After traveling through time, I became Han Zhang’s grandson?

After this little episode, Han Ming no longer had the heart to continue admiring this 'Gathering Hall' and slowly walked towards He Zhengru and Xiao Ge who were chatting.

"Oh, Lord Han, I've been looking for you for a long time!"

Xiao Ge poured a glass of wine with a smile on his face, and offered it to Han Ming. They clinked glasses and drank it all in one gulp.

When Han Ming heard the other party's address, he felt a little surprised, because most of the people who could address him like that were respectful names from people he was familiar with in China.

His eyes turned slightly to He Zhengru who was standing beside him, and he saw the other party nod and smile slightly. Han Ming understood at once that this was dragging Xiao Ge into the pirate ship.

"You are too polite, Minister Xiao. I am just a junior. How could I have troubled you to care about me? I should be respectful to you."

After understanding the key, Han Ming also chuckled and bowed, took the wine jug beside him, poured himself a glass, and drank it.

Seeing Han Ming being so considerate and giving him face, Xiao Ge suddenly felt very honored.

After all, the other party is the Song Dynasty, or a world-famous and unrivaled all-rounder in both civil and military affairs, or a top-notch person who is feared by other countries. If he flatters me like this, I will definitely feel elated.

"We are all one family, Marquis Han, so there is no need to be so reserved."

With just one sentence, Xiao Ge brought himself and Han Ming very close, making people feel like they were old friends.

"I've lived in the North for many years, but I rarely see young talents like Han Hou. He is a role model for scholars of my generation!"

Xiao Ge was also a veteran in the officialdom. He had originally been hanging around among the favored and trusted confidants of Emperor Shengzong. He had gotten close to them by flattery and ingratiation, and was praised by his peers, thus becoming known to Emperor Shengzong.

During the reign of Emperor Xingzong, he often pretended to be affectionate in order to seduce the other party, which made Emperor Xingzong extremely fond of Xiao Ge.

He was appointed as the Privy Councilor of the Southern Court, and his position was above that of other kings. He was granted the title of King of Wu. Later, he was transferred to be the Privy Councilor of the Northern Court, and was promoted to King of Zheng, and concurrently served as the Minister of the Central Secretariat.

During the reign of Emperor Dao Zong, he used his prestige and flattery to become one of the ministers of state, and together with Xiao Ala, he was in charge of state affairs.

Later, Xiao Ge mixed with Xiao Tuguci and Yelu Chongyuan, and found an excuse to eliminate Xiao A'la, stepping on the accelerator of the Liao Dynasty's decline.

Logically speaking, such a person should not have risen to fame during the reign of Emperor Shengzong, then gone through the reign of Emperor Xingzong, and finally reached the peak during the reign of Emperor Daozong.

But such a talented but unvirtuous person was loved by three monarchs of the Liao Dynasty. This brings us to his father, Monk Xiao.

Monk Xiao, whose courtesy name was Hongning, was a descendant of the emperor's uncle, the eldest grandfather. He was loyal, intelligent, and good at planning. He was a rare political and cultural talent within the Khitan of the Liao Dynasty.

In addition, his close relationship with the descendants of the family also enables Xiao Ge to often take advantage of the situation and act in unexpected ways, making people call him a rare talent.

Unfortunately, although Xiao Ge inherited his father's alertness, intelligence and strategic thinking, he completely threw the so-called loyalty to the winds and became a famous traitor during the reign of Emperor Dao Zong.

"Prime Minister Xiao, you are overly flattering. Everyone in this world knows that the Prime Minister of the Liao Dynasty is a true hero of the time. For the country, he is a great figure who connects the past and the future, continues the great achievements of the Xingzong, and opens up the prosperity of the current dynasty!"

Han Ming is no rookie in the officialdom. If someone shows me respect, I will show him respect. No matter how he praises me, I will just push Tai Chi back and not get hurt.

