When Zhang Yuan was stopped halfway and told that Princess Yaoye wished to see him, he had been wondering what she wanted to discuss.
Was she going to continue the recruitment she had failed to begin earlier because he had interrupted her, or was she planning to invest in him and build goodwill, like Yun Yun?
He had considered many possibilities, but he had never expected Princess Yaoye to persuade him not to meet Qing Yanjing.
As he pondered, Zhang Yuan sat across from Princess Yaoye and poured himself a cup of tea.
His behavior, as though he were in his own home, made Princess Yaoye snort softly. A trace of displeasure appeared on her cold, beautiful face as she said, "Commander Zhang, I am a princess!"
At the commander's residence earlier, Zhang Yuan had thoroughly defeated her across ranks without showing any mercy. Her anger had not yet faded, but upon suddenly hearing that Zhang Yuan was going to dine at the Myriad Books Pavilion, she had still personally come to persuade him while suppressing her temper, because she cherished talent!
Yet this bastard was acting with such disregard for status.
"You're a princess, so what?" Zhang Yuan drained his tea in one gulp and nodded. "As expected of tea drunk by a princess. Not bad."
Princess Yaoye clenched both fists and said coldly, "Commander Zhang, did you get my permission to drink that tea?"
On the Dou Qi Continent, where the strong were revered, the Jia Ma Empire was not feudal, and there were no kneeling or bowing rituals. But there was certainly still some distinction between superior and inferior.
"I didn't get your permission, so what?" Zhang Yuan said casually. "What does Your Highness intend to do? Strip me of my commander's position?"
Princess Yaoye frowned and said, "That isn't—"
Bang!
Before Princess Yaoye could finish, a token appeared on the table before her.
"I can choose not to be one," Zhang Yuan said calmly.
Princess Yaoye opened her mouth, unable to speak for a moment.
"Imperial military law punishes fleeing before battle and colluding with foreign enemies, but resignation is free." Zhang Yuan continued, "The law cannot punish me. What does Your Highness intend to do? Send secret guards to assassinate me, or use power to suppress me?"
"I..." Princess Yaoye was somewhat stunned.
She wanted to recruit Zhang Yuan. She valued Zhang Yuan. But she had never intended to drive him away.
"No solution?" Zhang Yuan smiled and shook his head. He reached out to retrieve the token, then said, "Your Highness, you are an imperial princess. If nothing unexpected happens, you will become the ruler of this empire in the future."
"Unless you possess the strength to overwhelm all others, you should remain expressionless in all matters and never let others know what you are truly thinking. Methods such as threats are the lowest grade; do not use them unless necessary, or they will only backfire."
"If you must threaten someone, you must know that the threat will work instead of acting on a whim. Otherwise, you will end up like this—being controlled by me, because this position is not as important to me as you think."
Hearing this, Princess Yaoye was no fool, and she had received royal education. She immediately realized that Zhang Yuan was teaching her.
"You deliberately sat down and drank tea without my permission?" Princess Yaoye asked to confirm.
"Of course." Zhang Yuan nodded. "You are a princess, and I am a commander. I truly do not care much for this position, but since I still hold it, I must want something from it. Naturally, I would not give it up lightly, yet you failed to see that."
"I acted so rudely to test your tolerance and shrewdness, to see how you would react in such a situation. Yet you behaved so immaturely. You do not seem like someone raised in the royal family, much less someone who wishes to become an empress."
"Your cultivation talent is ordinary, and you possess no imperial acumen. Even if the royal family has many supporters, once Elder Jia falls, the Jia Ma Empire will likely collapse in an instant."
After being denied so thoroughly, Princess Yaoye's face turned pale, and her chest rose and fell violently. Yet she endured it without lashing out.
One reason was that she did not want Zhang Yuan to look down on her. Another was that an old man's voice sounded beside her ear. "This boy sees things clearly. It seems you can learn more from him than military strategy."
The speaker was Jia Xingtian. He had followed Princess Yaoye here in secret, both to inspect the Black Armored Guard and to meet Zhang Yuan, this young genius.
"Since you are willing to guide Yaoye in these matters, I trust you are also willing to teach me," Princess Yaoye said under Jia Xingtian's guidance.
The word "sir" was a sign of respect for Zhang Yuan.
"Easy enough." Zhang Yuan smiled. "Same old rule: one gold coin per pound of goods."
Princess Yaoye: "..."
She understood. Zhang Yuan meant that she had to pay more.
