Chapter 812 – Jianzhou Prefecture, Beijing Settlement (1)
They called it a celebration banquet, but it felt more like a welcome party.
Today’s main characters weren’t Jiang Pengji, but rather three rookie newcomers who had just joined the crew.
After some covert observation by Feng Jin and the others, they were quite satisfied with the two of the three, except for Fu Wang.
Qi Kuang was originally a centurion under Yang Tao. Because of his lame legs and ugly appearance, he had never been given a chance.
This background made Qi Kuang silent and unwilling to strike up conversations, looking like a pragmatic type who avoided trouble.
Now, in the current power vacuum of Wanzhou, such a person who talked little and worked hard was precisely needed—he would at least avoid getting into unnecessary scrapes.
Shao Guang had originally served under Xu Pei, but due to his lack of presence and his less than noble birth, he had never gained Xu Pei’s favor over the years.
In contrast to Qi Kuang, Shao Guang came off as rather talkative and smooth, always able to jump into conversations no matter what others were saying.
Plus, he had been highly recommended by Feng Zhen, so the acceptance of Shao Guang was generally good.
Even if they didn’t trust Shao Guang, they could at least trust Feng Zhen, right?
The only outlier was Fu Wang, who looked like a lone wolf separated from the pack, with an unmistakable air of unapproachable pride.
It wasn’t that they weren’t willing to engage with Fu Wang; rather, he was too cold, exuding an aura that screamed “Stay Away!” The only one present who had any friendship with Fu Wang was Meng Hunyun.
“General Fu, it’s no fun drinking alone. Allow me to raise a glass to you, in thanks for your guidance back in the day.”
Meng Hunyun sighed internally as he turned to toast Fu Wang.
Fu Wang was five to six years younger than Meng Hunyun, but his achievements on the battlefield far surpassed Meng Hunyun’s, so a bit of humility from the latter was expected.
“We are of the same generation now; there’s no need for formalities.”
Fu Wang glanced sideways at Meng Hunyun, noticing the friendly smile on his face, and his slight displeasure faded substantially.
He picked up his cup, and both of them drank it down in one go.
Meng Hunyun was curious about Fu Wang’s thoughts—not out of gossip, but to help him fit in more quickly in Wanzhou.
He chuckled, “Since General Fu has said so, I won’t hold back. It’s truly a rare opportunity to make friends with someone of your stature.”
Fu Wang remained silent and poured himself another glass of wine.
Meng Hunyun inquired, “I noticed that General’s expression was a bit off earlier; did you run into some trouble?”
Fu Wang replied with a hint of disappointment, “For a celebration banquet, it’s lacking in music and dance, making it utterly dull.”
Meng Hunyun couldn’t help but smile awkwardly yet politely after hearing this.
Music and dance?
His own lord was just too stingy, not keeping any dancers or singers. Want a performance at the banquet?
Good luck with that; do it yourself, buddy.
Feeling utterly defeated by his lord’s frugality, Meng Hunyun lowered his voice to vent, “If General Fu wants to see a performance, I’m afraid that’s impossible.”
Fu Wang raised an eyebrow, his interest piqued. “What do you mean by that?”
“The lord always says he won’t hire idle people, so he certainly won’t spend big bucks to keep singers and dancers. If General wants a show, you’ll have to settle for a bunch of old gents croaking or watching Han Mei flaunt his spear, or Dian Yin swinging an axe… Zixiao’s painting skills are decent, and Huai Yu plays well…”
Fu Wang: “……”
If Fu Wang’s inner voice could become subtitles, it would probably read—“I feel like I’ve stepped into a weird, insane circus.”
They are skimping on song and dance, and now expect their subordinates to entertain themselves? What kind of lord is this?
“Well, about that…” Fu Wang suddenly recalled that Meng Hunyun had followed Jiang Pengji for quite a while, back when she was just an ordinary scholar. His demeanor softened as he approached Meng Hunyun, lowering his voice. Among all the noise of drinking and laughing, their conversation was subtle.
Meng Hunyun perked up, saying, “There’s no need for such formality. Anything I know, I won’t hide from you.”
Fu Wang thought for a moment, then awkwardly asked, “Do you know how many maidservants are beside the lord?”
Meng Hunyun: “…”
After all that mystery, was it just to ask this?
Meng Hunyun coughed lightly and reflected carefully, worried that Fu Wang might be interested in one of the lord’s maidservants—which would definitely complicate things.
So, a bit hesitantly, he replied, “I remember only three, right?”
“Which three?”
Fu Wang perked up, his eyes sparkling, while Meng Hunyun’s heart dropped.
He stammered, “One is Nong Qin, the one at the table right now. One is Xun Mei, the official wife of Xiaoyu, but Xiaoyu’s wife is still in Hejian County and hasn’t come here. The last one is Ta Xue, who manages the inner courtyard for the lord.”
Could it be that Fu Wang has taken a liking to one of them?
“What about Hui Jun?”
Fu Wang was nearly stumped; wasn’t Hui Jun one of the maidservants beside the lord?
Meng Hunyun was taken aback, “Hui Jun? I’m not clear on her situation. She only appeared after coming from Chenzhou. Whether she is a maidservant to the lord is hard to say. But based on how the lord treats her, it seems she’s quite important…”
Hui Jun’s presence had always been a mystery; Meng Hunyun had known about her existence long before but had only met her after the event to support the king.
He subtly hinted to Fu Wang—a person valued by the lord should not be coveted by subordinates.
Even if their lord was female, this principle applied just the same.
Fu Wang asked, “Do you know where Hui Jun is now?”
Meng Hunyun could feel the hairs on the back of his neck stand up; he laughed awkwardly, testing the waters, “General, are you interested in Hui Jun?”
Fu Wang said flatly, “Of course not. Just curious, wanted to ask a couple of questions.”
Meng Hunyun let out a quiet sigh of relief; he didn’t want Fu Wang falling into any troubles because of a woman.
Having a conflict with the lord over Hui Jun would just be digging a hole for oneself.
At the banquet, Wei Ci seemed to be joking with Feng Jin, but his attention was fixed on Jiang Pengji.
Seeing that Wei Ci was distracted, Feng Jin followed his gaze and raised an eyebrow, with a hint of mischief in his eyes.
“Zixiao, why are you staring at the lord?”
Feng Jin’s sudden question startled Wei Ci, causing his chopsticks to clash against the bowl with a crisp clink.
“…Huai Yu, you scared the life out of me.” Wei Ci habitual calmly placed his chopsticks down, saying, “I’m just curious…”
“Curious about what?” Feng Jin asked, puzzled.
“The lord has been staring at General Fu since just now. Her look seems a bit unfriendly. I wonder what General Fu and Meng Xiaowei talked about to make the lord so displeased.” Wei Ci remarked lazily, “Those two really are slow on the uptake—they haven’t even noticed that the lord has been watching them…”
Feng Jin’s gaze fell on Jiang Pengji before shifting to Fu Wang and Meng Hunyun.
The banquet hall was quite spacious, and no matter how hard Feng Jin focused, he couldn’t hear the conversation between Meng Hunyun and the others.
“How do you know that the lord heard them?”
Maybe she just thinks that their buddy-buddy behavior is a bad influence, hence the warning glare?
Wei Ci chuckled. “The lord’s hearing is exceptionally sharp; they think they’re whispering quietly, but she definitely heard everything.”
Wei Ci understood perfectly well just how sharp Jiang Pengji’s hearing was.
