Chapter 121 The Right Posture

"Yes, Lord."

Xiao Yibo immediately complied and hurried off to make the arrangements.

Liang Cheng then chimed in teasingly,

"My lord is getting carried away."

Zheng Boye shook his head and said,

"It's not that. Last time, I was just a General of Sheng Le, a miscellaneous general, who relied on gambling his life to take and hold Xue Hai Pass.

Why did I try so hard? Why was I so reckless?

Wasn't it just to force a path upwards for myself through this method?

So,

back then, when I met the imperial envoy, what I was actually seeing wasn't the imperial decree, but an affirmation of my past of blood and fire. After all the hard work, the time had finally come to reap the rewards, so I was naturally excited and couldn't contain myself.

But now, for better or worse, I've entered the mainstream. Even if we put aside Marquis Jingnan's regard for me, I have over 20,000 elite soldiers, mainly cavalry.

And beneath my feet is Xue Hai Pass, which connects Jin and the Snow Plains.

I can be considered someone now. It's not like I can stomp my foot and all of Yan would tremble, but if I really went crazy, causing another disturbance among the wild people wouldn't be a problem.

A person must have the proper demeanor for the position they hold.

This isn't something that can be learned, nor can it be imitated. Forcing it would just be like a monkey wearing a hat, or as you just said, A Cheng, getting carried away.

It's strange,

in my previous life, I ran a studio with just a few people, and my life was simple.

In this life, thanks to you all, I'm living a very exciting life.

I used to think that being superior was very difficult, as if every word I spoke, every action I took, even a cough, had to be full of profound meaning.

Now, I realize that the hardest thing is actually getting to the position of being superior. It's like a dish has already been made and placed in front of you. Now you can use chopsticks or a knife and fork, eat slowly and elegantly, or gorge yourself, it's all up to you."

"But it might attract criticism?" Liang Cheng asked.

"Criticism? Like what you just did?"

"Not just from me," Liang Cheng said.

"That's even simpler. It's like you're sitting in a western restaurant and tell the waiter you want a medium-well steak, and then someone at the next table mocks you for ordering a medium-well steak.

Someone who can find a sense of superiority and ritual from eating a steak must be very insecure and insignificant in their daily life. Why bother paying attention to such a person?"

Liang Cheng nodded and said, "You don't care anymore."

"Yes."

"I understand a little."

Zheng Fan was a little surprised and said, "So, you were really asking me just now?"

"My lord, I'm learning. I'm learning to try and joke, learning to handle relationships between people."

"But I still think the cold you in the comic is cooler."

"My lord, in our eyes, the you from the previous life, staying up late with messy hair, was the most endearing."

Zheng Fan nodded and said, "Yes, people always change. It's good to enjoy the process of change."

"Yes, my lord."

Liang Cheng's setting in the comic was as an ancient zombie, who served as a general for one side during the war of gods and devils, and was later discarded after his achievements overshadowed his lord.

But just as Mo Wan is now obsessed with taking care of children, and Si Niang, who feels nothing for men and just sees brothels as scenery, is now thinking about having a child of her own,

it's normal for this cold zombie to now want to make up for some of his shortcomings.

Zheng Fan walked in front, and Liang Cheng followed behind.

Jin Shuke and the others prepared to salute,

Zheng Fan waved his hand and said,

"Save your energy for kowtowing to the imperial decree later. Let's sit down for a while and have some tea. It'll be a while before the imperial envoy enters the city."

"Yes, Lord."

"Yes, Lord."

In the hall, servants served tea.

These servants were basically a group of orphaned girls adopted by Si Niang in the beginning. After a few years, they hadn't exactly grown up, but they were already capable of doing things. According to the generally beastly aspect of this world, they had reached the age where they could be betrothed, but according to Si Niang's wishes, since the mansion needed people to serve anyway, they would be kept, at least they were familiar faces.

When they grew up a little more, they could be betrothed to the generals or subordinates in the army, which would be a good outcome.

Zheng Boye once asked Si Niang with a smile if this could be considered the Xue Hai Pass version of the Silver Armor Guard?

Si Niang's answer was that regardless of whether it counted or not, the effect was actually the same.

Zheng Boye raised his teacup, and all the generals below also raised their teacups together.

Then,

Zheng Boye smiled,

and everyone smiled along with him.

The imperial envoy arrived quickly, much faster than expected.

This meant that the imperial envoy hadn't slowed down after encountering the sentry cavalry outside Xue Hai Pass, but continued to speed on. Although he wasn't as fast as the messengers who returned to report, this hurried posture was already very clear.

