"Everyone, why the long faces?"
Zhao Xinghe toyed with the wine cup in his hand, a triumphant smile spreading across his face as he spoke in a clear voice. "On such a fine evening with such beautiful scenery, shouldn't we be celebrating? Why… are some of you still so stern? What are you worried about? Or… are you… suspecting me… of something?"
Zhao Xinghe's eyes swept over the faces of the Civil and Military Ministers below. He gave a faint smile and said, "This is the first banquet I have held for you ministers since my father, the Emperor, passed away. You are all pillars of the state. When my father was alive, you were all his most trusted advisors. Now that he is gone, I, the New Emperor Zhao Xinghe… will still regard you as such! I treat you as the nation's finest, but will you… repay me with the service befitting the nation's finest?"
