It's obviously a life skill, but you developed it into a magical skill

The scene was originally lively and lively, with groups of three or three, each talking about their own things. Although each small group seemed to be divided differently, it was orderly.

But when the young man said these words, the small group at the scene all turned their attention.

The young man waving the folding fan did not hide his words at all, and everyone on the second floor of the restaurant could hear him clearly.

At this time, Lu Zhouling was still thinking about how to start the meeting later to make the atmosphere lively.

After all, as the person hosting this banquet, this time he is not just hosting it, but also needs to let the new faces from various organizations know each other and be more harmonious.

Only in this way can things in Maplewood State be done well.

Otherwise, if any mechanism does not run smoothly, it will affect the whole body.

Therefore, in Lu Zhouling's view, this banquet was very important, but he really didn't expect that this young man would suddenly say this.

Lu Zhouling came back from his thoughts and looked at the young man waving the folding fan with a complicated look.

To be honest, Lu Zhouling had a lot of opinions about this young man, but at certain times, he still couldn't speak out.

The reason is that the faction this young man is currently in is from the faction of the second prince.

Who is the second prince?

He studied with the prime minister since he was a child, and also held an official position in the court.

Although it is a casual position, everyone knows that it is like being in a chamber of commerce. The son of the owner of the chamber of commerce works in a position. On the surface, it is randomly arranged, but in fact it is just to give him a layer of gold.

Currently, as Emperor Xingwu prepares to establish a crown prince, the three princes are fighting overtly and covertly.

Therefore, Lu Zhouling knew very well about the Second Prince's faction.

Currently, many young scholars or officials have switched sides to the second prince.

Of course, Lu Zhouling is not currently siding with any faction.

As a state magistrate, he felt that it was good enough for him to manage this three-thirds of an acre of land well.

Although the prime minister is the head of the hundred officials, he cannot use his power to overwhelm others. They must side with the second prince.

And the Prime Minister also made it clear that he would not participate in this matter.

As for why some scholars and officials sided with the second prince, it was actually quite normal.

Even the nine sons born from a dragon are different from each other.

Some people have a lot of little thoughts.

If the second prince is really established as the prince, then those who support the second prince will become prosperous, and the pheasant will turn into a phoenix.

So for now, everything is going well for the second prince.

This young man's name is Owen, and his family background is immeasurable. He comes from a scholarly family in the capital.

There are also many people in the officialdom at home.

Some even hold many important positions in Beijing.

The young man is the third son of the Ou family. He was originally an official in a county, but after the great purge, he was promoted to Maplewood Prefecture. He came to Maplewood Prefecture to fill a vacancy, which was regarded as a promotion.

Hearing what Irving said, Lu Zhouling knew very well, so he replied to him, "Master Zhou is very busy on weekdays, and he has many things in charge, so it is normal for him to come later."

In fact, many people already know that Zhou An now supports the third prince.

Since the emperor made this deal with Zhou An secretly, he naturally told Zhou An's situation.

Although it was not through the mouth of the emperor, the emperor wanted to convey a message through many means.

Therefore, in Lu Zhouling's view, Irving's purpose should be to compare with Zhou An at this banquet, which can be regarded as a comparison between the two factions.

But Lu Zhouling knew very well that after Zhou An came to Maplewood State, he basically stayed at the front door and never stepped out. Except for the incident that happened last time, he kept a low profile at other times.

It can be said that if no one knew Zhou An, they would not even know that Zhou An came to Maplewood State and became the top craftsman supervisor.

For such a low-key person, Lu Zhouling actually didn't know much about Zhou An, after all, he had never met him a few times.

It was just the first time that he reminded Zhou An.

But who is an official in the Great Chu Kingdom and doesn’t have any information?

Even if Lu Zhouling only knew a little bit about some of Zhou An's experiences, he still understood what kind of character Zhou An was.

You must know that when they first met, Zhou An's faint evil spirit was not comparable to those flowers in the greenhouse.

This young man rose from the slaughter.

The journey from Anding County to Fenglin Prefecture was smooth, but I didn't know how many turmoils I had gone through secretly.

