Dinner (cont.)

Under the moon.

Several maids stood quietly to the side, holding Lantern and serving the guests.

The quiet candlesticks burned slowly with a subtle flame. In the small pavilion in the courtyard, Zuo Li and the man sat facing each other, with various delicacies prepared on the table.

Even though the man said he was there as a friend for dinner, the old man couldn't really eat the same thing he usually did, given his status.

They still had a meal prepared.

What puzzled Zuo Li was that after the man arrived, he did nothing but sit quietly in his spot, saying he was waiting for someone.

But in this Yan... who else could make him wait?

The old man was somewhat puzzled.

After a moment, he seemed unable to bear the silence any longer and spoke hesitantly.

"His Majesty..."

"What's wrong, Mr. Zuo?"

Facing the elderly man in front of him, whose father had been the Ministry of Rites, the man didn't put on airs at all, but instead asked him questions in a relaxed manner.

"Who... are you waiting for?"

Zuo Li spoke, his words filled with deep doubt.

He racked his brains but couldn't think of anyone in the entire Great Yan territory that he could wait for.

But upon hearing this, the man silently shook his head.

"What I'm waiting for isn't a person, it's an event..."

"Thing?"

"They've arrived."

Zuo Li was still somewhat puzzled, but the man's eyes suddenly narrowed.

The old man followed his gaze.

Soon, Wei Sanzheng, who had just left, returned with several people.

"Big brother."

Upon approaching, Wei Sanzheng nodded, his eyes calm.

Behind him, Sui, looking disgusted, Maria, with a calm expression, and Zuo Zheng, looking somewhat uneasy, also arrived.

"Your Majesty... Grandpa..."

Upon seeing the figure sitting quietly to the side, Zuo Zheng's expression was also quite subtle.

Upon entering the courtyard and encountering Wei Sanzheng, she realized that things were going beyond her expectations.

It should be noted that Wei Sanzheng is the only general currently allowed to garrison Hundred Stoves, and his illustrious status is self-evident.

And yet, he was merely acting as a bodyguard, wandering around on the sidelines.

Combined with what I saw during the day...

At this moment, Zuo Zheng had a vague idea of who the distinguished guest his grandfather was receiving was.

She wanted to go in later to meet him.

Unfortunately, Wei Sanzheng seemed to be deliberately waiting for them, and with a wave of his hand, he invited them to take a seat.

At this moment, Zuo Zheng also understood.

The other party was targeting them.

What else can I do?

We had no choice but to bring them over, even if it meant going through the motions.

"Miss Zuo Zheng, you're back? And you brought a friend with you?"

The man then put on his signature gentle smile and waved lightly.

Zuo Zheng also looked conflicted.

Meanwhile, the elderly Zuo Li also noticed the complicated expression on his granddaughter's face.

He seemed to realize something, his eyes narrowed slightly, and then he slowly spoke.

Don't forget manners.

"Okay, Grandpa."

After hesitating for a few moments, Zuo Zheng cautiously pulled Maria and Sui closer.

Although she felt things had reached this point and she shouldn't need to say anything more, she still dutifully began introducing the two parties to each other.

"Maria, [age], this is my grandfather, Zuo Li ..."

"Grandpa, these are friends I've made these past few days. None of them are from Yan, but... they're really nice people."

After a brief introduction, Zuo Zheng reluctantly took his seat at the suggestion of the man beside him.

The atmosphere at the scene became unusually silent for a moment.

"Arrived... arrived..."

Rain was slowly falling from somewhere, starting with just a few scattered drops, but soon the raindrops joined together and quickly soaked into the ground.

Only a fleeting ray of white light remained in the world...

The moon remained as bright as ever, but everyone noticed that it seemed rather strange at this moment.

Logically speaking, rain means there are dark clouds, and dark clouds mean the sun and moon are hard to see.

But...

At this very moment, the moon still hangs brightly in the sky...

A slightly chilly, blue-white halo rippled around it.

