Family Rise: Beginning with Grandfather.

Chapter 793 Duan Qiao Feng Ghost Girl, Lu Fusheng
In an ordinary residential house in Shanggu County.

In the main room, beside an old desk, Duan Qiaofeng was carefully drawing intricate runes on a piece of yellow paper with a bluish-purple brush.

He looked tense, his eyes bright, and he stared intently at the yellow paper, as if he were pouring all his energy into it.

Suddenly, footsteps approached, and Duan Qiaofeng's waving arm paused slightly. The next moment, the yellow paper under his pen spontaneously combusted and turned into ashes.

Duan Qiaofeng's face instantly turned extremely gloomy, and he stared coldly at the figure entering the room.

It was a woman wearing a bamboo hat. She was petite and dressed in a simple dark green outfit. She wore a white gauze hat and looked like an ordinary martial artist.

"Who let you in?" Duan Qiaofeng asked coldly.

The woman glanced at the ashes on the table, showing no fear of Duan Qiaofeng's anger, and said with a grin, "Senior Duan, you can't blame me for your own lack of skill in making talismans!"

Upon hearing this, Duan Qiaofeng became even more furious.

He had almost completed this first-grade high-level spirit talisman, just a hair's breadth away, but this woman's interference caused him to fail.

Seeing the anger in Duan Qiaofeng's eyes, the woman quickly stopped laughing. "Senior Duan, shouldn't we get down to business?"

"The Yin Sha Gathering Soul Array is almost complete. Shouldn't we discuss when to make our move?"

She dared not truly anger Duan Qiaofeng; if he turned against her, she would have no choice but to run away.

Duan Qiaofeng's gloomy expression eased slightly, but his tone still carried anger.

"Has the Lu family made any unusual moves?"

"No, everything at the Lu family is normal after Lu Fusheng returned!" the woman replied.

The Duan Qiaofeng standing before them was none other than the steward of the Youyu Gate, who had orchestrated attacks on three counties and markets by three major dynasties.

The petite woman before them was a ghostly immortal cultivator wielding the Soul-Severing Blade, and also a cultivator skilled in array formations.

As for their purpose here, it is naturally for the Lu family and Lu Fusheng.

Duan Qiaofeng reached out and took out a black jade box. The jade box was completely black and exuded a cold aura. Even just looking at it gave people a chilling feeling.

However, upon seeing the jade box, the ghost woman's pale face regained a touch of color, and her dark eyes revealed a hint of joy.

"This is yours! I hope you don't mess things up!" Duan Qiaofeng said coldly.

The ghost woman took the jade box, feeling the chilling aura emanating from it, and giggled, "Senior Duan still doesn't believe in the credibility of our Soul-Severing Blade? Don't worry, Senior Duan, this humble woman will definitely extract Lu Fusheng's soul! Hehehe~~"

"I hope so!" Duan Qiaofeng said coldly.

……

In the study in the front courtyard of the Lu family home.

Lu Youan and Lu Youning stood in front of Lu Fusheng.

“Father, those people are very well hidden. We can only find a few insignificant figures. It’s impossible to dig them all out in a short time!” Lu Youan said.

Lu Fusheng stood with his hands behind his back by the window, gazing at the old osmanthus tree with its vigorous branches outside, his eyes slightly narrowed.

"Don't you all feel that there are far fewer osmanthus flowers this year than in previous years?"

Lu Youan and Lu Youning were slightly taken aback, seemingly not understanding why their father had brought up the topic of the osmanthus tree in the yard.

"Dad, maybe the weather is cooler than usual this year!" Lu Youan replied, somewhat puzzled.

Lu Fusheng frowned. He felt that something was wrong, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

Was the Youyu Gate's instigation of the three dynasties truly for the sake of the market?

Attacking the markets was in the interest of the three dynasties and also in line with their style of doing things.

