Protect Our Clan Leader

There must be some kind of connection among the three of them, a connection unique to them alone.

A cheat sheet? Small dried fish? Those are probably not the case.

Wang Shouzhe fell into contemplation. Currently, there were too few clues to infer from. He’d have to grill these three girls after this and see if he could identify some common ground.

If he could find a connection, perhaps he, Wang Shouzhe, could bask in their reflected glory.

Meanwhile-

A large group of people, composed of elite clan members and robust family chiefs, are heading towards the Wang family’s main residence in an impressive procession. Among them, the most eye-catching were two horse carriages.

The two carriages were luxurious, their carriages decorated with magnificent dragon and phoenix figures. Even the horses that pulled them were all top-tier black steeds of uniform color.

Steeds were expensive and costly to feed. Not only did they require good food, but they also required special care from servants.

Most importantly, steeds are more suited for riding rather than pulling carriages. Wang Shouzhe himself owned a black steed that he used specifically for rides.

Yes, these two carriages belonged to the Old Ancestors of the Liu and Zhao clans. Different from Old Ancestor Longyan who preferred a reserved lifestyle, the two Old Ancestors of Liu and Zhao would tour around every year, reflecting their influence on their family.

To the ordinary populace, the actions of the Liu and Zhao clans would seem impressive, full of pride and prestige.

However, in the eyes of the longer-established and culturally profound prominent families, it was undoubtedly a display of newly rich who compensated for their inferiority complex through flaunting their wealth. They wouldn’t comment anything openly, but surely they would sneer at them behind their backs.

No wonder, the origins of these two old ancestors were not very noteworthy. One was said to be from a collateral branch of a large family in Longzuo County City. The other had spent a long time as an independent cultivator before fortuitously achieving Spirit Platform Realm, whether by luck or something else.

But even after exhausting effort to reach the Spirit Platform Realm, there was no room for survival in the core area of Longzuo County where prominent families dominated.

They were not content with the difficult promotion to the Spirit Platform and still needing to rely on prominent families or certain forces to survive.

At that time, they followed Old Ancestor Zhou Xuan south to open up a new territory for human survival, becoming the follower family. The idea was to secure a piece of land to establish a clan so that their descendants could escape their lowly origins.

There was nothing wrong with this. Many independent cultivators or those with lower origins who achieved the Spirit Platform had similar thoughts and plans.

The mistake was, they even committed the act of betrayal. Especially after Old Ancestor Zhou Xuan had given them the promised lands, they still chose to betray him!

In the distance, some curious commoners were following from afar. People have a curiosity and like to gather around, all wanting to see what was happening.

The Liu and Zhao clans did not expel the curious commoners who were following. Instead, they deployed some spies to subtly stir up the crowd. This made the audience grow larger and larger, including all kinds of people, such as peddlers, independent cultivators, scholars, and so on.

Obviously, they planned to let the “low-class people” of Ping’an town know who the real master of the town was. The popularity stirred up by the Wang family’s work and disaster relief was utterly vulnerable before absolute power. They wanted to use other people’s mouths to spread the “intimidation of suppressing the Wang family.”

Liu Shengye, the head of the Liu family.

Zhao Jinxian, the head of the Zhao family.

Each of them rode a tall horse and arrived in high spirits at the front gate of the Wang family’s main residence, accompanied by guards and clan members.

When Old Ancestor Zhou Xuan selected the location to build the main residence, he certainly chose the best spot. To the left was the beautiful Zhuwei Lake, and to the right was surrounded by the branches of Liuping Mountain, with the residential land on high ground. Not only was the Feng Shui energetic, but it was also a location that was easy to defend and difficult to attack.

To enter the main residence, except for taking the waterway to the backyard, there was only one road. On this road, some defense facilities, such as arrow towers, were built along the way, and checkpoints could be set up at any time to build lines of defense.

But now, the Wang family did not block the people and horses of the Liu and Zhao families at all. They headed straight to the front door of the Wang family as if it were an unoccupied place.

Under the towering walls of the main residence, there was a spacious square paved with bluestone.

