xymnovel Chapter 18 The Grand Banquet
Chapter 18 The Grand Banquet
The powerful families of Qingcheng County were very good at choosing the right time to host banquets.
There had just been a commotion at the drill ground during the day. Niu Dahu and his gang failed to block the gate, and Meng Xuanzhe had publicly exposed the rotten skin on the military register. What would a normal person do at this moment?
Either go home and play dead, or coordinate your story overnight to shift the blame. At the very least, you should learn to shut up and avoid walking into the Crown Prince's clutches.
But the people in Qingcheng County are different.
They chose to treat everyone to dinner.
And the invitation was very respectable.
A banquet was held at the Lu residence in the south of the city. The invitation was personally delivered by Zhou Ling'an. The paper was gold-flecked, and the characters were written in an extremely rounded style, with even more refined wording. It read, "The local gentry and common people are filled with trepidation and wish to offer a small feast to thank Your Highness for your hard work and to apologize for the misdeeds regarding the grain and military affairs."
Gao Chengli read the post over and over again, and finally came to a very pertinent comment.
"Your Highness, they are not inviting a criminal."
Meng Xuanzhe was changing clothes when he heard this and raised his eyes: "Then what did you invite?"
Gao Chengli thought for a moment and carefully chose his words: "It's as if I'm asking you... to be lenient."
Meng Xuanzhe smiled.
"You're right this time."
This meal was certainly not an apology meal.
It's a trial meal, a test meal, a relationship-building meal, a pre-made version of a treacherous banquet mixed with alcohol and smiles.
During the day, they saw it clearly on the drill ground: this crown prince wasn't just someone who could recite books in the palace. He really dared to inspect the granaries, really dared to muster the troops, and really dared to slap the question "Who is eating the soldiers' rations?" right in people's faces.
Since blocking the road didn't work, we had to find another way.
Let’s eat.
The dining table has always been one of the battlegrounds where local powerful families excel.
Because the table is set with food, and words can be veiled as knives. If you only listen to the aroma of the wine and the fragrance of the food, you'll fall victim to the phrase "Master Lu is so hospitable." But if you listen to the footsteps under the table, the probing questions after drinking, and the unspoken meaning behind the food offered—
This meal could turn into a trial.
Meng Xuanzhe fastened his cuffs and said slowly, "Go."
Gao Chengli was taken aback: "Really going?"
"Why not go?" Meng Xuanzhe looked at him. "They've already set the stage; I have to give them a chance to perform."
Gao Chengli: "..."
Your Highness, you now regard these powerful figures in Qingcheng County as if they were a theatrical troupe.
But thinking about it, it makes sense.
These people incited troops outside during the day and held banquets in the south of the city at night. They would block the gate one moment and plead guilty the next, keeping them busier than the big pot in the county government office.
You might as well watch it.
As night fell, the lights in the Lu residence were already on.
This house is much more elaborate than the county government office.
Dozens of lanterns hung in the front yard, and newly replaced flowers and trees were placed under the porch. Even the ground outside the door was swept cleaner than the main hall of the county government. They really turned the phrase "wealthy folk household" into "the second local government office".
When Meng Xuanzhe got out of the car, he looked up at the row of lights.
Bright.
It's too bright.
It was so bright that it seemed as if the entire dignity of Qingcheng County had been gathered into this one house.
But the brighter the place, the clearer he understood—
Why is the porridge at the city gate so thin? Why are those families in the military household village so poor? Why are those soldiers on the drill ground reduced to half-bones?
Because some areas in the county are indeed too bright.
It was so shiny that the oil was practically dripping down the wall.
Lu Yuanfeng was already waiting at the gate. As soon as the car stopped, he immediately greeted it with a big smile, even wider than he had been at the warehouse gate the previous afternoon.
"Your Highness's gracious visit is an honor to our humble abode, and we are truly humbled by it."
Meng Xuanzhe got out of the car and first glanced at the formation behind him.
Not just Lu Yuanfeng.
Behind them stood four or five well-dressed middle-aged men, some fat and some thin. Some looked like they owned grain shops, some looked like they worked in the salt trade, and one had long, thin fingers and a gentle smile. He was clearly not a farmer, but someone who dealt with the land.
Meng Xuanzhe quickly categorized these people in his mind.
