87 House Change

  Red envelope exceeded 10,000 mark, today's crab added another chapter

  Life is bound to have three declines and six prosperities, ups and downs of fortune, and there is no way that everything can go as one wishes. Even if one has a destiny as noble as an emperor's, they cannot transcend this law.

  Just like Chen Liang, who had accumulated ten lifetimes of good deeds and was surrounded by a five-colored aura, could be said to have the demeanor of an emperor, but before he rose to prominence, he was just a poor hunter. Lin Xu had seen that little monk with a pig-like face, Si Lang, who possessed the true dragon's purple energy, yet still went hungry from dawn till dusk and was scolded by the stingy abbot. From this, it can be known that a person's fate is like their aura, even if one can see it clearly, they cannot explain it, those who know dare not speak rashly, while those who do not know speak nonsense.

  The Xue Mansion was decorated with lanterns and colorful decorations, filled with a joyful atmosphere. The guests who came to congratulate and the neighbors who gathered to watch the excitement had packed the front courtyard and guest hall to capacity.

  In front of the large red wedding character and the ancestral tablet in the main hall of the Xue Mansion, a master of ceremonies was shouting at the top of his lungs:

  "...One bow to heaven and earth! Two bows to the ancestors! Husband and wife bow to each other! Send them into the bridal chamber!"

  Chen Liang, with a silly smile on his face, had a red silk wrapped around him, while the bride, covered in a veil, wore a phoenix coronet and a wedding dress. The two were following the master of ceremonies' instructions to proceed with the wedding ceremony. Suddenly, there was a loud noise outside, followed by the sound of tables and chairs being overturned.

  The originally joyful wedding was disrupted by an outside disturbance. Everyone's eyes in the scene turned to the source of the commotion, and a loud voice coldly said:

  "Men in brocade uniforms handle affairs, miscellaneous people withdraw."

  At the mention of Jin Yiwei, the people gathered at Xue's residence were like encountering a venomous snake on the road, and they hastily dodged to one side in fear.

  As the saying goes, a night owl never comes to a house without a reason. The Jin Yiwei gang would never bring any good news wherever they went; it's no exaggeration to say that their arrival was a harbinger of doom. With a growing sense of foreboding that disaster might befall his family, Xue Lao Da, the bride's father, couldn't help but tremble all over. At this moment, he really wanted to stand up, but unfortunately, his legs had turned to jelly and wouldn't listen to him.

  Xue Lao Die has never held any official position in his life, he is just a country gentleman with some knowledge and some idle money. However, his father Xue Lao Tai Ye had once served as the Taishou of Runan County in the Great Qin Empire.

  The Xue family is still quite well-off, but Mr. Xue has no son, only a single daughter named Xue Mengying. His older brother, who passed away early, left behind a son named Xue Gao, who has been studying at a school in Jiangnan.

  Some time ago, Old Master Xue heard a rumor that his nephew, Xue Gao, had somehow joined a "righteous army" in Jiangnan and was defeated by the Qin army, after which he went missing. If it weren't for considering the heavy responsibility of carrying on the family's legacy, Xue Gao might have been killed, and the Xue family would have become extinct. Old Master Xue probably wouldn't have agreed to accept Chen Liang as a son-in-law with such a lowly status; he would rather marry his daughter off to an official or aristocratic family, at the very least a scholarly family.

  At this time, a team of guards in Shu brocade flying fish robes and horizontal knives appeared in the courtyard of Xue's mansion. The leader of the group looked around and said with a fierce aura:

  "The Commander has ordered that the Xue family be implicated in a treasonous plot and punished for their crimes. The sentence is to exterminate them to the third degree! Take action!"

  The notorious Embroidered Uniform Guard, whose infamous reputation can stop children from crying at night. The reason is that as a special agency directly under the command of the emperor, they have the power to kill and decide life and death far beyond local officials. When the Embroidered Uniform Guard arrests suspects, no trial procedure is required, nor do they need to report to the emperor for approval, let alone wait until autumn to execute them. They can impose extreme punishment on captured suspects on the spot. This institution is indeed a deformed monster that combines the functions of public security, procuratorate and judiciary, with power completely unchecked by external forces. Who would not be afraid of such a terrifying professional killing service?

  "Help! Run quickly!"

