Translator: AstralGhost Editor: Kurisu
You Prefecture is one of China’s four megacities and home to countless rich and influential families with deep legacies and great power. [1]
The prices of properties here were sky-high. In fact, the annual pay of most people wouldn’t even be enough to buy a toilet in this area!
However, in the heart of the city, where every single inch of land was invaluable, an ancient, immense grand manor several hectares in size, stood proud and aloof!
This was definitely not something that could be acquired with money alone. One must possess heaven-defying influence in order to display their power in such a domineering fashion!
Of course, a clan like the Qin family, with their lineage of over three hundred years, had the qualifications to establish an impressive manor like that which dominated such a vast amount of land in You Prefecture. For the last three hundred years, the Qin Clan had lorded over You Prefecture, and although their power had been challenged on countless occasions, never once had they suffered defeat!
Inside the manor, luxuriant, green plants could be seen everywhere. It was as if hundreds of gorgeous blossoming flowers were competing with each other, vying for the title of the most splendorous one among them.
Countless servants were shuffling about the manor, busy with their work to keep the manor clean and tidy. Beautiful trees and delicate flowers could be seen literally everywhere! A crystal clear stream flowed gently through the garden toward the Northern side of the manor, where the path following along it gradually became opened up to a wide space. Towering buildings stood on each side of the path, exquisite patterns carved on their thresholds. At a glance, the manor was as white as snow. Its stone steps pierced through the clouds, and elegant, white stones were used for its columns. A pond surrounded the manor, with three wide stone bridges connecting the land divided by water. Old-fashioned stone drainpipes looking like dragon heads jutted out of the side of each bridge, forming an exceptionally picturesque scene. [2]
Numerous priceless koi fishes were swimming lazily in a man-made creek.
It was impossible to tell how much resources, blood and sweat it took in order to establish such a paradise in the middle of a chaotic city!
At that moment, within an enormous meeting hall in the manor, all the members of the Qin family were gathered.
Everyone among the people present in the hall was actually an influential character that even the You Prefecture’s mayor would greet as a VVIP!
A middle-aged man in his early thirties swept his eyes over the group as he sat atop the seat of the family’s head.
“Patriarch, recently, the Hua family has become much bolder! They dared to ally themselves with a major family outside of our You Prefecture and, time and again, are deliberately provoking and challenging our authority!”
A middle-aged man stepped out from the crowd, bowed respectfully to the man who sat cross-legged on the seat of the family’s head, and reported in a deep voice.
“Hmph! These guys are quite ballsy!”
“They’re seeking death! Did they really think that they’re the strongest family in You Prefecture?!”
“Patriarch, allow me to go and annihilate the Hua Clan! I’ll trample them properly for sure!”
Before the man addressed as Patriarch even had the chance to say anything, an old man and two other middle-aged men shouted loudly in rage!
“Hmph! You guys should really learn to keep your temperaments in check! We are living in the new era now!”
The middle-aged man leaned back on his elevated seat and snorted coldly.
“So what if some of you guys are impervious to guns and blades? You can’t even stop a missile, not to mention a nuclear weapon!”
The group had an ugly expression on their faces as they listened to his words.
“Right now, the most important matter is not the Hua Clan! A mere Hua Clan can be easily squashed anytime we want to! Do you all not know that the critical issue right now is the Wang family?! We must place our priority on snatching that thing!”
The middle-aged man continued. Although his tone was not very harsh, it was extremely domineering and inviolable!
“Yes, Patriarch!” The group bowed their heads in unison.
“If there’s nothing else, you are dismissed,” Qin Wufa took one last look at the group before getting up from the seat of honour. Immediately, his figure turned hazy; and after several seconds, the hazy figure dispersed completely into the air. Qin Wufa had disappeared, as though he had never even been there at all!
“The Patriarch’s cultivation had increased yet again! I really wonder what kind of realm he’s reached by now!”
A few old men raised their eyebrows in shock as they mumbled to themselves.
Back in his own study, Qin Wufa stood by a tall window. He was gazing outside, a melancholic expression on his face. Although he looked young, his eyes revealed a solemn and weather-worn spirit.
“Qin Yi.”
After some time passed, Qin Wufa called out lightly.
“Your subordinate is here, sir!” A masked man suddenly stepped out from the shadows of the apparently empty room and knelt on one knee as he respectfully replied.
“Is there still no lead on that matter?” Qin Wufa did not even turn around as he asked softly.
“Your subordinate is useless. I was unable to obtain any leads...“ Qin Yi lowered his head further in shame.
“Keep on searching! If he’s still alive, I want to see him! If he’s dead, then I want to see his corpse!” A formidable aura suddenly exploded out of Qin Wufa’s skinny body as he said this.
“Ke chi!”
The wooden frame of the study room started to creak under the pressure.
