Chapter 51 - 50: Cheng Family’s Predicament

Chapter 51: Chapter 50: Cheng Family’s Predicament

The Cheng Family Mansion.

Before the somewhat desolate stone-paved plaza.

The core figures of the two branches of the Cheng Family were all gathered here, along with many loyal servants, including Brother Cheng, whose chest was wrapped in bandages.

Nearly a hundred people crowded together, a dense sea of heads, all waiting for news.

Cheng Lian’Er stood in the hall, her eyes somewhat lifeless. She hadn’t expected that Qian Neng’s death would cause such massive turmoil for the Cheng Family’s businesses months later.

Shortly after, Patriarch Cheng—the septuagenarian Cheng Yong—walked into the hall, supported by two middle-aged men. When he saw Cheng Lian’Er standing at the front of the hall, his footsteps paused.

He let out a somewhat dejected sigh but didn’t speak. Continuing forward under everyone’s gaze, he stood at the highest point and looked down at the crowd.

Everyone’s gaze focused on him.

The already quiet and oppressive atmosphere grew even heavier, to the point where some felt a stifling discomfort in their chests. Everyone held their breath slightly, waiting for the final verdict.

Cheng Yong looked at his favorite granddaughter. This massive Cheng Family was something he and his father had built from the ground up, spending nearly fifty years of their lives to establish.

And now...

Just because of the words of a Refining Viscera Strange Man, it was about to vanish into thin air.

He opened his mouth, wanting to speak, but perhaps because of his old age and tendency to get sentimental, it felt as if a massive boulder was pressing down on his chest. He took several deep breaths, yet he still couldn’t catch his breath; instead, the suffocating feeling in his chest only worsened.

"Grandpa, when are we splitting the family?"

Cheng Yong recognized the voice. The speaker was Cheng Yue, a grandson from the second branch.

He ignored Cheng Yue’s words and instead looked at his second son, Cheng Yingnan. Currently, besides Brother Cheng, he was the only other Expert in Refining Viscera Martial Arts in the family.

"Second Son, is this your intention?"

Cheng Yingnan fell silent. Under everyone’s gaze, he slowly raised his head and looked directly at Cheng Yong. "Father, you are old. The Cheng Family cannot be dragged into the mud because of my niece, Lian’Er."

Cheng Yong’s chest heaved violently, his white hair and beard trembling in the air. These past few days, he had been running around for the sake of the Cheng Family, pleading with many people, even going as far as to beg at the City Guard’s Mansion.

But the Jade Elephant Canon Seat had only responded with a single sentence: A blood feud over a murdered son was irreconcilable.

The fact that City Guardian Lord Ming was able to keep the Cheng Family safe within Feiyun City was already entirely due to the favors the Cheng Family had provided the City Guard’s Mansion over the years.

"Are you planning to sacrifice your niece? Yingnan!" Cheng Lian’Er’s father, Cheng Yingdong, spoke with a questioning tone.

Cheng Yingnan did not answer, but his silence was an answer in itself.

Cheng Yue spoke up, "Half a year ago, Qian Neng came to our door to propose to Lian’Er. If Grandpa had agreed, Qian Neng wouldn’t have resorted to snatching the bride, and he wouldn’t have lost his life. More importantly, our Cheng Family wouldn’t have suffered such an unexpected disaster today. Grandpa, are you still going to protect Cheng Lian’Er?!"

His loud questioning caused an uproar among the surrounding crowd. What made the breath catch in Cheng Yong’s chest was that the majority of the people were actually nodding in agreement.

This kind of cohesion within the Cheng Family made his traditionally proud, righteous family values feel like a complete mockery.

Cheng Yong’s heart turned ice-cold. He looked at his eldest son. "Yingdong, what do you think?"

Cheng Yingdong had been able to loudly reprimand Cheng Yingnan earlier, but at this moment, he fell silent.

Thus, Cheng Yong knew his intentions. He clenched his fists, his palms devoid of any warmth. He opened his mouth but couldn’t utter a single word.

Everyone stared at him. Everyone waited for him.

Cheng Yong’s vision spun dizzily, and a loud ringing echoed in his ears, as if he had gone completely deaf. After a long time, he finally spoke, "I plan to..."

Cheng Lian’Er suddenly stepped forward and reached out to support Cheng Yong. "Grandpa, do you believe in me?" she asked.

Cheng Yong didn’t hear her clearly at first. Only when Cheng Lian’Er repeated it a second time did he finally catch his granddaughter’s words.

"Lian’Er, if you have any thoughts, just say them."

Showing not a hint of timidity, Cheng Lian’Er stood up and walked step by step toward the high platform where Cheng Yong stood. She turned around, her long robes drawing an arc in the air. In such a stifling environment, she surprisingly exuded an air of peerless magnificence.

"You all heard it. Grandpa is listening to me, so I will speak.

"I know what all you elders mean. You just want to split the family, right? Fine. From now on, I will stay with Grandpa. Father, Second Uncle, the rest of you can leave together. I, Cheng Lian’Er, will bear all those bad debts. I only want the ancestral home!"

The Cheng Family had completely broken apart.

This news swept through the entirety of Feiyun City like a rapidly expanding storm in just a single night. Countless people swarmed toward the Cheng Family.

This time, the Cheng Family was completely finished.

***

Cheng Lian’Er stood in a room, looking calmly at her grandfather, Cheng Yong.

Behind him, Brother Cheng, blood seeping through his bandages, spoke softly, "Miss, you were a bit... impulsive."

Cheng Lian’Er smiled bitterly. "You all know that everything started because Qian Neng wanted to abduct me. Therefore, the Jade Elephant Canon Seat’s target has been me from the very beginning.

