I want to ruin the country

Sun Jiashang smiled and said,

"Of course, we must follow the Imperial Envoy's footsteps. Is there another way?"

Master Wang also laughed.

"Dong Weng has already thought about it, right?"

Sun Jiashangdao,

"No matter what, the Imperial Envoy has come to Yanzhou from the capital, and the locals will have to pay a heavy price!

It would be good for the Imperial Envoy to show some respect to the Kong family. If the Kong family bows their heads, the others will be no problem!"

Master Wang said,

"Dong Weng also needs to ask Yan Shenggong to come up with a foolproof plan. They are too big, and if something goes wrong, I'm afraid they won't be able to cover it up. Then Dong Weng will also be in trouble!"

Sun Jiashangdao,

"Who says it's not true? I just don't know what Duke Yansheng is thinking. If he insists on relying on the title of the Great Sage Teacher, there's nothing this government can do!"

Master Wang said,

"Although the reputation is strong, the county magistrate is ultimately inferior to the county manager. Wouldn't the Emperor be happy if we just spend some money to get the job done? A problem that can be solved with money is not a problem!"

Sun Jiashang nodded,

"Yan Shenggong will definitely come to our place tomorrow. I will then persuade him. Spending money to ward off disaster is better than anything else!"

Master Wang said,

"As long as the matter of Duke Yansheng is resolved, the others will be easy to deal with. The imperial envoy can't stay in Yanzhou forever. If he leaves, it's still up to you, my Lord!"

While Sun Jiashang and Master Wang were plotting, Chen Fuen was spreading a wide net.

What he caught was not fish, but the gentry and grain merchants who were against the emperor.

Chen Fuen ordered Cai Chenghu, the first-class guard sent by the emperor,

"Guard Cai, monitor all the Kong family's granaries. If they try to transport grain out, arrest them!"

"Whoo!"

The next morning, Kong Fanhao arrived at the prefectural yamen early as expected.

Sun Jiashang was also waiting for him eagerly.

The two men talked secretly in the back hall for a while, and then Kong Fanhao said goodbye.

He came to the imperial envoy's headquarters with a sullen face, put on a smiling face, took out a visiting card and asked to see the imperial envoy.

Chen Fuen was invited in, and after the two men exchanged greetings, the servant served tea and then left.

Kong Fanhao asked a few questions about whether he had a good rest, then took out a gift list from his sleeve and handed it to him with both hands.

"Your Excellency, this is just a small token of my respect. Please accept it, Lord Chen!"

Chen Fuen took it and looked at it, and was shocked. Wow, he really was willing to invest so much.

It read, "One fine Persian ruby, one three-hundred-year-old mountain ginseng, a Jiangzhou clay inkstone, ten fine Hu brushes, and fifty thousand taels of silver."

Chen Fuen put the gift list on the table and said,

"What's the meaning of Yanshenggong spending so much money?"

Kong Fanhao's heart was bleeding and he cursed in his heart, "Damn it, how dare you ask me what I mean? You did that yesterday just to extort more money from me."

But the price difference of one million dan of grain is 700,000 to 800,000 silver coins. No matter how painful it is, he has to spend the money.

Kong Fanhao said with a smile on his face,

"Your Excellency, the Imperial Envoy's calligraphy is unrivaled in the world. This inkstone and some brushes look quite nice. They will be just right in your hands!"

He did not mention the silver and gems to avoid embarrassment for both of them.

Chen Fuen smiled and said,

"Is it possible that the Duke of Yansheng is trying to bribe this imperial envoy?"

Kong Fanhao laughed.

"Your Excellency, what are you talking about? My Kong family has no selfish motives towards the imperial court. Why should you show mercy to us? You are worrying too much!"

Chen Fuen said,

"That's good. Let's be frank. This imperial envoy will never trade the emperor's trust for favors!"

Damn it, you want to be a whore and also pretend to be a saint. You are not ashamed at all when you say this!

The smile on Kong Fanhao's face is prettier than flowers and sweeter than honey.

"Don't worry, Your Excellency, we are just friends giving gifts to each other!"