If Owen wants to cause trouble at this banquet, Lu Zhouling feels that this banquet may be a bit overwhelming.

"Mr. Ou, I think it's better for you to stay out of Mr. Zhou's business." Lu Zhouling reminded.

After all, he was the host of this banquet, and he didn't think Zhou An would betray him.

If someone really caused trouble, Zhou An would definitely return it.

So he could only persuade him from Owen's side.

But at this time, Lu Zhouling made a small taboo.

For Owen, he is on the side of the second prince, while Zhou An is on the side of the third prince, so the two are from different factions.

Owen frowned slightly when he saw the master craftsman trying to persuade him in turn. He closed the folding fan in his hand and said, "Mr. Lu, I just want to see Mr. Zhou. Besides, Mr. Zhou did not come in advance. That's right. It’s not very polite, there shouldn’t be any problem with what I said.”

Hearing this, Lu Zhouling smiled bitterly and said, "As long as you are not late, it will be fine. Although Mr. Zhou is usually very low-key, he is not an unruly person at heart."

"I hope so." Owen opened the folding fan again and fanned the wind gently, but he was thinking about other things.

He came here to attend this banquet this time, first of all, to give Luzhou Ling some face. Bijing Luzhou Ling was also the top official in the officialdom here.

The second is that he wants to meet Zhou An.

Now, when the third prince is obviously weak, Zhou An has made a high-profile announcement to join the third prince's camp. In Owen's view, this situation is undoubtedly an attempt to attack a stone with an egg, or even unwise.

But Zhou An did this.

So Irving wanted to come and see who the rumored Zhou An was.

Owen is indeed from the second prince's faction, but he is not without brains, and the second prince does not need people without brains, so before coming, he had already conducted a detailed investigation on Zhou An.

To be honest, when he learned about Zhou An's rise, he was a little shocked.

From a small policeman in Anding County, after a series of fights, he cracked various huge conspiracies, and in the casting competition of Tingyun Mansion, he once again saved the entire Tingyun Mansion, and then became a big man. A role model for doctors from Chu State.

That book is still regarded as a treasure by doctors.

Now, he has become the top craftsman supervisor in Maplewood State. Not long ago, he even performed eight weird and manipulative tricks on a moon river.

The descriptions of these achievements are very simple, and I don't know why. They just talk about Zhou An's contribution, and basically skip many details.

But that alone was enough to shock Owen.

It's like when you read a novel, the table of contents in the novel has condensed all the highlights of the entire novel.

Owen felt that Zhou An was not a brainless person, and he didn't know why he would side with the weak side like the third prince.

So he came here this time, firstly, to see who Zhou An was, and secondly, to record the events of this time in detail, and finally hand them over to the second prince.

After all, not long ago, the second prince Fei Ge sent a letter stating that he was also interested in Zhou An.

Owen wanted to help the second prince.

As for what I just said, it was actually a look at Lu Zhouling’s attitude.

Now his attitude is revealed. Lu Zhou Ling seems to be a little jealous of Zhou An.

Thinking of this, Owen became more and more curious.

He was secretly looking forward to Zhou An's arrival and wanted to see who Zhou An was.

Time passes gradually.

In the blink of an eye, it was getting closer and closer to the start of the banquet.

At this time, many officials had already begun to look at the door.

After experiencing Owen's words just now, these officials were all looking forward to a scene.

That was when Zhou An came out and had a conflict with Irving. Sparks flew everywhere during the banquet.

This is undoubtedly fun, and there are some signs of it.

Everyone present has been in official circles for a long time, so they naturally know it.

But it was almost time for the banquet to begin, and Zhou An was still nowhere to be seen.

Some people can't help but think about it.

"Is it possible that Zhou An won't come? It's impossible?"

This thought echoes in the minds of many people.

They felt that it was impossible for Zhou An not to come on time. After all, Lu Zhouling personally invited him, so he had to give him face no matter what.

Time has passed and half a stick of incense has passed, Luzhou Ling is also waiting.

He didn't feel ashamed.

Face is not something given by others, it is something you add to yourself.

He understood Zhou An's temper. Even if he came a little late, it actually didn't matter.

