In just a few minutes, news that the Ten Thousand Martial Guards had turned their swords on the Zhang Family sent a jolt through the locals of Cangyun City, leaving them dumbfounded and speechless.
The Zhang Family and Zhang Zhi... what an imposing existence they once were. To think it has co to this...
So powerful and noble families imdiately bolted their courtyard gates, cowering in corners and trembling with fear, not daring to make a sound.
However, so still spoke out forcefully. "What are the Hanyun Valley Martial Guards doing? Are they rebelling? Where are the other divisions? Act quickly! Our safety is under severe threat!"
How could they not understand the principle of 'when the lips are gone, the teeth are cold'? As they clamored for protection, they conveniently forgot the disgraceful roles they themselves had played in the recent turmoil and how their own families had amassed their wealth and power.
To the common people, however, the situation was rather baffling. It was just rumored that the Supre Martial Commander from Hanyun Valley had gone to the Long Family to have an audience with the Southern Pole Royal Clan. So why had this suddenly erupted right after? Not long ago, this sa Supre Martial Commander had used his authority to high-handedly dismantle several interest groups, smashing the rice bowls of many. And now this.
The situation was escalating rapidly. All of Cangyun City was placed under strict martial law as half of the Ten Thousand Martial Guards were mobilized to control the populace. Everyone was stunned. When had they ever witnessed such a spectacle?
For a mont, the atmosphere across Cangyun City grew tense, thick with the feeling of an impending storm.
This news also reached the Long Family in an instant. The group, which just monts ago had been full of laughter and ridicule, now sat on pins and needles, their faces etched with panic. They had only co to curry favor with the Southern Pole Royal Clan and witness Chen Yang's humiliation, but now...
This script seems to be unfolding all wrong!
Every single one of them was visibly pale, beads of cold sweat trickling down their faces. Their heads were bowed, the earlier ease and comfort completely gone, replaced by expressions of sheer horror. The Hanyun Valley Martial Guard had mobilized. A full one hundred fifty thousand strong—though they uttered not a single word, their purpose was crystal clear to all.
AHEM.
The tall, thin middle-aged man who had earlier demanded that Chen Yang kneel and serve tea to Long Kuang grew restless. He coughed deliberately, intending to remind everyone not to just sit there like fools. Perhaps to hide his own anxiety, he quickly clutched his teacup with both hands and took a distracted sip.
As he stared at the constant stream of notifications on his phone, Long Cangqing, the Patriarch of the Long Family, felt his recently triumphant expression falter. The corners of his mouth twitched uncontrollably, and his fingers trembled violently.
It was only because he had hitched his wagon to the Southern Pole Royal Clan—or more accurately, because he had curried favor with Tang Yunfeng—that he could act so high and mighty, serving as their arrogant vanguard. But now...
Long Kuang, in particular, was in a sorry state. Just monts ago, he had been waiting for Chen Yang to kneel and serve him tea. Now, he stood frozen to the spot, the color draining from his face.
HUFF... HUFF...
After taking a few deep breaths, he cautiously began to move. Seeing no reaction from Chen Yang, he quickly scurried away to hide behind Long Cangqing. Feeling that wasn't safe enough, he even stooped slightly, trying to avoid Chen Yang's line of sight.
The hall fell so silent you could hear a pin drop. Yang Hu approached and relayed the information he had just received to Chen Yang, word for word.
Chen Yang shook his head slightly. "That fellow Liu Wu... isn't he being a bit too reckless?"
"The Elders' Court approved it," Yang Hu added.
Chen Yang fell into thought and said no more. The nature of this incident is just as serious as when I killed Han Qing. If the higher-ups decide to pursue this, none of us can escape.
Seated at the head of the table, Tang Ziyan slowly set down her teacup. "What happened?" she asked faintly, her gaze shifting to Long Kuang.
Long Kuang dared not delay. He quickly approached Tang Ziyan and recounted the entire affair, concluding, "That man is unbelievably audacious! Is he planning to rebel?"
"No wonder the rumors say he's morally bankrupt and has a penchant for killing. It turns out to be true."
