Protect Our Chief

"My family’s Ancestor has arrived, let me invite her in now," said Wang Shouzhe.

"Absolutely not!" Zhong Xingwang suddenly became very tense upon hearing this, "I don’t want Senior Sister to see me in such a withered and hideous state."

However, before Wang Shouzhe could say anything, the cold voice of Ancestor Longyan had already resounded in the room: "Zhong Xingwang, even in the past, you weren’t particularly handsome."

"S-senior Sister..." Zhong Xingwang was a bit embarrassed.

"Shouzhe, Ancestor Xiangyang, please both of you leave," Ancestor Longyan’s voice sounded.

"Yes, Ancestor/AAncestor Longyan," Wang Shouzhe and others responded promptly, and, along with the junior members, they all retreated, leaving only Zhong Xingwang behind.

Once everyone was gone.

Ancestor Longyan elegantly appeared in his room, then with a wave of her sleeve, a vast and icy Profound Qi surged out, sealing the entire room off.

Meanwhile, Wang Shouzhe and others waited patiently outside the courtyard.

After the time it takes to burn an incense stick had passed.

The space beside Wang Shouzhe gently fluctuated, Ancestor Longyan appeared out of thin air, her figure graceful, like a mist of ice, impossible to capture.

In her cold eyes, there was a trace of sadness that was hard to conceal.

"He is gone."

"Ancestor, you must restrain your grief," Wang Shouzhe’s heart twitched, he sighed and comforted Ancestor Longyan.

Zhong Xingwang’s nephews and descendants, upon hearing this, rushed inside, weeping loudly.

"Ancestor Xiangyang, are there any fierce beasts in the nearby sea?" Ancestor Longyan’s voice was cold, as if there was a vengeful Qi in her heart with no outlet to vent.

Zhong Xiangyang’s old face froze, hesitated slightly and said, "Five hundred miles south of Hundred Islands Guard is Evil Flood Dragon Island, where a Tier Six Evil Jiao resides. We’ve organized several sieges, but it always escapes, then returns to the island to wreak havoc in revenge, causing trouble to many fishermen of the Hundred Islands Guard."

"Let’s deal with it then... Shouzhe, if you have no other matters, stay at the Hundred Islands Guard for our junior’s final journey," said Ancestor Longyan, "Once I finish my task, I shall return to Wang Family for closed cultivation."

With those words, she casually stepped out, and in the next instant, she appeared above Zhong Family’s main residence and then transformed into a frost-white streak of lightning, heading south.

"This, this, this... What immense aura, terrifying speed." Zhong Xiangyang’s old face was filled with shock, "Could it be that Ancestor Longyan’s cultivation has already..."

"This happened not long ago, our Wang Family has yet to plan to announce it publicly," Wang Shouzhe bowed, "Please, Ancestor Xiangyang and Ancestor Wannian, keep it confidential for now."

"We will certainly keep our mouths shut." Zhong Xiangyang and Zhong Wannian hurriedly responded with cupped hands.

At the same time, their hearts were like raging waves, deeply astonished.

Ancestor Longyan wasn’t much older than Zhong Xingwang, was she? And now she’s a Purple Mansion cultivator!?

If so, doesn’t that place Wang Family firmly as a legitimate Fifth-Grade Noble Family?

Adding on Wang Family’s other foundational strengths, they wouldn’t even fear weaker Fourth-Grade Noble Families.

This left them feeling deeply moved.

Once, Wang Family was merely a small family that had to look up to them. But in the blink of an eye, it has become such a colossal entity, while the flourishing Hundred Islands Zhong Family now has no choice but to look up to them instead.

This, indeed, is a remarkable miracle~

...

Meanwhile, as Wang Shouzhe was bidding farewell to Zhong Xingwang at the Hundred Islands Guard.

A large passenger-cargo ship was sailing downstream from midstream Anjiang, heading into the lower reaches of Anjiang.

The owner of this ship was an Independent Traveling Merchant. Over years of trading, he gradually accumulated original capital, and as his business grew larger, he simply bought a second-hand large ship to conduct bigger trades.

Being an Independent Traveling Merchant himself who started from scratch and became wealthy, the ship owner is considerate towards Independent Traveling Merchants, allowing them to pay some fees to hitch a ride on his ship or rent some cabins. Therefore, this ship is a mix of various people.

At the ship’s bow.

There were two elderly men standing by the ship’s rail, gazing at the banks of Anjiang. Beside them, there was a young girl with lively eyes.

Although the three were modestly dressed, it was hard to conceal their noble aura, setting them apart from the actual Traveling Merchants aboard.

The elderly man standing in the center exuded an unshakable aura akin to a mountain, clearly not an ordinary person.

He looked at the high embankment along Anjiang and asked, "Is this the... ’Anjiang Flood Prevention Embankment’ that has an astonishingly exaggerated cost?"

"Master," the fair-skinned, beardless elderly man beside him, with a hint of a smile, replied, "Judging by the structure and scale, it probably is. Wang Family’s flood prevention project team has been building for thirty years, and currently, the thousand-mile embankment has consumed six billion nine hundred million Qian Gold..."

"Hmph, no wonder that Shouzhe character is jumping up and down, trying to promote the Anjiang water-infrastructure project," the dignified elderly man raised an eyebrow and muttered, "imagine how much embezzlement occurred in the process..."

These three individuals, the two elderly men, were undoubtedly Emperor Longchang and Old Yao.

Now, Emperor’s Son An has been overseeing the government for decades, amassed considerable experience, and can manage political affairs independently. Thus, Emperor Longchang has become increasingly idle.

When a person is idle, it’s easy to stir up some trouble.

The seemingly ordinary "girl" accompanying was Imperial Family Great Celestial Pride, Wu Xue Ning.

She had been cultivating in the Saint Land for years. This time she returned home to visit her relatives but was swept away by the playful Emperor Longchang for incognito inspection.

Calculating by ordinary people’s standards, she was already over 40 years old but still retained a youthful appearance. Locally, many girls her age had already married, but by Upper Capital City standards, she was still considered a child~

Wu Xue Ning said with a mix of laughter and frustration, "Old, Ancestor, no, Grandpa. I heard from An Ye that Wang Family carried out flood control infrastructure at cost price. Patriarch Shouzhe even subsidized it greatly over these years. Surely you don’t distrust Patriarch Shouzhe, and certainly not doubt An Ye’s words, right?"

"Of course, I trust An Ye." Emperor Longchang raised his head arrogantly, discontentedly saying, "But, I fear An Ye might have been misled by some. Wang Shouzhe, that cunning one, his so-called return to countryside farming is simply to advance by retreating. Which of Emperor’s Son An’s economic development policies doesn’t have his influence behind it?"

"From how I see it, instead of always sending letters back and forth, Emperor’s Son An might as well relocate the court to Changning Guard~"

Every word he said was laced with jealousy.

Emperor’s Son An governs, not consulting him, the Emperor with three thousand years of experience, but instead fraternizes with Wang Shouzhe. How could he bear this?

Hmph, I’ve been an emperor for thousands of years. Does that mean my experience as an emperor is inferior to that Shouzhe guy?

Isn’t his Changning Wang Family known as the "local emperor" of Longzhou County? I’ll take a good look this time at how he’s managed to transform his territory~

...