In the evening, the lights are on, and the majestic Weiyang Palace is a lively scene.

Before the dinner began, the merchants who won the bid bathed and changed their clothes under the service of the palace people. Because it is stipulated that the winning bidder can only meet the Son of Heaven in person, at best, he can only bring one retinue to wait for the message at His Highness. Mi Zhu sent Mi Fang away, but left a young boy with red lips and white skin, who was thirteen or fourteen years old, waiting by his side.

Everyone didn't care, and after cleaning up, they came to the Qilin Hall of Weiyang Palace under the guidance of the Yellow Gate.

At this time, it was already approaching evening, and the sky was getting dark, but the Qilin Hall was brightly lit and a night banquet was held. There are countless kinds of delicacies on the table, and everyone sits down, but they don't dare to move their chopsticks easily, just waiting for the arrival of Liu Wei, the son of the Han Dynasty.

In a moment, the yellow gate sang, and Liu Wei, the son of the Han Dynasty, slowly walked into the Qilin Palace. Everyone hurriedly got up and knelt on the ground, and all said, "Meet Your Majesty!" ”

The yellow gate led the way in front, and there were guards following behind, and Liu Wei walked straight to the front of the hall. Kneeling behind the desk, he raised his hand with one hand, and said in a pleasant manner: "You don't have to be polite, please get up." ”

"Thank you, Your Majesty!" The merchants said in unison again. Then they got up and sat down at the table again.

After seeing everyone sit down again, Liu Biancai said again: "The princes have come from afar with hard work to share the grand event, and I am very happy. I hereby give you a toast! ”

After speaking, Liu Wei raised the ear cup. Everyone present also hurriedly stood up, raised their glasses, and drank them all at the same time.

Liu Wei put down the cup, waved his hand to let everyone sit down, and said: "All the princes are great men and heroes, and I have admired them for a long time. I invite you here today to make friends with you. I also hope that the princes will not have to be confined to the cumbersome etiquette and become alienated from me. ”

The crowd laughed embarrassedly and had to sit down again. With Liu Wei's words, the atmosphere at the banquet became harmonious, and everyone was no longer restrained, at this time, Mi Zhu raised his glass and saluted Liu Wei: "Your Majesty does not take us as a businessman, and condescends to make friends, and our gratitude is indescribable." Today coincides with the grand event, on behalf of all the people present in Xia Mizhu, I salute Your Majesty with a cup, I wish Your Majesty a long life, and I will be a Yanhan for thousands of years! ”

Mi Zhu came to Chang'an after the limelight was strong, and now he is taking the lead in toasting Liu Wei on behalf of all the people who take care of himself, with a flattering attitude and full of ambition. provoked the other businessmen who were represented to look sideways.

Liu Wei smiled at this, squinted his eyes and asked with a smile: "Qing, don't drive Mizhu in Xuzhou?" ”

Mi Zhu nodded in surprise and said, "Your Majesty actually knows Mi Zhu in the East China Sea. ”

Liu Wei smiled and nodded. How could he not know this Mi Zhu. Those powerful businessmen or families who came to Chang'an, Liu Wei had already sent a unified investigation agency to investigate their details clearly, not to mention that Mi Zhu was so high-profile after coming to Chang'an, how could Liu Wei not know?

For this person who has invested heavily in Liu Bei's comeback in history, Liu Wei still attaches great importance to it. In history, Liu Bei's white-eyed wolf Lu Bu took the land of Xuzhou, and his wife and children were gone. It was Mi Zhu who sent 2,000 people and gold and silver goods to Liu Bei to help him recover, and also gave his sister to Liu Bei as his wife. Mi Zhu did this not because he had any spirit of helping the poor, but because he saw the true character of the impoverished Liu Bei, and made a political investment by imitating Lü Buwei, but the subsequent results also verified Mi Zhu's vicious vision, Liu Bei finally became the master of Yizhou, and Cao Cao and Sun Quan divided the world. Mi Zhu was also named the general of Anhan, and he was above Zhuge Liang, the mainstay of Shu Han.

