That night, not only did this valley echo with the sounds of killing but a thousand miles away in Xianyang City, thunderous sounds of slaughter also erupted. A handsome young man in a purple-gold robe reclined on a long couch with two enchanting dancing girls nestled in his arms. Their eyes were seductive as water, their bodies soft and pliant as they pinched translucent grapes with their snow-white fingers and placed them in the man’s mouth.

“Fourth Master!”

A guard dressed in black night-traveling clothes stood outside, his face speckled with fresh red spots. Though the color of his clothes concealed much, he still brought with him a nauseating smell of blood when he entered. The man knelt on the ground and said in a resolute tone, “The matter has been taken care of.”

The renowned Fourth Master of Xianyang City slightly raised an eyebrow and said indifferently, “Since it’s done, everyone goes home and gets some sleep.”

That night, all the powerful factions in Xianyang City suffered a massive purge. Countless streams of blood flowed into the Chishui River channels, and screams accompanied the sleepless night of every Xianyang citizen. The city guards seemed dead, suddenly transformed into deaf and mute old men, closing their eyes and ignoring those who had desperately fought their way out and now knelt covered in blood before the military government office.

As a result, those people became increasingly violent, and the government office had no choice but to notify some “local protective forces.” When Fourth Master Wind heard that someone dared to disturb the crystal-clear slumber of the City Guardian, he immediately dispatched a large group of his men to bring those people back, intending to “reason with them” properly.

Early the next morning, the dawn sunlight pierced through the long darkness. The citizens of Xianyang walked out of their homes to find that nothing had changed. The markets were still bustling, Zhang San next door still collected protection fees from house to house, Li Si from across the street still paraded around with seven or eight concubines, and Wu’s Bun Shop was still crowded with people queuing to buy buns…

Nothing had changed, so the common people suddenly realized with delight: that last night’s events had nothing to do with them. Life would continue day by day as usual.

However, attentive observers secretly noticed some small abnormalities.

Landlord Liu’s grain shops all had new managers, and except for a few servants, even the accountants had disappeared.

It seemed that Boss Jia’s salt warehouse had caught fire last night. Even though the fire was extinguished quickly, the salt purchased today had a smoky smell.

The Ouyang Commercial Bank opened an hour later than usual, and the chief cashier wasn’t at the counter. Reportedly, he had fallen seriously ill last night.

…

At noon, Fourth Master Wind received messages delivered by his subordinates. After reading them for a while, he walked to his writing desk and contemplated for a long time before writing down a few sentences.

After sealing the message, he handed it to his most trusted subordinate. The young Fourth Master Wind rarely revealed a solemn expression.

“Deliver this to the master’s hands. There must not be the slightest error.”

The east wind blew catkins; flowers and willows turned red and green. It was another good season of the year.

At this moment, in the deathly silent valley, wisps of cooking smoke also rose. After the large-scale slaughter, the camp had shrunk considerably, with fewer than seven hundred people remaining. The rest had already lost their lives in the night’s massacre.

Zhuge Yue brought a bowl of white porridge to Chu Qiao’s side. His face still looked awful, but he had calmed down. The tent was very small; he couldn’t stand upright and had to squat down to help Chu Qiao sit up. He said in a low voice, “Eat something.”

Chu Qiao’s face was deathly pale, obviously growing weaker, but she still asked in a deep voice, “How’s the situation outside?”

“How could it be?” Zhuge Yue said disdainfully, “Those who should have died all died, and those who shouldn’t have also died with them. The Liu family took possession of these wealthy families’ properties without lifting a finger. A very cliché drama.”

Chu Qiao frowned slightly and said slowly, “So you’re saying that Liu Xi has seized the properties of the other wealthy merchants? Isn’t he afraid of retaliation from their main families?”

Zhuge Yue shook his head and said, “The main families of these wealthy merchants might no longer exist in this world.”

