I, the villainous eldest prince, will suppress everything!

Upon hearing this, Pei Yunhe froze on the spot, completely motionless!

The heads of the five great families were all beheaded by the Crown Prince? How is that possible?!

Lu Ruanxiong, who was sending a message to Qin Li from Longhu Mountain, was Qin Li's man. How could he possibly kill his own people?

Seeing that Pei Yunhe remained motionless, Pei Shisan reached out and waved his hand in front of his eyes: "Father, Father, what's wrong?"

Pei Yunhe suddenly realized what was happening and, without saying a word, slapped Pei Shisan across the face.

Pei Shisan covered his face and retreated repeatedly, almost getting knocked to the ground.

He said with a wronged expression, "Dad, why did you hit me?"

Pei Yunhe stretched out his hand, pointed at Pei Shisan, and cursed, "That's exactly what I'm going to do! You unfilial son, what kind of time is this to try and deceive me with such lies? Today I'm going to beat you to death!"

After saying that, Pei Yunhe raised his arm, ready to hit Pei Shisan, that good-for-nothing, again.

Even if Qin Li killed Lu Ruanxiong, he couldn't possibly kill all the heads of the five great families, unless Qin Li went mad.

Pei Shisan must be lying to him.

Pei Shisan covered his face and ran away, saying, "Father, I didn't lie to you. If you don't believe me, go see for yourself at the Yellow Crane Tower!"

"How dare you say that!" Pei Yunhe was furious and was about to chase after him.

Who knew that Pei Shisan could run faster than a rabbit, shouting for help as he ran!

Just as Pei Yunhe chased after him out of the room, a voice that seemed to enjoy watching the drama unfold came from the hallway outside:

"Second Uncle, yes, just hit him like that. Do you need me to find you a stick so it'll be easier to hit him?"

Pei Yunhe turned his head and saw that it was Pei Qingluan.

Pei Yunhe stopped and frowned, asking, "Why are you back?"

Pei Qingluan replied with a smile, "Second Uncle, what are you saying? This is my home, why can't I go back?"

At this moment, Pei Shisan quickly ran behind Pei Qingluan, grabbed her, and said, "Sister, please save me! Please explain to Father that I really didn't lie to him. Three days ago, didn't the Crown Prince kill the heads of the five great families?"

Pei Qingluan gave a forced smile, reached out and patted Pei Shisan's head, saying, "Little Shisan, how could you lie to your father, my second uncle? It's really wrong of you."

Upon hearing this, Pei Shisan's eyes widened: "Sister, what time is it? You still have the mind to play? We're siblings, why are you trying to hurt me?"

Pei Qingluan stroked his head, finding it even easier, and said with a smile:

"Who's your biological sibling? We're cousins."

Upon hearing this, Pei Shisan cried out in despair.

Seeing that Pei Yunhe was about to catch up, he took off running again.

It seems only his mother can save him.

Seeing that Pei Yunhe was ignoring her and was about to chase after Pei Shisan, Pei Qingluan stretched out an arm to block Pei Yunhe's path and said, "Second Uncle, wait a moment."

Pei Yunhe stopped in his tracks, his face grim. "What, you're going to stop me? Isn't it what you wanted to see me teach your brother a lesson?"

Over the years, when he disciplined Pei Shisan, Pei Qingluan not only never stopped him, but often clapped and cheered from the sidelines.

"Second Uncle, what are you saying? Is that really how you see me?"

Pei Qingluan feigned a disappointed expression, then said, "Second Uncle, to tell you the truth, what Little Thirteen said just now was all true."

"What, really?"

Pei Yunhe asked.

Pei Qingluan said, "Of course it's true that Qin Li killed all the heads of the five great families at the Yellow Crane Tower."

Pei Yunhe sneered, "Do you think your second uncle is a fool?"

Pei Qingluan muttered under her breath, "More or less."

Upon hearing this, Pei Yunhe's lips trembled with anger.

Sensing the situation was turning sour, Pei Qingluan quickly changed the subject: "Second Uncle, let's not beat around the bush. I'm about to marry into the capital, shouldn't our Pei family provide me with a dowry?"

After saying that, Pei Qingluan rubbed her fingers together, her meaning was clear—she wanted money.

Seeing Pei Qingluan's expression, Pei Yunhe became even more furious.

Pei Qingluan doesn't resemble a lady from a noble family at all. She has truly lacked discipline over the years.

"If you want a dowry, ask your father!"

Pei Yunhe said.

Pei Qingluan lowered her arm: "Second Uncle, what kind of dowry can that drunkard give me? I heard that his Sword Sect is dirt poor, and the disciples can't even afford new clothes for the New Year. The most valuable thing he has is probably those few broken swords. How can it compare to your wealth, Second Uncle? The money that slips through your fingers is enough."

"Besides, I don't need much. Just give me a few hundred thousand taels. Also, give me some of those estates and paddy fields outside the city. I heard you have shops and properties in the capital. Transfer them all to my name. Anyway, you don't need them since you're in Jiangnan."

Upon hearing this, Pei Yunhe looked at Pei Qingluan with disbelief.

Listen to this, is this even human language?

This isn't asking him for a dowry.

It was as if someone was cutting his flesh with a knife!

They even casually gave her hundreds of thousands of taels of silver. Isn't hundreds of thousands of taels of silver a lot of money?

