Family Rise: Beginning with Grandfather.

Chapter 523 Coercion and inducement

Yang Zhengshan asked Wu Zhan to go to Nanjiang Town to inquire about the news, but this Nanjiang Town is not anywhere else.

The Xingguo Mansion has been operating in Nanjiang Town for nearly two hundred years, and has long run Nanjiang Town like an iron barrel, even more powerful than Yang Zhengshan's management of Chongshan Town back then.

When Wu Zhan first entered Nanhua City, no one paid attention to him, but when he used money to bribe the servants of the Duke of Xingguo's Mansion, he was targeted.

It's not his fault for being careless. He just didn't expect that he would be caught just by bribing two servants of the Duke of Xingguo's Mansion.

In a small courtyard in Nanhua City.

Wu Zhan looked at the soldiers who broke in with a depressed look on his face.

The leader was a burly man with a face full of flesh and fierce eyes. He looked like a brave warrior who had experienced many battles.

"Humph, you dare to inquire about the news of the Duke of Xingguo's Mansion in Nanhua City. You really don't know how to write the word death!" said the man in a cold voice.

Wu Zhan looked at the soldiers in front of him, they should be elite soldiers who have experienced hundreds of battles.

"Brother!"

The four brothers behind him looked alert and stood cautiously beside Lin Zhan.

Wu Zhan waved his hand and made a gesture to calm down, but the next moment, the long sword in his hand was suddenly unsheathed. He was like a ghost and the sword was like a flying rainbow. In the blink of an eye, he was in front of the general with the sword on his neck.

The general's hand was on the hilt of the sword at his waist, but Wu Zhan was too fast. Before he could draw his sword, the sword had already landed at his throat.

The pupils in his eyes suddenly shrank, "Ninth level of acquired realm!"

Wu Zhan looked at him, his lips curled up slightly, "I was not captured by you, if I want to leave you can't stop me!"

There are many elite soldiers and generals in Nanhua City, but there are only a few warriors above the ninth level of the acquired realm.

The only person who can really stop Wu Zhan is probably Duke Xingguo.

Of course, he might be able to escape from this small courtyard, but he might not be able to escape from Nanhua City, not to mention that he had four brothers around him.

"What do you mean?" asked the general.

Wu Zhan put away his sword and said in a depressed tone, "I have brought shame to my Lord!"

The other four Yang family guards also looked depressed. They had started off badly. They had only been in Nanhua City for a few days and they were already exposed. They felt depressed just thinking about it.

"Wu Zhan from Jing'an Marquis's Mansion wants to see the Duke of Xingguo. Please let the general know!"

Wu Zhan clasped his fists and bowed.

Now that things have come to this, he has no choice but to reveal his identity.

Although his identity was exposed, fortunately he had obtained some useful information before that.

Those two servants were really bribed by him and revealed a lot of things about Qu Shaogong to him. Generally speaking, Qu Shaogong was quite kind and had no evil deeds, nor did he have any concubines.

However, there are still many women in Nanhua City who want to marry Qu Shaogong.

Upon hearing this, the general looked at Wu Zhan in surprise and doubt.

"Marquis Jing'an's Mansion!"

Wu Zhan grinned, "Yes, Jing'an Marquis Mansion!"

The general hesitated for a moment, then stretched out his hand and said, "Please!"

……

In the study room of the Duke of Xingguo's Mansion.

After hearing the general's report, Qu Changkong asked in confusion, "Did he say why he came?"

He also knew about Jing'an Hou Yang Zhengshan, but he only heard it from hearsay and did not know the details.

"No, he just wanted to see the Duke!" said the general.

Qu Changkong has a tall and slightly thin figure. Although he is nearly 80 years old this year, he looks to be in his 50s.

"You said he has the ninth level of acquired cultivation?"

"Well, I am incompetent. I was subdued by him in just one move!" said the general with a blush.

"Then what is his identity?" Qu Changkong asked.

"He's the manager of the guards at Marquis Jing'an's mansion!" said the general.

Ding Qiu, Wu Zhan, Wu Zheng and Luo Jinsong are all managers of the guards of Jing'an Marquis Mansion, but the division of labor among the four is different. Ding Qiu mainly follows Yang Zhengshan and obeys his orders, Wu Zhan is mainly responsible for guarding the mansion, Wu Zheng is responsible for gathering various information, and Luo Jinsong is responsible for the training of the guard camp outside the city.

The Marquis of Jing'an's Mansion nominally has three hundred guards, but in reality there are far more than that number.

Wu Zheng has a group of people under his command who are responsible for gathering all kinds of information; they are also servants of the Yang family.

The guard camp trains not the soldiers of the original personal guard camp, but some of the Yang family's servants. After training, these servants will be sent out to manage the Yang family's business.

In addition, the Yang family also trained some martial maids. For example, Yang Wanqing had two guards and three martial maids around her.

Qu Changkong showed a somewhat strange look, "To have a ninth-level warrior as the guard manager, this Jing'an Marquis's Mansion is really extravagant!"

