Chapter 5: Submission (1)

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  The stormy weather in Jinan City and Shandong Province seems to have nothing to do with Zhu Yinglong and others. Strolling around Daming Lake, watching the Baotu Spring, and hiking on Mount Qianfo in the southern suburbs, it's a pleasant journey all along.

  Three days later, Zhu Yinglong met a more dispirited Xu Ruyin in a private room at De Yue Lou, a famous restaurant in Jinan. These three days were harder for her than the past three years. The Wang family's Huxiang Sect was originally much stronger than hers. Although both sides were calculating each other, they were not well-prepared. If it weren't for the Huxiang Sect being leaderless, Xu Ruyin thought that the only way to annex the sect would be to marry Wang Haoxian and control it from within. She had also considered using this method to make a desperate gamble. This was why Wang Sen said she would soon marry Wang Haoxian. Rather than being slowly consumed by others, with her sisters under her care left helpless and alone, she might as well sacrifice herself to preserve a glimmer of hope.

  It was only the sudden appearance of Shen Creek's uncle and nephew that changed her mind. If she could get the support of the Shen family's wealth, then she wouldn't need to sacrifice herself at all, at least not for a while. However, she didn't expect that the Shen family was no longer the same as before, nor was it simply the Shen family anymore. Zhu Yinglong's sudden appearance almost completely destroyed all her hopes. She came up with another plan to drive out the tiger and swallow the wolf, but in the end, the old tiger let the vicious wolf eat its fill, and she herself was forced to deal with the aftermath. It can be said that now whenever she sees Zhu Yinglong's detestable smile, she feels a chill run down her spine. The father-son duo of Wang Sen had dominated Shandong for many years but were killed off by him in a swift and decisive manner. It can be said that Zhu Yinglong has become an indelible shadow in her heart, rendering her unable to muster the strength to resist.

  Zhu Yinglong knew that his hands would eventually be stained with blood, and killing Wang Sen and his son was just the beginning. Being kind-hearted wouldn't make him a good ruler, and since he wanted to be an emperor, there were some things he had to do with a hard heart. After killing Wang Sen and his son, seeing the bloody scene also made him feel uncomfortable inside, which is why he took three days off to tour Jinan's famous scenic spots, adjusting his mood.

  "Xu Ruying, from now on you are under my command. In the next three months, I plan to reorganize the White Lotus Sect under your leadership. Do you have any opinions?" Zhu Yinglong asked Xu Ruying, but suddenly realized that discussing democracy and equality in a feudal society with strict hierarchical divisions was laughable. Even he, a person from a later time who had returned to this era, still held onto such thoughts of superiority and inferiority. The ignorance of the common people, the arrogance of the aristocracy - changing these things required a strong and effective government, with a single leader who made all decisions. This was why the emperors who founded dynasties were always great. Every step forward for humanity came with the rise and fall of different governments, even in feudal societies. The person who held this position would be unique, standing high above everyone else, with the goal of elevating all common people to a higher level, making them equal to the aristocracy and officials. And when he died, everyone would be equal."

  "Shen Gongzi, can you have a different opinion?" Xu Ruyin asked back with a hint of resentment as she sat down.

  "That's good." Zhu Yinglong nodded in satisfaction, "There's nothing for you to do here, go back first, we'll talk about the reorganization tonight."

  Xu Ruyin remained seated on the side, showing no intention of leaving. Zhu Yinglong asked in surprise, "Miss Ruyin, is there something else?"

  Xu Ruyin suddenly became unnatural, blushing and looking at Zhu Yinglong asked: "Ruyin has a question to ask Shen Gongzi?"

  "What's up, ask away." Zhu Yinglong didn't pay much attention to Xu Ruyin's change in expression and drank a cup of wine on his own.

  "Like Yvonne wants to know if what you said in front of Wang Sen and his son three days ago about the marriage between the two families is true?" Xu Ruyin asked softly, bowing her head. She had been troubled by this matter for the past three days and finally asked it out at this moment.

  Zhu Yinglong almost choked on his wine, but at that time, he and Wang Sen had said things intentionally to deceive and provoke each other. Now that Wang Sen and his son were dead, even if what Zhu Yinglong said was true, there was no one to verify it, and Xu Ruyin would not admit it either. It was all because of what he had said at the time, which seemed real. At that time, the Xu and Shen families had already fallen out, and Xu Hongru might not have told Xu Ruyin about this matter. He asked Shen Xi, and it turned out that Xu Hongru did have such intentions back then, but it was just one of the conditions to win over the Shen family. Since it was a condition, its authenticity was hard to discern. What if Xu Ruyin took it seriously? That would be a headache. Zhu Yinglong furrowed his brow slightly and said, "As for the engagement, my uncle mentioned it vaguely before, but I don't know the details. Miss Xu, you'd better ask my uncle about it." It was better to push this troublesome matter onto Shen Xi. After all, he was involved in the near-disaster that had just occurred, and couldn't be allowed to get away with it so easily.

  "Uncle Shen?" Xu Ruyin turned to Shen Xi and asked.

  Shen Xi saw trouble getting dragged onto himself, and hastily said: "Worthy niece, that year there was indeed such a matter, it's just that your father pulled in uncle as one of the conditions, strictly speaking, this can't be considered real."

  "So it's true that this engagement really exists?" Xu Ruying said with a blush.

