Chapter 1048: Reception Mishap

Baifeng did not yet know that Chengqie was coming; at this hour, he was sleeping peacefully in his small room for his afternoon nap. Having already eaten lunch, it was only right to have a proper nap.

The reporting Soldier had already galloped to the spot on his ox, and Baifeng's guards stopped him as usual: "Get off the ox!"

The Soldier hurriedly climbed down from the ox, performed a military salute, and said, "I have come to report: Chengqie of the Suiren clan has arrived; that is, the son of Baoxi has arrived."

The two guards glanced at each other and requested the man to wait, then one immediately went inside to report. Baifeng's servant stood guard at the door to ensure no one disturbed Baifeng.

As Baifeng's personal servant, his status was naturally not something an ordinary person could compare to; even when the guards came, they had to show respect: "Attendant Qiuyu, please trouble yourself to report to the King: Chengqie of the Suiren clan, that is, the son of Baoxi, has arrived. He is on the road and will be here shortly."

Qiuyu pulled the guard over and whispered, "The King only just fell asleep a moment ago and cannot be disturbed now. How about this: you have the Ministry of Rites make arrangements for them to have lunch first and wash up simply. Coming at this time, they are likely still hungry. By the time they are tidied up, it will be time for the King to wake up."

"You are as thoughtful as ever, Attendant. I will go tell them that."

Qiuyu hurriedly grabbed the guard: "You said Chengqie arrived? Wasn't it said that City Lord Baoxi sent all his children over? Why did only one come?"

"You also have them ask: if the City Lord's children were all sent over, they must all come to see the King together. The Legitimate Son is a son, and the others are too; there must be no differential treatment in this regard, or a mistake will have been made."

The guard's mouth opened very wide, but he said in a very small voice: "Oh my, that is true indeed. I will have him go arrange it right now."

Qiuyu watched the guard leave before returning to stand before Baifeng's door again, motionless; a servant, yet appearing more like a guard.

The guard did not need to show as much respect to the Soldier guarding the city gate; his tone was very stiff, which was the only way to create a sense of 'strangers keep away.'

"The King is taking his afternoon nap and cannot be disturbed now. Go report quickly, have the people from the Ministry of Rites prepare lunch for the guests, and let them wash up and rest. Also, is Chengqie the only one who came?"

The Soldier recalled for a moment and hurriedly replied: "No, it is not just Chengqie; there are several Soldiers accompanying him. I imagine they are likely Chengqie's guards."

"Oh my, didn't City Lord Baoxi say he sent all his children over? Why did only Chengqie come? Go ask quickly who is leading the group and intercept them halfway. If all the children are coming, they must be brought into the city immediately. Have the Ministry of Rites arrange it according to the standard of etiquette; there must be no differential treatment."

The Soldier panicked instantly, as it seemed that was indeed the case, so he hurriedly mounted his ox: "Understood, I am going now!"

Although the ox was cumbersome, it ran much faster than a person and was quite intimidating, so much so that when he charged his ox to the side of Chengqie's carriage, Heifu had already stood up and drawn his Knife.

The Soldier dismounted the ox, spotted Heifu at a glance, and immediately walked to Heifu's side to call him off the carriage.

Heifu got off the carriage with a face full of confusion: "What is it? What happened?"

The Soldier glanced behind and saw Chengqie listening, so he said in a very low voice: "Brother, did City Lord Baoxi only send this one son?"

"No, it seems he sent most of the children over. Some of the older ones stayed behind at the Suiren clan. Why?"

The Soldier stamped his foot in anxiety: "Oh my, you ask why! You said it yourself, City Lord Baoxi sent all his children over. You only brought Chengqie to see the King; does City Lord Baoxi only have this one son?"

Heifu slapped his forehead: "Oh no, it's over. How could I have forgotten this? It's over, it's over. Is it still in time for me to go pick them up now?"

Because Heifu spoke in a loud voice, Chengqie heard him too. He was full of confusion, and since Heifu was the only one he was familiar with here, he also asked: "Heifu, what is it?"

Heifu signaled the Soldier to ask what he should say. The Soldier whispered: "Tell the truth, what else can you do? They will have to go see the King together in a while."

"Oh, oh, thanks, brother. I almost ruined everything at the very last step."

After thanking him, Heifu immediately walked to Chengqie's side and said with some apology: "Chengqie, I must go back for a moment to pick up your brothers and sisters. They must all go see the King with you; now, your statuses are all the same."

Chengqie had also almost forgotten his brothers who had almost no presence. Although he did not understand, he still let Heifu go. Since it had been said that he would inherit his father's position, why bother with his brothers and sisters?

At this moment, Heifu was only glad that on the road, he had still treated Baoxi's children differently, giving them better food and separating them from the commoners. Although he hadn't given them the special treatment Chengqie received, he had at least given them enough face; otherwise, if they were to leap up and become great Nobles later and come looking for trouble, that would be the end of him.

However, Chengqie felt a bit uneasy: "Then are we waiting here for you, or?"

The sharp-eyed Soldier immediately went over and said: "Chengqie, you must be tired from the journey, right? At this hour, haven't you eaten yet?"

Chengqie, who had already grown accustomed to the dietary habits of Huaxia, indeed felt his stomach was empty and was a bit hungry, so he nodded.

The Soldier immediately breathed a sigh of relief: "It is like this: because the meeting later may take a long time, we have arranged for you and your brothers and sisters to go have lunch first. After lunch, wash up simply, and then you can go see the King. You have had such a hard journey, so rest for a bit first."

Chengqie had no say now. Once he truly arrived in the territory of Huaxia and saw the prosperity and power of Huaxia, before his own power and status were thoroughly confirmed, Chengqie dared not lose his temper at will. He had been restraining himself, and even when facing a Soldier like this from Huaxia, he spoke very amiably.

"Fine, then you make the arrangements."

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. The Soldier hurriedly said to the Ministry of Rites Official: "Go to the place for guests, serve them well, and get everything ready!"

The Ministry of Rites Official nodded immediately to indicate he understood, and Heifu also began to run with long strides. His heart was panicking severely now; this must absolutely not go wrong. He was still complaining in his heart: no wonder the Ministry of Rites prepared so many carriages; it turned out they were for Baoxi's children. The people from the Ministry of Rites didn't even think to ask and just let those Leaders get on the carriages—damn it!