On their return to the city, Pei Shaoqing wasn't wearing a mask, and neither were any of the men behind him. They were all beaming with pride. After all, this was a chance to be seen and celebrated—why would they wear masks?
Pei Shaoqing held the reins, his posture erect as he ambled along on horseback at the head of the procession. Only when he neared the crowd did he leap down. He bowed with clasped fists toward Zheng Xuancheng and announced triumphantly, "Greetings, Hundred Households Commander. I am pleased to report that I have not failed my mission. I have completely wiped out the Phoenix Mountain bandits and slain their leader, Xu Yuanqing!"
"Excellent!" Zheng Xuancheng exclaimed, patting his shoulder with great satisfaction. "Team Leader Pei, you truly haven't disappointed me, nor have you disappointed the people of this entire city!"
Then, his expression turning to one of pain and righteous indignation, he said, "I've already heard. To think that we had a traitor in our midst working with the bandits! Xu Zhiyong, that shameless degenerate! He has disgraced the Jing'an Guard! Thankfully, Team Leader Pei, you saw through him and cleaned house. Otherwise, our Tongzhou Hundred Households would have been utterly humiliated."
"I was surprised as well. You'll need to be more careful with your personnel choices from now on, sir," Pei Shaoqing said with a hint of sarcasm.
Zheng Xuancheng's expression stiffened for a moment.
'Are you telling me how to do my job?'
Although furious, he forced a wry smile and nodded repeatedly. "Quite right, quite right."
The men behind Pei Shaoqing exchanged a look.
'What's our Team Leader's background, anyway? He's dressing down his superior like a subordinate, and the Lord Hundred Households isn't even getting angry.'
"On behalf of all the citizens of this city, I thank Team Leader Pei for saving our lives!" County Magistrate Wang quickly stepped in to smooth things over for Commander Zheng. His face filled with emotion, he bowed deeply and solemnly.
"It's merely my duty. I dare not take the credit," Pei Shaoqing said, though his expression was anything but humble.
Commander Zheng looked at the tall, striking, and cold-faced Ye Hanshuang beside him and said with a smile, "This must be the heroic swordswoman who righted a wrong and helped exterminate the bandits. What an extraordinary bearing."
'Nosy little… no, big bitch!'
"Sir, her name is Ye Hanshuang. From now on, she will be my attendant," Pei Shaoqing explained.
Ye Hanshuang was a woman of few words. "Greetings, sir."
"Ah, no need for formalities, no need at all. It is Team Leader Pei's good fortune to have Lady Ye's assistance, and Lady Ye's blessing to be so highly regarded by Team Leader Pei. Truly a cause for celebration." Commander Zheng was quite the smooth talker. Looking up at the sun, he laughed and said, "It's getting late. The victory banquet is ready. Team Leader Pei, we didn't get to drink our fill last night. We mustn't leave until we're drunk today!"
"Sounds good! After you, Commander," Pei Shaoqing said, gesturing with his hand.
"No, no, no. You are the hero of the hour. You first, please."
Without any false modesty, Pei Shaoqing strode ahead.
"That man is so arrogant. Look at how that Hundred Households Commander and the County Magistrate are fawning all over him. He must be another one of those scions from a powerful family," Zhao Zilan, dressed in a long purple skirt, said with a scornful look as she stared at Pei Shaoqing from the crowd.
Clearly, she hated the rich.
"Lan'Er, be quiet!" Seeing his young disciple speaking so recklessly again, the fair-faced and gentle-looking Gongsun Yi, who sported a fine beard, grew quite angry. He rarely lost his temper with this disciple, whom he and his wife had raised like their own daughter. "If you dare spout such nonsense in public again, I will send you back to the sect myself! Better that than letting your loose tongue bring disaster upon our Iron Sword Sect!"
"Master, please calm your anger! Junior Sister didn't mean it!" The senior disciple, Jiang Yebai—a man as handsome and upright as a pine tree—quickly stepped forward to plead for the woman he loved.
Gongsun Yi glared at this equally troublesome senior disciple. "You're the one who spoiled her!"
Zhao Zilan was frightened. Her face went pale, and she murmured with red-rimmed eyes, "Master, I won't do it again."
"Hmph!" With a dark expression, Gongsun Yi flicked his sleeves.