One is a grain warehouse, one is a trade route, one is a loan, one is a land deed, and another one is mostly connected with taxes and government offices.
well.
Tonight's dinner table has quite a full complement of people.
It wasn't just a gathering of a few powerful families; it was the entire network of Qingcheng County that exposed all its visible connections.
"You're too kind, Master Lu." Meng Xuanzhe's lips twitched slightly. "I thought you were the only one apologizing tonight, but now it seems that everyone of importance in Qingcheng County wants to admit their mistakes in front of me."
Lu Yuanfeng's heart skipped a beat, but he still smiled and said, "Your Highness is joking. We are just... feeling uneasy."
"How exactly is it unsettling?"
"The granary was neglected, the grain store caught fire, and now there's trouble in the camp. Your Highness has personally visited Qingcheng, and in just two days, you've uncovered so many problems for our county. We, your humble servants, have thought it over and over, and if we don't come to apologize in person, we would be too ignorant of our place."
Well said.
It's so pretty it's like wrapping "I'm afraid you'll continue investigating" in a candy wrapper and writing "Thank you, Your Highness, for tidying up the place."
Meng Xuanzhe didn't open it, he just nodded.
"In that case, let's go inside and talk."
The group took their seats.
The banquet at the Lu residence was very well-organized.
The dishes weren't extravagant, but each one was exquisite; the wine wasn't too strong, but it was clearly aged. Even the people accompanying the guests were well-mannered; there weren't too many singers and dancers, only a few to serve the food and pour the wine, which made them seem very restrained and "clean."
This restraint, in fact, speaks volumes.
This shows that they knew the prince before them was not the kind of person who would forget his duties when he saw singing and dancing.
So they simply stopped using those fancy tricks and started talking about how "we are also respectable people" was a respectable way of speaking.
Very good at it.
Meng Xuanzhe sat down, glanced at the table, and casually remarked, "Master Lu is very thoughtful; these dishes look much cleaner than those in the county government's accounts."
The expressions on the faces of the people at the table changed subtly at the same time.
This prince really doesn't mince words.
The first thing they said was to bring up yesterday's messy accounts.
Lu Yuanfeng could only force a smile: "Your Highness, please forgive my rudeness. Local affairs are complex, and some long-standing malpractices have suddenly resurfaced, which is indeed alarming."
"Old stigma?" Meng Xuanzhe picked up his wine cup, but didn't drink. He just slowly twirled it between his fingers. "These are the two words I've heard most often these past two days."
"The granaries are empty, that's an old problem. The soldiers who died on the roster are still being fed, that's an old problem. The military households don't receive pensions, that's an old problem. It seems your Qingcheng County is a place with a long history, even your malpractices are more robust than elsewhere."
One of the heavier middle-aged men couldn't help but twitch his face.
Gao Chengli stood to the side with his head down, his shoulders twitching slightly.
You can't laugh.
But the phrase "even the scoundrels are fatter than those elsewhere" is really too harsh.
Lu Yuanfeng, however, seemed to have been prepared, showing no anger whatsoever, and only let out a long sigh.
"Your Highness is right. There are indeed drawbacks. But the drawbacks of this place didn't arise overnight."
coming.
Meng Xuanzhe chuckled inwardly.
This is the first dish to be served tonight.
This wasn't an apology, but a prelude; they were about to tell a story local tyrants loved to tell—it wasn't that we wanted to be bad, but the world forced us to. It wasn't that we were greedy, but that's just how the rules were. It wasn't that we didn't want to change, but that we couldn't; any change would lead to chaos.
As expected, Lu Yuanfeng continued, "Qingcheng is neither too big nor too small. It's near Chengdu, seemingly close to the capital, but it's actually sandwiched between roads, mountains, and waterways. Granaries need to be maintained, soldiers need to be supplied, taxes need to be collected, and the villages have runaway households, loans, wasteland, and old deeds. The county magistrate needs to stabilize the region, the granary officials need to balance the accounts, the army needs to keep up with food supplies, and merchants also need to make a living..."
He gave a wry smile as he said this.
"Some things cannot be simply divided into clear and muddy."
That was a very well-reasoned statement.
It even makes a lot of sense.
