General Roleplay Thread

[Crim]

Jun smiled faintly. "My place is with the King," he said. "Perhaps, when His Majesty have grown weary of my presence in Court, then I shall ask Lu Chen or Fan Zeng a contingent of their men." He took another serving of wine. "Certain elements in Chu may want to deliberately send the King's most loyal vassals out of the province in order to weaken him. I will have no tolerance for such filthy a design."

Jun took the woman to his embrace once more, gently sliding his hands to her chest shortly thereafter.

"Yet, if and when I'm "banished" and given my own army to command, I will make it a point to send you a missive to that effect, Ying Ranzhen. I plan to have this prize of an army graze the central plains in lieu of the boring confines of a city. They will be free spirits and I, a roaming general loyal to Xiang Yu and when the King had enough of my devotion.. a rogue mindful only of the highest bid."

[Radical Dreamer]

"A free-roaming civil force, then? It could be an effective projection of the Hegemon King's power." It was quite a novel thought, really. "When you manage to put it together, I'll invite you to Hann. Perhaps by then the Hegemon King will give me further direction and the need for armed support will be more pressing."

At the talk about vessels purposefully weakening the state, though, Ranzhen tensed. Could so much have really changed since he left the court? "When there is a powerful man on the throne, the disloyal will try and topple him. I trust that the loyal governors appointed by the King will see to the matter if it gets too far out of hand. Do not forget that the Prime Minister is also a wily man and capable of seeing through such plots." Still, there was a hint of worry in the young man's voice.

[Crim]

"A civil force? Surely, you jest, Ying Ranzhen," Jun said, with a chuckle. "I have much grander ambitions for this army of ten thousand sell-swords, if you will. With them, I will shake and move the Middle Kingdom in ways that will surprise even the King.." He let that trail off, before deliberately pressing his right hand against the chest of the woman. "Of course, this novelty of an idea depends on whether I'm awarded an army in the first place. We shall see."

"So, tell me, what's the greatest threat to your fledgling administration in Hann?"

[Georgie]

Ying Rangzhen's accouterments in the stable were joined by two more travelers' horses, as an elderly gentleman escorted a young woman inside. The two had come expressly to meet the new administrator, fond as they were of high friends, and had themselves announced as Yuancang Lun and the Lady Zhen, waiting in the commons at Rangzhen's leisure.

[Radical Dreamer]

Although the conversation with Xiang Jun had died off, Ranzhen and Zhang Ban were still resting themselves at the inn. The governor recognized them immediately, mostly from early reports of Lady Zhen's dealings in Hann before Xiang Yu had seen fit to appoint a governor in the area.

"Lady Zhen, what a pleasure." There was an honest smile playing on Ranzhen's lips as he rose from his seat to greet the two new guests and perhaps move to a larger, more private table; it wasn't much of a chore because no one had wanted to get near Ranzhen's fierce bodyguard so there were several places open. "Please, come and eat with us. I am very glad you decided to pay me a visit, though this way station is a poor substitute for the palace in Yangdi."

[Georgie]

"Please," Zhen Ya demurred. "I am surprised you remembered such a thing. But I am here because of my friend, the gentleman Lun." She indicated, and gave center stage to, the aged man. "As a patriarch of Hann, he could hardly stand idly by without wanting to meet an expedition leader."

Of course, the old man was somewhat put out that a slip of a girl was greeted so enthusiastically, yet he was an unknown. Still, he was determined to make a go of it, and saluted. "As you already control most of the region, how could I not pay my respects?"

[Radical Dreamer]

Ranzhen, more of a civil administrator than a military one, bowed slightly at the salute. "Please, I am but a servant of the people of Hann; I need no man to come and pay respects to me just because I was appointed governor." A waiter had brought over some food and wine in the meantime and the young man motioned to their seats. "I insist that you grace me with your company. It has been a rather dull inspection and good company is well-worth the trip out this far."

The young man took his seat and picked a selection of bread and fruits from the small platter, leaving the best bits for Zhen Ya and Lun. "Master Lun, might I ask what your holdings in this province consist of? This part of the province has only recently been incorporated and my review was necessarily lacking due to the distance from Yangdi."

[Georgie]

The two seated themselves and held firm postures- Ya, proper, and Lun, downright stiff.

"We Yuancangs have a few rents in Yangdi and Yingchuan, but nothing of great note. Enough to make my clan comfortable and tutor our boys. But, we [men] aren't satisfied with what we have, yes? I had been considering throwing all we had into a mine, but the Lady here," a gesture, "convinced me otherwise. I have come to agree that my resources would be better used supporting a lord."

A consciously loaded word, considering the terms Rangzhen had been using to describe himself.

"So I am keeping our households as they are that I might never fear for their welfare when I leave. I happened to be here by the lady's insistence, not any business."

[Radical Dreamer]

(Sorry, exams came up)

"Then Lady Zhen saved you quite a bit of trouble. There are no large deposits of minerals in Hann: my own survey teams have checked and double checked."

The noble took a small cup and poured himself some wine. He did not often drink, but it would be most rude to not drink with honored guests. "You said you were leaving, though? I would hope that this isn't because of any instability on the government's part. We are still consolidating all of the former officials into my administration, you see, and there is bound to be some jarring changes before things can settle."