Chapter 402: Ye Mingsheng's Double Standards! (Thanks to book friends happy01666 and Wang Yuhou for the reward!)
Just as these terrifying cavalrymen, heavily armed killing machines, walked in front of Ye Mingsheng and the civil and military officials on the ceremonial platform, Guo Zhiping suddenly shouted:

"mighty!"

Following Guo Zhiping's command, all the cavalrymen followed suit with a loud roar, and then everyone stood with their swords raised high. Under the sunlight, the cavalrymen's raised swords reflected a breathtakingly cold light.

Feeling the chill emanating from these cavalrymen from top to bottom, from head to toe, Cui Shao, Yun Hanjie, and Zhao Yu all had gloomy and ugly expressions...

As the cavalry troops finished their review, amid the admiration and congratulations of the gentry, the victory parade was officially declared over. After showing off his muscles to intimidate the lawless, Ye Mingsheng began to appease the people and booked the best restaurant in Dongning, Ruifuxuan, to hold a banquet for everyone.

At the banquet, Ye Mingsheng had cordial conversations with celebrities and gentry representatives from all walks of life. Under Ye Mingsheng's firm and flexible approach, these gentry and celebrities patted their chests and assured Ye Mingsheng that they would work with Ye Mingsheng to build a better Liaoyang and were willing to devote themselves to him, Governor Ye, until their death.

Listening to these people's promises, although Ye Mingsheng nodded frequently with a smile on the surface, he did not agree in his heart. These people shouted the loudest slogans, but if they met the real ones, it would not work. They devoted themselves to the cause until their death. If it really came to a critical moment, it would be very good if they did not sell you out...
Haven’t you seen what happened to Song Wenhui and Chen Dechang?
The banquet lasted for more than three hours. Ye Mingsheng met nearly a hundred people. It was not until the evening that Ye Mingsheng finished his work. He returned to his governor's mansion under the escort of his personal guards. After returning to the governor's mansion, Ye Mingsheng received two pieces of news from Qi Dechao.

The first piece of news was that Yun Hanjie and Zhao Yu asked to meet Ye Mingsheng again. In addition to the two of them, a close friend of An Miaoyi from the Cui family came to Dongning to hold a women's tea party, and wanted to invite An Miaoyi to participate in the conversation.

The second piece of news was that the negotiations between Gu Sansi and Hu Jian were basically concluded. Gu Sansi was going to report the results of the negotiations to Ye Mingsheng in order to obtain Ye Mingsheng's approval and officially start the transaction.

Upon hearing this first piece of news, Ye Mingsheng couldn't help but smile. Now that these noble families were so eager to come and see him, it meant that the military parade he had prepared for a long time had not worked in vain...

As for how big an effect it will have, we'll have to wait and see how things develop next!

Ye Mingsheng hesitated for a moment and ordered:

"Tell them that I will meet them in three days. During these three days, the Xiaoanshan Shooting Range is almost completed. Ask He Jingyun to accompany them to visit and let them see the scene of the thirty red cannons firing at the same time!"

Ye Mingsheng had originally planned to display some red cannons during this parade in order to better deter those with ill intentions. However, he later considered the plan of hiding his shortcomings that he had formulated with Gu Sansi, and in order to prevent Zhao Fuqu of Youyan from feeling threatened and thus withdrawing more troops from Jizhou on the eastern front, Ye Mingsheng finally canceled the plan of displaying the red cannons after much deliberation.

Although the red cannon cannot be displayed openly for the sake of military secrecy, it is a good idea to let these three families secretly go to the shooting range to feel some of the earth-shaking power, so that they can be more clearly aware of the Fengwu Army's powerful military strength and development potential. This will help Ye Mingsheng to paint a rosy picture for them about entering the pass in the next meeting.

For the development of Liaoyang and to ease social conflicts, Ye Mingsheng is ready to take action against them. However, in order to enter the pass and compete for the Central Plains, Ye Mingsheng needs these three families to contribute their strength to make his backyard more stable. Therefore, Ye Mingsheng must both suppress and win over these three families, let them see the broad prospects for the development of the Fengwu Army, and fully mobilize their enthusiasm and subjective initiative...

