Chapter 531

Hongnong changed hands twice in a short time, but the Yang clan appears unaffected; at least the Great King didn't notice, still enjoying the same luxurious lifestyle, everyone maintaining their bearing.

The Yang clan, which had held Hongnong for a thousand years, quickly shed its disgrace and regained the pride and composure of a great aristocratic family.

Everything is fine, except for Wei Shen.

It's not that the Yang clan was arrogant and neglectful, nor does he have any complaints about his maternal grandmother's family; he simply regrets coming with the Great King.

It's just regret; even if they visited at another time, it wouldn't be just him bearing everything—he should have brought Wei Ke and Wei Heng along.

Wei Shen and the Great King attended the Yang family banquet, treating it as a visit to relatives and bringing no other high-ranking officers—only the little Jin that followed them close. In Wei Shen's eyes, Xiao Jin is a capable, lively little pet that protects its master; ever since it showed its skill on the Luoyang city wall, Wei Shen has elevated its status to stand beside the Heaven-Covering Lord. Seeing the Great King bring along the Xiao beast, he thought it good; if the conversation ran dry and the atmosphere grew awkward, our Xiao Jin could liven things up!

Who would have thought he underestimated the Great King and his beloved pet?

The Great King's Fate-Transforming Method has Xiao Jin as the main character.

The Yang family did not neglect the Great King; the banquet was extravagantly elaborate. Not mentioning the utensils and food and drink, it should have begun with elegant music, the musicians playing bronze bells and guqin, and after three rounds of wine there should have been song and dance to liven things up.

Why say 'should'? The preparations were made, but today there simply wasn't time to perform them.

Without a note of silk and bamboo, all the social formalities were skipped, jumping straight to a dry-feast gathering of the Great King and his beloved pet.

Wei Shen wavered between pretending to be deaf and mute and crawling under the table.

The thirteenth and fifteenth sons of the Yang family whispered at the far end, distant from the Great King: 'Have we reached thirty dishes yet?'

"I counted; it's probably the thirty-seventh platter of roasted deer."

"One can see the northern borders are suffering; maybe they're eating out of poverty?"

"So, what exactly is this thing? This is the first time I've seen it."

"The Northern King always brings it on campaign; it must be a rare variety."

"No matter how rare, it shouldn't be brought to the table without propriety..."

"Shut up! What time is it now? Fifth Brother was let down from the city wall and is still running a fever! The Hongnong Yang clan still just wants to hang people from the city wall whenever they feel like it! He is the Northern King's beloved pet, the Northern King supports commoners entering office, and you're lecturing him about etiquette?"

"He's not just taking the upper seat; he insists on sitting in the great-grandfather's place, and that must be yielded to him!"

Wei Shen rested one hand on his forehead as the Great King ate, hiding his face while quietly warning him that enough was enough. "If you keep this up, I'll leave the banquet!" If I'd known it would be like this, I wouldn't have come.

The Great King ignored him, directing the maids bringing the freshly roasted meat from the back row to set down their trays, then he personally took the delicately plated, small portions of roasted deer—three or four servings—and piled them onto a single plate before handing it over to Xiao Jin……

The Yang family is fine in every way, except they're too particular— a plate of roasted meat has too little on it, not very cost-effective.

His new pet Xiao Jin, with a flick of its tongue, devoured the meat from three or four plates, and the Xiao beast ate with the voracity of a glutton.

Seeing this, the Great King sighed dramatically: "Since leaving Youzhou, our Xiao Jin has never eaten anything this good. It's all my fault, but it's hard on our Xiao Jin."

Xiao Jin, looking up confused amidst its busyness, thought: "How is this meat good? It's far worse than the dried meat it usually eats! Didn't you say to come eat some fresh, free meat and let me eat more? At least this dish is hot, fresh, and tender, which is somewhat acceptable."

The Great King scratched his cheek, looking embarrassed: "Well, even in Youzhou I haven't let you eat this well every meal." He wore an awkward expression, affectionately patting the fearsome beast's head.

Yang Yao, mature and shrewd, smiled and said: "The Yang family has a manor outside the city raising deer; the place is remote, so Zhang Tong hasn't disturbed it, and my maternal uncle will gather some to send to Your Highness's supply corps."

The Great King, without ceremony, thanked Yang Yao on Xiao Jin's behalf, then directed Xiao Jin to try the delicately plated pastries.

