"What’s wrong? Family Head, your heart seems heavy after just a drink..."
When ng Sheng returned ho, a cheerful-looking woman observed her husband sitting on the viewing platform, staring blankly at the night sky outside and found it strange. It was said that those who went to the gathering today were all old friends from the Tian Family, and this old ghost had long been looking forward to drinking with those brothers. Why was he so gloomy after coming back?
"Did you have a disagreent with soone?" The woman placed the sobering soup to the side and asked curiously.
"If it were only a disagreent..." ng Sheng’s face bore a bitter smile.
As a family of military household and at the general’s rank, they naturally qualified for a house in the Observing Stars Tower. His favorite pasti used to be warming a pot of good wine at night, preparing a couple of dishes, and from the balcony of his own ho, he would watch the myriad lights of Lyuzhou, enjoying the wine and the beef brisket prepared by his wife. It was a very pleasant taste.
How great were those days? Why did so people always love to fight over trivial matters?
"What happened exactly?" The woman frowned at his words, feeling that sothing unpleasant must have occurred.
"How does the lady feel about our life these past few years?"
"Is that even a question to ask?" The woman looked at her husband, her heart filled with doubt, but still nodded and said, "When you first brought over from He City, I was unhappy, having been there for so many years and close to the Imperial City, why would we need to relocate the entire family? But after moving here, I haven’t had a single complaint."
"Our Jiangnan is beautiful, resources are plentiful, and one novelty follows another. Which lady of nobility in the Capital City doesn’t envy our life in Jiangnan? Even as the wife of an average military household here, I probably live no worse than the noble ladies in the Imperial City. The last ti I visited my parents, I tell you, we couldn’t bear to even breathe outside. That turbid and dry heat... I couldn’t sleep well. We can’t live without the life in Jiangnan anymore."
As she spoke, she was watching her husband’s face, fearing the most that he would suddenly say they might have to leave Jiangnan.
After all, back then, the Tian Family Head with a single sentence had tens of thousands of people follow him to Jiangnan—it had been a clever move at the ti, but who could tell if the other party might get a wild idea and with one word, have a bunch of families relocate again?
Anyway, whoever wanted to move could do so; she was determined to spend the rest of her days right here in Jiangnan.
Having no direct blood connection herself, life was but a few short decades; who wouldn’t want a bit more peace? In these tis, where else could one find peace if not in Jiangnan?
Her maternal family had written several tis, asking them to find a way to let them move over. The letters described how life in the Capital City was unbearable, with terrifying black-robed monks everywhere, families losing their children, and it was the sa even around the Capital City. What other cities were fit for living in?
Now, all she hoped for was to save a sizable dowry for her daughter so she could marry into a local military household, ideally one with a house right upstairs so they could visit each other easily. As for her son... he was still young, to be sent to an academy to beco a scholar and not follow the path of a warrior. Nothing about bloodlines mattered to her—she just wished for her family’s security.
After a hundred years, when it was her turn to reincarnate, she hoped to be born into a scholarly family and beco a lady scholar herself...
"Is that so..." ng Sheng drank his wine, pondering deep in thought.
The ng family’s foundation was not solid; when he originally followed Tian Heng out into battle, his was the only branch of the ng family. That was why he later didn’t care much for making a na for himself, only wanting to coast along. The ng family wasn’t prosperous; his wife bore him only a son and a daughter, and with the son still young, it was up to him, the father, to earn more for the family.
Therefore, he wanted nothing to do with troubleso affairs.
But... what could he do if, not seeking trouble, it ca seeking him?
Could he muddle through?
Sit here without taking care of anything, but was that possible?
ng Sheng knew it wasn’t. He was, after all, part of the Tian family faction. If he did nothing, both sides would target him. If the Tian family were suppressed, where would he end up?
And if he didn’t join the bandwagon, would his brothers spare him?
ng Sheng covered his face, once again reminiscing about his comrades from the army of the King of Qin, who were like brothers who had risked their lives for one another, shielding each other from blades on the battlefield. Yet, when it ca to executing his entire family, those sa old brothers didn’t hesitate for a second.
What about himself?
Would he be silenced beforehand if he didn’t express his position?
They couldn’t hide the truth from him, but could he really hide anything from them?
ng Sheng knew very well that if he didn’t make a choice within the day, by tomorrow he would be faced with life or death. And once he died, regardless of which side won, the fate of his wife and children would likely be grim.
"Can’t they just let live in peace? Damn it all..."
"Why are you swearing now?" The woman lowered her voice, "What’s really going on? Don’t keep it from . Whatever decision you make, I at least have to know in advance, right? Just like back then."
ng Sheng looked at his wife in astonishnt, then shook his head with a smile. If he couldn’t even deceive a woman, how could he deceive those shrewd soldiers?
With this thought, he no longer hid the truth and laid it all out.
"This..." Mrs. ng’s face turned pale. She had anticipated it sowhat, but she hadn’t expected those people to dare to take such action.
"Why can’t they be content? What’s wrong with how things are now? And isn’t His Highness the King of Qin a generous master? Has he ever treated them unfairly?"
"Unfairly..." ng Sheng let out a cold laugh, "The King of Qin didn’t treat them unfairly back then either..." He paused, thinking about it. The title King of Qin... it truly wasn’t a good on.
"Family Head, what do you plan to do?"
"I don’t know..." ng Sheng said, covering his head in anguish.
"Family Head..." The woman, seeing the painful look on her husband’s face, also sighed. Without offering any suggestion or pressing him, she just gently rubbed his back. Their family was just the two of them, and their current life was all earned by the Family Head. Even if everything was lost, it didn’t matter to her; she wouldn’t stop him, no matter which path he chose...
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"If Tian Heng rebels, we have to see how many he can rally!" Xu Hu analyzed calmly, "The Warrior Army is on the border, and the Jiangnan defense line can’t be moved lightly. The Ghost General Army of the Imperial Court has already reached the border area, ready to raid at any mont. We must have soone on guard. The lieutenants can’t be recalled. The only troops that can be mobilized are from the North Sea, about 30,000 strong, and all elite. But we shouldn’t dispatch them all, the Demon offspring there are all watching. Sending too many back at once could cause chaos."
"How many can we bring back then?" Shen Lao San asked, frowning.
"Ten thousand!" Xu Hu gritted his teeth, "No more than that, otherwise our external defenses will be unstable!"
With this statent, everyone was even more convinced of Xu Hu’s position. Xu Hu’s troops were on the border, not to be moved lightly. Rebellious acts done rashly had a low chance of success. Jiangnan had the best Arrays, and with soldiers’ families in Lyuzhou, it would not be easy to advance for a while. Compared to this, Tian Heng’s troops were all nearby, ready to stage a surprise attack at any mont!
"Ten thousand is too few..." Shen Lao San shook his head, "Tian Heng’s elite Sea God Army also numbers ten thousand, and they are all of Super First Rank. Without fifty thousand First Rank Warrior Army, we simply cannot suppress them, and all those ten thousand elites belong to the Tian Family Direct Line... likely under complete control."
"That’s not the key point..." Second Elder Shen spoke with a sinister tone, "If Tian Heng dares to rebel, he surely has external support. Until now, we still don’t know what that force is that’s inciting rebellion... Reliance on that ten thousand Warrior Army, plus the ghost soldiers, might not be enough. We must have control over a key power!"
"Are you saying..." Wei Gongcheng instantly realized which power the other was referring to.
"The West Sea Aquatic Tribe?"
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