The side table was served Golden-Scale Fish as well. They were smaller than the ones at the main table, but each still weighed seven or eight jin.
The fish gleamed golden, its fragrance drilling straight into their nostrils.
The maidservants used small knives to cut the fish into bite-sized pieces, placing a small dish before each person. The flesh was white and tender, smooth and fresh upon entering the mouth, carrying a faint medicinal fragrance. After swallowing it, the warmth in Xu Qing's lower abdomen deepened a little further.
Then dish after dish was brought out.
Braised bear paw, glossy red in color, soft and richly flavored.
Steamed deer tail, delicate meat that melted in the mouth.
Sea cucumber braised with scallions, rich with oil and crimson sauce, its savory fragrance spilling everywhere.
There was also bird's nest soup, snow fungus in cups, eight-treasure duck, sliced chicken in hibiscus style... Every dish was something Xu Qing had only heard storytellers mention. Yet now, they were truly laid out before him.
At the main table, cups clinked and laughter never ceased.
Lu Chuan sat in the seat of honor, but tonight's main character seemed to have changed.
It was as though Zhao Yan had been invited from a corner onto center stage. Lu Chuan raised his cup in congratulations, Su Zhengyuan personally toasted him, and the others from the county deputy's faction offered congratulations and wine in an endless stream.
The county magistrate's faction, meanwhile, presented an entirely different sight.
Lin Hanshan still wore a smile, but it was stiff and forced.
Yu Tai sat beside Lin Hanshan, his face livid as he poured cup after cup of bitter wine down his throat. Both his disciples had been crippled by Xu Qing—one with a broken spine, the other with a