Chapter 1000: Intimidation

The group soon arrived at the Prefect's mansion, where officials from Yunzhong Prefecture had already gathered, and even Jian Taiding was waiting in advance. Logically, Jian Taiding's Grandmaster cultivation and family influence surpassed Sang Hong's. However, his earlier act of greeting them outside the city and now waiting in advance showed immense respect to the imperial envoy. It was clear he hoped Sang Hong would reciprocate by granting him the title of Duke of Yunzhong Prefecture as soon as possible.

Left Su, the Prefect of Yunzhong Prefecture, accompanied by Jian Taiding, welcomed Sang Hong and his entourage indoors. Along the way, they introduced the relevant officials. The earlier greeting outside the city had been too rushed, with only a few individuals having shown their faces.

“This is Administrator Xu Yu.”“It’s an honor to meet you!”

Zu An observed closely: Xu Yu was a middle-aged man with a purplish, square face. He looked more like a capable official than the portly Left Su.

The Administrator served as the Prefect's deputy and was also responsible for supervising both the Prefect and other local officials. Because of their high status, they did not share a carriage with the Prefect but rode in a separate one, which gave rise to their title.

“This is Master Yu Xuanqing, the Chief Clerk.”“Ah, so you are the clan brother of Lord Left Prime Minister? It’s an honor to meet you!”

The Chief Clerk was roughly the third-highest-ranking official in a prefecture, overseeing the selection and appointment of officials and various other affairs. Although a high-ranking local official, this position wouldn't ordinarily warrant such attention from Sang Hong, an imperial envoy. Sang Hong's politeness stemmed from the fact that the old man was a member of the Yu clan. The Yu clan primarily had two branches: one served as officials in the central court, with Yu Xuanchong, the Left Prime Minister, as its head. The other branch was based in Yunzhong Prefecture, managing the family's primordial stone business. This old man, also of the 'Xuan' generation, was clearly a peer or brother of Yu Xuanchong. However, compared to Yu Xuanchong, Yu Xuanqing was far inferior in both cultivation and ability.

The clan head of this Yunzhong Prefecture branch had died prematurely, and the family was now controlled by his legitimate daughter, Yu Yanluo. However, being a woman and exceptionally beautiful, it was often inconvenient for her to appear in public. Thus, many family affairs were entrusted to several clan uncles, with Yu Xuanqing being one of them.

“This is Master Yu Xuansu, the Sima of the Yunzhong Prefecture Commander-in-Chief’s Office.”“It’s an honor to meet you!”

Yu Xuansu was also one of Yu Yanluo's clan uncles. Observing these two elders, Zu An fell into deep thought. The Yu clan's influence was truly immense; their members held high military and political positions throughout Yunzhong Prefecture. It was no exaggeration to say they held absolute power.

Zu An looked around, initially hoping to catch sight of Yu Yanluo. Unfortunately, there was no sign of the beautiful figure he remembered.

At this moment, Sang Hong seemed to have the same thought. He found an opportunity to ask, “Oh, why don’t I see Lady Yu?” He was, of course, not coveting her beauty. Rather, since Yu Yanluo was currently the head of the Yu clan in Yunzhong and the investigation concerned her husband's disappearance, he wanted to take the opportunity to ask her many questions.

At this, the mustachioed Jian Taiding smiled and said, “My sister-in-law recently caught a cold and is not suitable for meeting guests. I hope Lord Sang will understand.”

Sang Hong smiled, “Of course, health comes first.” He quickly changed the subject.

Next, Jian Taiding continued to introduce the remaining officials to Sang Hong, while others began greeting the rest of the envoy group. The areas around Gao Ying and Pei You were the liveliest. After all, one had the Liu clan supporting him, and the other the Pei clan—both top-tier families in the capital. These local officials naturally sought to curry favor with the scions of such prominent aristocratic families.

As for Zu An, everyone merely exchanged a few polite words before largely ignoring him. Officials who rose from humble origins were never highly regarded by these influential clans. The greatest weakness for those who rose from humble origins was their reliance on the emperor's temporary favor; once that favor waned, their downfall was swift and inevitable. Powerful aristocratic families were different; they had countless family members serving as officials in the court. Their influence was deeply entrenched, making it difficult for even the emperor to easily affect them in the slightest, even if he disliked them.

“Quite realistic,” Zu An thought. He naturally didn't take these slights to heart, instead using the opportunity to secretly observe others, particularly Pei Shao. This fellow seemed to intend to arrange a marriage between his daughter and the Crown Prince of Qi. He noticed a young man accompanying Pei Shao, with slanted, somewhat shifty eyes. Such a person wouldn't naturally be introduced to Sang Hong. However, Zu An vaguely heard some lower-ranking officials flattering Pei Shao, and the young man seemed to be Pei Shao’s son, Pei Xing.

“Big Manman’s younger brother?” Zu An frowned. “Is he really a biological brother? Big Manman is as beautiful as a flower; how could her brother look like this?”

Soon, the group entered the main hall. Due to the freezing weather, a roaring bonfire was lit in the center, with various cuts of beef and lamb roasting over it. Their golden fat glistened enticingly under the candlelight, and the air was filled with an exotic aroma of spices mixed with roasted meat.

“Lord Sang, please take the main seat!” It was soon time for seating, and as the imperial envoy, Sang Hong naturally took the place of honor.

