Chapter 68: Celebration Banquet

"Sorry, I've been absent-minded lately," Evans said, hesitating. "Could I see the Lord of Calamity one more time?"

"I can help you ask, but you should know that unless He summons me, or I have something important, it's better to keep contact to a minimum." Saina glanced at him. "I don't think you can make any sort of exchange with this deity. Although He seems much more normal now, He is, after all, still..."

"I know. I just hope He can take back some of what He said." Evans felt a bit regretful; he shouldn't have gone to see the Lord of Calamity in the first place.

He now knew why things had been going so poorly for him; it was very likely that the Lord of Calamity had inadvertently praised his luck.

As expected of a deity in charge of misfortune, just a careless act, and he didn't know how long his bad luck would last.

Today was the day for Mr. Jones, oh no, Governor Jones, to celebrate at home.

Although he had been in office for some time, he hadn't had the chance to host guests until now.

Tana City was more chaotic than he had imagined. Not to mention the mess left behind by the Wealth Church, every affair in the city felt like a massive headache when he first took over.

Especially those Magistrates; every time a new one took office, they would come up with a bunch of new clauses, most of which couldn't be fully executed before the Magistrate would turn around and leave.

By the time the new Magistrate arrived, there would be yet another set of new rules and regulations.

Governor Jones had spent too much time sorting through these matters, to the point that even his celebration was delayed quite a bit.

"Miss Saina Jones, the master is waiting in the reception room. He means for you to go to the entrance to welcome the guests," a maid walked over and instructed Saina.

And this kind of work was supposed to be done by Saina's stepmother.

That woman with no ability, Saina complained in her heart, then smiled and said, "It is my honor to share the work for my father."

To welcome guests at the entrance, one must know everyone.

Saina could guarantee she recognized those who frequented the Government Building, but she had had too little contact with the ladies.

This should have been her stepmother's job, but who told her to be so prominent lately?

By now, some people had already arrived, such as the current Magistrate Yuerhan Henry, Feng Buer of the Golden Church, and the office director Cornelia Godmar, all of whom had already arrived.

The ones to be welcomed next were those who were not as high in status as Mr. Jones, so Saina's stepmother let her do the welcoming.

It was a troublesome job anyway.

However, Saina did well. With Evans's reminders, she was always able to greet every arriving guest in time.

This was also one of the reasons she hoped to awaken; after all, after awakening, one's memory and execution would become better, and one's physical fitness would be higher.

"Miss Saina." Yezi bowed softly. She had mastered some languages to communicate with the nobles, though not many yet.

She knew Saina was a Believer of the Lord of Calamity, and Saina also knew that Yezi was one too.

But precisely because of this, Saina and Yezi did not communicate much.

In Saina's heart, there was something sinister about these new Believers.

Although she was prepared to be involved, it was better not to make contact unless absolutely necessary.

After greeting her, Yezi sat down among the ladies with Chen Ai.

Pamere Feilipu sat right next to Yezi. She was a tall woman, and she was not carrying a sidearm; this was not the occasion for that.

Recently, Yezi had been trying to get closer to this young lady.

But this young lady was becoming increasingly repulsed by Yezi.

After all, everyone knew the hobbies of Viscount Philip, and at a time like this, it was hard for Yezi, who was trying to find ways to have more contact with Pamere Feilipu, not to be misunderstood.

However, it had to be said that Yezi's dancing was still good.

It was said that at today's reception, Yezi would dance for Governor Jones, and everyone was waiting for this wonderful moment.

Saina had been at the entrance, and only returned to the hall after most of the people had arrived.

Governor Jones's mansion was quite spacious; the hall could easily accommodate five hundred people.

There were quite a few people congratulating him and trying to build connections. Soon, as the time was right, the band began to play, and the small dance party began.

Yezi tidied her clothes and walked to the center of the floor. The opening was performed by her, and she would dance a piece in the middle of the dance floor.

Soft music emerged, and the people around burst into applause from time to time. Lady Adela, sitting next to Pamere, asked in a low voice, "I heard this dancer has been getting very close to you lately?"

"Yes, she invited me to the Theater to watch her performance, but I don't want to learn dancing from her yet," Pamere responded in a low voice.

"I saw her wanting to go to the Shooting Club two days ago. You know, that Club only allows entry through introductions," Lady Adela liked Yezi very much, so she spoke for her. "A girl really needs some means to protect herself when she is out, especially since the Edmond Theater had an incident a while ago. That was a huge blow to a girl."

Pamere nodded; she had heard about that incident.

It was said that Yezi had a very beautiful friend, who was also a painter, and she had passed away because of that incident.

If just providing a convenience could make the other person stay away from her... Pamere felt it was worth it.

Chen Ai, who was standing on the side watching Yezi dance, finally breathed a sigh of relief. She had deliberately let Yezi go to the Shooting Club a few more times to try her luck, just to have a chance for someone to take her in.

Now it was good; the line for the Shooting Club should finally be cleared.

Standing on high, admiring the dance, Governor Jones was very satisfied. He said to Magistrate Yuerhan on the side, "There have been quite a few more Xiahui People in Tana City recently."

"Tana City was originally an immigrant city-state; there will be all kinds of people here. I heard that the War Church has recruited a special Patrol of Xiahui People," Magistrate Yuerhan said with a smile. "It is said that the effect is quite good. The Xiahui People are quite serious about their work, aren't they?"

"Indeed. I heard that there is also war year after year over there. My thought is, if we could recruit more, or sell some over here, that would be good. The population drain in Tana City has been very serious recently, and some machine factories are almost unable to open. There are also fewer serfs. To be honest, if we only buy serfs from the Wealth Church, the price is really too expensive," Governor Jones couldn't help but say. "Of course, it cannot be denied that those serfs are healthier."

(End of this chapter)