Beside them, the black armor pattered slowly in the rain...

The group sat quietly at the dining table, none of them willing to speak first.

On the Zuo Family's side, because there was someone of even higher status than them present, they naturally dared not speak before that person did.

Maria, on the other hand, was wondering why the other party was making such a deliberate attempt to contact her.

As for age...

She just swung her tail nonchalantly.

After a while, Maria shook her head helplessly.

"Continuing to remain silent doesn't seem like a good idea... Is there something we need to avoid?"

"... Actually, it's nothing much, just a regular family dinner."

The man smiled, waved again, signaling everyone to start eating, and then picked up a little bit of greens and slowly chewed it.

After a few moments of confusion, Zuo Zheng and his granddaughter Zuo Li slowly began to eat.

She wasn't hungry, but she wasn't afraid of food and began to eat heartily.

However, she seems to be a picky eater; she doesn't like vegetables and only eats meat.

Maria, however, had no appetite and did not touch her chopsticks.

The maidservant noticed this and thoughtfully poured Maria some wine.

"We've met again in such a short time... Perhaps the two of you are indeed destined to be together in our Great Yan."

The man smiled and began his opening remarks.

He raised his glass and clinked it with Maria's from a distance.

"To be honest, I don't really know either of your names yet..."

"Maria has no surname... Her name is Sui, and she has no surname either."

Maria's voice remained as steady as ever, without any discernible emotion.

But the name Sui made everyone present perk up a little.

However, most people only glanced at it a few times before looking away.

The man, however, stiffened slightly, but took a deep breath and smiled again.

"Miss Maria and Miss... Oh, perhaps 'Miss' isn't the right word for you. Should I use 'Lady' or 'Miss' instead?"

"... It will be all right."

Maria didn't specify what to call her; she simply raised her glass and took a final, gentle sip.

"Speaking of which, Miss Zuo Zheng is truly fortunate to have met two such good friends..."

"... Miss Zuo Zheng is a kind and gentle person. It is my honor to know her."

Maria spoke politely as always.

But Zuo Zheng to the side, couldn't help but blush.

She could tell, of course, that the two men were just being polite and using her as an opening line, but hearing them say that still made the girl feel somewhat awkward.

Fortunately, the initial conversation quickly faded away.

"Speaking of which, I wonder how you all met?"

The man was clearly asking a question he already knew the answer to.

In that afternoon, he had already investigated Maria and the 12-year-old's origins thoroughly.

Even so, he still chose to start in this way.

He wanted to test Maria's attitude.

"It was on the way, I guess. Sui and I were traveling together, and we were originally going to Hundred Stoves anyway. We just happened to run into each other, so we naturally came along too."

Maria hesitated for a moment.

She knew perfectly well that the other party was testing her.

Only...

She didn't understand why they had to do that.

"That really is fate."

The man smiled, his tone gradually softening.

He raised his glass, as if toasting Maria from afar, and then took a sip himself.

Maria tried a few times, but then put down her glass.

Are you dissatisfied?

The man raised an eyebrow when he saw Maria's wine glass, which had been sipped twice but still looked almost untouched.

Zuo Li, who had already realized that this dinner was unusual and was preparing to obediently play the Zuo Li of a deaf, mute, and blind person, suddenly looked up when he heard this.

This is the best wine in his mansion.

As Zuo Zheng said, he was always frugal in his daily life. Although he loved to drink, he usually couldn't bear to buy good wine. He always kept a bottle at home and only took it out when welcoming important guests.

Maria didn't even consider that...

"No... it's just that I don't really like the taste."

Maria shook her head slightly.

She didn't know much about alcohol, but she was certain that this kind of strong drink... wasn't suitable for her.

"That's true... I forgot you're not from the Great Yan."

The man smiled, shook his head, and continued spinning in circles.

He still didn't want to get to the point so soon.

Maria clearly didn't like this.

After pausing a few times, she sighed softly.