"What? Liu Jing called you to a banquet?" In the East Palace, the prince looked at Li Changkong in disbelief.
"He is so good, why would he ask you to go?"
"I'm afraid it's a scam!" Liu Yu frowned and said.
"How about I go with you?"
"Can His Highness the Crown Prince leave the palace openly?" Li Changkong asked?
Liu Yu was suddenly stunned and speechless.
He has been sneaking out of the palace too many times recently, and it's time to restrain himself, otherwise if Emperor Jing Xing discovers him, he will suffer a lot.
What's more, if you go to Prince Jing's Mansion in a grand manner, you will definitely be discovered.
"Then what should we do? Is it possible for Cheng Cheng to go like this? That guy Liu Jing must have bad intentions!" Liu Yu has always scorned Liu Jing.
"He invited me to go only at two o'clock."
"Either subdue them, or kill them quickly!"
Hearing this, Zhang Han nodded and said, "I think so too."
"In the past few days, because of Lao Li, His Highness the Crown Prince's bargaining chips have increased a lot. This man is probably in a hurry and wants to use some means."
"I'm just trying to subdue them, I guess, and then kill them quickly, I'm afraid it's true."
"He dares? Old Li is now the fifth-rank General Anbei. If he dies, my father will not be angry? No one can protect him by then."
"Your Highness is a little naive. Who will be able to provide evidence that Old Li was killed by King Jing?"
"Since he dares to do it, he will definitely do it cleanly without leaving any flaws." Zhang Han said.
"What should we do? Liu Jing invites you, not to mention Lao Li, even Duke Ding has to go to the appointment, because his identity as a prince lies there!" Liu Yu said.
Li Changkong also nodded, this is the unsolvable part of this matter.
I knew it was the Hongmen Banquet, but I couldn't refuse.
Given King Jing's status, inviting him to dinner is a sign of respect for him, and not going would be rude on his part.
If you refuse on the basis of illness, the other party will definitely wait until the illness is better to continue the banquet. Is it possible to keep claiming illness? This is not an option at all.
Besides, Li Changkong didn't want to avoid his edge.
"Of course I'm going to take a look at what His Highness King Jing has up to." Li Changkong said confidently.
"I'm here just to talk to you and ask Lao Jia to pick me up that night."
"Okay!" Jia Taisui, who had been unable to say anything, immediately patted his chest when he heard this, saying that there was no problem.
"How about I go too? One more person, at least one more guarantee!" Zhu Ben also said.
However, Li Changkong looked at him, hesitated for a long time, and finally shook his head and said: "Forget it. In handling this kind of thing, people are more skilled than more."
When Zhu Ben heard this, his expression suddenly turned resentful. He kept glaring at Li Changkong, like an angry little daughter-in-law.
"Be careful in everything." Zhang Han knew that he couldn't be of much help, so he just told him.
"Don't worry, Old Li. If something happens, I will lead the Qianlong Camp to Prince Jing's Mansion!" Liu Yu patted Li Changkong on the shoulder, looking as heroic as Qianyun.
Hearing this, Li Changkong smiled, nodded, then turned and left.
King Jing's invitation was for the dinner that day, and he didn't have much time.
Going with him was Butler Yang. When he arrived at Prince Jing's Mansion, he found that there was only one guard in front of the mansion. Compared with the other princes, he was much more low-key.
If it weren't for the three characters "Prince Jing's Mansion" gilded on the plaque, Li Changkong might not have been able to recognize it.
"Everyone in the world says that King Jing is wise, considerate of the people, and diligent and frugal. Now it seems that he has lived up to his reputation."
Hearing this, the guard hurriedly opened the door and said, "Uncle Li, please. My Highness has been waiting for a long time."
"Yes." Li Changkong then led Butler Yang in and found a graceful woman in purple standing outside the door, her face covered by a gauze veil.
When the woman saw Li Changkong, she bent down and said softly: "I have met General Anbei."
"Tsk, everyone says that King Jing is not close to women. It seems that the rumors are wrong." Li Changkong teased.
Hearing this, Ziyi was not embarrassed. Instead, he smiled and said, "The general is joking. I am just an ordinary maid in Prince Jing's palace. How can I get the attention of His Highness Prince Jing?"
"Your Highness has been waiting for a long time. General, please come this way."
When Li Changkong heard this, he nodded and followed without saying a word.
When they arrived at the main hall, they saw that Liu Jing had already cooked tea on the desk, sat cross-legged, closed his eyes and rested, waiting for Li Changkong's arrival.
"Li Changkong, I have met His Highness King Jing!" Li Changkong said with his hands bowed, which was considered a courtesy.
"Uncle Anbei, there is no need to be polite. This tea has been brewing for a long time. But since Uncle Anbei is here, it doesn't matter if it is brewed longer. Please sit down quickly."
When Li Changkong heard this, he sat down.
Until now, the guests and hosts have been enjoying themselves and showing kindness.
"Does Uncle Anbei have any research on tea ceremony?" Liu Jingfa asked.
Li Changkong shook his head: "I'm still young and can't drink tea, so I have nothing to study."
"This tea ceremony has a long history, but there is a special truth in it. If Uncle Anbei is interested, he can delve into it, and I'm afraid he will gain something."
"Not to mention anything else, just the two pots of tea on this document have taught me a lot of truth."
"Why did Your Highness say this?" Li Changkong said slightly surprised.
When King Jing heard this, he pointed to one of the pots and said, "This pot is Yangzhou Longjing!"
"Many years ago, it became famous all over the world and was designated as a tribute tea."
"It's just that over the years, the output has been poor, so many merchants have had no choice but to do the same thing and take some defective goods to make up the quantity."
"Over the years, the reputation has become extremely bad. Even the tribute tea brought out from the palace is getting worse every year."
After King Jing finished speaking, he paused for a moment and looked at Li Changkong. Seeing that his face had no abnormal expression, he continued: "In comparison, this pot of frozen top oolong is not tribute tea."
"But over the years, it has become famous all over the world, and its sales have been increasing year by year."
“In terms of taste, it is widely praised and its reputation spreads far and wide.”
"I think Yangzhou Longjing has the name of tribute tea, but it has no actual status as tribute tea."
"Instead of doing this, it would be better for everyone to abdicate as soon as possible and make way for others."
"Uncle Anbei, what do you think?"
Zheng!
Li Changkong narrowed his eyes slightly and twitched his nose, feeling the murderous intent of Tu Qiongdajian.
He smiled and said: "Changkong is a bit younger after all. No matter how good the taste or color of the tea is, I just can't understand it."
"But I'm thinking that Yangzhou Longjing still occupies the position of tribute tea today, so it must have its own uniqueness."
"I still choose to trust the court's vision and give this Yangzhou Longjing a try."
With that said, Li Changkong picked up the cup of Yangzhou Longjing and sipped it.
Liu Jing frowned slightly when he saw this.
In the small courtyard, murderous intent suddenly appeared.