Royal Gold Magistrate

That afternoon, Fang Zheng returned to Banshan District and made some simple arrangements.

Li Yuanzhao was still enthusiastically designing his food hygiene and safety system.

Fang Zheng gave it a quick glance, but didn’t have the heart to disturb him much and went straight back to Fang Manor.

The next day, after waking up in the morning, he headed directly to the Court of Diplomatic Receptions.

Of course, he didn’t attend the morning court session. Since he was now concurrently serving as the Vice Minister of the Court of Diplomatic Receptions, he might as well slack off when he could.

The Court of Diplomatic Receptions wasn’t large, with the overall structure resembling a giant courtyard house.

Besides being responsible for foreign affairs reception, it also had to preside over sacrificial ceremonies, conferment of titles, banquets, and other activities.

There were over 200 staff in total, with only about 20 in main charge.

Although Chen Hong was the highest official in the Court of Diplomatic Receptions, his rank was still below Fang Zheng’s.

Even though Fang Zheng was now his part-time assistant, Chen Hong naturally wouldn’t dare to order him around.

As soon as Fang Zheng arrived at the Court of Diplomatic Receptions, Chen Hong came out to greet him immediately, wearing a stiff smile on his face.

He came, he actually really came!

I hope this lord doesn’t cause any trouble…

“Lord Fang! Welcome, welcome!”

Fang Zheng also smiled, “No need for formalities, Minister Chen! I’m just here to take a look around. If there’s anything you need me to do, feel free to tell me, don’t be polite!”

“By the way, where’s the Northern Rong envoy?”

Chen Hong’s heart leapt into his throat.

You really want to receive the envoy personally? Weren’t all those rumors spread in your Banshan District your doing?

It’s just short of throwing dung in their faces!

“Well… someone is already receiving the envoy. I’ve made arrangements, we don’t need to worry about it!”

“Come, come! Lord Fang, please come inside. The snacks in our Court of Diplomatic Receptions are famously delicious!”

“Oh? Is that so? Then I must try them!”

Chen Hong pulled Fang Zheng’s sleeve and dragged him inside.

He directly sat him in his own seat.

Then he personally brought a plate of snacks.

Fang Zheng looked at the snacks, then at Chen Hong, suddenly feeling somewhat flattered.

It seems that since returning from disaster relief, his relationships had indeed improved.

Is everyone this enthusiastic?

He picked up a snack and took a bite, savoring it for a moment.

Then he threw the remaining half into his mouth, chewed it briefly, and swallowed.

Chen Hong cautiously asked, “How is it? Tasty?”

“Not tasty.” Fang Zheng shook his head.

“…….”

“Here, try this one, it’s orange cake!” Chen Hong picked up a piece of pastry and handed it to Fang Zheng.

Fang Zheng took the orange cake, bit into it, then again threw the whole piece into his mouth, chewed it twice, and swallowed.

Then he shook his head and said, “Not tasty.”

“…….”

“Try this one!”

“This one… it’s passable. No, not tasty. The filling is a bit dry.”

Chen Hong felt inexplicably irritated.

If it’s not tasty, why did you eat it all?! If it’s not tasty, just say it’s not tasty? Can’t you give me a little face?!

No! I must keep him here!

Keep him for two days, and once the evening banquet is over, there won’t be so many issues!

Chen Hong frowned and said, “I must satisfy you today. I’ll have the cook make new ones.”

“Freshly baked ones taste better! Lord Fang, wait here for me, don’t wander off!”

After eating five pieces of pastry and drinking two cups of tea,

Fang Zheng felt a bit bloated. He loosened his belt and looked at Chen Hong with a smile, “Minister Chen, you don’t need to fuss over me.”

“Let me ask… are you trying to prevent me from meeting the Northern Rong envoy?”

Chen Hong looked embarrassed, “How could that be… you’re a guest, I’m just afraid of neglecting you!”

Fang Zheng smiled slightly, “Don’t worry, I’m just going through the motions.”

“Since His Majesty made me the Vice Minister of the Court of Diplomatic Receptions, I can’t do nothing, right?”

“I’m eating the emperor’s food. If His Majesty finds out I’ve been here all day just eating snacks, that wouldn’t look good, would it, Minister Chen?”

Chen Hong looked troubled.

At this point, there was no way to delay further. After a moment of hesitation, he said, “The Northern Rong envoy is now in the Diplomatic Guesthouse.”

“Lord Fang, if you want to meet them, I’ll take you to see them, but let’s not do anything else.”

“They’ve come from afar and need to rest.”

Fang Zheng raised an eyebrow, “Rest? We can’t let them rest!”

“There will be negotiations, right? You want them to negotiate with us after they’re well-fed and rested? Are you confused?”

“Why don’t you throw a few chickens into the guesthouse! Poke them in the middle of the night, don’t let them sleep!”

Chen Hong’s facial features began to contort!

Are you even speaking human language? Would any normal person do such a thing?

How despicable!

Seeing Chen Hong’s unpleasant expression, Fang Zheng laughed, “I’m joking! It’s all a joke!”

“Judge the deed, not the thought, right? Everyone has some dark little thoughts. I’m just thinking about these unethical things, not doing them. I’m telling you because I consider you a friend, Minister Chen!”

Chen Hong wiped away cold sweat, “Yes… yes..”

“However… we should still meet the envoy. Not only do I want to meet them, but I also want to take them out. I hope you can understand.”

“Take them out!?” Chen Hong’s voice suddenly rose, “Absolutely not! What are you planning to do?”

Fang Zheng shook his head and sighed, “Ah, didn’t I promise His Majesty about the return gifts? I need to take those Northern Rong people to see some things.”

“Otherwise, when I give them the gifts later, if they don’t appreciate them and think they’re cheap goods, wouldn’t that be embarrassing?”

“I don’t care about my personal face, but it would be the face of the court, the face of His Majesty that’s lost!”

“You can rest assured! I’ll only take two important figures to visit Banshan District.”

“The Crown Prince is there too. Do you think I could mess around?”

Chen Hong gritted his teeth, his breathing becoming heavy.

No… they absolutely can’t go!

The two of you together cause the biggest trouble. You’re using the Crown Prince as a shield, making you even more lawless!

Seeing that Chen Hong still wouldn’t agree, Fang Zheng felt a bit helpless.

After all, it was the other’s territory, and he had been treated well with food and drink.

There was no need to use force just to meet the envoy, so he could only continue, “Minister Chen, I’m still trying to help the Court of Diplomatic Receptions find a way to publish a newspaper. Give me some face!”

Chen Hong still shook his head.

Do you think I’m stupid? That’s not even close to happening! We can discuss that slowly in the future!

The Northern Rong envoy absolutely cannot have any accidents!

Seeing that he was still unmoved, Fang Zheng said in a deep voice, “Fine! You don’t trust me, is that it?”

“Then let’s not talk about the Court of Diplomatic Receptions publishing a newspaper. I can at least make decisions about the Banshan Daily.”

“The middle column of the daily, free for the Court of Diplomatic Receptions to use for one year!”

Chen Hong’s eyes lit up.

The Banshan Daily was the most popular newspaper in the market.

The Court of Diplomatic Receptions’ own newspaper might not sell well, but riding on the coattails of the Banshan Daily would definitely not be bad!

Chen Hong gritted his teeth, “Three years!”

“One and a half years.”

“Two years!”

“Deal!”

With the matter settled, Chen Hong also came to terms with it and said helplessly, “Alright!”

“But you have to promise me, absolutely no conflicts with them!”

“Don’t worry, we’ve been colleagues for so long. I’ve always been a person who gets along well with others.”