Chapter Nine, Prime Minister Qi hosts a banquet, while Lord Zhige pretends to be foolish

With a clear mind, one will not be angered by the laughter of those around them; instead, there is a sense of delight in outsmarting others. At least, Qin Lei feels quite pleased at the moment

The guards of the governor's residence exchanged glances and then began to laugh softly. After a while, they remembered their duties and hurriedly started to sing: "The arrival of Lord Zhige..."

As a young man who began his life as a hostage in swaddling clothes, it is truly difficult to attract the attention of the powerful figures in the State of Qi. If it were not for Shangguan Yunhe's inherently cautious nature, even this meeting would have been unnecessary

Dongqi is renowned for its transmission of rites and music, venerating the most revered sage Confucius as its ancestor, placing great importance on propriety and maintaining a rigorous system. The Prime Minister's residence, as the official abode of the chief minister of the Qi state, naturally exudes extraordinary grandeur: one can see a millennia-old locust tree, its crown resembling a canopy, overshadowing the main entrance of the Prime Minister's residence. On a pair of vermilion doors, each two zhang high and three zhang wide, are affixed forty-nine gilded nails arranged in seven vertical and seven horizontal rows, which, along with the imposing stone lions at the entrance, signify the noble status of the residence's owner, comparable to that of princes and dukes.

Qin Lei performed a deep bow, and the expressions of everyone in the hall were fully captured in his sight. The old man with a white beard sitting in the main seat was presumably the elder Shangguan, who was currently fiddling with his wine glass while conversing with the first man on his left, a plump old man with a yellow beard. Their eyes occasionally darted over, especially the fat old man, whose expression was unfriendly. The third person in the room who caught his attention was a bearded commoner sitting by the door, around thirty years old, who had been silently drinking and not engaging with anyone else, appearing out of place in the room filled with richly dressed individuals.

Thus, the State of Qi could not withstand war for ten years, despite having the so-called God of War, the Hundred Victories Duke, and the undefeated Hundred Victories Army. This is why he disregarded his long-standing friendship with Zhao Wujiao and advocated for the return of the hostage. If it were not for his own willingness, who in the world could influence the attention of the Prime Minister of Qi? Not even the Emperor.

A crowd of guests echoed, "Three cups of penalty wine," "How could one arrive late?" and "Disrespect, great disrespect," among other nonsensical remarks

It was only then that Qin Lei realized and hurriedly stepped forward to catch up with Tie Ying. However, the hem of his ceremonial robe from Qi was tight and narrow, and the steps of the minister's residence were high. The young hostage stumbled and staggered, his small face contorted in distress as he lifted his robe and hurried after them

It seemed that no one heard the announcement from the Iron Eagle; both the host and the guests were busy engaging in conversation and toasting each other, having no time to glance towards the door. The two of them stood there at the entrance, their faces flushed.

... ...

Thus, he decided to allow Qin Lei to return to the country, silencing the Qin army. Of course, if Qin Lei were to reach a certain level of excellence, he would not let a tiger return to the mountain.

Qin Lei got out of the car and stood at the top of the high steps of the Prime Minister's residence, appearing somewhat uneasy, with a scattered and aimless gaze, and his body slightly hunched. Tie Ying, with a dark expression, handed the wrinkled invitation to the attendant without saying a word and then strode into the royal palace.

Upon hearing the announcement, the hall fell silent at once, as dignitaries and nobles turned their heads towards the entrance, eager to catch a glimpse of the individual who had recently become the most talked-about figure in the capital.

After a long while, he finally freed himself from his thoughts and seemed to notice the two people at the door. He laughed heartily and said, "So it is the esteemed Lord Zhige. You have arrived late, my lord. Please, take your seat quickly and let us toast with three cups of wine!"

