Chen Qing did not hesitate long before accepting the stranger's invitation and sitting down beside him...
Deep down, he wanted to go over to Yuchi Peng. Although the fellow's body odor was strong enough to spoil his appetite a little, he genuinely treated Chen Qing as a friend, and sitting with him would have been more comfortable.
But that might have slighted Fei Jun. Fei Jun was a pretty decent person, and Chen Qing really did not want to offend him.
Most importantly, judging by his bearing alone, the man before him held no lowly position. Without knowing his background, it was best not to slight him. Besides, accepting this man's invitation gave him an answer for both Fei Jun and Yuchi Peng.
"Do you drink strong liquor, Lord Chen?" the thin, frail middle-aged man asked with a smile.
Chen Qing shook his head outright and apologized. "I have yet to learn to drink."
That was no excuse. His family had been reduced to such poverty putting him through school. How could he have afforded liquor?
As for his previous life? As a fat tech geek, he had drunk fat geek water.
"Why not learn?" the middle-aged man suggested with a smile.
"I'd better pass..." Chen Qing smiled. "I've booked a carriage. I'll be setting out for Liuzhou shortly."
"In such a hurry?"
"Rent is expensive. I haven't received my salary yet, and my travel funds and such are almost gone."
Everyone: "..."
"Haha!" The middle-aged man laughed at that. "You're an interesting one. Other successful imperial examination candidates would give anything to stay a few more days and forge whatever connections they could, yet you can't wait to leave."
"I have no money. What am I supposed to forge connections with?"
The civil officials around them looked thoroughly exasperated, while the middle-aged man and the military officers burst into laughter.
"Lord Chen!" An elderly civil official seated opposite him wore a dark expression. "You are about to take office. Please conduct yourself and speak with greater propriety!"
Chen Qing paused and glanced at the crane rank badge on the man's chest. Hmm... a second-rank official, possibly even a minister. Naturally, he dared not offend him and hurriedly cupped his hands. "I misspoke. Please forgive me, my lord."
"Hmph..." The old man gave Chen Qing a lingering look, then glanced at the middle-aged man beside him. "Are you well acquainted with His Grace the Duke of Qin, Lord Chen?"
Chen Qing's chopsticks froze halfway to a dish, and he turned to look at the fellow beside him.
So this was the bastard who screwed me over?
"You're His Grace the Duke of Qin?"
The man smiled. "That expression of yours, Lord Chen... you seem to have some grievances against me?"
"How could I?" Chen Qing cupped his hands with a smile that did not reach his eyes. "I have yet to thank Your Grace for your recommendation. I owe my appointment as prefect to you."
Chen Qing put particular emphasis on "Your Grace." The last person I kept calling Your Grace was already a stone-cold corpse. You'd best pray for good fortune...
The military officers around them watched Chen Qing with chuckles. Few people remained this composed after learning Old Lu's identity. Though the lad was a scholar, he had the backbone of a military man!
"Haha, no thanks are necessary." The Duke of Qin laughed. "Your success in carrying out the assignment was down to your own ability, Lord Chen. It had nothing to do with me."
Several civil officials opposite them frowned. From the look of things, the two probably did not know each other. Given the Duke of Qin's current standing, he had no need to stage such a performance with a young man for their benefit.
"Not at all, not at all..." Chen Qing smiled. "Without Your Grace's recommendation, I wouldn't even have had a chance to prove myself. I shall certainly repay such a great kindness in the future."
The Duke of Qin shook his head in amusement, but inwardly, he was rather curious. He had met countless people, yet rarely saw a young man so composed before him.
Though respectful in his words, there was not the slightest reverence in his eyes.
And it was not just when he looked at him. The young man had worn the same look when facing the Minister of Personnel opposite them. So calm, so... indifferent?
He did not know why that word came to mind, but that was how it felt. The young man looked at everyone with a kind of indifference, so like... someone from long ago...
