Ten days flew by, and the envoys from Zongsheng Kingdom arrived.
This day also happened to be the grand opening of Murong Sheng's Tianxiang Wine House.
The entire wine house was luxuriously decorated, far surpassing any establishment in the town or county.
At that moment, by the city gate tower.
Following the Prince Xiaoyao's instructions, the Minister of Rites respectfully awaited the envoys at the city gate. As expected, seeing only one minister present, the envoy's face immediately fell.
He rode his horse to Minister of Rites, Zhu Tie, and stopped, raising his proud chin to ask, "Why is it only you here to greet us? Where is your Prince? Where is the General?"
Zhu Tie replied with a smile, "The Prince is very busy. He is currently inspecting the suburban military camp. For the envoy of a subjugated nation, this old minister is sufficient."
Wu Yi's face lost its color, and he became angry, "What does the Prince mean by this? Does he not take our Zongsheng Kingdom seriously?"
Zhu Tie, still smiling, calmly retorted, "There will be a welcoming banquet tonight, where Prince Xiaoyao will personally receive you. You may then ask the Prince his intentions!"
He, however, sneered inwardly. They hardly considered you worthy of a glance, let alone an audience!
A defeated nation, still shamelessly asking such questions, and with such a sense of entitlement!
A bustling crowd streamed through the lively streets, heading straight for the imperial post station in the capital. Hidden among the onlookers, Huangfu Xu and Fan Zehao exchanged a knowing glance.
Prince Xiaoyao remarked, "Wu Yi, the First-rank Great General of Zongsheng Kingdom. I suspect Prince Zongsheng sent him for no good reason this time!"
"It has nothing to do with me. That's your concern," Fan Zehao cleverly deflected.
He was a military man, not a scholar, and lacked the intellect for such calculations. As soon as he spoke, he dragged Huangfu Xu towards Brother Sheng's wine house, "Let's go, I'll treat you to a meal."
Prince Xiaoyao was astonished. Having spent over ten days with Fan Zehao, he knew him to be incredibly stingy, the kind of person who would split a copper coin in two. For him to proactively offer to treat someone to a meal now?
Had the sun risen in the west?
Fan Zehao shot him a sideways glance. Seeing Huangfu Xu's lips already curving upwards, he offered no explanation and headed directly to Tianxiang House, ordering a table full of signature dishes.
Eight hot dishes, six cold dishes, one soup, and one staple.
Prince Xiaoyao eyed the beautifully presented, aromatic, and delicious dishes, many of which he had never heard of. His appetite was immediately whetted, especially by a cup of pale pink fruit wine, which surprised him greatly.
"The dishes here are truly unique. They smell wonderful, but I wonder how they taste!"
Fan Zehao poured him a cup of wine. "Good food, good wine, it will absolutely be worth the trip!"
"I don't believe you, you stingy fellow! You actually came here to eat?" Prince Xiaoyao shook his head.
He raised his cup and took a sip. It was mildly sweet, with hints of watermelon and wine. It wasn't harsh on the throat like strong liquor, and he was again surprised, "Mmm, delicious."
Once the food arrived, Huangfu Xu's chopsticks were in constant motion.
Fourteen dishes, a pot of soup, and the two grown men nearly finished everything. They even ordered two more pots of the fruit wine. If not for the welcoming banquet that evening, Huangfu Xu would have gladly ordered two more.
Patting his bulging stomach, Prince Xiaoyao was thoroughly satisfied. As he stood to leave, Fan Zehao called out to him.
"Pay the bill before you go. Don't even think about skipping out, or you'll get beaten!" Fan Zehao said, then walked downstairs.
Huangfu Xu finally came to his senses and hurried after him, asking, "Didn't you say you were treating? Why am I paying!"
"That's right, I'm treating, you're paying. It's that simple, why are you still asking me so foolishly!"
He gave Huangfu Xu a look that said 'you're an idiot', bid farewell to Murong Sheng, and left, leaving Huangfu Xu standing bewildered in the wine house.
When the bill came, it was over four hundred taels. While he wasn't short of money, being swindled like this still pained him greatly.
Prince Xiaoyao realized that spending too much time with Fan Zehao was indeed detrimental to his intelligence.
In the afternoon, Huangfu Pingting left the palace and headed straight for the General's mansion.
Li Chuang saw the Princess and desperately wanted to turn and flee, but he dared not. He could only steel himself and step forward, "Your Highness, are you here to see Fan Xudong?"
"How dare you! I am... I am here to see Madam. I have a tea set for her. Is she here?" His words having exposed her true intentions, her face flushed, and she reprimanded him.
The steward saw the exquisite gift box in her hand and immediately ushered her to the front hall. As they walked, she couldn't help but ask, "How is Young Master Fan's injury?"
Li Chuang turned back and feigned ignorance, "Are you referring to the eldest Young Master Fan, or the second Young Master Fan?"
The Princess was confused. How many people named Fan were there in this General's mansion?
Frowning, she recalled the name Zhao Jiaqi had mentioned and said, "Xudong!"
"Oh, the second Young Master Fan. He's fully recovered. He's been quite busy lately, never idle!" Li Chuang replied naturally.
She cautiously asked Li Chuang, "What kind of business is he so busy with?" Busy to the point of not being home!
"I'm not entirely sure. It seems he's gone to see Brother Sheng, saying he needs to earn money to get married. I don't know the rest, but you could ask my sister-in-law. She knows!"
Li Chuang led her to the front hall and bowed out. Moments later, a maid served tea and pastries and stood by respectfully.
She placed the item in her hand on the table with a thud and became sullen.
After finally getting out of the palace, she heard news of his impending marriage and was so angered she could barely eat the pastries.
The more she thought about it, the angrier she became. "Ungrateful wretch!"
Zhao Jiaqi, walking into the front hall, happened to overhear this remark and asked with a smile, "Who has angered the Princess now?"
"Madam, please don't tease me!" Huangfu Pingting stood up, her usual princess demeanor gone, and said shyly.
The General's wife had long known her feelings; there was no need to mock her further.
"Madam, I heard he is getting married. Is it true?"
Zhao Jiaqi frowned and asked, "Where did you hear such a thing?"
"Isn't it true? I thought he was working so hard to earn money because he wanted to build his own residence and get married!"
Oh heavens! This misunderstanding ran quite deep.
Zhao Jiaqi put her hand to her forehead and explained, "Last time, I paid back 180 taels of silver for you. Then, knowing your status was too high for him, he spent another 570 taels on drinks. All this money was advanced by me. If he doesn't try to earn money to repay me now, will I have to support him for the rest of my life?"
"Ah? It was because of that? Then I'll repay you. You don't have to let him go out to earn money anymore!"
The thought of him, a man, going out to work hard to earn money made her heart ache. It would be better if she paid it herself.
Huangfu Pingting made a move to take out bank notes, but Zhao Jiaqi refused. "If a grown man cannot take responsibility, how can he be a good husband?"
She stood frozen, having never considered it from that perspective. In her understanding, families of high standing were never short of money, always surrounded by attendants, and she had never known what responsibility entailed.
However, upon careful consideration of Zhao Jiaqi's words, she found them quite reasonable.
Therefore, Pingting tucked the bank notes back and subtly said, "But I want to help him, especially since he owes you money because of my affairs."
Zhao Jiaqi asked her solemnly, "Do you love him to the point where you won't marry anyone else?"