But is it really necessary for the Netherworld Sect to go to such great lengths for this?
What is the purpose of the Netherworld Gate?
Is he just trying to cause some trouble for the Lu family?
impossible!
Lu Fusheng narrowed his eyes slightly, "How much do you know about Duan Qiaofeng?"

Lu Youan thought for a moment and said, "We don't know much. We only know that he is a steward of the Netherworld Sect, but we don't know his exact age, cultivation level, or status in the Netherworld Sect!"

"I asked the Illusion Moon Sect, and they didn't know much about Duan Qiaofeng either! He's probably just a nobody in the Netherworld Prison Sect!"

Lu Fusheng shook his head slightly, "Perhaps he is a cultivator!"

"Immortal cultivators!"

Lu Youan and Lu Youning exchanged a glance, both revealing solemn expressions.

“Perhaps Duan Qiaofeng is in the city right now. His target might not be a few markets, but me!” Lu Fusheng guessed.

Several markets were unaware of the great trouble the Netherworld Gate had gone through, but Lu Fusheng found it worthwhile.

If Duan Qiaofeng were just an insignificant nobody, then he might just be trying to cause some trouble for the Lu family.

But if Duan Qiaofeng were a cultivator, then his target would definitely be himself.

"Immortal cultivators!" Lu Fusheng felt a little uneasy.

Despite his ability to speak eloquently about immortal cultivators in front of Yang Zhengshan, he is actually quite wary of their methods.

He had only ever truly come into contact with two immortal cultivators: Yang Zhengshan and a cultivator from the Illusion Moon Sect.

His understanding of immortal cultivation was only based on hearsay, so he could only fool Yang Zhengshan, a novice.

It's more appropriate to let immortal cultivators deal with it.

"Youning, go to Lingxi Mountain and invite Yang Zhengshan here!"

Although he was still unsure whether Duan Qiaofeng was a cultivator, he felt it would be better to invite Yang Zhengshan just in case.

However, he was somewhat uncertain about Yang Zhengshan's cultivation level and didn't know if inviting Yang Zhengshan would be of any use.

"Yang Zhengshan! I'll go right now!" Lu Youning agreed without questioning Lu Fusheng's decision.

"Father, will the Netherworld Sect really send immortal cultivators to deal with us?" Lu Youan asked somewhat nervously.

Lu Fusheng was merely wary of immortal cultivators, but Lu Youan held them in awe. He had heard many legends about immortal cultivators, in which their methods were described as powerful and wondrous.

"Maybe!"

Lu Fusheng sighed softly, "Immortal cultivators, our Lu family must also have immortal cultivators!"

……

"Patriarch, only an orphan and a widow remain in the Qiu family!"

At the Yang family ancestral home in Lingxi Mountain, Wang Lei went to the study to report to Yang Zhengshan.

"Did you bring the person back?" Yang Zhengshan asked.

“I brought it back!” Wang Lei said.

"Then bring it over!"

A moment later, Wang Lei brought a middle-aged woman and a child of about ten years old into the study.

The woman was somewhat frightened. Upon seeing Yang Zhengshan, she grabbed her child and knelt on the ground.

"Please, senior, have great kindness and mercy and spare my son and me!" she knelt down and begged, crying.

This surprised Yang Zhengshan, and he looked at Wang Lei.

Wang Lei explained with a wry smile, "The mother and son have been living a miserable life lately. Many families in the city want to seize the Qiu family's weapon-refining techniques. I've explained this to her, but she doesn't believe me!"

Yang Zhengshan immediately understood what was going on.

It's nothing more than the sin of possessing a treasure.

Although the Qiu family's weapon-refining skills were rudimentary, they were considered quite rare in Nanxia County, enough to support the prosperity of a small family.

"Does Qiu Jin have no collateral branches?"

“Those collateral branches are the most aggressive!” Wang Lei said.

"So how did you bring him back?" Yang Zhengshan asked curiously. Wang Lei rubbed his nose. "I couldn't explain it to him, so I had no choice but to forcibly bring him back!"

Yang Zhengshan was at a loss for words, both amused and exasperated.