Another man, who looked like a salt merchant, immediately chimed in, bowing and saying, "Exactly. Your Highness is wise enough to see at a glance that the accounts, the people, and the soldiers are all wrong. But those who are doing the work often do so not because they don't know they're wrong, but because even if they do, they can only try to smooth things over for now."
"For example, temporarily storing grain in a warehouse with a merchant seems inappropriate, but if the warehouse manager was truly unavailable at the time, would they just let the grain rot in the open?"
"Take the issue of filling vacancies in the troop roster, for example. It seems abhorrent, but if we don't fill the vacancies first, the camp's rations and pay won't match, and wouldn't the army be in even more chaos?"
"As for pensions and allowances for military households, it's not that no one wants to give them, it's just that there are always priorities regarding the availability of funds and provisions..."
That's good.
it has started.
He described the issue of grain reserves as a "temporary expedient." He described the issue of military census registration as a "stability maintenance" matter. He described the issue of military households as a matter of "urgent needs only."
After going through all that, all the dirty work was no longer dirty work; instead, it became a bitter pill that had to be swallowed in local governance.
Very clever.
If someone who hasn't experienced the hardships of working in the lower classes were to listen to this, they might genuinely feel some empathy for the hardships faced by those in those places.
But Meng Xuanzhe happens to understand this kind of talk best.
He had seen this kind of rhetoric far too often in his previous life when he was in meetings, writing reports, and making rectification explanations.
To put it politely, it's called "real-world constraints"; to put it bluntly, it's called "first portraying bad things as unavoidable, then making people feel that things have to go wrong even if they're not."
So he put down his wine cup, his lips twitching slightly.
"Well said."
The people at the table were slightly startled.
There is a way.
As long as the Crown Prince is willing to listen to the "difficulties," then this meal will not be in vain.
But with his next sentence, Meng Xuanzhe suppressed the anger they had just generated.
"I understand."
"What you mean is simply—"
"The falsification of grain in the granaries was to prevent the grain from rotting; the falsification of military registers was to prevent chaos in the camps; the starvation of military households was to prioritize the overall situation; the seizure of land by powerful families, the renaming of grain merchants, and the easing of restrictions by the county government were all ultimately for the good of Qingcheng County."
He paused slightly and glanced at everyone at the table.
"Then I am truly somewhat confused."
"If you were all this considerate of the local community—"
"Why is it that in the end, it's the common people who go hungry, the military households who become impoverished, the barracks that rot, while your few families prosper?"
This sentence is not repeated.
But it's like a needle, easily piercing through all the "helplessness" and "difficulties" that have been painstakingly laid out on the table.
The room fell silent for a moment.
A thin man who dealt in land deeds was the first to break down, forcing a smile as he said, "Your Highness's words make you think too badly of us. When things are done in the local area, there always needs to be someone to mediate. If it weren't for us local gentry and merchants stepping in to help, many things would probably be even more difficult to handle."
Meng Xuanzhe looked up: "What did you pad it with?"
The man was taken aback: "Of course, it's about paying for things, providing food, and covering favors..."
"And then what?" Meng Xuanzhe looked at him. "Won't the debts be recovered from the people? Won't the land be pawned from the poor? Won't the grain be moved from the official granaries to your own yard first, and then sold after going through a roundabout process?"
The skinny man's face turned pale, and he suddenly stopped talking.
Gao Chengli, who was standing nearby, had almost gotten used to it.
Your Highness is now judging people not by "whether you have it or not", but by "at what point do you plan to start lying to me?"
This is really upsetting.
Seeing that the atmosphere of "easing tensions" at the dinner table was about to be crushed again, Lu Yuanfeng had no choice but to step in personally to salvage the situation.
He picked up his wine cup, his face full of sincerity.
"Your Highness, we commoners dare not say that we are entirely without selfish motives. Those who do business still need to eat. But in Qingcheng County, if we really follow the rules rigidly and make a one-size-fits-all approach, I'm afraid it will cause great chaos."
"This humble citizen dares to speak frankly—"
"The granaries can be checked, the grain can be inventoried, and the camps can be checked."
"But if we move too fast, we might not be the ones who get hurt; the people of the county might be the first to suffer."
These words finally started to have a barb.
Before this, they were just complaining, trying to clear their names, and talking about their difficulties. Only now have they truly revealed a corner of the banquet's true intentions.