"As long as your teachings can benefit Yaoye, Yaoye will certainly not treat you unfairly," Princess Yaoye said through gritted teeth.
"That attitude is not bad." Zhang Yuan nodded in satisfaction, then added, "But put away that gritted-teeth expression. Put it away. Put it away for me."
Princess Yaoye: "..."
I don't want to grit my teeth. I want to bite you right now!
"Forget it. There will be time to teach you slowly in the future." Zhang Yuan straightened his posture and said, "Stop changing the subject. Let's talk about Qing Yanjing. What exactly did Miss Qing do for Your Highness to call her a demoness?"
Princess Yaoye: "..."
Who exactly keeps changing the subject here?
Suppressing her anger, Princess Yaoye said coldly, "It is not this princess who calls her a demoness. Everyone in the Imperial Capital calls her that, because she always brings disaster to those around her."
Zhang Yuan did not interrupt, wearing an attentive expression.
Seeing this, Princess Yaoye patiently told him everything she knew.
"The Myriad Books Pavilion was originally called the Myriad Vegetable Pavilion. It specialized in serving nobles and dignitaries and became famous throughout the Imperial Capital for its medicinal cuisine. Not only did it taste good, but some of its dishes had effects comparable to First-grade Pills. Its finest signature dishes were even comparable to Second-grade pills. I ate there once when I was very young, and I still remember it vividly."
As she spoke, Princess Yaoye licked her lips before continuing, "The owner of the Myriad Vegetable Pavilion was Qing Yanjing's grandfather. It was later passed to Qing Yanjing's father. Both were Dou Ling experts, and their culinary skills were passed down through the family. They earned immense wealth every day, had many connections, and possessed a promising future."
"But after Qing Yanjing broke through to the Dou Zhe realm at the age of twelve, misfortune began to descend upon the Myriad Vegetable Pavilion. People who ate its medicinal cuisine died sudden, inexplicable deaths, and compensation..."
Next, Zhang Yuan felt as though he were listening to the tale of a lone star of calamity.
In short, after Qing Yanjing became a Dou Zhe, all manner of misfortune befell the relatives and friends around her. Her paternal grandparents, maternal grandparents, father, and mother had all died, and the Myriad Vegetable Pavilion had declined as well.
Now, Qing Yanjing was the only one left in her family. Many people also gossiped about her behind her back, and over time, she became known as the "demoness." After moving through several cities, she finally came to her ancestral home, Qingyun Town.
Because she did not wish to interact too much with outsiders and wanted to pass down her family's culinary arts, she changed the Myriad Vegetable Pavilion into the Myriad Books Pavilion.
"..."
Zhang Yuan could only exclaim in his heart, Good heavens.
That was far too tragic. If this Qing Yanjing was the same person he had in mind, then she had probably come to the Lower Plane to undergo tribulation.
Speaking of which, Tu Dou loved playing with timelines when writing. Now that he had transmigrated into this real world, it was truly difficult to determine Qing Yanjing's exact circumstances.
Was she around the same age as Brother Dong, or was she a hundred years younger than Little Yan and the others?
No, she might also be older than them. After all, Gu Yuan had been over a thousand years old before he had Xun Er as a daughter.
When Qing Yanjing reached Perfect Earthly Sovereign, she had traveled the Great Thousand World, so it was hard to say how old she had been.
What a mess. Even transmigrating gave him no real advantage.
After complaining inwardly for a moment, Zhang Yuan asked, "According to Your Highness, the closer one's relationship with Qing Yanjing, the greater the danger. I have only met her twice. I am merely going to eat a meal she cooked once. It should not be that dangerous, right?"
He was not familiar with Qing Yanjing yet. There had been no need for Princess Yaoye to rush over and stop him. She could have reminded him after he finished eating.
"Not that dangerous? Hmph, I merely cherish talent." Princess Yaoye rose to her feet and said, "Although Qing Yanjing's relatives and friends were the first to suffer disaster, it does not mean misfortune cannot spread to strangers. For example, the person who suddenly died after eating the medicinal cuisine. There are many other examples as well."
"Sir, take care of yourself."
After saying that, Princess Yaoye left with her hands behind her back. She needed to find a place to calm down.
Zhang Yuan remained seated and poured himself another cup of tea. After savoring it carefully, he revealed a smile.
"I was just considering how to get acquainted with Qing Yanjing so I could study her more easily, and then I heard this news."
"Isn't this obstructing my exploration of her depths?"
"This is becoming more and more interesting."
He did not have many virtues, but daring to explore definitely counted as one.
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(End of Chapter)
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