It cannot be said that Wang Lei did something wrong; extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures.

"Get up. I am friends with Old Man Qiu. I brought you here not because I wanted to covet your weapon-refining skills, but simply to take care of Old Man Qiu's offspring!"

The woman looked up at him with a mixture of belief and doubt.

"Thank you so much, senior!"

She said somewhat nervously.

Yang Zhengshan thought for a moment, then took out a land deed and handed it to her, saying, "This is your Qiu family's shop. The county government had already given it to me, but I'm returning it to you!"

"Even if you rent this shop to me, I will pay you rent every month, which should be enough to meet your living needs!"

"From now on, you can live in the village at the foot of the mountain. No one will bully you there! We'll talk about the rest when Old Qiu comes back."

The county yamen runners are known for their rough and unruly work style. They don't care whether the Qiu family has anyone to inherit the shop. As long as Qiu Jin doesn't have anyone capable of taking charge, they will immediately take the shop back to the county yamen. After all, this is a shop in the market, and the county yamen does not allow shops to remain vacant for a long time.

As for Lu Jianghua, he wouldn't care about any of that; he just wanted to give Yang Zhengshan two shops.

The best shops in the market were all in the hands of a few prominent families. Although the Qiu family's shop was not as good as those shops, it was in a good location and had a spacious interior, so he gave the shop to Yang Zhengshan.

Hearing Yang Zhengshan say this, the woman felt much more at ease.

"Thank you so much, senior! Thank you so much, senior!" She kowtowed to Yang Zhengshan several times.

"Alright, alright!" Yang Zhengshan quickly stopped her. "Just settle in comfortably. If you need anything, just find the village head, or if all else fails, you can go to him!"

"I am deeply grateful for your great kindness, senior!" the woman said, both crying and laughing.

"Go!" Yang Zhengshan waved his hand.

It was just a small matter, and Yang Zhengshan wouldn't take it to heart. He was only trying to see if he could help Qiu Jin because of their past relationship.

As for the rest, Yang Zhengshan didn't care at all.

The woman got up with her child, and just as Wang Lei was about to take them away, the woman suddenly stopped and reached out to take off the short jacket from the child's body.

Yang Zhengshan looked at her strangely, only to see her tear a piece of cloth from inside the child's short jacket and then take out a book.

"I am willing to give Qiu Jin's weapon-forging techniques to you, senior, in the hope that you will protect my son as he grows up!" the woman said, kneeling on the ground and holding up the book.

Yang Zhengshan was slightly taken aback, but Wang Lei gave the woman an approving look.

The woman was not very old, only in her early thirties. She was actually Qiu Jin's granddaughter-in-law.

The fact that she was able to make a decision at this time shows that she is a thoughtful person with a decisive personality, and she doesn't hesitate at all.

However, she was clearly wrong.

"Put those things away. I'm not about to covet your family's weapon-refining skills!" Yang Zhengshan shook his head with amusement.

These days, it's not easy to be a good person.

If you want to do good deeds, others will doubt your motives.

However, he could understand the woman's thoughts. Compared to Qiu Jin's weapon-forging skills, as a mother, she naturally valued her son's life more.

She clearly understood the value of exchanging the Qiu family's weapon-forging skills for her son's safety.

Ten years ago, Yang Zhengshan might have coveted Qiu Jin's weapon-refining skills, but now, Yang Zhengshan doesn't even care about Qiu Jin's weapon-refining skills anymore.

The weapon-refining skills of the Spirit Source Land have long surpassed those of Qiu Jin.

"Senior~" The woman looked at Yang Zhengshan with some trepidation.

Yang Zhengshan smiled and said, "Let the child cultivate well, and when he grows up, he can pass on your family's weapon-refining skills."

The woman stared blankly at Yang Zhengshan.

"I already told you, we meant no harm!" Wang Lei looked at the woman with a mixture of amusement and exasperation.

The woman then came to her senses and said, "Thank you, senior!"

