Chapter 3: Breakfast at Chonghua Hall

Two days later, at dawn, the Three Grand Tutors of the Eastern Palace, summoned by the Emperor, arrived at the Chonghua Hall to discuss affairs over breakfast.

The Grand Tutor of the Crown Prince, who also served as a Grand Secretary of the Cabinet and Minister of Rites, known as "Rabbit Chancellor," was the first to arrive and await the imperial decree at the Zhu Que Gate.

Rabbit Chancellor, surnamed Yu, given name Tu, courtesy name Changzu, was a native of Chai Prefecture in Nanping Circuit; since "Tu" sounded like "rabbit," people called him Rabbit Chancellor.

In less than a quarter of an hour, the Vice Grand Secretary of the Cabinet, who also served as Minister of Revenue and Grand Preceptor of the Crown Prince, known as "Plum Chancellor," arrived as well.

Plum Chancellor, surnamed Cao, given name Mei, courtesy name Liu Guodong, was a native of Chengtian Prefecture in the Northern Directly Administered Region; since his given name contained the character for "plum," people called him Plum Chancellor.

The last to arrive at the Zhu Que Gate was Crane Chancellor, the Chief Grand Secretary of the Cabinet, who also served as Minister of Personnel and Grand Guardian of the Crown Prince.

Once the Three Grand Tutors of the Eastern Palace had gathered, the eunuch guarding the gate immediately went back to report; only after the Emperor's decree came down did the three cross the Zhu Que Gate to enter the hall and audience the Emperor.

The Three Grand Tutors arrived at the Chonghua Hall one after another and, following precedent, took their seats in order: Crane Chancellor on the left, while Plum and Rabbit Chancellors sat on the right.

Jiu Jiu Qiansui, the seal-bearing eunuch of the Imperial Stables, was busy directing the junior eunuchs to scurry about, serving tea and dishes, and attending to the breakfast of the three chancellors.

A little later, with a loud cry from Jiu Jiu Qiansui of "His Majesty the Emperor arrives!" everyone in the hall, regardless of rank or power, bowed their heads and knelt to respectfully welcome the Emperor.

Perhaps due to the heat, the Emperor did not wear formal court robes, entering the hall clad only in a vermilion informal robe.

The Emperor walked toward the center of the hall with an air of ease, neither hurried nor slow, pacing gradually amidst the cluster of ministers.

Jiu Jiu Qiansui followed close at the Emperor's side, every moment ready to reach out and offer support.

The Emperor ascended the nine-step dais and sat before the long table covered in bright yellow satin.

At this moment, the table was already meticulously laden with a total of eighteen hot and cold dishes! All were delicacies of the human world, featuring mountain treasures and sea flavors, both meat and vegetables, salty, sweet, sour, and spicy, perfect in color, aroma, and taste.

It must be known that the Emperor's breakfast was never large in quantity, yet it was always meticulously prepared to replenish his strength before he ascended the throne to hold court.

The abundance of fine food on the table was dazzling to the eye: there were abalones from Hainan, plump and dry-fragrant; matsutake mushrooms from Yunnan, shaped like gold; Hami melons from the Northern Frontier, red as fire; and sugar-coated melon seeds from Jiangnan, sweet and refreshing.

Rare flowers and exotic plants were countless as well, red, purple, yellow, and white, a riot of colors that bewildered the sight.

Merely by virtue of the color, aroma, and taste filling the table, the Emperor's appetite was greatly stirred.

Such delicacies could only be enjoyed to the fullest within the imperial palace; although daily meals were also exquisite, their quantity was not great, placing more emphasis on nutritional balance.

Today's table full of mountain treasures and sea flavors, complete in color, aroma, and taste, displayed the prosperity and splendor of the court; this ultimate enjoyment was truly something common people could hardly comprehend.

Accompanied by this fine food, the Emperor was in a state of pure delight, enjoying this rare moment of leisure.

This sumptuous feast also served as the prelude to the banquet that followed, adding several degrees of brilliance to the celebratory times ahead.

The Emperor first exchanged greetings and morning wishes with the Three Grand Tutors; after drinking a bowl of cold tea, he tasted a piece of Lingling roll, then called out, "Little Jiu..."

Upon hearing the voice, Jiu Jiu Qiansui ran forward with head bowed, climbed the dais, skillfully retrieved the enamel porcelain plate holding the remaining three pieces of Lingling roll, then respectfully descended the dais and instructed the junior eunuchs to divide them onto smaller plates to be presented to the tables of the three chancellors.

