Leave a comment

Pulun stood on the podium, lifted up the scroll in his hands, and shouted:

“Li De! The Overlord of Yunyang’s handwriting is here; seeing these words are the same as seeing the person, how come you haven’t kneeled yet?!”

Before I could respond, Bai Huang walked two steps forward, stood by my side, and returned:

“Oya? The Overlord of Yunyang is just a mere overlord, how does such a person have the authority of ‘seeing the words are the same as seeing the person’? Not even we over at Yun Hai dare to do as such. If I haven’t remembered incorrectly, there shouldn’t be anyone we should kneel to upon receiving an order except for the King.”

I gave Bai Huang a look. This lass……

This lass stole my lines, holy ****!

Pulun was shocked for a second before his conditioned reflex kicked in and he asked:

“Who are you? This is the Overlord of Yunyang’s family affairs, how dare a servant like you interrupt?!”

Bai Huang gave Heji, who was behind her, a look and Heji calmly pulled out his sword in response. Upon seeing things going astray, I stretched out my hand to block him. Bai Huang is part of those people who tend to be bossy and domineering, but that nature of hers is only towards evil people. It’s just that there’s another evident layer to this problematic nature and it’s that such people tend to have an excessive self-defense. When Pulun scolded her to be a servant, it was fair grounds for her to kill him in return for slander. But if this emissary from Yunyang died in West-Resisting City, the issues that would pop up subsequently would be troublesome to deal with.

Bai Huang snorted, then said to Pulun:

“Who do you think you’re glaring at? Can your blind eyes not see that I am Yun Hai’s Bai Huang? To even call me a ‘servant’, do you believe that your tongue won’t be in your mouth if you continue even a sentence more?”

Her domineering attitude undoubtedly made itself prominent.

Pulun went silent for a moment, knowing that he couldn’t indiscriminately scold anyone, so he once again placed his sight onto me and coldly mocked:

“Young master Li De is quite amazing huh. Hiding behind Aleya in the past and now he’s found another backer, one that’s a woman too. Truly the role model of our generation.”

I beckoned with my hand:

“No need to praise, no need to praise, doesn’t my dad have something he wants to say? If you continue bullshitting and dilly-dallying, my dad will probably be infuriated. Assuming authority on the basis of some pretext, it is you who is the role model of our generation.”

Pulun clenched his teeth, then nodded and fiercely unfurled the long scroll in his hand, reading aloud:

“My son, Yunyang’s fourth son, West-Resisting City’s City Lord Li De. Ever since you were born, you were an unbearably mischievous child, extremely stubborn, one unable to be tamed. You possess talent but can’t bear to put it into great use and on top of that, you’re stubborn and hard to speak sense with. I’ve taken great pains in raising you for 17 years and yet you don’t know how to repay your biological father, how to repay Yunyang. Instead, you prey on the people every day and bring disgrace to the word ‘culture’.”

“My Yunyang, for many generations, has produced many virtuous people as well as wicketed people. The only thing my Yunyang looks down upon are those mediocre nobodies and those degenerate peons who think themselves clever when they themselves have no talent or virtue. An overall survey of this person known as Li De exposes that he is two-faced, cunning, insidious, crafty, treacherous, obstinate and self-opinionated; he is already beyond cure, someone who’s rotten to his core. Having such a child is misfortune to the family; if ignored, it will be a disgrace to family tradition! If not taken care of, he will create chaos. But as the old adage goes, ‘a tiger, though cruel, will not devour its cubs’, and I, similarly, am unable to mercilessly push him out and let nature run its course. Yet Yunyang still needs to worry about its reputation, how could I let it spoil in my hands!”

“Stuck between a rock and a hard place, gray hairs have started appearing. It is only now that I have made this difficult decision. Family benefits outweigh an individual, I am willing to shoulder the title of being infamous throughout the ages. Today, I bestow my son wealth, armor, farm tools, and grain. This shall be my final obligation as a father. I announce to the world: In the future, Li De and West-Resisting City are no longer under the protection of Yunyang.”

“Overlord of Yunyang. Year 332, September 25th.”

What a great……image of a hardworking father that he’s painted.

