Chapter 406 - 403: Not a Single One Came
Chapter 406 - 403: Not a Single One Came
Time flew by.
In the blink of an eye, a month had passed.
The bandit suppression event on the vast hills and grasslands had come to a perfect end.
Miao Kuangfeng was stripped of his Wan Fuchang rank and reassigned to suppress bandits in the frontier regions. Before leaving, Miao Kuangfeng made a solemn vow: He would not return alive unless he eradicated all the bandits in the frontier regions!
Bai Daqing, carrying along Hao Niu and Ma Wei, went to the Niu Family to seek redress for grievances. Unexpectedly... the Niu Family played the rogue, refusing to acknowledge their actions. In a fit of rage, Bai Daqing attacked, only to eventually alarm the Niu Family's ancestor, who defeated Bai Daqing within ten moves and left him seriously injured.
What was even more infuriating was that the Niu Family ancestor actually killed Hao Niu and Ma Wei, eliminating any witnesses to the deeds.
Bai Daqing certainly couldn't let the matter rest. He went to the Emperor himself to lodge a complaint. The Emperor, upon hearing the case, was also very angry and personally went to the Niu Family to demand justice.
Seeing the Emperor's arrival, the Niu Family's attitude changed a full one hundred eighty degrees, with a grand reception and profuse apologies. Even the Niu Family's ancestor was polite and spoke kindly.
Other noble families and sects rushed to intercede on their behalf.
The Emperor issued three conditions: first, to compensate the families of the deceased soldiers; second, to hand over ten Spirit Stone mines; third, to write a guarantee that they would never collude with bandits again, failing which the Emperor would deploy his army to annihilate the Niu Family.
All three conditions were harsh, but the Niu Family still gritted their teeth and agreed.
Having no choice and being overpowered by the situation, the Niu Family had to accept their downfall.
After severely dealing with the Niu Family, the Emperor departed.
This incident eventually leaked out and became a popular topic of conversation, completely dishonoring the Niu Family.
...
Gao Fei, due to his meritorious service in the bandit suppression, was exceptionally promoted to Chiliarch, commanding thousands of troops.
As a Chiliarch, his power increased, but so did his troubles.
Inside the hall.
Gao Fei, Chen San, and Liu Qing sat around a table, sipping tea and talking in hushed tones.
Chen San and Liu Qing could be considered lucky to have survived the bandits' assassination attempts. Their toughness was truly remarkable.
"How is it? What's the reaction of the soldiers below?" Gao Fei asked.
"The soldiers don't have much of an issue... it's the officers...some are problematic..." Chen San hesitated.
"What kind of problems?" Gao Fei didn't understand. "Be more specific."
"Liu Qing, you tell him," Chen San, embarrassed to speak, pushed the difficult topic onto Liu Qing.
"You..." Liu Qing glared at Chen San: "Too shy to say it yourself, so you make me do it, you're really too much."
"Hey." Gao Fei slapped the table: "What's all this? Can't you speak plainly? Liu Qing! You say it! What exactly is going on?"
Named by Gao Fei, Liu Qing could no longer avoid it and had to honestly reply: "The officers below are very stubborn and hot-tempered...they don't really accept you as their superior..."
"They don't accept me?" Gao Fei frowned: "I am a Chiliarch personally appointed by our lord, what right do they have not to accept me?"
"Uh... it's mainly because your cultivation...is a bit lower..."
"Normally, only those who have reached the Nascent Soul Stage can be a Chiliarch..."
"You made a great achievement this time, and our lord promoted you exceptionally..."
"An exceptional promotion is a good thing, but it's difficult to intimidate the officers below."
...
"So that's the reason." Gao Fei nodded: "I understand. If I were in their place, I'd have feelings about it too."
"Don't mind those officers. Once your cultivation level goes up, they'll fall in line."
"Yes, don't get upset over it, it's not worth it," Chen San and Liu Qing advised.
Gao Fei shook his head, "I'm not angry...really, I'm not angry at all..." As he said this, Gao Fei paused for a moment, "Here's what we'll do. I'll host a dinner tonight to welcome those generals, get to know them a bit, understand each other. I'll leave it to you guys to arrange this."
"Ay, understood." Chen San and Liu Qing stood up and left.
Gao Fei leaned back in his chair and stroked his smooth chin, "Thinking about it, my Cultivation is a bit low...I have to work harder from now on, quickly raise my Cultivation, then I won't have to worry about those generals causing trouble."
...
Time flew by.
In the blink of an eye, it was dark.
In the center of the hall was a large table, covered with a variety of dishes, and there were also a few jars of fine wine.
Gao Fei sat in the seat of honor, while Chen San and Liu Qing stood at the door to welcome guests.
Time ticked away...
"Why haven't they arrived yet?" Gao Fei frowned.
"I'm not sure," said Chen San, "Liu Qing and I notified each one personally, and all those generals had agreed..."
"Let's wait a bit longer," Gao Fei continued to wait patiently.
He waited a full hour, and the dishes were all cold.
Those generals still hadn't come.
Gao Fei's expression slowly turned ugly, "Not a single one came? Was this all prearranged? Are they trying to show me up?"
"I'll go find them right now!" Chen San took a step towards the door.
"Come back!" Gao Fei barked, "If they won't come, then we'll eat by ourselves." Having said this, Gao Fei picked up his chopsticks and began serving himself.
"My lord..."
"Didn't you hear what I said?"
"Heard it..."
Chen San and Liu Qing came over and pulled out chairs to sit down.
"Don't just sit there, hurry up and eat. Let's finish off a table full of dishes." Gao Fei lifted his cup and took a sip, "Mmm, good wine! Come on, let's drink up!"
Chen San and Liu Qing hurriedly raised their cups, clinked them lightly with Gao Fei's, and then drained them in one go.
"My Lord, those bastards..." Chen San began to speak but was immediately cut off by Gao Fei.
All he saw was Gao Fei waving his hand, "Don't talk about them! Just pick up your chopsticks and eat, eat to your heart's content!"
For the following period, the three men stopped talking and just focused on eating and drinking.
Before long, they had finished all the dishes on the table and emptied the wine jars; they leaned back in their chairs, continuously burping.
"Refreshing," Gao Fei patted his rounded belly and laughed, "It's been a long time since I've had such a good time."
"My lord, it's suffocating inside," Chen San said through clenched teeth, "Those generals are such bastards. They agreed to come to the banquet, but in the end, not a single one showed up! It's infuriating!"
"It was on purpose! Definitely on purpose!" Liu Qing shouted, "They teamed up to put you in your place, to make you lose face!"
"No matter," Gao Fei gestured with his hand, "A bunch of little shrimps can't stir up big waves! It's getting late, you both should go back and rest."
"My lord..."
"Go rest, we can talk about it tomorrow if there's anything."
"...then, we'll take our leave."
Chen San and Liu Qing stood up and left, faces grim, feeling seriously vexed by the meal they just had.
After Chen San and Liu Qing left, Gao Fei's face slowly grew darker, and a sharp light flickered in his eyes, "Trying to put me in my place? Make me lose face? Courageous of you! Hmm! Since you've chosen to go against me, then don't blame me for being ruthless!"
Gao Fei was not one to suffer losses quietly. If he was wronged, he would certainly strike back.
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