Sun Fei sized up the wealthy, well-dressed fat man, his expression remaining unchanged, and asked Constantine, "And this Lord Sherwood is...?"
"Ah, let me introduce myself. Our Lord Sherwood is a first-class hereditary nobleman of the Empire, the highest military and political commander of Azure Wind Province, and the city lord of Qingfeng Giant City." Before Constantine could answer, a young nobleman standing next to him, all the while waving his hand to signal Constantine to get lost.
"Oh," Sun Fei nodded, feigning sudden realization, "So it was Lord Qingfeng City. I heard that during the allied attack, Azure Wind City the empire had cultivated for many years, possessed 50,000 elite troops. They could have held out for at least half a day, giving the empire a chance to catch their breath. But someone, more than an hour before the enemy arrived, ordered the defending army to abandon the entire city's citizens, disregarding the lives of over 200,000 people, and instead protect a group of nobles and high-ranking officials as they fled for their lives. This foolish decision not only allowed the allied forces to effortlessly loot and burn Azure Wind City, massacring tens of thousands of civilians, but also prevented the 50,000 troops from holding their ground, ultimately leading to their complete annihilation by the Lyon vanguard in the open field, with only a few escaping... Hmm, the person who made such a foolish order, couldn't it be this Lord Sherwood?"
Sherwood's smile froze instantly.
Everyone could tell that the Empire-Protecting Martial Saint of the Empire's tone was unfriendly and that he didn't have much affection for the City Lord.
The young nobleman from before was quite a formidable figure. His eyes darted around, and soon a thought struck him. He quickly explained with a smile, "Lord Alexander, you have truly misunderstood Sir Sherwood. The reason he led his army out of the city was entirely to preserve his strength, wanting to lead the army back to Saint Petersburg as soon as possible to protect the capital. Sir Sherwood was utterly loyal to the imperial family, but unfortunately, the enemy's advance was too swift. Before he could even protect the capital, they were overtaken. Sir Sherwood personally commanded the army to fight the enemy, battling fiercely for half a day. His armor was stained with blood, and he bore numerous wounds. In the end, outnumbered, his entire army was wiped out, and Sir Sherwood himself fainted. Protected by several skilled soldiers who were moved by his bravery and loyalty, and with a determination to kill the enemy and serve his country, they endured countless hardships to come to Byzantium to find the Martial Saint!"
"Yes, yes, that's exactly right!"
"Sir Sherwood is truly a model for the imperial nobility and officials!"
"Those who spread rumors and slander deserve to die! Lord Sherwood is brave and courageous, always leading from the front; he is a pillar of the empire!"
A group of other nobles, equally lavishly dressed, with fleshy faces and chins almost covering their necks, holding crystal goblets filled with scarlet wine, quickly laughed and echoed the sentiment.
After saying this, a smile finally returned to Sherwood's extremely embarrassed face.
Only King of Byzantium Constantine, inwardly spat out a disdainful "bah!"
This is utterly shameless and blatant distortion of the truth!
Now, everyone Shazi Azure Wind Province knows that it was the cowardly Sir Sherwood who abandoned the city and fled for his own selfish interests, not only destroying Azure Wind City but also wiping out 50,000 imperial troops. He is a first-rate sinner, and yet he dares to boast and claim credit in front of the Martial Saint. It is truly outrageous!
Constantine wanted to expose this lie.
But then he thought about it again. Sherwood's official rank and title were much higher than his own, and he was currently under her control. If he said it directly, it would probably cause endless trouble. So he had no choice but to endure it for the time being and tell the Martial Saint in detail later. He hoped that the Martial Saint would not be deceived by these treacherous officials!
After hearing the others' agreement, Sun Fei didn't make any statement. Instead, his sharp gaze lingered on the face of the clever young nobleman from before. Only when the young nobleman was on the verge of a breakdown did he slowly Earth Inquiry, "So... who are you?"
The young nobleman felt a chill run down his spine, unsure whether it was a blessing or a curse. Extremely uneasy, he quickly bowed and said with a fawning smile, "Reporting to your Excellency, I am Rennes Knight from the Rennes Family."
"Oh, Rennes Knight."
Sun Fei nodded slightly in his heart. The Rennes Family was a relatively powerful middle-class family in the capital. It was said that they had some imperial blood. This young man should be a direct descendant of the Rennes Family, who was sent to Azure Wind Province to take up a post.
Thinking of this, Sun Fei smiled slightly and said calmly, "You have quite the eloquence. Since you know so much, then you can introduce me to the noble lords attending the banquet tonight. This is my first time in the Southern Frontier of the empire, and I'm really not very familiar with it!"
Upon hearing this, the young nobleman was immediately relieved and overjoyed.
The other nobles looked at the young man with expressions of envy and jealousy.
Judging from the tone of the Martial Saint, he was clearly very satisfied with Rennes Knight's performance. This young man from the Rennes Family was a two-faced and treacherous fellow, a cunning opportunist. This time, he seized the opportunity to win the favor of the Martial Saint and climbed onto the coattails of the Imperial God of War. It seemed that his future rise to prominence was assured. If the Martial Saint could take him under his wing as a disciple, his entire family would soar to great heights.
Rennes Knight perked up, eager to impress Sun Fei. He immediately began introducing the backgrounds of the various nobles attending the banquet to Sun Fei. This young man was clearly a thoughtful person, very knowledgeable about everyone's background. He navigated the banquet with ease, introducing everyone to Sun Fei while subtly revealing their origins, families, and which faction each prince belonged to, providing detailed and clear information.
"This is General Vincent, the former commander of the Azure Wind City garrison..."
"This is Lord Josen, the quartermaster of Azure Wind Province..."
"This is Mr. Gulait, a high-ranking official from the Azure Wind City Lord's Mansion..."
"This is Berezov, the hereditary third-class knight of the Empire and the tax collector of Azure Wind City..."
With Rennes Knight's introduction, Sun Fei matched the names and faces of these people with the information in the documents he had received from the [ Letters and Visits Office ]. Without saying much, he had a photographic memory and quickly memorized the names of all the nobles in the hall. After walking around, he quickly returned to his previous position. Halfway through, several voluptuous noblewomen and socialites with half-exposed white breasts invited Sun Fei to dance, but he declined them all.
Back in his seat, just as he sat down and was pondering how to resolve his thoughts, a fawning laugh rang out. Sherwood, Josen, and the others, carrying wine glasses, eagerly approached him.
"Something wrong?" Sun Fei, seeing that everyone was pretending to hesitate, leaned back in his chair, swirling the red wine in his crystal goblet, and said with a half-smile, "Something wrong?"
Perhaps Sun Fei's smile sent the wrong signal, for Fatty Sherwood's expression relaxed. He deliberately hesitated for a moment, then put on a pained and distressed look, saying, " My Martial Saint, as a defeated general, I was originally too embarrassed to say anything in front of you. However, for the sake of the empire's interests and the ultimate victory in this war, even if you are angry, I can no longer let some people run rampant. Today, I'm going to risk it all and speak out. It concerns some of the misdeeds of King of Byzantium Constantine!"
First update.