Zhang's Hundred Rats Banquet
They were all officials from the same DPRK, and everyone couldn't help but exchange greetings for a while and then sat down quickly. Strangely, the seats arranged by Zhang Fu were not graded, but scattered officials at all levels and sat around the table.
Some officials noticed the cold dishes already set on the table, and they were taken aback. Those cold dishes have different shapes, but they are all very strange. There are chickens and non-chickens, and there are animals and non-animals. Even officials who have eaten all kinds of delicious food have never seen such dishes.
Everyone is talking about it. Zhang wore plain clothes and sat in a plush chair. When he saw all the officials sitting together, he began to speak. All the officials were suddenly silent, only to hear Zhang Dasheng say, "Thank you for your love for Zhang. Zhang is very grateful. Zhang gave a banquet here to thank him, but today's banquet is different from the usual one. The name is: Hundred Rats Banquet. "
This is the first time that everyone has heard the word "Hundred Rats Banquet", so they started whispering.
Zhang went on to say, "Today is our Lord's 50th birthday. I knew my destiny when I was 50 years old. I hope I can live to be a hundred years old. A few days ago, I went to the Taoist temple and made a divination, saying that my zodiac is in conflict with mice, and my nemesis in this life is mice. But there is a way to solve this disaster, that is, I can eat mice to eliminate it. Inviting everyone to dinner today is also a way for everyone to help me eliminate disasters. Zhang is here to express his gratitude to everyone. The so-called Hundred Rats Banquet, as its name implies, means that all kinds of delicacies at the banquet are made of mice. "
When officials heard the word "mouse", they couldn't help being surprised. Rats are harmful to the world and have always been regarded as dirty things. Can they be used in plates? Look at the cold dishes on the table. Is it really rat meat?
Zhang went on to say, "In fact, the mouse meat is fine but not greasy, and the meat is delicious, which is delicious in real food. Many strange places eat this kind of food. For this birthday party, many chefs were specially sent to various rat eating areas to learn the skills of cooking rats. Today's Hundred Rats Banquet will surely satisfy everyone. And Juck Zhang can tell you in advance that today's banquet, everyone is by no means white, and everyone will be surprised when the last dish is served after three rounds of wine. " Say and declare the meeting open.
Many people guess what the final surprise is. Some people say that there is a reward, while others say that the metropolitan official who celebrated his birthday today has been promoted. As soon as his voice fell, someone retorted and said everything.
Since it's a banquet, we still have to eat. Everyone moved chopsticks, only to find that mouse meat is so delicious and delicate, not as good as delicacies.
Everyone ate up, pushed a cup for a change, and praised the mouse meat for its delicious taste. The record of this banquet is really unique.
At this time, dozens of servants came to the table with small plates. There is a whole mouse on the plate, which smells from a distance. It must be delicious The servants stood at the table, but the plates were not put down.
Zhang suddenly said loudly, "This is the last course. I just told you that everyone had a surprise when the last dish was served. This dish is the core of this banquet, and it is called "a mouse is rich in treasure."
"Like a few treasures?" Everyone is confused.
Zhang smiled and said, "A mouse is a mouse. A baby mouse is also a baby mouse. The young mouse contains treasure, that is, the young mouse contains treasure. " Everyone knows something in their hearts, but they are also puzzled. How did the little mouse get the treasure inside?
Zhang suddenly changed the subject and said, "Today, Zhang's birthday is deeply loved by hundreds of officials, and many people have sent gifts. These are rare and priceless treasures. Zhang is not a greedy person, and he doesn't want to accept property on his birthday. It is not appropriate to return the gift one by one. The value of the treasure you sent is unknown, and how to return it is impossible to grasp; If you don't accept it, it will refute everyone's face. So, after careful consideration, I came up with a method. Today, 100 officials were invited, one ***238 people, each with a ***238. Today, I returned this treasure to 238 of you, but it was not the original return, but misplaced. As for what kind of treasure I can get, it depends on your luck. "
Officials immediately talked about it. Some say it's a good method, others say it's all luck. The final result must be that several families are happy and several are sad.
