Li Zhouluo hesitated for a breath, then lifted the letter in his hand to read. Every single person in the hall watched him. Accompanied by An Siwei, the An clan's Foundation Establishment cultivator, An Zheyan remained in silence, neither uttering a word.
The matter of the ore veins was an easy area for exploitation and loopholes. An Xuanxin, who supervised this affair, had been summoned by Li Zhouluo in person before. The youth and his elder brother, An Xuantong, were both prodigies of their generation, and Li Zhouluo knew him relatively well. In his heart, he weighed the situation:
'The An clan comes from distinguished standing; there is no need for them to covet a chunk or two of ore. Even if they took some, every single day's ledger currently balances—which means they took nothing. Combined, these four individuals represent ninety percent of the voices on the lake; I must divide and dismantle their unity.'
He set down the envelope and said in an amiable tone:
"Elders, please do not be anxious. Everything must abide by reason. I have read every daily report that Xuanxin submitted and kept them all in mind. The reallocation and changes regarding the tributary veins were already matters undergoing finalization as new regulations. I was originally going to discuss them with Xuanxin anyway, so naturally there can be no question of misappropriation or personal embezzlement."
Having relented, he gave a meaningful glance. Di Liguang immediately stepped forward to help An Xuanxin to his feet, and the An clansmen kneeling on the ground rose. The elderly An Zheyan turned beet red, rambling off a string of apologies about failing to discipline his kin properly, until An Siwei restrained him. Looking like a middle-aged man, the An clan Foundation Establishment cultivator turned around, cast a cold eye on An Xuanxin, and said:
"Yet the West Shore is in an uproar, and An Xuanxin cannot escape the blame for lax supervision. This subordinate shall escort him to Mount Yuting for interrogation at once!"
With that, he hoisted An Xuanxin from the floor, and the An clansmen made straight for the hall doors, exiting with their standing intact.
The moment the An family departed, Li Chengzhi, who reclined weakly in his seat, lowered his head. Li Zhouming, who had spoken up on the An family's behalf earlier, felt more and more that something was amiss. Though he was useless at other things, having lived as a libertine for so many years and constantly trying to divine women's thoughts, he was at least sharp at reading expressions. Taking in the looks on the clan elders' faces, this notorious dandy grew thoroughly uneasy. With a sharp click, he snapped his folding fan shut and gripped it tightly.
Yet everyone had always treated him with only surface politeness; in private, no one cared about him. Seeing the An family leave, the gray-haired Li Chengkun turned his head and asked in a low whisper:
"Are Zhoufang and Zhouyang still not here?"
The father of the two eldest brothers of the Zhou generation had fallen, leaving their uncle Li Chengkun as their closest kin. They had always obeyed Li Chengkun without question, yet neither had arrived yet. Without those two brothers to back him up, while the other clan elders present were mere mortals, Li Chengkun felt a prickle of unease in his heart.
On his end, having dealt with An Xuanxin, Li Zhouluo was left with Ren Ting—Li Minggong's maternal uncle—and Li Chengpan, his own clan uncle. Each was more difficult to handle than the last. He decided to pick the softest target first and barked:
"Li Hun!"
Li Hun's lineage lay outside the main branches; it was only because his father, Li Anshuo, managed affairs on the North Shore and had married a daughter of the Chen family that he had enjoyed some clout. But inside this hall, he possessed no clout whatsoever. Cowering in the back, the middle-aged man shuddered at Li Zhouluo's call, crept forward on his knees by a couple of inches, and responded:
"This humble one is here!"
Knowing full well that the three had undoubtedly aligned their stories, Li Zhouluo demanded:
"You oversaw the spirit rice, so this matter of the thirty-percent bribes must have passed through your hands. I am currently summoning the West Shore families and the peak officials for a confrontation. Confess now who put you up to this... Otherwise, once the truth is exposed, you will be the first I execute."
Li Hun knocked his head against the ground and replied:
"Reporting to the Family Head, there were indeed arrangements, but this humble one was merely following orders to collect them in two portions... The word was passed to me by Guest Official Ye of Nine Gates Peak, who said it was the command of the Overseer of Nine Gates Peak... These matters... have always been supervised by the Overseer of Nine Gates Peak."
The hall fell dead silent in an instant. Li Zhouluo abruptly cut off his words—the Overseer of Nine Gates Peak was none other than An Xuanxin, whom he had just cleared and let go.