What does that mean?
Go ahead and investigate. But don't investigate too deeply or too quickly. Because if you do, things will get messy. And if things get messy, you'll be the one taking the blame.
This is the classic negotiation logic of local interest groups: it's not that you can't do anything, it's a reminder—if you dare to do anything, we dare to let you know what it means for "the local area to descend into chaos on its own".
Upon hearing this, Meng Xuanzhe's smile became even more genuine.
"That's right."
The people at the table were taken aback.
Lu Yuanfeng was also taken aback.
"What's right?"
"That sounds more like the truth." Meng Xuanzhe looked at him, his tone even gentle. "Those previous 'apologies,' 'fear,' and 'concerns' all sounded too weak, like paper. Now, this sentence, 'moving too hastily will lead to chaos,' is what you really want to say."
For a moment, Lu Yuanfeng's smile faltered.
He found the crown prince annoying.
If you try to reason with him, he'll think you're being coy; if you tell him the truth, he'll expose the hidden barbs in your words to everyone.
This food is awful.
Meng Xuanzhe, however, was not prepared to let this meal turn into a one-sided humiliation; he wanted to hear more.
So he leaned back slightly, as if he was finally willing to talk about it seriously.
"Since we've come this far, I might as well ask for clarification myself."
"What exactly are you afraid of acting alone?"
"Are you afraid I'll continue inspecting the granaries? The grain stores? The troop registers? Or—"
He paused, his gaze slowly sweeping over the people at the table, finally settling on the middle-aged man with slender fingers who hadn't said much.
"Are you afraid I'll go to the fields to investigate?"
Upon hearing this, almost everyone at the table simultaneously shifted their expressions.
It's very light.
But Meng Xuanzhe saw it all.
This reaction was more direct than any answer.
The granaries, grain, and soldiers—these things seem impressive, but investigating them can be painful. However, what truly makes these entities tighten their belts simultaneously is clearly not the Fenghe Grain Store that burned down tonight, nor the ragtag group of soldiers on the drill ground.
Yes, it is.
The earth is the root.
Grain comes from the land, taxes come from the land, the wealth of the powerful grows from the land, and the debts of military households mostly roll out from the land.
Granaries are like flowing money, and military registers are like concealed money. But land is the life that can be held in the hands of generations.
The middle-aged man with the slender fingers finally spoke, his voice gentle, like that of a schoolteacher.
"Your Highness is wise."
"My surname is Xu, Xu Jing'an. I usually look at land deeds and contracts for a few families in the county." He introduced himself before continuing, "Military supplies can be disrupted for a while, but land cannot be moved lightly. If land is moved, tenants will be in turmoil, rent contracts will be disordered, debts will pile up, and the county's autumn tax revenue for the whole year may collapse."
"If Your Highness only wishes to quell the immediate chaos, we are willing to donate grain, lower prices, and cover up the rumors surrounding the Crown Prince's palace."
"But if we really want to uproot it completely—"
Xu Jing'an raised his eyes and finally said the most important thing.
"Qingcheng County might not be able to withstand it."
Gao Chengli, who was listening nearby, felt his teeth ache from listening so much.
But...
Finally, someone who can speak human language has arrived.
In short, it boils down to this: I can release some grain first. I can lower the price first. I can cooperate with you to make a move a couple of times. But don't touch the land.
Because granaries, grain, and soldiers are merely the meat on the surface; the land is the real bone pressing under the table.
Meng Xuanzhe's mind immediately lit up.
This is where I can truly appreciate the flavor of the meal.
All that probing, complaining about poverty, and explaining the difficulties beforehand were just preparations. It wasn't until Xu Jing'an said, "The land cannot be moved lightly," that the net of Qingcheng County finally handed him its thickest thread.
He didn't press further immediately, only slightly moving the corners of his lips.
"I see."
"I wondered why you were being so polite tonight. It turns out it's not because you're afraid of the granaries, the grain, or the soldiers—"
"I'm afraid that by following the grain and soldiers in the granary, I'll eventually reach the ground."
Xu Jing'an's expression remained unchanged as he cupped his hands and said, "Your Highness is wise. This humble subject simply does not wish to see Qingcheng suffer further damage due to its hasty pursuit of treatment."
