Tang Qingyuan’s hand, which was holding the tea, paused briefly. Then he brought the cup to his lips and took a light sip, as if savoring the tea. After a long moment, he spoke: "Those above have their own considerations. What does my view matter?"

Shen Hao also took a sip of tea. He wasn’t particularly fond of the slightly bitter fragrance—tea, for him, was more for quenching thirst than enjoyment. For pleasure, he much preferred drinking wine.

"Lord Tang, you’re mistaken. You are currently ’temporarily acting’ as Chief Officer. Your opinion is not something we can ignore."

"What exactly are you getting at? Don’t try to beat around the bush—just say it. Is there some message you’re here to deliver?"

Shen Hao laughed heartily: "Lord Tang, you know my abilities well. Where would I get the skill to advise you? But have you noticed that, these days, the other Deputy Thousand Households have all been remarkably subdued? And, if I’m not mistaken, they spend very little time in the Public Office?"

"No need for your guess—I can tell you directly: you’re right. The three Deputy Thousand Households have all been... hmm... as you said, very subdued, and are often not in the Public Office. They cooperate wholeheartedly with every affair, never saying a word. Why? Do you find it improper?"

Tang Qingyuan put down his teacup and straightened up a bit. Though he still wasn’t used to speaking as equals with the young man across from him, he couldn’t deny that Shen Hao was no simple character. His insights always struck at the heart of things, and, truth be told, sometimes he understood the tricks of officialdom even better than Tang Qingyuan, the old hand. 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

As such, what ought to be heard, he must indeed listen to.

"I think those three are busy currying favor, simply have no time to tangle with you, Lord Tang. That’s why they’ve been so quiet lately. What do you think?"

Tang Qingyuan was, in fact, a decent man—someone Shen Hao considered a benefactor, and afterward, the two had built a fair degree of mutual understanding in many matters. Naturally, he couldn’t see a problem and not remind him. One just had to be careful with the manner, lest Tang Qingyuan misunderstand and regret follow.

"Heh. What are you implying—saying they’re busy currying favor to get the Thousand Households Officer position of Fengri City?"

"Of course."

Tang Qingyuan: "..."

Silence fell again. Only, Tang Qingyuan’s expression turned somewhat sour. He understood Shen Hao’s meaning: Shen Hao was warning him not to harbor fantasies about ’being confirmed in post’. It was, indeed, a dispiriting message.

"No chance at all?"

"I don’t think so. This time, it’s clear Lord Jiang is signaling the other three Deputy Thousand Households, prompting them to show their stance. When Wu Changhe held the post, these three didn’t express strong allegiance, so Lord Jiang will likely promote from among them in place—or else appoint someone from above.

As for you, this time you’re just holding the fort. You’d best be clear-eyed about it."

Tang Qingyuan wasn’t some greenhorn, and though the words stung, he was sensible. He picked up the teacup as if in a toast, drained it in one go, shook his head, muttered about feeling tired, and got up to leave.

His departing figure was somewhat desolate, and Shen Hao couldn’t help but sigh.

Tang Qingyuan’s official career had likely reached its peak. At his age, for a Gathering Spirit Realm Eighth Layer cultivator, it was still early, but he had no hope of further progress. The ups and downs—always toying with people.

Shen Hao sat alone in the empty tea room, drinking by himself.

It was rare to enjoy such leisure and comfort; he hadn’t emptied his mind and sat quietly alone like this for a long time. Usually, it was either focused cultivation or constant scheming—any talk of not being tired was a lie. Though his heart held a ton of frustration, longing to climb higher and see what new scenery awaited.

He drank more than half the pot of tea; it had grown cold. Shen Hao put down a silver ingot and left.

Fengri City’s nights had grown chilly as well. The patrolling governmental officials all wore thick robes; upon seeing Shen Hao, they saluted him before quickly walking off.

Go home?

Shen Hao turned toward Hong’en Hall.

...

The next morning, Shen Hao woke up in high spirits, but the two women on the soft couch were still deeply asleep. Ordinary people just couldn’t handle the exertions of a Gathering Spirit cultivator; even songstresses versed in Charm Skill couldn’t handle Shen Hao alone anymore.

Shen Hao generously tipped double for the night. And, for some reason, the familiar phrase came to mind: "I want to fight ten!"

Perhaps the day he’d actually say that wasn’t far off?

He stepped outside intending to find a noodle stall for a bowl of sour soup noodles for breakfast, but no sooner had he left the Warm Pavilion than a maid called out, saying Lian Xiang had made breakfast and invited him to join her—and that, apparently, she’d cooked sour soup noodles as well.

"Then I’d be honored to accept."

Truth be told, it had been a while since Shen Hao had seen that little fairy Lian Xiang. Last night, he’d come in late, chosen two companions, and entered the Warm Pavilion. He hadn’t expected an invitation so early in the morning.

He’d assumed it was in Hong’en Hall itself, but the maid led Shen Hao out the back door, circled around, and into a small courtyard behind the Hall. Only then did he realize Lian Xiang didn’t live inside Hong’en Hall.

As he entered the courtyard, the sour and spicy aroma of sour soup noodles hit him, making his mouth water and appetite surge.

"Lord Shen, good morning."

"Good morning, Miss Lian Xiang."

It was the first time he’d seen Lian Xiang without her heavy makeup. Her bare face was no less lovely; her skin was impossibly fair and flushed, as if it would burst at a touch.

"What’s wrong? Don’t recognize me, Lord Shen?" Lian Xiang caught Shen Hao staring, reached up to brush aside some hair by her ear, cocked her head, and boldly met Shen Hao’s gaze.

"Ha, Miss Lian Xiang without makeup is even more stunning—I got mesmerized for a moment." Shen Hao cupped his hands, moved to the table, and sat down. The maid quickly brought over a big bowl of noodles, topped with green vegetables and fiery red chili oil—the sour aroma made Shen Hao swallow a mouthful of saliva.

"Gulp!"

The sound of swallowing was loud enough that Lian Xiang and the lingering maid both covered their mouths and giggled.

"I mixed the seasoning myself—come, try it!"

"Alright."

Shen Hao slurped up a huge mouthful. The flavor was excellent—perfectly balanced sour and spicy, no less tasty than the noodles Li Erfu made at home, craftsmanship indeed!

"Whew! I never expected Miss Lian Xiang to be so skilled—delicious! Impressive!" he said between mouthfuls, not even raising his head, busy slurping noodles.

Lian Xiang laughed happily, resting her chin on her hands, watching Shen Hao eat with interest. Her eyes seemed to shine with flowing light.

One bowl finished, breakfast was settled. Shen Hao didn’t mean to linger; he thanked her, then rose to leave.

As soon as Shen Hao left, the maid sidled up to Lian Xiang with a smile: "Miss, I made a point of checking his neck just now—didn’t see the Jade Token you gave him. Looks like, although Lord Shen is young, he’s quite shrewd."

"Yes, not so easy to handle. Should I offer him a sweeter bait?"

"Hehe, that’ll be up to you, Miss. But Sect Leader did instruct you to get close with Lord Shen a bit more."