Qing Yao

Chapter 418 Knowing how to be an official, but even more so, knowing how to be a person
Bai Kui Lao Hao Restaurant's roasted mutton is a specialty of Beijing, and the business is booming. It's packed even on the 29th of the twelfth lunar month, with countless tables turned over, leaving the staff sweating profusely.

The palace guards certainly didn't need to queue when they invited guests to dinner, but there were just too many guests and all the private rooms were booked. The innkeeper had no choice but to clear out a space in the stairwell on the second floor and put together a table.

When Zhao An arrived, Qing Yao, Alebao, Deshun, and others had already arrived and were arguing with the manager because there were no private rooms available.

"As long as there's food, it doesn't matter whether there's a private room or not. As long as we can have some fun with the brothers, that's enough."

Zhao An smiled and stepped forward to smooth things over, saying that it was no wonder the shopkeeper had been so disrespectful to the guards; business was just too good, and everyone who came was a guest. They couldn't just turn away other customers because of the guards.

He also subtly reminded Qingyao that while it was not a problem for guards to eat and drink with officials from outside the palace—after all, they were not palace eunuchs and did not cross the line of "officials from outside the palace associating with palace eunuchs"—if the commotion became too big and someone reported it, it would still have some impact on both parties.

Hearing Zhao An say this, the shopkeeper said he would give away two lamb legs for free as compensation, and Qingyao and the others grumbled as they escorted Zhao An upstairs.

Besides Qingyao and a few other guards who had been transferred to the palace, guards who had previously been to Anhui but were still serving in the Eagle and Dog Bureau also came.

They're all incredibly shrewd.

Who would pass up the opportunity to drink with the acting governor of Anhui, who was also the de facto provincial governor?
Moreover, Lord Zhao is a favorite of the Grand Secretary. This trip to the capital to meet the Emperor might just be his chance to be promoted to the highest rank, making him the youngest regional official in the Qing Dynasty. In the future, he might even go to the capital to become a minister or Grand Secretary.

If you don't curry favor with such a promising young official, when will you?

This opportunity to eat and drink is something countless people crave but can't have.

Don't be fooled by the fact that these guards are of the sixth, fifth, and third rank. Their ranks sound impressive, but in reality, they have less power than a county magistrate, and their perks are incredibly meager. Unless they are on official business, they live off their fixed salaries.

In addition, Zhao An was generous and reported the merits of all the guards, so they all had a prosperous year. Everyone was grateful to Zhao An. Therefore, when a whole roasted lamb was served, the atmosphere immediately improved. Everyone sat around a table, drinking from large bowls and eating large chunks of meat, having a great time.

Zhao An had long forgotten the unpleasantness that Teacher Wu's wife, Zhang, had brought him. The restaurant was also quite warm, and after a bowl of strong liquor, he immediately shed his hypocritical facade from officialdom and mingled with the group of guards who, though deliberately obsequious, were indeed straightforward in nature.

Zhao An spoke emotionally about the "comradeship" he had forged in Anhui, expressing his gratitude and longing for the guards, which moved all of these genuine "Manchu Tartars".
"Six, six, six! Eight horses, five champions!"

When the drinking gets lively, the game of finger-guessing is indispensable. Zhao An was not good at it, so he asked Xu Lin to play along with the guards. After watching for a while and learning how to play, he awkwardly followed the guards and played the game. When the wine was drunk, his boldness was definitely better than that of the guards.

"Lord Zhao, we brothers are completely convinced! We thought the civil officials in the south were all pretentious and affected, but we didn't expect them to be so straightforward! Getting to know you, sir, made our trip to Anhui worthwhile!"

Al-Bao's dark face glowed red. After drinking several bowls of wine, he drunkenly patted Zhao An's shoulder forcefully, truly treating Zhao An as a drinking buddy and completely forgetting that the other party was actually a prospective regional governor.

Zhao An smiled and didn't seem to care at all.

Third-class guard Deshun also came over with a wine bowl, saying from the bottom of his heart: "Back in Anhui, we could tell that Lord Zhao was no ordinary person. Someone as capable and noble as you is bound to rise to prominence and achieve great success. In three to five years, we brothers will be able to respectfully call Lord Zhao 'Grand Secretary'! What are you brothers waiting for? Let's have a drink with Grand Secretary!"

"Dry!"

Zhao An laughed heartily, welcoming everyone and clinking glasses with each person, projecting a bold and unrestrained image.

Fortunately, I had a good alcohol tolerance in my past life, and my physical condition is also good in this life, so I can withstand the test of alcohol. Otherwise, I wouldn't have been able to handle it.

Xiao Shuan and Xu Lin must have also helped to fend off the drinking, as both of them had drunk quite a bit. After several rounds of drinks and dishes, Zhao An's eyes began to glaze over, and his speech became somewhat slurred. He stood up, supporting himself on the table, and waved his hand, saying, "Everyone, no... I really can't take it anymore. You all have such a high tolerance for alcohol. I, Zhao, concede defeat and will take my leave first to sober up. I don't want the Emperor to summon me again tomorrow."

"Yes, yes, the Emperor's summons is a major event, we can't let this important matter be delayed."

Seeing this, Qingyao and the others knew that Zhao An had indeed drunk too much and dared not insist that he stay, otherwise he would be reeking of alcohol when he met the emperor. So they all got up to see him off.

With the help of Xiao Shuan and Xu Lin, Zhao An staggered away from Bai Kui Old Shop.

After Zhao An left, Qingyao and the others sat for a while longer before calling the waiter to settle the bill.

The waiter came over with a big smile and said, "Gentlemen, the bill for this table has already been settled by Mr. Zhao, who left earlier."

"Oh, it's already settled?"

Qingyao was taken aback. He exchanged glances with Alebao, Deshun and the others, and they all saw the surprise in each other's eyes.

The waiter said that the bill had been settled while everyone was drinking, and then added, "Not only that, that Master Zhao also left a message on the counter, saying that he had something for you gentlemen."

After saying this, he invited Qingyao and the others to the counter. The shopkeeper, who was doing the accounting, saw them coming and hurriedly took out an envelope and respectfully handed it to Qingyao, who was at the head of the group: "Sir, this is what Master Zhao left for you gentlemen."

In front of everyone, Qingyao opened it with a puzzled look and found that there were eight brand new silver notes inside, each with a face value of five hundred taels, totaling four thousand taels!

"That Master Zhao instructed me that this is tea money for you gentlemen, and that I must deliver it to you."

The guards couldn't hear what the shopkeeper said; their eyes were filled with surprise and gratitude.

After a long pause, Albao swallowed hard and whispered to one of the guards beside him, "Lord Zhao is too generous to us. He deserves to be such a high-ranking official."

De Shun muttered, "We were the ones who treated Lord Zhao to dinner, but he paid the bill and even gave each of us five hundred taels. This... this..."

I really don't know what to say.

"Alright, take them all. Lord Zhao has been good to us, so we can't be ungrateful. If you hear anything about Lord Zhao in the future, remember it so you can remind him."

As Qingyao spoke, he distributed the silver notes to everyone one by one.

"That makes sense. Lord Zhao has been kind to us, so we can't be ungrateful bastards! From now on, if anyone makes things difficult for Lord Zhao, we brothers will make sure they suffer too!"

As the guards made boastful remarks and hiccuped from drinking, they accepted the five-hundred-tael silver note, unaware that Lord Zhao, who was riding in a carriage on his way to the Anhui examination hall, was more sober than anyone else.

It's common sense to pay the bill in advance when treating someone to a meal.

(End of this chapter)