Mi Zhu's arrival also reflected the rise of the imperial court's strength. Although Mi Zhu's efforts to curry favor also have a hint of political speculation, Liu Wei did not mind this. The Mi clan has a strong influence in Xuzhou, and if they are brought over, it will be of great help to the imperial court to solve the Xuzhou problem in the future.

The two sides joining forces is actually a win-win situation.

With this idea in mind, Liu Wei naturally showed great enthusiasm for Mi Zhu's deliberate flattery. Others didn't feel good when they saw it.

was inexplicably represented by Mi Zhu, and everyone was quite dissatisfied. At this time, seeing that Mi Zhu and the Son of Heaven had such a close relationship, it aroused everyone's jealousy. It's just that they are all scheming and calm people, although they are dissatisfied, they will not argue with Mi Zhu on the spot, making the palace lose their dignity and lose their identity.

However, it is impossible for everyone to swallow their anger and let Mi Zhu be in the limelight alone. Wei Zi took advantage of the time when Mi Zhu and Liu Wei finished speaking, got up and toasted: "In Xia Chen, Wei Zi often heard in the countryside that His Majesty Cao Mengde, the general of Zhendong, was wise and wise, and a young hero. Do the things of glory and martial arts and prosper the Han. Today, the grass people are fortunate to have a harmonious face, and His Majesty is really extraordinary, and he is an example for all the people. The grass people have seen this in their lifetimes, and they have no regrets when they die! ”

Wei Zi not only lifted Cao Cao out to pull his feelings, but also his eyes were red with excitement, as if he had seen his long-lost father. The flattery is better than Mi Zhu, and even Liu Wei himself is a little embarrassed to hear it.

In the memory of his previous life, Liu Wei didn't know much about Weizi in the original history. There is very little historical information about him in his previous life, and I know that he is a person who is good at political speculation like Mi Zhu, and he is very discerning and sees people very accurately. When I first saw Cao Cao, I saw that "whoever is level in the world must be this person", and poured a huge amount of money into Cao Cao's trouble, and Cao Cao was funded by him to pull up a team and create a foundation.

Wei Zi was a person who was a great favor to Cao Cao, but he did not wait for Cao Cao's return to recover the return on his investment, and was killed in the Battle of Xingyang when he followed Cao Cao to defeat Dong Zhuo.

Compared with the successful Mi Zhu, Weiz's luck is really a little worse. However, she is not the only one who has helped Cao Cao succeed, but she has not ended well.

Bao Xin, the prime minister of Jibei, welcomed Cao Cao into Yanzhou, giving him the capital to compete for the world, but he died in the battle to suppress the Yellow Turban Uprising in Qingzhou. Xu You helped Cao Cao win the Battle of Guandu and laid the foundation for Cao Cao's unification of the north, but he still ended up in a different place.

Compared with those who helped Liu Bei fight the country and finally soared, the death of Wei Zi and others who helped Cao Cao is indeed a strange historical coincidence. However, Cao Cao was not an ungrateful person, and the deaths of these people were inevitable from the war, except for Xu You, who was a little to blame. Moreover, after the death of Weizi and Bao Xin, their descendants were taken care of by Cao Cao and were reused.

Exploring the reasons for this, these things are difficult to explain. Maybe it has something to do with the personalities of the two people, or the entrepreneurial paths of Liu Bei and Cao Cao are different. Or perhaps, Cao Cao is destined to be a lonely star and destined to be lonely for a lifetime?

Although Liu Wei was very puzzled by this, he didn't want to delve into it. Dong Zhuo's family has long been annihilated by his whole flying ashes. Cao Cao and Liu Bei were also tied to the same boat by him. The trajectory of history is moving towards a different ending, and Weiz should not be as short-lived as it was in the original history.

However, it is precisely because of the change of historical track that Mi Zhuweizi and others have also lost the object of political investment, so they will take the opportunity of Liu Wei to hold an investment conference and shift their target to the central court, whose strength is gradually rising.