After listening, Meng Xuanzhe actually nodded.
"I will remember those words."
This reaction left the people at the table somewhat puzzled.
That's it?
Giving up?
Instead of asking, "How much land does each family own, and how did they obtain those deeds?"
Gao Chengli was also a little confused.
But he quickly realized what was happening.
Your Highness is not refusing to pursue.
It has reached the most useful place.
At the dinner table, getting them to say "the ground shouldn't be disturbed lightly" is already worth the price of admission. Pressuring them any further will likely result in them either playing dead or turning hostile, and they might not reveal anything substantial. But once they know the bulk of the information is on the ground, a follow-up investigation won't be like a headless fly blindly stumbling around.
This is called—
Let them tell us their pain points first.
Very high.
It's really tall.
Meng Xuanzhe picked up the wine, finally took a small sip, and then put it down.
"Since you are all so worried about this place, I might as well give you a definite answer."
The expressions of the people at the table tensed up at the same time.
coming.
"Cang, I will continue the investigation."
"I will continue to clear the grain."
"Soldier, I've already gone this far, there's no way I'm going to back down now."
"As for the land—"
Meng Xuanzhe looked at Xu Jing'an and smiled slightly.
"I haven't said I wanted to investigate yet today."
Xu Jing'an had just breathed a sigh of relief.
The next sentence got stuck in his throat.
"But if someone insists on reminding me that the real big prize is in the fields—"
"Then I can't pretend I didn't hear it."
After those words were spoken, the expressions on the faces of several people at the table turned rather unpleasant.
Especially Xu Jing'an.
This is tantamount to him personally handing over the most inappropriate topic.
Meng Xuanzhe looked at them, but he already understood completely.
Granaries, grain, soldiers, land, and taxes.
It's not five things.
It is a net.
The grain in the granary grows from the land; the taxes on the land are squeezed out by the powerful and the county government; the vacancies on the military register are fed with grain and taxes; the poverty of military households, the hunger of the people, and the decay of the military camps all eventually fall back to the land.
No wonder everyone was sitting so neatly together tonight.
Because they were originally from the same table.
There's not much left to eat here.
After that, it was nothing more than a few rounds of feigned politeness, feigned apologies, and feigned promises. As expected, Lu Yuanfeng then took the opportunity to offer to "donate 300 shi of grain to stabilize the price of rice in the county"; another salt merchant also said that he could "temporarily hold back the grain supply and stop raising prices"; even Xu Jing'an added that he was willing to "straighten up the old contracts for the Crown Prince and allow a few military households to postpone their rent payments."
They all sounded very nice.
It was so good that Gao Chengli wanted to applaud them.
But the problem is—
What they're willing to give away are only superficial riches. What they're fiercely protecting is the real meat.
Meng Xuanzhe listened to everything, neither agreeing nor refusing, only leaving the words, "Write them all down in a book later and send them to the county government."
The meaning is clear: words don't count. Write it down, write your name down, and then we'll talk.
After several rounds of drinks, Meng Xuanzhe got up to take his leave.
Lu Yuanfeng and the others saw them off to the door, smiling even more respectfully than when they arrived. It was as if the meal had been enjoyed by both host and guests, and everyone had simply talked about the hardships of the local area, the Crown Prince's love for the people, and the gentry's contributions. The atmosphere was so harmonious that it could be written into "A True Record of the Gentry of Qingcheng County's Gratitude to the Crown Prince".
But as soon as he got into the car, Gao Chengli let out a long sigh.
"Your Highness, not a single word of truth came out from these people today."
"Yes." Meng Xuanzhe closed his eyes and leaned against the car wall. "Xu Jing'an's statement was true."
Gao Chengli was taken aback.
They immediately realized what was happening.
"The ground cannot be moved lightly?"
"Um."
"Then we..." Gao Chengli asked cautiously, "really want to investigate in the fields?"
Meng Xuanzhe opened his eyes and looked at the streets and alleys of Qingcheng County in the night.
"The investigation leads from the granary to the grain store, from the grain to the military register, and from the military register to the military households," he said slowly. "If we follow this path, the next step should be the land."
"But tonight is not a good time to conduct a site inspection."
Gao Chengli nodded silently.
Understood.
