At the banquet, the family filled three tables before finally taking their seats.
There were pregnant women and non-pregnant women; there were young girls, mature women, and older women.
There were women of every age group. When the aunt saw that some women, even those no younger than her, had become Lu Ming's concubines, she was so shocked she didn't know what to say. Was this utter debauchery, or simply extreme promiscuity?
What man would like women of this age, especially since some of them seemed to be pregnant?
"Come, let's eat. Aunt, let's eat. We're in a good mood today, so let's have a few drinks," Lu Ming said, pulling out a glass of high-proof liquor. This was refined liquor; it was created by further distilling low-proof liquor, making it easy to get drunk.
His plan was to get the aunt drunk!
If he wanted a woman, Lu Ming wouldn't wait any longer to make his move. Unless it was a woman of high status like Empress He, who was difficult to deal with, he would never be polite.
"Yes, drink more, it'll lift your spirits and benefit everything. My husband just loves to drink; there's nothing he can't solve. Little sister, you should have a drink too. It's rare to be together, let's have some fun." Zhang Yulan smiled and picked up the wine pot, pouring her little sister a full cup.
Since her husband wanted to sleep with this old woman, Zhang Yulan naturally wouldn't refuse or object.
The reason she was able to maintain her position in the harem, as a concubine, wasn't just because of her strong abilities, but also her excellent social skills.
When she encountered gentle and weak-willed women, like Madam Zou and Diao Chan, she would speak to them gently and softly, with a touch of assertiveness, to make them obey.
But when she encountered daughters of prominent families like Liu Ling and Yang Lu, she showed no mercy. If they disobeyed, she'd beat their maids. Even when beating a dog, one should consider its owner; there were plenty of ways to deal with disobedient children.
Therefore, when Lu Ming revealed his true colors, Zhang Yulan immediately understood and went to persuade her aunt to drink. Once he was drunk, who would know if she was taken advantage of?
The aunt frowned slightly at the smell of alcohol, but had to force herself to drink.
Because that afternoon, Madam Zou had told her that this kind of thing wasn't guaranteed to be resolved; it depended on Lu Ming's mood.
And now, everything needed rebuilding, and there were many things to do. Whether or not there was time to resolve things was another matter.
It would be better to talk more about feelings, chat, and play the emotional card; perhaps that would be much better.
Lu Ming recounted childhood anecdotes and then spoke of his father's sacrifice to protect the county town, vowing to personally avenge his enemies!
Then he spoke of the situation in Luoyang, how he had risen through the ranks despite the Yuan family's obstruction.
His early success, perhaps a bit too much, lowered his aunt's guard.
His wives and concubines, except for Yang Lu and Liu Ling, were all loyal to him; none of them would betray him.
He listened with rapt attention. Invincible on the battlefield, rising steadily in the officialdom—such a man, now a governor of a prefecture at such a young age, his future was limitless.
"Anmin, you are truly a young hero. Seeing you like this, I feel ashamed. It's also because I haven't been able to help you before; you've really had a hard time. This time, I really had no choice, Anmin, I'm sorry." His aunt was a woman of genuine feelings; she always felt ashamed of suddenly coming to his door like this.
Fawning is human nature, but not everyone can do it with a clear conscience.
"It's alright, Aunt, don't be sad. Everything will be alright." Lu Ming naturally had no complaints. Everyone has their own ambitions, and everyone minds their own business; no one will interfere.
Without benefits, there's no support—it's that simple.
Looking at his aunt, who was quietly shedding tears, the attraction between them stirred a beastly urge within him.
Lu Ming suppressed this urge. He didn't know when it started, perhaps after his sexual relationship with his mother, but he had become incredibly beastly.
He wanted to sleep with any woman he saw.
He wanted to possess any beautiful woman he saw, to own her, and he couldn't live without women every day!
After dinner, the concubines left, each returning to their rooms.
Madam Zou helped her aunt, who had been made drunk, to her room. The aunt's two maids were placed in a distant guest room, not allowed to approach.
Lu Ming then tidied up the greenhouse and checked the animal pens, inspecting the livestock.
Six sows sat quietly inside, while a boar grunted and rummaged through its feeder.
The panel displayed the sows' pregnancy progress; once it was complete, they would give birth to wild boars.
He had always paid close attention to the livestock pen's operations, as it contained materials for producing penicillin.
Every step was interconnected; a perfect industrial chain would certainly be exhausting.
However, there would be simplifications later. For now, checking it every few days was sufficient.
That was about it. Lu Ming went to take a shower. He usually preferred cold showers to maintain his energy.
Thinking of his beautiful aunt, drunk, he couldn't help but chuckle lewdly.
His blood aunt, oh well, what could he do? She was quite attractive, a mature woman with lingering charm, delicate yet timid, with a hint of strength—the kind of woman most attractive to men!
Arriving at Zou's room, Lu Ming waited a moment before Zou opened the door and nodded to him. "Your aunt is drunk and fast asleep."
"Hmm, thank you for your trouble." Lu Ming kissed Zou's cheek, offering this charming, mature woman some comfort.
"It's no trouble at all. For my husband, I'd do anything." Zou said shyly, pointing to the wooden bed in the room. "Wherever I sleep tonight, my husband, please do as you please."
"Haha, after you've had a good sleep, I'll feed you again tomorrow, hoping to get you pregnant soon!" Lu Ming chuckled lewdly, touching Zou's lower abdomen.
Feng Qin and her daughter were also pregnant; the women were gradually becoming pregnant.
Before things settled down, he couldn't have sex with pregnant women, so he had to find more women to use as sexual objects.
"Hmm, husband, come in." Zou pulled Lu Ming into the room and went to close the door.