Why be so stingy?

As for what Irving said in public just now, Lu Zhouling didn't take it seriously.

They all got into this position in the Great Chu Kingdom, who doesn’t have a little bit of ambition?

At this moment, there was a sound of footsteps at the door.

To be precise, two.

Because the other footsteps were very close to the previous one, as if they were deliberately imitating the former's walking.

At the stairwell of the second floor, Zhou An came.

Beside Zhou An, the woman in black never left, grabbing Zhou An's hand and looking at it curiously.

There was no other way. As long as the woman in black was more than two meters away from him, she would automatically return to him. Zhou An simply brought the woman in black over.

Time passed quickly at home, but fortunately he remembered this matter and was not late.

"Master Lu, I'm sorry for being late. I've been really busy recently." Zhou An told lies without blinking an eye.

He is indeed very busy, but he is really not busy with the work of supervising the craftsman. The hands-off shopkeeper is so comfortable.

Of course, you have to say what you want to say in this situation, otherwise you won’t be able to explain yourself if you take the time to come over.

Lu Zhouling also understood. He waved his hand and said, "Since Mr. Zhou is here, please take a seat."

The second floor is filled with round tables, and a lot of dishes have been served on them, waiting for the banquet to begin.

The people present were all veterans of the officialdom. Even the young people knew this very well, so they all sat down in an orderly manner according to their respective statuses.

But Lu Zhouling saw this and waved his hand and said: "Since everyone is an official in Maplewood State, you shouldn't sit with people you know well. You should take turns sitting with each other. You can also let strangers sit together." When you become a mature person, everyone will have accumulated their own connections."

This is the situation at the scene. Even if they sit together, they are still sitting in small groups.

Lu Zhouling, the big boss of Maplewood State, had spoken, and no one present had any ink marks. They could only sit in turns with some unfamiliar people.

Seeing this scene, Lu Zhouling nodded.

The first goal is achieved, let everyone initially integrate into this circle, so that we can get acquainted with each other later and get a good start.

After all, we are all sitting at the same table. We still can't just eat in silence, we all have to communicate.

After Lu Zhouling finished this step, he pointed to the table next to Zhou An and said, "Master Zhou, come on, let's sit here."

This is the main seat on the second floor. It can be seen from the position that those who can sit at this table are all powerful figures in Maplewood State.

Zhou An naturally did not refuse. What surprised him was that Hou Sizhou, who was suppressing the Guisi, was also at the table.

When Hou Sizhou saw Zhou An, he cupped his hands and said, "Hello, Mr. Zhou, I just arrived."

Zhou An also handed over his hand: "It's fine, Mr. Hou."

After saying hello, Zhou An took the woman in black and sat on the seat by the window.

In this position, you can enjoy the breeze outside the window and hear the slightest noise outside the window.

Now that he was seated, Lu Zhouling raised his glass and made an opening statement.

After all, he was the host of this banquet, and everyone present raised their glasses.

"Everyone, you all know what I mean by calling you here this time. If you want to communicate with each other, you can speak freely. In addition, if you have any disagreements, you can come to me at any time. I can serve as an intermediary. , please mediate for everyone, after all, we officials, for the sake of His Majesty and the people, we have to do a good job in what we are doing, and we have to do a good job in the people's livelihood of Maplewood Prefecture."

Since Luzhou Ling spoke, these Maplewood Prefecture officials naturally responded one after another.

Everyone clinked glasses in the air, drank the drinks, and then sat down one by one.

With Lu Zhouling's opening remarks, the scene gradually changed from deserted to lively.

The officials who were not familiar with each other all knew each other and began to talk slowly.

Of course, most of the content of the conversation starts from the perspective of one's own position.

After all, many of them are meeting for the first time, and they don’t know their personalities or hobbies. Starting from the position can also open up the topic.

Although in the beginning, you were talking about you and I was talking about mine, it can still be lively, right?

Zhou An was a straight-tempered person. He kept eating the food on the table and chatting with Lu Zhouling from time to time.

The woman in black looked around curiously. She would eat whatever Zhou An ate.

