"Your Majesty, Wei Chen does know a little about the root of this strange beast. This beast is found in the southern part of the South China Sea, called Africa. The climate of the place is very hot, the land is vast and sparsely populated...... Zhang Qian hesitated for a moment, and decisively decided to follow the answer he had previously "practiced" with the old fox Yang, and at the same time, he also felt a little grateful to the old fox in his heart.

Regardless of whether the old fox's previous sentence "whether you are willing to become the old man's junior" is a casual joke or an ulterior motive. At least, before saying this "joke", he showed Zhang Qian in a thorough way that it was absolutely impossible to blindly deny that he did not know the roots of the giraffe in advance!

In doing so, it looks smart on the surface, but there will always be some flaws in the words. And these flaws, in the eyes of a few well-intentioned people, will be clung to. Even if Zhang Qian can successfully get the lie back and make up all the flaws, it will leave a bad impression of "clever words" to the emperor himself.

In that case, he will be instantly put into another book, and there will be no hope for the future of this life. In other words, at least until the death of the Ying Tianshen Dragon Emperor Li Xian, there would be no hope.

And to tell the truth, a little embellishment at the last moment can leave him with a well-informed, honest and reliable impression in Li Xian's eyes. Even if the final conclusion cannot satisfy some people, no one can vent their anger on him.

After all, at the last moment, he had already made it clear that whether the giraffe was a strange beast or not was completely up to everyone. It's okay to say no, and it makes sense to say yes.

And what happened next proved that this response was very appropriate. When he was heard to say, the beast was named a giraffe, which was born in a place called Africa, and liked to eat leaves and fruits from high places, and did not eat meat and fish. There were several ministers sitting on the embroidered pier, and their faces were obviously embarrassed.

However, when I heard him say that when the giraffe reached adulthood, its four long legs were extremely strong, and it was not at all inferior to the lion in a single fight. And even in its homeland, it is very difficult to catch, and it is even more difficult to domesticate. Occasionally get a few heads, and they are regarded as curiosities. The embarrassment on the faces of those pillar ministers quickly disappeared a lot.

When he said that the place where the giraffe first appeared must be close to the sea, and that there were often maritime merchants who landed to trade with local traders, a few little sesame officers who had been hinted at by others and were ready to stand up and refute him at any time immediately died down.

When he pointed out that the Kunlun slave who was kicked to death by the giraffe was actually an animal trainer, and was a fellow villager with the giraffe, either bought as goods by the maritime merchants and the giraffes, or captured from their homeland as slaves by the maritime merchants. Whether it was the pillar stone sitting on the brocade bench in the front row, or the "green-skinned parrot" kneeling on the ground, some people frowned angrily.

And when he heard him say that giraffes are very common in their homeland. However, being able to be transported to the Tang Dynasty from thousands of miles away and dedicated to the Holy God shows that the prosperity and prestige of my Datang are unparalleled in the world. The big and small officials sitting in the front row and kneeling on the ground all had proud smiles on their faces, as if Zhang Qian's words just now were complimenting each and every one of them.

"Cough, cough, cough......" Because he laughed so happily that he didn't get his breath in one breath, the old fox Yang Qi leaned down, covered his mouth with his hand, and coughed gently.

Before Li Xian could show his intentions, a little eunuch immediately ran forward and helped the old fox beat his back. And Zhang Qian, however, instantly heard a hint of urging from the old fox's coughing voice. Just put your heart sideways and do a full set of dramas. bowed down and praised: "Wechen is fortunate to bow to its prosperity and feel its honor." May my Tang Dynasty be prosperous forever and the national fortune will be forever! ”

"May my Tang Dynasty be prosperous forever, and the country's fortune will be forever!" The person who exercised just now was not just Zhang Qian. Zhou Jianliang, who had just been promoted to the rank of lieutenant of Guoyi, also stood up with a heart and praised Li Xianchang.

"May my Tang Dynasty be prosperous forever, and the country's fortune will be forever!" Someone took the lead in slapping the emperor's ass, and other old ministers and ministers couldn't force themselves to be high. Regardless of whether they wanted to or not, they also got up one after another, left their seats, and bowed down to congratulate Li Xian, the Emperor of Yingtian Shenlong.

