Chapter 56 Each with their own ulterior motives
The carriage came to a stop, and Song Zhaonian stood respectfully to the side with his eyes lowered. Lu Changming dismounted and reported, "My lord, we have arrived."
Pei Yanzhi dismounted nimbly, casually glancing at Song Zhaonian. That single glance was enough to make everyone's hearts tighten.
It was as if they were nothing more than ants in Pei Yanzhi's heart, their lives and deaths entirely in his hands.
Before seeing him, everyone assumed that the Lord of Yanzhou must be dark-skinned and have a coarse and unappearable appearance, but now that they have seen him, he is not like that at all.
Song Zhaonian wiped the cold sweat from his face, stepped forward and bowed deeply: "Welcome, Marquis Yan, from afar. Your humble servant, Song Zhaonian, Prefect of Kangzhou, pays his respects to Marquis Yan." The group behind him also bowed in return.
Pei Yanzhi nodded slightly, tossed the reins to Lu Changming, and turned to reach for the carriage curtain.
"Madam, we've arrived. Please come down."
All the people outside the car heard was a very soft and pleasant "hmm", and a small, fair hand lifted the curtain and stepped out.
The afterglow of the setting sun fell on her cheeks, making her lips appear even more rosy and her skin as white as snow. What a delicate and fragile person she was.
The people behind Song Zhaonian were stunned for a moment.
Only after Ji Shu lifted her skirt and stepped down from the carriage, and Pei Yanzhi steadied her, did he turn and ask, "Prefect Song?"
A flash of amazement crossed Song Zhaonian's eyes. He quickly regained his senses and said, "Lord Yan, we have prepared some wine inside. Please come in... please come in."
As he led the way, he said, "If there is any inadequacy in our hospitality, I hope Lord Yan will forgive us."
Pei Yanzhi glanced at him indifferently, his imposing presence radiating without anger, and said calmly, "Prefect Song has gone to great lengths."
Song Zhaonian led the way, half a step ahead, constantly wiping the sweat from his forehead.
I had never seen Pei Yanzhi in the imperial court before, but his deeds were well known even to ordinary people.
The more secretive matters were mostly heard from my aunt. Seeing them today, alarm bells rang in my mind, and I knew that I could not be careless in any of the following steps.
Upon entering the main hall, one finds it brightly lit by candlelight, with about ten sandalwood square tables arranged on either side.
Normally, when hosting a banquet, the host would sit in the head seat, followed by guests in order of their official rank.
Song Zhaonian looked at the seat that was originally his, a dark look flashing in his eyes. He led Pei Yanzhi to the head seat and said, "Lord Yan, please sit down. Madam, please sit here."
Ji Shu sat to Pei Yanzhi's left as instructed, and watched as the civil officials and generals took their seats one after another after the first seat was taken.
Song Zhaonian suddenly realized that the hall was full of men. Because he was entertaining Pei Yanzhi, he had not brought his family. The only servants left were all male servants. He looked at the lady beside Pei Yanzhi.
He felt a pang of unease. The other party had brought a female guest, which was somewhat inadequate in terms of hospitality. He wanted to call his servant to order Yao Shi to come out and keep him company, but as soon as he said it, he felt it was inappropriate.
After all, Yao was a concubine; how could she sit at the same table as the wife of the Marquis of Yan?
Although he didn't know who this lady was, he feared that summoning Madam Yao would be even more impolite, so he decided against it.
The maids filed in and placed the delicacies on the table one after another, and Song Zhaonian calmed his mind.
He had not forgotten the purpose of the invitation. He exhaled and raised his wine cup: "It is a great honor for Kangzhou that Lord Yan has come from afar. I toast you."
Pei Yanzhi raised his hand in a gesture of support: "Prefect Song has extended such a generous invitation. If I do not come, wouldn't I be out of touch with reality?"
Song Zhaonian's lips twitched. These words might be somewhat believable if they were said to others, but who is Pei Yanzhi? Half the world belongs to you.