"Where is Guest Official Ye?"
Li Zhouluo asked. Chen Donghe answered from the side:
"I looked into him. Word came a few months ago that he had reached the peak of Embryonic Breathing. After reporting to the clan, he departed to seek fortune and attempt a breakthrough."
He had clearly slipped away long ago. Seeing Li Hun's terrified demeanor, Li Zhouluo suspected the man might not know the deeper details. He gave orders in a low voice:
"Di Liguang, go bring back An Xuanxin and the He clan woman. Then go to the shore to summon the peak officials for questioning, and bring in each of the family heads waiting on the mountain."
Chen Donghe whispered:
"Family Head, the He clan woman committed suicide."
Those words made Li Zhouluo grit his teeth. But suddenly, the fair, plump Li Xixuan dropped to his knees, stepped out, and sighed:
"Family Head! Those scoundrels below are petty schemers whose words cannot be discerned. Please... summon Chenghuai out to interrogate them with a spell, and all will become clear!"
This caught Li Zhouluo completely off guard, making him freeze for a moment. Li Chengkun immediately followed suit, kneeling to petition as well:
"This child's innocence cannot be unjustly wronged! We implore the Family Head to summon our brother to question them!"
Li Chengzhi sat in silence. The last elder, Li Xi'e, stirred slightly. The old man was gray-haired, very old, and had a kindly countenance; closing his eyes, he ultimately did not join them.
Li Zhouluo remained silent for a breath, his eyes sweeping across the faces around him. Li Chengzhi, who had wanted to shield An Xuanxin, had been forced to open his eyes at the mention of the Overseer of Nine Gates Peak, but he now kept silent. This uncle was likely the one among the four who least wanted to be involved.
Of the rest, Li Xixuan and Li Chengkun, who possessed cultivation, were the most persistent. Li Chengkun's father, Li Xi'e, had garnered tremendous prestige through the martyrdom of his children; clearly cherishing his reputation, he appeared torn in a dilemma.
'Clearly, these people intentionally engineered this mess... yet they insist on forcing Father to come out of secluded cultivation...'
Unable to fathom these elders' true intentions for the moment, he gritted his teeth and said:
"Father was injured and it would not be suitable for him to break seclusion. Besides, these are merely minor matters."
Li Xixuan let out a sigh, his plump, fair face full of regret as he replied:
"It is still our hope that the family makes this decision together. Please invite Chenghuai out. After all, this touches upon the pristine reputation of the main branch. A brief investigation would take merely half a day... Otherwise, the rest of Chengpan's life will be utterly ruined!"
Li Zhouluo's words were all choked back down into his throat. In the hall, Li Chengpan kept his head lowered, enduring everything without a word. All the pressure landed squarely upon Li Zhouluo. But before he could speak, a furious roar thundered:
"Did you not hear what the Family Head said?!"
That great shout in the middle of the hall stunned everyone present. They all looked up in shock, only to find, to their utter surprise, a young lord in fluttering red robes striding out, his face livid with fury.
It was Li Zhouming, who could hold it in no longer. The direct grandson of a Violet Palace cultivator stepped forward in a rage, hurled down his fan with a slam, and cursed:
"If it can't be investigated right now, just lock them all up for a year or two! One of you is overbearing and aggressive, and the other is sighing and groaning—just what do you want?!"
Everyone was dumbfounded, exchanging bewildered glances in silence.
'What kind of madness has seized this young lord now...?'
Li Xixuan was left stunned by the bellow. He was Li Minggong's father—ordinarily, who would dare treat him with such disrespect? His pale face flushed crimson in an instant, and he gnashed his teeth:
"You..."
Having listened until fury burned within him, Li Zhouming shook his red robes, took a step forward, and yelled:
"I respectfully call you an elder, but if not for having given birth to a capable daughter, what kind of thing would you even be?! I may be a wastrel, but at least I know how to stay idle! What do you want? Just what do you want?! Did you come to bully us juniors while the Zhenren is away, is that it?! You, you, you—you your mother's head! What are you 'you'-ing about?!"
Foul language was about to pour from his mouth when Li Chengzhi beside him, frightened out of his sickbed stupor, bolted upright, grabbed his sleeve in haste, and barked:
"You beast! Are you trying to rebel?!"
