Chapter 1800: No Feast Without a Catch

On the seventh day of the third month, the day of the Jiaqing Festival, the sun shone brightly and a warm breeze caressed the willows—truly a fine season. The long-prepared festivities unfolded in grand fashion. In terms of liveliness, it nearly rivaled the Lantern Festival. For the court officials, the biggest difference was probably the shorter holiday—only three days.

Unlike the Lantern Festival at the start of the year, Emperor Liu wore more smiles on his face, and they came more naturally, showing his good mood. This was the first time since Empress Fu's passing.

The most important segment was naturally the birthday banquet that began in the evening, held in the Qianyuan Hall. It was a grand spectacle—canopies gathered in clouds, friends of high station filling the seats. All the imperial princes in the capital, nobles of merit, high ministers, and envoys of various states, so long as they could still move, gathered together in one place.

Beneath the night sky, the Qianyuan Hall blazed with lights and buzzed with voices. Several hundred musicians played a "symphony," dozens of beautiful dancers displayed their graceful figures, and several painters, drinking as they worked, wielded their brushes to record this grand scene in pictures.

Emperor Liu was in high spirits, laughing and drinking freely with his ministers, indulging in joy to the fullest. Yet behind the celebration, there was always a sense of loneliness. In his daze, he himself could no longer tell whether his smiles were real or false.

After several rounds of wine, slightly tipsy, Emperor Liu finally made a somewhat unusual move, naturally drawing everyone's attention. They watched as he slowly rose, stepped onto the vermilion dais, and looked down upon the assembled ministers in the hall.

Seeing this, the ceremonial music stopped, the singing and dancing ceased—only the fireworks outside the hall continued to bloom. Everyone halted what they were doing. Some looked straight ahead, some lowered their eyes in deference, and some boldly gazed upward, but all were waiting for Emperor Liu to speak.

In such situations in the past, Emperor Liu would generally say a few words and take the opportunity to offer toasts, and everyone had grown accustomed to it. This time, however, Emperor Liu did not raise his wine cup.

Scanning the hall once, Emperor Liu finally spoke, in a tone of deep feeling: "Speaking of this Jiaqing Festival, I still feel ashamed to this day. To have the realm's subjects and ministers celebrate this old man's birthday, hanging lanterns and festooning decorations, mobilizing the masses, wasting untold sums—the more I think about it, the redder my face grows. Throughout the ages, a monarch so arrogant and self-indulgent must be a rare sight!"

The moment he opened his mouth, something felt off, and everyone sensed it. Chancellor Li Fang hastily rose and said, "Your Majesty speaks too gravely! Your Majesty's birthday is celebrated by all under heaven—this is state ritual. Your Majesty is the father of the people, and on this auspicious festival day, it is only proper that we ministers offer our congratulations!"

Hearing this, Emperor Liu smiled, and disregarding the ministers' uneasy looks, continued: "Of course, I must still thank you all! What makes this year's Jiaqing different from past ones is perhaps the birthday gifts. Just now I examined the gift registry—what you ministers have presented is quite generous indeed! However, I am rather curious: these gifts you have offered—surely they did not disturb the people, surely they were not squeezed from the people's flesh and blood?"

At these words, the ministers' faces changed color, and the whole lot of them, as if rehearsed, said in panic: "We would not dare, Your Majesty!"

Zhao Kuangyi responded: "Your Majesty's sacred birthday—we who are your subjects merely offer gifts according to ritual, to fulfill our filial devotion. How would we dare disturb the people or extort them, tarnishing Your Majesty's majesty and virtue? Besides, the laws of the state are strict—no one dares violate them!"

"Heh heh!" Emperor Liu let out two cold laughs: "The laws of the state are strict, no one dares violate them? That statement is far too absolute. In all these years, have I dealt with too few corrupt officials, treacherous ministers, and wicked villains?"

Zhao Kuangyi's expression froze—clearly stumped by the question. Of course, what truly puzzled him was why such an auspicious hour had to be spoiled by such matters. Even if the emperor wished to admonish the ministers, he could have waited until after the birthday and chosen another occasion.

Of course, the current Emperor Liu was just that capricious, speaking from whatever moved him, paying no heed to occasion or anything else.

"Enough!" Seeing Zhao Kuangyi's bitter expression, Emperor Liu smiled again and waved his hand, saying: "I was merely speaking offhand! However, this matter does give us a reminder. On every festival and auspicious occasion, social exchanges and seeking good fortune are unavoidable. If I were to issue an edict banning them, that would seem unreasonable.

However, the value of these gifts and monetary presents ought to be limited. It should start with me. This time we'll let it pass, but from now on, for festivals of this kind, regardless of official rank or grade, the value of gifts presented must not exceed five strings of cash!

No, that's still not enough. I don't want any gifts at all—convert everything to cash presents, so you won't rack your brains trying to come up with rare treasures and curios to beguile me!"