“You mean…”

“Yes,” Zhuge Yue nodded and said solemnly, “If it were me, I would ensure the matter was settled once and for all. Although the properties of the Ouyang, Jia, and Wang families cannot compare to the Liu family’s, once united, they would be a force the Liu family couldn’t resist alone. Since Liu Xi decided to swallow these assets and capture all these family members in one sweep, Xianyang City must have been restless last night.”

Chu Qiao frowned, “Would Liu Mingjun agree to Liu Xi doing this? This way, their foundation in Xianyang City would be destroyed.”

“You still think this matter was ordered by Liu Mingjun?” Zhuge Yue smiled lightly. “Xing’er, you’re intelligent, skilled, and quick to react, but you don’t understand human nature. Liu Xi has rebelled. If I’m not mistaken, the first person to meet the King of Hell last night would have been Liu Mingjun.”

“Liu Xi rebelled?” Chu Qiao was slightly stunned. She tried hard to recall the young man she had met in Xianyang City before—smiling with a mouthful of white teeth, skilled in horsemanship. At that time, when Liu Mingjun introduced his nephew to her, he laughed heartily, proudly patting the young man’s shoulder and claiming he was half a son to him…

“Why would Liu Xi rebel? Perhaps he wasn’t content with being just a wealthy household and wanted to step into officialdom. However, the Great Xia regime excludes outsiders, with aristocratic families holding dominant positions. He has no foundation in the court, and even after thirty to fifty years of climbing, he might not succeed. So he gambled everything, gathering the wealth of all Xianyang merchants as a stepping stone, wanting to enter the Biantang upper echelon. With such a large fortune as a foundation, no one would dare look down on Liu Xi during this Biantang journey.”

Zhuge Yue murmured, analyzing bit by bit. But these words sounded increasingly jarring to Chu Qiao’s ears. Her thoughts weren’t as simple as Zhuge Yue’s, because she knew the identities of those who had died. What she worried about most now was whether this Liu Xi was a Great Xia person who had eliminated the foundation of the Datong Alliance in Xianyang and seized the wealth that the Datong Alliance had accumulated over many years. As for why they were going to Biantang, she couldn’t guess.

Zhuge Yue was indeed a highly intelligent person, because at this moment, based on information rapidly transmitted back by Biantang’s scout camp, Biantang officials had also reached an almost identical conclusion.

Liu Xi had eliminated the forces of several other factions, merged them into one, and now came to Biantang to pledge allegiance and seek an official position.

“Ce’er,” the Tang Emperor’s face was somewhat grave as he heavily patted his son’s shoulder and said solemnly, “This Liu Xi is difficult to control. If we’re not careful, we might get bitten. The Liu family of Xianyang, mere merchants, how could they produce such talent?”

Li Ce narrowed his eyes, smiled slightly, and said, “Father, I most enjoy spirited horses.”

However, what they didn’t know was that several days earlier, Liu Xi whom everyone deeply feared had already been put in a sack, tied to stones, and sunk deep into the Chishui River.

In this chaotic situation, some hastily retreated, some remained ignorant, some watched coldly, and others controlled everything.

The common people could only see the surface commotion, naively believing it was either bandits robbing or enemies pursuing vengeance. Clever people like Zhuge Yue and Li Ce could unravel the threads and strive to perceive the reasons behind it all. Only those truly in control of everything could clarify the intricate, multilayered relationships and press down on the final puzzle, waiting for the day when all could be revealed to the world.

In the main tent of the valley, a man in white robes sat on a heated couch. Outside the door stood guards as straight as spears.

A young man in his twenties, wearing leather armor, entered and knelt, saying in a resolute tone, “Young Master.”

Yan Xun wore a pure white fur coat, sitting on a couch warmed by charcoal fires. His forehead was slightly beaded with sweat, but his face remained somewhat pale. Sitting there, he didn’t even open his eyes when he heard the arrival, merely letting out a faint “Mmm” to indicate he was listening.

