The sound of coughing mixed with laughter spread all around.
Chu Shun and his companions felt worse than death.
Their image and reputation were completely tarnished at Dongxiang Marquis Mansion.
They quickly put on their masks, determined to find ti to even out their skin tone later.
Princess Nanzhang, sitting there, laughed and said, "I’ve heard that Prince NanAn sent his sons to Dongxiang Marquis Mansion to study, each with a gift of five thousand taels of silver. The results are truly remarkable, it’s all showing on their faces."
Princess NanAn remained silent, "...."
Marchioness Jingguo remained silent, "...."
Dingbei Marquis’s wife remained silent, "...."
Duchess Dingguo remained silent, "...."
Faces burned with embarrassnt.
Then—
Prince NanAn received a glare from his own wife.
His son had insisted on not removing the mask, yet he made him do it. Happy now?
Her face had nowhere to hide, and if it weren’t for the company of Marchioness Jingguo and others, she would have wanted to crawl into the ground.
Prince NanAn had a headache.
He waved his hand and sent his sons away.
The group of Prince NanAn hurried back.
Su Chong sat there laughing gleefully.
Prince NanAn picked up a pig’s trotter and stuffed it into Su Chong’s mouth, promptly silencing him.
Su Chong remained silent, "...."
He just started gnawing on the pig’s trotter.
The maid served the dishes again.
The Emperor hesitated to eat.
Spitting out rice, spitting out tea—where was his imperial majesty?
Especially the pig’s trotters.
The words of Young Master Su still echoed in his ears.
It seed unlikely he would ever eat pig’s trotters again in his life.
Just as he thought this, he saw Marquis Dongxiang serve his son a pig’s trotter.
"Try it again," Marquis Dongxiang said.
Young Master Su remained silent, "...."
Is this really his father?
Why didn’t he taste it himself!
Nonetheless, Young Master Su obediently complied. Besides, he liked pig’s trotters.
He sniffed it first, then took a bite, mumbling incoherently, "It’s delicious."
Delicious it was.
Marquis Dongxiang placed a pig’s trotter into the Emperor’s bowl.
"Please have so more," Marquis Dongxiang hospitably offered.
The Emperor remained silent, "...."
The ministers remained silent, "...."
Eunuch Fu stood to the side, unsure of what to do.
No minister had ever dared serve the Emperor a dish. Should he use the silver needle to test for poison?
While he hesitated, Marquis Dongxiang had already distributed a plate of pig’s trotters.
Everyone received a share.
After wasting a table of delicious delicacies, nothing else occurred at the banquet.
Light banter and toasts were exchanged.
Marquis Dongxiang first toasted to the Emperor, and then rose to toast those ministers.
After a round of toasting, everyone was pretty much full.
The Emperor put down his chopsticks as the maid served dessert.
Marquis Dongxiang approached, picked up a jug of wine, poured himself a cup, and toasted to the Emperor, "Your Majesty, this toast is on behalf of the eight thousand Flying Tiger Army soldiers who bravely fought on the battlefield."
The previously lively scene.
Instantly fell into silence, followed by the sound of intakes of breath.
Wine spilled from the table dripped onto the ground, splattering everywhere.
No one spoke.
Only the rustling of leaves in the wind could be heard.
Flying Tiger Army.
These three words hadn’t been uttered in years.
Yet Marquis Dongxiang was actually toasting the Emperor on behalf of the Flying Tiger Army.
Fifteen years ago.
The eight thousand Flying Tiger Army soldiers had all perished on the battlefield!
Back then, Old Duke Chong held military power, and the Heir of Duke Chong was exceptionally talented, using military tactics like a deity.
He selected eight thousand elite soldiers from an army of two hundred thousand to form an invincible Flying Tiger Army.
The Flying Tiger Army was legendary, instilling fear in the enemy.
The Heir of Duke Chong was even dubbed the "War God."
At that ti, countless noble family mbers in the Capital followed the Heir of Duke Chong, taking pride in joining the Flying Tiger Army.
