Chapter 95: Fang Zhentian
The elderly man before them was dressed in simple attire. His face was full of wrinkles, and he looked frail, however none of the people present dared to underestimate him because of that.
The person who had arrived was Fang Zhentian, an old-timer who has lived through the rule of three emperors. His seniority surpassed even the minister of justice, Jiang Yushu.
In his youth, he was a formidable warrior, and he was responsible for conquering much of the territory that now belonged to the Grand Xia Empire. Although he possessed outstanding martial talent and had reached the pinnacle of the Qi Manipulation Stage, he had unfortunately suffered many hidden injuries from countless years of battle, which hindered that last and final step which would propel him into the Qi Core Stage.
When Fang Zhentian had approached his middle years, he announced his early retirement and relinquished ninety-nine percent of his military authority. At that time, Fang Canghai and Fang Cangyou, who were in their prime, took over. They quickly became rising stars in the military. However, compared to Fang Zhentian, they were still a notch behind in both martial talent as well leadership skills, and it was in their period that the Fang Family started to decline slowly. Of course, the situation changed once again when Fang Chen appeared.
It was well-known amongst everyone that part of the reason Fang Chen had been able to establish himself in the military in such a short period of time was because he had rode on the lingering influence left by Fang Zhentian; when the older generals saw Fang Chen, it seemed as though they had seen a young Fang Zhentian!
When Xiao Shence and Yan Beihan saw Fang Zhentian, they subconsciously took a step back, their expressions becoming serious. There was a touch of doubt in their eyes.
If Old Master Fang was already out of seclusion, did that mean that he actually broke through to the Qi Core Stage? Or... was it just that he had failed?
Seeing Fang Zhentian, joy flashed through Fang Cangyou’s face, and he quickly said, "Old Master Fang, did you actually break through?”
Instead of answering the question, Fang Zhentian went off and scolded him. "How did you end up in a wheelchair while I wasn’t around, you brat! Didn’t I tell you to just get married and raise a nice family, but you just had to go against my wishes! Look at you; if you had found yourself a good wife, you wouldn’t have had your legs ruined messing around outside!”
Fang Cangyou's expression changed slightly.
Watching Fang Cangyou be scolded, Yan Beihan couldn’t help but feel embarrassed; he was the reason Fang Cangyuou became disabled to begin with....
"Father." Fang Chen's mother hurriedly stepped forward to support the old man. Fang Zhixue quickly helped her. They supported Fang Zhentian from both sides.
"Little lass, you’ve already reached the Qi Detonation Stage. That’s pretty good! Of all the women in my Fang Manor, you have the best talent!” Fang Zhentian smiled at Fang Zhixue as he praised her.
Fang Zhixue's face revealed a touch of pride, and she didn’t shy away from fishing for more praise, saying, "Grandfather, I’ll surely enter the Qi Manipulation Stage in the future!”
Fang Zhentian gently patted Fang Zhixue's head. "Good, very good. I hope I can witness that day when it comes."
Fang Zhentian then looked at Fang Chen's mother. "What about Canghai, where is he?"
"They said that he has been invited to the imperial palace already," Fang Chen's mother replied calmly. She then summarized the entire situation in brief statements.
When Fang Zhentian heard that Fang Chen had recovered his cultivation, he was quickly elated, and a gleam of excitement flashed in his eyes. "Oh? Chen'er has recovered his cultivation? That's great news."
Fang Cangyou quickly wheeled himself closer to them and added, "Father, not only has Chen’er managed to recover his cultivation, he has even grown stronger. There is no need for you to remain in seclusion from here on out.”
When Fang Chen was injured five years ago, Fang Zhentian had no choice but to enter seclusion.
Fang Cangyou didn’t comment on that. He only stared at Fang Chen’s mother and asked her, "Where’s Chen'er?"
"Chen'er had something to deal with in the southern region and left. We have no idea when he will be back," whispered Fang Chen's mother.
"Could there be trouble with the martial artists in the southern region?" murmured Zhentian to himself. "Those guys are not easy to deal with. Fortunately, Chen'er should be able to handle them."
After a pause, Fang Zhentian looked at Xiao Shence and Yan Beihan. "What did the emperor say?" he asked.
"The emperor has ordered for every member of the Fang Family to be present in the Hall of Supreme Harmony. Zhou Xiu's death has caused the nobles of the Frost Water Empire to demand accountability," Xiao Shence said.
"Who did the Frost Water Empire send?" asked Fang Zhentian casually.
"Ji Lengyue, a prominent member of the Ji family," Xiao Shence said in a deep voice.
"The emperor has no choice. Zhou Xiu, whom Fang Chen killed, was a viscount carrying the Ji Family’s blood. That’s why the Frost Water Empire intervened.”
