Free Web NovelChapter 813: Chapter 67: Storms in Chang Ming County
Jiang Wang wondered, "Divine Skills is required to sneak a visit with an old friend? Where does that saying come from?"
He had been puzzled earlier when he arrived. Although Yan Fu was wealthy, he wasn’t someone to put on airs, so why was he sitting in the courtyard with a banquet prepared, grand and imposing, yet sent servants to invite Jiang Wang over?
"It’s somewhat embarrassing to say." The usually gentle and serene expression on Yan Fu’s face now carried a bitter taste: "Lord Huaying announced that she would beat me every time she saw me. Since I can’t beat her, I had to hide."
Yan Fu, with his boundless wealth, was typically indifferent to everything and everyone, always unshaken by praise or criticism. It was not often that one saw him come up short...
To be honest, it was quite amusing.
Jiang Wang picked up a piece of vegetable with his chopsticks, placed it in his mouth, and chewed slowly, savoring the aftertaste before he said, "Marriage and mourning, weddings and funerals, are personal family matters. Why would Lord Huaying persist in troubling you?"
Yan Fu paused his drinking, glanced at him and said, "Brother Jiang, why pretend to ask when you clearly know the answer?"
He knew well. Zhongxuan Sheng definitely couldn’t keep a secret, and would not have been able to resist telling Jiang Wang, even though he had been explicitly warned not to.
He was correct in his assumption, but due to the matter of Zhu Bijing, Zhongxuan Sheng had not yet had the chance to fully explain how he watched Jiang Wuyou beat him up, and just what state he was beaten into. However... overwhelmed by curiosity, Jiang Wang had specifically inquired with Zheng Shangming at the Imperial City Inspection Mansion.
Seeing Yan Fu openly emotional was a rare sight, and Jiang Wang couldn’t help but smile again. He seriously asked, "All I know is that Brother Yan was previously engaged in an alliance marriage, then backtracked, leading Lord Huaying to step in on behalf of her intimate friend. But the intricate details, I truly do not know."
"Sigh." Yan Fu heaved a long sigh: "How can I put this matter? It’s true that Lord Huaying has a reason to cause me trouble. But I..."
He seemed to be genuinely frustrated, his hand resting on the cup, hesitating to drink as he looked at Jiang Wang and said, "I too feel wronged. Brother Jiang should know that, with my background, it’s hard to have autonomy in marriage matters. It wasn’t me who wanted the alliance marriage, nor was it me who wanted to back out. Yet, I am the one who gets scolded, and I am the one who gets beaten..."
Jiang Wang almost burst out laughing, struggling to hold it back, he wondered, "I thought that for a family like Yan family, especially for a matter as important as your marriage, Brother Yan, every aspect would be carefully considered. How could you agree to a marriage and then retract within such a short span of time?"
He really couldn’t understand: "Isn’t that treating your life’s big event as a child’s plaything?"
"It seems Zhongxuan Sheng has quite the tight lips; he really didn’t tell you. I assumed too little of him," said Yan Fu, who still had the mood to mock under such circumstances, before he explained, "The family that wanted the alliance marriage and the family wanting to withdraw are not the same."
But clearly, he had misunderstood Zhongxuan Sheng, who had been eager to spill everything, but was preoccupied with more pressing matters and thus hadn’t had the chance to explain in detail.
"My arranged marriage to the Liu Family’s girl, Liu Xiuzhang, was decided by the family patriarch and the old master of Liu Family back in the day. After the Liu Family’s old master passed away prematurely and there was no one left in the Liu Family capable of supporting the family’s influence, which was dwindling, the Yan family did not forget old ties. It was still the patriarch who stepped in to help stabilize the Liu family’s status."
The "family patriarch" that Yan Fu spoke of was naturally his grandfather, Yan Ping. He had played a key role in state governance for many years, and his merits were significant within the country. It was also he who orchestrated the "pacify or annihilate" strategy against Yang Country, leading to the elimination of Yang Country’s script and calendar system. Although the military exploits against Yang Country were attributed to Chongxuan Chuliang, Yang Region’s smooth transition into Qi Country’s fold owed much to Yan Ping’s contributions.
Liu Xiuzhang—it was an impressive name. Jiang Wang mused over what the person might be like.
Yan Fu continued, "Later on, a grave incident occurred in the Liu Family. The family’s prodigy, Liu Shentong, clashed with Tian Anping in Chang Ming County and... was killed by him!"
Tian Anping!
The name, the person, made a deep impression on Jiang Wang.
