In the past, as a member of the Han Dynasty, Liu Biao might have had the protection of the dynasty's destiny. But now that the Wall of He Clan had been destroyed, there was nothing left. In addition to his old age and mental fatigue, it did not take long for Sei Itō to modify his consciousness and make him one of Sei Itō's subordinates.
"Biao greets Your Majesty." Liu Biao stood up from his seat and bowed respectfully.
"Ah!" When Lady Cai saw Liu Biao's reaction, she could no longer suppress the fear in her heart and instinctively cried out.
Sei Itō and Liu Biao both turned to look at Lady Cai's hiding spot.
Lady Cai knew that she could no longer hide and her face turned pale. She forced herself to calm down and walked out from behind the pillar and screen. Her eyes were filled with panic and she did not dare to meet Sei Itō's gaze.
"Why are you here?!" Liu Biao asked angrily when he saw Lady Cai.
"I … I …" Lady Cai said fearfully.
"Forget it. No matter what, she is still your wife. I believe that she is smart and will not tell anyone about our meeting. Am I right?" Itokunari waved his hand to stop the angry Liu Biao. He then looked at Lady Cai who was pale and exuded the charm of a mature woman.
"Yes, yes. I swear that I will not tell anyone about what happened today. If I go back on my words, may I die a horrible death!" Lady Cai quickly said.
"Smart woman." Sei Itō praised.
He then walked over to Liu Biao's seat and sat down.
"Tell me what is going on in Jingzhou." Ito Sei looked at Liu Biao and asked in a low voice.
"This … Actually, this is all because of my wife." Liu Biao turned to look at Lady Cai and said with a bitter smile.
"Oh?" Sei Itō looked at Lady Cai in surprise.
Lady Cai trembled and lowered her head.
"Some time ago, Huang Chengyan recommended a few famous scholars through this subject's wife, Madam Cai. This subject thought that Huang Chengyan and I were related by marriage and the people chosen were also virtuous. Thus, this subject followed Cai Shi's suggestion and arranged for them to be in the army. However, who would have thought that these people were actually demon cultivators. "At this point, Liu Biao let out a long sigh as if he had lost all of his reputation.
"I had no choice. This subject could only make the best of the mistake and listen to Cai Mao and Kuai Yue's advice to use them to help me clear out this place. "Liu Biao paused for a moment before continuing.
"In other words …" Sei Itō raised his brows. "You didn't know their background at first and only appointed them because of Huang Chengyan's recommendation?"
"Yes." Liu Biao.
"Then how did Huang Chengyan get involved with them?" Sei Itō was puzzled.
He knew that Huang Chengyan was a famous scholar in Jingzhou. The woman he wanted to meet was Huang Yueying's father and Zhuge Liang's father-in-law. However, he did not seem to have any contact with Zuo Ci.
Could he be one of the famous people that Zuo Ci had visited in the past?
"This subject does not know." Liu Biao replied.
"This concubine does not know either." Lady Cai saw Sei Itō looking at her. Lady Cai quickly shook her head and replied.
"Hmm … It seems that I have to get in touch with Huang Chengyan." Sei Itō muttered to himself. Then he raised his head and looked at Liu Biao and Lady Cai. "Jingsheng, immediately go and summon the five scholars recommended by Huang Chengyan back to Hanshou. Lady Cai, use the name of Xiangnian and your niece to invite your sister's family over. "
"Yes." Liu Biao immediately replied.
"Yes." Lady Cai hesitated for a moment before nodding. He also nodded in agreement.
I will not disturb the two of you any longer. Farewell. As for those people, you don't need to inform me when they return. I will naturally appear in your mansion at that time. "Seeing that the two agreed, Ito Sei smiled slightly, got up from his seat, and said.
Then, without waiting for Liu Biao and Madam Cai to say anything, he disappeared in a flash.
"Your Majesty is truly a deity." Liu Biao praised sincerely.
Lady Cai's eyes flashed. He sighed softly, his heart filled with helplessness.
… …
About a day and a half later, in a wealthy residence in the suburbs of Mianyang County.
"Husband, my sister sent a letter. He said that he misses me and Yueying, so he wants us to come to Hanshou to stay for a few days. What do you think … "A young woman dressed in black came to a man in yellow robes. He looked to be in his forties and looked to be in his forties. He was in high spirits and asked softly.
These two people were none other than Lady Cai's sister and her husband, the famous scholar Huang Chengyan.
"Didn't we just meet a few days ago?" Huang Chengyan frowned and asked in surprise.
"Probably because she is lonely." Lady Cai hesitated for a moment before sighing.
"… Okay, since I have nothing to do recently, it would be good to stay in Hanshou for a few days." Looking at his wife's face, Huang Chengyan, who was reading the bamboo scroll, could not help but agree.