The Great King, hoping to keep it from turning into a man-eating Xiao beast, usually pampers it with good food and drink, but this thing, after eating a piece, feels it's still not enough—how could it compare to pastries made from crops grown on the field's foundation? It lacks any fragrant spiritual essence, and it can't discern good from bad.

This fellow, after eating, looks at the King with resentment: "You just let me eat more, this also counts as repaying the meal!" It completely lacks that flavor!

The King, however, grabs it in a hug, forcibly stamps it, saying, "Delicious, right?"

This fellow, being sensible, also brings the plate from his own table over to Xiao Jin, saying, "I, the King will also save this plate for you to eat. Eat more today, and tomorrow don't come asking me for it, okay?"

Wei Shen:... Truly moving heaven and shaking earth!

The King earnestly instructs, "Xiao Jin, when you're out and about, even drinking porridge is a struggle—how could we possibly have snacks? We're going to save the Great Jin Dynasty; once this battle is over, things will be fine. After the battle, we'll have good days, the common folk will have good days, our good days are still ahead—you must behave. A little hunger is nothing—sigh! I, the King can't even get full."

Wei Shen could barely swallow the two bites of snack he'd just chewed; hearing the King's harsh words almost made him choke, and he burst into a fit of coughing: "Cough, cough, cough…"

Seeing everyone looking at him, he said, "Sorry, I choked—Shen hasn't had a snack in ages." How embarrassing! On his way back, he won't go through Promote Agriculture; he'll take a detour.

Yang Yao, being tactful, again expressed his stance: "Your Highness, your western campaign to aid the state will merit ages. Your Highness, you're still young, this journey must have been hard on you. Despite the years of drought, the Yang clan does have some grain stored; this afternoon, the maternal uncle will send all usable supplies to Your Highness. Your Highness is still young and growing, so you must eat your fill."

The King, embarrassed, said, "Thank you, maternal uncle, but in these times grain is precious; even as family, I, the King would feel bad taking the Yang clan's life‑sustaining grain…"

"In these times, not even grain can save a life; Your Highness, don't decline the maternal uncle's offer."

Yang Yao then named the steward to handle it immediately; the cavalry would set out tomorrow—any later would be too late.

The King, deeply moved, said, "Maternal uncle, rest assured—I, the King will station a garrison at Promote Agriculture. With me there, the Yang clan's lives will be safe no matter what."

The old and the young exchanged praises back and forth; this time Wei Shen really couldn't eat any snack—his tooth hurt.

Before the King returned from the banquet, the Marquis of the Eastern Capital heard that the Yang clan had sent a considerable amount of grain to the supply camp; only then did he realize the King's 'fundraising' was literal, and he hurried over to handle the handover.

Feng Xiang saw grain falling from the sky and still sighed, utterly bewildered.

The Marquis of the Eastern Capital laughed and shook his head: "Your Highness is still young; when you grow up, you won't know whether you'll regret this." That black history is simply endless to write.

He was still overthinking; the King has known since age four that face is something you can have or not—just depends on what he needs.

The banquet ended.

As they were leaving, the King enthusiastically proposed that Yang Yao serve as acting governor of Promote Agriculture to help him manage it first. His attitude was extremely firm, brooking no refusal from Yao.

Upon arriving at the temporary governor's residence, Wei Shen finally couldn't help asking, "You said the gentry are the Great Jin's great scourge, and Promote Agriculture was originally the Yang clan's domain—now that we've taken it, why not replace them with Northern Border folks as we did in Luoyang and Upper Party, instead of just giving it back to them?"

Otherwise we have no suitable person to send there. Even if we transfer a new governor, no matter who, they can't get around the Yang clan; in these special times we must still guard against changes. Who could be more suitable than the Yang clan? They are still the King's maternal clan; to outsiders, we're all on the same rope. Anyone coming to Promote Agriculture would have to look to Yang Yao's expression—better to let him manage it himself; the King sees they have things under control.

"Are you sure? My words are harsh, but are you sure it won't turn into another Glorious Elegance Wang clan?" In recent years the Wang clan in Glorious Elegance has begun stockpiling troops.

The King still smiled narrowly, "The Yang clan, united, supports the King in quelling the rebellion; I, the King will never forget the maternal uncle, and will surely summon the Yang clan to migrate north to Secluded Prefecture to enjoy blessings."

Wei Shen:...