rewards, it should be the imperial court's responsibility, not Ang Lee. In particular, the promotion of official positions must be decided by the imperial court. Ang Lee could only make suggestions at most. He could not decide the promotion, appointment, and dismissal of the officials under his command. Unless it was a very low-level official, Ang Lee could act first and report later. He could promote and dismiss at will, but in the end, it still needed the imperial court's confirmation and the official seal.
In addition, all the officials worked hard to open the Silk Road on the Sea, not for the benefit of Ang Lee, but for the benefit of the entire Tang Empire. Therefore, the large-scale rewards naturally needed the imperial court of the Tang dynasty to be responsible. It was already good enough that Ang Lee could treat them to a meal.
"Are you guys full yet?"
Ang Lee looked at the several officials who walked past him and asked with a smile. It was just a greeting.
"Yes, we are full. We ate very well."
"Assistant Minister Li deserves the most credit for the successful opening of the Silk Road on the Sea. We will follow Assistant Minister Li's lead."
"The cave's climate is pleasant. It's an excellent place to hold the banquet."
The officials under his command said casually. They were just polite words and did not mean much.
Ang Lee casually exchanged greetings with the officials and encouraged them to continue to work hard and work for the Tang dynasty. Then, all the guys who had eaten too much all went into the cave to enjoy the scenery in groups of three or five. Some of the officials even went to explore the lower level of the cave.
Fortunately, Ang Lee had arranged soldiers to guard the lower level, so no accidents happened to the officials. The safety of the officials was greatly protected.
Today's weather was quite hot. Therefore, the officials who left the cave for a walk to digest their food quickly returned to the cave. It seemed that they did not intend to leave.
This made Ang Lee a little unhappy. They had eaten too late, and it was almost time to rest. He had planned to spend a sweet night with Li Xiaolu in the cave, but these guys refused to leave in the name of enjoying the beautiful scenery of the cave. As a senior officer, Ang Lee could not drive them all away. This was not conducive to the unity between the superiors and the subordinates.
Some of the officials were even tired and went directly to the small room Ang Lee had prepared for them to sit down and rest. This made Ang Lee feel quite helpless.
In order to unite the subordinates, Ang Lee could only continue to walk in the cave. From time to time, he would chat with his subordinates about some meaningless things. As for the subordinates who went to rest in the small room, he could only pretend that he did not see them. After all, at this time, there were only a few wooden stools in the small room. There was not even a bed. Who would have thought that Ang Lee intended to spend the night here? If these subordinates knew Ang Lee's intention, they would never dare to stay here.
On the contrary, these officials respected Ang Lee, so when they saw that Ang Lee had been staying in the cave and did not leave, they were embarrassed to leave. They felt that if they left before their leader left, it would be disrespectful to their leader.
This kind of stupid etiquette had been like this since ancient times. At this moment, it was a big trouble in front of Ang Lee. In fact, these officials were very sullen. After they were tired from walking, they also wanted to go back and have a good sleep. However, Ang Lee did not leave, so they did not dare to leave. Some of the older officials could not stand anymore, so they secretly went to the small room to rest.
However, due to the cool climate in the cave, the officials were not in a hurry even though they were a little aggrieved. They did not believe that Li An would stay here forever. Since their leader was so patient, as his subordinates, they had to be even more patient. Only then would they be good subordinates to their leader.
"Why are these idiots still here? Do they need me to ask them to leave?"
Ang Lee walked out of the cave and looked at the stars in the sky, talking to himself.
Li Xiaolu followed him out and whispered, "Are they afraid to leave because Assistant Minister Li is here?"
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