Fei observed this fatty who was dressed in fancy clothing and asked Constantine without showing much emotion, “This gentleman named Sherwood is…”
“Ah, allow me to introduce him. Mr. Sherwood is a prestigious level 1 noble of the Empire, and he is the highest-leveled military commander in the Green Wind Province and the castellan of Green Wind City.” Before Constantine got the chance to respond, another young nobleman who had a flattering smile on his face quickly answered in advanced while waving his hand at Constantine, telling the latter to go away fast.
“Oh.” Fei nodded as if he suddenly realized this fatty’s prestigious identity. He said, “Oh, so you are the castellan of Green Wind City. I heard that when the enemies invaded the empire, there were about 50,000 elite soldiers inside Green Wind City which had been managed and strengthened by the Empire for many years. The city could at least hold the enemies for half a day and buy precious time so that the Empire could be warned, but someone ordered the troops to ditch the city and more than 200,000 civilians who lived there, only escaping with more than a thousand nobles and high-level officials. This foolish decision allowed the enemies to take control of Green Wind City with ease, kill tens of thousands of citizens of Zenit, and made the 50,000 elite soldiers not have the proper set up to fight. I also heard that they were surrounded by Leonians in the open, and only a few people escaped… eh, could it be that the person who made such a stupid call was Mr. Sherwood?”
The smile on Sherwood’s face instantly froze.
Everyone could hear the hostility and displeasure in the Imperial Martial Saint’s tone.
However, that young nobleman was a cunning character. He rolled his eyes, thought of something quickly, and explained with a smile, “Mr. Alexander, you have misunderstood Mr. Sherwood. He decided to leave the city with the troop because he wanted to retain the military force and get back to St. Petersburg to protect the Royal Family. Mr. Sherwood is just loyal and was thinking ahead. However, the enemies were way too fast, and they caught up before the troop could get back to St. Petersburg. Mr. Sherwood commanded the troop and battled with the enemies, and blood stained his clothes and armor. In the end, he couldn’t turn the situation around. Most of the soldiers were killed, and Mr. Sherwood was injured in several places and fainted due to the loss of blood. He was saved by a few powerful masters in the military who were touched by his bravery, and they came to Byzantine to look for you with the desire to kill enemies and avenge for our fallen brothers and sisters!”
“Yeah! That was what truly happened!”
“Mr. Sherwood is really the model for the rest of the noblemen and officials of the Empire!”
“Yeah! Those people who created rumors to attack Mr. Sherwood deserve to die! Mr. Sherwood is brave and selfless! He is an important figure in the Empire!”
The other noblemen who were in fancy clothes and fat with double chins quickly raised their wine glasses which were filled with red wine and added to what that young nobleman said.
After hearing what had been said, the awkward expression disappeared, and the smile re-appeared on Sherwood’s face
Only King Constantine of Byzantine cussed in his mind, “These b*stards! They are just trying to whitewash themselves! In the Green Wind Province, even the sand grains know that this Coward Sherwood ditched the city after hearing that enemies were coming, and he handed Green Wind City away and indirectly murdered the 50,000 elite soldiers! He is the guiltiest person! How dare he try to flip this whole thing around and try to claim credit? This is unforgivable!”
Constantine wanted to rip this lie apart.
However, on the second thought, Sherwood’s status and official power were much higher than his, and his kingdom technically still had to listen to Sherwood’s orders. If he were abrupt and spilled everything, he might be troubled a lot in the future. Therefore, he decided to hold back his words for now and explain everything to the Imperial Martial Saint later in private. He just hoped that Fei wouldn’t be fooled by these cunning and shameless people.
After Fei listened to the words said by the nobles around him, he didn’t express anything. Instead, he stared at that young nobleman who was quick on his feet.
Just when that young nobleman was about to collapse mentally under Fei’s pressure, the king asked slowly, “Then… who are you?”
This young nobleman was nervous; he didn’t know if he were in luck, or bad fortune was about to fall on him. He quickly bowed with a flattering smile on his face and replied, “Sir, I’m Ryan, a member of the Knight Family.”
“Oh, Ryan Knight.”
Fei nodded and thought, “The Knight Family is a mid-tier noble family that is more powerful than its peers, and they have a faint royal bloodline. This young man should be a descendant of the core members, and he was probably sent to Green Wind Province to fill a high-power position.”
Then, Fei smiled and said, “You sure are a good talker. Since you know a lot, then you can introduce all the noblemen who are here tonight to me. It is my first time being in the southern region of the Empire, and I’m not familiar with a lot of things!”
After hearing what Fei said, this young nobleman who was nervous calmed down and felt elated.
The other noblemen also looked at him in jealousy and envy.
“From the tone of Mr. Martial Saint, it seems like he is pleased with Ryan Knight’s performance. This kid of the Knight Family is a sweet talker but a vicious character, great at flattering people and observing the situation. This time, he got praised by the Imperial Martial Saint, and it seems like he can be promoted. If Mr. Martial Saint takes him in as a disciple, then his entire family would be elevated! It seems like his future is now limitless!” the noblemen thought to themselves.
Ryan Knight was in high spirits and wanted to show off in front of Fei. Therefore, he quickly started to introduce the people at the party to Fei. It was clear that this young man was observant; he knew the detailed histories of everyone here. As he walked around with Fei and introduced them, he secretly told the king everything about these noblemen, including their family backgrounds, which prince they were supporting, and other details.
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“This is General Vincent; he is the former legion commander of the legion inside Green Wind City…”
“This is Mr. Jonson; he is the official who is in charge of military supplies…”
“This is Mr. Goulet; he is Mr. Sherwood’s butler…”
“This is Mr. Berezov; he is a level 3 noble and the official who is in charge of taxes in Green Wind City…”
With Ryan Knight doing the introductions, Fei memorized these people’s looks, matching them with the names that he got from the intelligence report from the [Letter Office]. The king didn’t say much and only took a quick tour around the hall.
Then, he quickly returned to where he was before. There were a few noble ladies who had mature bodies and were wearing alluring dresses, and they invited Fei to dance with them. However, the king turned them down without hesitation.
After Fei returned to his seat and was thinking about how he should deal with the situation, a series of flattering laughter sounded. Then, people such as Sherwood and Jonson walked to him with wine glasses.
“You have something to tell me?” Fei asked with a faint smile on his face as he saw the hesitating expression on their faces. Then, he leaned on the chair and swirled the wine in his wine glass.
Perhaps Fei’s smile sent the wrong signal, Fatty Sherwood relaxed. He acted like he was really hesitant about something and said with a disappointed and sad expression, “Mr. Martial Saint, as the leader of a defeated troop, I shouldn’t be saying these things to you. However, for the benefit of the Empire and the final victory of this war, I couldn’t contain it anymore, even if I might anger you. Today, I have to mention to you the crazy things that King Constantine of Byzantine has been doing!”
