The Third Volume: The Stormy Weather of Yi City Chapter 8: The Beginning of the Storm (Part 1)

  "You little scoundrel, don't think you can take advantage of me and then act smart!" Similarly, back in their residence, Wang Guanxiao was no longer polite to Wang Guanlan, pointing at him and shouting "Tell me, are you sincerely using me? First throwing me out and then achieving your goal, huh? Is this a trap you set up beforehand?"

  "It was indeed what I thought of first, but my original plan wasn't like this!" Wang Guanlan also smiled wryly "Qingling's identity is special, and she's good at using grand righteousness to pressure people, so I came up with a plan to make them retreat in disarray. If all else fails, I'd let Fourth Brother you take the beauty home, but I didn't expect it to end like this, I ended up trapping myself!"

  "You look like you're still happy about being tricked!" Wang Guan's tone was full of sarcasm. "I've already reported this matter to the king, and I suppose we'll get a response from the palace tomorrow!"

  I saw the discontent in Wang Guan's tone, and Wang Guanlan couldn't help but smile. "Well, now I'm stuck with Qingling, so you can't beat her idea anymore. But isn't there still Xiu Yan? I think she's much gentler than Qingling, this shrewish woman. Why don't you take her in instead?"

  "What did you say?"

  "What's wrong, Fourth Brother? Don't forget whose territory this is. If you don't mind, I'll make arrangements and turn uncooked rice into cooked rice. By then, whether or not everyone is on good terms, they'll still have to help take care of your family!"

  "You young fellow, what are you thinking about day and night at such a young age!"

  It has to be said that Wang Guanlan's proposal made Wang Guanlang extremely impulsive, but he still overcame this impulse with reason. "Little Fourteen, don't do anything rash. You and Qingling's matter, although there were elements of your prior design, but after all, it was Qingling who personally agreed to it, and so many people witnessed it. This matter is basically settled. Even if someone says something afterwards, they can't find fault with you. If no one finds fault with you, then there's no reason for anyone to openly confront you. Even if someone wants to deal with you, the Wang Manor has enough reason to stand up for you. But if you stir up more trouble and give people an excuse, I'm afraid that in a few days, your Yi City will be ruined!"

  "Fourth brother, isn't this an exaggeration?!"

  "Are you trying to intimidate me?!" Wang Guanxiao sneered, "Just wait and see, once this news spreads, you'll know whether I'm just trying to scare you or not!"

  It seems that Wang Guanlan has calmed down a bit, "So to speak, my future daughter-in-law is still a charming and alluring person?!"

  "How did my words become so unpleasant when they came out of your mouth?!" Wang Guan's eyebrows furrowed deeply. "What is meant by 'attracting bees and butterflies'? Qing Ling, the young lady from Jingling Lake, is a sensation in the martial arts world, and her debut has drawn everyone's attention. With her stunning beauty, it's only natural that many people would have a crush on her!!" As he spoke, his voice involuntarily dropped, but then suddenly rose again. "Who would be like you, completely incapable of appreciating a precious gem? Qing Ling choosing you is like placing a beautiful flower in cow dung - this is probably the biggest mistake she'll ever make in her life!!"

  "Jealous, aren't you?!" Wang Guanlan chuckled "I'm telling you, Fourth Brother, this woman, if you spoil her too much, she'll climb onto your neck and crap all over you, and you'll be... for the rest of your life..."

  "Alright, alright! What's with all this nonsense? A dog can't produce ivory!" Wang Guanxiao scolded. "How old are you, anyway? You act like you're some kind of expert on women. I'm asking you, what do you plan to do next?"

  "What's next? Heh heh, Fourth Brother, you think I'm a fool. The Ning Wangfu and Jingling Lake alliance through marriage, this kind of thing, do you think I would have much say in it? At most, I'll just be a puppet on strings, showing my face for a brief moment!"

  "What I said wasn't about this matter, but how you should face the upcoming challenges! Wang Guanxiao had a smug look on his face. "From today onwards, you will be the public enemy of all young heroes in the martial arts world, especially with your forced marriage tactics, which will definitely provoke public outrage. Do you think you'll really have good days ahead?"

  "What a day!" Wang Guanlan cursed in a low voice "Does the Wang Manor not care?!"

  "Challenges and accepting challenges are part of a warrior's training, even the royal family doesn't have enough reason to intervene, at most they can only guarantee your life safety!" Saying this, Wang Guanxiao smiled wryly and said "If you're always being beaten up in the name of challenge, it would be detrimental to my royal family's reputation. At that time, wanting to smoothly marry Qingling girl wouldn't be so easy!"

  "Let me think, let me think!" Wang Guanlan began to realize the severity of the situation, and his expression slowly sank.

  "Then take your time!" Wang Guanxiao chuckled and patted his shoulder before going to rest.

  …………………

  ……………

  Nanhua City, the Ning Wang Fu was still brightly lit despite the late hour. The eleven most powerful people in the palace, including Ning Wang Wang Bi Cheng, Queen Ji Feng Yan, Zong Ling Wang Xian Tang, and the seven major clan elders, were all gathered together to discuss something. Meanwhile, the chief steward Wang Fu and Wang Bi Cheng's personal attendant Miao Shu waited outside, prohibiting anyone from entering. Even tasks such as serving tea and water were taken over by the two of them, who personally delivered them to the room.

  "Alas, this young Fourteenth is really good at stirring up trouble!!" Wang Bizheng was seen rubbing his temples, looking very troubled. These words had hit the nail on the head for everyone, just as they were sorting out the mess in Yicheng, another one came along.