Ordinary imperial envoys would always pay attention to appearances. When they were close to the place, they would stop first. If they were particular, they would take a bath and brush their horses. At the very least, they would change into clean clothes to cover up the dusty smell.

But this one obviously didn't.

Zheng Boye waved his hand,

and said,

"Let's go and welcome the decree with me."

The generals stood up and followed Zheng Fan out of the hall.

At this time, the imperial envoy had just entered the gate of the Earl of Pingye's mansion.

Generally speaking, the decree-announcing team should be an imperial eunuch paired with an official from one of the six ministries.

The rank of the decree-announcing eunuch was uncertain, because eunuchs in the palace, apart from Wei Zhonghe and a few others, often found that one day they were favored and the next day they lost power. However, by looking at the resume and demeanor of the officials from the six ministries, one could roughly gauge the value of the person being declared in the eyes of the emperor and the court officials.

The one holding the imperial decree was a young eunuch, fair-skinned, probably only in his early twenties. To be able to get this job at this age, he must be doing well in the palace.

Behind the young eunuch was a young official, with a dignified appearance, wearing a flying fish pendant on his left waist and a knife on his right waist. This combination seemed a bit unusual.

Although Yan civil officials didn't pay as much attention to etiquette and scholarly demeanor as Qian civil officials, they still had some semblance of it. Few wore swords, let alone knives.

The two groups walked towards each other,

the young eunuch raised the imperial decree,

"Zheng Fan, commander of Xue Hai Pass and Earl of Pingye, receive the decree!"

"Your subject, Zheng Fan, greets His Majesty, long live, long live, long long live!"

Zheng Boye knelt down,

behind him,

all the generals knelt down.

"By the decree of the Emperor, who is mandated by Heaven: Earl of Pingye, Zheng Fan, guards the border for the country, meritorious and hardworking, and has accomplished the great deed of snatching back the princess from Chu. Since I ascended the throne, I have known that clear rewards and punishments are the foundation of rules…"

The reference here to snatching back the princess from Chu was a veiled one.

Naturally, the imperial decree couldn't write it like this: Zheng Fan, you brat, you snatched the Chu princess for me, I'm so happy!

So, it had to be implied, but everyone knew what it meant.

"Especially bestow the title of Grand General Who Establishes the Nation upon Zheng Fan, commander of Xue Hai Pass and Earl of Pingye, and grant him a barbarian knife presented by the barbarians…"

The young official took a long box from a follower behind him and proactively walked to Zheng Fan, opening the box.

Inside the box lay a knife with a simple and ancient design.

The barbarians were very poor, that was true. Many barbarian warriors had incomplete armor, and even the heads of their arrows had to be made by grinding bones. However, the barbarians had one extreme, which was that the weapons and armor used by the barbarian upper class were often surprisingly good.

Because the barbarians were located in the middle of the East and West, to some extent, they could absorb forging and smelting technologies from both the East and West. However, due to their own poverty, they were unable to carry out large-scale production, so they often formed this very awkward situation. The barbarians, who were known for producing precious knives and famous armor, actually had a low rate of armor coverage among the Golden Horde cavalry under their king's court.

"Earl Zheng, please accept the knife," the young official reminded.

This person had a bright smile on his face. This kind of enthusiasm made Zheng Boye a little overwhelmed.

But Zheng Boye still nodded and took out the barbarian knife. The barbarian knife was very heavy. Drawing out a section of it, one could feel its coldness.

This was indeed a precious knife!

All along, Zheng Boye hadn't had any noteworthy weapons. He had encountered many famous swords, but unfortunately, Zheng Boye didn't practice swords, otherwise he would have stolen the Dragon Abyss from the Sword Saint's house next door, which he used to prop up the table.

As for famous knives,

Zheng Boye knew that Marquis Jingnan, that gluttonous beast, had a Kunwu knife in his belly, which was a national treasure bestowed by the Yan Emperor.

He knew it,

but Zheng Boye didn't dare to steal it.

Now it was good,

he had one too.

Although he didn't know to what extent it was "precious," at least it was better than the knives he had used before.

Most importantly, it didn't have any embedded gems or a unique design. It was just simple, simple, and very simple.

This was very much in line with Zheng Boye's battlefield aesthetics. A knife just needed to be good at killing people. All the fancy stuff was just a burden, wasn't it?

Seeing Zheng Fan accept the knife,

the eunuch continued to announce the decree:

"Grant a set of golden armor."

