Chapter 69: Please Have Some Tea

Hearing the outcome, Zheng Fan suddenly felt a little melancholy.

People were creatures of double standards. Absolute rationality did not exist.

As far as Zheng Fan was concerned, he felt no particular sense of belonging toward either the barbarian tribes or the State of Yan. Nor would he deliberately place himself in either side’s position when considering the matter.

On a purely personal level, however, he had fed the slovenly man. The slovenly man had carried a carriage over his head, run with it, smashed it to pieces, then played along with Zheng Fan’s little performance—giving him a ladder to the heavens before dying.

When someone treated you well, it was only natural to feel warmly toward them.

But now, he was dead.

Because Zheng Fan had lost consciousness, he had failed to witness the man’s final blaze of glory.

That was indeed a regret.

Perhaps, though, it was also a kind of blessing.

“Now that you’re awake, I can finally stop worrying.”

Only then did Zheng Fan pull himself free of his emotions.

His gaze settled upon the new blue-chip investment he had selected—

His Highness, the Sixth Prince.

Seeing Zheng Fan staring at him, the Sixth Prince instinctively touched his own face.

Curious, he asked, “Is there something on my face?”

Zheng Fan shook his head.

The Sixth Prince’s face was very pale.

As pale as A’Ming’s.

But A’Ming was a vampire, so his pallor was natural.

The Sixth Prince, on the other hand, clearly had the look of a man whose body had been hollowed out by wine and women.

“The Princess has arrived!”

“Tsk. My dear future sister-in-law is here.”

At those words, Zheng Fan immediately rose.

The wound in his abdomen still throbbed with pain, but he could no longer concern himself with that.

If he had been a woman, the Sixth Prince might have pressed him back down and said something like, It’s fine. My sister-in-law is family. There’s no need to fuss over ceremony, especially while you’re wounded.

But Zheng Fan was a grown man.

A grown man in the army.

So the Sixth Prince said nothing either, merely turning toward the doorway.

Soon, a woman in a long purple gown entered.

And then something astonishing happened.

The Sixth Prince actually stepped sideways, then knelt before the Princess.

“Little Six greets Elder Sister.”

An imperial prince kneeling in greeting!

Zheng Fan’s heart jolted.

Looking at the Sixth Prince’s back, he suddenly felt a chill crawl through him.

His instincts told him that beneath this prince’s mild exterior lurked a ruthless bastard of terrifying caliber.

Fortunately, only Zheng Fan and Seventh Uncle—the old, wrinkled man accompanying the Princess—were present in the room.

There were no other servants.

Thus, very few people witnessed the scene.

“Little Six, do you think my family hasn’t accumulated enough crimes already? Are you trying to add arrogance and gross disrespect toward the imperial clan to the list?”

The Princess’s voice was very pleasant.

“How would I dare? Isn’t it only proper for a younger brother to greet his elder sister?

“When we were children, Elder Sister even took me riding. You count as half my teacher.

“Who would dare make an issue of this?”

“Enough. Are you hurt?”

“Thanks to Elder Sister’s blessings, your little brother is perfectly fine.”

At that moment, the Princess shifted her gaze away from the Sixth Prince and onto Zheng Fan.

The Sixth Prince’s sudden kneeling had thrown Zheng Fan’s rhythm completely off.

As a result, he had not yet knelt himself.

And because of that, his eyes happened to meet the Princess’s directly.

Back in the military tent, this woman had been wearing red armor.

At the time, Zheng Fan’s mind had even wandered toward whether the armor produced some sort of bra effect.

Now he was finally seeing her properly.

And this time, she was wearing a dress.

Whew...

All he could say was that this woman possessed the dignified grace and elegance of an eastern beauty, while having the tall, statuesque figure of a northern woman.

She would not lose out even to one of those towering Western beauties.

A trace of deeper meaning suddenly appeared in the Princess’s eyes.

Zheng Fan immediately dropped to one knee.

“Zheng Fan, Lieutenant Commander of Merchant Protection stationed at Tiger Head City under the Zhenbei Army, pays respects to the Princess!”