And so, the people around the large table chatted now and then about this and that. Their questions were quite domestic: how old was he this year? How many people were in his family? Who had been his teacher before he passed the imperial examination? Had the emperor not already publicly announced that he was to become an imperial son-in-law, he would have suspected the man wanted to arrange a marriage for him.
Time flew by like this, and before long, night had fallen and it was time to leave the banquet.
Naturally, Chen Qing would not stay for the night vigil. He hurriedly took his leave of the lords who looked to be very high-ranking, exchanged a few words with Yuchi Peng and Fei Jun, then prepared to make himself scarce. He did not want to spend another moment in the capital.
But just as he was taking his leave of the ducal residence, someone he knew called out to him.
It was someone he had expected, though Chen Qing had not thought he would wait so late to seek him out.
"Where were you just now?" Chen Qing asked.
The newcomer was Wang Ye. Hearing Chen Qing address him, Wang Ye fell silent for a moment. He felt that Chen Qing was becoming increasingly casual with him.
Had they already become that close?
"My master left something for you."
"Huh?"
"What do you think of that young man?"
After the banquet, the civil and military officials gathered in little groups to chat about everyday matters. Without the paper figures responsible for recording their words and deeds, the atmosphere seemed much more relaxed.
Quite a few people were discussing Chen Qing, including Lord Chen, the Minister of Rites, who was chatting with the Duke of Qin.
"I find him quite interesting..." The Duke of Qin smiled toward the direction Chen Qing had left in. "The young man who broke the Thousand-Faced Fox's scheme turned out to be an ordinary mortal. Interesting indeed..."
The Minister of Rites smiled faintly as well. In the distance, hearing the two discuss Chen Qing, the crown prince grew thoughtful.
The court's forces were now divided into three major factions. With great sorcerers such as Liu Yu and the Nine Ministers at their core, one faction enjoyed the support of eighty percent of the court's civil officials and formed the main strength of the civil bureaucracy. The bloodline Aristocratic Clans led by the Duke of Qin were tremendously powerful, accounting for seventy percent of Great Jin's Aristocratic Clans and nearly half its frontier armies!
Then there were the loyal royalist Aristocratic Clans, such as the Yuchi Household and the Hong Household. These high-ranking bloodline Aristocratic Clans had followed the Xiao Household since before Great Jin was founded and accounted for the remaining thirty percent of the bloodline Aristocratic Clans' strength!
Previously, his imperial father had dispatched the bloodline Aristocratic Clans loyal to him to guard major frontier strongholds, placing considerable military power in their hands. Within the capital, he had used the sorcerers' faction to counterbalance the bloodline Aristocratic Clans at court who supported the Duke of Qin. In all honesty, he had still held a narrow advantage.
After all, although many bloodline Aristocratic Clans supported the Duke of Qin, most were kept under control in the capital, while his imperial father had gradually eaten away at their command over the frontier armies over the years.
Had this situation continued until he ascended the throne securely, the imperial family would have reclaimed at least eighty percent of the frontier armies. With the absolute support of Liu Yu and the others as well, he could then begin dealing with the Duke of Qin's faction.
But who knew what madness had seized his imperial father? He had actually moved against Liu Yu!
More than half the great sorcerers at the level of the Nine Ministers had originally been recommended by Liu Yu. With Liu Yu removed, if the civil officials grew estranged, the situation in the capital would no longer be so stable.
Now that he saw the Minister of Rites actually chatting with the Duke of Qin, the crown prince naturally had to pay attention.
Among the Nine Ministers, the Minister of Personnel was the Heavenly Official and held the greatest actual power. But in seniority and experience, Lord Chen, the Minister of Rites, actually ranked highest. Having presided over six rounds of imperial examinations, the venerable Lord Chen had students throughout the realm. More importantly, practically all the education commissioners across the land had been cultivated by him!
"Are you interested in Chen Qing as well, Lord Chen?" After listening for a while, the crown prince finally could not resist approaching and joining in.
"Your Highness..." The Duke of Qin and Minister Chen both bowed.
