Dawn was breaking.

An Chenyu had been sitting in the courtyard tea pavilion since early morning, the breeze lifting her long skirt like swaying reeds, lightly covering and tracing the contour of her long legs with wonder, her embroidered shoes gently swaying, much like the lazy tail of a cat.

She was holding a book, reading intently.

Actually, she hardly ever read these days.

Too much to do—who had the time?

She should have been resting on the couch because she was seriously sleep-deprived.

But with so much to do, and so much uncertainty, whether success depended on her at all, how could she possibly sleep?

So, she had gotten up early, woken up Ling, and had her brew a pot of tea, then she took a book from her bedside to the tea pavilion to read.

The book was a collection of poems talking about romantic scenery, the joys and sorrows of parting and reunion, the lamenting of spring and sorrow of autumn.

A logical merchant who "has sworn to revive the An family and complete the class transition in this Chaotic World" would not, and should not, be interested in such a book, yet she had taken it from Ling and was now discussing with her which verses were good, and what meaning was expressed by each sentence.

In a little while, Madam Tong and Ying were also practicing swordsmanship in the courtyard.

Ling, meanwhile, had gone to see to the morning meal.

The young man came out yawning and walked over to Miss An.

When he arrived, An Chenyu put down the poetry book, sighed, and looking at the sunrise just beginning to rise in the distance said, "With my aunt's temperament, she'll probably rush over to Shanghe County in a day or two at most."

Song Cheng said softly, "You don't know anything."

An Chenyu grew silent and then said, "No, I know.

My aunt and my eldest brother have never been good at managing, always more capable of demolition and disruption.

If it were a peaceful and prosperous time, I would slowly put up with their antics.

But now... I'm out of time, and so is the An family."

She took a few deep breaths and continued, "My eldest brother plotted with bandits wanting to kill me, Xi took a hit for me, how could my aunt not know?

Since that is the case, let her experience the feeling of being intercepted by bandits."

"I have blood on my hands..."

"I've never denied it."

"I just hope the children of the An family in the future can have it a bit better."

Song Cheng took her hand and said, "There will come a day."

Having said that, he looked toward Madam Tong.

Madam Tong was forthright and unpretentious, sometimes pretending to be somewhat shrewd, but actually... very limited.

Therefore, there always has to be someone around playing the hypocrite for the sake of utility, so that others can remain naively innocent.

An Chenyu gently nodded her head, suddenly showing hesitation, but feeling the warmth from the man's hand, she still said, "There's something else."

"You should have said it earlier."

"As we suspected, the county is not allowing forces from all sides to act, they are supposed to stay in their designated cities and are not allowed to leave arbitrarily," An Chenyu sighed lightly. "The County Magistrate has been quite good to us, discreetly leaked some news, saying the three major forces each sent an Internal Affairs Envoy to the counties and towns to maintain order.

The Internal Affairs Envoy from White Camel Estate coming to our Shanghe County should already be on their way.

To think that the County Magistrate and the County Magistrate are merely Internal Affairs disciples, then this Internal Affairs Envoy must be very strong indeed.

That's not even the trouble; the biggest headache is the north... The news from there has been deliberately sealed off.

These days, I've sent many people, and we know nothing about how the Six Towns are doing.

The roads are closed...

Communication is cut off...

But for sure, it's bad."

"I plan to move out in small groups, then reassemble in the Southern Lands to keep a low profile.

But moving each small group out comes at a great cost, requiring suitable excuses and full of countless uncertainties.

The County Magistrate and the County Magistrate can't decide; any significant local forces that want to leave have to be approved by the incoming Internal Affairs Envoy."

Song Cheng asked, "How are the ranches and horse farms you're acquiring doing?"

An Chenyu replied, "I've talked to them, but because the situation is special now, the transactions are on hold and have not progressed. Including the liquidation of the An family's assets, it's all on hold as well."

"Sister An, where are your silver notes from?"

"From the banks in Hanping Prefecture."

"Then exchange all of them into hard cash of gold and silver."

"I've already done so."

"Sister An, if worse comes to worst, we'll take the gold and silver with us, even if we have to start over in the Southern Lands. It might be difficult, but it's better than being stuck here."

"That's what I was thinking, but the Southern Lands are different from the north; there are fewer horse farms there, and fewer Demon Beasts. What's plentiful are mines and silkworm businesses... and I plan to focus on ranching and Demon Beasts so that we have some autonomy during the future Ghost Tide.

Song, you understand, don't you?

This time, there were surprisingly quite a few people and wild beasts that survived outside the city; they huddled in a very small area with increasing numbers, but all stayed outside, not allowed into the city.

But this... is enough to prove that in the future, those who control a large number of Demon Beasts and the art of Beast-Taming have the means to ensure their safety during the Ghost Tide.

It's like moving safe soil, like a sturdy Yang Qi Ship sailing over the vast Yin Sea."

Song Cheng thought for a moment and suddenly grasping a central point, asked, "They won't let those people into the city because they're worried some might be Ghost Servants?"