"Thank you for your understanding." Lady Cai thanked him. "I will go and pack my things."
After saying that, he stood up and quickly went back to the back room to pack his luggage.
Huang Chengyan shook his head as he watched his wife leave. He continued to focus on the bamboo scroll in his hand.
"Speaking of which, I wonder what the new paper from Jiao Province looks like …" Huang Chengyan thought to himself as he felt his wrist aching.
At the same time, Xi Zhicai, Cheng Yu, Xun Yu, Xun You, and Xu Shu who were staying in several counties in Jingzhou also received orders from Liu Biao. They did not suspect anything and immediately rushed back to Hanshou.
Two days later, Huang Chengyan and his family's carriage entered Hanshou from the east gate and stopped outside Liu Biao's residence.
"Greetings Mister Huang, Lady Cai, and Miss Yueying." An elderly man who appeared to be a butler quickly made his way over to the gate with a smile on his face as he spoke to Huang Chengyan and Mistress Cai, as well as the little girl who appeared to be around three or four years of age. She was wearing a set of red robes, but she had a head of golden hair and dark skin.
"Is Liu Jingzhou at home?" Huang Chengyan nodded and asked casually.
Actually, this question was pointless. Although this residence was the Liu Mansion, it was no different from the Provincial Overseer Mansion. This was because in the Han Dynasty, other than the ordinary officials and ministers who needed to work, the Provincial Overseer, Provincial Governor, County Magistrate and other important officials would have their residences connected to the Liu Mansion. Thus, unless Liu Biao went out, he would definitely be at home.
"He is at home." The steward replied.
"Bring me to him." Since Liu Biao was at home, Huang Chengyan could not be unreasonable. He had to pay his respects to his master first.
"Okay." The steward bowed and replied.
"Go ahead. I will go to my sister myself." Lady Cai smiled when she saw the steward looking at her.
"My apologies." The steward apologized and brought Huang Chengyan to Liu Biao's study. Lady Cai did not treat Huang Yueying as an outsider and led her to her sister's residence.
A moment later, Huang Chengyan followed the steward to Liu Biao.
"Chengyan greets Gongjun." Huang Chengyan greeted.
"Chengyan, you are here." Liu Biao raised his head and smiled.
According to common sense, Liu Biao should address Huang Chengyan as brother-in-law while Huang Chengyan should address Liu Biao as brother-in-law. However, this was impossible because of the difference in status between them. One of them was the Governor of Jingzhou, a high-ranking official who acted on behalf of the Emperor and was a member of the Imperial Family. The other was just a so-called famous scholar who didn't have half a year of official rank. Even if the etiquette was as such, it wasn't appropriate for the two of them to do so.
Because of this, both of them made a compromise. Huang Chengyan still used his official title to address Liu Biao while Liu Biao used his name to address Huang Chengyan. This way, they could avoid the awkward etiquette issue and also not embarrass both of them.
"Where is your wife and niece Yueying?" Liu Biao asked.
"They have already gone to the back room. They should have met with my sister by now." Huang Chengyan guessed.
Liu Biao nodded and remained silent.
"Is there something troubling Gongjun?" Huang Chengyan could not help but ask when he saw Liu Biao's silence.
"There is something troubling me." Liu Biao sighed.
"If it is not a confidential matter, Gongjun can tell us. We can discuss it together." Huang Chengyan said.
"Alright." Liu Biao pretended to hesitate for a moment before nodding. He then looked at Huang Chengyan and asked softly, "Chengyan, how is our relationship?"
"We are related by marriage. Although we are not as close as brothers, we are still close relatives." Huang Chengyan raised his eyebrows and replied straightforwardly.
"If that is the case, then I ask thee, where did the five of them come from? Why did thou recommend them to me?" Liu Biao asked with a gloomy expression.
"What is the meaning of this?" Huang Chengyan asked with displeasure. "Are the five of them famous people?"
"Naturally, they are famous people." Liu Biao nodded.
This point was not false. Among the five people, other than Liu Biao had never heard of the name of Xi Zhicai, all of them had a faint reputation of being virtuous and talented.
"Then I ask Gongjun, are the five of them talented?" Huang Chengyan asked.
"Although they are not Wang Zuo, they are all talented." Liu Biao nodded and admitted.
Liu Biao had confirmed this point through their performance in the army. They were all rare talents.
"Since they are famous people and talented, I saw that Gongjun had just entered Jingzhou. Is it wrong for me to recommend them to you?" Huang Chengyan retorted.
"… But thou did not say that they are skilled in sorcery." Liu Biao frowned and said.
"…" Hearing this question, Huang Chengyan choked and didn't know what to say for a moment.
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