Chapter 23: No Good Banquet 2

The spot for enjoying the flowers and sipping tea is located on the east side of the garden. Across the pond, one can gaze at the rockery on the other side, resembling a grave. Today is a beautiful day, the water shimmers like a dusting of crushed gemstones. A riot of color clusters at the water's edge, their petals layered in layers. Their fragrance permeates the air, attracting bees and butterflies.

Xun Shu looked at it from afar and felt that if he didn't look at the "grave", this place would still be very suitable for an outing or a gathering.

Near the flowers stood four or five people, some in their twenties, some in their thirties, and some in their forties. They gathered in groups of three or four, admiring the mountains, the water, and the exotic flowers and plants, laughing constantly. Fang Yan, standing in the outermost corner, dressed in a moon-white robe and looking quite elegant, put down his formal attire upon seeing the two of them and waved excitedly, "You're finally here!"

The people around Fang Yan looked in the direction he waved and asked with a smile, "Xiao Yan, is this your friend?"

"Exactly. These two are Xun Shu and He Xuan. They helped solve the case of the county magistrate's wife a month ago."

"There are such talented people in Chaozhou City!"

Several people praised with a smile, and Fang Yan took the opportunity to introduce the guests to Xun Shu and He Xuan.

The man in the center, in his forties, was short and looked like a withered branch. He had a beautiful beard and a gentle smile. He was the magistrate of Chaozhou County, named Feng Zhishu. To Feng Zhishu's right was a man of about his age, quite plump and smiling like a Maitreya Buddha. He was the chief clerk, Qu Qi. To Feng Zhishu's other side was a young man in his thirties, tall and strong, with thick eyebrows and a stern face. He was another lieutenant of Chaozhou County, named Bida.

Several people's eyes converged on Xun Shu and He Xuan, their gazes filled with assessment. Xun Shu felt uneasy and took a half step back, hiding behind He Xuan. He Xuan, however, was quite attuned to the situation, smooth and tactful. In a matter of moments, he had County Magistrate Feng and Chief Clerk Qu calling him "brothers" as if they had known each other for years.

As several people were chatting, County Magistrate Zhao, accompanied by two men in luxurious clothes, came over here, talking and laughing.

The man in the foreground had a resolute face, sharply defined features, a prominent wrinkle between his brow, and a conspicuous scar on his left cheek. He wore a knife at his waist, and his eyes, sharp as a hawk's, darted around him, a look of alarm. County Magistrate Zhao trailed half a step behind him, a flattering smile on his face. Behind him stood another figure, obscured from view.

He Xuan tilted his head slightly and leaned close to Xun Shu's ear: "He's a general."

His breath sprayed on Xun Shu's earlobe, and the air flow brought by it was warm and itchy. Xun Shu touched his earlobe, feeling a little hot, and muttered, "How could there be a general in Chaozhou..."

"Maybe he is a friend of County Magistrate Zhao." He Xuan straightened up naturally.

Fang Yan walked around to Xun Shu's other side, straightened his chest, and raised his chin slightly: "This man is General Yang Yong of Ningyuan. When several counties near Chaozhou were flooded, he led his troops to provide support."

Xun Shu was surprised and said, "I see that Yang Yong and County Magistrate Zhao are quite familiar with each other, but County Magistrate Zhao returned to Chaozhou to take office four years ago, and the flood happened five years ago. How did they know each other?"

"Ashu, don't worry, I'll get to it soon. Yang Yong looks old, but five years ago, he was only thirty and had never married. But when he came to Chaozhou five years ago, he met a Chaozhou girl. They fell in love at first sight and got married a few days later. Yang Yong loved his wife very much. After that, he would accompany his wife to visit her parents every other year. Through these visits, he got to know County Magistrate Zhao."

Xun Shu still didn't understand: "How do we know each other?"

He Xuan rushed to explain to Fang Yan, "The Chaozhou County Magistrate is a sixth-rank official, and the Ningyuan General is a fifth-rank official. How could Magistrate Zhao not know that the superior had come to his jurisdiction? Since he knew about it, he would naturally seek to make friends with him, and naturally they would get to know each other."