An Chenyu nodded and said, "Those Ghost Servants can blend into crowds, no power would risk letting them into the city. But people always have to leave the city, so... it's only a matter of time before they get in."

While the couple was talking, Ling had brought over the breakfast, calling out, "Son-in-law, Miss, Madam Tong, Yingying, it's time to eat."

...

```

...

Two days later.

To the south of Shanghe County, in the wilderness, the rain fell like piercing needles.

Two carriages, escorted by a dozen fast horses, hurried northward towards the county town.

These cavalrymen were not wearing armor, but they were clearly seasoned martial artists.

Hooves flew, splashing mud and water.

The hubs raced, nearly leaving the ground.

The curtain of the leading carriage lifted, revealing an angry, fierce-looking woman who urged, "Faster! Quicker! Even faster!"

This was the Madam of the An Family.

To ensure a foolproof rescue, she had even appealed to the family patriarch for help.

The old patriarch was also worried about his eldest grandson's safety. In fact, he had been considering handing over the entire business to him.

In his heart, although An Changsheng might be uneducated, he was still of his own blood. If need be, others could assist him. He would learn eventually.

The reason An Chenyu had been tasked before was partly due to her talent and also because he thought to bind her with a son-in-law living with his wife's family chosen by him. However, he hadn't expected the girl to dare choose her own suitor, showing no understanding of the rules or respect for seniority, [and] not realizing to whom the Ruyi Commerce Chamber truly belonged.

At this moment, the old patriarch's face was stern as he pondered how to save his eldest grandson.

As for collusion with bandits, just pay them more money.

And regarding the looting of their own merchant convoy, well, if it has been looted, let it be. It showed that Changsheng was not completely ignorant; at least he knew how to employ tactics.

As for the death of Guan Xi, so what if a slave died?

The old patriarch had decided that no matter the cost, he must save An Changsheng.

Wild winds carried the rain, like a mighty dragon swimming through the sky...

In the lush, verdant forest, more than ten fearsome elite martial artists, along with over ten bandits skilled in setting ambushes in the wild, were concealing their forms, like hunters waiting for their prey.

All of them were masked with black cloth.

In the rain, a young figure turned to two strong and tall figures at his side, saying, "Uncles, kill them all later. As for disposing of the bodies, leave it to Wang Han. They are seasoned bandits; they are professionals in this regard."

One of the figures, craning his neck and lowering his voice as if speaking to the air in irritation, said, "Hang them? I say f*ck you. Today I'm really fed up."

The young figure was a bit embarrassed and replied, "Uncle, stay calm. Just killing them will do."

Another figure with a buzz cut coldly said, "I heard this thing was sent by Wang Han to assassinate Miss An. She was lucky to have escaped. Today, we must make sure Wang Han kills her.

Damn it, they want to cut off our Martial Arts Hall's path. I'll make them die first!

Xiaohua, you did well this time. Indeed, such matters should not require the teacher to act personally.

Hey, how did our teacher train?

How did he get so damn powerful?"

The young figure hushed them, saying, "Uncle, they're coming. Get ready to act."

These three were Zhao Hua, Master Xu, and Great Master Xiong, and there were many of the Martial Arts Hall's elites beside them...

The Martial Arts Hall was full of fierce fighters, not to be trifled with.

They appeared civilized only in Song Cheng's presence.

That day, An Changsheng's arrogance had completely offended the Martial Arts Hall. Coupled with his intentions and Zhao Hua's mediation, this deadly ambush had been set up.

...

...

The carriages and cavalry arrived swiftly.

But among the torrential rain, several tripwires meant to trip horses suddenly tensed and stood erect.

The cavalry and carriages had no chance to see the wires in time, and even if they had, it would have been too late to react. One by one, they violently crashed into the tight iron wires, falling men and horses alike.

The martial artists and bandits surged out from behind the trees.

The Madam and the old patriarch leaned out of their carriages and caught a glimpse of their guards being slashed down swiftly, and even a Force Realm Expert among them was being suppressed, struggling to resist. Both of them recoiled into their carriages in shock.

In an instant, Great Master Xiong brandishing a large saber arrived at the carriage, thrusting his blade through the carriage wall, delivering a chilling blow to the Madam.

On the other side, Master Xu, armed with a large axe, approached the old patriarch's carriage. Without hesitation or words, he raised the axe and brought it down...

Tragically, the two from the Ruyi Commerce Chamber came to the rescue but perished along with their guards on the road before they could even reach Shanghe County.

...

Miss An had "gone to great lengths" to protect An Changsheng for a few days, not for any reason other than to bait a trap.

Had An Changsheng been beheaded, would the Madam have rushed over?

She just hadn't expected that the old patriarch would also be lured in.

...

The next day...

Clear skies.

At the vegetable market entrance.

An Changsheng and two followers were escorted to the execution ground, and as the signal token fell, the executioner sprayed a mist of liquor on his blade.

The blade fell...

Heads tumbled away.

An Changsheng was dead.

```

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