He had been running the Duke of Xingguo's Mansion for two hundred years, but had not yet cultivated a few ninth-level warriors. The highest level of cultivation among the guards was only at the eighth level of the acquired realm.

Not to mention the guards, even among the generals in Nanjiang Town, there are only a handful of warriors who have reached the ninth level of the acquired realm.

"Please invite him over to meet us!" Qu Changkong said.

"Here!"

The general clasped his fists and retreated, and came back with Wu Zhan a moment later.

Wu Zhan was startled when he saw Qu Changkong, and saluted with his fists, "Wu Zhan, the steward of the Marquis of Jing'an Mansion, greets the Duke!"

Qu Changkong looked Wu Zhan up and down and asked, "Are you just the steward of Jing'an Marquis's Mansion?"

"I am originally a disciple of the Tianqing Sword Sect. Ever since my senior sister married the Marquis, I have been following the Marquis!" Wu Zhan said.

Qu Changkong showed a look of realization. He had heard that the wife of Marquis Jing'an was a woman of the martial arts world, but he had never heard of the Tianqing Sword Sect.

Wu Zhan's explanation made him mistakenly believe that the Tianqing Sword Sect was a powerful martial arts sect.

"What brings you to Nanhua City? I don't remember any grudges between me and Marquis Jing'an!" Qu Changkong asked.

Wu Zhan was sweating, this matter caused a lot of trouble.

If they don't tell the truth, they will definitely not be able to leave Nanhua City today, but if they tell the truth, it seems to be bad for Miss Wanqing's reputation.

He didn't know that the Queen had already acted as a matchmaker between Qu Shaogong and Yang Qingwan, nor did he know that Yang Zhengshan and Yu Qingyi had actually agreed to the marriage.

Just as Wu Zhan was hesitating about how to start, an old man dressed as a servant suddenly walked in from outside the door.

"My Lord, a letter from the Crown Prince has been sent back from Kyoto!" said the old servant with a look of joy.

Qu Changkong was shocked and quickly took the letter, opened it and started reading, not even paying attention to Wu Zhan.

After he finished reading the letter, he was stunned for a moment, then looked at Wu Zhan in astonishment.

Then he burst into laughter, came to Wu Zhan, and patted Wu Zhan's shoulder vigorously, "No wonder you came to inquire about Shao Gong's affairs, it turns out it was for this matter!"

"How is it, is your Lordship satisfied with the Young Palace?"

Wu Zhan was stunned for a moment, then he breathed a sigh of relief, "It seems that the Duke knows everything!"

Qu Changkong smiled widely, "Well, the young palace maid said that she is attracted to your young lady, and will ask His Majesty and the Queen to act as matchmakers and ask Jing'an Marquis for marriage soon! It's time to propose now!"

Kyoto is far away from Nanjiang Town, and sending letters is extremely inconvenient. Even if the letter is sent by post, it will take nearly a month to deliver the letter to Nanjiang Town.

Wu Zhan was slightly surprised. "Before I left Beijing, the prince was only familiar with my young lady, but Princess Nanhua was quite close to my young lady!"

Before he left Beijing, Qu Shaogong and Yang Qingwan had just begun to show signs of this, and now it seems that this matter has made great progress.

However, for Yang Wanqing's reputation, Wu Zhan would not say that the two of them had any affair.

Qu Changkong enthusiastically pulled Wu Zhan and told the old servant, "Go prepare some wine and food. I want to have a good drink with Brother Wu!"

"Yes!" the old servant replied and hurried to prepare wine and food.

Read the error-free version at 69shuba! 6=9+shu_ba is the first to publish this novel.

"What are you still standing there for? Why don't you serve tea to Brother Wu?"

Qu Changkong's attitude changed very quickly. Before, he was looking at Wu Zhan with a scrutinizing look, but now he called Wu Zhan "brother" all the time, as if Wu Zhan was his real brother.

Wu Zhan was a little confused and didn't understand why Qu Changkong had changed so much.

Even if the two families were married, Qu Changkong wouldn't be so enthusiastic towards him.

After all, he is not Yang Zhengshan, he is just the manager of the Yang family.

When the tea came, Qu Changkong laughed and said, "Brother Wu, does Marquis Jing'an have any other instructions?"

"No, no!" Wu Zhan quickly shook his head.

"What is Marquis Jing'an's attitude towards the marriage of the two children?" Qu Changkong asked with a warm smile.

"Well, I don't know about this either!" Wu Zhan didn't know how to face such a Duke of Xingguo.

The Duke's enthusiasm made him feel very uncomfortable.

Qu Changkong stroked his beard and thought for a while, "Ahem, Brother Wu, when we get back, you can help Shao Gong say a few good words in front of Marquis Jing'an!"

"what!"

Wu Zhan looked at Qu Changkong in astonishment.

Qu Changkong looked at Wu Zhan, his eager smile squeezed into a ball by the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes.