“The property has been counted and verified, with Left Court overseeing it. The masters and servants from the other families have also been dealt with. I’ve had people dig a pit in the back mountain, and they’ve been buried.”

Yan Xun still said nothing, as if he had fallen asleep. The young man slightly licked his lips and continued, “However, the young master of the Ouyang family still hasn’t been found.”

Yan Xun frowned slightly but still didn’t open his eyes, merely saying indifferently, “Then go find him.”

“Yes, yes!”

The young guard quickly said, “The child is only four years old. Outside are steep mountains and forests; he couldn’t have run far.”

“Cheng Yuan,” a deep voice suddenly sounded, startling the young man, who quickly responded. Yan Xun finally opened his eyes, which were black and wise, his tone very calm: “Do you know why Great Xia has fallen into its current state?”

The man called Cheng Yuan was stunned, opening his mouth twice but saying nothing.

“It’s because when they killed my entire family, they weren’t resolute enough to eliminate me as well, cutting the grass and removing the roots. Do you understand?”

A sound of “bang, bang” immediately came as the young man knocked his head on the ground, saying in panic, “I understand, I understand.”

“Good, now go handle it.”

Yan Xun lightly waved his hand, and the man carefully stood up, just about to retreat when Yan Xun indifferently said:

“After completing the task, remember to receive military discipline. It seems you need a deep impression to remember my current identity.”

Cheng Yuan was immediately alarmed and quickly said, “Yes, I remember, Young Master.”

The tent grew increasingly quiet. Young Yan Xun leaned back on the soft couch, with thick fur almost burying his entire body. He slowly frowned, somewhat disgustedly muttering, “Damn southern barbarians…”

……

The next day, the entire camp showed no intention of leaving. Zhuge Yue went out for a look around and saw that except for the Liu family’s servants, basically all the attendants from the other families had disappeared. He felt somewhat anxious, but given Chu Qiao’s current condition, he couldn’t recklessly take her away at this time.

After fetching some dried food from the carriage, on his way back, he saw that little girl called Star again. The child was hiding beside a small tent, timidly poking out her little head. Her face was somewhat grimy, and she was quietly observing him while looking around, seemingly searching for the kind-hearted Chu Qiao.

Seeing that Zhuge Yue had noticed her, the child tried to please him by squinting her eyes. Missing two front teeth, she still foolishly smiled at him.

Zhuge Yue immediately darkened his face, not looking at the child, and turned to walk toward the tent.

After just a few steps, he heard rustling footsteps behind him. Looking back, he saw the child still following him carefully with small steps.

What does she want? Still, wants meat to eat?

Zhuge Yue frowned and said in a deep voice, “Keep following, and I’ll break your legs!”

“Wah!”

A terrifying burst of crying suddenly came, startling Zhuge Yue. The child wailed with her mouth wide open, crying and running in the opposite direction. Other servants in the camp looked at Zhuge Yue with strange gazes. Those looks seemed to collectively say: Look at him, acting all proper, yet picking on a child.

Zhuge Yue immediately felt depressed; he had only meant to scare her a little.

When he returned to the tent, Chu Qiao was still asleep. Lately, she seemed to sleep a lot; even while talking, she would doze off.

Zhuge Yue began to worry, but seeing that when she wasn’t sleeping, she could barely walk, he felt somewhat relieved.

At the very least, this period of hardship had made her trust him somewhat. For instance, right now, he was sitting beside her, and she wouldn’t suddenly jump up and press a dagger against his throat.

As the sky gradually darkened, Zhuge Yue sighed, feeling extremely depressed.

A tiger fallen to the plains is bullied by dogs—at this moment, he couldn’t even leave such a miserable camp.

“Hmm…”

A lazy, soft hum sounded, and Chu Qiao slowly opened her eyes. Suddenly seeing Zhuge Yue sitting beside her, she felt somewhat embarrassed. She unconsciously smoothed her hair, her voice still thick with nasal tones, asking somewhat unnaturally, “What time is it? Oh, I’ve slept for so long.”