"Huh?"

The young official waved his hand, and two followers carried a box over and opened it. Inside was a suit of golden armor.

This armor couldn't possibly be made of pure gold. How could pure gold armor be worn into battle?

But since it was called golden armor, at least one thing could be guaranteed: under the midday sun, wearing it, you would be the most dazzling person among a thousand armored soldiers.

Zheng Boye whispered to Liang Cheng beside him:

"This armor will be for you."

"My lord, this is an imperial gift, is that alright?"

"On the battlefield, you are me, what's wrong with that?"

Liang Cheng thought for a moment and offered a suggestion. This suggestion proved that Liang Cheng was indeed thinking about and improving his cultivation in dealing with people.

He said:

"It can be given to A Ming."

Zheng Boye's eyes lit up and said:

"That's a good idea."

At the moment, A Ming, who was lying in the ice cellar being watered three times a day and was still unconscious, didn't know that he had been arranged for so clearly, and in such a golden and shining way.

"Ahem..."

Seeing Zheng Fan actually whispering to one of the generals beside him, the decree-announcing eunuch couldn't help but cough.

Of course, this wasn't a great disrespect, because it could be seen as Zheng Boye being overjoyed and overwhelmed by the imperial gifts, and feeling grateful for the emperor's favor.

The young official whispered a reminder: "Lord, there's still more to the decree."

"Huh?"

Zheng Boye immediately knelt properly.

The decree-announcing eunuch continued to read:

"Order Earl of Pingye to enter the capital for an audience before the middle of the fifth month, without fail. This concludes the decree!"

What?

What.

What!

Zheng Boye's eyes immediately widened. Enter the capital?

I just came back from Chu, and now you want me to go to the capital again?

How far was the capital,

well,

Yanjing to the east, to the Mati Mountain range, was considered the border line between the original Yan and Jin. That place was the westernmost part of Jin, and Zheng Boye was now equivalent to being in the easternmost part of Jin.

Previously, when Zheng Boye entered Chu, he went through Mount Meng, and when he came out, he went along the Zhennan Pass line, which was equivalent to going from the western end of Chu to the eastern end. Now, he had to run east-west across Jin again.

Of course, if it was just running, Zheng Boye could accept it. Now, he wouldn't feel sore in his thighs even if he rode a horse for a long time, but the danger factor of entering the capital wasn't low.

The last time he entered the capital, he encountered Marquis Jingnan exterminating his entire family. What about this time?

How long had he been home before he had to go on the road again?

"Earl of Pingye, accept the decree."

Seeing that Zheng Fan was distracted, the decree-announcing eunuch had to remind him.

Zheng Fan took a deep breath and showed a happy and excited smile on his face,

"Your subject accepts the decree and kowtows to thank the Emperor for his grace!"

The decree-announcing eunuch handed the imperial decree to Zheng Fan, and then a flattering smile appeared on his face, and he began to take the initiative to get close to Zheng Fan.

Zheng Boye was also good at handling things.

The reason he didn't go out of the city to welcome the decree earlier was because it wasn't necessary. Obviously, these two people who were delivering the decree didn't think there was anything wrong with Zheng Boye's actions.

Xiao Yibo immediately arranged the reception work, and Zheng Boye suppressed the thousands of thoughts in his mind and personally held the wine to entertain them.

During the banquet, he learned that the young eunuch was named Feng Guan, Wei Zhonghe's adopted son.

And the young official was a section chief in the Ministry of Rites, named Zhang Yuanshan, who was also his "fan."

While drinking, Zhang Yuanshan kept asking Zheng Fan about his past achievements, and it could be seen that he had a deep longing for the battlefield.

After that, Zhang Yuanshan also mentioned which year he passed the imperial examination, which was actually implying that he was someone from the Sixth Prince.

From them, Zheng Fan also learned that Little Sixth had become a father and had a son, whose name was Ji Chuanye. Hmm, a very meaningful name.

Zheng Fan hadn't received Little Sixth's letter yet, but they arrived earlier than Little Sixth's letter and told Zheng Fan the news.

It was fortunate that these two decree announcers were young. If they had been replaced by older eunuchs and officials, they really wouldn't have been able to handle this kind of long-distance journey.

Because the Emperor had stated the latest time for Zheng Boye to enter the capital in the imperial decree, and the journey from Xue Hai Pass to Yanjing was long, Feng Guan and Zhang Yuanshan could only travel frantically when they were coming, and they didn't dare to rest for too long at the post stations except to change horses.

