Chapter 379: Stalemate 02

  Xiao He was shocked to see Liu Bang being so generous. As Xiao He knew Liu Shanhe's situation the best, he was truly a poor man, just a small Ting Chang, how could he take out 10,000 coins? It was purely nonsense!

  "Liu Bang, Liu Bang, what are you doing? Alas, how can this be a joke?" Xiao He was really anxious. As the host of this grand celebration banquet, Xiao He naturally bore all the responsibility. To have issued such an empty check, what kind of situation is this? How could he explain it to Lord Lü and the county magistrate afterwards? Alas, this Liu Bang!

  Liu Shanhe saw Xiang Yu looking very embarrassed, so he kept winking at him and said: "Hey, old Xiang, why are you being so stubborn? Just do as I say and everything will be fine. If anything happens in the future, I'll take full responsibility!" Liu Shanhe said with a carefree attitude.

  Xiao He thought to himself, "You're in charge? Ah, you're in charge of nothing! But he had no choice. Of course, if it were someone else, Xiao He would never have allowed this. And Liu Bang? The relationship between Xiao He and Liu Bang was well-known throughout Pei County! Given their friendship, this little matter was a piece of cake. Hmm, forget it, forget it, I'll just help him out one more time today! Ah, this Liu Bang is really something!"

  "Xiangshui Pavilion is long, Liu Bang, congratulations on getting rich!" Xiao He shouted in a low and not very loud voice.

  "What? A gift of 10,000 coins? Who is this person? This is incredible! 10,000 coins? I'm impressed, this is really impressive!" Someone in the back whispered after hearing Xiao He's voice. Yes, a gift of 10,000 coins, on this evening, that was an astronomical figure. Because according to the rules, if the gift exceeded 1,000 coins, one could have a face-to-face conversation with Lord Lü in the highest-level bedroom. And what concept would a gift of 10,000 coins be?

  Then Liu Shanhe was led by the attendant, walking straight to the inner room. Behind him, Xiao He smiled and shook his head constantly, "Alas, this Liu Bang! Really can't do anything about it! Really can't do anything about it!"

  But Lü Gong, although he didn't know who this person was who had sent the huge sum of money, there was one thing he could be certain of: this person was definitely not an ordinary individual, but a noble guest. So, Lü Gong personally went to welcome him at the door, bowing deeply and raising his hands high in respect, and invited Liu Bang to take a seat inside with great courtesy, saying "Honored guest, please take a seat inside! Honored guest, please take a seat inside!" And Liu Shanhe naturally didn't decline, swaggeringly taking the seat of honor.

  At this time, Lü Gong carefully examined Liu Bang's appearance. He saw that Lü Gong stroked his beard, closed his eyes slightly, and after a long while, he said to Liu Bang: "Sir, your appearance is truly extraordinary, and auspicious people have heavenly physiognomy! I've never seen such a noble and wealthy appearance like yours before! Sir, your appearance is truly extraordinary, and auspicious people have heavenly physiognomy! I've never seen such a noble and wealthy appearance like yours before!" In fact, Lü Gong's words were not just flattery. Liu Bang's appearance, which was inherited from his ancestors, had a full and rounded face, a high and majestic forehead, truly the appearance of a noble person.

  Next, Lü Gong seemed to have forgotten the existence of everyone else, and was wholeheartedly drinking with Liu Shanhe. And Liu Shanhe, neither humble nor arrogant, talked and laughed freely, as if he were in his own home, looking very comfortable. The center of the entire banquet naturally shifted towards Liu Shanhe's side, even the county magistrate seemed to be overshadowed.

  At this time, Xiao He walked over, holding a wine cup, and after drinking with Lü Gong, he said to Lü Gong with a smile: "I'm saying, Lü Gong, that Liu Ji is always boasting, I'm afraid there's not a single real thing in his mouth!"

  Actually, Xiao He was just joking with Liu Shanhe, but anyone who is a bit clever would understand that Xiao He's words were already very clear: the 10,000 yuan that Liu Ji gave earlier was actually an empty check and not real! Don't be deceived by this guy's tricks without realizing it! However, since Xiao He said this in a joking tone with a hint of teasing, the tone wasn't so rigid after all.

  But what seemed to surprise Xiao He was that Lü Gong didn't seem to be moved by his own words, and continued drinking with Liu Shanhe cup after cup, as if everything around him didn't exist.

  Xiao He is such a clever person, seeing this scene, he naturally understood that Lü Gong had already been won over by Liu Shanhe's charm, and as for the matter of 10,000 yuan, it seemed that he had also seen through it. However, he didn't care about these things at all. Since that was the case, then it was best, at least Xiao He could get out of this confusing situation.