“Heh.”

The Princess laughed.

Zheng Fan lowered his head even farther.

In his mind, he had already started treating this woman as the incarnation of Wu Zetian.

She was absolutely not the sort of girl you could fool with a love letter, a lollipop, or four or five qian of silver.

“Oh? I was wondering who saved Little Six.

“So it was you, Lieutenant Commander Zheng.

“I truly didn’t expect us to meet again so soon.”

“Elder Sister knows him?” the Sixth Prince asked with an ingratiating smile.

“When we attacked the Shatuo Tribe last time, he was only a civilian laborer.

“Yet he took more than ten heads in battle.

“One of them belonged to the leader of the Shatuo Tribe.

“And how long has it been since then?

“Now he has saved the Sixth Prince of the current dynasty as well.

“Lieutenant Commander Zheng, tell me— why do all the good things in this world keep happening to you?”

“This general only knows to faithfully perform his duty. I have never coveted merit.”

“Faithfully perform your duty?”

The Princess stepped backward.

The sword-bearing elder behind her moved three steps forward and arrived before Zheng Fan.

With one hand, he reached for him.

Zheng Fan’s body twitched.

But he suppressed his instincts and did not resist.

BUZZ!

The elder’s fingers clamped onto Zheng Fan’s shoulder like an eagle’s talons.

Immediately afterward, a warm force flowed into him.

The qi and blood within Zheng Fan’s body began surging beyond his control.

A layer of black radiance emerged over him.

The elder released Zheng Fan and stepped back.

“Ninth-Grade Martial Artist.”

The Princess’s gaze sharpened slightly.

“What about last time?”

Seventh Uncle answered, “Last time, there was no fluctuation of circulating qi and blood in his body.”

“Tsk...”

The Princess stepped aside and sat in a chair.

She crossed one leg over the other, in the same posture women of later generations often used while watching television in the living room.

Besides, Yan had never placed much emphasis on rigid ritual propriety.

That was especially true in the north, where women enjoyed considerably greater freedom.

And she was the Princess.

Who would dare lecture her about posture?

“Lieutenant Commander Zheng, you’ve truly opened my eyes.

“Not only are you extraordinarily lucky, earning merit wherever you go, you’re apparently a martial prodigy as well.

“For an ordinary Martial Artist, going from half a step below Ninth Grade to actually entering the grades in two or three years would already count as exceptional talent.

“But you?

“How long has it been?

“And you’ve already done it.”

“Thank you for the Princess’s praise. In the past, this subordinate only knew how to rely on brute force when fighting.

“After becoming a Lieutenant Commander, I received guidance from a Martial Artist in the army.

“Only then did I make progress.”

“Can progress really be this great?”

“Yes.

“That military instructor said this subordinate is a martial genius seen only once in a century!”

As he said this, Zheng Fan thrust out his chest.

In truth, Zheng Fan had never expected himself to lose consciousness.

He certainly had not expected the Sixth Prince to bring him into the residence.

And he had expected even less that the Princess would arrive immediately after he woke.

His most urgent task now was to erase the suspicion in her heart.

Under no circumstances could he allow her to suspect that he had ulterior motives.

Even though... he absolutely did have ulterior motives.

“Seventh Uncle, what do you think?”

“Reporting to the Princess, this young man’s qi and blood are surging somewhat wildly.

“He has indeed only recently entered the grades.

“Yet his qi and blood are also exceptionally dense.

“That proves his foundation is extremely solid.”

“Hmm?”

The Princess looked at the sword-bearing elder in some surprise.

Putting on the curious expression of a young girl, she asked, “From the sound of that, Seventh Uncle, have you taken a liking to this brat’s talent?”

“Disciple Zheng Fan greets Master!!!”

THUD!

His one-knee salute instantly became a full kneel.

Forehead to the floor!

Siniang was not beside him.

Something must have happened while he was unconscious that made it inconvenient for her to remain at his side.

That made sense.

Her disguise techniques might fool ordinary people, but the residence of the Marquis of Zhenbei was filled with experts.

