And just then, Jing Yuan finally set down the letter in his hand and looked toward Yanqing with a troubled expression.
"General, do you have any orders?" Yanqing hurried forward and asked.
Jing Yuan looked at Yanqing's eager yet forcibly restrained demeanor, and the amusement in his eyes deepened, as though he had seen some entertaining scene.
"Yanqing," he said, his voice gentle, "it's getting late. I imagine most of the guests from all sides coming to attend the Star-Sky Ceremony should have arrived by now, yes?"
Yanqing thought for a moment, then answered earnestly, "Reporting to the General: judging by the hour, the representatives of the major merchant guilds, The Family, as well as the envoy delegations from Xianzhou ships such as Zhuming and Yaoqing, have indeed arrived at the Jade Boundary Gate in sequence and are being settled into the arranged guest lodgings. The remaining few who have farther to travel should also arrive one after another within the next two hours, according to the skiff schedule." His report was proper and orderly, each point clearly laid out, while he secretly wondered whether the General was about to personally receive certain important figures.
"Mm, good." Jing Yuan nodded, his gaze still resting on Yanqing's young, sharp-featured face, that look in his eyes growing ever more "kindly." "Thinking it over, you've trained at my side for quite a few years now. As I was handling these documents just now, I was also considering..." He paused slightly, his tone becoming solemn. "You're no longer that young. It's time for you to shoulder more important duties and stand on your own. The reception of guests for this ceremony concerns Luofu's reputation, and it's also a rare opportunity to temper yourself."
Yanqing's heart quietly skipped a beat, and a rush of heat