Chapter 339 - 327: Be on Guard

Chapter 339: Chapter 327: Be on Guard

After Shouyue left, Shouye came in.

"Father, Mother."

Chen Shouye entered the hall and bowed to his parents in greeting.

"Yes, Shouye. What is it?"

Chen Li pointed to one of the lower seats, gesturing for him to sit down and speak.

Once seated, Chen Shouye said, "Father, regarding your instructions to recruit Guests. Over the past few days, I’ve contacted my former martial brothers. As of now, thirteen have clearly agreed to join the Chen Family as Guests. These men are all at Qi Realm Perfection, and their foundations are solid."

He paused, then continued, "Additionally, some junior martial brothers from the martial arts hall, still in the Blood Refining Realm, have also expressed interest after hearing the news. However, I told them we could discuss it once they break through to the Qi Realm."

Chen Li nodded slightly upon hearing this.

’Thirteen experts at Qi Realm Perfection are a force to be reckoned with in any single county,’ he thought. ’They’re more than enough to bolster the family’s Guards and handle any ordinary trouble.’

’More importantly, these men are from the Kao Mountain Martial Arts Hall. They share a bond with Shouye as fellow disciples, so their loyalty and reliability should be relatively high.’

"You’ve done well."

Chen Li affirmed, "However, for those other junior martial brothers with truly outstanding talent and character, you don’t have to be so strict. If you find any saplings with great potential, the family can provide some early support with Medicinal Cuisine as a long-term investment. I’ll leave the specific details to your discretion."

"Yes, I understand."

Chen Shouye nodded. He hesitated for a moment before asking, "Father, since some of my martial brothers are willing to come, what about the specifics of their compensation, merits, and the system of rewards and punishments after they become Guests? How should we determine these things? I’ll need your guidance."

The question seemed to catch Chen Li slightly off guard, and he set down his teacup.

’I’d only been thinking about recruiting manpower to expand our strength,’ he reflected. ’I haven’t had a chance to carefully consider the specific mechanics of how this system for Guests will work.’

According to the prevailing customs of this world, the Guests and Honored Guests maintained by the Noble Families were two entirely different kinds of retainers.

Honored Guests had a more respected status and received generous treatment.

They were typically hired experts who received a fixed, generous monthly salary. The family supported them in their daily lives, and they were only expected to take action when the family faced a major crisis or required their assistance.

The relationship was more akin to one of employment and cooperation.

Guests, on the other hand, were far more complex.

They mostly sought refuge with Noble Families in search of an Inner Qi Heart Method to cultivate or access to high-grade Medicinal Cuisine.

A Noble Family typically didn’t provide its Guests with a fixed monthly stipend of money or provisions.

Guests were left to their own devices. Only when the Noble Family assigned a specific task would a Guest be compensated or rewarded according to the task’s difficulty and importance upon its completion.

When there was nothing to do, they even had to find their own means of support.

It was more of a loose, temporary affiliation.

But the situation with the thirteen men Chen Shouye had recruited was somewhat special.

They hadn’t come to pledge allegiance on their own initiative; rather, they were fellow martial brothers whom Chen Shouye had personally invited.

This relationship made the simple Guest model of "payment for tasks, self-sufficiency otherwise" less applicable.

If there were no basic benefits, he feared it would dishearten these martial brothers. They would think the Chen Family was stingy, and Chen Shouye would lose face, putting him in a difficult position.

Chen Li fell into a brief silence, lost in thought.

The hall grew quiet for a moment.

After a moment, Chen Li looked at Chen Shouye and said, "This matter truly requires careful deliberation so we can establish a lasting set of rules. A hasty decision could lead to oversights, which would be for the worse."

He paused briefly before continuing, "For now, just get those thirteen martial brothers settled. As for the rules, I need to consider them carefully. We’ll wait until your eldest brother and sister-in-law return, and then we’ll set down a thorough and reliable charter."

"Yes, Father!"

After agreeing, Chen Shouye departed.