Whoever it was, when they mentioned Tian Anping to him, they all said he should not be trifled with lightly. Even the members of the Da Ze Tian Clan, his own family, feared him like a tiger, and privately referred to him as a monster.
In Seven Stars Valley, when he appeared, the arrogant and prideful Lei Zhanqian immediately tucked his tail in, and the high-and-mighty Li Fengyao also restrained his temper.
He had actually killed a scion of a noble family? Killed a high-level hero?
And moreover, it was in Chang Ming County...
Having spent so much time in Qi Country, Jiang Wang had gained some knowledge of the various counties within the empire.
Apart from the capital city, Qi Country consisted of thirty-five counties. The ones Jiang Wang was most familiar with were, of course, the three newly acquired counties of Yang Region, as well as Chi Yang, Da Ze, Feng Xian, and Bei County which he had visited.
Chang Ming County was located in the southwest of Qi Country, with Shimen County of the Li Clan to the south and Fufeng County to the west, which was the ancestral land of the Liu family.
Fufeng County to the west used to be a frontier county, but after the annexation of Yang Region, it had lost its significance as a border county.
Travelling from Chang Ming County to Daze County in the north of the empire would also require crossing three counties, even via the shortest route.
In other words, regardless of the level of power of Liu Shentong, the paragon of the Liu family, the fact that Tian Anping dared to kill Liu Shentong in the neighboring Fufeng County meant that there was almost no possibility of him escaping back to Daze County.
However, the outcome was known to all; Tian Anping was still gazing at the stars unharmed in the Fubi Tower of Ji City to this day.
"Liu Shentong was the elder brother of Liu Xiuzhang. There were two sons and one daughter in the direct lineage of the Liu family. In order of age, they were Liu Shentong, Liu Xiuzhang, and Liu Xuanhu."
"Our family patriarch once said, ’If the Liu family has a hundred years of fortune left, it must be with Liu Shentong.’
"Thus the death of Liu Shentong was something the Liu family would never want to face and could never forgive. At that time, all the masters of the Liu family from Fufeng set out to kill Tian Anping in Chang Ming County in revenge for Liu Shentong."
The sheer intensity of that event, just by imagining it through Yan Fu’s description, made Jiang Wang unconsciously hold his breath.
"But Tian Anping was too strong!" There was a deep wariness in Yan Fu’s words: "He actually ’killed to nurture killing,’ breaking into the state of ’God Arrives’ during battle. Alone, he withstood the siege led by Liu Xiao of the Liu family with ’God Arrives’ masters, enduring until the Tian family powerhouses crossed counties to come to his aid. Perhaps it’s not accurate to say he waited for his family to help... because Tian Anping, from start to finish, never thought of running. He did not even call for help. The Tian family only got wind of the situation after it escalated."
"That battle was so intense that the two top aristocratic families bore blood feuds, gathering more and more relatives and friends. It nearly turned into a clan-extermination war in Chang Ming County. The clan leader of the Liu family, the father of Liu Shentong, even made the vow ’to not share the sun and moon with the Tian family.’ The local Prefectural Governor’s office couldn’t contain it! The effect of this battle was so great that even Emperor Qi personally went to Chang Ming County, suppressing the matter with his supreme authority to prevent further escalation."
The aftermath of Emperor Qi’s personal intervention was not difficult for Jiang Wang to deduce. ƒreewebɳovel.com
The bloodshed ceased, and the case was turned over for public judgment.
It went without saying that the Liu family of Fufeng demanded a life for a life, while the Da Ze Tian Clan could firmly argue that Tian Anping’s killing of Liu Shentong was an accidental death during their conflict, and thus he should be absolved of the crime.
Having lost the elder Mr. Liu, the pillar of their clan, and now Liu Shentong, the hope for the future, from any perspective, the Liu family of Fufeng could no longer compete with the Da Ze Tian Clan. freewebnovel.cσ๓
And from the perspective of Emperor Qi, was a peerless talent like Tian Anping more beneficial to Qi Country alive or dead? The answer was self-evident.
In the end, Tian Anping survived.
The primary concern of the Da Ze Tian Clan was likely this: no matter how many resources they had to divide, no matter the cost, as long as Tian Anping lived, it would be worth it.
Liu Shentong was praised by Yan Ping for being the support that could uphold the fortune of the Liu family for a century.
But what about Tian Anping, who killed Liu Shentong?
...
...
(I’m gathering names for the thirty-five counties of Qi Country. It’s too exhausting to think of them one by one. Once I have the names of the counties, I can release the map of Qi Country.)