This time, her thanks were sincere, and her expression was no longer as panicked as before.

"Let's go, I'll take you to the foot of the mountain to stay overnight!" Wang Lei said.

The woman got up and thanked him repeatedly, showering him with compliments.

After they left, Yang Zhengshan looked at the land deed of another shop in his hand, thought for a moment, and then gave the land deed of the shop and the land deed of Nanqingshan to Yang Xiangheng.

These industries will become the assets of the Yang family of Lingxi in the future. As for Lingyuan Land, to be honest, Yang Zhengshan doesn't think much of it.

The Land of Spiritual Origin will establish a base outside, but this base must be a blessed land.

Neither Nanqingshan nor Lingxishan could satisfy Yang Zhengshan's requirements.

Furthermore, Yang Zhengshan didn't want to open a winery in Nanxia County, and it was best for Xuegu Town to avoid any involvement with this area.

The two Yang families are not suitable to be linked together at this time.

However, Yang Zhengshan had a different idea about the Qiu family's shop.

Didn't Yang Cheng'an want to open a weapon-refining workshop outside?
The Qiu family's Lingyan Forging Workshop is just right.

The foundry has all the necessary facilities, and the channels previously used by the Qiu family can also be used directly, which will save Yang Chengan a lot of effort.

After making the decision, Yang Zhengshan immediately returned to the Spirit Source Land and mentioned it to Yang Chengan, who was naturally overjoyed.

That day, Yang Chengan, accompanied by two guards and two apprentices, followed Yang Zhengshan to the back of Lingxi Mountain. Yang Zhengshan, not wanting to waste any more time, had Yang Xiangheng take him directly to the market town of Nanxia County.

On the way, Yang Xiangheng led the way while observing Yang Chengan and his companions.

At this moment, he felt both excited and curious.

What excited them was that the Yang family's assets had increased again. His great-uncle gave him a shop and the deeds to dozens of acres of spiritual fields, which almost doubled the Yang family's assets.

He was curious about the origins of Yang Cheng'an and the others, since he had just heard Yang Cheng'an call Yang Zhengshan "grandfather".

"Why are you looking at me like that, Brother Xiangheng?" Yang Cheng'an asked, feeling a little uncomfortable with Yang Xiangheng's gaze.

Yang Xiangheng chuckled awkwardly, but couldn't help asking, "Brother Cheng'an, are you your great-uncle's grandson?"

"Grand Uncle, uh, right, haha~~~"

Yang Cheng'an also knew Yang Zhengshan's identity outside. He had also been trained by the Dharma Protector Hall, and before he came out, Yang Zhengshan had kept a close eye on him.

He rode up to Yang Xiangheng and said in a low voice, "We are practically cousins, but this matter must be kept secret. I can't use the surname Yang here; I can only use the surname Zhu. Brother Xiangheng should understand, right?"

"I understand, I understand!" Yang Xiangheng understood perfectly well that this was a cover-up.

However, Yang Chengan's words pleased him greatly.

"Brother Cheng'an, we're not just half a brother, we're cousins! Brother Cheng'an, you won't mind having an older brother like me, will you?"

Yang Cheng'an laughed heartily, "How could that be?"

The two men recognized each other as they traveled, and soon became brothers despite not being from the same father or mother.

Having gotten to know Yang Cheng'an, an upright member of the Yang family, Yang Xiangheng felt much more at ease.

What he feared most was that Yang Zhengshan would disown his unworthy descendants. Now that he had Yang Cheng'an and had established a relationship with him, he felt that he was now considered a member of the Yang family.

Of course, this Yang family refers to the Lingyuan Yang family, not the Lingxi Yang family.

Although he didn't know much about the Lingyuan Yang family, that didn't stop him from hoping that the Lingxi Yang family could align themselves with the Lingyuan Yang family.

If possible, he would even be willing to let the Lingxi Yang family become a branch of the Lingyuan Yang family.

(End of this chapter)