The entire venue was deathly still. Regardless of whether it was Pulun, me, or the spectating populace, we all didn’t make even a peep. After a short moment, Pulun hoisted up the scroll in his hands and said to me:

“This is the Overlord’s decree, Li De, come receive it.”

Aleya and Felita were both ready to go up and get rid of our opponent and exactly because of this, Moon gave me a somewhat anxious gaze and whispered:

“Li De……”

I leaned my head over and replied:

“I know, now isn’t the time to be impulsive.”

I took a step forward and loudly responded:

“Manys thanks to the Overlord of Yunyang’s kindness for raising me for 17 years!”

In reality, I was someone who could be considered to be semi-reincarnated and have only lived in this world for a mere 5 years. But this body that I’ve possessed is 17 years-old; this is the reason why I say ‘kindness for raising me for 17 years’.

Moreover, this statement of his is half true and half false. No matter how prejudiced he is towards me and however he treats me as a cannon fodder, I am someone who grew up in the Overlord of Yunyang’s mansion and before I was able to make my own money, I was eating quite a lot from their family.

Even if I did have to eat it off the ground like a stray dog.

Pulun stroked his goatee, appearing very satisfied with my answer, and said:

“Li De, do you have any words for me to pass onto master?”

I responded unperturbed:

“I, Li De, was born in Yunyang and raised in Yunyang. If there weren’t any mishaps along the way, then I would ultimately die in Yunyang. But as the saying goes, ‘man proposes, God disposes’, the affairs of life are subject to change and the will of the people are hard to guess. I had a mind to stay by my father’s side and fulfill my filial duty, yet how did things become like this? The only thing I wish for is that everyone is able to part without hard feelings. Someone come, carry over the present that I wish to gift my father!”

Several young people formed an organized team and carried several chests up.

I remarked:

“West-Resisting City is cold and poor, so there isn’t much on hand that we can gift. But the grace of a father’s nurturing has to be repaid; this can also be counted as my regard. From now on, I will no longer consider myself to be someone from Yunyang Territory and both of us are no longer related. Since I’ve been driven out from the family, then according to ancestral law, I no longer have the qualifications to call him father ever again. Yunyang’s influence is great and I, Li De, cannot afford to offend or escape from it. I only hope that there will not be a day where we meet on the battlefield, that all of us will have wonderful dreams in our lives. Li De wishes the Overlord good health from afar and wishes the eldest young master political and military achievements that resound for all eternity!”

I looked at Pulun with a smile that was unlike a smile and asked:

“As for the gift that sir Pu has brought, I trouble sir Pu to return it. Please tell sir Overlord that there is no love or hatred without reason in this world and that there is no such thing as a gift without motives behind it. It has always been that the son shows filial respect by giving presents to his father, I’ve never heard of a father giving his own son a present. Don’t tell me he’s thinking of placing me, Li De, in a position of heartlessness and unjustness?”

Nonsense, of course he’s thinking of such.

Sweat rolled down Pulun’s cheek, but he still remained smiling as he replied:

“Li De, do you perhaps shun master’s gift for being too light and unable to be suited to you?”

I laughed heartily:

“Father commanded you all to lift these chests over, but I haven’t even torn them open, so how could I know the weight of the present? Sir Pu, please don’t arbitrarily run off your mouth, it’s unpleasant to hear.”

Pulun grinded his teeth, then walked down from the podium.

But it still wasn’t over.

According to custom, my West-Resisting City still had to entertain them with a banquet and only on the next day could we see them off.

During the banquet, Pulun sat opposite to my seat. After proposing a toast, he changed his tone of voice and spoke all smiles:

“Li De, aish, actually the present that master and the eldest young master made me bring over isn’t completely the type that you’re thinking of. It’s mainly to take advantage of this opportunity and discuss something with you.”

I immediately felt goosebumps from all over my body upon seeing his sudden exposure of an abnormally amicable expression.

I cupped my hands and replied:

“Please speak.”

Even though I spoke like this, I instantly understood what he wanted to say when he took a glance to the side.

Just as I expected, Pulun leisurely downed a mouthful of wine before telling me:

“Master hopes that you can let Aleya return to Lingyun City. There are better cultivation conditions over there and no matter if it’s master or the eldest young master, they won’t treat her unjustly.”