It's just that Liu Wei, as the son of heaven of the Han Dynasty, is rich in the world and has supreme rights, and Mi Zhu Weizi and the two can't be like Liu Bei and Cao Cao, they can only be the icing on the cake. Although they have a lot of money, the emperor is still a drop in the bucket. So in addition to flattering Liu Wei and pulling the relationship, the two of them couldn't think of any other way to get Liu Wei's favor.

However, what Liu Wei wanted was not the support of Mi Zhu Weizi, the two wealthy businessmen, but wanted to take the opportunity of this investment conference to release a signal of goodwill to businessmen to the people of the world. Although Mi Zhu Weizi's explicit sycophancy made Liu Wei a little tired, he still showed a useful look on his face, and said: "Qing and Meng De are good friends, and I have also heard of it, and I have heard that you are righteous and wealthy, and you are extraordinary, and you are also a heroic figure. ”

After receiving the emperor's praise, Wei Zi's face bloomed with joy, but he still said humbly: "Your Majesty praises, the grass people are just a businessman, and their identity is slight, and they are already fortunate to have three lives when they see Tianyan, how dare they call them heroes?" ”

Liu Wei said solemnly: "Heroes are not afraid of low backgrounds, and businessmen are also big people, why not praise them!" ”

Wei Zi bowed down again with emotion, his eyes were red, and he choked up and said: "Your Majesty is benevolent, do not despise us for doing cheap business, the grass people are grateful, and I would like to thank Your Majesty for your benevolence on behalf of all the merchants in the world!" ”

is another one that represents everyone, and it also exaggerates to represent the whole world.

Weizi's edge overshadowed Mi Zhu, which made him feel depressed for a while, but it was also not good to argue with Weizi about anything. While others have been repeatedly represented, each has not done it. They all stood up and sang praises to Liu Wei. The hall was in a chaotic atmosphere for a while.

Liu Wei couldn't laugh or cry a little, and was about to quiet everyone when a young man's voice sounded: "Your Majesty, my Han Dynasty has respected scholars since Gaozu, cultivated morality, emphasized agriculture and mulberry and light commodity farming, and had a clear hierarchy of agriculture and commerce. Your Majesty is mixed up at this time, where is the ancestral law? ”

The young man's words were extremely harsh, and the hall suddenly fell silent, and all eyes were on this young man who had ruined the harmonious atmosphere. Mi Zhu was surprised to find that the person turned out to be Wei Qi.

The reason why I say this is that Wei Qi has a purpose. After all, the Hedong Wei clan is from a scholar clan and has a rich heritage, so he has to see the problem more thoroughly than Mi Zhu Weizi, who only pays attention to superficial interests. After coming into contact with Liu Wei, in his words and deeds, Wei Qi has vaguely felt that today's young son of heaven may not just want to do business with them for one or two simple reasons, maybe what he wants to do is to change the Han Empire's long-standing policy of emphasizing agriculture and suppressing business, and taking the scholar clan as the dominant policy.

If this is really the case, as a member of the Hedong Wei family, Wei Qi has to think carefully about this and act cautiously.

As an old scholar, the Hedong Wei clan no longer has the scenery of the Weiqing era. If you want to rebuild your glory, you must seek innovation and change. He and his brother Wei Zhongdao are both the leaders of the younger generation in the clan who have high expectations, but it is a pity that Wei Zhongdao died young, so the responsibility of revitalizing the family can only fall on his shoulders.

This time he came to Chang'an, Hedong Wei's idea was the same as Mi Zhu Weizi, hoping to take the opportunity to establish a relationship with Liu Wei to revive the prosperity of the family.

However, judging from a series of words and deeds shown by Liu Bian, Wei Qi's intentions of today's young son of heaven are not small, although he only sees a little clue, and does not peek into Liu Bian's entire big plan, but just from the point of view that Liu Biao deliberately elevates the status of a businessman, it will have a great impact on the Han Dynasty society dominated by scholars. Also as a member of the Shi Clan, what position the Hedong Wei clan will be in in the future social changes, Wei Qi has to carefully consider.

Therefore, Wei Qi did not hesitate to annoy the Son of Heaven and everyone at the cost of saying what he said just now, the purpose was to test Liu Wei's reaction.