At this moment, someone came to report,

"Yanzhou Prefect Sun Jiashang requests an audience!"

Chen Fuen said,

"He's here to invite us to a banquet. Please come in!"

When Sun Jiashang came in and saw the gift list on the table, he felt relieved, thinking that it seemed that they had accepted it.

If you eat someone's food, you should be grateful; if you take something from someone, you should be grateful. As long as you are greedy, things will be easy!

After coming out of the Imperial Envoy's Office, Kong Fanhao sent someone to deliver a letter to Kong Lingkan.

"Tell the family to prepare in advance and have them load the truck as soon as the sun sets!"

The largest "Hongfuju" restaurant in Yanzhou.

Today the place is decorated with lights and celebrities from all walks of life in Yanzhou have gathered here. It is an honor to be able to welcome the imperial envoy, so they arrived early.

Chen Fuen, Kong Fanhao and Sun Jiashang walked in together and everyone greeted them.

When Kong Xiangguo saw Kong Fanhao's happy face, he knew that the matter was settled, and he became much more enthusiastic.

Before the meal started, Sun Jiashang stood up and said,

"My Lords, my lords, my lord gentry, the Imperial Envoy, Lord Chen, has arrived in Yanzhou. This government is hosting a welcoming party for the Imperial Envoy on behalf of the local gentry. Please, on behalf of the Emperor, give His Majesty's instructions!"

Everyone said in unison,

"Please give me instructions, Your Excellency!"

Chen Fuen stood up, clasped his hands together, and bowed high.

"Everyone, the Emperor sent me out of the capital to buy grain at a fair price to provide relief to the hungry.

The money to buy grain all came from the imperial treasury, and the emperor sold his property while enduring the infamy!

The emperor has issued an order that grain prices must not be raised privately and that grain hoarding is prohibited. If found doing so, the offender will be treated as aiding the enemy in rebellion.

I hope you will all work together with the Emperor to save the people from danger and do not disappoint the Emperor's love for the people.

In a moment, please enjoy yourselves, and I, the Imperial Envoy, would like to thank you all on behalf of the Emperor!"

After hearing this, everyone understood that the rumor was true. The emperor really sold the treasures in the palace to get the money to buy grain. No wonder the emperor did not allow the price of grain to rise. The emperor had sold his property, so how could it be appropriate for others to make money from the national crisis!

Then the banquet officially began.

Sun Jia spent a lot of money on this banquet and arranged an authentic Shandong cuisine banquet.

There are eight cold dishes on the table, including cold preserved eggs, cold pig ears, mustard fungus, cold pork skin jelly, glutinous rice lotus root, crystal lotus seeds, Baodian donkey meat, and chief's braised lamb.

The ten main dishes are Dezhou Braised Chicken, Nine-Turn Large Intestine, Sweet and Sour Carp, Steamed Swimming Crab, Scallion-fried Sea Cucumber, Braised Prawns, Three-Shredded Shark Fin, Pork Belly, First-Class Tofu, and Water Chestnuts in Milk Soup.

Each main dish is followed by two stir-fried dishes.

Stir-fried squid rolls with coriander, steamed cod, moo shu pork, braised four treasures, fried crispy double meatballs, steamed meatballs, pot-roasted duck, poached tongue, braised fish fillet in fermented wine, poached yellow squid with lotus root, sweet and sour pork tenderloin, honey-glazed pear balls, candied yam, hericium erinaceus in cloud slices, fried bean curd, shili ginkgo, mullet egg soup, clear soup with white fungus.

The whole banquet consisted of 38 hot and cold dishes, including meat and vegetables, cold and hot dishes, sweet and salty, sour and spicy dishes, red, white, yellow and green dishes. It was really colorful and dazzling, and they were all the best of Shandong cuisine.

Everyone's faces were beaming with joy as they ate. Chen Fuen felt mixed emotions. He wondered what the emperor would think when he saw such a banquet!

The etiquette of drinking in Shandong is complicated. There are rules for the seating of the host and guests, the seating arrangement based on the guests' status, the serving of dishes, and even more so for drinking and toasting.

When all the toasting rituals are over, those who can't drink much will probably have already drunk the wine under the table.