"Who is Yingying?" Huang Daimei asked softly, tidying the books and documents on the desk.
Huang Daimei seemed intentional, or perhaps unintentional; only she knew for sure.
"Does it concern you?" Zhou Fugui, unwilling to discuss the matter, picked up an official document and began reading.
"Slap!" Upon hearing this, Huang Daimei slammed the books onto the desk. Not satisfied, she snatched the documents from Zhou Fugui's hand, also throwing them onto the desk, then provocatively glared at him.
"Heh heh, just an old acquaintance," Zhou Fugui picked up his bowl of porridge again, slurping it noisily, and chuckled.
"An old acquaintance? What kind of acquaintance? One that makes you so preoccupied? A woman, isn't it?" Huang Daimei pressed on relentlessly.
"It is a woman..." Zhou Fugui put down his porridge bowl, wiped his mouth, and said calmly, "She is already married to another! She has no relation to me whatsoever. What you call preoccupation is sheer nonsense!"
Who would believe that? Huang Daimei thought to herself. She would cry out the woman's name in her dreams, waking up in a fury, her face a complex mask of shame, regret, and unwillingness.
He must have her etched in his memory. The more Zhou Fugui denied it, the more curious Huang Daimei became, or perhaps it was her competitive spirit that flared...
So Huang Daimei asked again, "Who exactly is she? Where is she? Why is she married to another? She..."
"Miss Huang..." Zhou Fugui's face showed a hint of anger. He interrupted her and said, "Isn't it a common thing for a woman to get married? Why are you so long-winded? I'll say this to you one last time: this woman has nothing to do with me anymore."
"Who believes that?" Just as Zhou Fugui was about to get angry, Huang Daimei showed no fear. She tilted her chin, which was like a white lotus, and actually started to laugh: "Great Governor, this humble girl has no other intentions, I am merely curious what kind of woman can escape the Great Governor's grasp?"
"I... you..."
Huang Daimei was neither able to hit nor scold him. The suppression of the rebellion and the quelling of the epidemic had seen the Huang family provide substantial assistance, both in funds, grain, and manpower. Previously, she had also helped deal with the wealthy and influential families of Houqiu County. Now, she was serving him like a maid. Because of all this, Zhou Fugui could neither hit nor scold her, nor could he vent his anger on her. He could only sit there, fuming, and glare at Huang Daimei.
Huang Daimei remained unafraid, standing in the hall, smiling and meeting Zhou Fugui's gaze.
Her wide robes could not conceal Huang Daimei's graceful figure, swaying like a willow in the wind, or a lily in bloom.
If she were under my command, I would order her dragged out and given twenty lashes... Zhou Fugui thought to himself, annoyed, looking at Huang Daimei.
Zhou Fugui imagined Huang Daimei receiving the military punishment and a plan formed in his mind. He slapped his thigh and looked at Huang Daimei, smiling, "Do you want to know?"
Huang Daimei nodded.
"If you want to know, then come sit here!" Zhou Fugui slapped his thigh again and laughed, his smile extremely lewd: "If you become my woman, I'll tell you. However, I already have three concubines. Miss Huang, would you like to..."
"Whoosh..." Huang Daimei was instantly overcome with shame. Before Zhou Fugui could finish speaking, she grabbed the books and documents from the desk and hurled them at him, shouting as she did, "Who wants to be your woman? You scoundrel, you have no shame!"
Huang Daimei was an innocent maiden, not yet twenty years old, with no experience of love. Zhou Fugui's teasing made her both ashamed and angry.
Yet, despite her shame and anger, Huang Daimei felt no resentment. Instead, she felt a hint of delight...?
In this world, generally speaking, a woman cares about whether a man is married. Especially Han women. As for concubines and maids, they were commonplace. Jealousy? Could one ever be jealous enough?
A man, especially a young master from a prominent noble family, would typically have many concubines and maids before marriage. Although Zhou Fugui was not from such a background, he was currently the Marquis of Yanpingliang, General Jianzhong, Great Governor of Donghai, and Prefect of Donghai Commandery. As someone in a high position, having a few concubines and maids was quite normal. High officials and nobles often had numerous wives and concubines, including countless secondary wives, maids, singers, dancers, and household servants. Therefore, Zhou Fugui having only three concubines was indeed very few. This was common practice, whether in Yan, Xia, or other countries.
"Ouch! Ah! Get out of the way, quickly get out of the way!"
Huang Daimei, in her haste to hurl the books and documents at Zhou Fugui, lost her footing and slipped, falling towards him... Huang Daimei's face turned pale with fright, and she cried out loudly, but she could no longer control her body. She could only try to leap upwards, intending to avoid Zhou Fugui. In his haste, Zhou Fugui was kneeling on the ground and couldn't dodge either. He could only crouch as low as possible to avoid Huang Daimei.
"Bang!"
"Ouch, you scoundrel, let go of me... sob sob sob..."
