NOVPUB"Zhongda, the ruckus from before was too great. For safety’s sake, we should still leave," Sima Lang said, looking at the unperturbed Sima Yi with satisfaction. To him, his brother’s progress to this extent was a cause for great joy. Matters like leaving home without a word became inconsequential.
"If we leave, however, it might be more dangerous. People like Chen Zichuan will surely be vigilant and monitor anyone leaving Fenggao after the incident. The Sima Family of Henei is a great clan, and it’s normal for one or two individuals with extraordinary talent to emerge from it. Once targeted due to our departure, it would be impossible to conceal," Sima Yi said calmly.
"Staying in the city isn’t safe either. We outsiders will certainly be among the first to be investigated," Sima Lang nodded, agreeing with Sima Yi’s point.
"No need for such concern. The Fan Family has already indicated Chen Zichuan’s origins from the Yingchuan Chen Family, and the Chen Family and our Sima Family are related by marriage. It would be fine to purchase a gift and present it to them as equals," Sima Yi said indifferently.
"I wonder if the head of the Fan Family is here. I met him several years ago. If we’re going to put on an act, we might as well do it thoroughly," Sima Lang said with a smile, approving of Sima Yi’s approach. Since they were from notable families, why bother to hide?
"We’ll know when we ask," Sima Yi replied calmly.
In another room, Zhuge Jin looked down at the city management team moving about below. "The Elite of Mount Tai are indeed not to be underestimated. Even without a leader, the team remains disciplined. I fear each one is a veteran soldier. It’s a wonder how Chen Zichuan has managed to improve the survival rate of these old soldiers so greatly."
"It seems Fenggao is ready to search for the dangerous individual Zhongda. Regardless, Zhongda’s Spiritual Talent is too perilous for any top individual," Zhuge Liang said with a light laugh. To others, it might seem like just an increase in the number of city management teams today, but to Zhuge Liang, it was a clear sign that trouble had arisen with Zhongda, "The ripple effect is not small."
"It won’t be easy. If Fenggao already had a complete household registration system, finding them would just be a matter of time. But as it stands, with the system only just beginning and most people not yet enrolled, catching them won’t be easy," said Zhuge Jin, his long face twitching twice.
"To avoid disturbing the populace, they’ve chosen this way of attracting people to join the household registration. I estimate that once the majority have been registered, they will enforce it strictly, but for now, it’s not feasible," Zhuge Liang said while watching another team of city management below. "Compared to the Elite of Danyang, I have greater confidence in these city managers here."
"Indeed, a strong force," acknowledged Zhuge Jin with a nod.
"Uncle, are you getting accustomed to living here?" Chen Xi meandered through a few streets until he reached a secluded manor where Fan Liang and his family were staying.
"Not bad, not bad. Zichuan indeed has remarkable skills," Fan Liang said contentedly. "With this, I can rest assured leaving Jian’er in your care."
Two years ago, when Fan Liang visited Chen Xi, who was still bedridden and seemed like he could die at any moment, Fan Liang hesitated over whether to go against the agreement he had made with Chen Xi’s father because of the possible disgrace of not marrying his daughter to Chen Xi. At that time, he thought that marrying Fan Jian to Chen Xi might literally be the death of him, and he certainly didn’t want his daughter to gain the reputation of being a husband-killer.
Just think of Cai Yan. Despite her far greater talents than Fan Jian and a reputation not inferior to any noted scholar in the land, a label as a husband-killer resulted in all the young men who knew of it keeping their distance, resolved never to take her as a wife. This is why, despite Cai Yan being a beautiful widow on Mount Tai who did nothing but play the qin and read books, no one dared to bother her—she was too intimidating.
Lately, Cai Yan’s life had been quite good, mainly because Second Miss Cai, who had married early, had returned to her hometown on Mount Tai with her husband Yang Dao. Learning that her sister was also there, she often visited to provide some comfort. What’s more amusing is that Second Miss Cai, a mere thirteen-year-old girl, would often bring her two-year-old son Yangg Fa for Cai Yan to play with.
Well, that Yangg Fa wasn’t actually Second Miss Cai’s biological child, but the son of Yang Dao’s late wife. However, since the former wife had died and Second Miss Cai had no children of her own, she raised him as if he were her son. Yet, witnessing a thirteen-year-old girl carrying a two-year-old child, Chen Xi could only think one thing each time he saw them: Yang Dao, you beast!
By the time Chen Xi had recovered from his illness and went to see Fan Liang again, Fan Liang felt much more reassured, not to mention that Chen Xi was on his way to achieving success and fame. Just by looking at him, one could tell that marrying his daughter to Chen Xi wouldn’t lead to any misfortune, and that alone was enough. Fan Liang had never expected his son-in-law to be exceptional, being mediocre was sufficient!
Because of this, Fan Liang wanted them to marry quickly, and for his daughter to have a child or two. Although in this era, noble families usually had weddings around the ages of eighteen or nineteen, which was entirely different from imperial child marriages, Fan Liang didn’t think that an eighteen or nineteen wedding was more important than his daughter’s happiness!
Yet at that time, Chen Xi had unhesitatingly declined, leaving Fan Liang to console himself with thoughts of achieving greatness in the Four Directions. Sometimes, Fan Liang even cursed Chen Xi for being ungrateful, worrying that he might get killed by mountain bandits or thieves on the road.
However, six months later, when Chen Xi returned, Fan Liang looked at him with a somewhat strange expression. Chen Xi’s destiny had changed remarkably—a sickly person had become average, and now his body was emanating a luminous divine light. Where had he obtained such fortune? Looking back at Liu Bei, Fan Liang sighed, seeing it as a perfect match made in heaven, seamless and impeccable!
Now, considering Chen Xi, one could see a purple aura about him, forming its own climate, grand and righteous—a trend of the King’s Way that seemed unstoppable. Simply put, Fan Liang found Chen Xi’s situation very peculiar!
In a chaotic world, including the emperor himself, none could exhibit the stable fortune that surrounded Chen Xi. This overwhelming purple aura conveyed one thing—that no matter who became emperor, Chen Xi would remain unaffected; he would enjoy wealth and glory throughout his life, with continuous offering and worship after death, and his blessings would extend without end.
To Fan Liang, this was beyond satisfactory. He only had one daughter, and marrying her to someone whom no emperor could bring misfortune was simply perfect. Although he didn’t seek wealth or nobility but only desired peace and safety, having both peace and prosperity was even better for his daughter, wasn’t it?
For this reason, Fan Liang grew to admire his son-in-law Chen Xi more and more. He had already handed over the role of family head to another member of the Fan Family since he had no son to succeed him. Thus, he moved with his concubines to Mount Tai, confident that Chen Xi would surely take care of his clothing, food, shelter, and transportation needs. If all else failed, he still had his daughter after all.
As for Fan Liang’s attitude, Chen Xi could not say much, or rather, his father-in-law merely doted on Fan Jian and expected him to provide well for her. It was rather tragic when you think about it—his father-in-law’s goal was to make him into a qualified breadwinner...(To be continued. If you like this work, please come to Qidian, where you can vote for it and cast monthly votes. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to continue reading.)