"This year's imperial examination has produced an abundance of talent," the Emperor remarked while dining, "Thanks to Rabbit Chancellor's careful efforts in managing the metropolitan exam, relieving my burdens and worries, my beloved subject has worked hard..."

Hearing such praise from the Emperor, Rabbit Chancellor immediately rose, clasped his hands and bowed repeatedly, humbly declining the honor: "The thirty-one new Jinshi were all personally selected by His Majesty; this is truly due to Your Majesty's wisdom, and this humble servant dares not claim any merit."

"Whether there is merit or not, I have seen it all clearly..." The Emperor summoned Jiu Jiu Qiansui again, gesturing toward the plate of Crystal Jade White Flower Frozen Snow Cake on his right, and said, "What deserves reward... I shall surely reward!"

With that, Jiu Jiu Qiansui lifted the snow cake, descended the dais once more, passed directly in front of the tables of Crane Chancellor and Plum Chancellor, and presented this imperial gift of pastry solely to Rabbit Chancellor.

After receiving the snow cake, Rabbit Chancellor first bowed in salute, bowing once and then again; only after expressing his gratitude for the Emperor's bestowal did he resume his seat to continue enjoying it.

"Is the snow cake delicious?" the Emperor suddenly asked.

"Delicious, so delicious!" Caught off guard by the Emperor's question halfway through eating, Rabbit Chancellor momentarily forgot himself and repeatedly praised it in plain vernacular.

"How old is the new Top Scholar?" the Emperor asked.

"Replying to Your Majesty..." Rabbit Chancellor, chewing the snow cake halfway, quickly swallowed and rose to answer, "Twenty-seven years old."

The Emperor's eyes suddenly lit up! Then he sighed with emotion, "Alas... twenty-seven! That means he was born in the first year of Xilong!"

At this moment, the Emperor suddenly felt time flying like a shuttle; he had not expected that the age of this new Top Scholar was exactly as long as his own reign.

"Where is he from?" the Emperor asked again.

Rabbit Chancellor replied, "Dong Prefecture, Nanping Circuit."

The Emperor said, "Eh... Nanping Circuit! Is that not exactly the same hometown as yours, my beloved subject!"

"Indeed," Rabbit Chancellor, seeking to avoid suspicion, quickly explained further, "Although my ancestral home is in Nanping and I was born there, I have served in the court for over thirty years and do not know how many years it has been since I last returned to Nanping."

"Compared to Nanping..." the Emperor said with implied meaning, "among those serving as officials in the court, scholars from Southern Nan Zhili still constitute the majority!"

Hearing the Emperor say this, Crane Chancellor, who hailed from Southern Nan Zhili, immediately rose, bowed, and replied, "Southern Nan Zhili is a land of fish and rice, blessed with spiritual earth and outstanding people; the atmosphere of scholarship is thick, there are many students and many Jinshi, hence more enter the court to serve as officials."

Crane Chancellor knew that the purpose of the breakfast audience was primarily to discuss affairs, with dining being secondary, so he had already eaten breakfast at home; after entering the hall and taking his seat, he had only drunk some cold tea and tasted two bites of Lingling roll, eating nothing more.

Therefore, he could respond to the Emperor's questions at any time.

Although Rabbit Chancellor also knew this unspoken rule, what could he do when the Emperor had personally bestowed the Crystal Jade White Flower Frozen Snow Cake upon him? This left him in a dilemma of whether to eat or not, causing his responses to appear somewhat flustered.

Seeing that the topic of conversation had shifted to Crane Chancellor, Rabbit Chancellor, relieved, resumed his seat; however, upon sitting down this time, he no longer dared to touch his chopsticks.

Plum Chancellor, sitting nearby, was the same.

Although the Emperor had not yet spoken to him, he still sat upright with dignity, attending the audience as a listener.

Apart from that initial bowl of cold tea, he had not consumed even a single bite of food; even that Lingling roll remained untouched, just as it was at the start.

The Emperor's summons of the Three Grand Tutors to the hall for breakfast was intended to discuss the matter of the Crown Prince's attendant reader.

Since the former attendant reader had accompanied the Prince for three years, regulations required him to be transferred to another official post; therefore, a new attendant reader would be selected from this year's new Jinshi, choosing the most outstanding one to succeed.

