lcionline Chapter 194 Clash at the Banquet
Chapter 194 Clash at the Banquet
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After a whole day of fussing, night fell, and Liang Xiaoming's mansion was filled with banquets and guests.
Those who were able to enter the main banquet tonight, apart from those of the rank of manager or above in the Qiongzhou camp system, were guests from various prefectures and counties. These guests were of high rank, led by Zhao Yue, the prefectural assistant prefect, and included county magistrates from Lingao, Chengmai, Danzhou, and other places. Normally, these were local officials whose every stomp of their feet would shake the ground, but today they all sat obediently like ordinary guests.
Liu Ye, holding the groom Liang Xiaoming's hand, stood in the middle of the courtyard, holding a glass of wine in his right hand, and said loudly, "Ladies and gentlemen, today is Liang Xiaoming's wedding day. I shouldn't be taking the lead, but there are some things I have to say. I'll take this opportunity to say them, and I believe the groom won't mind."
Li Ergou and the others, acting like straight men in a crosstalk performance, said, "General, please speak freely."
"The achievements of our Qiongzhou Camp in just three years are inseparable from everyone's sincere cooperation, as well as the trust and support of the people of Qiongzhou. Apart from myself, Mingzi, Mr. Sun, Mr. Sima, and a few others, the rest of us in the Qiongzhou Camp are all native to Qiongzhou. But no matter where we come from, we now eat Qiongzhou rice and drink Qiongzhou water. Moreover, now that we are receiving salaries and wages from the imperial court, we must serve the imperial court and relieve the people of Qiongzhou of their suffering..."
Zhao Yue frowned. What was all this nonsense about?
Wei Bocheng, the magistrate of Danzhou, whispered to Zhao Yue at the same table, "Lord Zhao, what exactly does this man surnamed Liu want by dragging us to Lingao?"
Zhao Yue snorted coldly: "You can't just invite us to dinner and drinks. You wait, the real show is yet to come."
After rambling on for a while, Liu Ye got to the point: "...We should shoulder as much responsibility as our capabilities allow. The Qiongzhou Camp is stationed in Lingao, and its defense zone is Qiongzhou Prefecture. Naturally, we must contribute to the security and stability of Qiongzhou. Therefore, from now on, whatever matters concerning Qiongzhou Prefecture, our Qiongzhou Camp will do its utmost to help, sharing the burdens and solving the problems of the prefectural and county officials and the people of Qiongzhou..."
Zhao Yue's face immediately turned ugly, but he didn't say anything.
Liu Zezhong, the newly appointed magistrate of Chengmai County, had not experienced the Bofu siege and was unaware of the true strength of the Qiongzhou Camp. He originally did not want to attend the banquet, but everyone in the county government, from the county magistrate to the clerks, strongly urged him to attend, as if offending Liu Ye would cause the sky to collapse. He could not refuse, and also wanted to see if this man really had three heads and six arms, so he came to Lingao.
Seeing Liu Ye utter such words, clearly intending to interfere in all affairs of Qiongzhou Prefecture, he flew into a rage, slammed his fist on the table, and shouted, "Martial arts men should just do their own job. The local affairs of various prefectures and counties are none of your business!"
Everyone in the courtyard stared at him, and the entire place fell silent. Zhao Yue and the magistrate of Lingao County hadn't expected this fellow to be so full of righteousness, and they were too late to stop him, secretly lamenting their predicament.
Liu Ye's words were cut off, but he wasn't annoyed. He looked over here and said leisurely, "This person looks a bit unfamiliar?"
Li Fu, who was in charge of organizing the wedding banquet and receiving guests, knew that this was the newly appointed magistrate of Chengmai County, and introduced him from the side: "Reporting to the general, this is Lord Liu, the newly appointed magistrate of Chengmai County."
"So it's Lord Liu. Since Lord Liu has said so, and Prefect Zhao of Qiongzhou Prefecture is also here, please let Prefect Zhao be my witness: from now on, I will absolutely not interfere in any matter concerning Chengmai County!" Liu Ye asked with a smile, "Lord Liu, what do you think?"
