Lord of the Desert

Chapter 544 Relief
Five days later, on August 24th.

It was the autumnal equinox, when day and night were roughly equal, and the weather was pleasantly cool.

At the beginning of the Si hour (9:00 AM), Hong Fan arrived at Tinghai Pavilion at the invitation of Zheng Fuqu.

He climbed the newly painted wooden steps to the fourth floor, where he saw the maid waiting outside the Penglai Hall.

"Young Master Hong, my young lady is inside."

This young woman was thin and frail with a round face. She was about thirteen or fourteen years old. She spoke timidly and looked up at him once, but dared not look at him a second time.

"I understand, thank you."

Hong Fan pushed open the door and entered.

The decor here has changed since the Lunar New Year.

The main wall of the entrance hall has been replaced with cloisonné enamel relief carvings. On the left, a hand-cranked brass phonograph made in Zhanzhou is placed on a tall table. The third-grade Xuan-level sword on the right display shelf has been replaced with a gold-inlaid shotgun. After all, Penglai Hall is the number one hall in the entire city of Jinhai, so it is important to keep up with the times.

The velvet mat is thick and absorbs all footsteps.

Hong Fan coughed and turned out of the entrance hall. He saw that the window was open and there were two pots of Dendrobium officinale on the windowsill. The pink and white petals were tinged with light purple like water droplets.

The tea room was spacious, with only Zheng Fuqu present.

She wore a light blue dress and light makeup. If you didn't notice the slightly thick knuckles on her fingers above her knees, she looked as youthful and beautiful as ever.

In the thirty-third year of Zhenghe, the twenty-third year of Hongfan, and the twenty-fourth year of Zheng Fuqu.

Thank you for coming.

She got up to greet him, perhaps feeling a little pressured because they were alone together.

"We've known each other for years, and it's rare for you to invite me. How could I not come?"

Hong Fan smiled and sat down opposite him.

With that laugh, the air in the room relaxed.

"I thought you would come to my battle against Yishe in April."

Hong Fan exchanged pleasantries.

“I was definitely going to go, I’ve never been to Shenjing before, but my father was sick at the time, and I didn’t feel comfortable letting others take care of him.”

There was a hint of regret in Zheng Fuqu's words.

Tinghai Pavilion is not open during the morning hours, so it is exceptionally quiet.

She personally brewed the tea and poured the water.

"Where are the lotus roots?"

Hong Fan asked with concern.

He was deeply impressed by Zheng Fuqu's maidservant—in the twenty-seventh year of Zhenghe, she was just a thirteen-year-old girl, but when delivering messages, she pretended to be old and tried hard to imitate Zheng Zhun's mannerisms.

“When Lian’ou turned eighteen last year, I arranged for her to marry into a good family—it’s not good for a woman to get married too late if she hasn’t practiced martial arts.”

Zheng Fuqu replied.

Hong Fan nodded.

At this moment, he couldn't help but imagine what Lian'ou would look like when she grew up, and he also had an urge to ask her which city and which family she had been betrothed to.

But these impulsive actions that have no practical significance will not ultimately translate into spoken words.

There are countless paths in the world, but the paths of a prodigy and a maid will never intersect.

Zheng Fuqu held the teapot in her left hand and the cup in her right, rinsing the cup with the first brew of tea.

She is no longer the helpless young lady she once was; her delicate hands have shattered countless hard targets with their swirling force, and she is no longer afraid of boiling heat.

Do you still remember our farewell banquet before you left for Xi'an?

Zheng Fuqu suddenly said.

“It was drizzling that day. When I woke up from my drunkenness, I found that everyone was gone. I felt that we might never see each other again, and I cried several times because of it.”

She smiled as she spoke.

“But five years have passed, and it’s still Jinhai Pavilion, still Penglai Hall, and we have reunions every year.”

Hong Fan couldn't help but laugh as well.

Zheng Fuqu handed over the first cup of tea that had been poured.

"I really liked you back then."

She hesitated for a moment, then mustered all her courage and said those words.

Hong Fan listened without showing any emotion.

"I would imagine you climbing the list of geniuses, even to the top, becoming a Martial Saint and famous throughout the world, with me standing alongside you amidst all the attention."

She didn't pour herself any tea, but instead gazed at a corner of blue sky outside the window, her eyes filled with melancholy and a sense of distance.

"But those glamorous, admiring, and enviable scenes that exist only in our imaginations, though beautiful, will never be my own life."