This meal wasn't for nothing; it was to first understand the prevailing winds.
If we really have to take action, we'll have to go back and slowly dig it out.
Just two blocks past the car, a series of hurried footsteps suddenly came from outside.
"Your Highness!"
As soon as the car stopped, Gu Chengyan's voice came from outside.
"Shen, the clerk, requested an audience, saying he had important business to discuss."
Meng Xuanzhe lifted the curtain and saw an old man in a gray robe standing in the shadows by the street. It was Shen Bushu. This old man didn't go to the Lu residence tonight, probably because he knew his status wasn't high enough, or perhaps he knew that it was safer not to go to certain places.
He stood in the night, clutching a stack of things tightly in his arms, looking more cautious than usual, like an old fox that had just peeked out of its hole, afraid of being killed by a shovel.
Meng Xuanzhe got out of the car and walked up to him.
"What is it?"
Shen Bushu glanced around, first glancing at the two figures who had followed the Lu family out from the shadows behind the carriage, before lowering his voice and saying, "I took advantage of the banquet being held in the south of the city to rummage through the old storeroom of the county government and rummage through some things."
He pushed the stack of scrolls in his arms forward.
The paper is old and the edges are frayed; it's clearly not the kind of nicely copied paper used to fool people.
Meng Xuanzhe took it and casually turned to a page.
There were neither soldiers nor provisions above.
It is a field.
Land leases, tenancy contracts, childless households, nominal ownership, transfer of mortgages, and payment on behalf of absconded households...
The handwriting was dense and thick, as if all the secrets of the entire Qingcheng County had been pressed into these old booklets.
Shen Bushu's voice lowered even further.
"Your Highness."
"Cang and Bing, if we investigate further, we'll definitely find blood."
"But the real big money isn't in the warehouses or the camps."
He paused, then his eyelids finally lifted slightly, revealing the shrewdness he had kept hidden for so long.
"Locally."
A night breeze blew by, and a corner of the old paper turned slightly.
Meng Xuanzhe looked down at the stack of old land registers in his hand and suddenly smiled.
well.
After the meal, as expected, some people couldn't sit still any longer.
Finally, someone personally delivered the bottom layer of this network of granaries, grain, soldiers, and fields into his hands.
After the banquet of the powerful figures ended, Xu Jing'an did not smash the cup.
He simply had the wine removed and replaced with tea.
"If the prince wants a name, we will give him a name; if the prince wants an account, we will give him an account."
The second master of the Xu family asked in bewilderment, "Then aren't we just sitting here waiting to die?"
Xu Jing'an said slowly, "Let him win a few open accounts, and lose one secret account. What young people fear most is not failing to find anything, but thinking they know everything after finding a little bit."
Xu Jing'an put down his teacup only after the back gate of the Lu residence closed.
He didn't keep everyone else, only the head of the Lu family, the second master of the Xu family, and a gray-clad man from Chengdu. The gray-clad man didn't sit down, but instead took out a blank petition from his sleeve, with the secret mark of the Secretariat pressed under the corner of the paper.
"Let the Crown Prince inspect the granaries, the soldiers, and the fields," Xu Jing'an tapped the table with his finger. "The more he inspects, the more eager he seems to be to establish his authority; the more eager he is, the easier it is for people in Chengdu to ask him: When the Crown Prince goes to the counties, is it to save the people or to seize power?"
The head of the Lu family said in a low voice, "What about Manager Shen? The money shop in Beikou has handled too many transactions; what if he can't handle it..."
Xu Jing'an didn't even lift his eyelids: "If an accountant can take the blame for his master, he's still an accountant; if he wants to save his own life, he's a source of trouble. Detain his wife and children first, and send him out of the city after the old tea warehouse's accounts are settled."
The man in gray finally spoke: "Prime Minister Han only asks one question: Does the Crown Prince have the authority to mobilize troops?"
Xu Jing'an smiled slowly: "There will be. There is He Biao in the Qingcheng Camp. If the Crown Prince does not touch him, the camp will be in chaos; if the Crown Prince does touch him, it will be considered a usurpation of military power. No matter what he chooses, Chengdu can write it as a crime."
That night, the Crown Prince obtained the old land register; the Xu family also delivered their first real threat. On the chessboard, it wasn't just one side making moves.