Sang Hong’s gaze swept around. He saw that Pei You and Gao Ying were arranged beside him, while Zu An was seated further down. Having long been in officialdom, he naturally understood the intricacies. No seat was chosen randomly; they were arranged according to a centuries-old understanding born from the struggles and compromises among the major clans. Although Gao Ying and Pei You's official ranks were temporarily lower than Zu An's, their family influence far surpassed that of a commoner like Zu An. With their family resources, it wouldn't take many years for Gao Ying and Pei You to attain high positions, so arranging their seats with more prominence was considered reasonable.

While reasonable, Sang Hong was displeased. Firstly, he himself came from a humble background and had experienced similar indignities in the past. Secondly, his current relationship with Zu An was even more intimate than that of mere allies, and he naturally didn't want Zu An to feel wronged. So, he said calmly, “Ah Zu, come sit beside me.”

Zu An naturally accepted without hesitation, confidently taking a seat beside him. The officials of Yunzhong Prefecture felt a jolt in their hearts, realizing they had underestimated Zu An’s importance.

At this moment, Prefect Left Su was somewhat worried. He had only arranged two seats beside Sang Hong, one for Gao Ying and one for Pei You. Now that Zu An occupied one, what about the remaining two? He knew well that these aristocratic scions valued their reputation above all else, and certainly no one would want to yield. If they started arguing, what was he to do? No matter how he allocated the seats, he was bound to offend one of the other families. However, he soon felt relieved. Zu An had taken the seat, so even if they harbored resentment, it would most likely be directed at him. If they encountered some hot-tempered individuals, conflicts might even erupt on the spot with Zu An. For powerful aristocratic families, family prestige was paramount, even outweighing the words of an imperial envoy.

Many officials present had similar thoughts, waiting to see conflicts arise within the envoy team. After all, everyone knew perfectly well that the imperial envoy was there to investigate them, so they all wished for the team to fall into infighting first. To their surprise, Gao Ying and Pei You showed no intention of contending with Zu An. They naturally squeezed together at another table, as if it were the most natural thing in their minds. Noticing this scene, Jian Taiding's eyes narrowed, and he re-examined Zu An.

After the imperial envoy and his group were seated, the others also took their places. At this moment, a commotion arose nearby. A burly man with a bushy beard pointed at an empty seat in the front row and demanded, “Whose seat is this?”

In the hall’s seating arrangement, Sang Hong naturally occupied the central main seat. To his left and right were two rows of seats: one led by Jian Taiding and the other by Left Su, corresponding to their respective statuses. These two rows did not have many seats, and each one was for a high-ranking official of Yunzhong Prefecture. Beyond them, there were several outer rows, clearly for lower-ranking officials. Therefore, being able to sit in these two side rows was also a symbol of honor and status. According to earlier introductions, this burly man with a beard seemed to be a Deputy General from the Commander-in-Chief’s Office. Although not comparable to positions like Chief Secretary or Sima, he was still considered high-ranking within the Commander-in-Chief’s Office, and theoretically, he was barely qualified to sit in these two rows.

At this moment, he was angrily glaring at Administrator Xu Yu, pointing at an empty seat nearby and questioning him. Clearly, he was quite displeased about being seated further back, so he immediately caused trouble.

Sang Hong and Zu An exchanged glances. It seemed the conflict between the Commander-in-Chief’s Office and the Prefect’s Office in Yunzhong Prefecture was even greater than anticipated.

Xu Yu said calmly, “An old friend of mine is visiting these days; this seat is prepared for him.”

“May I ask what official rank or position that person holds?” the burly, bearded man retorted gruffly.

Xu Yu frowned, but eventually replied, “No official rank, no position.”

The burly, bearded man burst into laughter. “If he has no official rank or position, what right does he have to sit here? I’ll take this seat!” Having said that, he boldly sat down and immediately picked up a wine cup from the table to drink.

Xu Yu’s face darkened, and he looked directly at Jian Taiding on the other side. “Lord Jian, this is a seat belonging to our Prefect’s Office. Do we need your Commander-in-Chief’s Office’s approval to decide who sits here?”

Jian Taiding smiled faintly. “Lord Xu, you misunderstand. We are all imperial officials; why distinguish between ‘yours’ and ‘mine’? The people of Yunzhong Prefecture are fierce, and soldiers regard honor as their life. Deputy General Dian has always been straightforward and blunt; I can’t persuade him otherwise. If there’s any offense, I hope Lord Xu will be understanding, considering his numerous military achievements.”

Zu An curiously transmitted his voice to Sang Hong using his vital energy: “Uncle, even if they have grievances, they wouldn't cause such a scene in this setting, would they? In front of the imperial envoy, this is completely inappropriate.”

Sang Hong replied, “They are deliberately trying to intimidate me. Xu Yu is an official sent by the central court, representing the court just like me. Jian Taiding’s blatant disrespect is clearly a warning. He previously showed a friendly side to me, but now he’s baring his fangs. The subtext is that if we are sensible and cooperate, he will be friendly enough to us; if not, Xu Yu’s predicament is likely what we will face in the future.”

“This Xu Yu is probably doomed to lose all face today,” Zu An thought with some sympathy. He instinctively disliked Jian Taiding because of the Mingyue City incident.

Sang Hong smiled, “Not necessarily.”