Royal Gold Magistrate

Afterwards, the two of them chatted for a while longer.

Most of the time it was Fang Zheng doing the talking while Li Yuanzhao listened.

He listened very attentively, more earnestly than ever before, because the content of what Fang Zheng spoke about this time seemed to overturn his previous image of him.

A person who was originally all jokes and laughter, not taking anything seriously, had suddenly transformed into a ruthless and decisive killer. Then with Fang Zheng’s embellishments, a layer of tragic color was added.

The overall image basically turned into a spiritual possession by Xiao Mage, Jiang Tiansheng, and the Godfather.

After this casual chat, Li Yuanzhao’s gaze towards Fang Zheng contained a few traces of admiration.

Fang Zheng also sensed Li Yuanzhao’s reverence and secretly nodded in satisfaction. It wasn’t in vain that he had expended so many brain cells – his persona was standing tall and firm!

The sky had already darkened. The three of them walked to the boarding ramp of the riverboat.

There were servant girls greeting the guests. Seeing Zhang Biao wearing a sack skirt, their expressions immediately turned strange.

However, upon seeing Fang Zheng, they were instantly relieved. This richly dressed young master was obviously the leader, with the other two being bodyguards.

So a servant girl said softly, “Dear guest, bodyguards are not allowed on the boat for today’s poetry debate. Please forgive the inconvenience.”

“What bodyguards? These are all my brothers!” Fang Zheng declared brazenly as he flung out three invitations.

Then, under the incredulous stares of the servant girls, the three of them grandly boarded the riverboat.

The riverboat was extremely large in scale, thirty meters long and about ten meters wide, with three decks.

The center of the main hall was hollow, extending up to the third floor. The hall was filled with over a dozen round tables, already mostly occupied despite not being full yet.

The people were all dressed lavishly, many holding paper fans and fanning themselves lightly.

Li Yuanzhao looked around with immense curiosity, but Fang Zheng pulled him along and went straight to find a table to sit down first.

The people sitting at the same table all avoided Zhang Biao… They hurriedly changed seats.

Then Fang Zheng’s table emptied out, leaving just the three of them sitting there staring at each other.

Zhang Biao said gloomily, “Where’s the meat? Where’s the meat?”

Hearing him say that, Fang Zheng and Li Yuanzhao also felt hungry. They hadn’t eaten a bite since getting off their shifts and had walked for half a day.

At the moment there were only a few plates of cakes on the table, but they really dampened one’s interest.

“Just hold your horses, the main courses will be out soon!” Fang Zheng took the lead and picked up a piece of cake.

After chewing a few bites, he frowned. “Tastes bad!”

Li Yuanzhao also took a piece, stuffing his mouth full, and mumbled, “It’s alright, tastes better than what they make at my place!”

Fang Zheng said with a straight face, forcing himself to swallow the remaining half of the cake, “Your palace doesn’t have anything good to eat!”

“Hiss~ That’s right! Why is the food made at my place so unappetizing? Old Fang, why is that?” Li Yuanzhao suddenly realized this issue.

“It’s nothing. Since ancient times, nutritious meals have always tasted bad!”

“What’s a nutritious meal?”

“Food made by wasting ingredients is called a nutritious meal.”

“So that’s how it is!” Li Yuanzhao said through gritted teeth, “No wonder they can make dishes taste so bad at my place. It’s nutritious meals indeed!”

Fang Zheng said disdainfully, “Not only do they taste bad, but they’re expensive too. If you don’t believe me, go ask around about food prices among the common folk. I dare say the dishes at your place are far pricier than what regular people eat!”

“Alright! I must investigate the imperial… kitchen staff! How dare they try to fool even me!”

As the two of them talked, Zhang Biao had already polished off two plates of the cakes on the table.

Fang Zheng hurriedly stretched out a hand to stop him and scolded angrily, “Slow down, will you! If we weren’t here today, Xiao Tao would definitely have been fobbed off with a single bite! Pack the rest to take home!”

Zhang Biao chuckled foolishly and sheepishly put down the plate in his hands…

Before long, everyone had arrived and the riverboat slowly set out towards the center of the lake.

Zhang Chang stood on the second floor, his eyes continuously sweeping over the scene below. By his side was Jia Liang, his nose and face bruised.

“How is it? Did you find him? Which one is Fang Zheng?”

Jia Liang grinned, suddenly getting excited. “He’s here! He’s here! Young Master, look, at that table by the stern. There are only three people!”

At this moment, Jia Liang’s heart was overflowing with excitement. The time for revenge had finally come!

That day after being thrown out the door by Zhang Biao, he had returned to the Ministry of Revenue estate, but not only was he stripped of his position as shopkeeper, he also got another beating.

Right now, his hatred for Fang Zheng had reached its peak!

Now with Young Master Zhang here, would he still dare to act wildly?

Zhang Chang looked at Fang Zheng chatting and laughing merrily with his “servants” by his side, waving his folding fan lightly, and sneered disdainfully, “Indeed a country bumpkin entering the city, actually mingling with servants. How did those two even get in?”

Jia Liang hurriedly said, “Exactly! Exactly! That Fang Zheng has no sense of propriety at all. He must have forcibly brought them in!”

“Heh, alright, you go down first. I’ll go meet him in a bit.”

“Be careful, Young Master…”

“Scram!”

……………………

First floor.

Li Yuanzhao rested his cheeks on his hands, looking utterly bored. “Old Fang… When will the main dishes be served? I don’t think there’s much of interest here…”

Fang Zheng gave him a sideways glance. “What’s the rush? It hasn’t even started yet… Hey, look! The dishes are coming!”

Just as the three of them were getting impatient, the servant girls began to elegantly approach, each one graceful in bearing, wearing light gauze that obscured their figures, all possessing top-notch beauty.

Li Yuanzhao craned his neck to look intently. Fang Zheng couldn’t bear to watch and hurriedly tugged at him a few times. “Hey! Come on! Come on!”

“What? I’m just looking at what dishes they’re serving!”

“Huh?”

Fang Zheng was dumbfounded. The crown prince wasn’t looking at the women but at the food! This wasn’t normal!

He quickly asked, “Look! Aren’t those servant girls pretty? If brought to my Taoyuan County, they could at least be first-class courtesans!”

Li Yuanzhao licked his lips. “Isn’t it because I’m hungry? What do pretty women have to do with me?”

“???”

Fang Zheng immediately turned serious. “Are you married?”

“I am. So what?”

“So you don’t like women?”

Hearing this, Li Yuanzhao turned his head helplessly. “Not much interest! I like the women in books! Ah, whenever I see women in real life, I find them unbearably vulgar!”

Fang Zheng suddenly understood and relaxed. “So you’re a two-horned ape!”

Li Yuanzhao asked in confusion, “What’s a two-horned ape?”

“I mean a person who is handsome and suave, with a face like a flower under the moon, a master of both literary and martial arts!”

Li Yuanzhao laughed and rubbed his cheek. “Not bad! Then I am a two-horned ape!”

Zhang Biao sneaked over and asked in a low voice, “Young Master, do you think I’m a two-horned ape?”

“You’re a brother! A dear brother!”

Zhang Biao returned to his seat, content. If not a two-horned ape, being a cherished brother was quite the honor.

As plate after plate of exquisite dishes began to be served on the table, Zhang Chang walked to the very front of the main hall at just the right time and cupped his hands towards everyone.

“Thank you all for gracing this event with your presence…”