It would be difficult to deceive them.

So once again, Zheng Fan had been left alone to handle the situation.

At a time like this, kowtowing and acquiring a master seemed like an excellent bargain.

If the Blind Man or A’Ming were here, they would probably be pressing his head against the floor themselves.

After all, the Master’s dignity was not particularly important to them.

Who knew whether they would all have their accounts deleted if the Master got himself killed?

“Heh. Look at him. Just look at him, Seventh Uncle.

“This brat certainly knows how to climb the pole the instant one is offered.”

Seventh Uncle merely smiled reservedly.

“You want to become Seventh Uncle’s disciple?

“Fine.

“But there is something I think we should discuss first.

“That business at Meijiawu a few days ago— was that your doing?”

“Yes!”

Zheng Fan admitted it without hesitation.

“And you acted under the banner of my residence of the Marquis of Zhenbei?”

“Yes!”

“Why?”

“Because this subordinate wants to develop his own power.

“I want to recruit soldiers and buy horses.

“I want territory.

“I want authority.

“I want wealth and glory.

“I want more and more gold and silver.

“And I want to sleep with more and more beautiful women!”

“Vulgar!”

The Sixth Prince suddenly pointed at Zheng Fan and rebuked him.

“You oaf! How dare you utter such crude words in front of my elder sister!”

It looked as though the Sixth Prince was scolding Zheng Fan.

In reality, he was helping excuse him.

He was merely a simple fool obsessed with gold, silver, and women.

Those in power were not afraid of subordinates who loved money.

What they feared were men who kept their sleeves spotless while fishing for a reputation of incorruptibility!

“You are honest, at least.

“Then let me ask you this.

“When I offered to let you become a retainer of my Li Clan, why did you refuse?”

“Because at the time, this subordinate only wanted to return home in glory, become an official, and rake in silver.”

“That answer isn’t bad.

“Not a drop leaks through.”

The Princess stood.

She walked over to Zheng Fan.

Then bent down.

Zheng Fan slowly raised his head.

At that moment, his face and hers were extremely, extremely close.

“My instincts tell me you aren’t that simple.

“Your achievements last time could still be explained by luck.

“But saving an imperial prince this time?

“I truly don’t think luck alone explains it.”

“Then this subordinate must have colluded with the barbarian Left Guli King beforehand.

“The Left Guli King agreed to put on a performance with me and hand this subordinate a great achievement.”

“Hehehehe...”

The Princess straightened and covered her mouth as she laughed.

Seventh Uncle laughed too.

So did the Sixth Prince.

Clearly, all of them considered that the greatest joke imaginable.

Zheng Fan laughed as well.

Only inwardly.

Apparently, sometimes when you told people the truth, they refused to believe you.

“Seventh Uncle, this man is not simple,” the Princess warned.

Seventh Uncle nodded.

“I know.”

The Princess looked at the Sixth Prince again.

“I’ve heard that in recent years, the capital has begun catching some of the habits of Qian and Jin.

“There are more and more nobles in the capital who prefer men.

“Little Six— what about you?”

“Listen to Elder Sister. I’m only an idle little prince.

“My task in this lifetime is basically the same as a breeding boar’s— produce more children for our Ji Clan and spread the branches.

“If I can’t even accomplish that task, who knows how Father Emperor would deal with me?”

“What a pity.

“Little Six, take a look at our Lieutenant Commander Zheng.

“Not only is his luck extraordinarily prosperous, he’s excellent material for martial cultivation too.

“If you took him into your bedchamber, perhaps some of that fortune would rub off on you.”

“Elder Sister jests. Absolutely not. Absolutely not.”

At that moment, a blue bird flew through the window.

It landed on the Princess’s shoulder and whispered into her ear.

“Elder Sister, has something happened?”

The Princess nodded.

“The barbarian Royal Court has sent people.

“They want the Left Guli King’s corpse returned.”

“Heh. So they’ve come to collect the body.

“What does Elder Sister intend to do?”

“If I don’t leave him hanging out there for seven days and seven nights, outsiders might start thinking the residence of the Marquis of Zhenbei is easy to bully.”

