Chapter 188 - Countermeasures (1)

Xu Xinyao hesitated for a moment, then silently stopped and stood to one side.

Xu Yuan finished his work in an orderly fashion. As he did, he casually sealed the Saint’s remnant soul with a restriction, then said as if it had only just occurred to him, “Oh, right. Xu Changge may be with Father.”

Hearing this, Xu Xinyao froze for an instant. She glanced down at the wound on the back of her hand without thinking.

“Third Brother, are you worried I’ll complain to Eldest Brother?”

“Complain?” Xu Yuan glanced at her and murmured the word, amusement flickering in his eyes.

It brought back certain memories.

When boys were young, they were all little devils. Their father did not discipline them, so only their eldest brother did.

Xu Xinyao was the only girl in the family, and Xu Changge, as the eldest son, doted on her.

As for Xu Xinyao herself, she had the temperament of a punching bag. If she was wronged, she would only hide somewhere and cry. The problem was that whenever Xu Changge saw her, he could tell at once that she had been crying. And every time that happened, Xu Changge would say nothing, drag Xu Yuan out, and beat him up.

Because in the entire Chancellor's Manor, the only person who would provoke Xu Xinyao was him.

Their eldest brother’s personality had been a little off ever since childhood. Facts did not matter to him. What mattered was what he thought. Not what you thought. A born domineering CEO, that one.

If all four children were at home, most of the time the scene would turn into Xu Yuan running for his life while cursing Xu Changge, Xu Changge calmly striding after him to administer justice with his fists, Xu Xinyao tugging at their eldest brother from the side and trying to plead for mercy, and their second brother Xu Chang’an standing in front of Xu Yuan, attempting to reason with the eldest.

Xu Chang’an loved reasoning with people most of all. In a debate, he almost never lost.

The problem was that while the second brother could outtalk Xu Changge, he could not outfight him. ℯℯ𝘭.

In the end, the battle of words always turned into a battle of fists. Xu Xinyao would cry and plead at the side, while the two brothers got beaten together.

He had no idea how many times that scene had played out in the Chancellor's Manor.

Later... he had slowly become the only one left in the estate. Everyone else had gone.

At that thought, Xu Yuan gently shook his head. “It doesn’t matter. Say whatever you want about this. In any case, I won’t be returning to the Imperial Capital anytime soon.”

Xu Xinyao lowered her eyes and looked at the wound on the back of her hand. “This matter was my fault. You were right to hit me.”

Xu Yuan ignored her after that.

About half of an hour after the formation activated, the other side finally picked up the communication, late as ever. The voice that came through was as calm and steady as always.

“Changtian?” Xu Yinhe seemed to be in a busy market district. The noise on his end was somewhat loud.

“Yes, Father. It’s me,” Xu Yuan replied.

As soon as he spoke, the clamor coming through the communication crystal suddenly vanished. The other side must have used some method to block out the surrounding noise. “I was occupied just now. You are contacting me now because of Sageridge?”

Xu Yuan nodded. “Yes.”

“Because Sageridge was destroyed?” Xu Yinhe’s low voice asked the question calmly, without the slightest ripple in it, as if he had already prepared himself for all of Sageridge to be slaughtered.

Xu Yuan was stunned. Earlier, when he had used the communication crystal in Yellow Dragon Market to contact his father, he had clearly explained the general situation, as well as roughly how long Sageridge could hold out. Back then, his father had merely listened in silence. Xu Yuan had not expected him to have already predicted with such precision what would happen on this side.

Had Xu Yuan not run into Xu Xinyao halfway through, Sageridge would most likely have been butchered clean by now.

After a pause, Xu Yuan replied in a low voice, “No.”

“No?” Xu Yinhe’s voice was still calm. Then he said, “It seems something happened.”

“I ran into Fourth Sister at Yellow Dragon Market,” Xu Yuan said simply.

“Little Fourth?” A trace of surprise entered Xu Yinhe’s voice. Then, in that still and steady tone, a faint smile appeared. “That is quite the coincidence. Is she by your side now?”

“Yes,” Xu Yuan said.

Beside him, Xu Xinyao spoke softly. “Father.”

On the other end of the communication crystal, Xu Yinhe fell silent for a moment. Then he only said gently, “Do not blame yourself too much. This matter has nothing to do with you. Father will handle it properly. Talk with your third brother for a while. You two have not seen each other in a long time.”

Xu Xinyao clenched her fists and said nothing.

Xu Yuan listened from the side and gently shook his head.

This was how their father had always treated his family. His children caused trouble, and he cleaned up the mess. Even if the sky fell, he would be standing above them, holding it up.

Still, Xu Yuan spoke up. “Father, Little Fourth should reflect on this properly. She trusted the sects too much.”

“Mhm?” Xu Yinhe gave a soft sound of doubt, then laughed. “Do not blame your sister too much. Your elder brother cannot bear to see her suffer any grievance.”

Xu Yuan chuckled. “So what if he can’t bear it? This matter was indeed her mistake.”

“You have improved.” Xu Yinhe laughed. After a pause, he brought the subject back on track. His voice came through again. “Since Sageridge was saved, you must be contacting me about the Myriad Manifestations Sect.”

“Yes.” Xu Yuan nodded.

Xu Yinhe asked in a low voice, “Lou Ji’s people have just arrived at Huanglongji and retrieved the prisoner you mentioned. Changtian, how do you want Father to deal with the Myriad Manifestations Sect?”

Xu Yuan did not answer. Instead, he glanced sideways at Xu Xinyao beside him, signaling for her to speak.

A light flickered in Xu Xinyao’s eyes. She bit her lower lip and said softly, “Father, there should be many people in the Myriad Manifestations Sect who know nothing about this.”

Xu Yinhe said nothing. Only the sound of his steady breathing came through.

Xu Xinyao continued, “The ones who wanted to move against Sageridge should be those higher-ups. Could you perhaps...”

“Hah...” At that moment, Xu Yuan let out a low sigh. He looked at Xu Xinyao, disappointment in his eyes.

When Xu Xinyao saw her third brother’s gaze, the words she had been about to say died in her throat.

Xu Yuan drew in a deep breath and said in a low voice, “Father, I agree with Xinyao. I do not recommend moving against the Myriad Manifestations Sect immediately, but my reason is different from hers.”

Xu Yinhe’s voice came through the communication crystal. “Let’s hear it.”

Xu Yuan glanced at his little sister, who stood there with her eyes lowered and her fists clenched, then said quietly, “The first thing we should be considering right now is not how to take revenge, but how to provide disaster relief and stop the losses from spreading. Given Sageridge’s current state, less than one in ten of the border troops remain, and the entire official administration has collapsed. Beyond that, there is medicine and food to consider. With so many people and demonic beasts dead, a plague is very likely to break out afterward. This whole string of problems will require silver.”

After a short silence, Xu Yinhe’s voice came again. “Changtian, are you saying we should not move against the Myriad Manifestations Sect, and should instead use this as a reason to demand silver and supplies as compensation?”

Xu Yuan’s gaze was dark and calm as he replied in a low voice, “I am only saying we should not move right now. Father, you should know that whether it is Serenity Prefecture, where Sageridge is located, or Westpool Province, their finances are deeply in the red. They cannot possibly produce disaster relief funds. If we want to provide relief, the money can only come through you. Setting aside the issue of time, after every layer takes its cut, it would already be quite good if even half the silver and grain reaches Sageridge. And besides, the current situation is not suitable for moving against the Myriad Manifestations Sect.”