Jeune Premier ministre, un ermite

Chapitre 24

"Your Excellency is too kind. I am of humble status and dare not address you as a brother."

"Hey—as long as my brother doesn't mind that I'm old, what's wrong with that?"

"Your Excellency is too kind. As long as Your Excellency is happy, what is there that I cannot do? I will obey your command."

After the two finished exchanging pleasantries, Chen Chang then introduced Wei Zijun to the magistrate. "Fourth brother! Come, this is Magistrate Wu of Lucheng."

Next came the county magistrate, followed by General Meng, General Wang, and several other generals. Then came several wealthy merchants, but what surprised Wei Zijun the most was the arrival of Qiu Zaifang.

"Oh dear! Young Master Wei! I was truly blind to your abilities, actually thinking of giving you such a task. I had long seen your extraordinary bearing and should have guessed then that you were no ordinary person." Qiu Zaifang was also somewhat surprised to encounter Wei Zijun here.

"Manager Qiu, you're too kind. Am I some kind of immortal or some mortal? Manager Qiu, you're right, I am indeed just a commoner. Please don't stand on ceremony." These words sounded neither warm nor cold. But anyone with common sense could tell that this man, Wei, was somewhat disrespectful to Manager Qiu.

Upon hearing this, Qiu Zaifang could only laugh dryly twice. Chen Chang also pulled Wei Zijun towards her seat.

"Brother! Brother! Come, sit next to me." At this moment, Prefect Zhang got up, grabbed Wei Zijun's wrist, and insisted on pulling her to sit next to him.

Wei Zijun sighed and glanced at Chen Chang. She could only sit down with him on the mat.

Once everyone was seated, those beautiful, colorful women fluttered in like butterflies and nestled around them.

"Chen Chang thanks everyone for taking the trouble to come. Gongzhi is very grateful for your hospitality; I feel uneasy about the expense. Since you are all my close friends, I will not stand on ceremony. As Boyuan and I have some errands to attend to tonight, the banquet will begin at noon. Now, would you please have the ladies of Yankun Lane perform a dance for us?" Chen Chang asked for everyone's opinion.

The crowd cheered. The ladies of the music academy then rose and walked gracefully to the center of the two rows of tables. They first congratulated Chen Chang, then bowed to the crowd on both sides, and then formed a line.

The sound of the pipa filled the air, and the women began to dance gracefully. Their delicate veils billowed, their skirts swayed in unison, their slender waists swirled wildly, and their jade belts danced in the air. As the skirts flew up, glimpses of their snow-white feet and calves were revealed. With each dance, the pipa music grew increasingly intense and rapid, and their waists spun faster and faster. Suddenly, several veils flew down, revealing large expanses of the women's breasts. Beads of sweat glistened on their cleavage, trembling and sliding down with each dance.

The men sitting on either side were parched from watching, forgetting to drink any tea, their heavy breathing echoing on their flushed faces. Wei Zijun felt quite embarrassed by this scene, unsure where to look, and could only gaze at the paintings hanging on the wall.

Meanwhile, Prefect Zhang's eyes didn't seem to be on the beauty either. Instead, he kept glancing at Wei Zijun beside him. When he saw her gaze shift from the beauty to the wall, he couldn't help but follow her gaze.

It was a painting of bamboo, orchids, insects, and rocks, executed with a full spectrum of ink techniques, employing dry, wet, thick, light, and burnt ink. The orchids were rendered with flowing lines, their ink tones perfectly balanced; the slender bamboo was vigorous, its leaves seemingly scattered across the paper; and two crickets, painted with a combination of dry and burnt ink, were depicted lifelike on the orchids. The entire painting was vibrant and full of life, even the signature and seal were perfectly placed, indicating that it must have been the work of a master.

As she was admiring and marveling at the sight, Wei Zijun suddenly felt something was amiss, as if a burning, sharp glint was piercing her face. Instinctively, she turned to look at the person opposite her and saw Li Tianqi staring at her probingly. She gave him a slight smile in greeting.

Li Tianqi was taken aback when she suddenly turned her face. His eyes flickered for a moment, and when he saw her smile, he was stunned for a second. However, he quickly regained his composure and asked Wei Zijun, "Why is Fourth Brother looking at those dead things instead of the beautiful women?"