Song Zhaonian: "..."
He forced a smile and said, "I heard that Marquis Yan recently quelled a rebellion of 50,000 men, which is a blessing for the people of Youzhou." He then proceeded to denounce the rebels for their heinous crimes.
Pei Yanzhi smiled faintly: "You flatter me, Prefect!"
Everyone knows this is just polite talk.
Ji Shujing sat quietly beside her, acting as a decorative vase, feeling nothing but irony. She had heard about some of the practices of the Kangzhou prefect along the way.
Relying on his status as the Empress Dowager's nephew, he acted like a maggot in a dry latrine, sucking the blood of the common people.
Now, however, he wears a sanctimonious expression, righteously condemning the rebels, unaware that his actions are no less egregious than those of the rebels themselves.
She looked up at Pei Yanzhi and saw that his expression was indifferent, as if he had heard these words hundreds or thousands of times.
That's true. What kind of person hasn't he seen? What kind of monsters and demons hasn't he seen?
She picked up a piece of cherry pancake, lowered her eyes, and ate it, thinking of how Pei Yanzhi had conquered Chongzhou.
But he kept his word when it came to the common people, never harboring any other intentions. Afterwards, he built houses, opened granaries, and treated the elderly, weak, women, and children equally, which moved me deeply.
Song Zhaonian suddenly said, "Marquis Yan has not returned to Hanyang to report on his duties for a long time. You don't know, but the Empress Dowager is very worried about him whenever she thinks of him!"
The hall fell into a deathly silence. Even the civil officials who were about to pick up their chopsticks stopped eating, and some of the more timid ones began to tremble. Finally, they got down to business.
Pei Yanzhi turned to look at Ji Shu, who was stretching out her arm to pick up food, and smiled suddenly, asking softly, "What kind of food do you want to eat?"
Ji Shu was unaware of the strange situation in the hall. She turned her face slightly away, not wanting to pay him any attention.
Pei Yanzhi raised an eyebrow, thinking to himself: What a temper!
Looking at the delicacies on the table, I noticed that the most frequently used dish was cherry pancakes, and I knew what was going on.
Holding her hand, he placed the dish directly in front of her. Ji Shu found the cherry pancakes fragrant, tender, and delicious, perfectly suited to her taste, instantly awakening her taste buds, which had been dulled for some time.
The two men at the head of the table spoke as if no one else was around, while the crowd below watched in trepidation.
Who is this lady? She is so favored that not only was she brought to such an important banquet, but she was also personally served.
Seeing that she was enjoying her meal, Pei Yanzhi said gently, "If you like it, may I take this chef back to Yanzhou?"
These words were a tacit response to Song Zhaonian's challenge. Let alone a cook like you, even the entire state of Kangzhou could be taken away at any time with just a word from me.
With a loud crash, a civil official in the lower corner spilled his wine and hurriedly knelt down, saying, "This humble official made a mistake and disturbed the enjoyment of the Prefect and the Marquis of Yan."
Song Zhaonian was displeased and about to say that he should be dragged away when the lady asked in a puzzled voice, "Is it really necessary to be beheaded just for spilling a wine glass?"
Seemingly charmed by his words, Pei Yanzhi gently pinched her pretty nose and laughed, "How could that be? Prefect Song would never lack such tolerance."
His icy gaze swept over Song Zhaonian: "Is that right?"
Song Zhaonian felt a chill run down his spine from that glance, and quickly forced a smile, saying, "Of course, today's banquet is specially held for Marquis Yan, how could we be talking about fighting and killing?"
Immediately afterwards, he smoothed things over, raised his glass and laughed, "Haha, Lord Yan, let's keep drinking, let's keep drinking."
Amidst the clinking of glasses and the exchange of toasts, the banquet was filled with joy and harmony, as if the undercurrents that had just flowed had never existed.
Ji Shu thought to herself: That's right, they're all old foxes in the world of fame and fortune, how could they not guess what the other party was thinking!
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