The clamor of voices washed over me like a tide from Anning Street outside the window.

"It is only in the last two years that I have gradually come to understand that time is a great river that flows forward without stopping, and everyone has their own tributaries; the journey between you and me, and between me and the lotus root, is only a chance for a part of the journey... Ha, to even have to rely on others for the glamorous and bright life that I fantasize about is too humble and weak."

She laughed self-deprecatingly and awkwardly tucked her hair behind her ear. Hong Fan drank the tea in one gulp, then took an empty cup, heated it, and refilled Zheng Fuqu's cup.

"It's in the past."

He said it in a definitive tone.

"Ah."

Zheng Fuqu took the cup with both hands and drank the tea very slowly, savoring the hot water as it passed over her lips and teeth, down her throat, and into her stomach...

A moment later, her forehead was covered in fine sweat.

"I've been practicing with muskets for the past two years; you might not know this, but I've gone into the Great Swamp twice with the team."

Zheng Fuqu wiped her eyes and finally revealed a relaxed smile.

"You saw the snake man?"

Hong Fan served more tea.

"I saw it, it was a disgusting thing; I killed one with my own revolver, but one of my guards couldn't be saved."

Zheng Fuqu's gaze darkened slightly, and the corners of her mouth turned down.

“When I was training in the Whirlpool Sect, I wanted to become a female general, to fight and ride a horse to earn merit. But after smelling the blood of the battlefield and seeing others die beside me, I realized that I did not have that talent.”

"Life is unpredictable, and it is actually very fortunate to be able to live an ordinary life."

She said it calmly and frankly.

Hong Fan nodded emphatically.

His current extraordinary life is not of his own choosing.

If he were to escape fate and choose again, he would definitely choose the stable, simple, and prosperous life he had in his previous life—many ordinary beauties, like air and water, are only appreciated after they are gone.

"What are your plans for the future? Do you intend to get together with Hong Ge'er?"

Hong Fan asked.

Jinhai City was, after all, the stronghold of the Hong family, and he still kept an eye on the situation within the city, but he was no longer clear about the entanglements between his children.

As for Hong Sheng, his marriage to Jiang Danhu's granddaughter is being negotiated by Hongwu and is progressing smoothly.

"Probably not."

Zheng Fuqu shook her head, her expression a mixture of guilt and bitterness.

“He waited for me for many years, but fate cannot be forced; Uncle Chi arranged for him to marry a girl from the Tongguang Palace.”

"Don't worry about me. With my looks and family background, I won't have trouble getting married."

She let out a heavy sigh and then made another bold statement.

“Not only will you not have to worry about getting married, but if you spread the word, the line of suitors could stretch from Jinhai to Xijing.”

Hong Fan smiled.

"Thank you for your kind words."

Zheng Fuqu regained her former radiant appearance.

"My father will be retiring around the end of the year, and we plan to sell the Jiaotong Hall."

This was a matter of utmost importance to Kim Hae, and Hong Beom not only knew about it but also intervened in the selection of his successor.

"Are you planning to go back to Zhanzhou?"

he asked.

"No, I'll probably go to Xijing. Jinhai isn't bad either, but the climate in Xijing is better, and my father is getting old after all."

Zheng Fuqu replied.

"Actually, there's something I'd like to ask you. I'd like to ask you to find a job for my father in Xi'an—he's been worrying about the future lately and is always sighing."

Upon hearing this request, Hong Fan knew that the other party had truly let go of past feelings and felt it was his responsibility to grant it.

Zheng Zhun's career setbacks are largely related to his goodwill towards the Hong family over the years—with Jin Ziming obstructing his position as governor, how could a mere city garrison commander possibly rise to the rank of governor?

"Liantong Bank has only been open for a short time and is short of staff. Since you've asked, I'll definitely get it done."

Hong Fan immediately replied.

After making this decision, he felt a sense of relief.

There are still many things to be done, but they are no longer in Jinhai.

"Thank you!"

Zheng Fuqu smiled, her upturned eyes illuminated by a flash of light from outside.

Hong Fan strolled to the window, listening to the shouts and noise of pedestrians, the fluttering and rattling of merchant flags in the strong wind, and his gaze pierced through the rooftops that resembled the spine of a black whale, into the sky piled with thick clouds.

A thunderbolt crashed down on the city.

The rain then poured down.

(End of this chapter)