"I was born into the Cheng Family and raised by it for nearly twenty years. It’s time for me to give back to the family. Father and Second Uncle shouldn’t have to bear all of this.

"It’s just a pity... Grandpa is the Patriarch and cannot be separated from the main branch. Otherwise, it would have been enough for me to shoulder this all by myself."

Cheng Yong sat to the side, quietly looking at his confident granddaughter, and a smile tugged at the corners of his mouth.

He reached out his hand, and Cheng Lian’Er observantly leaned her head over, letting him stroke it, just like in the years when she was a child.

Brother Cheng’s eyes grew moist, feeling somewhat lost.

"Lian’Er, how do you plan to resolve those bad debts?"

Cheng Lian’Er wore a face of absolute confidence. "Our Cheng Family built its fortune on medicinal herbs, so naturally, we can turn things around with medicinal herbs. As long as we venture deep into the mountains and find a major herb over five hundred years old, we can resolve all our current predicaments."

Cheng Yong hesitated to speak. Was going deep into the mountains to gather herbs really that easy?

"Lian’Er, do you truly not know who saved you?"

Cheng Lian’Er froze for a moment, then slowly shook her head. "I really don’t know."

When the room returned to silence and only Cheng Lian’Er was left, the confidence and composure on her face completely vanished. Clearly, all her confidence had been an act.

A few days ago, the batch of goods that the Jade Elephant Canon Seat had ordered his people to rob was worth nearly twenty thousand taels of silver in medicinal herbs. Those herbs were procured for numerous families in the Inner City and could not be compromised. Since they couldn’t deliver the herbs, they could only refund the deposits with heavy compensation.

But the Cheng Family’s losses this time were too severe. In total, they had suffered nearly forty thousand taels worth of property damage, and having to compensate the Inner City with another twenty thousand taels was simply beyond their ability to pay.

Standing in the empty room, no longer able to hear the usual sounds of children cheering, Cheng Lian’Er suddenly felt as if she had been detached from the world. She felt like a wandering, lonely ghost, utterly isolated and forsaken.

She wondered if it was right or wrong to conceal his existence. Unaccountably thinking about the cause of everything, a bitter smile crept onto her lips.

She wanted to keep her promise and not reveal any news about Xu Guang, but today the Cheng Family had suffered such a devastating blow. Facing her increasingly old and frail grandfather, she had wanted to speak up countless times. Her conscience felt as though it was being interrogated—on one side was trustworthiness, and on the other was filial piety.

She was in deep torment.

"Bai, prepare the carriage. I’m going to the Inner City."

Cheng Lian’Er retrieved the Cultivation of Literature Rubbing from the ancestral hall, along with a detailed map recording the Cheng Family’s years of medicinal herb gathering, her gaze silent.

If she couldn’t survive this hurdle, she would give these two items to Xu Guang to repay him for saving her life. As for the favor he owed her, she would just let him owe it forever.

***

The Maid and servants prepared the carriage and escorted Cheng Lian’Er toward the Inner City. She was heading into the Inner City to make one last effort.

Cheng Lian’Er rested with her eyes closed, but suddenly heard her Maid’s exclamation.

"Miss, someone is blocking the road."

A flash of displeasure crossed Cheng Lian’Er’s face, thinking it was yet another family coming to demand debt repayment. However, when she opened the carriage curtain, she saw someone she hadn’t expected.

"It’s you."

Xu Guang looked at her silently, a hint of embarrassment on his face. "I heard that something happened to the Cheng Family, so I came to take a look."

A surge of resentment suddenly welled up within Cheng Lian’Er. "Didn’t you want nothing to do with me?" she said coldly.

Xu Guang looked at the slightly haggard Cheng Lian’Er. He also hadn’t expected that Qian Neng’s death would cause Qian Cheng to vent his anger on the Cheng Family.

"I still have some money. If you need it, I can lend it to you."

Cheng Lian’Er opened her mouth, but suddenly a bitter smile arose in her heart. That was a shortfall of nearly thirty thousand taels of silver. Even though Xu Guang had made somewhat of a name for himself recently, he was still far from having that kind of money.

"Is that so? It’s rare that you’re willing to help, but I won’t trouble you with this matter. I can handle it."

Xu Guang looked up at Cheng Lian’Er standing on the carriage, momentarily speechless.

In the end, the carriage and the man passed each other by, gradually drifting further apart.

Xu Guang remained silent. He didn’t know exactly how large the Cheng Family’s shortfall was. During this time, he had been doing missions outside the city. Those bandits were actually quite wealthy. After deducting the costs of buying medicine and daily expenses, he had managed to accumulate nearly ten thousand taels of silver. Converted into Gold, that was a full thousand taels.

Robbing the robbers had always been highly lucrative.

Cheng Lian’Er hadn’t let him help, but as if his conscience wouldn’t let it go, he carefully inquired around about the details and the situation surrounding her.

If the problem was hard to solve, then he would just go and solve the person causing the problem. If he killed Jade Elephant Seat Master Qian Cheng, all of the Cheng Family’s predicaments would naturally be easily resolved.

He wasn’t helping the Cheng Family; it was just that the Cheng Family’s batch of herbs being robbed presented a good opportunity. This shipment was extremely valuable and even contained several major herbs. He figured that even Qian Cheng would have to go and inspect the goods personally.

As long as he found that group of thieves, he would have a chance to meet Qian Cheng alone.

Based on his previous estimations, as long as the conditions were right, his probability of successfully killing Qian Cheng reached... ninety-nine percent!

Whether it was to avenge his Third Sister or to obtain Qian Cheng’s Bloodline Power, he was highly interested in both.