"There, there, Lan'Er, don't cry." Gongsun Yi's wife, Liu Yuheng, took out a handkerchief embroidered with willow branches and gently wiped Zhao Zilan's tears. She comforted her in a soft voice, "That Team Leader, Pei, is a subordinate official, yet his superior—a Hundred Households Commander of the Jing'an Guard, no less—is willing to humble himself to such an extent for him. It's clear he must come from a prominent family. People like that are always domineering. If he felt you had offended him, it wouldn't just be your fate at stake; the very survival of our Iron Sword Sect could be decided by a single word from him. Your master is only scolding you for your own good."
Hearing his wife's words, Gongsun Yi's heart filled with bitterness and helplessness. He was a grandmaster of the Wandering Dragon Realm. In terms of pure martial prowess, he could take on ten men like Zheng Xuancheng and Pei Shaoqing. And yet, he was terrified of offending the Jing'an Guard, of offending the Government Office.
After all, behind Zheng Xuancheng and Pei Shaoqing stood the Great Zhou Court, with its tens of thousands in the Wandering Dragon Realm, its several Grandmasters, and its massive army clad in Profound Armor.
This was the tragedy of the Jianghu. With the exception of Grandmasters and a few major sects, all the so-called "great heroes" were nothing special in the eyes of court officials.
This was especially true now, as he had traveled far and wide to come to Tongzhou for a crucial purpose, one that concerned whether the Iron Sword Sect could be revived. Thus, he had to be extremely careful at every step, fearing any unexpected complications.
The commotion over here attracted Pei Shaoqing's attention. He turned his head and immediately saw the gentle, voluptuous, and maturely beautiful Liu Yuheng, as well as the pure and adorable young beauty, Zhao Zilan.
The two of them were stunning in their own unique ways, each possessing a different kind of charm. He couldn't help but stare for a moment longer.
When Liu Yuheng sensed someone looking at her, she subconsciously looked up and her eyes met Pei Shaoqing's.
Pei Shaoqing smiled at her, then looked away.
But Liu Yuheng felt a sense of unease. That single glance from him had made her feel a shameful sense of being stripped naked, left for him to appraise as he pleased.
'This man's intentions are crooked. He's not a good person.'
Such was her judgment.
One could only say her judgment of character was spot-on.
...............
The victory banquet was full of laughter and cheerful chatter, but everyone harbored their own ulterior motives.
Pei Shaoqing, the center of everyone's attention, seemed to have lost himself amidst the endless chorus of compliments and flattery.
"Lord Hundred Households." Suddenly, Pei Shaoqing fixed Zheng Xuancheng with a burning gaze and asked, "With Xu Zhiyong's death, the Standard-Bearer position is now vacant. I was wondering what arrangements you intend to make?"
In an instant, the bustling atmosphere gradually quieted down. Everyone was stunned. Pei Shaoqing's meaning was obvious: he wanted the position.
'Talk about wanting to get ahead! He's only been on the job for a day and already wants a promotion. And to so brazenly ask his superior for it, too… That's one gutsy subordinate!'
Zheng Xuancheng was also taken aback for a moment. Then, with a smile that wasn't quite a smile, he retorted, "And what do you think, Team Leader Pei?"
"As the saying goes, 'He who eats the king's grain must bear the king's worries.' I was born under the shadow of the Imperial City and raised in a noble house. I have bathed in His Majesty's grace far more than anyone here. Therefore, I feel it is my responsibility and my duty to take on the vacant position of Standard-Bearer, so that I may repay His Majesty's boundless favor." Pei Shaoqing's face was a mask of loyalty as he clasped his fists toward the far-off Capital City, his voice ringing with conviction.
'Shameless!'
To see him demand a position so righteously, so shamelessly leveraging his background—Zheng Xuancheng, County Magistrate Wang, and the others all cursed him in their hearts.
The other guests at the banquet were astounded. They never thought Lord Pei was actually the scion of a noble house!
"Team Leader Pei's sincere patriotism is truly admirable," Zheng Xuancheng said with a chuckle. "Speaking of which, this vacant Standard-Bearer position has been a real headache. Thankfully, Team Leader Pei has stepped forward to solve my problem. However, my authority is limited, and I cannot make a direct appointment. I'll have to trouble Team Leader Pei to act as the interim Standard-Bearer for now, while I report this to the Thousand Households to request a formal appointment for you."