Take the current Emperor, for example.
Back then, as the Eldest Prince, he also wanted to join.
The Heir of Duke Chong patted his shoulder, telling him to be a good Crown Prince.
He didn’t need to join the Flying Tiger Army.
The Flying Tiger Army was there to serve him.
Later, the Flying Tiger Army was completely annihilated, and the Daqi Dynasty lost such an invincible force, leading to disarray in the military. Nanliang seized cities, and three are still under Nanliang control.
The Daqi Dynasty sought peace, sending the Emperor’s sister, Princess Jiuling, to marry into Nanliang.
...
Now, hearing the words "Flying Tiger Army" again.
The smile on the Emperor’s face stiffened and cracked.
After a long silence.
The Emperor looked at Marquis Dongxiang, "What eight thousand Flying Tiger Army?"
Marquis Dongxiang replied, "My eight thousand brothers from Qingyun Mountain ford an army, and it’s called the Flying Tiger Army."
Chu Shun gasped.
"Of all the nas, why choose ’Flying Tiger Army,’ and coincidentally also eight thousand in number," Prince NanAn whispered.
Su Chong looked at him and said, "What difference does it make if it is called that?"
Prince NanAn remained silent, "...."
"It doesn’t really matter," Prince NanAn said.
Over there, Duke Chong abruptly stood up, eyes cold, "A rabble that dares to call themselves the Flying Tiger Army?!"
"Rabble?"
Marquis Dongxiang laughed, "This rabble was sothing the court couldn’t defeat for a long ti!"
Duke Chong’s face turned green with anger.
"They’re all my brothers from Feihu Village; so what if we call them the Flying Tiger Army?" Marquis Dongxiang asked.
"...."
"Na them anything but Flying Tiger Army, I won’t let you sully those words!" The Emperor’s face was icy.
Marquis Dongxiang poured the wine in his hand onto the ground.
He set down the cup and said, "Didn’t the border send an urgent report to the Emperor, informing him that a Flying Tiger Army had been ford?"
"The urgent report reached the Emperor’s hands, and if within ten days no na was granted, it ant tacit approval of the na Flying Tiger Army."
"Now the na Flying Tiger Army has spread throughout the camps, it’s too late for opposition," Marquis Dongxiang said.
The Emperor’s face was stern.
He recalled the secret report he had splashed with tea.
Thinking it bore no important information, he destroyed it to avoid troubling the Empress Dowager.
Little did he know!
The report was about this matter!
Duke Chong said coldly, "It’s not too late to grant a na now!"
The Emperor looked at Marquis Dongxiang and said, "Your brothers from Qingyun Mountain have loyalty to the country, which comforts . From today onwards, this army will be called the Su Family Army!"
Marquis Dongxiang’s surna is Su.
Calling it the Su Family Army seed appropriate.
Marquis Dongxiang said nothing, neither angry nor pleased.
He drank a cup of wine.
Over there, Chu Shun looked at Su Chong and asked, "Did your father accept the decree?"
Su Chong said, "Obviously not."
Chu Shun, "...."
"When my father wants to do sothing, no one can oppose it," Su Chong said.
"...."
"All the ministers are silenced by their obligation," the Heir of Duke Dingguo said in a low voice.
"They’ve eaten his food, how can they argue with him," the Eldest Young Master of Duke Dingguo Mansion added.
Not wanting to risk their safety by trying to leave alive.
After all, none of the ministers have the power to oppose what the Emperor wants to na the army.
The Emperor won’t permit this bandit army to call itself the Flying Tiger Army!"
Those words don’t make much difference whether said by the ministers or not.
Still, Marquis Dongxiang replied, "The na and fa of the Flying Tiger Army from fifteen years ago rings in my ears like thunder, Your Majesty. Today, I offer this cup of wine in the na of the eight thousand heroic Flying Tiger Army soldiers who fought valiantly on the battlefield."
"""
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