"No need for ceremony." The crown prince smiled. "I'm merely curious. Why has Your Grace suddenly taken such an interest in a newly successful imperial examination candidate like Chen Qing?"
The Duke of Qin smiled faintly. "Perhaps... I've grown a little bored."
Bored?
The crown prince wore a half-smile. Liu Yu had only just died, and you already wanted to make a move, did you?
Minister Chen watched from beside them and inwardly shook his head. His Highness the Crown Prince fell far short of His Majesty, not merely in strength, but in temperament as well.
In truth, the person best suited to inherit His Majesty's mantle had been the eldest son born to him and the empress. Unfortunately... he had died young. As for the current crown prince... honestly, he had little confidence in him.
Sometimes, even he felt uncertain. Should the fate of the sorcerers' legacy truly be staked on this heir apparent? ...
"Three factions?"
In the rear courtyard of the ducal residence, Wang Ye led Chen Qing toward the back gate with practiced familiarity. For some reason, he had begun explaining the situation at court along the way.
"Yes..." Wang Ye nodded. "Yuchi Peng and Hong Wu, whom you know, both belong to the royalist faction. Their bloodline lineages have the deepest ties to the Xiao Household. There are several others you haven't met, most of whom serve in the frontier armies."
"So that's how it is..." Chen Qing understood at last. He had wondered about it. Great Jin's vast territory was more than ten times the size of China in his previous life, and quite a few dukes had been enfeoffed-over twenty, supposedly. Yet he had only ever heard of the capital's nine great dukes. So the rest had all been posted elsewhere.
"Fei Jun is a rising talent among sorcerers, as well as the crown prince's cousin. He belongs to the younger sorcerers' faction and is one of the crown prince's close retainers. If you had accepted his invitation earlier, then, given that you had only recently saved His Highness the Crown Prince, all those civil and military officials might have considered you part of the crown prince's faction."
Chen Qing: "..."
"Of course, accepting Yuchi Peng's invitation would also have placed you among the royalists, but your position would lean a little more toward His Majesty. You understand, don't you?"
Chen Qing nodded with a bitter smile. Royalists and the crown prince's faction had always been two different things...
"Then what does accepting the Duke of Qin's invitation today make me?"
"His Grace the Duke of Qin was protecting you." Wang Ye looked up at the clear sky. "You're a scholar, promoted through the civil bureaucracy. The Duke of Qin's faction cannot interfere with your official career. Both His Majesty and the crown prince know this. So although the forces behind the Duke of Qin appear the most dangerous, contact with him is actually the least likely to arouse suspicion for now. By taking the initiative to invite you today, he was helping you out of a difficult spot."
Chen Qing paused. He had not expected the Duke of Qin to help him, and immediately frowned. He and I... aren't close, are we?
"That lord rarely does such things." Wang Ye smiled too. "I have no idea why he's suddenly so interested in you."
"Haha..." Chen Qing gave a perfunctory laugh, feeling that this was no good thing.
"By the way, you said His Grace the Duke of Song left something for me. What is it?"
Wang Ye paused, then took out a fairly thick black-bound book and handed it over.
Chen Qing accepted it curiously and hefted it. It was rather heavy, so he asked with curiosity, "What is it?"
"I don't know..." Wang Ye shook his head. "Master placed a spell on it. Only you can open it."
"Oh?" Chen Qing grew even more curious and opened the cover right in front of him. Sure enough, as he opened the book, distorted spatial runes flashed across it. There really was a spell on it.
"You're opening it right in front of me? Aren't you afraid I'll sneak a look?" Wang Ye asked with a half-smile.
"What's there to be afraid of?" Chen Qing said in amusement. "I'm opening it in front of you because I want to read it with you. Why so solemn? If you want to see, come over and read with me."
Wang Ye was slightly taken aback. He looked at Chen Qing for a long while, but in the end raised no objection. He nodded, moved a little closer, and looked down at the book as well.
Huh? This is...
We're about to enter volume two. Please keep reading and send some votes my way, hehe.