Jing Zhe wandered aimlessly around the blacksmith shop, giving the blacksmith some pointers on how to forge the "hammer" that resembled a "flying axe," before returning to the Prime Minister's residence.
He was still planning in his mind that when he went to Wuxian Garden again after Liu Jinghong left, he would choose to go late at night to see if anyone would still be following him!
As night fell, the banquet began.
Having learned his lesson from yesterday, Zhu Tong didn't bring out any strong liquor again, but instead took a small jar of cloudy wine, intending to offer it as a token gesture.
Jing Zhe looked alright, but Chen Jiannan had a hangover last night, got up early this morning, and then worked all day. If he gets drunk again, he probably won't be able to take up his post tomorrow.
"Nephew and Jiannan have both received official positions, so we should drink more to celebrate. However, tomorrow is your first day in office, so drink less to avoid making mistakes!"
"Thank you so much, cousin!"
After carrying the chubby little boy weighing 60 or 70 pounds for an entire afternoon, Chen Jiannan felt extremely weak and couldn't drink any more.
But he was in good spirits.
Previously, when facing Jing Zhe, he was always in a state of being humiliated and suppressed, and always felt inferior. But now it's completely different. The two have become colleagues, and he is very confident that with his smoothness, he will definitely become Jing Zhe's boss in the future!
So even the way they address each other has changed.
"Brother Jing, now that we're colleagues, let's call each other brothers to be closer! If you ever need anything, just let me know, and I'll definitely do it for you if I can!"
Chen Jiannan patted his chest, clearly having already put himself in the role of Jing Zhe's superior.
Jing Zhe cupped his hands and smiled, "Then I'll have to rely on you a lot from now on, Brother Jiannan! I hope you can take care of me!"
"Hehe, no problem at all! Since we're brothers, your older brother will definitely take care of you!"
"Okay, you bastard...bro!"
"..."
After listening to their conversation, Zhu Tong gave the two of them a strange look. He wanted to remind Chen Jiannan that the person sitting next to him, the one he was going to take care of, was his boss!
However, in the end, he hesitated to speak and comforted himself:
Fools sometimes have good luck!
Because no alcohol was consumed, the meal was eaten very quickly.
After finishing their meal, Liu Jinghong and Jing Zhe declined Zhu Tong's invitation to stay the night and left together.
...
The moon is bright and the stars are few; the night is alluring.
Jing Zhe and Liu Jinghong walked side by side in the deserted alley. The alley was quiet, and the two of them were even quieter.
"Fifth Sister..."
"Don't speak."
Liu Jinghong interrupted him, "You stay with your sister for a quiet walk tonight. When we return to Liangzhou and she walks alone, she will feel as if you are by her side."
"..."
At that moment, he suddenly wanted to say "Don't go," but he knew it was impossible, so he could only give up in frustration.
After walking for a short while, the two returned home. Wu Ma gave Liu Jinghong a few instructions, made up their beds, and then went to rest.
He thought Liu Jinghong would have a lot to say to him, but she only gave him a few simple instructions, telling him to listen to Zhu Xinning more and ask her more questions in the future, and then went back to her room.
After Liu Jinghong entered the room, it darkened, and she seemed to have really lain down.
It seemed that she hadn't calmed down since the start of court. Jing Zhe gritted his teeth, determined not to let her return to Liangzhou in such a mood!
The best way to deal with Liu Jinghong is to win her over!
Let's do it!
So he went to Liu Jinghong's room and knocked on the door.
"Fifth Sister, open the door."
"..."
No one answered from inside the house.
"Silence means consent, so I'm going in!"
As he spoke, Jing Zhe pushed open the door and entered.
Liu Jinghong suddenly sat up in bed and said angrily from the dimly lit corner, "You've really become shameless. Who let you in?"
"Hehe, I've always been thick-skinned, as Fifth Sister knows. Besides, you left the door unlocked, weren't you waiting for me?"
"..."
Liu Jinghong blushed deeply, but thankfully the lighting was poor, preventing her from becoming even more embarrassed. She pouted and protested.
"I just forgot to turn it off!"
"I don't care, I'm in now anyway."
He then sat down on the bed and leaned close to Liu Jinghong, asking, "Fifth Sister, I gave the title to Second Sister in court today. Are you angry?"
"No."
Liu Jinghong twisted her neck.
"I could tell she was angry."
"..."
Liu Jinghong wasn't good at lying, and after a moment of silence, she finally said, "So what if I'm angry?"
"Back when you came from Pengzhou, all you remembered was to find your second sister. It was the same on Mangshan Mountain. You wouldn't even go to Liangzhou to see where I live. Now you've given her the title. In your heart, your second sister is your sister, but your fifth sister isn't!"
Liu Jinghong had been holding back her grievances since attending court, and on the eve of her departure, she finally burst out and poured them all out.
But as soon as she said it, she regretted it.
She shouldn't have said these things, because she wouldn't have been so petty before. But when facing Jing Zhe, she became so calculating, which made her uneasy.
Jing Zhe suddenly felt like laughing when he heard this.
"Fifth Sister, I remember in the imperial court, you kept shaking your head and pointing at Second Sister!"
"Your second sister even shook her head and pointed at me, are you pretending I didn't see it?"
"..."
Jing Zhe chuckled awkwardly and said, "My second sister told me to choose you, but I chose her in the end. Doesn't that prove that I listen to you?"
"Hmph, why didn't you listen to me when I told you to go to Liangzhou? Now you're pretending to listen to me, who would believe that!"
"Of course I'll go to Liangzhou!"
Jing Zhe put his arm around Liu Jinghong's shoulder and said gently, "Besides, Second Sister won't be able to stay in Liangzhou for much longer! I'll tell Fifth Sister the gunpowder recipe I made that day. When Fifth Sister goes back, she can have someone make more. When the Western Barbarians invade again, Fifth Sister can just use a few and blow them to smithereens, so they'll never dare to set foot in Liangzhou again! We can also leave some in Liangzhou as a deterrent, so Fifth Sister won't have to stay there all the time. She can come to Jingzhou and live with me whenever she wants!"
"Who wants to live with you!"
Liu Jinghong gently pressed his forehead, then asked, "Was that what you were thinking in court today?"
Seeing Jing Zhe nod, Liu Jinghong sighed and said, "You are still too reckless! Just yesterday, you told all the ministers in front of His Majesty that you had used up the Daytime Thunder. If I were to make and use it when I returned to Liangzhou, and it got back to other people, they would accuse you of deceiving the emperor, and you would have no excuse!"
Perhaps sensing Jing Zhe's dissatisfaction, she continued, "If someone with ulterior motives really uses this matter to cause you trouble, even His Majesty cannot protect you!"
After listening, Jing Zhe finally nodded.
He already had many enemies, and once he entered the imperial court, he should be even more careful with his words and actions, otherwise, a slight misstep could lead to his utter ruin.
————
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