MLMD -Chapter 179 Attending the Banquet

After leaving the Grand Market, Yue Yang remained unusually silent. Even after returning to the military training grounds, he stayed quiet, lost in thought for hours on end. His silence made even old hands like Hu Laosan—who had followed Yue Yang for many years—feel uneasy.

Fortunately, by evening, Yue Yang finally returned to his normal self and began speaking with those around him. His first words were: “Hu Laosan, call everyone. We’re going to the banquet!”

Shortly after the hour of You (around 5–7 p.m.), Yue Yang, accompanied by Hu Laosan, Wu Chengfeng, Feng Xiaoming, and five or six other officers, arrived at the Zhuangyuan Tower directly across from the Grand Market. The Zhuangyuan Tower covered nearly two acres and soared more than thirty meters high. The entire structure was built with stone and green bricks mixed with glutinous rice paste, reinforced with significant amounts of wood. Inside, it even preserved the calligraphy of the famous Ming-era official Li Xiangyang, making it a long-standing landmark and symbol of Hunyuan Prefecture.

When Yue Yang and his entourage arrived, the bustling daytime market had already closed. Instead, the streets were now lined with soldiers wearing paired “mandarin duck” battle jackets. Observing their stiff, chest-out, ready-for-battle postures, Yue Yang’s lips twitched slightly. Having fought in countless battles, he could immediately gauge a military unit’s capability. These street-posted soldiers, in his eyes, were at most a gang of thugs dressed in armor—a purely decorative display.

At the foot of the Zhuangyuan Tower, Yue Yang saw Jiang Xin and others personally waiting at the entrance to greet him. Jiang Xin was dressed in his official robe, smiling warmly, as if the unpleasantness at the city gate yesterday had never occurred. The cloud-and-wild-goose insignia on his robe glowed vividly under the bright wind lamp.

Behind Jiang Xin stood the dark-faced, solemn Registrar Fang Yingdi, Commander Lu Youyuan, and three or four other officials. The rest were minor clerks in green robes and black gauze hats, their insignias embroidered with quail or magpie symbols. Most were ninth-rank or junior clerks, or even temporary staff. Strictly speaking, the only formal civil officials in Hunyuan Prefecture were Jiang Xin and Fang Yingdi—the others were more like later-day temporary workers.

Seeing Jiang Xin smiling so warmly, Yue Yang couldn’t help but feel a bit surprised. But that was all—having military power in hand, he had no fear of any tricks the other side might attempt.

Jiang Xin stepped forward first, bowing slightly with a smile: “Lord Yue, I have prepared a modest wine offering tonight to welcome you and your officers. I hope you will not mind my humble hospitality!”

Yue Yang smiled and returned the gesture: “Lord Jiang, you are too courteous. From now on, we are colleagues. If you keep being this polite, I honestly won’t know how to interact with you.”

Jiang Xin smiled slightly and made an elegant gesture, inviting Yue Yang to enter first. This time, Yue Yang didn’t insist but returned the gesture, and the two exchanged smiles before ascending the tower. Only after they entered did the rest follow.

The Zhuangyuan Tower had six floors—a rare height for the time. The banquet was held on the sixth floor. When Yue Yang and Jiang Xin reached the top, the entire Hunyuan city sprawled beneath them. To the east, square plots of farmland stretched in layers. To the south, the Sanggan River flowed slowly, splitting into two smaller streams a few miles outside the city.

Seeing Yue Yang staring silently out the window, an elderly voice spoke: “People say Lord Yue was a scholar before taking up the sword, a renowned talent in Yingzhou Prefecture. Why not seize this opportunity tonight to leave us a piece of your calligraphy?”

“Sure!”

“Elder Fang speaks truly!”

“Well said!”

At once, people around began clapping and cheering, demanding that Yue Yang compose a poem on the spot. For civil officials, this was a common expectation—ancient scholars were accustomed to writing wherever they went. After all, Yue Yang had also been a scholar before taking office; writing a poem shouldn’t be difficult.

But no one knew that this newly appointed commander, Yue Yang, was a modern man from over five centuries in the future. Writing a classical poem was the last thing he would do.

Faced with the crowd’s insistence, Yue Yang could only smile wryly and bow: “Gentlemen, you flatter me. I did read a few books in the past, but now I’ve long forgotten them. Asking me to write a poem truly puts me in a difficult position. I may not know poetry, but Lord Jiang is a man of great learning. Why not have him write instead? Why call upon this humble scholar to create, putting me in such an awkward spot?”

Laughter followed. The people upstairs hadn’t expected such humor and friendliness from Lord Yue, so different from the arrogant figure they saw at the city gate yesterday.

Yue Yang then glanced at the elderly man who had requested the poem. Upon seeing him, he felt a flicker of suspicion and then noticed the resemblance between this man and Fang Yingdi standing behind Jiang Xin.

“Seems the small one caused trouble, and now the elder steps in,” Yue Yang thought with a cold smile. He no longer trusted that the old man’s request for poetry was made in good faith.

Before he could dwell on it, Jiang Xin invited him to be seated. Soon, over thirty official courtesans carrying various instruments entered, laughing coquettishly.

These scantily clad women cast flirtatious glances at everyone and sang along to the zithers and harps, exuding all manners of allure. The martial officers behind Yue Yang were stunned.

Wu Chengfeng, Hu Laosan, and Feng Xiaoming each received a courtesan to accompany them. At first, Wu and Hu were timid, like startled rabbits, glancing nervously at Yue Yang for approval. Seeing he paid no mind, they relaxed and began chatting with their companions. Feng Xiaoming, an experienced trickster, immediately put his courtesan at ease, flirting freely. He whispered and teased, holding her hand and joking: “My little darling, your hand is so smooth… Are there any other parts of you smoother than this? Can I see?”

“Ah, you naughty soldier…” the courtesan giggled, wriggling and pouring him a drink, making him laugh heartily.

The Hunyuan officials seemed accustomed to such antics, carrying on conversation or joking as if nothing unusual was happening.

After a few rounds of wine and various dishes, the elderly man who had asked Yue Yang to write a poem raised his cup: “Lord Yue, I am Fang Jiuming, head of the Hunyuan Merchant Guild. I was delighted to hear of your appointment here. Yesterday, my son caused a misunderstanding with you. Today, I specifically had him come to apologize.”

Then Fang Jiuming’s expression hardened: “You scoundrel, hurry and apologize to Lord Yue!”

At these words, Fang Yingdi slowly stood, bowed, and raised his cup: “Lord Yue, I offended you yesterday. Please forgive my faults and allow me to pay my respects with this cup of wine.”

Yue Yang’s gaze sharpened. He surveyed Fang Jiuming and Fang Yingdi in silence, all eyes on him, waiting for his response.

After a moment, Yue Yang smiled broadly and raised his cup toward Fang Jiuming: “Thanks to the support of Lord Xu and Governor Lu, I am honored to take office in Hunyuan. In the future, I hope my colleagues will continue to assist me. Come, let us drink together.”

Fang Jiuming’s face stiffened, and Fang Yingdi paused in surprise, before finally drinking amid the uproar of cheers from the others.