But Xiao Ge just likes people saying flattering words, especially the praise from those who are truly capable and talented, which makes him feel physically and mentally comfortable.

"Hahahaha, Brother Zhengru, look at what I said. I knew that Marquis Han and I would definitely hit it off right away!"

Xiao Ge pulled He Zhengru and laughed loudly, causing everyone in the hall to look at the three of them.

"Prime Minister Xiao's talent has been recognized by His Majesty Xian Xingzong, so he certainly deserves the praise from Marquis Han."

He Zhengru really lives up to his name in China, with the image of a serious Confucian scholar. This time when he went abroad, he also made a lot of small jokes, which made Xiao Ge feel very comfortable.

"Brother Zhengru is still too polite. Oh, by the way, I still have a few old friends here that I haven't introduced to you. Come on, I'll take you to meet them."

Xiao Ge acted like a familiar person and took Han Ming and He Zhengru to meet with Xiao Tuguci and other people from Chongyuan's party.

Yelu Yixin, who was not far away, narrowed his eyes slightly, with an inexplicable meaning in his eyes.

"Your Highness, Prince Zhao, I offer you a toast as a token of my gratitude for the introduction."

Du Jiyang, Shaoqing of the Honglu Temple of the Song Dynasty, looked respectful and raised his glass to toast Yelu Yixin.

"Mr. Du, you are too polite. I am just following the procedure. There is no need to do this."

Although Yelu Yixin seemed elegant, handsome and humble in appearance, he was actually cunning, smooth and alert. He was a rare powerful and treacherous figure in the Liao Dynasty.

His background was not good. Compared with Xiao Ge, who was born into a family of important officials, his family's economic situation was poor and he could not even provide for himself.

People in the tribe called his family "Qiong Diela", a name mostly derived from the name of his father Yelu Diela.

Yelu Yixin was born into a truly poor family, but with his own abilities and the same flattery as Xiao Ge, he eventually became one of the important officials.

From the middle and late period of Emperor Dao Zong, he ascended to the position of prime minister by eliminating Chong Yuan's party, and then deposed the queen, slandered the prince, and murdered the emperor's grandson.

This series of measures can be regarded as the last straw that broke the camel's back for the Liao Dynasty, and completely dispelled the powerful Khitan Liao, which was the shadow hanging over the Central Plains dynasty.

Unfortunately, despite such a godsend opportunity, Emperor Zhezong of the Song Dynasty died early, and his successor, Huizong, was not a qualified emperor at all.

They couldn't even defeat the non-main Liao army stationed in the Sixteen Prefectures of Yanyun, and finally let the Jin Kingdom reap the benefits of both countries.

One remnant fled westward and established the continuation of Western Liao, while the other lost half of its territory and lingered in the south, splitting the history of the Song Dynasty into two halves and completely becoming a passer-by in history.

"Your Highness possesses outstanding abilities and profound understanding. He is a rare talent in the Liao Dynasty and a role model for our generation of ministers. I hope to have the opportunity to cooperate with Your Highness."

Du Ji Yang knew very well the inner nature of this King Zhao. He was just another Xiao Ge, but he was just wearing a cloak of humility and loyalty.

"I'm afraid it's not just a simple cooperation?"

Yelu Yixin was able to climb from the bottom to his current high position, so he is naturally not an easy character to deal with. He could see through Du Jiyang's little thoughts at a glance.

"Your Highness, you are worrying too much. Our dynasty has always upheld the principle of peace and friendship. Cooperation should naturally be win-win. How can we harm others for our own benefit?"

Du Ji Yang had been involved in the Honglu Temple and the Ministry of Rites for a long time. He was involved in many issues between countries and his professional ability was beyond doubt.

This simple sentence made Yelu Yixin's mouth curl up unconsciously, and the meaning in his eyes became more intense.

"Are all the civil officials of the Song Dynasty now people like you?"

Yelu Yixin was mocking the fact that all the literati in the Song Dynasty were flatterers.