  After the head of the Imperial Guard, Jin Yiwei, announced the death penalty according to the law, a brief silence was followed by a chorus of wailing and crying in the Xue manor. The guests, who were already frightened out of their wits, rushed to escape in all directions. This was not an official execution, but the extermination of three clans by the Imperial Guard!

  It goes without saying that, in the style of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, they would say one thing but do another. They would claim to be eradicating the three clans, but in reality, there would inevitably be some who would die unjustly, all of whom would be lumped together as "accidental killings". Compared to their usual methods, other tactics like hiding and seeking, death by washing one's face, using banknotes to bind one's hands and feet, or having a temporary worker take the fall, were all far more complicated. For a group of ruthless killers, this kind of chaotic scene was child's play. The Embroidered Uniform Guard's blades would first be directed at the direct descendants of the Xue family, including the two newlyweds who were in the midst of their wedding ceremony.

  "Daughter! Daughter! Xiao Ying..."

  Chen Liang, with his agile physique, instinctively dodged the sharp blade that came slashing down after a brief moment of stunned confusion. However, he immediately heard a muffled thud and a mournful wail coming from behind him. His heart skipped a beat as Chen Liang turned around with a start, his eyes widening in horror as he let out a long, anguished cry.

  A snow-bright blade flashed across Xue Mengying's fair neck, clad in a festive robe. In an instant, splashes of fresh blood fell on the accumulated snow under the trees in the courtyard, the color so vibrant as if it had bloomed into plum blossoms.

  Xue Mengying's eyes quickly lost their focus, and she fell lightly to the ground. Chen Liang, a hunter by nature, couldn't help but see the life or death situation, his eyes wide open as he watched his newlywed wife die suddenly, now burning with rage inside. Holding onto the idea of dying together with the enemy, Chen Liang's eyes reddened as he tore off the red cloth that hindered his movement, then picked up two round stools in each hand and swung them fiercely, directly knocking down a Jin Yiwei guard. Next, Chen Liang snatched a horizontal knife from the fallen Jin Yiwei guard's hand, relying solely on the anger in his chest, and continued to knock down seven or eight more Jin Yiwei guards.

  Although Chen Liang had a desperate heart, every move was a life-for-life exchange, but unfortunately, two fists were no match for four hands. The good tiger couldn't hold out against the pack of wolves. When this sharp and vigorous momentum passed, he fell into an encirclement and fought on without falling, his situation became increasingly precarious.

  At this time, the Jin Yiwei who were besieging Chen Liang did not rush to kill him. Instead, they had a cat-and-mouse mentality and gradually narrowed down the encirclement circle, seemingly planning to capture him alive and slowly take care of Chen Liang.

  "Hmm..."

  Just then, a sudden gust of wind swept up the accumulated snow and dust on the eaves of the mansion, like a sandstorm. No one inside the mansion could open their eyes until the wind subsided, when they discovered that Chen Liang, who had just been surrounded by the Jin Yiwei guards, was nowhere to be seen.

  In this world, immortals and demons roam the earth, even the ruthless Jin Yiwei dare not show disdain for those mysterious realms that are beyond human reach.

  They vaguely felt that Chen Liang's sudden disappearance was not a normal situation, and none of the Jin Yiwei dared to say anything more. The leading Qianhu only shouted to himself to boost his own morale:

  "This wind is really evil! Alright, let him run away and consider himself lucky. Brothers, take action and search the house."

  As the Embroidered Uniform Guards began to slaughter, the Xue family's mansion was in a state of panic. The walls and gates on all sides became the only escape route for the desperate survivors who feared being caught by the Embroidered Uniform Guards at any moment.

  Everyone was busy avoiding the disaster star, and few people noticed that not far from the gate of the mansion, a tall and sturdy man, like a provincial governor, was hiding among the branches of a large tree. He was crying like a child. After a long time, this person raised his eyes and stared at the Jin Yiwei who were searching the house, muttering to himself:

  "Uncle, I'm unfilial! Letting you end your days in such a way, and my younger sister too... You scoundrels, wait for me! If Xue Gao doesn't avenge this deep-seated hatred, I swear I won't be human!"

  Silently making a vow to one day take revenge and wipe out the hatred, the strengths of both sides were clearly different. Although Xue Jiao was confident in his own bravery, he couldn't possibly contend with hundreds of Jin Yiwei guards.

  After gritting his teeth, Xue Jiao slipped away with a pair of bloodshot eyes. With his family ruined and no relatives in sight, he could now let loose and do as he pleased.