Liu Zezhong smiled contemptuously. The man everyone feared like a tiger was nothing more than a paper tiger.
Zhao Yue felt that things were not so simple, but the current situation did not allow him to say anything more, so he raised his wine glass and said: "Today is a joyous day, let's not ruin the harmony. Come, let me toast the groom."
Liang Xiaoming was very polite and walked over, raised his glass and said, "Today is my wedding day, so it is my turn to toast Lord Zhao and everyone present."
Liu Ye introduced from the side: "Lord Zhao, this is my brother. He is the one who made the cannons and muskets for the Qiongzhou Camp."
Mentioning cannons immediately reminded Zhao Yue of the time he was bombarded by warships while organizing grain transport at the Qiongshan County dock. He was nearly killed by a cannonball weighing dozens of kilograms. The thought sent a shiver down his spine.
After a round of toasts, the atmosphere eased somewhat. Liu Ye remained calm, as if nothing had happened. Liu Zezhong looked smug, glancing around, while Wei Bocheng and the magistrate of Lingao County remained silent.
Zhao Yue was a little worried. Liu Zezhong had offended Liu Ye, and he certainly wouldn't let it go so easily, but he couldn't imagine how Liu Ye would retaliate. After thinking for a while, he spat, "I'm not the head of Qiongzhou Prefecture, nor am I the magistrate of Chengmai County, what am I worried about?" He casually picked up his wine cup and took a sip. He hadn't been able to eat properly earlier because of what was on his mind, but this sip of wine felt sweet and smooth, and he couldn't help but exclaim, "Good wine!"
No matter how infamous Liu Ye is, the "Wuliangye" brewed by his family's distillery is truly a rare and excellent wine.
Seeing that his superior was in the mood for drinking, Wei Bocheng perked up and offered him a toast: "Lord Zhao is usually very busy with official duties, and it is rare for us to sit at the same table and drink with him. I would like to offer you a toast, please drink it first." After saying that, he drank it all in one gulp.
When the local official offered a toast, Zhao Yue naturally gave him face: "Magistrate Wei, you're too kind. It's fate that we're drinking together at the same table today. Let's drink until we're drunk!" He then downed his drink in one gulp.
Now that they had started, Liu Zezhong and the magistrate of Lingao County naturally couldn't fail to show respect to Zhao Yue, and they began to take turns toasting him.
Although Zhao Yue was annoyed by Liu Zezhong's recklessness, he had to pretend to be nonchalant on the surface and accept every toast offered by anyone.
The magistrate of Lingao County vaguely sensed that Zhao Yue was trying to drown his sorrows in alcohol. A dignified fifth-rank official, sitting here swallowing his pride, sharing a table with a group of seventh-rank county magistrates—that was bad enough, but the surrounding guests were mostly commoners and laborers, crude and uncouth, utterly disgracing any semblance of civility. Thinking that his superior was in the same boat, he felt his own situation was insignificant, and a sense of balance returned. Since his superior wanted to relieve his worries with alcohol, he would simply play along, frequently offering him toasts.
As the saying goes, a plucked phoenix is no better than a chicken, but even a phoenix stripped of its feathers is still a phoenix. The officialdom of Zhao Yue's table of officials, both high and low, couldn't be displayed in front of Liu Ye, but most of the others were commoners with a deep-seated reverence for the government. Apart from Liang Xiaoming and his group, people like Li Ergou ultimately dared not disturb them. Zhao Yue and his companions poured themselves drinks, and after a few rounds, they were all a little tipsy.
Liu Zezhong had a mediocre alcohol tolerance, and after a few cups, he was already a bit unsteady on his feet. Emboldened by the alcohol, he said smugly, "Lord Zhao... everyone says that Liu Ye used to be so arrogant, but after seeing him today, he's nothing special..."