The Emperor said, "Regarding the selection of the Crown Prince's attendant reader... what views do my beloved subjects have? Feel free to propose them." After speaking, the hall fell silent for a long time; the three chancellors merely looked at each other, saying not a word!

At this moment, all three chancellors wished to recommend a fellow townsman for the position of attendant reader, yet they feared sparking controversy and being targeted by the other two chancellors, so they could only remain silent and wait to see how things developed.

The Emperor said, "Grand Secretary Cao, from beginning to end, you have not spoken a word; why don't you speak first?"

"Replying to Your Majesty..." Plum Chancellor quickly rose and bowed, replying respectfully, "This subject believes we should follow precedent and select the new Top Scholar to serve as the Crown Prince's attendant reader."

This move of tossing out a brick to attract jade was currently the safest response; it neither enriched oneself nor feared offending others.

The Emperor asked, "Grand Secretary Weng, what is your opinion?"

At this moment, Crane Chancellor was secretly delighted in his heart! For he had long anticipated that no matter whom the Emperor asked, they would most likely give such an answer.

Therefore, two nights ago, he had sent Steward Zhang to the Hanlin Academy to be the first to befriend the Top Scholar, intending to recruit him into the Crane Faction for his own use.

Naturally, Crane Chancellor would not object; instead, leveraging the situation, he replied, "Replying to Your Majesty, this subject believes... what Grand Secretary Cao said is entirely correct." This response not only aligned with his own strategy but also indirectly praised Plum Chancellor, achieving two goals with one stroke.

The Emperor: "Then... what does Prime Minister Yu think?"

This question stumped Prime Minister Tu! Since the Zhuangyuan was a fellow townsman, agreeing was not an option, nor was disagreeing!

Prime Minister Tu stammered for a long while, finally squeezing out four words with great difficulty. He replied: "Your subject... has no objection."

The Emperor: "Then let it be settled thus!"

"Your Majesty is wise!" The three prime ministers chorused their congratulations.

"Forgive your subject's boldness; I have a matter to report!" Prime Minister Mei, who had spoken hardly a few words throughout, suddenly rose and said: "Your Majesty's honorific title comprises thirty-two characters in total; the imperial seal is as large as the national seal! Edicts, decrees, and documents, hindered by limited space, all suffer from the difficulty of applying the seal! Your subject boldly petitions Your Majesty to slightly reduce the character count to enhance its efficacy."

Prime Minister Mei's direct remonstrance was always his trademark; and as soon as he spoke these words, the Emperor's heart indeed began to feel uneasy!

The Emperor turned to Prime Minister He and asked: "Is my honorific title... too long?"

Prime Minister He closed his eyes tightly, pondered for a long while, then began to recite silently: "Dark Heaven Guardian Benevolent and Filial Wise Monarch; Night Ends Dawn Breaks Universal Heaven Marshal; Stars Sun Moon Ten Thousand Nations Heavenly Venerable; Heshan Pang Pang Sihai Supreme Sage Great Emperor."

This long string of thirty-two characters in total was precisely the honorific title the Emperor had bestowed upon himself!

Prime Minister He: "It is indeed a bit long!"

Originally, the Emperor was very pleased, marveling that Prime Minister He could recite his honorific title from memory!

But unexpectedly, with a turn of his words, the Emperor began to feel uneasy again.

The Emperor: "Is long not honorable, is long not great? Is that not good?"

The three present all understood in their hearts that the Emperor's subtext was: Could short be better? You must all explain this clearly to me!

"It cannot be said to be bad..." Prime Minister He continued: "It is just that the excessive character count confuses Your Majesty's brilliant and heroic aura!"

The Emperor: "What do you mean by this?"

At the same time, Prime Ministers Mei and Tu both stared at Prime Minister He, watching how he would justify himself.

After all, serving the monarch is like serving a tiger; serving in the same court, we all carry our heads on our shoulders while conducting affairs.

Prime Minister He: "Your subject believes... short phrases that are concise can more precisely display Your Majesty's brilliance and martial prowess!"

The Emperor: "Then tell me, Prime Minister Weng, how should it be simplified? How should it be concise?"

Prime Minister He pondered for a long while, then said: "Take one character from the beginning of each of the four lines; this is called 'Dark Night Star River'."

"Dark Night Star River..." The Emperor suddenly burst with great joy, praising directly: "This phrase is excellent; I like it!" Thus, he immediately issued an edict, ordering the Ministry of Works to forge another imperial seal, upon which the four characters "Dark Night Star River" would be carved!