Imperial Palace Banquet.
Although this banquet was planned on the spur of the moment, it was still the Imperial Palace after all. The sound of stringed instruments and the enchanting singing and dancing continued. Not to mention, there was a dazzling array of delicacies.
Of course, there was also the grape wine brewed by the School of Mo in Dengzhou. In the country, there was a ban on alcohol. Even the ministers of the Imperial Palace did not dare to drink recklessly. Tonight was a rare opportunity to drink openly.
"Bang!"
With an explosion in the air, the cylindrical cork was pulled out. The bright red wine swayed in the transparent glass bottle, emitting an intoxicating glow under the light. At the same time, an intoxicating wine fragrance appeared in the hall.
"Good wine!"
Cheng Yaojin was the first to cheer. He could not wait to raise his glass and drink, but was stopped by Meton.
"Uncle Cheng, wait a moment. After the Dengzhou grape wine is opened, you can't drink it directly. You need to sober up first," Merton said.
"Sober up? Could it be that the wine fell asleep? "Cheng Yaojin stared with his big eyes.
The other generals burst into laughter. They were all overjoyed and winked at Meton.
Meton explained, "Sober up is just a metaphor. According to the School of Mo's research, because grape wine is brewed from grapes, there is a component in it that is slightly bitter and astringent. If it is exposed to the air and shaken gently, it can neutralize this component and make the grape wine taste better. Especially new wine, it needs to be sober up more."
After Meton finished speaking, he took out a large glass container that he had prepared. He poured the wine into it and shook it gently.
"There is such a saying? Why have I never heard of it?" Li Shimin suddenly felt very strange. He also often drank grape wine, but he had never heard of such a thing as sobering up.
"This is the result of the combination of the experience of the wine masters in the Western Regions and the School of Mo's ink technique. This is the first large-scale grape wine in the Tang dynasty. Naturally, we can't take it lightly. After many experiments, we accidentally came up with this method of sobering up." Meton replied. Sobering up was not deliberately mystifying. It was a real need. The more new the wine, the more it needed to be sobered up.
"Is that so?" Everyone was suddenly enlightened and looked forward to it.
Very quickly, fifteen minutes passed in the blink of an eye. Moton raised the decanter and personally poured wine for everyone. The bright red wine was poured into transparent glasses.
"Everyone, please!" Meton stood up and proposed a toast.
Everyone was excited and drinking to their hearts' content..
"Good wine!"
Li Shimin drained the cup in one gulp, and could not help praising.
This was not Li Shimin's intentional praise, but his sincerity. Grape wine had first come from the Western Regions, so it was naturally rare for ordinary households, but it was extremely common for the officials of the Imperial Palace. Grape wine was extremely popular among the upper echelons of the Great Tang, and some of them were even quite skilled in wine tasting.
. Meton gave a thumbs-up and said, "Your Majesty, you have a good eye. This wine is made from the first batch of grapes in Dengzhou. It is made by the best wine master in Gao Chang. It is better than the original Gao Chang grape wine in terms of appearance and taste.
"I didn't think that my Great Tang would be able to produce grape wine that isn't inferior to that of the Western Regions, especially this method of sobering wine. It actually allows this year's new wine to taste just as good as the old wine of the past," Cheng Yaojin said in surprise.
The other ministers also nodded. They were full of praise for the grape wine produced by the School of Mo. Of course, it was also due to the method of sobering up and the ban on alcohol.
Meton said proudly, "In the past, a barrel of grape wine from the Western Regions was sold at a high price after it was shipped to Chang 'an. Now, the Tang dynasty can also produce grape wine. In time, this superior grape wine can also be placed on the table of ordinary people."
Wei Zheng took a sip of the grape wine. This time, he didn't say anything to persuade. After all, grape wine was made from grapes and didn't waste food. Moreover, the Tang dynasty had banned the use of food to make wine, which dissatisfied the people. If the Tang dynasty could produce grape wine, it could also ease the people's opposition.
"Everyone, let's drink!" Li Shimin was drunk and raised his cup.
The ministers raised their cups and drank. For a moment, the hall was full of wine and wine. Coupled with the wonderful palace music and dance, the guests and the host were very happy.
"The School of Mo's ink skills are indeed extraordinary. According to the rumors, the School of Mo has realized the prophecy of a prosperous era. The School of Mo has stolen hundreds of years of luck from the School of Yin-Yang. In this way, the School of Mo's revival can be expected. It won't be long before the prosperity of the pre-Qin era is restored." Suddenly, a malicious voice came from among the civil officials.