  Just as Lü Gong and Liu Shanhe were drinking and enjoying themselves, two other people stared at Liu Shanhe with piercing eyes. One of them was the county magistrate. The county magistrate could be said to be suffocating tonight. Originally, from any aspect, he should have been the protagonist of this banquet tonight, but unexpectedly, the protagonist had been taken away by that little water pavilion chief! And his body as a small water pavilion chief was also promoted by him! When he thought of this, the county magistrate couldn't help but feel his blood boiling with anger. The gaze staring at Liu Shanhe became even more venomous. Another pair of eyes belonged to Lü Gong's eldest daughter, Lü Zhì. She had already heard from her father that the county magistrate wanted to marry her as his concubine. For a 17- or 18-year-old girl, hearing that she would be married to a man over 50 was absolutely more unbearable than death. Moreover, her father had not given a clear response to the county magistrate's request. On the other hand, her mother was very enthusiastic about this marriage. Obviously, her mother was eyeing the county magistrate's official position and did not consider her daughter's happiness.

  But tonight, for Lv Chi, was originally a very unbearable night. However, since that person appeared, it seemed that in her dark sky, a dazzling star suddenly lit up, making her feel extremely excited and thrilled. Although this person's age is also a bit older, but this does not affect his innate charm. Look at him, broad forehead, high cheekbones, straight nose bridge, big ears, just one look is the appearance of a nobleman. Hmm, to be able to follow such a man for a lifetime, even if it means death, it's worth it. Lv Chi kept staring at Liu Shanhe, naturally, all this, Liu Shanhe still didn't know about. He was currently indulging in excessive drinking with Lv Gong!

  At last, after more than half a watch had passed, the guests gradually took their leave. Liu Shanhe also stood up and bowed to Lü Gong, saying: "Thank you for your hospitality, I will take my leave today and come again tomorrow to ask for your guidance." As he spoke, Liu Shanhe was about to turn around and leave. But Lü Gong, although he did not know who this person who had sent the congratulatory gift of ten thousand coins was, there was one thing he could be certain of: this person was definitely not an ordinary person, but a noble guest. So, Lü Gong personally escorted him to the door, bowed deeply and raised his hands high in respect, and paid Liu Bang a grand courtesy, saying: "Noble guest, please take a seat inside! Noble guest, please take a seat inside!" And Liu Shanhe, of course, did not decline, but sat down with a flourish in the seat of honor.

  Actually, the events that took place tonight were also beyond Liu Shanhe's expectations. In his plan, at most, he could only exchange a few words with Lü Gong and meet this friend who was so valued by the county magistrate. As someone who particularly liked making friends, Liu Shanhe would not let such an opportunity slip away. That was his only goal, and as for other things, he hadn't even thought about them. Moreover, his so-called "ten thousand words of congratulations" were completely written on a whim, and it was very likely that they would become a laughingstock in the future! However, he really didn't expect that tonight, he would become the center of attention at the banquet, becoming the most dazzling star! Even the county magistrate was overshadowed by him, shrinking into a corner with a gloomy expression. Ah, I, Liu Shanhe, seem to have stepped on a newspaper today - it's really come true! Could it be that my grand plan is about to begin? Is it really going to start from here? If so, then today would truly be an unforgettable day! As for Lü Zhi, tonight was originally a very difficult evening to endure. However, since that person appeared, it seemed as though a dazzling star had suddenly lit up in her dark sky, making her feel extremely excited and agitated. Although this person's age was also somewhat older, this did not affect his innate charm. Just look at him - his broad forehead, high cheekbones, straight nose bridge, large ears... he looked like a nobleman. Ah, to be able to follow such a man for a lifetime would be worth it, even if it meant dying. Lü Zhi continued to gaze at Liu Shanhe, naturally unaware of all this. He was currently indulging in excessive drinking with Lü Gong!

  Just as Liu Shanhe had just sat down, the county magistrate said with a sarcastic tone: "Hehehe, I wonder who it is. It turns out that this noble guest is actually Liu San, the head of Sishui Pavilion! Hehehe, I didn't expect it, really didn't expect it!"