Wu Zhan naturally had no idea what Qu Changkong was thinking. In fact, for the Duke of Xingguo's Mansion, marrying into the Yang family was definitely a good match.

On the surface, the Mansion of the Duke of Xingguo seems extremely noble, and Qu Changkong is an innate warrior, but in fact, the Mansion of the Duke of Xingguo is located in Nanjiang Town, far away from the core of the court. It has neither allies to help it nor relatives to support it in Kyoto.

The Duke of Xingguo's Mansion is permanently stationed in Nanjiang and has deep roots in Nanjiang Town. It is not an exaggeration to say that the Duke of Xingguo's Mansion is a small imperial court in Nanjiang Town.

This is where the problem lies. Once the court becomes suspicious of the Duke of Xingguo's Mansion, the Duke of Xingguo's Mansion will be doomed.

If the distance is too far, it is easy to become disunited.

And without any relatives or allies to look after them, if something happened in Kyoto, the Duke of Xingguo would have nowhere to appeal even if they were wronged.

When Qu Changkong's two sons were discussing marriages, he wanted to find two in-laws in Kyoto, but unfortunately the nobles in Kyoto were not close to marrying into the Xingguo Mansion.

The reason is simple, it’s too far away and we can’t take care of it.

The dignitaries in Kyoto can take care of the Duke of Xingguo's Mansion, but the Duke of Xingguo's Mansion is far away in the southern border. It will not benefit the dignitaries in Kyoto at all. Instead, they may be implicated because of the affairs of the Duke of Xingguo's Mansion.

That's why the Duke of Xingguo's Mansion brought Qu Shaogong and Qu Shaoshang to Kyoto a few years ago, and even shamelessly asked Emperor Yanping to help with the marriage.

This was to show Emperor Yanping that the Mansion of the Duke of Xingguo had no ulterior motives, and also to find a relative in the capital to take care of the Mansion of the Duke of Xingguo.

He was not familiar with Yang Zhengshan, but he knew that Marquis Jing'an was a new upstart in Kyoto and was highly valued by Emperor Yanping. After all, Yang Zhengshan was the master of the Crown Prince and Prince Dai.

Originally he had no such thoughts, but now that there was a sign of this, he naturally began to have such thoughts.

Marrying into the Yang family would be of great benefit to the Xingguo Mansion and he couldn't ask for more.

"Brother Wu, please wait a moment. I have a great gift for you!"

Qu Changkong suddenly said, then ran out in a hurry. A moment later, he came back with a jade box.

"Ahem, Brother Wu, you have to say a few good words for Shao Gong!"

He stuffed the jade box into Wu Zhan's arms.

Wu Zhan looked at the jade box in his arms, his heart beating rapidly.

Three yellow plums!
Oh my god, it’s actually Sanhuangli!
Of course he had seen the Sanhuang plums. When Yang Zhengshan gave Ding Qiu the Sanhuang plums, he specially asked him and Wu Zheng to be beside him, and Yang Zhengshan also promised that the Sanhuang plums of this year and next year would be given to the two of them.

One Sanhuang plum was enough to allow him to enter the half-step innate realm, so naturally he wanted it.

But he felt something strange.

Qu Changkong wants to bribe him!
He had been trying to bribe the servants of the Duke of Xingguo's Mansion before, and now Qu Changkong actually wanted to bribe him.

Well, he was tempted, but not too excited. After all, Yang Zhengshan had already promised to give him Sanhuang plums. Calculating the time, by the time he returned to Kyoto, the Sanhuang plums would be almost ripe.

"My Lord, I can't accept this!" Wu Zhan quickly refused.

"Brother Wu, you are just not giving me face!" Qu Changkong said with a stern face.

"No, no, I really cannot accept such a great gift from the Duke!" Wu Zhan stood up and bowed.

Qu Changkong looked at him and smiled. "I'll give it to you, just take it. What? Do you think my face is worthless?"

Although he was smiling, his eyes were full of coldness.

Wu Zhan's heart skipped a beat and cold sweat instantly broke out on his forehead.

A strong murderous aura seemed to permeate his heart, as if as long as he uttered no, his head would be moved.

It was so terrifying that Wu Zhan felt boundless fear.

Intimidation and inducement, intimidation and inducement!
Damn it, he can’t live without this Sanhuangli!
It’s so painful!
Wu Zhan smiled awkwardly and said, "Then I will be disrespectful to refuse it!"

Seeing this, Qu Changkong's expression changed instantly, "That's right, Brother Wu, don't worry, as long as this can be accomplished, I will give you another great gift!"

Wu Zhan felt so miserable.

Whether this matter can be accomplished or not, is it up to him to decide?
If it succeeds, that would be fine, but if it doesn't, he would probably be hated by Qu Changkong.

At this moment, he wished he could fly back to Kyoto, hug Yang Zhengshan and shout for help.

Unfortunately, he couldn't fly back, and could only talk to Qu Changkong with a feeling of misery in his heart.

(End of this chapter)