The Palace Attendant brought a seat and placed it in the middle of the grand hall for him. Shan Feng was clearly not expecting Zhao Hanzhang to treat him with such courtesy. He paused, then bowed deeply, and only then rose to take his seat.
The court officials on both sides silently watched him, while the officials in the two rows behind quietly craned their necks forward to get a better look at him, noting that although he was evidently in his prime, he seemed as though he had reached old age.
Once, Shan Feng was also of noble family descent. Though his family was poor, he was well-learned and talented, with a sizeable library at home. Both his parents were alive, and his wife and daughter were delicate and beautiful.
But during the Eight Kings' Rebellion, first his parents succumbed to illness and died due to hunger and cold, then his wife and daughter faced disasters, and he himself was set back to this point.