  It was obvious that the county magistrate's words were laced with a strong tone of disdain. Yes, as a county magistrate, he naturally had the qualifications to speak in such a manner about a small town chief. Firstly, wasn't Liu Sanhe, this small town chief, promoted by him? Secondly, compared to a town chief, a county magistrate was two ranks higher! A small town chief dared to sit with the county magistrate, which made the latter feel extremely uncomfortable. However, what made the county magistrate even more uneasy was that Lyu Zhi, one of the women from the inner chamber, kept glancing at Liu Sanhe from time to time. This guy was really something! A small town chief of Sishui actually dared to sit with the county magistrate, truly overestimating himself! Thinking this, the county magistrate stood up and walked behind Lyu Gong, whispering in his ear: "Lyu Gong, Lyu Gong!" However, even after saying it twice, he still didn't hear a response from Lyu Gong. The county magistrate found this strange and couldn't help but glance sideways, only to see that Lyu Gong was intently staring at Liu Sanhe with unblinking eyes! This made the county magistrate so angry that he thought to himself: "Liu Sanhe, you've stolen the show again! I spent half a day's effort for nothing!"

  Thinking that he would have a great face tonight, Liu Shanhe's heart was overjoyed. But what he didn't dare to think about was that his real benefits were yet to come!

  Liu Shanhe was about to turn around and leave, but saw that Lü Gong had grabbed his hand and said: "Liu Tingchang, I don't know if you're married today?"

  Lü Gong's words meant that even a pig should understand. Liu Shanhe was a clever person and understood the meaning as soon as he heard it, but he also didn't want to show his emotions: "Ji hasn't gotten married yet."

  "Oh! Oh!" Lü Gong still stroked his beard with one hand and muttered to himself, "I wonder how old Liu Tingchang is this year?"

  "Oh, I'll be thirty-five this year." Liu Shanhe replied truthfully.

  "Alright." Lü Gong paced back and forth on the ground a few times before turning to Liu Shanhe with a serious expression: "I'm telling you, Liu Tingchang, I have a daughter named Lü Zhì, and I'd like to arrange for her to be your wife. What do you think?"

  What? Marry his daughter to be my wife? This, this, this, is there really such a good thing in the world? Haha, haha, it seems that heaven is really going to bless me Liu Shanhe this time! From now on, I, Liu Shanhe, seem to have really hit the jackpot! I've struck it rich!

  Liu Shanhe was so excited for a while that he was stunned and stood there blankly, not coming back to his senses for half a day.

  After a long time, Liu Shanhe suddenly came to his senses and repeatedly said to Lü Gong: "Liu Ji is grateful for Lü Gong's kindness, how dare he not follow? However, although Liu Ji has always had great ambitions, it is also because of bad luck that he has no chance to succeed, so he often feels very depressed in his heart. Thinking of myself, Liu Ji, I can't even support myself, where would I have the money to marry a wife? I'm afraid that if the precious daughter follows me, Liu Ji, she will not be able to bear the hardships of rural life. By then, I'm afraid Lü Gong will regret it too late!"

  After listening to Liu Shanhe's words, Lü Gong was not moved at all and said seriously: "What nonsense is Liu Tingzhang talking about! This treasure may not be born with, even if there are thousands of wealth, if you don't work hard, you won't be able to keep it, and in the end, you'll only become a prodigal son! So, I don't value your family's wealth, but I appreciate you as a person! Alright, Liu Tingzhang, I'm also a straightforward person. If you're not disdainful of my daughter, then I'll let you two get married on a auspicious day, how about it?

  Then, Liu Shanhe, whose mind was as quick as a spirit, immediately knelt down and kowtowed three times, saying in a flurry: "Tai Shan, please accept my respects." Just like that, in an instant, Liu Shanhe had obtained a beautiful daughter-in-law, and at the same time, he had also gained a wealthy father-in-law. This was something that Liu Shanhe wouldn't have dared to dream of before! But now, all of this had become reality. Heaven seemed to be showing its favor towards him. Although it was a bit late, Liu Shanhe's heart was still very satisfied.

  Next, Lü Gong settled the wedding date with Liu Shanhe, and then Liu Shanhe took his leave in high spirits. As soon as Liu Shanhe left, Lü Gong's wife rushed over, panting and scolding: "I say, old man, oh no! How can you be so muddled? You always said that our eldest son has a noble appearance, didn't you? The county magistrate had his eyes on our eldest son, but what did you do tonight? Did you eat some kind of bewitching medicine? You actually promised our eldest daughter to that scoundrel Liu Ji! Oh, you, you, it's really...!"

  "Oh! What do you know?! This is truly a woman's view, a housewife's perspective! That Liu Qisheng has an extraordinary appearance, in the future he may not become the Son of Heaven, but he can also be a feudal lord. How can that small county magistrate compare to him?! Besides, that county magistrate is already over 50 years old and still has seven or eight concubines, are you trying to push our daughter into a fire pit?! This is truly a woman's view, a housewife's perspective!"