  "This is a good thing!" Princess Ji Fengyan smiled faintly, and as the wife of Wang Bicheng for so many years, she was very clear about his character. Although he now appeared to be in a difficult situation, who knows what was going on in his mind? So, of course, she wouldn't spoil the mood. "Being able to form an alliance with Jingling Lake through marriage is a great thing for both public and private interests, and it's a great benefit for our Ning Wangfu!"

  "Yes, Jingling Lake's generation of roaming the world, haha, unexpectedly fell in Yicheng, this little fourteen, is quite capable!!" Wang Xiandang stroked his black mustache, with a somewhat pleased expression. "When choosing an auspicious day, settle this matter as soon as possible, lest there be too many dreams at night!"

  "Yes, yes!" The elderly heads of the clans also nodded in agreement, apparently they were very satisfied with this marriage, as for whether it was good or not, that's another matter.

  "Mr. Jiufēn, what do you think?!"

  "The elders are right, this is a good thing!" Mr. Jiufeng's face showed a hint of bitter smile, although he was a great master and the chief advisor to King Ning, his position in the palace was extraordinary, but on this matter, despite having some dissenting opinions in his heart, he still had to follow the mainstream opinion of the palace owners, let alone, his dissent was only due to his own indecisiveness.

  "I admit it's a good thing, but don't you think this is too strange?!" Wang Bicheng said "I always feel that something is not quite right about this matter!"

  "Guān Xiāo is someone I've watched grow up, he would never lie!" Ji Fengyan said.

  "I'm not saying that Guan Yao is lying, he wouldn't joke about such a big matter. I'm talking about this Qing Ling, or rather the purpose of Jing Ling Lake!" Wang Bi Cheng narrowed his eyes "Four million taels, no, five million taels, just for Jing Ling Lake's freedom to roam the world, it's worth five million taels of silver, and you'd sell yourself out for that?"

  "This is what was said, and Mr. Jiufeng slightly furrowed his brow beside him "Prince Wang, the Fourth Young Master has already spoken, at that time both of them were somewhat agitated!" Agitated? Do you believe it, Mr. Jiufeng? Qingling is an unparalleled expert who has beheaded a martial arts master, even if her martial arts cultivation hasn't truly reached the master realm, but with her mental state, would she become agitated in that kind of situation? Don't forget, Jingling Lake's Xinhu Sword Classic emphasizes spiritual cultivation the most!"

  "This is also what I find strange?" said Mr. Jiu Fen, "In such a situation, Qing Ling's mental state would not have been lost at all, so I can conclude that her excited slip of the tongue was at least half fake!"

  "So it's still about those five million taels of silver!"

  "Your Highness, it's not 5 million taels of silver, but the Phoenix Tail Grass!" said Mr. Jiu Fen.

  "Yes, it's pampas grass. The guardian of Jingling Lake sold himself for the pampas grass, is this different from selling oneself for salt? Is this possible?"

  "Fengweicao is just a means, not an end!" Mr. Jiufen said calmly, Ning Wang had thought about it, he had also thought about it, but the time was too short after all, and the message sent by Wang Guanzhong came too quickly. As soon as Wang Bizheng received the message, he immediately gathered everyone together. Most people here didn't even fully understand what happened, and in such a short time, Mr. Jiufen couldn't think carefully either. He could only start analyzing the situation thread by thread in front of everyone, exploring the reasons behind it.

  "The question is what kind of purpose they want to achieve with Phoenix Tail Grass!"

  "The efficacy of Feng Wei Cao is no secret, and there's no hidden meaning! Mr. Jiu Fen stroked his beard, analyzing it bit by bit: 'Fourth Master also said that Qing Ling and Xiu Yan went to Yi Cheng for the Feng Wei Cao, with the goal of having enough antidote pills for the martial artists in the southwest three states when the Five Poison Secret Realm opens in three years. This way, fewer people will be lost, and more can achieve their wishes. For this reason, Qing Ling and Xiu Yan went to Yi Cheng together with Fourth Master!'"

  "In the end, it was Yi Cheng who suffered a downfall!" Wang Xiantang said with a hint of a smile.

  "Yes, it should be considered a failure. The reason they took the fourth son away was quite simple: they probably wanted to use the fourth son to pressure the fourteenth prince and then give him some benefits in exchange for his agreement to plant a large amount of phoenix tail grass. But this benefit turned out to be too great!"

  "After all, it's still for the sake of Fengweicao!" Mr. Jiufeng said "Since they both said at first that they wanted to make an antidote with Fengweicao, then 80% of it is probably for the antidote, after all, Fengweicao is in the hands of the Fourteenth Young Master, and he has a clear view of how to use it!"

  "They want to get the antidote Dan in order to have enough antidotes for the warriors of the southwestern three states who will enter the Five Poison Secret Realm three years later!" Wang Bicheng tapped his fingers on the back of the chair next to him, saying "With enough antidote Dan, more people will have the confidence to enter the Five Poison Secret Realm. Similarly, with the antidote Dan, the warriors who enter the secret realm will have the capital to explore deeper into the Five Poison Secret Realm. Is their goal really the Lu Ding? Is the Lu Ding really in the Five Poison Secret Realm?" As he spoke, Wang Bicheng suddenly raised his head, and a look of horror flashed in his eyes "Jingling Lake wants to get the Lu Ding, are they crazy?!"