sovbooks Chapter 59 Hypocrisy
Chapter 59 Hypocrisy
At the banquet, Li Chong feigned politeness while Zhu Zhicheng deliberately flattered him, and it could be said that both host and guests enjoyed themselves.
After the banquet ended and it was completely dark, Zhu Zhicheng warmly invited Li Chong to stay at his residence.
"Your Excellency's visit to my humble abode is an honor. How could I not stay here for the night? It would be my pleasure to show you hospitality."
Li Chong, slightly drunk, waved his hand and said, "Grandpa Zhu, we are here to suppress bandits. Our soldiers are all camped outside. How can I, as the commander-in-chief, indulge in pleasure? Let's not talk about staying overnight. We can talk to you again after we return victorious."
Zhu Zhicheng glanced at Zhong Mei, who was struggling to support Li Chong, and a hint of disdain flashed in his eyes.
He spoke grandly and righteously, but he still brought his maids with him when he went to war, which shows that Li Chong was just putting on a show.
Zhu Zhicheng extended a few more warm invitations, but seeing that Li Chong continued to decline, he reluctantly stayed.
"In that case, I will prepare a feast at home and await the good news of the county magistrate's victory."
Li Chong laughed heartily: "That's excellent."
After saying that, Li Chong turned around and said, "Let's go!"
Behind him were Clerk Sun Jun and the county constable, who were accompanying him at the banquet.
After Li Chong led his men into the mountains, they were responsible for coordinating food supplies and providing military provisions.
Watching Li Chong and his group leave, Zhu Zhicheng waved away the others and summoned the steward, instructing him: "Send the news sent during the day, as well as the events of tonight, to the mountains. Remember, tell those two to be careful with their strength. It doesn't matter if others die or are injured, but under no circumstances should they kill the man surnamed Li. Just teach him a lesson."
The bandits gathering in the mountains and forests is a local security issue, and the deaths or injuries of some government officials will not attract much attention.
But if anyone dared to kill the county magistrate, that would be considered a rebellion. The mountain bandits didn't understand these things, but Zhu Zhicheng knew them perfectly well.
"Yes, I'll arrange for someone to go right away." The butler bowed and accepted the order.
At this moment, a thin, pale, and swollen young man next to him spoke up nonchalantly.
"Dad, you're just making a fuss over nothing. That kid and his bunch of good-for-nothings, do you really need an ambush? They'll probably be scared out of their wits if they run into a tiger once they get into the mountains."
Zhu Zhicheng gave him a disappointed look: "How many times have I taught you? You have to be absolutely careful and meticulous in everything you do! All you do is fool around all day. Why don't you learn from the boss?"
Why would I copy him?
Zhu Zhicheng's second son, Zhu Bingzhong, replied nonchalantly, "You always made me study and take the imperial examinations, but wasn't that guy surnamed Li also a graduate of the imperial examinations? And he's still like this, isn't he? I just had someone check, and his carriage is already lined with mattresses. I guess that young lady is going to have a hard time tonight..."
As he spoke, Zhu Bingzhong couldn't help but laugh.
His eyes lacked any of the clarity or sharpness that a young person should have; instead, they were filled with greed and lust.
Li Chong was so shaken up halfway through the journey that he had a mattress placed on his back, but now that mattress has become the reason why others look down on him.
This can be considered an unexpected and positive outcome.
"Father, you shouldn't have given that young lady to him in the first place. I've long since grown tired of those secondhand goods in my room, so that young lady would have been fine too."
As Zhu Bingzhong finished speaking, his eyes suddenly lit up, and he started walking in the direction Li Chong had left.
Zhu Zhicheng knew his son too well and reached out to pull him back.
Although Zhu Zhicheng is old now, Zhu Bingzhong's body, weakened by wine and women, is not as strong as his father's, and Zhu Zhicheng holds him firmly in place.
He gave the steward a wink, signaling him to go and do his errand, and then said earnestly to his son, "Son, I'm getting old, and the Zhu family still needs..."
Zhu Zhicheng was lecturing his son, while Li Chong was discussing Zhu Bingzhong with Zhong Mei.
"Didn't you stay at the Zhu family's house for a while? Wasn't that young man who didn't attend the banquet but showed up later when he saw me off, Zhu Zhicheng's second son?"
Fearing that his son might cause trouble, Zhu Zhicheng did not allow Zhu Bingzhong to attend the banquet, so Li Chong had no way of getting to know the second young master of Zhu.
Zhong Mei stretched her shoulders, then lifted Li Chong up onto her, lowering her voice to say, "You're not really drunk, walk yourself!"
Li Chong chuckled. Seeing the lively Zhong Mei, he couldn't help but want to tease her.
Seeing that she was really struggling, Li Chong straightened up a little and leaned against Zhong Mei to lighten her burden.
With so many people watching, he can't completely stop pretending.
"At least you have a conscience." Zhong Mei breathed a sigh of relief. "You guessed right, that kid is Zhu Lao Er, a bastard, just like his father! Back then, I couldn't reach Zhu Lao Gou, so I planned to kill him to vent my anger, but he ended up being sent to you."
"Hmm." Li Chong nodded slightly.
Sometimes, you have to believe in physiognomy.
Even though Li Chong didn't say a word to Zhu Bingzhong after seeing him, his demeanor and expression told everyone that he was a bad person.
However, now is not the time to consider this matter.
Glancing at the group behind him, Li Chong continued, "Are you all ready? Don't let anything go wrong."
Upon hearing Li Chong's question, Zhong Mei's brows finally showed a hint of excitement.
"Don't worry, even if you fall behind, I won't. It's amazing you could come up with this idea; with such a quick mind, how did you end up as an official?"
Towards the end, Zhongmei's tone still carried a hint of regret.
Li Chong chuckled to himself.
"So what do you think I should be doing with my brain?"
Zhongmei replied without hesitation, "Of course I'll go lead troops into battle! Compared to Uncle Jia, your plan is truly ingenious. It would be a shame if you didn't join the army."
"Go to the army? To cede territory and pay reparations after winning a battle?" Li Chong said sarcastically.
"Uh..." Zhong Mei was speechless. "This..."
After a pause, she realized what she meant: "You're dissatisfied with the high-ranking officials in the imperial court?"
"hehe."
Li Chong raised his hand and pressed Zhong Mei's head back down: "We'll talk about these things later. You should take care of the things in front of you first."
A commotion arose ahead; they had arrived at their campsite for the night.
As expected of a rabble, the food provided by Zhu Zhicheng was quite good, and there was also free alcohol, so these people naturally ate to their hearts' content.
It's still a chaotic mess even now.
"Your Excellency," Sun Jun approached Li Chong, "I'll have them stop right away, so as not to delay tomorrow's itinerary."
"Hey." Li Chong waved his hand casually, "We're not going into the mountains until tomorrow. We still need to find those bandits. We have plenty of time. Let them have some fun. It's better to fight if their morale is high."
"Can……"
Sun Jun hesitated, as if he wanted to say something but then stopped.
But Li Chong, supported by Zhong Mei, was already heading towards the carriage, so he could only remain silent.
"Clerk, why should we worry about so much? We should just follow the magistrate's arrangements."
The others in the group pulled Sun Jun aside to avoid incurring Li Chong's wrath.
A man and a woman are alone together; who can guess what will happen next?
Sun Jun sighed and followed the others to his tent.