Compared to the careful consideration of the first message, Ye Mingsheng did not think too much about the second message and directly ordered:

"Gu Sansi's matter is more important. De Chao, please postpone the matter originally scheduled for tomorrow morning. I want to hear Gu Sansi's report tomorrow morning!"

Although he had not received Gu Sansi's report yet, Ye Mingsheng had obtained some information from the discussions between Gu Sansi and Hu Jian. It seemed that the issue of firearms technology was only one aspect of Hu Jian's visit. On the other hand, there were also some other civilian trades, which made Ye Mingsheng very interested.

Although Ye Mingsheng has adopted policies such as eradicating banditry and encouraging the people to reclaim wasteland, and is preparing to implement further policies in the near future to carry out reforms to enhance the people's strength in Liaoyang, this reform is not something that can be accomplished overnight. It takes time for the results of the reform to manifest, and it cannot immediately improve Liaoyang's not optimistic financial situation.

If you want to change your financial situation, the best way now is to get a windfall!
Isn’t there an old saying like that?
A man will not be rich without windfall, and a horse will not be fat without night grass!
And Hu Jian, who came on behalf of Youyan, might bring some business opportunities to Ye Mingsheng! So Ye Mingsheng was looking forward to Gu Sansi's report!

After receiving Ye Mingsheng's approval, Qi Dechao immediately went down to make arrangements. Ye Mingsheng first participated in the military parade, and then met so many people at the banquet and drank a lot of wine. He was exhausted and very tired at this time.

After a simple wash, Ye Mingsheng prepared to go back to his room to go to bed, trying to get a good night's sleep and greet a new day's work with a full mental state.
Without thinking too much, Ye Mingsheng prepared to sleep in his bedroom. His governor's mansion was big enough, so Ye Mingsheng reserved a room next to his study as his bedroom. He would take a nap at noon or sleep quietly in this room when he was not going to stay with his wives at night.

Although Ye Mingsheng wanted to have a good sleep, things often go against one's wishes. Although for the sake of his own health, Ye Mingsheng tried to drink less at the banquet in Ruifuxuan, but in such an occasion and meeting so many people, Ye Mingsheng drank several large glasses of wine without realizing it.

Although Ye Mingsheng doesn't drink much, he actually has a good alcohol tolerance, so the wine didn't have much of an effect at the beginning of the banquet. But now the wine has some aftereffects, making Ye Mingsheng feel nauseous and unable to sleep. In order to make himself feel better, Ye Mingsheng inserted his fingers into his throat to induce vomiting.

After spitting out some filth on the ground, Ye Mingsheng obviously felt much better. Just when he was about to call someone to come in and clean up, he heard footsteps outside his room...
Just when Ye Mingsheng was wondering who the other party was, footsteps came from far away and were about to enter the room where Ye Mingsheng was. This made Ye Mingsheng immediately realize who the other party was. In the entire Governor's Mansion, only two people could directly meet the emperor without asking for permission, one was his mother Ye Cui, and the other was his wife. It was so late at night that Ye Cui had already gone to bed early, so the person who came now should be An Miaoyi if nothing unexpected happened!

When Ye Mingsheng reacted, An Miaoyi had already walked into the room. Seeing Ye Mingsheng, who was drunk and looked unhappy, lying on the bed, as well as the filth on the ground, she immediately instructed Qiqige beside her:

"Go get a basin of hot water and bring in a cup of hot tea."

Upon hearing this, Qiqige nodded and left. The other maids were also very considerate and took the initiative to sweep the floor with brooms and dustpans. An Miaoyi came to Ye Mingsheng's side and carefully massaged his temples.

While enjoying An Miaoyi's service, Ye Mingsheng relaxed physically and mentally. However, he was a little surprised that An Miaoyi didn't say anything. If Pei Zhixiu was here, she would definitely take care of him, but she would definitely blame him for not taking care of his body and drinking so much alcohol.

As if she saw something from Ye Mingsheng's eyes, An Miaoyi said softly:
“When I was young, before my father was injured on the battlefield, he often went out for social events, and he often drank until he was unconscious and vomited all over. Every time my mother would complain, my father would always say that people in the arena cannot decide for themselves. At that time, I did not understand what this meant and just thought it was my father’s excuse. But later, after my father returned home injured, I gradually understood the meaning of this sentence…”

"I know Mingsheng you have your own ambitions. As your wife, I can't stop you, but I still hope you can take care of yourself."

