In the best private room in Yuanyang Tower, everyone sat down according to host and guest.
After sitting down, Governor Yu bowed his hand to Tang Ning and said, "It's been a few days since the three adults came to Ezhou. I just waited for you to greet them today. I didn't entertain you well, and I still hope that Haihan..."
There are only three people who are qualified to participate in this banquet, Tang Ning, Yu Shi Zhongcheng, and Gongsun Ying, the leader of the shadow guards.
Censor Zhongcheng smiled and said: "We are here for official business, not for fun. I am being polite to you, sir."
"Official affairs are official affairs, etiquette is etiquette, and the etiquette should be observed." Governor Yu looked at them, took out three thick envelopes from his sleeves, placed them on the table in front of the three of them, and said: "Three of you,
Coming all the way, this is a small courtesy from me, so please don’t refuse, three of you.”
"Your Majesty, you're welcome." Censor Zhongcheng smiled and put the envelope away.
Gongsun Ying directly opened the envelope, looked at a thick stack of thousand-tael banknotes inside, and threw it back to the governor's desk with an indifferent expression.
Of course, Tang Ning couldn't be bribed with 10,000 to 20,000 taels of silver, so he handed it over and said, "No reward for no merit, I'd better take this small gift back."
Censor Zhongcheng looked at him and said: "Master Tang, this is the etiquette of Jiangnan, there is no other meaning."
Tangning looked at him and asked with a smile, "Is this also the etiquette of the Yushitai?"
The evaluation of anything should not be one-sided or generalized. The Censorship Station has always regarded itself as a clean stream. Tang Ning has seen censors who speak out and give advice for the sake of justice. She has also seen censors like Censor Zhongcheng who are well versed in the "etiquette" of Jiangnan.
What's ridiculous is that the latter is still the second and third in command of Yushitai...
The expression on Censor Zhongcheng's face changed slightly, and the expressions of the Ezhou officials present at the banquet were also hard to look at.
There are certain rules in the officialdom that are accepted by everyone. Accepting gifts from others naturally means that you are on the same side as them. Tangning's move undoubtedly drew a clear line with Ezhou officials.
In other words, he did not intend to let the Ezhou officials go.
In other words, given the two paths of life and death, he chose the path of death.
Yu Cishi was not angry, but smiled and said: "Master Tang is a pure man, but I am a cliché..."
He picked up the wine glass, poured a glass of wine on his own, and said: "I will punish myself with one drink first."
He drank the wine in one gulp, poured two more glasses, picked up one of the glasses, and said, "Master Tang has come a long way. I would like to pay my respects to Master Tang for this cup."
At the banquet, some insiders had a strange look in their eyes.
After drinking this glass of wine, he would be bedridden within two days. First he would feel dizzy and vomit, then he would have difficulty eating and breathing, and eventually he would vomit blood and die...
So what if you were a Beijing official, or if you were a deputy minister in the Ministry of Civil Affairs, the biggest problem when a Beijing official went to Jiangnan was that it was difficult to adapt to the climate and soil of Jiangnan. He was not the first, nor the last, to die in Jiangnan because he was not acclimated to the climate.
Tang Ning looked at the wine in the glass and remained unmoved.
Governor Yu waited for a while and asked with a smile: "Does Mr. Tang think that I don't have the face?"
"No, no, no..." Tangning shook her head, took the wine glass from Governor Yu's hand, and put the wine glass on the table into his hand, saying, "Master Yu, you took the wrong one, this is the glass you just used.
."
He looked at Governor Yu and said, "Master Yu, please go first."
Governor Yu's expression changed slightly and he said, "Why do I remember that I didn't take the wrong one?"
Tang Ning said seriously: "Master Yu really took the wrong one."
Governor Yu looked at him, with a trace of suspicion in his eyes. He put the wine glass to his mouth, but his hand suddenly shook and the wine glass fell to the ground and broke into pieces.
A look of annoyance appeared on Governor Yu's face, he shook his head and said, "I am really careless..."
Before he finished speaking, the door to the box was kicked open. Before anyone at the table could react, more than ten people rushed in from the door and pushed everyone to the ground except Tang Ning and the other three.
.
Liu Tong strode in, looked at Tang Ning, and said solemnly: "We have captured them all, please give instructions, general!"
Tangning looked at him in shock and asked, "What are you doing?"
The Hongmen Banquet is also a routine. Whether it is the Hongmen Banquet hosted by him or the Hongmen Banquet hosted by the governor, everyone must be harmonious at the beginning and have an attitude that everything is easy to discuss. After drinking for three times, there is still no discussion.
When they got together, he got angry and threw a glass. Liu Ting and others got the signal, broke in, and captured the corrupt officials in Ezhou. This "Hongmen Banquet" ended...
But in whose Hongmen Banquet, the table was turned over before everyone had even drank a glass of wine, even before the food was served, and everyone was greeting them with friendly smiles?
This is too unrefined.
Liu Tong was startled and asked: "Didn't the general say that the cup was thrown as a sign? When we heard the sound of the cup being thrown, we came in..."
Tangning looked at the wine glass that had fallen to the ground and shattered into pieces. Her lips moved, but in the end she didn't say anything.
Liu Tong was indeed acting in accordance with his instructions. This matter was considered a lack of consideration on his part. He should have agreed with him on some other code at that time...
He has to take the blame, and as a boss, he must have the courage to admit his mistakes.
Governor Yu and others were pushed to the ground, with their faces touching the floor. They were twisted and deformed due to the excessive force. They shouted in shock and anger: "Who are you? Do you want to rebel?"
Censor Zhongcheng, who was frightened by the sudden formation, also came to his senses, looked at Tang Ning and said angrily: "Master Tang, what are you doing!"
Tangning looked at him and said innocently, "I said this was a misunderstanding. Do you believe me, Mr. Qi?"
Censor Zhongcheng naturally didn't believe it. He ambushed so many people here, could it be just for fun?
He never thought that at today's banquet, Tang Ning would be more ruthless than Ezhou officials and actually wanted to catch them all...
He looked at Tangning and said loudly: "Since it's a misunderstanding, let's let these adults go quickly..."
Liu Tong looked at Tang Ning, waiting for his instructions.
"Tie them all up." Tang Ning looked at Liu Tong, waved her hand and said, "After all, we have come..."
He glanced at Yushi Zhongcheng and said: "Catch this person inside and outside, accept bribes, and collude with local officials."
Censor Zhongcheng's expression changed drastically and he said, "Tangning, what do you want to do? Do you want to rebel?"
"You are the one who wants to rebel, right?" Tangning walked to the table and opened the wine jug. As expected, there was a lot inside the jug. The wine in the lake was layered. Under normal circumstances, the wine from the lower layer was poured out.
When the lid is turned at an angle, the top layer of wine is poured out.
Tang Ning looked at Governor Yu and said with a smile, "Master Yu, this pot of yours is quite filling..."
Yu Cishi's expression changed greatly and he said: "This, this is the custom of Ezhou. This pot is called a dual-purpose pot..."
"Nothing else." Tangning turned the lid of the pot at an angle, poured a glass of wine, handed it to him, and said, "After drinking this glass of wine, today's events will be treated as if they never happened. How about that?"
Governor Yu's face turned completely pale. He knew what would happen if he drank this glass of wine. This was the most painful way to die that he had ever seen.
It was obvious that Tang Ning already knew everything. At this moment, Governor Yu risked his life, stretched his neck and said, "Kill me if you can. Kill me, and I'll see how you explain it to the court!"
"Okay." Tang Ning nodded, looked at Chen Zhou behind her, and said, "Bring me my sword..."
