Published: March 12, 2025
Chapter 450: The Banquet
Zhao Hai entered the courtyard and was immediately led by a servant to the small courtyard that Smith had prepared for him. Lintaiju was a large courtyard, which was divided into several small courtyards, and Zhao Hai's group occupied one of them.
After the servant left him at the courtyard's entrance, Zhao Hai pushed the courtyard door open and walked in. As soon as he entered, he saw Xu Wanying, who bowed respectfully to Zhao Hai and then exclaimed loudly, "Young master has returned!"
Hearing Xu Wanying's voice, Laura and the others came out from the house. They were all dressed in casual home clothing, looking much more relaxed. To Zhao Hai's surprise, Meigen was also there.
Zhao Hai greeted several people and led them into the house. Once they were seated in the living room, Meigen looked at Zhao Hai and immediately asked, "Brother Hai, they didn't give you any trouble, did they?"
Zhao Hai smiled and replied, "It's fine; it's all in the past. They didn't really trouble me. By the way, if you have time later, could you go find Grandpa Gan? I want to give him some seafood from the space. After all, it's a gift from us."
Meigen nodded, "Sure, I'll go talk to Grandpa Gan. Brother Hai, what actually happened in the living room today?"
Seeing Meigen's expression, Zhao Hai knew that she wouldn’t feel at ease unless he told her what had happened in the living room, so he recounted the events to her.
After listening to Zhao Hai's account, Meigen couldn’t help but laugh, "Well said, Brother Hai! You don’t know, my Third Granduncle has always been at odds with Grandpa. He has long wanted to arrange a marriage for me, but fortunately, my father and grandpa have been stopping him. However, the pressure they face is also quite significant. Third Granduncle has pulled in a large group of people in the family to pressure my father and grandpa. That’s why grandpa didn’t strongly oppose our marriage, as it relates to this matter."
Zhao Hai nodded; internal struggles in large families are inevitable. People are driven by greed; if they get too little, they want more, and if they have more, they want even more. This kind of struggle is unavoidable.
Meigen continued, "Fifth Uncle already holds a grudge against you, and because of your matter, grandpa is no longer favoring him. I’m sure he will vent all his frustrations on you. But his influence on grandpa is already quite limited, so you don’t need to worry."
Zhao Hai smiled slightly, "What do I have to worry about? With my current strength, even the Roson Empire wouldn't dare touch me. Don’t worry, I won’t mind."
Meigen sighed in relief, "I’m not worried about your safety; I’m just afraid Fifth Uncle will annoy me. You can handle the Karlqi Family; they can't withstand your attack."
Hearing Meigen's words, Zhao Hai and Laura couldn't help but laugh. Meigen joined in the laughter, but her words were not entirely joking. While others in the Karlqi Family might not know Zhao Hai's strength, she was very clear about it. If Zhao Hai really decided to deal with the Karlqi Family, they would be finished.
After the laughter, Laura turned to Zhao Hai and said, "Brother Hai, you need to prepare a bit these days. You might have to attend a few banquets."
Zhao Hai was taken aback and frowned, "Banquets? Can I not attend?"
Meigen smiled wryly, "That's going to be difficult. It's not just the Karlqi Family hosting banquets; other nobles in the city are holding them too. Even the princes will host banquets. Even if you don’t attend others, you can’t skip the Karlqi Family’s banquet or Prince Charlie’s banquet, right? But I think you should choose a few well-connected noble banquets to attend. This will benefit our budah family greatly; connections are built this way."
Zhao Hai nodded but sighed. Like most reclusive men, he wasn’t fond of socializing, so he had always felt negatively about such banquets.
But Meigen was right; for a noble, attending banquets was unavoidable. This was exactly what troubled Zhao Hai.