And Li Xian, the Emperor of the Heavenly Divine Dragon, was once forced by his mother Wu Zetian to give up once. After ascending the throne for the second time, he faced another precarious mess, and he worked hard all day long to barely maintain the overall situation. As a result, self-confidence and security are extremely lacking. Otherwise, you will not be fascinated by receiving auspicious and good-sounding honorific titles. At this moment, I heard that the ministers were singing the praises of the coming of the prosperous world, hoping that the national fortune would prosper forever under their control, although they knew that everyone was patting on the back, they were still happy.

After his heart was full of joy, he naturally looked at Zhang Qian, who had sacrificed his life to lure the giraffe away, and it became more and more pleasing to the eye. Therefore, he stood up with a laugh and commented loudly: "A good one feels its honor, and it is a good one that is unparalleled in the world." I Datang can have today, and all of you Aiqing have bowed to the great. The giraffe, although it is not auspicious, can be transported thousands of miles to the Tang Dynasty, which is also a rare treasure. Someone came, and with the supervisor of the pastoral superintendent, he led the giraffe out of the palace and placed it near the hot spring in Lishan Mountain, so that it could be raised. Yang Wanjun, the son of a good family in Guangzhou, who dedicated strange beasts, although he was not knowledgeable, was loyal and commendable, and was promoted to the county lieutenant of Zhouzhou. The reward is 1,000 hangings, 200 horses of silk, and the Lingnan government is ordered to cash it out immediately, and it cannot be deducted! ”

"Your Majesty Shengming!" The two people who took the lead in offering auspicious gifts, Shangshu Zong Chuke and Taifu Qing Ji Na, looked at each other and saluted Li Xian at the same time. It means accepting the emperor's decision and going down the slope to get off the donkey.

Gently turning over the responsibilities of the two fake auspicious Rui of the Ministry of War, Shangshu Zong Chuke and Taifu Qing Ji Na, the Tang Dynasty Yingtian Shenlong Emperor thought about it, and then turned his gaze to the other side of the dispute with a smile, and the right servant shot Xiao Zhizhong. He nodded at this person first, and then said softly: "The servant said to me this morning that the windmill, the machine shaft and the picture scroll offered by Bi Gou are all from the hand of Master Zhang. He also said that if this thing is popularized, it will definitely reduce the flood and drought disasters in our Tang Dynasty by more than half. Do you remember the servant shooting?! ”

"Your Majesty, the minister remembers." Xiao Zhizhong was very cautious, and when he saw Li Xian's casual sentence of "lack of knowledge", he exposed the guilt of Zong Chuke and others for "colluding with the people in Guangzhou and offering fake auspiciousness", and he was unwilling to pursue it again. Taking Li Xian's words, he responded loudly, "The minister has already handed over the picture scroll, windmills, and machine well samples to the general supervisor for verification. According to their report, the effect is as good as that of the county lieutenant Bi! ”

"Since it has been verified, it will be handed over to the Ministry of Industry to be responsible for promoting it in the world! Go back and ask the Ministry of Industry to draw up a charter as soon as possible and put it into practice! Very satisfied with Xiao Zhizhong's thoughtfulness, Li Xian smiled and nodded to him. Immediately, he finally turned his gaze to Zhang Qian, who had not been paid attention to for a long time, and said with a smile: "Bi Gou is unwilling to be greedy for merit, saying that the two utensils and their patterns that are greatly beneficial to the state are made by Zhang Qing himself. And Zhang Qing is the descendant of Qin Mo, who has a unique education, has a wide range of knowledge, and has the ambition to serve the country. Today, I sent someone to inquire about the manufacture and output of gunpowder, and the Ordnance Department said that the monthly output of 10,000 catties was more than enough, and Zhang Qing seriously passed on the art without hiding his selfishness. I am very relieved......"

In one breath, after saying so many of Zhang Qian's advantages and contributions, it is obvious that it is necessary to focus on rewarding and promoting. When he arrived, all the eighth and ninth rank sesame officials who were waiting with Zhang Qian to be summoned all pricked up their ears.

However, before they could hear the words of Emperor Li Xian of Shenlong Yingtian, in the center of the civil official ranks, suddenly a person wearing an official uniform from the seventh rank, but he was already about fifty years old, and he quickly stepped forward and shouted to dissuade, "Your Majesty, slow down!" Minister, the palace servant Shi Sha Chongyi, impeached Zhang Qian, the chief secretary of the ordnance superintendent, whose origin is unknown, and there is a suspicion of scheming to exhaust the country, please also ask Your Majesty to investigate! ”