“Yes, Sir!” At that moment, Qin Yi felt as though he had been submerged within an icy pit, rendering him immobile.
“My precious child... it’s been twenty five years... are you still alive?”
Qin Wufa stared out of the window and mumbled softly.
***
Bei Feng was naturally oblivious to the waves surging in You Prefecture and was currently sending Wang Jian and Liu Ziyun off. Wang Jian had to leave immediately after lunch. He was a company’s chairman, after all, and there were many things that required his attention.
The old mansion finally resumed its quiet and calm again as Bei Feng was left alone to clean up.
‘Hmm... I’m running out of supplementary ingredients... Looks like I’ll have to go out and buy some more.’
Bei Feng stared at the scarce amount of vegetables left in his fridge and sighed.
Having no tendency to procrastinate, Bei Feng quickly locked up the mansion and proceeded to the village.
There weren’t many people on the streets due to the terror of the hot summer noon sun. The majority of the villagers was hiding in their houses to escape from the heat.
Thus, Bei Feng did not need to spend too much time to buy all of the ingredients he needed.
“Woof! Ruff!”
Just as he was about to turn around and go back to the old mansion, he realized that two dirty puppies of an unknown breed had been following behind him for quite some time.
If he made a step forward, the two puppies would hurry to keep up. If he stopped, they would run in circles around Bei Feng, wagging their tails and barking cutely.
Bei Feng decided to ignore them, and continued walking at a leisurely pace.
When he finally reached the old mansion, the two puppies barked excitedly and actually ran ahead of Bei Feng into the mansion, their tails wagging excitedly.
‘Ah! Well, forget it... I suppose we do have a bit of fate for us to meet...’
Bei Feng paused for a moment and chuckled to himself.
Initially, Bei Feng had decided that if the two puppies were to stop following him before he reached the mansion, then he wouldn’t bother with them.
However, since they had actually followed him all the way, he might as well take them in. In any case, the mansion felt rather empty and lacked some liveliness with him being the only person to live there.
‘Shouldn’t I give them a bath first?’ Bei Feng put down the stuff he bought on the kitchen table as he looked at the two puppies playing in the yard.
After a brief mental struggle, he eventually filled a bucket with water and added some soap to it.
Squatting next to the bucket, Bei Feng whistled at the puppies. The two little dogs playing in the yard immediately ran over wagging their tails when they heard Bei Feng’s call.
“Yip! YIP!”
Bei Feng completely ignored the struggling and wailing as he picked up a puppy with each hand and gently dipped them into the bucket of water.
“Oh? You two little things are actually wolfdogs!”
The color of the puppies’s fur finally became apparent after a few rounds of bathing.
Hurriedly escaping to the side after having finally been released from the terrible bubbly hell, the two little wolfdogs glared at the evil demon lord, Bei Feng, with dread and a hint of regret in their eyes.
Bei Feng laughed lightly and ignored the disgruntled looks from the puppies as he proceeded to practice the Minor Illumination Breathing Technique beneath the banyan tree. [3]
Time passed quickly and, in the blink of an eye, evening came.
Bei Feng repeated the same preparations as the last time and got ready to receive the guests for dinner. As he walked along the dried mud path to the village, he sighed, thinking that this was somewhat of a pain in the neck. Did he really have to come out every time to receive the guests? Wasn’t this too much of a waste of time?
However, not fetching the guests was not an option either. The mansion was really too remote and most people would not be able to find their way in.
By the time Bei Feng finally reached the village entrance, there were only four guests waiting there. The other group had gotten tired of waiting and left already.
The corner of Bei Feng’s mouth twitched a little as he took out his mobile phone and returned the deposit to that group.
He could only lead the remaining four guests back to the mansion and resume cooking.
In the beginning, the four guests felt that they had been tricked. Even if it was a private restaurant, what kind of a restaurant was so out-of-the-way?!
However, as soon as they took their first bite, all the dissatisfaction and doubts in their hearts had completely disappeared. No matter how long they had to wait, no matter how much they had to walk... such delicious food was worth it!
[1] TL/N: Youzhou or You Prefecture (also known as You Province) is a place name for an ancient zhou or prefecture in northern China. Youzhou is cited in some ancient sources as one of the nine or twelve original provinces of China during early Chinese antiquity (22nd Century BC).
[2] TL/N: Here’s an image of the dragon head drainpipe: https://www.123rf.com/photo_33148065_a-drain-tube-of-the-chinese-ancient-building.html
ED:/N: Also, about the thresholds. This part is extremely unclear: logically speaking, you wouldn’t carve anything on the floor, but I double-checked, and it seems that it’s actually true here... As for the steps piercing the clouds, it really is there, just treat it as epic exaggeration.
[3] ED/N: Just the movements, I presume.