"That's how it is." Xun Shu suddenly realized, tilted his head slightly, his eyes flickering meaningfully, "You seem to know it very well."

"Of course." He Xuan looked quite proud. "My nickname is Jianghu Know-it-all. There is nothing in this world that I don't know."

These words seemed false yet true. Xun Shu stared at him for a moment, but couldn't see anything wrong. He turned around slowly and said, "You are so powerful, how did you end up like this?"

He Xuan scratched his head: "Counting others but not yourself."

Listening to what the two said, Fang Yan's eyes were filled with suspicion. Just as he was about to say something, County Magistrate Zhao and his entourage were almost there. He could only swallow his doubts and stopped talking.

County Magistrate Zhao looked very happy today. He approached and spoke first, introducing them to the crowd with a smile: "These two are my good friends. One is General Yang Yong of Ningyuan, and the other is my nephew, Qiu Anping."

Everyone greeted him with greetings and compliments. Magistrate Zhao pointed to a seat that had been set up nearby and said with a smile, "Come and take a seat. Let's sit down and chat."

Everyone sat in a circle, and the maids served the new tea of ​​the year for everyone to taste and appreciate.

Xun Shu and He Xuan sat in the corner. Xun Shu held the teacup and sipped it, but his eyes were darting around. He took this opportunity to secretly look at Qiu Anping, who was sitting opposite him and whom he had not been able to see clearly just now.

He looked not much older than Fang Yan, with his eyes half closed, a half-smile on his face, and a very casual posture, really like a rebellious teenager.

When they approached, Xun Shu had been more curious and concerned about this man than Yang Yong. He appeared casual and peaceful, but with his prominent brow and crooked nose, he carried a veiled aura of ferocity that made her feel uneasy. Yang Yong was a veteran of battle, having slain countless men, so it was natural for him to be surrounded by a fierce aura. What was surprising was that this young man's ferocity was no less than that of Yang Yong himself.

Xun Shu was about to take a closer look at his face when Qiu Ping'an caught her gaze sharply and raised his eyebrows at her, as if to say, "What are you looking at?" Xun Shu lowered her eyelashes and pretended nothing had happened. After a moment, she naturally turned her gaze to County Magistrate Zhao who was far away.

Today, the dark blue mark on County Magistrate Zhao's forehead reminded Xun Shu of Madam Zhao a month ago.

At that time, she spoke carelessly and was involved in other people's karma, which made her feel very uncomfortable. This time... let's just pretend that she didn't see it.

A gentle breeze, bringing with it the warmth of early summer, ruffled Xun Shu's hair and knocked off the small yellow flower she'd pinned to her bun before leaving the house. He Xuan plucked a few blades of grass, plaited a cricket, and placed it atop her head, making it look even more playful. Xun Shu felt a little sleepy, so she sat obediently, letting him toss her around.

The conversations around her were all about officialdom, and Xun Shu found them boring. Her eyes drifted to the "grave" in the distance. On the other side of the grave stood three thin trees, seemingly newly transplanted. The more Xun Shu looked at them, the more they looked like three sticks of incense offered to the dead. She was about to tell He Xuan this anecdote when a familiar name rang in her ears, causing her to prick up her ears.

"I heard that the Shaoqing who took office last year at the Dali Temple has been ill for almost half a year. I don't know how he is doing." said County Magistrate Feng.

"Are you talking about Princess Changping's youngest son, Li Xuanhe?" General Yang said.

"Of course it's him. How many people in this world can become the Junior Minister of the Supreme Court at such a young age?" County Magistrate Feng lowered his voice. "General Yang, you often travel around the capital. Do you know how his condition is? I heard he was out chasing fugitives, and when he was sent back to the capital, he was breathing more than he was breathing. Princess Changping invited several imperial physicians to the palace to treat him, but we don't know how he is doing."