Ye Mingsheng was slightly touched when he heard this, and nodded slightly to indicate that he understood. At this time, Qiqige also came over with a basin of hot water and a cup of hot tea.

Ye Mingsheng felt very comfortable after drinking the hot tea. Then An Miaoyi washed a hot towel, took off Ye Mingsheng's clothes and wiped his body. Ye Mingsheng had no problem being naked, but Qiqige, who was helping An Miaoyi, blushed when she saw the strong muscles on Ye Mingsheng's body. She lowered her head and did not dare to look at Ye Mingsheng.

Although as An Miaoyi's personal maid, Qiqige has already recognized her fate, she is still a virgin after all. It is her first time seeing a man's body, so she is naturally very shy...
Seeing Qiqige, who had grassland ancestry, was tall and exuded wild charm, and was always fearless, suddenly becoming so shy, Ye Mingsheng found it very amusing. If it were any other time, he might have taken this opportunity to marry her, but now he felt powerless.

But it doesn’t matter, Qiqige is in his backyard, so the meat in his bowl won’t fly away!
After wiping Ye Mingsheng's body, An Miaoyi massaged Ye Mingsheng's head as usual, trying to coax him to sleep. At this time, the alcohol had almost dissipated, and Ye Mingsheng, who had completely regained his sobriety, asked without any warning:
"What's matter?"

Hearing Ye Mingsheng's question, An Miaoyi's eyes flickered. After hesitating for a moment, she said frankly:
"Cui's third sister-in-law Dong invited me to a tea party. The tea party was just a cover. The Cui family wanted to get some information from me."

Ye Mingsheng didn't say anything about An Miaoyi's confession but nodded secretly in his heart. It was obvious that something was wrong since An Miaoyi came so late at night. Combined with the information Qi Dechao had reported to him before, Ye Mingsheng immediately understood what was going on.

Although Ye Mingsheng saw through it at a glance that the so-called tea party was just a cover-up, and he even thought that the so-called tea party was just a means for Cui Shao to test him to see if he would really let An Miaoyi attend the tea party, but when he heard An Miaoyi speak so frankly to him, Ye Mingsheng felt a little comforted.

Although he and An Miaoyi had a political marriage for their own benefit and there was no real love between them before, Ye Mingsheng was not a hypocritical person. He said that he hated marriages full of interests and politics. He felt that since it had come to this, he should make the best of it. Since things had come to this point, the die was cast and people should face the reality...

Ye Mingsheng didn't want his marriage to be too painful. He wanted to manage this marriage with An Miaoyi and build feelings with An Miaoyi from now on. Anyway, with An Miaoyi's appearance, figure, and family background, he, Ye, had picked up a great bargain no matter how you looked at it.

Even so, if you want to build a relationship, you must trust each other and be able to be honest with each other, otherwise you will be classmates with different dreams!
Although Ye Mingsheng asked himself that he could not be honest with An Miaoyi, he still hoped that An Miaoyi could do that to him, and now An Miaoyi's performance did not disappoint Ye Mingsheng.

Patting An Miaoyi's little hand, Ye Mingsheng said with a smile:

"It's okay, go ahead! You've been in Dongning for so long, and you've always been in this governor's mansion. It's time to go out for a walk!"

Feeling Ye Mingsheng's attitude, An Miaoyi nodded and said softly:

"I know what to do!"

Ye Mingsheng smiled and took An Miaoyi into his arms and fell asleep together. In his opinion, Cui Shao's move was not to use An Miaoyi to test his attitude, but to test his reaction and his attitude towards Cui. After all, the so-called tea party excuse was not a very clever trick.

Ye Mingsheng was also happy to take this opportunity to show his goodwill to the Cui family. As long as the Cui family was willing to submit to his reforms, Ye Mingsheng would naturally not refuse the strongest of the three clans in Liaoyang. With the help of the Cui family, not to mention other places, just in Liaoyang, it would definitely be twice the result with half the effort...

(End of this chapter)