Suddenly, the banquet quieted down. Meton turned his head and saw Yu Zhining speaking sarcastically.
"Sure enough, there is no good banquet!"
Meton sighed in his heart and retorted, "The School of Yin-Yang is not terrible, nor is the prophecy. What is terrible is the ignorant people. The School of Mo has never believed in luck. The revival of the School of Mo depends on the struggle of the School of Mo, not on some illusory luck."
Hearing Meton's sarcasm, Yu Zhining was not angry but happy. He continued to provoke him, "So, the School of Mo has never taken the School of Yin-Yang seriously."
Meton nodded without hesitation, "Since ancient times, there has never been anyone who has used schemes and rumors to achieve great things. The School of Yin-Yang's methods of secretly spreading rumors are at most an itch. They can't change the overall situation."
Li Shimin nodded slightly. He was an emperor who had participated in the founding of the country, so he naturally understood this principle.
Yu Zhining coldly snorted, "What if the School of Yin-Yang is the general trend?"
Li Shimin's heart sank. If the School of Yin-Yang is the general trend, then wouldn't the so-called School of Yin-Yang be the School of Yin-Yang be the general trend?
Meton sighed, "I know that Official Yu is referring to the prophecies of troubled times. If you are well-versed in the theories of the various schools of thought, you will discover that the prophecies of troubled times are nothing but nonsense. The School of Yin-Yang's theories are full of loopholes."
"The School of Yin-Yang's theories are full of loopholes." Suddenly, everyone was in an uproar. No one expected Mo Jiazi to spout nonsense after drinking.
"First of all, the School of Yin-Yang is proficient in astronomical phenomena. However, the astronomical phenomena they observe are only visible to the naked eye. If you use the Xuan Du Observatory's telescope, you will discover that the astronomical phenomena visible to the naked eye are just a drop in the ocean." Meton looked at Li Chunfeng.
Li Chunfeng nodded, stood up and said, "That's right. According to the School of Taoism, when they observe the astronomical phenomena at night with telescopes, they discover that the number of stars in the night sky is at least a hundred times more than what the naked eye can see."
The appearance of so many celestial bodies was simply overturning the previous theories of astrology. This was also why he was helping the School of Yin-Yang because he didn't think that the School of Yin-Yang would succeed.
"This is only the celestial bodies observed under the current situation. If we continue to improve the telescope in the future, the celestial bodies observed by the naked eye will only be a drop in the ocean." Meton pointed out the window and continued to add insult to injury.
Everyone couldn't help but gasp. If the School of Yin-Yang could observe so few celestial bodies, then the School of Yin-Yang's theories based on the existing celestial bodies would have a huge problem.
"Second of all, the main reason why the School of Yin-Yang repeatedly issued prophecies of chaos and attempted to rebel is because of the Theory of Five Virtues. The School of Yin-Yang believes that the Five Virtues reinforce and counteract each other. They believe that the dynasties in the world will eventually perish in a few hundred years. This is why they repeatedly issued prophecies of chaos when the dynasties are at their weakest. They were lucky enough to succeed a few times, which made the School of Yin-Yang even more arrogant, thinking that they are following the will of the heavens. On the other hand, the School of Mo believes that only quantitative changes can lead to qualitative changes. As long as the imperial court pays attention to resolving the main conflict of the Tang dynasty, it is possible that the dynasty can be passed down for generations," Merton said.
Li Shimin nodded slightly. The School of Yin-Yang firmly believed that the Tang dynasty would perish in a few hundred years. They were even willing to add fuel to the fire. On the other hand, the School of Mo firmly believed that the Tang dynasty could be passed down for generations. It was obvious who they should side with.
"Even so, Mo Jiazi's theory of contradiction is that everything will eventually perish one day. The Tang dynasty is also the same," Yu Zhining said sourly.
Li Shimin waved his hand and said, "Although I don't expect the Tang dynasty to be passed down for generations, I will be satisfied as long as it can surpass the twenty-five generations of the Han Dynasty."
Li Shimin said that it would surpass the twenty-five generations, but in fact, he was quite interested in Meton's idea of passing down the dynasty for generations. After all, which emperor's ultimate dream was to pass down the dynasty for generations?
"Then, in Merton's opinion, how do we break the prophecies of the School of Yin-Yang?" Li Chunfeng asked on behalf of Li Shimin. Suddenly, everyone's eyes focused on Meton.
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