General Yang frowned. "Don't ask too much about the royal family's affairs. However, I ran into Princess Changping outside the palace a while ago. She looked quite haggard. I'm sure Li Xuanhe is seriously injured and a very troublesome person."

Qu Zhubu sighed, his chubby face wrinkled into a ball. "What a wonderful young man! His best years have just begun..."

“Who says it’s not…”

He Xuan had a strange expression on his face. After they finished speaking, he nudged Fang Yan, who was standing there dumbfounded, with his elbow and asked, "How do you feel when you hear this tragic news?"

The tone was quite like that of a vagrant watching the excitement at the market. Fang Yan frowned and lowered his voice, gritting his teeth: "Good people will be rewarded. Just take care of yourself and don't worry about what others do."

He Xuan sat up straight and shrugged his shoulders. "It was just a casual chat. Why are you angry, Brother Fang?" He sighed pretentiously. "Forget it, I won't joke with Brother Fang anymore."

Fang Yan took a deep breath and suppressed the urge to fight with He Xuan. He turned around and turned his head, letting his figure completely disappear from his sight, unwilling to pay any more attention to him.

But after a while, the topic turned around a few times, and a sound was heard not far away. It was Zheng who was leading a group of maids towards this place.

Each maid was holding a tray in her hand. When they came closer, they could see that each tray contained a carefully trimmed, blooming flower.

Today was Zheng's first time at such an occasion. She was dressed quite formally, with pearls and jade in her hair and delicate makeup, quite different from a month ago. She walked over to Magistrate Zhao and knelt down, a gentle smile etched in her eyes. "Today, the master invited friends to the garden to enjoy the flowers. I thought just admiring the flowers would be too boring, so I cut a few different flowers to give to everyone."

Magistrate Zhao put his arm around her waist and said, "I see each of these flowers is different. How would you like to sort them, Shu Niang?"

Zheng smiled and said, "It's not me who's going to divide it, Master. You're the one who's going to divide it." She took the initiative and picked up a crimson flower. She stood up, walked over to General Yang, and handed it to him. "For example, this flower is bright and bold, like the passion of a child. I think it's just right for General Yang."

Yang Yong put down the teacup and looked at the flowers in front of him. He didn't say a word until Zheng's arm felt a little sore.

Seeing him like this, Zheng panicked a bit and unconsciously glanced at Magistrate Zhao. Magistrate Zhao's smile faltered, and he quickly came to the rescue: "I understand what Shu Niang means." He glanced at the tray in front of him and pointed at a purple flower. "I think this flower suits my nephew, so I'll give it to him."

Upon hearing this, the maidservant beside him brought the flowers to Qiu Anping. Qiu Anping picked up the flower branch, raised it to his nose and sniffed it carefully, then waved the flower branch in the direction of County Magistrate Zhao and said, "Thank you, I like it very much."

"As long as you like it, that's all. This is the best time to enjoy flowers. Picking flowers and giving them to someone you're destined to love, letting their fragrance linger a little longer, is also a kind of fate."

County Magistrate Zhao selected the flowers one by one and ordered the maid to distribute them to everyone. He Xuan got a yellow one and Xun Shu got a pink one. It was much smaller than the other flowers, but also delicate and lovely.

Zheng had retreated to Magistrate Zhao's side, and after a few more words, she left, citing the need to prepare for the banquet. When she disappeared into the deep shade of the trees, Magistrate Zhao turned sideways to look at General Yang, his words apologetically tinged with a hint of humility: "Brother Yang, do you dislike this flower?"

Yang Yong lowered his eyes to look at the flowers lying on the table and spoke frankly, "I have been on the battlefield for many years. The battlefield is full of blood and corpses. Therefore, I dislike the color red the most."

Magistrate Zhao suddenly realized what was happening. He hurriedly picked up the blue flower before him and personally handed it to General Yang. "It was my oversight. This flower is as blue as the sky, and Brother Yang is like an eagle. An eagle should soar beneath the sky. This is the most suitable flower for Brother Yang."