"If we can protect the well-being of the people of a country, it doesn't matter who the foreign ministers or colleagues are."

Du Ji Yang's answer was very clever. As long as it was beneficial to the country and the people, they didn't mind being evil, villains, or treacherous people.

"Interesting. I am now looking forward to meeting your Lord even more. I hope he is the same person you described."

Yelu Yixin chuckled, raised his glass and clinked it with Du Jiyang's, then turned his gaze again to Han Ming who was having a good chat with Chongyuan's party.

As if aware of someone's gaze on him, Han Ming turned his head slightly and saw Yelu Yixin with a half-smile on his face, and Du Jiyang who was accompanying him.

When Yelu Yixin saw Han Ming's gaze, he couldn't help but raise his glass to politely gesture, then drank the wine in the glass in one gulp.

Han Ming also smiled and nodded, raised his glass to express his friendliness, and drank it down.

The brief interaction between the two did not cause any big waves, but this scene made Xiao Ge and Xiao Tuguci, the two core figures of the Chongyuan party, frown slightly.

"Does Marquis Han know His Royal Highness the Prince of Zhao?" Xiao Tu Guci, who had just become familiar with him, asked with a smile.

Han Ming's deepest impression of this man is his grandfather, Xiao Talina.

As a famous general of the Liao Dynasty, Xiao Talina initially served Emperor Jingzong of Liao, Yelü Xian, as a Suzhi official, and was later appointed as the Jiedushi of Zhangde Army.

The most famous was his participation in the Yanyun Campaign between Song and Liao. He served as deputy commander of the army under the command of Privy Councilor Yelü Xizhen in the battle of Shanxi, and captured Yang Jiye (Yang Ye), the famous "General of the Yang Family" in later generations, in Shuozhou.

Unfortunately, just like Xiao Ge’s father, the ideas of loyalty and integrity of the older generation of the Liao Kingdom were not passed down, and most of their descendants became key figures in the decline of the Liao Kingdom.

Because Xiao Tu was intelligent in ancient rhetoric and was quick to judge orders, and good at observing people's words and expressions and catering to the emperor's wishes, his favor grew day by day. He served as the Privy Councilor of the Northern Court, Prime Minister of the Southern Court, and Privy Councilor of the Northern Court. He was allowed to do things as he saw fit and was a very prominent figure in the Liao Dynasty.

"I don't know him. This is the first time we meet today." Han Ming said sincerely.

"That's strange. His Highness has a strange personality and doesn't like to greet people. Why is he paying special attention to Marquis Han today?"

Xiao Tuguci said with some fake doubt, he doubted whether Han Ming and Yelu Yixin had any private friendship.

"Perhaps he likes Marquis Han's poetic talent. After all, I heard that His Majesty the Great Emperor and the Empress Dowager admire him. Perhaps His Royal Highness the Prince of Zhao also loves Marquis Han."

He Zhengru quickly tried to smooth things over and pushed the problem onto Yelu Hongji and Xiao Guanyin.

After all, Yelu Yixin is now nominally a close minister promoted by Yelu Hongji, and is the backbone of the force against Chongyuan's party.

After hearing this explanation, Xiao Tu Guci frowned a little and wanted to ask more questions, but Xiao Ge stopped him directly.

"Haha, that's true. Marquis Han's poems are also very popular in our northern land. Perhaps His Royal Highness Prince Zhao is one of them."

He Zhengru gave a good opportunity, and Xiao Ge directly pulled Xiao Tuguci to get off the hook. Otherwise, if they went any further, it might make both sides lose face.

"Then Han must work harder and write as many poems as possible for you to appreciate and read."

Han Ming didn't react at all, still playing the same smiling tiger role, trying to appease Xiao Ge and others like a donkey.

It was not until the eunuchs sang loudly, "Your Majesty and His Majesty have arrived—!" that everyone stopped talking and bowed their heads, waiting for the arrival of Yelu Hongji and Xiao Guanyin.

The banquet begins...