At this decree, the entire hall erupted in clamor. Why make such a fuss over the matter of gifts? Emperor Liu's words were practically treating the court officials like thieves. Yet they still had to offer their flattering praise in unison: "Your Majesty is wise!"

Of course, from a broader perspective, Emperor Liu's move did have positive significance. At festivals and holidays, in social exchanges, gifts were naturally indispensable—from the government to the common folk, people sought the auspicious meaning in them. This was a cultural tradition, a customary practice that could not be completely changed, but the atmosphere could be purified.

At the very least, when Emperor Liu set the highest standard for himself, everyone else would have a benchmark in mind. Would they dare exceed the emperor's standard? Would that not be defying their sovereign? Would that not be showing contempt for imperial authority?

"Yan Tuo!" The severity on Emperor Liu's face faded, returning to calm, as he called out.

"This humble one is here! What does Your Majesty command?" In the great hall, Yan Tuo bowed his waist a full ninety degrees.

Emperor Liu asked: "In past years of Jiaqing, the gifts offered by ministers and envoys—there are records of them, right?"

"Reporting to His Majesty, there are!" Yan Tuo, not knowing what Emperor Liu had in mind, could only answer honestly.

"In that case, bring out all of these, along with the birthday gifts from previous years, to be used for the migration and reclamation efforts!" Emperor Liu said lightly, and as he spoke, he glanced at the several chancellors: "You all are always saying state revenues are insufficient, that you're stretched thin—well then, I'll take out my own money to fill the gap!"

Seeing Emperor Liu so fixated on this matter, many showed surprised expressions. Several of the chancellors swept by Emperor Liu's gaze even lowered their heads.

And Emperor Liu's resolve in this regard was once again made clear to the world. From the inception of the Jiaqing Festival to now, nearly thirty years had passed. Even with restrictions in place, the birthday gifts Emperor Liu had collected over thirty years, accumulated over such a long time, amounted to a huge fortune. All the gifts and cash combined, worth five to six million strings of cash, would surely be no problem.

With that, Emperor Liu's speech came to an end. Afterward, he symbolically offered a toast and took his seat. Within the Qianyuan Hall, the scene of song and dance resumed, but Emperor Liu's behavior had skewed the tone. The atmosphere in the hall seemed as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over it, and even the decadent music carried a hint of chill.

Emperor Liu cared not for those complex emotions and churning thoughts. After enjoying the ministers' toasts, he could not help but be moved by the scene. In times past, Empress Fu would always be by his side at such moments. Now, only he remained, alone in his lofty solitude.

Once the emotions came, he could not help but drink a few extra cups. Through bleary, drunken eyes, he spotted Zhao Kuangyin among the nobles' seats. That old fellow—his beard had turned a grizzled grey, and his body was clearly failing, yet there he was drinking merrily with Sun Li, the Duke of Pingyuan. He'd heard the man had sworn off alcohol, but judging by the look of things, that didn't seem to be the case. Could it be an act?

Fragments of thoughts flashed through his mind. Emperor Liu rose once more and, supported by Yan Tuo, walked over to where Zhao Kuangyin and Sun Li sat. The hall suddenly quieted again. Without background music, this spoiled Emperor Liu's mood, so he waved his hand—music resumed, dancing resumed.

Emperor Liu, smiling as he surveyed the two men who had risen to their feet, raised his cup and said: "Come, I offer you both a toast!"

"Thank you, Your Majesty!" The two responded with utmost respect, their movements even seeming somewhat flustered.

"Minister Zhao, you and I, sovereign and subject, have not drunk together for a long time! I heard you gave up alcohol due to illness. For the sake of your health, I have been restraining the urge. But today is a rare occasion—we must drink our fill!" Emperor Liu was somewhat drunk, but his speech remained fluent.

Hearing this, Zhao Kuangyin naturally could only respond: "Thank you, Your Majesty. This is this minister's honor!"

Zhao Kuangyin had retired in his prime and had spent over a decade in his residence. Even if he hadn't been ill, he would have stewed himself into illness. But facing Emperor Liu, he remained fairly composed. Sun Li, by contrast, was somewhat embarrassed. Many of his sons, nephews, and old subordinates had been punished for committing offenses. Sun Li had almost become the perpetual example Emperor Liu used to intimidate meritorious officials and nobles.

Therefore, even though Sun Li had followed Emperor Liu from very early on, he both respected and feared him. However, toward this old man, Emperor Liu truly harbored little wariness—otherwise, given his family's situation, they would have been dealt with long ago.

At this moment, seeing the old man's foolish, at-a-loss expression, Emperor Liu was amused. He drank a cup with him, offered some words of comfort, and then let it go. As he departed, Sun Li collapsed directly to the ground, took several deep gulps of wine, and only then recovered his composure, his lingering fear written all over his face.