As one leaped up and the other ducked down, both attempts were incomplete, and they collided. By sheer chance, Huang Daimei's legs parted, and she landed squarely on Zhou Fugui. Zhou Fugui's face also ended up pressed against Huang Daimei's chest.
Zhou Fugui's hands also inadvertently landed on Huang Daimei's slender waist, while Huang Daimei's arms, due to the inertia, wrapped around Zhou Fugui's head...
At this moment, their position was extremely ambiguous, causing Huang Daimei to cry out in distress...
"Great Governor... little sister... what are you...?" Coincidentally, Huang Daimei's elder brother, Huang Shibaba, who was striding into the hall, happened upon this scene. Seeing them in such an intimate embrace, he was greatly confused. He scratched his head and asked.
Huang Shibaba stood rooted to the spot, unsure whether to advance or retreat.
"I... I... I..." Huang Daimei struggled to climb off Zhou Fugui, her face flushed like a piece of red cloth, or like a bride's red veil. With a flushed face and downcast eyes, she rubbed her clothes and muttered, "Big brother... big brother... he bullied me..."
Bullied you? Who would believe that? Huang Shibaba found it amusing. With such mutual affection and tenderness, how could it be that a weakling was bullying you?
"Heh heh, Brother... Brother Shibaba has arrived? What brings you here?" Zhou Fugui also smiled awkwardly and, still kneeling on the mat, asked.
If you don't come any sooner, little sister's chastity will be ruined by you... Huang Shibaba cursed inwardly and said with cupped hands, "Great Governor, someone wishes to see you."
Huang Shibaba could dismiss Zhou Fugui with disdain, or rather, he could disregard Zhou Fugui's status as a border official. However, on the surface, he had to show him respect for two reasons. First, Zhou Fugui possessed exceptional martial arts skills, and Huang Shibaba was not confident of victory if they were to spar again. Second, Zhou Fugui was the Vice Chief of the Yi Qing Society.
Huang Shibaba and his sister's father, the Huang family patriarch Huang Weilun, had personally nominated Zhou Fugui as the Vice Chief of the Yi Qing Society. How could Huang Shibaba dare to disrespect him?
"Who is it?" Zhou Fugui asked indifferently, "Is it that old monk?"
"Hmm? How did the Great Governor know?" Huang Shibaba asked in surprise.
"I captured his men and held them without killing them. We are all intelligent people. How could he not understand my intentions?" Zhou Fugui replied.
"Ah, the leader of the Lesser Vehicle Sect, Dafo Mi Shi, wishes to meet with the Great Governor. Does the Great Governor agree?" Huang Shibaba nodded.
"Brother Shibaba, please sit and talk," Zhou Fugui invited Huang Shibaba to sit and pondered, "We are old acquaintances of many years. He wishes to meet with me, so how could I refuse?"
Whether Zhou Fugui's old acquaintance, Dafo Mi Shi, was truly a Buddhist or not, let's assume for now that he was. As a Buddhist, he should have been cultivating his mind and body, but he was ambitious. To achieve his unspeakable goals, he was determined to stir up trouble and incite rebellion. Zhou Fugui had learned this long ago from the incident at the City God Temple.
Back then, Zhou Fugui and his companions had nearly been implicated by him.
"Old acquaintance? Does the Great Governor know this person?" Huang Shibaba asked.
"I almost died at his hands. How could I not know him?" Zhou Fugui smiled slightly and briefly recounted the past events to the Huang siblings.
"Heh heh, imperial power and hegemonic ambitions, unification of the realm. Throughout history, how many people have gambled everything to achieve such goals, only to end up with lifelong regret or broken swords on the battlefield," Huang Daimei, who had been hiding in shame after being caught by her elder brother, spoke up when they began discussing other matters, her embarrassment lessening slightly. She joined Huang Shibaba and Zhou Fugui in the conversation.
"Imperial power and hegemonic ambitions amount to nothing in the end, even costing one's life. Miss Huang speaks wisely," Zhou Fugui nodded.
"What about the Great Governor? What are your thoughts? Or... does the Great Governor also wish for such a thing?" Huang Daimei then looked at Zhou Fugui and asked.
"Me?" Zhou Fugui shook his head. "I was originally a villager from Luoming Village in Youzhou, conscripted into the army by the Xianbei people, and have been muddling along ever since. What ambitions do I have? I merely seek to survive in this world."
Even if he had ambitions, why would he announce them to the world? Or rather, if his actions were so easily seen through, like Mi Shi of the Lesser Vehicle Sect.
The fewer people who knew about such matters, the better. Moreover, for someone to achieve great things, they must possess favorable timing, advantageous terrain, and popular support. Only then is there a slim chance. And what did Zhou Fugui have at present? Was it his identity as the Great Governor of Donghai, Yan? Or his identity as a Han thief?
Therefore, Zhou Fugui's answer was both true and false.
Huang Daimei looked at Zhou Fugui with a look of skepticism, as if she half-believed him.