...

「Three days passed in a flash.」

Chen Li sat behind his desk, holding three sheets of paper, the ink still fresh. He read them over, word by word.

This was the assignment he had punished Shoujing, Shouyue, and Shoucheng with, making them write it on the spot in the study while he personally watched.

This time, he hadn’t let the three youngsters return to their rooms. Instead, he’d ordered three desks to be brought in so they would have to complete their work right under his watch.

Seeing Shoujing’s interpretation, Chen Li’s brow twitched.

"Great are your words! I have a weakness; I am fond of valor."

Beside it was Shoujing’s annotation: "Speaking loudly! I’m sick! I’m so brave!"

Chen Li gently put down this answer sheet and rubbed the space between his eyebrows.

’My fourth son’s mind always works differently than other people’s.’

’Is he being deliberately naughty, or is his thinking just naturally this scattered?’

He turned his gaze to Shouyue’s and Shoucheng’s papers. This time, their interpretations were much more normal.

Although their explanations were still somewhat stiff and lacked precision, at least they weren’t as wild as Shoujing’s.

Chen Li set the three papers down and leaned back in his chair, a sense of understanding dawning on him.

’Shouyue’s and Shoucheng’s previous mistakes were likely due to a lack of proper teaching, plus being led astray by their "little tutor," Shoujing.’

’With a little pressure and guidance, they could get back on the right track and be serious about their studies.’

’But as for that boy Shoujing...’

Chen Li’s gaze fell on that answer sheet again, and the corner of his mouth twitched almost imperceptibly.

’That little rascal... Unlike Shouyue and Shoucheng, he’s the legitimate heir. The servants naturally fawn over him, his mother spoils him, and no one normally dares to discipline him. It’s easy for him to get up to no good.’

’He probably even coerced Shouyue and Shoucheng into giving the same wrong answer so they could all scrape by together.’

But what gave Chen Li some comfort was that, at critical moments, the boy could still step up and show a bit of accountability.

As he was lost in thought, a light set of footsteps approached from outside the study.

"Master."

"Come in."

The door was pushed open gently, and Jiang Nanyue entered gracefully, clad in a turquoise-green dress.

After three days in seclusion, her face held an inner radiance. Her skin was lustrous, as if all impurities had been washed away.

Those eyes, usually so adept at captivating souls, were now much clearer and deeper. With every glance, they faintly revealed the calm and dignity of a Grandmaster.

Instead, she now possessed an aura that seemed to resonate subtly with her surroundings.

Evidently, she had succeeded in breaking through and had formally stepped through the Divine Hall Pass.

She stopped a few paces before the desk, respectfully gathered the hem of her dress, and bowed gracefully. Her voice brimmed with sincere gratitude. "Nanyue thanks you, Master, for this gift of rebirth!"

This bow of hers was completely sincere.

A rare treasure like the Soul-Stabilizing Pill, which could directly help a person locate their Divine Hall Acupoint, had a value that simply couldn’t be measured in gold and silver. The appearance of a single pill was enough to stir up a bloodbath in the Jianghu.

Yet Chen Li had bestowed it upon her so easily.

This favor was too great.

Chen Li accepted her bow with composure and raised his hand slightly. "Rise."

He looked Jiang Nanyue over and nodded in satisfaction.

’A Divine Hall Grandmaster is a prominent figure no matter where you go.’

’With her overseeing the Xiang Sect in Jiangzhou, I can rest easier.’

Chen Li wasted no more words and gave his orders directly. "Now that you’ve broken through, return to Jiangzhou at once and focus all your efforts on seizing control of the Xiang Sect’s forces there. You must establish a firm foothold and straighten out your relationships. If you encounter the Buried Bone Fragrance... you must proceed with extreme caution. You may feign compliance for the time being, but send a messenger to me. Do not act without authorization, and under no circumstances are you to expose our connection."

He had his own reasons for giving the Soul-Stabilizing Pill to Jiang Nanyue.