  "But, however, old man, we are able to settle in Pei County now also thanks to your old friend, thanks to this county magistrate! Otherwise, wouldn't we still be fleeing from our enemies and have no place to call home? Even just for this reason alone, it's not excessive for us to marry our daughter off to him!" The wife was still stubbornly holding onto her own opinion.

  At this moment, Lü Chi suddenly walked over from the inner room and said to her mother: "Mother, you don't have to argue with Father anymore. I've already set my eyes on that Liu Qi and decided to marry him. Anyway, I won't marry that county magistrate."

  Lü Gong was overjoyed after hearing his daughter's words, and said with great self-satisfaction: "Haha, my daughter has a good eye for things, my daughter has a good eye for things!" But Lü Gong's words made his wife so angry that she rolled her eyes.

  But Liu Shanhe was secretly delighted, and after returning to the Sishui Pavilion with a swagger, he unknowingly came to the front of Wu Fan's hotel again, and knocked on the door with force.

  "Who is it? Who is it? It's so late, why are you still knocking on the door?" A sleepy voice came from inside the house.

  "It's me, it's me! How come you can't even hear my voice? Liu San! Liu Ting Chang! Can't you even hear my voice? Liu San! Liu Ting Chang!" Liu Shan He shouted loudly while knocking on the door.

  "Who? Liu San? Ah, my little wrongdoer, why did you come so late?" Along with the loud and nasal shouting, a woman, wearing disheveled clothes, opened the door for Liu Shanhe. Then, she squeezed out half of her body, even revealing half of her snow-white arm, looking outside as if she was doing something sneaky. Only then did she feel at ease closing the shop door.

  "Wu Fan scolded, 'Liu San, where have you gone drinking again? How did you get so drunk? Alas, you're not a good drinker, why don't you just warm up a bit and drink less?' Then he helped Liu Shanhe loosen his belt and began to plan their next move. It had been about seven or eight days since they last shared a bed together, and Wu Fan couldn't help but feel a little longing. As soon as he thought of this, the woman became even more flirtatious, tightly hugging Liu Shanhe and starting to squirm and twist her body. And Liu Shanhe, having received great good news tonight, was also very energetic in his actions, leaving the woman completely satisfied before finally lying down, drenched in sweat."

  At this time, Liu Shanhe actually needed to sleep the most. However, that woman still couldn't fall asleep and kept buzzing around Liu Shanhe's ears like a fly, shouting: "I'm asking you, Liu San, I'm asking you, be honest with me, where did you go to drink tonight? Ah? Be honest with me, where did you go to drink tonight? Ah? But looking at your energy tonight, it doesn't seem like you went to drink flower wine. Hmm, if you didn't go to the brothel to drink flower wine, then where did you drink? Honestly tell old lady! Otherwise, you can forget about sleeping!" As she spoke, that woman stretched out her hand and started scratching Liu Shanhe's armpits vigorously.

  "Alas, where else can I go? It's still that Lu Gong's banquet!" Liu Shanhe didn't want to play word games with the woman anymore and wished he could just tell her everything so he could get a good night's sleep.

  "Who? Lü Gong? Who is Lü Gong? Who is Lü Gong again?" The woman obviously still didn't know about the matter of Lü Gong, so she kept asking Liu Shanhe.

  "Hey, isn't that the county magistrate's good friend? That guy is not simple at all. His family property is quite impressive, and he also has two daughters as beautiful as flowers! Hmm, let me tell you, those two daughters of Mr. Lü, haha, are truly extremely beautiful~~~" Liu Shanhe couldn't help but feel excited whenever he thought about Mr. Lü's two daughters, especially one of them, even thinking about her becoming his wife made him ecstatic.

  "What's wrong, I'm talking to Liu San, are you thinking of hitting on those two three-flower girls again? You're such a person, sigh, I've seen through you, all day long you only know how to be a hypocrite~~~" Wu Fei said with a sinister tone.

  "Ah, ah, ah, you, how can you be like this, how can you be like this!" Liu Shanhe saw that Wu Fan was really anxious this time and for a moment he didn't know what to do.

  “Thud, thud, thud~~~” With a few loud “thuds”, Wu's wife threw all of Liu Shanhe's clothes to the ground. At this time, Liu Shanhe was still not wearing anything, having just finished with that woman and not even having had time to put on his underwear! Oh my god, this woman is something else! If she's not your own wife, it seems like it's just not going to work out! Her face changes faster than a child's butt can turn red, one moment it was all lovey-dovey, and the next it's all dark and stormy. Oh my god!

  But Liu Shanhe also knew that the woman was now beyond recall, even if ten oxen were used to pull her back. Whatever he said would be of no use, so it was better not to waste his breath on her. He could only hold his clothes and hastily escape...