Zhang went on to say, "The treasure we got was actually drawn by lottery. I have a good plan as to how to draw lots. After a while, the servant will serve everyone a whole roast mouse, but this whole roast mouse has a mystery. Every mouse has a gold thread in its belly with a serial number written on it. The serial number can be listed in the front, and so can the last one, so that everyone is equally precious. What do you think of this method? "
Unexpectedly, suddenly the following official said, "This law is not suitable."
A surprised, they all have the courage to say that Ceng Fu is not here. When they turn around, it is Pan Jixun, the right assistant minister of punishments. Pan Jixun bluntly said, "It all depends on luck. In my opinion, how about adding some games? "
After listening to this, Zhang smiled and said, "What should I do according to your idea?"
Pan Jixun said, "How about this? Since it is a treasure corridor, it must be a long passage. There are five steps between officials. They are holding pens and ink and can't whisper to each other. Every time they pass a treasure, they will write down the names of the treasures in turn. Finally, according to statistics, people who identify more treasures will pick the treasures first. "
Hundreds of officials disagree. People who think they know more treasures are complacent, while those who know less look unhappy.
Zhang thought for a moment and decided to adopt Pan Jixun's method in public. Say and announce the official start of treasure collection. The treasure corridor has been ready for a long time, and it is tightly covered with wooden boards, leaving an entrance to show the treasure. It seems that Zhang has considered this move.
More than 200 officials, five steps apart, were holding pens and paper, and some were holding ink. Two hundred kinds of treasures are displayed in the Treasure Hall in turn, dazzling and colorful, which dazzles officials, and some officials' writing hands are shaking. I thought I must be satisfied this time. Everyone quickly wrote down the names of the treasures on the paper, and then moved forward in turn. More than 200 people, it took only one hour, and the cycle was completed.
After the treasure-knowing activity, everyone sat down to have a rest and explained that the activity was not over yet, and whispering was not allowed to show fairness.
After about half an hour, the financial controller handed the statistical results to Zhang. Zhang said, "Let's read out the people who have identified many treasures to decide the order of choosing treasures. Wei Zhonghuan, left capital consultant, knows 189 treasure, ranking first; Official department officials 186, ranked second ... "A * * * read more than 50 people.
When Wei Zhonghuan and other senior officials heard this, their faces lit up. They thought they could choose the treasure first. Zhang suddenly raised his eyebrows and ordered his men: "Take off the bird gauze hat on the official document I read, and deal with it another day!"
Everyone was frightened to disgrace. It's really changing rapidly. Just now, they could get the treasure first, but now they are prisoners under the order. They knelt down and asked why.
Zhang sneered: "Our officials, the monthly salary of first-class products is only 87 stone meters, and the monthly salary of second-class products is only 6 1 stone. How can you afford to touch so many treasures? Those who know more treasures must be people who often look for people or often take bribes. How can they afford it on such a small salary? In fact, today's banquet for 100 mice is not for the mice in the plate, but for those mice who are greedy for money and pervert the law! "
It suddenly dawned on them that Zhang had held a birthday party with a plan to punish corrupt officials.
Zhang snapped, "If I let people name every treasure directly, it will easily arouse some people's suspicion, so I turned a corner and said to press the serial number on the gold wire first. Later, I asked Pan Jixun to give me an admonition, as if my plan was decided temporarily, which made corrupt officials relax their vigilance and thought it was not predetermined. All corrupt officials are greedy for money. If they see this opportunity to choose treasures aboveboard, they will not miss it and will go all out. People who are luxurious on weekdays will naturally identify more treasures and will certainly appear. " All the corrupt officials have turned pale with fear and begged for mercy.
Zhang punished a group of corrupt officials in North Korea with a mouse banquet. Since then, the Ming dynasty has been stable for several years, and the people live and work in peace and contentment.
Zhang