Zhuge Yue didn’t speak but handed her a water pouch.

Chu Qiao took the water pouch and had just taken a sip when she noticed Zhuge Yue still watching her. For a moment, she wasn’t careful and choked.

“Cough, cough, cough!”

“Such a fool.” Zhuge Yue rolled his eyes, but his hand gently patted her back.

After coughing for a while, she felt more energetic. Chu Qiao glared fiercely at Zhuge Yue, then snatched the water pouch, took two big gulps, and then said casually, “I’m hungry!”

Zhuge Yue had just gone out to get food, but seeing her poor attitude now, he didn’t want to give it to her anymore. He coldly snorted, “Am I your servant?”

“Servant?” Chu Qiao glanced at him sideways. “Just you? What can you do? If someone like you were sold in the slave market, you probably wouldn’t even be worth one gold piece.”

Zhuge Yue glared at her sideways and then snorted, “You’re worth more?”

“At least more than you.”

The two were engaged in their daily required program—bickering. Suddenly, footsteps sounded from outside, heading straight toward their tent. They were both startled; Zhuge Yue immediately stood up and drew a dagger.

Just as he was about to go out, there was a sudden “bang,” and two small figures burst in, nearly pulling down the tent curtain!

Chu Qiao and Zhuge Yue were stunned. They looked at each other, and then Chu Qiao spoke first, asking softly, “Little one, what do you want?”

Little Star’s face was pitch black, her eyes red. She was holding the hand of an even smaller child. Hearing Chu Qiao’s voice, the little girl’s lips immediately trembled, and tears fell like raindrops, becoming increasingly profuse.

Zhuge Yue’s face darkened as he impatiently looked at these two children who appeared as if they had rolled in a coal pile. He said in a deep voice, “Who let you in? Get out quickly.”

“Wuwu…”

The small child, who looked only four or five years old, suddenly raised his head. His little face was black, his eyes large and round, clear with distinct black and white, looking tearfully at Zhuge Yue. His lips trembled, making “wuwu” sound like a small animal. His chubby little hands crawled on the ground as he moved toward Zhuge Yue.

Zhuge Yue had fought in battles and made strategic decisions. In all these years, he had never known fear. But at this moment, he suddenly felt somewhat panicked. Pointing at the little one, he said loudly, “You, you stop, don’t come over! I command you, get out right now!”

“Wah!” A cry that could move heaven and earth immediately sounded. The small child pounced like a fierce dog, grabbing Zhuge Yue’s leg. Tears and mucus smeared onto Zhuge Yue’s clothes as the child cried loudly, “Father!”

In an instant, Zhuge Yue’s handsome face seemed to fill with blood, becoming fiery red. His expression could only be described as panic-stricken. Making eye contact with the equally dumbfounded Chu Qiao, Zhuge Yue quickly said, “Who’s your father? Let go! Or I’ll beat you!”

“Father!” The little one wasn’t even as tall as Zhuge Yue’s thigh. Though small, his strength was considerable. Using both hands and feet, he desperately clung to him, hanging on his leg, crying and calling out, “Father, Father.”

Such a small child would probably die from one kick, but Zhuge Yue didn’t dare to hit him. Unable to push him away, he finally turned his head, looking very aggrieved as he said to Chu Qiao, “I’m not his father.”

He didn’t know why he felt the need to explain to Chu Qiao, but seeing her somewhat surprised and slightly gloating expression, he became increasingly angry.

Though Chu Qiao was amused, she also felt something odd about the situation. Seeing that she couldn’t get anything from the little one, she turned to look at Little Star and asked, “Star, who is he? What’s going on?”

Before Star could answer, the crying, confused little child suddenly turned his head, as if only now noticing Chu Qiao in the room. He saw this woman with a gentle smile, a kind appearance, looking very tender.

The child’s little mouth quivered, looking very aggrieved as he reached out to Chu Qiao, sobbing and calling, “Mother…”

Boom!

The entire world descended into chaos.