Whenever Zhou An picked up a dish, the woman in black's eyes would light up and she would pick up another dish as well, as if only the food Zhou An had eaten was the safest.

Hou Sizhou, like Zhou An, doesn't talk much.

He was in charge of suppressing the Spies. This organization was very special. It was basically composed of warriors. On weekdays, they were very good at dealing with weird things, or some disputes in the world.

But in this scene, Hou Sizhou knew very well where he was sitting, so he rarely spoke.

Of course, there are also some level issues involved.

The biggest people at this table are him, Lu Zhouling, and Zhou An, so there is no need for him to talk to others.

The banquet itself was hosted by Lu Zhou Ling, so Hou Sizhou would not overstep his authority after distinguishing priorities.

Hou Sizhou mainly talked with Zhou An and Lu Zhouling.

While eating, Zhou An suddenly felt something was wrong.

He felt that there was always a gaze looking at him, and then he turned his head and looked at it.

When Zhou An looked at a table not far away, his brows wrinkled slightly.

On that table, a young man waving a folding fan was staring at him closely with a smiling gaze.

After feeling this gaze, the young man raised his glass and gestured to Zhou An.

Zhou An's frown relaxed slightly. Although he didn't recognize him, he still raised his wine glass, touched it in the air, and drank the drink in his hand.

After drinking, Zhou An put down the cup.

At this time, Lu Zhouling, who was next to him, put his head over and said, "Master Zhou, be careful about that guy."

Zhou An was stunned for a moment, and then asked: "What's wrong? I don't know this person. He seems to be a new face. He should be a new person after this big reshuffle, right?"

Lu Zhouling nodded: "Master Zhou is indeed very discerning. He is new to the post. However, this guy's background is not simple. He comes from the second prince's side."

With that said, Lu Zhouling recounted what happened just now.

Zhou An narrowed his eyes, and after listening to what Lu Zhou Ling said, he smiled and said, "Master Lu, does this mean you are biased towards me?"

At this time, Lu Zhouling suddenly said these words. Zhou An felt that Lu Zhouling was expressing his attitude.

This means that there is no involvement with the young man named Owen.

Lu Zhouling said with a half-smile, "It's enough, Lord Zhou, if you know."

Of course he expressed his attitude, because he did not take any sides, but Lu Zhouling had no objection to Zhou An, and even said he admired him.

Just look at what Zhou An did in Maplewood State recently, it proves that Zhou An is not a treacherous and evil person, and he is young, strong, and sits in a high position. Such a person cannot be friends with Luzhou. That would make people laugh.

All in all, in one sentence, I have nothing to do with it, but it does not prevent me from making friends with the people I like.

Hou Sizhou sat quite close to him. In fact, the three of them were sitting together.

At this time, when he heard Lu Zhouling say this, he frowned.

"This guy doesn't have a long memory. Mr. Zhou, do you want me to teach you a lesson?"

What kind of organization is there to suppress the evil spirits? It is one of the three major forces in the Great Chu State today, and it belongs only to His Majesty the Emperor.

As an organization like this, it has no ties to anyone, and there is no need to be afraid of any prince.

Because our background is that of the emperor, even if you become the prince, you don't dare to mess around in Zhensi.

Hou Sizhou and Zhou An had not had a few interactions in Maple Forest State, but Zhou An destroyed the conspiracy of manipulating sex, and indirectly helped Hou Sizhou a lot.

Hou Sizhou himself was a gangster, so he had a very straightforward temper. When he heard that someone wanted to harm Zhou An, he had already made plans to deal with this person.

It won't be too obvious, but it is still possible to exert some energy secretly.

Just one word from Zhou An will do.

When Zhou An heard what Hou Sizhou said, he shook his head: "Master Hou, there is no need to be like this, he is just a small character."

He was telling the truth. There was no need to ask Hou Sizhou to come and help because of such a small role.

After helping, I owed a small favor, and it's not easy to repay favors these days.

Zhou An feels that if you want to owe something, you owe it to a big person. This kind of small favor is unnecessary.

Hearing this, Hou Sizhou nodded.

Since Zhou An doesn't want to, forget it.