"Second Brother, you are mistaken. A beautiful woman has her own charm, and this ink painting has its own spirit," Wei Zijun replied calmly.

"Oh? So you're saying this ink painting is more attractive to Fourth Brother than a beautiful woman?"

"Second Brother is wrong again. Both beautiful women and ink paintings are attractive, so look at the beautiful women first and then look at the ink paintings." Why does he keep harping on the fact that she doesn't look at the beautiful women? Could it be that he suspects something?

"So, what does Fourth Brother think of that painting?"

"It is not the dead thing that my second brother said it was; on the contrary, it is lifelike."

"Hahaha... I didn't expect my fourth brother to be so accomplished in calligraphy and painting. Does my fourth brother know who painted that picture?"

"Only the studio name is on that inscription, and I don't recognize the seal script, but I suppose it was made by Second Brother." Wei Zijun had already guessed the general idea. If it were made by someone else, he certainly wouldn't have belittled it like that.

"Hahahaha... Fourth Brother! You always surprise me like this!"

"Second brother, please forgive me. I did not mean to frighten you."

"Hahahaha..." Prefect Zhang and several others who heard Wei Zijun's words burst into laughter.

Chen Chang laughed louder than anyone else, "Hahahaha... Boyuan, I've never been able to argue with you. This time you're in for it, your nemesis has appeared... Hahahaha... That's satisfying! That's satisfying!"

Li Tianqi watched Wei Zijun with a mixture of anger and amusement. This quick-witted fellow, when would he shut his two red lips?! Let's see what he says then! Shut them? As his thoughts raced, he looked at those red lips. Shut them? He couldn't help but blush instantly, inwardly cursing himself for having such a rash idea.

[Volume 1, Deer City Chapter: Chapter 22 Birthday (Part 3)]

After a few dances, the pipa music stopped. At Chen Chang's signal, several women went to pull the wealthy merchants out to play.

"Fourth brother! I'll save the best one for you." Chen Chang called out to a woman, "Xin He!"

The woman stepped forward gracefully, her slender waist swaying gently, her figure elegant and poised. Her hair was lightly styled, and her face was rosy and radiant. Her face was distinctly different from the flamboyant beauty of other women; instead, it was incredibly pure, though there was a slight hint of coldness about it. But this coldness only added a touch of nobility to this woman from a music troupe.

"Fourth brother! Let Xinhe serve you. We've reserved a superior room for you there." With that, Chen Chang pointed to a row of side rooms in the backyard.

Wei Zijun looked in the direction Chen Chang was pointing and saw the men who were escorting women straight to the guest rooms. She understood Chen Chang's intention and was immediately extremely embarrassed.

Chen Chang noticed the faint blush on her face and couldn't help but laugh, "What's wrong? Fourth Brother! Haven't you had your turn yet...?"

"Third Brother~~~~~" Wei Zijun said angrily.

"What? Don't be afraid, Third Brother will teach you!" Chen Chang teased, leaning close to Wei Zijun's face.

"Third Brother! You..." Wei Zijun stomped hard on Chen Chang's foot in frustration.

"Ouch... Fourth Brother! How can you, a grown man, be more ruthless than a woman, resorting to such despicable means?" Chen Chang jumped up and down in pain, his rough, handsome face contorted in agony.

"Hahahaha..." Li Tianqi couldn't help but burst into laughter, while several generals under Chen Chang's command also sneered with flushed faces.

Wei Zijun noticed that Prefect Zhang was stroking his beard with an uncontrollable laugh and was somewhat puzzled. "Huh? Those beauties should be prepared for them. I shouldn't let myself get in their way."

"Third Brother! You must take good care of Prefect Zhang." Wei Zijun secretly gestured towards Prefect Zhang.

“Lord Zhang will take care of himself, Fourth Brother, you don’t need to worry,” Chen Chang said with a smile.

"Then you three...you go too...don't worry about me." Wei Zijun didn't know how to say this, but after hesitating for a long time, she finally said it. She didn't want to delay other people's good time.

Upon hearing this, Chen Chang and Li Tianqi both laughed.

"Your second brother is a germaphobe and doesn't touch women outside the army, and we don't allow prostitution in the army. Look at these generals, their faces are red but they don't dare to move, hahaha..." Chen Chang teased his subordinates.