Chapter 352: The Powerful and Noble of the Imperial Capital

Chapter 352: Chapter 352: The Powerful and Noble of the Imperial Capital

Huang Wanyao’s smug, haughty expression struck Qin Tianxuan as hilarious.

He chuckled. "It seems you still haven’t guessed. If you had, you’d be calling me ’uncle’ by now."

"Please, old man. Wutian dealt with that bunch of rich kids in the Northern Domain today and even brought in the Night Emperor’s Guard. Is your identity even a mystery? You’re just a member of the Personal Guard, aren’t you?"

Huang Wanyao grew even more smug. "I’m very clever, you know. You’re one of the Night Emperor’s Personal Guard, so that’s how you guessed who I am. That old man of yours from the Northern Domain has a great relationship with my grandfather."

Hm?

Qin Tianxuan was speechless. "The old man from the Northern Domain... are you talking about the Night Emperor?"

"Of course. Like I said, I’m very clever," Huang Wanyao said proudly. "I’m not one of those stupid rich brats!"

Qin Tianxuan said coolly, "You’re better than them, but not by much."

You!

Huang Wanyao was fuming again.

For some reason, this old man was like her nemesis; every word he said left her sputtering with frustration.

Finally, she huffed, "Don’t think being one of the Night Emperor’s Guard is such a big deal. I’m telling you, the Dragon Platform Phoenix Hall has already dispatched a prodigy of a Captain, and he’s going to Shangdu to teach your precious Night Emperor a lesson!"

Oh?

Qin Tianxuan simply smiled and said nothing.

Huang Tian had already given him a heads-up about this.

He had overstepped his bounds to deal with Yuan Shanhe. The Imperial Capital, and the Daqin Royal Family in particular, would certainly seize upon the matter and refuse to let it go.

That was why the Dragon Platform Phoenix Hall had to send someone to handle it.

Qin Tianxuan had also made it clear: he didn’t care who they sent, as long as it wasn’t someone from the Qin Family or the Ye Family.

He ignored Huang Wanyao, closed his eyes to rest, and they traveled the rest of the way in silence.

The rest of the journey was torture for Huang Wanyao.

Her pride wouldn’t let her be the first to break the silence, but she couldn’t help wanting to chat with the old man next to her.

As it turned out, he was fast asleep and paid her no mind at all.

When they arrived at the Shangdu station, it was already late at night. Huang Wanyao got off the train in a fury and stormed off without a word.

Qin Tianxuan stretched, watching the girl’s retreating back. ’Lingsu, give Wutian a heads-up. Have him look after the young miss of the Huang Family. She’s Huang Tian’s granddaughter, after all. I should give him some face.’

With that, he and Lingsu headed straight for the estate at Water Moon Cave Heaven.

Along the way, Lingsu was constantly receiving and collating reports from various channels.

"Sir, the news that the Imperial Capital has dispatched a Captain to deal with you has already spread. These are some of the rumors circulating within the various factions in Shangdu. They’re quite amusing—it’s as if they think you’re finished."

And indeed, rumors were running rampant in Shangdu.

The story went that the retired Night Emperor had committed a treasonous act by dealing with Vice Governor Yuan Shanhe.

As a result, the Imperial Capital was enraged and had sent someone from Dragon Platform Phoenix Hall to deal with the Night Emperor himself.

Soon, there might not even be a Night Emperor to speak of.

But even more malicious rumors continued to surface.

"I heard that the Night Emperor was forced into retirement, so he’s resentful. They say his visit to Shangdu is suspicious—he might be planning to defect to the enemy!"

"That’s impossible! Who would believe that?"

"Why not? Shangdu is crawling with all kinds of factions. Never mind the Celestial Demons and their legions of ghosts, have you heard of the Martial Arts Alliance? All the big names in the Jianghu are gathering because they’re worried about the Night Emperor defecting."

The rumors grew more and more absurd with every telling.

By the time they arrived at the Shuiyue Cave Heaven Villa, these kinds of rumors had already spread throughout the entire upper echelon.

’The Daqin Royal Family is getting more and more shameless. They’ve stooped to spreading rumors to undermine me.’

Qin Tianxuan scoffed. "In the face of absolute power, any and all schemes are nothing but paper tigers."

Inside the Shuiyue Cave Heaven Villa, Hua Zhaoxing and his wife, who were staying there temporarily, came out to greet them, their faces utterly pale.

Qin Tianxuan frowned. "What happened?"

Yan Xinyue dropped to her knees with a thud. "Mr. Qin, please, you have to help me! I don’t know who else to turn to."

Hua Zhaoxing was also trembling all over, his face a mask of rage.

Qin Tianxuan looked behind them. "Don’t make such a scene. Hua Hua is sleeping, isn’t she?"

"Hua Hua... she’s... she’s been taken!" Yan Xinyue wailed, breaking down in tears.

A jolt went through Qin Tianxuan. "Impossible! No one can take anyone from this place."

Hua Zhaoxing raised a hand and slapped himself across the face. "It was me! I was a fool! The Hua Family tricked me... they said my mother was dying and I had to go deal with the inheritance... and that I had to bring Hua Hua so she could see her grandmother one last time..."

Qin Tianxuan shot him a cold glance. "You useless fool! And you believed them?"

Hua Zhaoxing was a complete mess, sobbing uncontrollably.

Yan Xinyue lunged at him, punching and kicking. "After we get our daughter back this time, I’m divorcing you, you useless piece of trash!"

Qin Tianxuan bellowed, "If you two want to fight, do it outside!"

The couple fell silent.

Qin Tianxuan picked up a towel to wipe his face. "The Hua Family can’t stir up any real trouble. I’ll handle this."

Hua Zhaoxing stammered, trembling, "My brother... the one who was in prison... he’s back. They took Hua Hua to force me to transfer the money you gave me, sir, to my brother!"

The 18 billion from the Golden Sparrow Silver Alliance and the God of Wealth Hall!

Qin Tianxuan threw the towel down, leaned in, and glared at Hua Zhaoxing. "You listen to me, and you listen good. That money was my gift to Hua Hua. The only reason you two basket cases are even allowed to stay here is because of her! Don’t you forget it!"

Hua Zhaoxing nodded frantically.

’He knew it full well. He was a loser. It was just his dumb luck that he had a good daughter, one who’d met a powerhouse like Qin Tianxuan...’

"What’s the Hua Family’s move?" Qin Tianxuan asked, taking a sip of tea.

Yan Xinyue answered through gritted teeth, "They’ve made a big one. That second young master of the Hua Family was named the heir the moment he got out of prison. On top of that, the Hua Family pulled out all the stops to secure the honor of hosting the dignitaries from the Imperial Capital!"

"There’s some high-ranking Captain coming to Shangdu from the Imperial Capital, so the Hua Family offered up their Sky City Hotel as the venue for the welcome banquet!"

Yan Xinyue rushed to continue, "The banquet is tomorrow at ten in the morning. Those bastards are holding my daughter hostage and demanding we transfer the money before then!"

Qin Tianxuan actually laughed. "Excellent. In that case, I might as well go and welcome this dignitary from the Imperial Capital myself!"