Of course, he didn't want to promote Pei Shaoqing. But given this bastard's arrogant, domineering personality—the kind of person who would dare to beat Noble Consort Wan's nephew to death in the middle of the street—how could he refuse in front of so many people without offending him?
For now, he needed to placate and mislead Pei Shaoqing. As long as he remained in Tongzhou, he would never escape his grasp.
The thought that this bastard had killed his trusted confidant, and now he had to promote him for it, filled Zheng Xuancheng's heart with a twisted rage. He felt as humiliated as a cuckold being forced to give his rival a push from behind. Dammit all!
Pei Shaoqing was instantly all smiles. He raised his cup and said, "Then I must thank you, Lord Hundred Households!"
'Never mind that getting promoted right after starting a job was against the rules. Rules were made by the powerful to restrain ordinary people, and right now, he was one of the powerful. Besides, all he was asking for was the minor position of Standard-Bearer.'
"Congratulations on your promotion, Lord Pei!" The others in the room raised their cups with smiles that hid a complex mix of feelings.
'Power built on family connections. No use being envious.'
After eating and drinking his fill, Pei Shaoqing feigned drunkenness and left.
"Sir, watch your step. Careful of the threshold."
The fair and plump Song Youcai and the thin, scholarly Sun Youliang solicitously supported Pei Shaoqing, one on each side.
The moment he stepped out of the restaurant, Pei Shaoqing couldn't be bothered to keep up the act. He stood up straight, shook himself free from their hands, and said, "Alright, that's enough. You two go back and keep drinking with the brothers. Hanshuang can see me home."
"Hehe, without you, sir, this wine would taste bland even if it were the nectar of the gods. Take care, sir. I'll be taking my leave as well," Sun Youliang said with a deep bow and a smile.
Song Youcai chimed in with a grin, "Same here. Without you, sir, drinking wine is like drinking piss."
"Crude! How can you use such vulgar language in front of Sir!" Sun Youliang said, looking at him with disdain.
"Old Song here is just a crude fellow, not like you, a Scholar who gave up the pen for the sword. Besides, Sir is magnanimous and open-minded, not petty like you." Song Youcai shot back sarcastically. He then turned back to Pei Shaoqing with a fawning, silly grin. "Right, Sir?"
"I like your straightforwardness." Pei Shaoqing laughed and clapped him on the shoulder. He then looked at Sun Youliang and said, "I didn't realize you held the rank of Scholar. How did you end up in the Jing'an Guard? Sounds like there's a story there. I have some free time tonight. The three of us should have a small gathering. You can tell me all about it."
'He didn't know much about people like Zheng Xuancheng and County Magistrate Wang, so this was a perfect opportunity to get information from Song Youcai and Sun Youliang. Know your enemy and know yourself, and you can fight a hundred battles without defeat.'
'Besides, his former bandit brothers had all become nutrients for his promotion and fortune. He was short on useful people now, so he needed to recruit a couple of trusted lackeys.'
"It would be our honor, sir! We await your summons at any time!" Song Youcai's face was practically splitting from his enormous grin.
The scholar Sun Youliang was more reserved. He bowed respectfully and replied, "Yes, Sir."
"Good. Then let's meet back here at Hongbin House at 7 p.m. Don't be late," Pei Shaoqing said with a wave of his hand as he turned to leave.
The two men called out behind him, "Farewell, Sir!"
"Big Brother, those two look like classic sycophants, the kind who fawn on their superiors and bully those beneath them," Ye Hanshuang said with a cold expression once they were some distance away, her disdain for them clear.
Pei Shaoqing gave a faint smile. "Hanshuang, you only see their sycophancy, but I see their ambition. Petty men? It's precisely petty men like them that are the most useful. They can swallow their pride and they aren't afraid to wield a blade! As long as I show them a path to advancement, they will grab onto it at any cost and be of use to me."
'To put it bluntly, they're just too eager to get ahead.'
'And if they want to get ahead, they'll have to go through hell and high water for me.'
'Besides, I'm no good man myself. Did I really expect to surround myself with righteous gentlemen? If that were the case, I'd be the one who couldn't rest easy.'