Chen Xi led Zhuge Liang and Lu Yu to the inner courtyard. Zhuge Liang naturally made his way to his room, while Chen Xi arranged for Lu Yu to rest in the guest room.
"Welcome back, my lord," greeted a chorus of maidservants as Chen Xi entered. If nothing else, his inner courtyard certainly had an abundance of maidservants.
"Chen Yun, are you getting used to staying at home?" Chen Xi asked, noticing that Chen Yun seemed a bit bored.
"Greetings, my lord," Chen Yun, who had been pretending to read but was actually daydreaming, quickly stood up upon seeing Chen Xi.
"I asked if you're getting used to staying at home," Chen Xi repeated, worried that Fan Jian might have been giving her a hard time.
"Everything is fine, my lord," Chen Yun replied, lowering her head.
"Here, take this," Chen Xi handed her a jade token. "With this, you can freely enter both the inner and outer courtyards. Jian'er won't bother you. She just gets bored easily. Do whatever you like."
"Thank you, my lord," Chen Yun said, bowing gracefully as she accepted the token.
"Who burned down my study?" Chen Xi asked.
"Miss Mi and Miss Zhen were looking for something in your study one evening. They accidentally left an oil lamp burning. We, the maidservants, are not allowed inside your study, so we only noticed the fire after it started," Chen Yun explained, her head still lowered, without hiding anything.
"I see," Chen Xi said, smiling. "Jian'er really is something. If you ever need to check something in the study, feel free to do so, just as long as you don't burn it down."
"Zichuan!" Before Chen Xi could lie down for a rest, he heard Liu Bei's voice from the outer courtyard. Since Liu Bei had arrived, there was no way Chen's steward could have stopped him. However, Liu Bei was always considerate enough never to enter Chen Xi's inner courtyard.
Sighing, Chen Xi got up and muttered a few complaints before heading out. Meanwhile, Chen Yun brought tea and snacks to the front courtyard.
"Lord Xuande, it's been a while," Chen Xi greeted Liu Bei with a smile as soon as they met. He was becoming more relaxed around Liu Bei lately.
"You look well, Zichuan. Hua Tuo was right. You just needed some rest, haha!" Liu Bei laughed, showing a slight shift towards a more carefree demeanor. "I went to pick you up earlier, but after waiting for a while and not seeing you, I figured you must have snuck back home."
"Who's sneaking? I simply returned home as planned," Chen Xi laughed, defending himself. "But I appreciate your effort, Lord Xuande."
"You..." Liu Bei shook his head in mock exasperation. Then his gaze shifted to Chen Yun. "So, this is the famous Chen Yun, who played Bai Suzhen. She does have a refined aura."
"Servant Chen Yun greets the General Who Pacifies the East," Chen Yun quickly bowed in respect.
"All right, you may leave," Chen Xi said, waving her off.
"Lord Xuande, is there something urgent?" Chen Xi asked after Chen Yun had left, pouring Liu Bei a cup of tea.
"Not urgent, but Zijing said that if you don't show up at the administrative office soon, he'll come after you himself," Liu Bei said with a smile.
"Really? Zijing's struggling that much? Isn't he supported by Wenhe, Wenru, Ziyang, Gongyou, Xianhe, Zhongyu, Shuzhi, Gongxi, Hanmou, Boren, and the others?" Chen Xi raised an eyebrow. "With so many people, what could they possibly struggle with?"
"Gongyou is busy with construction. Xianhe and Weishuo are handling the ceremonial procedures for opening government offices. Zhongyu and Boren are revising the laws. Shuzhi is working on Zijing's plans. Gongxi has been sent to Qingzhou by me. After Zilong left, Hanmou became immobilized. Boren just surrendered and isn't familiar with our operations yet," Liu Bei explained with a helpless smile.
They had plenty of talented people, but when Chen Xi left, he had assigned tasks to everyone, leaving no one available to help.
"What about Wenhe, Wenru, and Ziyang? With those three, everything should be manageable," Chen Xi asked, puzzled.
"Ziyang just returned from Qingzhou. Wenru just got back from Xuzhou yesterday. As for Wenhe, he said he's not good at handling these matters, so he didn't get involved, to avoid making mistakes," Liu Bei sighed, recalling the recently overworked Li You and others.
"What a joke!" Chen Xi exclaimed, slamming the table. "Jia Wenhe is shirking his duties! He's letting Zijing shoulder all the burdens alone!"
"Let's deal with Wenhe later. I'm here to talk to you," Liu Bei said, looking at Chen Xi with exasperation.
"How about I send someone over to help? They won't be much worse than me and are as hardworking as Zijing," Chen Xi offered with a sigh. Who knew they'd suddenly run out of competent people?
"You're thinking of Kongming?" Liu Bei asked, pulling a face. When Chen Xi had captured Fazheng, he often had him handle various tasks, calling it 'training.' While Fazheng had indeed developed well, Liu Bei couldn't help but feel a bit sorry for him.
"He's the only one left. Besides, it's time for him to start handling government affairs. This is a good opportunity for him to learn," Chen Xi said with an air of benevolence. However, given Liu Bei's understanding of Chen Xi, he knew Chen Xi was just trying to avoid work.
"Fine, if you don't want to handle government affairs, how about leading the army to Yanzhou to assist the Black Mountain Army with Yide and Zijian?" Liu Bei agreed, seemingly resigned, before quickly changing the subject, catching Chen Xi off guard.
Cough cough "Never mind, I think I'd rather stay in Fenggao and work out the details regarding the Lu family," Chen Xi quickly declined, pretending to cough. He had barely spent any time at home this year. Except for the New Year, he had been busy non-stop.
"You've already arranged for the Lu family to stay at the post station, and Lu Boyan has acknowledged you as his master. The Lu family is now firmly on our side. I'll handle the rest. Tonight, we'll host a banquet to welcome you and the Lu family, and Zijing can report the recent developments," Liu Bei said calmly.
To be honest, Liu Bei still didn't fully grasp the importance of the Lu family. Although Chen Xi and Lu Su had mentioned it, Liu Bei's northern perspective made him more focused on land battles, and he had little understanding of the naval conflicts that would eventually come.
Perhaps Cao Cao felt the same way before the Battle of Red Cliffs. Unless someone enlightened Liu Bei, he likely wouldn't realize the importance of the Lu family until he suffered a significant defeat. This was the difference in understanding between the northern and southern regions.
"Didn't Zijing update you on the progress of his work during this time?" Chen Xi asked, puzzled.