As long as Zhou An nodded, he would do it. Unfortunately, Zhou An didn't want to do it. Hou Sizhou felt that there was no need to take the initiative to do it.

At this moment, Lu Zhouling's eyes were slightly solemn, staring at the table where Owen was sitting: "What on earth is this kid going to do?"

After hearing this, Zhou An turned around and followed Lu Zhouling's gaze. Then, he saw Owen walking towards Zhou An with a wine glass in hand.

Zhou An raised his eyebrows and then turned around.

Irving walked closer, raised his glass, and said, "Irving, I'm new to this post and I'm not familiar with the place. Please take good care of me in the future, Mr. Zhou."

Zhou An took a bite of his food, then put down his chopsticks and said, "It's easy to say. If you have anything to do in the future, you can come to me. I'll help you if you can. If you can't, there's nothing you can do."

From what Lu Zhouling said just now, he felt that this Owen was menacing and would never be that simple.

But I am not afraid either.

This person really pissed him off, so he would just find an opportunity and do it secretly.

There are opportunities.

If you don't come to cause trouble, forget it, just let everything happen, and be at ease with your liver proficiency.

Owen was holding the wine glass, knowing that what Zhou An just said was a scene, because Zhou An was not even willing to lift the wine glass, but he didn't care at all, he raised his head and drank the wine in his hand, and turned the wine glass over to show that I've finished drinking it myself.

After doing this, Owen smiled and said, "Mr. Zhou, can you take a step to a quiet place? I have some things that I want to talk to Mr. Zhou in private."

He thought that his coming over this time was a very polite invitation, but he never expected that after he finished speaking, Zhou An looked at him with a strange look.

It's like looking at a retarded person.

"Is there anything we can't talk about? Since everyone is aboveboard, let's talk in public." Zhou An didn't even want to move his butt, and turned around to take a few more bites of food, leaving Owen Set aside.

Lu Zhouling next to him smiled bitterly when he saw this scene.

He knew that this should be Zhou An's usual style.

Hou Sizhou's eyes lit up slightly.

Yeah!

This is the way people in Jianghu should behave!

Zhou An himself rose from Anding County, and he can be regarded as half a Jianghu person, so this approach made Hou Sizhou feel very comfortable.

In Hou Sizhou's mind, I don't care who you are. I will do my best in my own land and I won't offend others. Just don't offend me.

Owen was stunned by Zhou An's words. The few words he had prepared just now were unable to be spoken at this moment.

He felt that the opponent had no moves, but random punches could kill the old master.

In this situation, it is neither possible to leave nor to stay. Even Zhou An's words put him in a disadvantageous position at this table.

Because Zhou An's subtext was that you called me over because you had some secrets that you didn't want others to hear.

But you started making these little thoughts just after taking office. What do the old people present think?

Owen could already feel that many people were looking at him with a small amount of hostility. Apparently Zhou An's words at the beginning had an effect.

Thinking about this, his mind was very bright and he made a decision at this moment.

"Master Zhou, this is serious. I just think it's a little noisy here and it's not convenient to talk about things. Since Master Zhou doesn't want to find a quiet place, then we are all aboveboard people, so what if we talk in front of everyone? ?”

After speaking, Owen looked around, indicating that he had no other thoughts.

Sure enough, after he made this decision, the old people in Maplewood State looked at him with much less hostility.

Owen breathed a sigh of relief, and then said loudly: "I am here to represent the Second Prince and invite Mr. Zhou to be the Second Prince's guest. I wonder what Mr. Zhou would like?"

There's nothing that shouldn't be said, and wooing someone in public is also a tactic.

After all, after winning over, it will be publicized to the outside world, so Irving did not hide anything.

Zhou An shook his head calmly: "I don't want to."

With three simple words, he started eating the food on the table again.

He had a deal with the emperor. As a serious person and a pure person, Zhou An felt that since it was a deal, he had to be honest.

So Zhou An rejected it outright.

Owen was of course prepared for Zhou An to refuse, so he said slowly: "Master Zhou, you can think about it again. The three princes today, the eldest prince and the second prince are evenly matched, but the third prince is gradually declining, and Mr. Zhou joins You know the current situation in the Third Prince’s camp, even if Mr. Zhou joins alone, it is impossible to change the current situation of the Third Prince.”