Like a man grasping at straws, Long Kuang pointed an accusing finger at Chen Yang, his face a mask of pained indignation.
Tang Yunfeng smirked and glanced at Chen Yang. "I'm surprised. To think you still possess such influence at a precarious ti like this. Or is this just the final flare-up before the fla dies out—a last, desperate struggle?"
"He's just courting death. What's the point?" Long Kuang scoffed, then puffed out his chest and declared, "I would never submit to a person like that!"
With that said, the eldest young master of the Long Family stood quietly beside Tang Yunfeng with his hands clasped behind his back. Only here did he feel completely safe.
Tang Yunfeng idly tapped his fingers on the table. "This little bit of influence," he said slowly, "what does it amount to when compared to my Southern Pole Royal Clan?"
Long Kuang imdiately chid in, "It's not even worth a fart!"
"Transmit my family's order! Tell those damn Martial Guards to get lost imdiately! Tell them to crawl back to wherever they ca from!" Tang Yunfeng stated indifferently. "Otherwise, they will face the consequences."
As a mber of a royal clan, who in this entire land would dare to challenge their might? Who would dare to disobey a single word from them?
As soon as he spoke, the nearly frozen atmosphere in the hall suddenly relaxed.
The tall, thin middle-aged man, Yang Bo, was the first to rise. He gave Tang Yunfeng a fist-and-palm salute and said, "Mr. Tang, you are truly magnanimous! You are saving the people of Cangyun City from dire straits!"
"Unlike so people." Yang Bo glanced at Chen Yang, his tone dripping with sarcasm. "Still acting all high and mighty based on so lingering prestige! Never mind your current awkward predicant; even at your peak, what were you in front of Mr. Tang?"
The ever-poised Tang Ziyan raised a slender hand and pointed it at Chen Yang, speaking as if lecturing a child. "You've already fallen this far, and yet you're still trying to show off. How utterly childish."
"Besides, no matter how much you struggle, it can't compare to a single word from my Royal Clan. Have you no sha?"
"HA HA!!"
"That's hilarious!"
The hall imdiately erupted in a wave of derisive laughter. The crowd, who had been on pins and needles just monts before, instantly relaxed, their faces once again filled with schadenfreude.
Tang Yunfeng raised his hand, gesturing condescendingly at Long Kuang. "Go to the Zhang Family—no, go directly to the Elders' Court! Tell those old fossils my intentions. Tell them Tang Yunfeng says to imdiately disband that force of one hundred fifty thousand."
The Southern Pole Royal Clan had personally intervened. Without a doubt, this tempestuous affair would be resolved with ease.
"Yes, sir!" Long Kuang replied, his face a picture of arrogance. He nodded repeatedly. "I'll go right away!"
「anwhile.」
The turmoil surrounding the Zhang Family continued to escalate. As a new piece of information spread, the tense silence over Cangyun City was shattered once more.
"The Southern Pole Royal Clan, Mr. Tang Yunfeng himself, has intervened! He's already sent soone to the Elders' Court with orders to imdiately disband the Martial Guard! If they don't comply, the Southern Pole Royal Clan will hold them accountable!"
"Serves them right! Those damn bastards! Let's see if they dare to act so arrogantly now!"
Several powerful families that had been hiding in fear began to erge from the woodwork, eagerly awaiting the mont the Hanyun Valley troops would be forced out of Cangyun City.
They had thought the heavens were about to change, but in the end... Was this not a case of 'just when the mountains and streams seem to end, the shade of willows and brightness of flowers reveal another village'? It was a sudden, unexpected reprieve.
Now that Mr. Tang Yunfeng of the Southern Pole Royal Clan had intervened, who would dare to cause trouble? Who would dare to throw their weight around and wantonly execute the powerful elites of Cangyun City?
"Everyone just watch! This band of reckless brutes will soon be run out of Cangyun City!"
As the Patriarch of the Long Family, Long Cangqing naturally wouldn't miss such a golden opportunity to ingratiate himself with Tang Yunfeng and bolster his own prestige. He declared publicly:
"The Supre Martial Commander? The Elders' Court? In front of the Southern Pole Royal Clan, they're nothing but farts in the wind!"
...
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