At the Inner Mansion Pass of the Spirit Realm, Jiang Nanyue might have had a thousand tricks up her sleeve, but in front of the Xiang Sect’s upper echelons, she ultimately lacked any real say.

After all, strength was the most fundamental backing.

A Divine Hall Grandmaster, however, had the capital to maneuver and negotiate.

Only when Jiang Nanyue truly controlled the Xiang Sect’s resource network in Jiangzhou could Chen Li leverage its intelligence channels and open up a sales channel for the silk his family would produce in the future.

This investment was crucial for his long-term strategy.

"Rest assured, Master. Nanyue understands."

Jiang Nanyue replied in a soft voice, "I will not fail the task you’ve entrusted to me, Master."

She paused, as if remembering something, and lowered her voice slightly. "Master, before Nanyue departs, there is one more thing I wish to remind you of."

"What is it?" Chen Li looked up.

"It’s about that Zhao Yuanhong, Governor Zhao."

A peculiar glint flashed in Jiang Nanyue’s beautiful eyes. "This man is a skilled opportunist, deeply calculating, and audacious to a fault. He is far from being as simple as he appears. When you cooperate with him, Master, you must be especially cautious."

Chen Li’s gaze sharpened. "What do you mean by that?"

Jiang Nanyue said, "I won’t hide it from you, Master. I had some dealings with this Zhao Yuanhong in the past, so I know a thing or two about the kind of person he is."

She began to recount a hidden story from the past: "Seven or eight years ago, Zhao Yuanhong was still serving as a garrison commander under the Jiangzhou Governor. At that time, his Cultivation was only at the Spirit Realm Second Level, and his official post was not high. But somehow, he ended up handling the transport of a huge amount of pay silver for the border army."

"As far as I know, the man was so audacious that he secretly embezzled all of it to buy Medicinal Cuisine and other resources to advance his own Cultivation. When the matter was later exposed, he was cornered with nowhere to turn. He managed to find out about me and came seeking my help."

Chen Li listened quietly, his brows furrowed slightly.

’Embezzling military funds is a capital crime. An amount that large would be enough to get his entire clan exterminated and his family assets seized.’

’Zhao Yuanhong was just a garrison commander at the time. How did he have such nerve?’

"How was the matter resolved?"

Jiang Nanyue replied, "He came to me hoping to borrow a huge sum from the Xiang Sect to cover his losses. He asked for six hundred thousand taels of silver right off the bat.

Later, for some unknown reason, the Xiang Sect’s upper echelons actually approved the loan. After he got the money, he covered the deficit and managed to save his life and his official post."

"And then?" Chen Li pressed.

’This version of the story was completely different from the one Zhou Shuwei told me,’ he noted internally. ’In her telling, it was her clansman Zhao Yuanqi who embezzled the funds, and Zhao Yuanhong who stepped up to cover the loss.’

"About half a year later, he found me again and repaid the Xiang Sect eight hundred thousand taels of silver, covering both principal and interest. I was astonished at the time and even investigated it secretly, but it was as if that enormous sum of money had appeared out of thin air. I don’t know much about what happened after that."

After listening, a sharp glint flashed in Chen Li’s eyes.

’A man who would dare embezzle a huge sum of military pay, who could then quickly clean up the mess, and who could procure eight hundred thousand taels to repay the debt in such a short time...’

’This Zhao Yuanhong is anything but simple!’

"I understand."

Chen Li nodded. "Your reminder was timely. Be careful on the road. I’m entrusting the matter of Jiangzhou to you."

"Nanyue will not fail the task you have entrusted, Master."

Jiang Nanyue said no more. She bowed once more, then turned and departed with graceful steps. Her figure was light, and in a flash, she had disappeared beyond the corridor.

The study fell silent once more.

Chen Li sat alone behind his desk for a moment, then rose and walked into a secret chamber.

He took out the ledger and the secret order he had obtained from Hidden Emperor Castle. Staring at the densely packed names in the ledger, he fell deep into thought.