Liu Shengye stopped his horse, looking slightly up at the plaque above the gate of the Wang family, which read “Ping’an Wang Family,” and couldn’t help but ridicule with a sneer, “Jinxian brother, what virtue and ability does the Wang family have to occupy this prime Feng Shui spot?”

Zhao Jinxian paused beside him. He was tall and muscular, obviously more martially skilled than Liu Shengye. In response to the question, he replied calmly, “As the saying goes, Feng Shui turns in cycles. If the Wang family stayed in their corner, we might have spared them some face out of respect for the friendship between our ancestors. Now they dare to oppose us, well, they are simply courting death. Shengye brother, I will follow whatever arrangements you make today.”

“Arrangement, haha… Naturally we must follow the customs of visiting. We don’t want people gossiping about how we, the two clans, were origin-former upstarts who do not understand etiquette.” Liu Shengye narrowed his eyes and ordered with a wave of his hand, “Call someone over, knock on the door, and give the invitation.”

Liu Yongzhou, the young generation of the Liu Clan, immediately dismounted his yellow steed and strode forward with the bearing of a dragon or tiger. He pulled out a bowing envelope and loudly declared.

“Liu Clan of Ping’an pays respect to Ancestor Zhide. Family Head Liu Shengye and Clan members have come to extend our thanks for the Wang family’s kindness.”

Zhao Dingtian, a young standout from the Zhao Clan, also stepped forward, unwilling to be outdone, and loudly stated:

“Zhao Clan of Ping’an pays respect to Ancestor Bojun. Family Head Zhao Jinxian and Clan members have come to extend our thanks for the Wang family’s kindness.”

These two young elites, with their profound mysterious energy and vigorous voice, caused echoes to reverberate continuously around the scene.

Although they said they were here to thank the Wang family for their kindness, their hostile attitude was all too apparent.

Behind the Liu and Zhao Clans, more and more observers were gathering. Amongst them were middle-class civilians, farmers, merchants, independent cultivators, and so on.

With the arrogant shouts at the gate.

The spectators were in an uproar, their faces flushed with excitement, heartily cheering. Naturally, those who were psychologically aligned with the Liu and Zhao clans were the most boisterous.

However, many who had directly or indirectly benefited from the Wang family’s kindness had worried expressions.

Especially since the Wang family recently launched a major dredging and earth filling project, which provided employment and relief to numerous civilian families. The Wang’s goodwill was widely acclaimed among the civilians of Ping’an Town, and many tended towards supporting the Wang family. They were all worried for the Wang family.

The total population of Ping’an Town was no more than twenty thousand.

Any significant event could quickly spread throughout the entire Ping’an Town. The living and thriving civilians all knew that the Wang family was declining, and their old ancestors seemed to be on their last legs.

However, the majority of spectators were impartial audience members, purely incited to watch the excitement, and held no good feelings for any prominent family.

Stirred by the shouts of the Liu and Zhao clans, further provoked by a few with ulterior motives who hid in the crowd, the impartial audiences started shouting one after another.

“Wang family of Ping’an, stop hiding!”

“Wang family of Ping’an, are you afraid to face your actions?” “Wang Shouzhe, dare to come out.” “Wang Longyan, come out to greet Ancestors Zhide and Bojun!”

Many of the spectators siding with the Wang family glared at them.

But what good would that do?

Suddenly!

The doors of the Wang family opened.

Accompanied by two household heads, a tall and handsome, valiant young man strode out. His appearance was calm and undisturbed, with each step steady and firm as a rock.He had the imposing aura of a superior.

Upon entering the scene, he did not descend the steps, but instead gazed down at the surroundings from a high vantage point, his eyebrows slightly furrowing.

“Who dares to cause a ruckus in the Wang family’s main residence?”

He did not shout.

What he said, in an everyday tone, spread out like invisible waves.

Even the spectators standing tens of feet away heard their ears buzzing and their hearts banging nervously.

Immediately!

All the chaotic noises abruptly ceased, the scene was so quiet that a pin drop could be heard.