For a moment, everyone fell into disarray. Li Zhouming was indeed an impulsive dandy, but his temperament had generally been easy to manage. No one had expected him to lose his mind like this out of nowhere. Moreover, being the direct grandson of a Violet Palace cultivator, none dared offend him; they all shrank back. Only his father, Li Chengzhi, leaped up—his back no longer ached, his legs no longer hurt, suddenly bursting with vigor as he tugged at him and cursed.
Yet his father was a mere mortal and could not hold him back.
Though Li Zhouming was unreliable, he was nonetheless at the third tier of Qi Refinement. Among the four elders, only Li Chengkun possessed cultivation, and even he was a level lower. When this wastrel went mad, he was like a rampaging bull. Terrified of being struck dead by a single palm, Li Xixuan completely lost his composure and scrambled backward in panic, while Li Chengkun and two juniors rushed forward in fright to shield him.
"Wretched beast!"
Li Zhouming turned a deaf ear to his father's scolding. Having finally figured things out, he realized that the words his family had coached him to say earlier were intended to make things difficult for Li Zhouluo as well. This blazing rage burned fierce and bitter, combined with the chaotic clamor of curses and cries around him that made his head spin. For the first time, his eyes glared with savage anger, and he roared:
"Shut the fuck up!"
Infused with magical power, that bellow sounded like a thunderclap on dry ground. Cultivators fared somewhat better, but the mortals nearly had their eardrums ruptured. All eyes turned toward him in unison.
They saw a youth with fine, regular features and slightly thick eyebrows. His habitual nonchalance had been swept completely away by rage. Radiance of Bright Yang emanated from his entire body as he stood in the hall with hands clasped behind his back, his eyes glaring in fierce fury.
With that roar, people across the hall dropped to their knees en masse.
Li Zhouming was, after all, Li Ximing's direct grandson. Even dressed in flamboyant red robes, even powdered and made up, the likeness between his brows was unmistakable. Standing there in the hall bathed in Bright Yang, glaring in fury, aside from being somewhat thinner, he lacked only the point of heavenly light at his brow. The sight nearly scared the wits out of everyone present; several Foundation Establishment guest officials had to avert their eyes and exchange glances before kneeling down.
"Zhenren..."
Even his father, Li Chengzhi, felt his heart skip a beat. As if touching hot coals, he let go of the youth's sleeve. The words "wretched beast" died on his lips, his legs grew weak, and he nearly collapsed to his knees.
A heavy silence fell over the hall. Then, flecks of crimson light shimmered beside Li Zhouming, and a burly man clad in crimson armor abruptly materialized.
The man exuded an aura of fierce slaughter, with a swallow's jaw and tiger's whiskers. His eyes were like slashing swords, forcing everyone to keep their heads down. Gripping two short cudgels, his chin slightly raised, he stood beside Li Zhouming, his face dark enough to drip blood.
[Dianyang Tiger] Ding Weizeng.
At this moment, everyone up and down the mountain finally remembered that he was the direct grandson of a Violet Palace master. One and all were silenced like cicadas in autumn, not even daring to meet each other's eyes. The hall was filled with kneeling figures above and below the dais, most pressing their foreheads against the ground.
"Your Highness..."
Hearing the trembling whispers below, Li Zhouming seemed to wake from a dream. He tossed aside the fan in his hand, took a step back, and waved his hands repeatedly:
"Troubling you, Protector Ding!"
He returned to his seat looking dazed and despondent, but no one dared address him any longer. Ding Weizeng nodded; the radiance of his immortal foundation faded, his armor transformed back into Daoist robes, and he silently withdrew into the corner of the hall.
Li Xixuan, slumped on the floor, became the focus of everyone's gaze. With an intensely mortified expression, he crawled back up and knelt on the floor, uttering not a single word.
It was as though a storm had swept through the hall, obliterating the aggressive atmosphere. Li Zhouluo merely kept his eyes downcast on the letter, glimpsing the despondent Li Zhouming through the gaps between his fingers. Though it was still that powder-coated face, Li Zhouluo's eyes suddenly stung with warmth.
'Good Fifth Brother...'
Before he could dwell on it, a soft thud echoed in the hall.
