driving back

Rong Xi had his back shivering. He remembered that he hadn't seen the steward the day he left after the recruitment, at that time, he didn't really react as he was too excited. But now, that he thought of it… could it be that when Ji Li was talking with him about loyalty, he had just killed someone of such a high level in comparison to his own self? 

He had just punished a failure of a servant while taking in someone new. The secret wasn't hidden, and Ji Li knew that what happened could have come to Rong Xi's knowledge… so it meant that this was an indirect message to him?

Rong Xi could only be thankful for his smarts that he never thought of betraying Ji Li and the Eunuch Palace, or he might truly freeze out of fear in that exact moment. The Eunuch Palace was very cruel with their punishments… at least his new lord was.

Noting that there was nothing to do, he just told the servant to tell Ji Li that he was there and left. He had to tell what happened to the elders. In no case would the elders be calm hearing what he says. At least the elders should be warned, or else they might step on thorns.

…

A few days later, Ji Li and the rest came out of seclusion, meeting in the garden. It became a small meeting place for them by now, and they really enjoyed the scenery. There was no specific reason to it besides that they just liked the green, at most a bit more than any other citizen of the empire did.

Today was the day they would be going back to the capital, and Ji Li was excited for a reason, still, he had to do a last check up on the branch yard and make a report call that he would be coming back. These were all things that could be made relatively quickly, as he told his brothers to do so, while he once again was enjoying his food.

One could call him a foodie for sure, but how could they blame him? He grew in a family where he was served excellent food, and then experienced the life of not doing so. Now, after a small trauma of not knowing when he will eat well again, he eats like every meal is his last good one.

Shixuan and Qianyu just went ahead, one looked through the branch yard and making a list of improvements and thoughts about it, while the other was using a communication tool to report their departure to the mission palace, which was surprising to said palace.

Ji Li knew the reason but didn't care, he was just too busy to care for anything that wasn't pressing or had to do with him directly. Only he himself knows how little he cared if even the whole Emerald Empire burned down, at most he would just be a Eunuch in another country. 

He only hoped for his little bros and mentor to follow him… well, his elder brothers could come with him too. In truth he already started to care for them, but the others he didn't know… or those he didn't care about… they could just never wake up for all he cared.

Ji Li went back to eating, enjoying everything that was made well. He had taste buds, and honestly had quite a lot of things he was picky about. He was mainly picky about the sorts of meat, as some just didn't taste well, while seafood was something he could never bring himself to eat.

Honestly, as much as he like vegetable sushi, true real sushi wasn't something he could eat without having his whole-body shiver. He wasn't sure how he earned that dislike, but as an adult… well a past adult, he could decide what he liked and what he disliked.

…

Soon after his brothers finished everything, Ji Li left the garden and entered the prepared carriage. Right before leaving, he saw a hesitant and nervous servant that was pacing around the entrance. Naturally he knew of the visit of Rong Xi from his own senses, so he didn't bother waiting for the servant to tell him what was up.

He would let the servant see his generosity in the fact that he is not killing him despite having just killed a few servants that followed the steward for pretty much the same reason, being tasked by someone besides him to do something and not telling it to him.

The carriage drove off outside the Branch Yard along the roads. There were still quite some people that stayed behind after Ji Li and his crew left, they appeared to have decided to stay in the city for a longer duration or had specific purposes he didn't know nor cared about.

Slowly, the carriage reached the exit to the town, and waited there in front of the gate. The guards didn't say anything either, as they already knew the owner of the carriage. Some of the passing people that just entered or left the town looked up at the disturbance but kept quiet once they saw the insignia of the Eunuch Palace.

Soon after, Rong Xi came on horseback, jumped off and entered the carriage by the door. Inside the carriage, he bowed down and said "I apologize for my late coming, my lord. I hope I did not make you wait. May I know if the lord is leaving?"

Ji Li wasn't really interested in talking just yet, so Qianyu answered "Tell us what you found out", not really detailed, but Rong Xi understood and started explaining his encounter with Yi Minghua, making it seem very hostile at that. Very obviously he didn't have any liking towards said young master, and wated to show his position towards the matter, to which Qianyu didn't comment.

Shixuan also ignored the side remarks and just sat by the side, not the least bit interesting. He only had one thought: his relaxing days were over! They clearly had spent so much time doing nothing during the mission, he was sure that at home he would have to learn and work much harder than before. He really didn't understand the difficulty about missions, clearly his brother was worse!

Ji Li only commented at the end as Qianyu was about to send away Rong Xi "You will be called forth."

Rong Xi was somehow excited, knowing that he was acknowledged as a true Vassal and that his lord would be going about doing the paperwork for him to become a city lord, finally fulfilling a long lasting wish his ancestors had.

…

The mist horses were traveling very fast and steady, and the carriage was enhanced, so inside, Ji Li only mediated and didn't feel the passage of time, until he slowly saw a large outpost. This was the outpost a kilometre away from the capital, the Official's Exit, only allowed to be used by the Imperial Family, the various Ministries, Military Officials and of course the Eunuch Palace.

They were all the pillars of the government of the empire. The nobles didn't have access below high noble, and that was only because the comparative official ranking was high. In truth, the noble title was given to anyone of certain cultivational level, but anything less than the high nobles didn't have any saying in the government. 

Many officials would be getting a noble ranking but still prefer their official ranking over it. The only good part about it was that it was inheritable and bound to specific fiefs and such, which was also a demerit. The title would only be inherited for one generation after the generation that earned it. If the generation after didn't have the same cultivational rank, then the title would drop to their rank.

Simply it stopped the titles to last too long, and only the imperial family and the Eunuch Palace had deep history of every and all official and the amount of duke titles that perished over time, either splitting up the fiefs into smaller ones, or slowly being revived under a different name and family.

Ji Li looked at the expectant looking Shixuan, and he just nodded, to which Shixuan knocked at the wall of the carriage. The carriage stopped, and Shixuan stepped out and took the reins, telling the guards to take the horses and ride in front of the carriage.

With four horses in the back, two pulling the carriage and two horses in the front, the carriage truly looked like it was pulling a very important person, which made Ji Li smile inside. The carriage actually didn't go into the official's road but went further down the road.

Qianyu was also hoping it was what he thought it was. Although he was slightly more patient and smarter than Shixuan, he was still a child at heart, so he asked "Big brother, will we be going to the city? I have never been to the city! Can we visit a lot of things? I heard that there are theatres and operas, there are circuses and clowns, there are roads in the city where you can buy anything!"

Big brother, I even heart that there are a LOT of food stalls that sold food from all around the world, even imported food from outside the empire! I always wanted to eat northern food, I heard they have something really cold that melts in your mouth!" Qianyu kept talking and talking about all the things he wanted to visit in the city, asking his brother, as if his brother had visited the capital outside of the inner palace city that was the management region.