He intends to implement reforms, and he has a comprehensive set of policies to clarify governance, protect agriculture, develop military capabilities, and strengthen the armed forces. He aims to suppress the backlash from vested interests and ensure the implementation of the new policies. All of this requires time

The most advanced arrival was indeed a giant of a man, standing eight feet tall, with a face full of thick beard, resembling a guardian deity. Only after discerning the color of his guard uniform did the nobles breathe a sigh of relief, for the disparity between reality and ideals is always uncomfortable

The Iron Eagle was greatly enraged, feeling that the insult had gone too far. Your invitation stated noon, and we arrived half an hour early, yet we still missed the start of the banquet. Is this not a deliberate mockery? What is even more infuriating is that when we were told to take our seats, where were the seats? Not a single empty seat was to be found

Therefore, from the very beginning, Qin Lei's task was to comply with Shangguan Yunhe's judgment of him, to naturally reinforce it as much as possible, and to guide events in the direction that Prime Minister Shangguan hoped for. This would minimize many troubles; going with the flow is precisely what this means.

Just as Iron Eagle was about to erupt, he heard a barely audible cough beside him, which made him hold back, his fists clenched tightly, making a cracking sound. Iron Eagle glanced at His Highness, who was slightly bowing his head, seemingly at a loss. However, from Iron Eagle's angle, he happened to catch a fleeting glimmer of mockery in His Highness's eyes

His forehead was throbbing with veins, and he was about to explode. At that moment, Qin Lei anxiously defended himself to Shangguan Yun and Tu Shuhe, saying, "Don't blame me, don't blame me; it's all this black fellow's fault for dawdling. If you want to punish someone, punish him instead." His expression was frantic as he looked around, and finally found an empty seat next to the man in plain clothes. He hurried over to sit down, accidentally knocking over the man's wine jug and spilling it all over himself.

Once the tall man stood firm, he cupped his fists and spoke in a coarse voice: "The envoy of the Great Qin, His Highness the Fifth Prince, extends his congratulations to the Prime Minister of the Great Qi on the joy of adding a new member to the family!" After saying this, he turned slightly to the side, and only then did the crowd see a person emerge from behind the towering figure. This individual appeared pale, with wandering eyes, a dazed demeanor, and a flustered expression, behaving timidly and cautiously. This was indeed the unfortunate appearance one would expect from a pitiful hostage who had been imprisoned by the Great Qi for sixteen years. The dignitaries' moods calmed down, and they displayed various expressions of mockery, disdain, or sighing that they had prepared in advance, turning back to continue their drinking and revelry. This was indeed the unfortunate appearance one would expect from a pitiful hostage who had been imprisoned by the Great Qi for sixteen years. The dignitaries' moods calmed down, and they displayed various expressions of mockery, disdain, or sighing that they had prepared in advance, turning back to continue their drinking and revelry

Since receiving the invitation, Qin Lei knew that his and Shen Luo's scheme had succeeded halfway. Shen Luo's numerous small tricks and a few significant moves had finally led to this meeting. The Prime Minister of Qi wanted to see if this supposedly foolish and dull hostage was truly worthless. If he could not pose a threat to Qi, then giving His Majesty and the Empress Dowager some face while simultaneously avoiding war and allowing Qi a few years to prepare was certainly a win-win situation

Shangguan Yunhe looked disdainfully at the pitiful hostage at the door, yet his mind was occupied with another matter. The state of Qi had been in poor condition for many years, suffering from consecutive droughts and the hardships faced by the common people. Meanwhile, those royal relatives, officials, and gentry were still lost in the glory of their great victory over the Qin state more than a decade ago, indulging in extravagance and luxury every day. The national treasury had been drained by these leeches, leading to a massive deficit, rendering it virtually nonfunctional. Consequently, heavy taxes had to be imposed, depleting resources and causing the people to suffer greatly, resorting to selling their children and occasionally sparking riots.

Through his confirmation with Shen Luo, Qin Lei was almost certain of Shangguan Yunhe's thoughts. In psychology, if a person wishes for a situation to develop in a certain direction, they will tend to emphasize information that supports their conclusions while disregarding information that contradicts those conclusions. This is commonly referred to as confirmation bias.

The residence of the governor indeed has a profound courtyard, with layers of reports arriving ahead of the guests, leading into the main hall for the banquet. At this moment, the feast has long since commenced, and observing the slightly tipsy appearance of the guests, it seems they have already indulged in wine for three rounds