"Ji Family? The family that established the Nightmare Knights?" Fang Zhentian's eyebrows furrowed. “I clashed with the Nightmare Knights once before when I was young. They aren’t to be underestimated.”
Everyone was taken aback to hear that.
Xiao Shence and Yan Beihan glanced at each other, each wondering to himself, is the old master of the Fang Family actually so amazing? Did he really clash with the terrifying Nightmare Knights?
"Since the emperor wants us to go, let's pay them a visit," said Fang Zhentian indifferently. "Whatever it is, we just have to clear things up."
With that, Huang Sihai and the others quickly dispelled the idea of attacking; they knew that if they went against Fang Zhentian’s orders, Fang Chen would definitely teach them a lesson when he returned.
"By the way, get someone to stay behind to inform Chen’er when he returns,” said Fang Zhentian casually to Xiao Shence.
Niu Jue suddenly interjected, “I’ll stay behind, Commander.”
Xiao Shence glanced at him briefly, then nodded slightly. "Alright, you stay."
*
A crowd had gathered outside the Fang Manor for a while now. After all, it was impossible to suppress what was happening with the commotion the Valiant Saber Guards had caused. The street before the Fang Manor was filled to the brim with people. Among the crowd were the servants of the other families. Everyone wanted to learn what was going on.
Finally, when they saw the members of the Fang Family escorted out by the Valiant Saber Guards and Imperial Guards, they were shocked, and fright flashed through their eyes.
"Is the Frost Water Empire planning to end the Fang bloodline? They are even taking away the servants and maidservants?"
"Where is Divine General Fang? Why can’t I see him?”
The crowd was suddenly brimming with anger. Even Xu Ge and the others were agitated, and they glanced at each other. Fortunately, they restrained the impulse to take action.
"Didn’t I say that the Frost Water Empire is here to hold someone accountable? The Grand Xia Emperor won’t sit by and do nothing. The Fang family is finished!”
"Who's that old man?"
"Mmhmm. Could it be the old patriarch of the Fang Family?"
"It seems to be him indeed..."
"It looks like they are really serious this time."
"Of course. The Grand Xia Empire wouldn’t dare to deceive the Frost Water Empire.”
"Why is Fang Chen nowhere to be seen?"
"I heard he left the capital."
"That brat... Did he already know that the Frost Water Empire is coming for him and left in advance?"
Not far away, scholars from Guhe and Yizhou were whispering as they pointed toward the members of the Fang Family. On the other side, the younger generation of the Grand Xia Empire, led by Tao Yu and Ye Qinghe, were gathered on the street, watching this scene unfold.
"Did they really force the old patriarch of the Fang Clan out of seclusion?”
Ye Qinghe was somewhat shocked. He had heard numerous stories about Fang Zhentian from his father. His story was almost a parallel to what had happened to Fang Chen. They actually forced such a figure out of seclusion!
"The Fang Family is really in trouble this time."
Tao Yu brow knit together. "If the Fang Family is really wiped out, Grand Xia's military strength will likely decline. The morale of our troops will plummet without a doubt at that time.”
"But Brother Tao Yu, isn't this a good thing? The Fang Family are all just a bunch of tyrants that conduct their affairs in an extremely domineering fashion. This might be a blessing in disguise for our empire now that they’ll be gone.”
"Yeah, Fang Chen only stirs up trouble. This is all just him facing the consequences of his actions. But he really had to drag us into this whole mess, didn’t he? Even Grand Xia has been held accountable by the Frost Water Empire because of what he had done"
Many youngsters spoke up, but their words were mostly spoken out of jealousy. They were envious of Fang Chen, who—despite them all being close in age—had accomplishments they could hardly match up to.
When Tao Yu heard their words, he couldn’t help but grimace in contempt. "You fools,” he called out. "Our conflict with Fang Chen can at most be considered internal strife in Grand Xia. Do you idiots really think that it's a good thing if the Fang Family is eradicated? If the Longdu Empire comes for us, who’s going to stop them?”
The crowd was momentarily stunned, and Ye Qinghe glanced at Tao Yu. He stated calmly, "Nowadays, there are many talents in the military. They've just been overshadowed by Fang Chen. If the Fang Family falls, someone else will step up to defend our empire."
Tao Yu shook his head slightly. "Qinghe, if Grand Xia wasn’t facing many impending external threats, then the fall of the Fang Family might have indeed been a good thing for us,” he agreed, but then added, “Unfortunately, none of you can see the bigger picture. The Fang Family cannot fall. At the very least, they can’t fall today.”
Ye Qinghe was about to argue, but the words died in his throat as he exclaimed in surprise, "Hey! The members of the Grand Brilliance Bureau came too!"
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