Chapter 329: Chapter 188: Are You Bullying Me?
The Right Deputy Magistrate looked around the room. It was filled with subordinate officials he was on good terms with—allies from the same faction, so to speak.
In contrast, Room Jia was much quieter. Aside from the occasional bit of small talk, the officials simply drank the tea in their cups.
Everyone was waiting for Lu Yuan to arrive.
While they waited, a steady stream of commoners entered, sat down on the first floor, and clamored to be served.
"The Lord Prefect has arrived!" Someone certainly knew how to herald Lu Yuan’s entrance.
Lu Yuan was just ascending the stairs to the second floor with four of his retainers. The other four found an empty table on the first floor and sat down.
Upon hearing the announcement, all the officials on the second floor rose to their feet and stepped out of their rooms to greet him.
Lu Yuan looked at the corridor, now packed with people. With a smile, he said, "Well, look at this. It seems they don’t have a single large hall, so I had no choice but to place you all in separate rooms. Don’t worry, I’ll make the rounds to each room in a bit to thank you all personally."
"Lord Prefect, you’re too kind!" the officials said, cupping their hands in a show of humility.
Lu Yuan’s eyes immediately fell on the Right Investigating Officer and his swollen face. He made a point of greeting him, "Oh my, you there. Is your face alright?"
In the presence of these officials, Lu Yuan was just a young man.
They were all older than him; some were even old enough to be his grandfather.
The Right Investigating Officer replied with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes, "Thank you for your concern, Lord Prefect. It’s much better."
Lu Yuan turned his head slightly and said to his retainers, "What’s this? Didn’t you send the Lord Magistrate some poultices for the swelling?"
His retainers lowered their heads. "It was our oversight."
"No matter, no matter." Lu Yuan turned back to the officials. "My lords, please, take your seats. I’ll head into Room Jia first, and I’ll be around to offer a toast to everyone shortly."
The officials smiled, and after a few more words, they all returned to their rooms.
The tables were laden with the Spring Garden Restaurant’s specialties: frog legs, chicken breast with bamboo shoots, braised pufferfish, wine-marinated blood clams, roasted venison, stuffed pork belly...
Knowing that the newly appointed Lord Prefect of Dongchang City was hosting a banquet, the restaurant had brought out all its signature dishes.
Lu Yuan entered Room Jia, and after taking a seat, he was the first to raise his cup. "Gentlemen," he said, "I am new here and hope I can count on your full support."
The officials raised their cups, rose to their feet, and one by one, pledged their loyalty to Lu Yuan.
Only after they had all drunk did they sit back down.
Lu Yuan waved his hand. "Come now, there are no outsiders here. There’s no need to be so formal, no need for all these pleasantries. Come, come, let’s talk..."
After a cup of wine and a few bites of food...
Lu Yuan refilled his cup and raised it to the Left Deputy Magistrate. "Lord Deputy Magistrate..."
This sudden gesture from Lu Yuan left the Left Deputy Magistrate feeling both surprised and immensely flattered.
The Left Deputy Magistrate scrambled to raise his own cup. "My Lord," he said hastily, "allow me to toast you!"
"Please," Lu Yuan interjected, "there are no ’My Lords’ here."
The officials in Room Jia were all ones Lu Yuan had identified as being relatively upright.
In just a few short days, Lu Yuan had already gotten a good read on these officials.
Lu Yuan painted a grand vision for them, encouraging them to do their jobs well. He reminded them that the livelihood of the common people in the lands governed by Dongchang Prefecture was inextricably linked to their efforts.
Seeing such a young man as Lu Yuan so concerned for the common folk, with no ulterior motives or convoluted schemes, the officials were moved and expressed their desire to follow the Lord Prefect.
Even the Left Deputy Magistrate, a man of his advanced years, shed his official airs and proactively raised his cup to return the Lord Prefect’s toast.
Lu Yuan stayed in Room Jia for quite a while. Seeing that he had won over the entire table with just a few words, he was inwardly ecstatic. ’Future official business will be impossible without these men.’
These officials were cut from the same cloth as Lu Yuan, so they were naturally easy to rally to his side.
Lu Yuan drained his cup. "Please, continue eating," he said. "I’m going to make the rounds in the other rooms."
The officials started to rise to see him off, but Lu Yuan motioned for them to remain seated.
Carrying his empty wine cup, Lu Yuan headed to Room Yi.
After entering the room, Lu Yuan looked at the table of food, which had barely been touched. "My lords, please eat!" he said. "Such delicious food... I never got to eat things like this back in Taiping City."
A number of officials rose to greet him, but the Right Deputy Magistrate and a few others remained firmly in their seats, neither speaking nor rising.
The Right Deputy Magistrate’s rank was lower than the Prefect’s, but he was still a Fifth Grade Official. On top of that, he wielded considerable influence of his own in Dongchang City, so a certain degree of arrogance was to be expected.
Lu Yuan took it all in. After a few more cups of wine, his face flushed, he grabbed the Right Deputy Magistrate’s hand with a feigned drunkenness and said, "I... I’m new here. I don’t know the ropes. Are you... bullying me?"