As the Princess spoke, her eyes remained fixed on the Sixth Prince.

“But what if the barbarian Royal Court refuses to let the matter rest?

“He was, after all, the Royal Court’s Left Guli King.”

“Little Six.”

“Your little brother is listening.”

“Put it this way.

“If Father hadn’t spoken to the seven Regional Commanders before leaving for the capital and prevented me from mobilizing more Zhenbei cavalry, do you think the only thing I would have exterminated was a single Shatuo Tribe?

“If Father had handed me complete command of the Zhenbei Army before he left, I probably would have led the army straight out to destroy the barbarian Royal Court itself.

“Would I still be waiting for them to send someone here today and demand an explanation from me?”

“Yes. Elder Sister is mighty.

“A heroine who yields nothing to men.

“Your little brother is ashamed of his inferiority.”

There was another meaning hidden within those words.

A warning.

If her father had not ordered restraint, then this young woman could have led three hundred thousand soldiers against the barbarian Royal Court.

Naturally.

But she could just as easily have led those three hundred thousand soldiers south against the capital of The Great Yan Dynasty!

“Enough. Today is Mother’s birthday. I don’t want her exhausting herself.

“I’ll go deal with the envoys.

“Little Six, stay here and entertain your savior.”

Then, the Princess looked at Zheng Fan again.

“Once your wounds have recovered, you may seek out Seventh Uncle.

“As for whether Seventh Uncle is willing to accept you then— that will depend on your own fortune.”

With that, the Princess left the room.

Seventh Uncle followed closely behind.

He did not spare Zheng Fan another glance.

...

“Whew...

“She’s finally gone.”

The Sixth Prince sat down and poured himself tea.

Zheng Fan slowly rose, one hand pressed against the wound in his abdomen.

“I’m curious.

“Why did you save me?”

“Because ever since I was young, my mother taught me to remain loyal to the Emperor of Yan, to devote myself to the State of Yan, to serve with absolute loyalty—”

“Stop, stop.

“I want the truth.”

“Because you’re a prince.

“Otherwise, why didn’t I block the blade for all those princely guards who got killed?”

“Hiss...

“Tsk, tsk, tsk.

“You’re really that straightforward?”

“Your Highness asked for it.”

“Fine.

“I like the way you speak.

“Let’s be direct with each other. No complications. Makes conversation much more pleasant.

“How about this?

“Since you saved my life, from now on, when we speak, we’ll address each other according to age.

“What do you think?

“Otherwise neither of us will speak from the heart.”

Why did this line sound so familiar?

“Don’t be restrained.

“Just talk to me the way you were talking a moment ago.

“That was good.

“Really...”

“My dear little brother.”

“...”

The Sixth Prince stared.

“My dear little brother, your elder brother here—”

“Enough, enough! Stop! Forget it!

“I take back what I just said.

“I genuinely can’t handle this.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“I could tell just now that you’re an ambitious fellow.

“Unfortunately, if my Eldest Brother or Second Brother were here and you had saved one of them, you might have soared straight into wealth and rank.

“What a pity.

“You saved a useless idle prince.

“The only place under my authority is Shanglin Park.

“If you want me to secure you an official post, the best I can do is send you there to raise dogs or horses.

“A dog official or a glorified horse keeper— neither sounds particularly impressive.

“I’d be embarrassed to offer either.”

“Actually, this subordinate could also tell just now that Your Highness is no creature destined to remain in a pond.”

At those words, the Sixth Prince’s expression suddenly calmed.

“You’ve misjudged me there.

“My greatest ambition in this lifetime is to spend it safely as an idle prince.”

“Generally speaking, every emperor who ultimately ascends the throne says something like that while he’s still a prince.”

“Eh?”

The Sixth Prince exclaimed in surprise.

He could not help pointing at Zheng Fan.

“Tsk, tsk.

“That was a good line.

“Reward-worthy.”

Then, the Sixth Prince pushed the cup of tea he had just brewed across to Zheng Fan.

“I invite you to have some tea.”

(End of Chapter)