  Zhu Yinglong suddenly felt a twitch in his left eyelid, this girl wants a more dignified surrender, which is also a good explanation for her subordinates, so as not to cause too much chaos, this is nothing wrong with it, but he himself had overlooked this point, people make plans, heaven laughs, he brewed a cup of wine, but he has to drink it himself, whether it's bitter or sweet depends on fate.

  Shen Creek looked at Zhu Yinglong stealthily and found that there was no indication, so he could only nod in agreement.

  Xu Ruying naturally noticed Shen Creek's small action, and in connection with Wang Haoxian's question before his death, she could determine that the relationship between Shen Creek and this nephew was not a simple uncle-nephew relationship. It seemed that Shen Ying was the master and Shen Creek was the servant. How could there be a master-servant relationship between an uncle and a nephew? With her current brain power, it was still difficult to guess the true relationship between Zhu Yinglong and Shen Creek. Now she thought about how the White Lotus Sect's Saintess could unconditionally obey others, even if she herself was willing, but the tens of thousands of followers under her might not be willing. If they resisted, thinking of Wang Sen's father and son's bloody heads made her shudder. The other party had sharp guns on their bodies, and the two bodyguards' kung fu were not weak either. They were in Jinan City, and if they alarmed the authorities, the White Lotus Sect might suffer another disaster. She didn't dare take this risk, especially since the sect was short of money. Considering all these factors, she finally thought of a way to get Shen's financial support while saving face, which was to form an alliance through marriage.

  "If this engagement is indeed real, then I ask Uncle Shen to take charge of Ruoying." Xu Ruoying immediately knelt down to Shen Xi.

  Zhu Yinglong now had to admire the decisive and ruthless beauty, no wonder she could clean up the Hengxiang Sect in three days. As for Xu Ruyin, he didn't dislike her, but rather appreciated her, so he wasn't opposed to their engagement, instead, he looked forward to it, because Xu Ruyin always managed to surprise him.

  Shen Xi panicked, looking a bit at a loss and very embarrassed as he stared at Zhu Yinglong, getting up to help him but not knowing whether to or not.

  Zhu Yinglong nodded at Xiong Tingyi and Lu Haotian, indicating that the two of them should leave the private room first. Then he said, "Uncle, you help Miss Ruyin up first before we talk."

  Shen Xi listened to Zhu Yinglong's order and went forward to help Xu Ruyin up, saying: "Niece Ruyin, please get up."

  "My nephew has something to say to Miss Ruyin, may I trouble you, uncle, to step aside for a moment?" Zhu Yinglong continued, standing up and saying to Shen Xi.

  Shen Xi naturally had no objection, nodded slightly and turned around to leave the private room.

  "You're so clever!" Zhu Yinglong smiled and praised Xu Ruyin.

  "Brother Shen is overpraising." Xu Ruying said, lifting her head.

  "Smart people should communicate well, I know what you're thinking, and it's not unreasonable for you to do so, but is it worth handing over your entire happiness to me?" Zhu Yinglong asked lightly.

  "Whether it's worth it or not isn't important, because I, Ruyin, don't have the right to choose, do I? I'm a woman, aren't I?" Xu Ruyin's shyness vanished in an instant as she looked straight at Zhu Yinglong and asked back.

  "Be my wife and there are three conditions. If you can agree to them, everything will be as you wish!" Zhu Yinglong said solemnly after a moment of contemplation.

  "Please speak, brother!" Xu Ruyin's face flashed a hint of surprise, but she remained calm.

  "Firstly, it's best if you don't use those so-called mind-reading skills on me, as they would be futile; secondly, as a wife, you should know how to follow the Three Obediences and Four Virtues; thirdly, your White Lotus Sect is still under your leadership, but you must listen to my commands." Zhu Yinglong said in a deep voice.

  "What exactly do you want to do?" Xu Ruying asked aloud in surprise after hearing the three conditions, and she could hear that the ambition of the man in front of her was very great.

  Zhu Yinglong smiled and said, "You will know later. How about it? If you can agree to these three conditions, the tens of thousands of followers under your command can live a rich life from now on. You won't have to hide and sneak around, living in fear of being caught, I assure you that I won't harm your followers."

  Xu Ruyin thought calmly for a moment and said: "Ruyin also has three conditions, if you can agree to them, I will naturally accept your three conditions."

  "Let's talk about it." Zhu Yinglong knew that the other party would not easily agree, this was a matter of marriage, and it was simply like doing business. Zhu Yinglong also felt helpless in his heart, things had turned out to be like this, already beyond his expectations, and there was no turning back now.

  "First, I want the title of legitimate wife. Second, in the future, Xu Ruyin will bear the surname Xu and be the successor of the White Lotus Sect. Third, without Xu Ruyin's permission, you are not allowed to touch a single hair on her body." Xu Ruyin slowly stated these three conditions.

  Zhu Yinglong readily agreed, first of all, he didn't have any distinction between wives and concubines to begin with, so it was negligible. If the children born were surnamed Xu, that would be even better. If he really ascended to the throne, having her as a mother would not be a good thing if there was a struggle for the throne in the future. She had blocked this path herself, wasn't that better? Thirdly, he was originally from another time and space, borrowing a corpse to return to life, respecting women's wishes was still something he could do. It can be said that these three conditions were more beneficial to him, how could he not agree? If it weren't for the fact that it would be detrimental to the development of the two people's feelings in the future, he really wanted to sign and seal the six clauses in black and white!