  The timely gust of wind that saved Chen Liang's life was, of course, the work of Lin Xu. His decision to intervene at this moment was not because his mind was particularly vicious, but rather because he wanted to see Chen Liang fall to the point of family ruin and life-or-death struggle. However, just as Lin Xu was about to make his move, he suddenly felt a divine intuition warning him of the risks involved.

  It is said that spiritual power cannot overcome the power of karma, and the power of karma is hard to resist the will of heaven. In this theory, there is a profound philosophy that ordinary people find difficult to understand.

  Don't think that gods are all-knowing and all-powerful, that's just nonsense spouted by shameless charlatans. Human strength can be exhausted, and divine power is not infinite either.

  The rise and fall of human destiny has its own unbreakable laws and principles, once the calamity is imminent, only those who are destined to bear it can take it upon themselves. The outcome of success or failure depends on individual karma. During this period, no matter how humans struggle, it is all internal affairs of humanity. Non-human beings, whether they are saints, Buddhas, gods, or demons and monsters, cannot intervene. If some ignorant guy wants to go against the heavens, he should be prepared to take responsibility for the great karma with all living beings, even if he is not crushed by the human Alaya consciousness on the spot, he will have to sleep with one eye open.

  Warned by the divine instinct of a great risk that is about to befall, Lin Xu hesitated for a moment. Who can act without thinking when such an omen hangs over them?

  For this, Lin Xu delayed for a moment, and when he considered it clearly, the time had come to distinguish between life and death. It must be known that the arrival of one's fate is just so clean and efficient, even if you want to make amends, it's too late.

  Although he was prepared in advance, Lin Xu only managed to save the soul of Miss Xue, who had been killed by the fragrance. Afterwards, he secretly observed from the side and waited for an opportunity to create a strong gust of wind to distract everyone's attention, thereby rescuing Chen Liang from the brink of death. Despite this, Lin Xu knew that he had paid a huge price. Just by slightly intervening in the middle, he saw that his digital merit panel was rapidly decreasing. The amount of merit lost during this brief moment was probably more than what Lin Xu would normally accumulate in a year.

  Look at the sharp decline in the merit points on the display panel, it's like watching the Shanghai Index plummet from 6,000 points high to a low point, that's heart-wrenching!

  Although Lin Xu still didn't realize it at this moment, the reason he suffered such a great loss was not that Chen Liang shouldn't have been saved, but that he, as an inhuman deity, shouldn't have directly interfered with human affairs. Even if Lin Xu hadn't intervened, Chen Liang would have been surrounded by heavy troops in the Xue family's mansion, and as long as his cheap brother-in-law Xue Gao launched an attack from outside, the Imperial Guard would have become flustered, and Chen Liang's chances of breaking out would still be great. The loss of so much merit was clearly because the Heavenly Way disliked Lin Xu for being too obstructive, disrupting its plans.

  A gust of wind blew Chen Liang out of danger, Lin Xu took out a gourd filled with water, lifted his hand and poured the clear water on Chen Liang's head who was unconscious, then watched him slowly come to.

  He opened his dazed eyes, and when Chen Liang recalled the tragic scene that had just occurred, he immediately became furious and burst into tears. After a while, he got up shakily, and Lin Xu felt that Chen Liang wanted to do something stupid, so he pressed him down.

  Not long ago, a fierce battle and emotional turmoil had already weakened Chen Liang's physical strength to the extreme. Even if Lin Xu had only the power of an ordinary person, he was powerless to struggle free, so he could only beg with a tone that was almost crying:

  "Brother Lin, I'm begging you, let me go take revenge!"

  At the sound, Lin Xu shook his head firmly and said:

  "Chen brothers, you're really muddled! Those are the imperial guards of the Jin Yi Wei, they have as many men as they want, you only have one life, even if you were made of iron, how many nails could you withstand?"

  That's the way it is, Chen Liang had never thought it through, but he was not reconciled! Chen Liang looked up at Lin Xu, his lips trembling as he said:

  "What... what if Xiaoying died for nothing?"

  At this time, Lin Xu suddenly revealed a meaningful smile, affectionately patted Chen Liang's shoulder and said:

  "It's up to you whether it's a waste of time."

  Hearing this, Chen Liang was still confused, his expression dull and wooden as he shook his head and said:

  "...... Brother Lin, I don't understand what you're saying."