After listening to Wei Kai's words, Liu Wei sank like water, stared at Wei Kai for a long time before asking coldly, "Who are you?" ”

Wei Qian bowed and replied without humility or arrogance: "Caomin Hedong Weikai." ”

The people in the hall exchanged their heads and ears in a chaotic manner, and some even cast angry glances at Wei Kai. A handsome entourage behind Mi Zhu said with disdain: "Since the Hedong clan looks down on merchants and regards themselves as Qingliu, why do they still come here to join me in the same stream?" ”

The words of the attendant caused everyone in the hall to burst into laughter, and some people even whispered applause. Mi Zhu glared angrily at the attendant behind him, and motioned for him to shut up and leave. The attendant pouted cutely and retreated under the porch outside the temple.

Mi Zhu stood up with a smile on his face, and said to Liu Wei: "Your Majesty's wine is mellow and intoxicating, Brother Wei thinks that he is greedy for a cup, so he is drunk and babbles, please forgive your Majesty." ”

Mi Zhu's words made Wei Qi slightly stunned, what he said just now not only offended the anger of the public, but also may anger the emperor, in this case Mi Zhu was still willing to help him, he used to be only a businessman who was good at franchise and mercenary, and he didn't expect to have such a chivalrous heart.

It seems that he still underestimates the world.

Liu Wei was noncommittal to Mi Zhu's words. Wei Qi nodded gratefully to Mi Zhu, who also gave him a helpless wry smile.

Everyone in the palace thought that the Son of Heaven would be angry with Wei Qi and blame him, and they were all in the mood to watch a good show, but who knew that Liu Wei was only silent for a moment, and he smiled slightly, and his tone became soft: "Since the founding of the Yan Han Dynasty, I have been based on filial piety, and I naturally have to follow the rules set by my ancestors. ”

Liu Bian's words made Wei Qi's heart move, thinking that what Liu Wei just said about improving the status of businessmen was just a casual remark. The others were also disappointed when they heard this.

However, Liu Wei changed his words and said: "However, Shinong and industry have their own duties, and the country is indispensable. Now Chang'an has just experienced the Xiliang Rebellion, and it needs the joint efforts of all parties to overcome the hardships and rebuild its glory. ”

Liu Wei talked about him left and right, and did not answer Wei Qi's question directly. However, Wei Qi's question was not really to get an answer, but to observe Liu Wei's attitude.

Although Liu Bian's words were ambiguous and did not give Wei Qi a clear answer, Wei Qi was still quite satisfied with Liu Bian's attitude.

In his heart, he felt that if Liu Wei really had a big plan, he should think carefully and act cautiously, instead of relying on the impulse of a young man. Now Liu Bian's attitude of both affirmation and denial is a manifestation of his thoughtful and indisputable spirit. In Wei Qi's eyes, he already felt that this young son of heaven was scheming and calm, and he was a person who did great things.

Wei Qi's heart did not object to Liu Wei raising the status of businessmen and changing the society dominated by scholars. For a big family like the Hedong Wei clan, which is gradually declining, they are not the holders of existing interests, on the contrary, they are gradually weakening. Therefore, seeking higher interests and reviving the family is the most important thing for Wei Qi and the Hedong Wei family.

Now that this young and old man has released a little signal of change, Wei Qi knows that he must seize the opportunity to take the lead and seek greater benefits for the family in the future changes before others also discover this signal.

Thinking of this, Wei Qi bowed to the ground and praised in his mouth: "The people in the countryside are stupid, they don't know Your Majesty's eloquence, and they are offended, and I hope Your Majesty will forgive the grass people for their capital crimes." ”

The eighteen-degree change in Wei Qi's attitude surprised everyone, especially Mi Zhu was even more depressed, Wei Kai still had a strong iron backbone just now, why did he suddenly flatter again. The gap is too big to accept.

Liu Wei didn't have the same doubts as Mi Zhu, on the contrary, he began to take this Wei Qi seriously.

To be continued, stay tuned for the next chapter.