One was because they were afraid that something unexpected would happen on the road and delay them, and the other was because they had to reserve enough time for Zheng Boye to return to the capital. If Zheng Boye was delayed, the Yan Emperor would most likely not pursue Zheng Boye's guilt. The blame would only fall on them, meaning that they announced the decree late, which caused Zheng Boye to miss the deadline.

Finally, Feng Guan reminded Zheng Boye that he had to bring the princess with him on this trip to the capital.

After the reception was almost over, Zheng Fan had the Blind Man continue to accompany them, while he left the table and went out.

With a bit of drunkenness, Zheng Fan took the imperial barbarian knife and walked towards the back house.

The back house was very large. In addition to Zheng Boye's own bedroom and Tian Tian's bedroom, there was also a large area that was not used. One of the flat areas was not planted with flowers and plants, but was specially used as a pen for the gluttonous beast.

To Zheng Fan's surprise, Si Niang was feeding the gluttonous beast with jerky.

The gluttonous beast was very happy to eat. When it saw Zheng Fan coming, it took the initiative to come out of the fence and rubbed against Zheng Fan.

The fence for this thing was just for show, and no one restricted its freedom. Of course, it wouldn't run around blindly, because there were many beings in this earl's mansion that it feared, so it was very docile.

"Why aren't you resting?"

Zheng Fan knew that Si Niang had been sleeping a lot lately, in order to recover from her injuries as soon as possible.

"I woke up, and then I knew about the imperial decree, so I came over to feed it some fat."

On this trip to the capital, Zheng Fan would naturally have to ride this gluttonous beast, after all, this gluttonous beast was bestowed by the palace, and he couldn't justify not riding it back.

Fortunately, there would be some guards along the way, so there wouldn't be too much danger, and he wouldn't be afraid of being too conspicuous.

"My lord, this time, I won't go to the capital with you."

Because of her injuries, Si Niang couldn't exert her maximum strength.

And the demon kings were all like one peg per hole. If someone had to accompany the lord to the capital, then naturally someone had to stay behind.

"Well, I know. It's just a bit of a pity." Zheng Fan looked at Si Niang and smiled. "I thought, hehe, it looks like it's going to be delayed for a while."

"It's also good. When my lord comes back, I'll definitely be fully recovered. I want a baby just like Tian Tian, who won't get sick and can be raised freely."

Tian Tian had been sleeping on the sarcophagus lid of Shatuo Queshi since he was a child, and he even had Mo Wan playing with him, but he had never been sick, and he could entertain himself without crying or making a fuss.

Raising such a child was really worry-free.

"It will." Zheng Fan stretched and said, "This time, I'll have the Blind Man go with me."

"That's natural. The Blind Man hasn't advanced yet."

Si Niang and the Blind Man were both management talents, and one of them had to stay behind.

Anyway, the military system had already been reformed, and the rest was the development of people's livelihood and the operation of commerce this year, which was also Si Niang's forte.

"Also, my lord, please bring Fan Li with you. A Ming still has to lie at home."

"Okay."

After a pause,

Zheng Fan added:

"When I came back a few days ago, I agreed with the Sword Saint that he would go out with me next time I went out."

"That's great."

"But until now, I'm not sure how much he has recovered."

Si Niang smiled and said, "Can he be worse than that sword maker from Chu?"

Hearing this, Zheng Fan nodded and said, "That makes sense."

The sword maker hadn't made a single move, but he could always give people a huge pressure. The Sword Saint's effect would only be greater than the sword maker's.

Seemingly disliking the faint atmosphere of parting sadness in front of her,

the gluttonous beast snorted,

shook its head,

and forcibly disrupted the atmosphere.

Zheng Boye came back to his senses, looked at the gluttonous beast, and waved to Si Niang:

"Come, that's right. I almost forgot something. Help me fix this thing."

As Zheng Boye spoke, he raised the barbarian knife,

"I once saw Tian Wujing pat the gluttonous beast's head on the battlefield, and the gluttonous beast under him spat out the Kunwu knife into Tian Wujing's hand. Tsk tsk, that posture, that action, was really dashing, and I was so envious.

Come, be good, kneel down, open your mouth.

Hmm,

this barbarian knife seems a bit thick. Open your mouth a little wider,

if you dare to close your mouth, I'll just chop off your head with the knife,

hurry,

what kind of gluttonous beast is it if you can't swallow things? A little bigger, I'm going to stick it in."

"..." Gluttonous beast.

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