"I have no money, but you can take my life!"

Pei Yunhe's attitude was very firm.

A few years ago, when his own daughter got married, she wasn't this reluctant, let alone her niece Pei Qingluan.

"Second Uncle, are you sure?"

Pei Qingluan squinted at Pei Yunhe.

Pei Yunhe narrowed his eyes: "What do you mean?"

Pei Qingluan circled Pei Yunhe once and said, "Second Uncle, I'm not marrying just anyone, but the current Crown Prince."

"His Highness the Crown Prince has already agreed to my request. If I marry into his family, I will become his principal wife and the future Empress of the Great Zhou Dynasty."

"Isn't it a bit unreasonable for the Pei family not to prepare a dowry for me?"

Pei Yunhe snorted coldly and flicked his sleeve, saying, "When did you learn your brother's ways? Your brother always speaks the truth without a word, so why are you speaking the truth now?"

"Marrying His Highness the Crown Prince? You must be dreaming."

"Crown Prince Qin Li is just using you to make our six great families fight amongst themselves. Once he's done using you, you're no longer of any use. Qin Li didn't kill you because he was in a good mood."

"You still want to marry Qin Li and become the Crown Princess? That's just wishful thinking and delusional."

Just then, footsteps approached; it was the Crown Prince's guards led by Zhou Biao.

Upon seeing Zhou Biao and the others, Pei Qingluan waved to them: "You've come at the right time. Come quickly and tell my second uncle that this stubborn old man just won't believe I'm about to marry your prince."

Zhou Biao walked over, clasped his hands in greeting to Pei Yunhe.

"Patriarch Pei, the Crown Princess is telling the truth. Please believe her and make proper preparations for her wedding!"

After saying that, Zhou Biao stretched out his arm: "Patriarch Pei, please. Our Highness has been waiting for you at the Yellow Crane Tower for a long time!"

Pei Yunhe still didn't take it seriously, simply straightening his collar and raising his head to say:

"Let him go then. I don't believe that Qin Li can do anything to me in broad daylight."

Soon, Pei Yunhe followed Zhou Biao and his group out of the Pei residence and onto the main street of Jiangxia City.

As soon as he stepped onto the street, Pei Yunhe sensed something was wrong. The usual hustle and bustle of the street was gone, replaced by tension and fear.

People walked with their heads down, their steps hurried, and there were 70% fewer vendors hawking their wares on the street than usual.

What happened?

Pei Yunhe frowned slightly, but had no answer.

Pei Qingluan, who was standing next to Pei Yunhe, noticed the confusion in Pei Yunhe's eyes and said with a smile, "Second Uncle, whether Jiangxia City can return to its former prosperity depends entirely on you."

"What exactly do you mean?"

"It doesn't mean anything."

Pei Qingluan walked down the street with her hands behind her back: "The fact that the heads of the five great families were all beheaded by the Crown Prince at the Yellow Crane Tower has already spread like wildfire throughout Jiangxia City."

"It's no wonder the people of Jiangxia are so anxious; Jiangxia's future is truly uncertain!"

Pei Yunhe narrowed his eyes and asked, "Really killed them?"

Only when the heads of the five great families are all dead would the people of Jiangxia City be filled with such anxiety about the future.

For the first time, Pei Yunhe wavered.

"At this point, is there any need for me to lie to my second uncle?"

No sooner had he finished speaking than an old man in gray clothes suddenly rushed forward from the street, and Zhou Biao and the others instinctively reached for their knives.

Given Pei Yunhe's status and position, there were far too many people who wanted to kill him, but Zhou Biao and his men had to ensure Pei Yunhe's safety.

"Wait a minute."

Pei Yunhe reached out to stop Zhou Biao, then looked at the old man in gray, "Old Liang, what are you doing here?"

The old man in gray, surnamed Liang, was responsible for delivering firewood to the Pei family year-round. However, today was not a day for delivering firewood into the city, so he should have been gathering firewood in the countryside outside the city, not in the city.

Without saying a word, the old man in gray knelt down before Pei Yunhe with a thud.

"Master Pei, I'm begging you."

"For the sake of Jiangxia, for the sake of its millions of inhabitants, we, the old servant, beg Patriarch Pei, please do not oppose the Crown Prince..."

Before he could finish speaking, Zhou Biao waved his hand.

Tell everyone to hurry up and head towards the Yellow Crane Tower.

If we get held up, who knows how long it will take before they reach the Yellow Crane Tower.

Sure enough, as soon as Zhou Biao waved his hand, the people on the street recognized Pei Yunhe and rushed to his side to kneel down, saying things that were almost identical to what Lao Liang said...

"Hurry, hurry!"

Zhou Biao kept urging everyone to hurry up and leave, and it was only with great difficulty that they managed to get rid of the people.

As the kneeling people behind him receded into the distance, Zhou Biao couldn't help but turn back and say, "I didn't realize that Patriarch Pei had such a high reputation among the people of Jiangxia City."

Pei Qingluan said with a smile, "Even a rabbit won't eat the grass near its burrow. Although my second uncle has done a lot of dirty things over the years, he has been quite good to the people of Jiangxia City. Otherwise, Jiangxia City would have rebelled long ago."

Even the worst person has a good side, and Pei Yunhe is no exception.

As we were talking, we arrived at the Yellow Crane Tower...