*Thump...*
It was Li Chengkun kneeling down. He was one of the few surviving cultivators of the Cheng generation. His eyes slightly reddened, he said in a heavy voice:
"Chengpan is the youngest among our brothers. Ever since he was brought from the surrounding shores into the lake, I have been the one guiding him. This child has been diligent since youth, earning praise wherever he went. He stayed on the West Shore for years without a single word of complaint. Now that he has suddenly suffered such slander, if his name cannot be cleared, how can there be fairness in our family? Family Head, we only ask that our elder brother be summoned. If Chengpan is tainted in the slightest... I am willing to share his guilt!"
His words were filled with heartfelt sincerity, making Li Zhouluo clutch the letter and close his eyes, wavering in his heart. He knew full well that his father, Li Chenghuai, was not truly injured and was not incapable of emerging from seclusion...
Sitting motionless beside them and having observed everything from start to finish, Li Xuanxuan finally spoke. The old man said in an aged, hoarse voice:
"Chenghuai is in seclusion. Do not disturb him."
This single statement from the venerable elder silenced the entire hall. The two clan elders hesitated and ceased their pleas. Li Zhouluo could faintly hear weeping—it seemed Li Chengpan in the center had finally succumbed to tears. The youth had kept his head lowered the whole time, and now his shoulders trembled slightly.
The muffled sobs weighed heavily on Li Zhouluo's heart, leaving him momentarily dazed and conflicted. He felt the letter in his hands weigh a thousand jin. He said in a low voice:
"Regarding the West Shore affairs, both Mount Yuting and Qingdu shall dispatch personnel to investigate. Appoint Chen Donghe and Li Wen to proceed to the West Shore, where both peaks shall conduct joint interrogations before reaching a conclusion.
"As the matter remains unclear and the families of the West Shore are clamoring, an account must be given. Ren Ting shall first be relieved of his duties and detained at the base of Mount Qingdu. Li Chengpan is guilty of lax supervision and shall be brought back to the islet for questioning."
With Li Xuanxuan barring the way to summon Li Chenghuai, and Li Zhouming having made such a massive scene, Li Chengkun and his companion could only remain silent. They watched Li Zhouluo above fold the letter in his hands and say gently:
"Li Hun accepted bribes and has confessed without denial. Execute him."
Li Hun jerked his head up, his face full of horror, but he did not even get the chance to speak before cultivators on both sides hauled him away. Watching him dragged limp along the ground, Li Zhouluo said:
"I have troubled the elders with this trip. Within ten days, once this matter has reached a conclusion, I shall inform you all."
Feeling suffocated staying here, he rose briskly from the head seat, saluted Li Xuanxuan, and exited without looking back. No one else moved; they all looked up at Li Zhouming, and only after he left with Li Chengzhi did most of the crowd finally disperse.
Li Chengkun wore a grave expression as he hurried after the escort bringing Li Chengpan back to the islet. Outside the hall, he saw the eldest and second brothers, Li Zhouyang and his brother, who had just arrived. He kept a cold face and said nothing. The two brothers looked embarrassed and said in hushed, soft voices:
"Uncle... we were invited over by Younger Sister Xinghan just now..."
Li Chengkun was no fool; how could he not understand? Swallowing his frustration, he walked away, leaving behind the thoroughly humiliated Li Xixuan with an embarrassed countenance. Just as Li Xixuan lifted his feet to leave, he saw a middle-aged man step in front of him.
This was Li Quewan's elder brother, Li Shuya. Having lost his boat on the lake, he had stayed by Li Xuanxuan's side ever since, which could be considered a blessing in disguise. Offering a salute, he said in a deep voice:
"Lord, the Venerable Elder requests your presence."
Feeling somewhat uneasy, Li Xixuan followed Li Shuya to the side peak. In the small courtyard, everything was neat and tidy. Beside an eight-immortals table, Li Xuanxuan was brewing tea with a serene expression. Feeling slightly relieved, Li Xixuan dropped to his knees before him and said respectfully:
"Grandfather!"
Li Xuanxuan's cup was scalding hot, steam billowing up in puffs. He set the cup down for a moment, lifted his wrinkled hand, rolled up the sleeve of his other arm, reached forward, and struck Li Xixuan across the face.
*Smack!*
The blow was not heavy, but it was crisp and loud. The fair-skinned, middle-aged man instantly broke into a cold sweat all over his head. With a thud, he knelt flat beside the elder's feet, not daring to make a sound.
Chapter 788