Under such circumstances, Irving was the first to talk about the situation, but he was not panicked at all.

Because before doing this, he asked the second prince for advice.

The second prince means that it can be said, there is nothing that cannot be said.

Because now the fight for the crown prince position has been brought to the fore.

Whoever does well will be the prince, it's that simple.

The emperor's meaning is also so simple.

"Does this have anything to do with me? Does it have anything to do with you?" Zhou An put down his chopsticks without giving any face, and looked at Owen as if he were a fool.

He felt that there was something wrong with this man's mind, and it was a big one.

He showed no interest at all, but he was still there to persuade.

Aren't you causing trouble for yourself?

Irving didn't know what Zhou An thought like this. He was still persuading, and even took two steps closer to Zhou An: "Mr. Zhou, people live in this world for nothing more than money, power, or women, and ambition. Some more advanced people do it to realize their ambitions, such as those of us who are scholars."

"Now, the situation among the three princes has become clear. Currently, only the eldest prince and the second prince are evenly matched. The third prince has almost no chance of overturning the situation."

As he spoke, Owen took out the wine bottle from the table next to him, poured himself a glass, and then filled it with Zhou An. Then he picked up the wine glass, and without waiting for Zhou An to pick up the glass on the table, he just so gently He clinked glasses and drank the wine in one gulp.

"The second prince's meaning is very simple. There is no need for Mr. Zhou to side with him. As long as Mr. Zhou does not side with the third prince, whatever Mr. Zhou wants can be achieved."

"Money, power and women, these are the lowest level. The higher level is the reward in your heart."

"The second prince can now satisfy Mr. Zhou's initial needs. Of course, Mr. Zhou has no shortage of money and power now, but he can't have too many beauties."

Speaking of this place, Owen cast his eyes on the face of the woman in black and said with a smile: "The person next to Mr. Zhou is really stunning in the world, but people like Mr. Zhou don't care if they are more or less, as long as Lord Zhou likes it, then you can get it at your fingertips."

Subconsciously, Owen analyzed the current situation, especially the woman in black beside Zhou An. Even Owen was a little shocked.

Therefore, in Owen's opinion, Zhou An brought this woman with him to such an important banquet. It is conceivable that Zhou An should be a person who likes beauties.

In fact, this situation is not uncommon. Who doesn’t love beauty?

Because of this, Irving stated this condition.

But after saying this, Zhou An was fine, but the eyes of the woman in black next to him lit up slightly.

"Beauty...Beauty...I..."

The woman in black kept talking to herself, her eyes shining brighter and brighter.

The sound of her talking to herself shouldn't be surprising given this lively scene.

But when Owen spoke just now, the scene had fallen into silence, so the words of the woman in black were clearly heard by everyone.

Owen felt a little strange in his heart. He couldn't understand what was going on and why the woman in black gave him the feeling of being ignorant of the world.

But the next moment, the confusion in the eyes of the woman in black was dissolving, replaced by determination and a hint of murderous intent.

"No." Two simple words came from the mouth of the woman in black.

Immediately afterwards, the woman in black raised her right hand.

On the bottom of her feet, a gossip shape emerged, covering Owen.

Owen flew out without warning and fell to the ground hard, blood spurting out freely.

"No... no..." The woman in black said to herself, stood up, and walked towards Owen.

The murderous aura on his body became more and more intense, and this scene shocked everyone present.

Lu Zhouling reacted quickly and said hurriedly: "Master Zhou, you must not touch the killer in this situation!"

Before he finished speaking, Owen, who was lying on the ground, came to his senses and wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, with a trace of anger in his eyes.

"Zhou An, I'm trying to persuade you, but you don't know how to praise me. You're done for. You attacked the imperial official in public. No one can protect this woman!"

"Woman...die." The murderous aura in the eyes of the woman in black has become real.

At this moment, Zhou An drank the wine on the table in one gulp, then came to the woman in black, patted her shoulder and spoke slowly.

"I come."