Xie Xun returned to Ningzhou City with the setting sun, his mood terribly sour. He didn’t know whether Dugu Jing would believe him, nor could he tell who in the military camp might be a Beiman spy. Although they had already conducted an investigation years ago, there were still tens of thousands of soldiers. For Beiman, it would be quite easy to plant soone there. Xie Xun and Xie Jue had already sifted through the ranks once, focusing on high-ranking generals. If they were to examine every single soldier, it would be nearly impossible.
All he could do was hope the Beiman weren’t as capable as that, and that Dugu Jing would consider the welfare of the people and avoid igniting another war. Everyone needed ti and peace to recover and rebuild their lives.
When Xie Xun returned to the Prince Manor, he imdiately saw Grandmaster Zhang standing at the entrance, accompanied only by Mr. Zhou. Xie Xun led a retinue of several hundred personal soldiers, sweeping grandly into the manor, but it was too late to avoid being confronted by Grandmaster Zhang head-on.
Oh no!
Xie Xun attempted to play his usual tricks but didn’t have ti to escape before Grandmaster Zhang charged over. "Xie Xun, stop right there! Don’t even think about running!"
He was reminded of when Xie Xun first arrived at the Imperial College, causing chaos by teasing cats and dogs, wreaking havoc everywhere he went. Every professor at the Imperial College back then held so grudge against Xie Xun.
If he hadn’t carried the Xie family na, he surely would have been expelled long ago.
"Grand Tutor!" Xie Xun forced himself to salute stiffly, thinking to himself, When did Second Brother and Grandmaster Zhang ever talk for an entire day? Has the sun risen from the West?
Wasn’t Second Brother’s usual tactic to sit down smugly, let the air freeze over, trade a few barbed words, probe his opponent’s true intentions, and then promptly dismiss them? The whole ordeal would last, at most, thirty minutes—that was the Second Brother he knew.
So why had Grandmaster Zhang stayed to have dinner?
Since when was Second Brother this respectful and reverent of his elders?
"Why are you running?"
"Urgent military matters." Xie Xun put on an icy expression identical to Xie Jue’s and said, "Grand Tutor, what business do you have with ?"
Grandmaster Zhang’s eyes widened in disbelief—, address him as ’Your Highness’?
"You..." Grandmaster Zhang took a deep breath. "You an to have exchange pleasantries with you here at your doorstep?"
"Were you kicked out by Second Brother?"
Grandmaster Zhang, "..."
"Then I wouldn’t dare invite you back inside." Xie Xun said coolly, "You know too well that Second Brother is ruthless; I fear him too. If you couldn’t settle things with him, approaching won’t help either. I personally witnessed our mother and aunt take their own lives. I didn’t get to see our father or elder sister one last ti before they died. I saw Big Brother riddled with arrows. If you’re here to urge surrender, spare yourself the trouble—or wait until your entire family is wiped out with only one survivor remaining before you co to convince . Then maybe I would believe you genuinely understand what it ans to grieve and be compassionate."
He stepped back, formally saluted as a student would, and said, "Grand Tutor, farewell."
With a sweeping motion of his sleeve, Xie Xun turned and entered the manor. His words were even more cold and brutal than Xie Jue’s—a relentless slap across the aged Grand Tutor’s face. Tears brimd in the clouded, weary eyes of Grandmaster Zhang.
Grandmaster Zhang realized that efforts to persuade the Xie brothers had officially failed. They didn’t even want to talk to him—neither Xie Jue nor Xie Xun. They had no interest in entertaining anyone from the Capital City.
As Xie Xun had said: if you’re here to urge surrender—fine, lose your entire family first; then co back when you truly understand.
anwhile in West Continent, Fengyu was overwheld with endless tasks. Following Xie Jue’s instructions, she sent letters to the governors of Yunzhou, Jiaozhou, and Jinzhou, inviting them to visit West Continent to collaborate on developing iron mines and revitalizing comrce across the twelve states.
Comrce within the twelve states had been devastated for years. Supplies were scarce, and many cities, plagued by rampant banditry, had locked their gates, stalling trade. Now that the bandit scourge had been eradicated, both West Continent and Huangzhou had extended invitations to the twelve states. Anyone willing to settle in West Continent would be given farmland to feed their families and escape a life of wandering holessness.
Humans are sociable by nature, so naturally, there were those willing to move to Huangzhou and West Continent.
But West Continent proved to be far more appealing because of Fengyu. Her achievents had spread across the twelve states: a young girl who had barely co of age managed to eradicate the bandit nace within her territory in just one month—a feat that Governor Nangong Heng of Huangzhou had failed to achieve after years of effort.
Fengyu even invited Governor Wang of Huangzhou to join her efforts, as the two regions were connected and both rich in mines. However, the mines in Huangzhou were underdeveloped compared to those in West Continent—and without Fengyu’s managent—making them a pri target in many eyes.
Although Xie Jue remained in Ningzhou, he could still remotely control trade in West Continent. His collaboration with Fengyu was thorough and strategic. The seemingly cold, unfeeling, and domineering Second Young Master was in fact soone who employed talents judiciously and showed great respect for Fengyu. His suggestions for West Continent’s developnt always ended with a note reading, "Feel free to disregard if not applicable." Fengyu once remarked in her letter to Xie Xun that Second Brother was remarkably respectful.
Xie Xun replied, That’s because you’re his cash cow!
Fengyu, "..."
Such biting sarcasm!
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