Situation

Early the next morning, Meng Zhao finished washing up under Lü Yue's attendance, changed into a light red casual robe that was fresh and cool, then sat in his room to enjoy breakfast.

Three kinds of pale pastries, eight small dishes, dried fruits, and vegetables—everything was not only perfect in color, aroma, and flavor, but held hidden wonders within.

They either contained the essence of rare and precious herbs or had been simmered from the flesh and blood of vicious beasts.

Once consumed, they generated a great deal of vital essence. For martial artists cultivating internal arts, they were indispensable resource investments.

The first step of Martial Dao Cultivation was the Houtian Realm, focused mainly on tempering one's foundation and accumulating internal force.

The three stages of Breath Absorption and Essence Condensation, Qi Accumulation into Sea, and Meridian Circulation—Postnatal Entry Stage, minor accomplishment, and major accomplishment—were all like this.

The deeper one's internal force and the firmer one's foundation, the broader one's future prospects in the Martial Dao would be.

Yet internal force could never come from nothing. It had to be refined from the body's vital essence and transformed through specialized martial arts cultivation methods.

But a person's vital essence was limited. Whether innate essence or acquired essence, excessive extraction would lead to depletion and damage, perhaps even endangering one's life.

Thus, it had to be replenished with external things, such as all manner of precious pills and expensive ingredients.

Most experts came from prestigious clans, powerful families, sects, and schools. That was the reason why.

Even a genius with a Special Physique, without resources to support them, would find that even the cleverest housewife could not cook without rice. No matter how great their talent, they would ultimately fade into mediocrity.

Therefore, Meng Zhao felt no resistance whatsoever toward the mysterious person sending him to impersonate a member of the Meng Family. The gains were simply too great.

While Meng Zhao ate, Lü Yue, round-faced and naturally comical-looking in a brown short robe, stood beside him with a blue-covered booklet in hand, slowly explaining some of the Second Branch's assets and forces.

First, setting aside the businesses jointly operated with the First and Third Branches, the Second Branch's influence in those enterprises had steadily weakened over recent years. They basically only received dividends now and had no room to interfere.

What remained were all businesses independently run by the Second Branch.

There were properties, fields, shops, and the like. Not only were they numerous, but they were also sprawling and complex, centered around Nan'an Commandery City and extending across nearly half of Ji Prefecture.

Just among the Second Branch's subordinate shopkeepers and stewards, there were more than a hundred. Their affairs were thriving indeed.

For such an enormous operation to remain orderly and grow ever more prosperous, aside from sheltering beneath the tiger hide of the great Meng Family, Lü Zhong—the Second Branch's chief steward and Lü Yue's adoptive father—had rendered absolutely outstanding service.

Beyond wealth, the Second Branch also maintained a group of martial artists. There were promising talents with decent aptitude but insufficient resources; people who had already achieved something in martial arts but had made too many enemies through their flashy conduct and came here to seek refuge; and desperadoes who carried their heads on their belts, killing without blinking for money and cultivation resources...

In short, they had money when they needed money, people when they needed people, a backer behind them, and connections above them.

Even if they were separated from the Meng Family, they could still hold their heads high in Ji Prefecture. They might not dominate an entire region, but they could certainly keep to one corner and stand secure.

However, before Meng Zhao could be happy for long, Lü Yue mentioned several matters that did not please him nearly so much.

First, Meng Xi and Meng Wen of the First Branch had both planted personnel within the Second Branch's businesses, mainly in the enterprises located in Nan'an Commandery City and nearby county towns. Over the years, they had siphoned no small amount of silver from the Second Branch.

The two brothers fought each other so fiercely; naturally, they would not let the temporarily ownerless piece of meat that was the Second Branch escape them.

Still, with elders above them, the brothers had exercised some restraint and had not gone too far.

Moreover, Meng Zhao was far away in the Jade Capital, beyond the reach of his whip. Lü Zhong, an old servant, could only turn a blind eye.

Second, over the past year, the Sun Family, another powerful clan in Nan'an Commandery City, had frequently clashed with the Meng Family. The two sides had been trading blows back and forth.

Naturally, some of the Second Branch's businesses had also suffered suppression from the Sun Family's forces, sustaining considerable losses.

The most recent incident had occurred five days ago. An estate belonging to the Second Branch outside Nan'an Commandery City had been attacked. Eight martial artists guarding the estate were killed, and the property losses were substantial as well. Around thirty mu of Medicine Fields had been burned, while two large warehouses of stockpiled herbs had been looted.

Lü Zhong had spent the past few days investigating the matter and had already found some leads.

According to the latest reports, the one who had likely ordered the attack was a Sun Family wastrel named Sun Chuanshan.

It seemed that this fellow had incurred a huge debt outside, yet did not dare ask his family for money, so he set his crooked sights on the Meng Family's businesses.

After all, the two families were now like fire and water, their conflict escalating by the day. He had apparently intended to strike at the Meng Family while also making up for his own losses.

Even if the elders discovered it, he would have an excuse to fob them off with.

Still, this was only the direction indicated by the current clues. Nothing had been confirmed yet.

After saying this, Lü Yue put away the booklet and quietly waited at the side for instructions.

Meng Zhao, meanwhile, took small sips of the fragrant medicinal porridge with a silver spoon as he considered his current situation.

Internal troubles and external threats.

Within the family, the two brothers of the First Branch are restless. This concerns the struggle over the position of family head's heir, and they have already stretched their hands into the Second Branch's businesses.

I may not want to get involved, but once you are in the rivers and lakes, your fate is no longer your own. What the future holds is truly hard to say.

Outside, the Sun Family is another major problem. A force capable of arm-wrestling with the Meng Clan must certainly be a regional powerhouse, and there is most likely someone backing them from behind.

Fortunately, the entire Meng Family is bearing the brunt of it rather than the Second Branch. Otherwise, this little frame of mine really wouldn't be able to withstand it.

Originally, Meng Zhao had been a counterfeit. Following the mysterious person's instructions, all he needed to do was infiltrate the Meng Family and play the role of the Second Branch's Young Master well.

There had been no explicit demands beyond that.

Based on this premise, the best course was to maintain the status quo, be an invisible man, and reduce the chances of making mistakes.

A fake was still a fake. The more wildly one danced, the easier it was to reveal a flaw.

But now that Meng Zhao possessed the Sky-Illuminating Mirror, had gained some confidence, and even wished to turn the tables on the mysterious person, he was naturally unwilling to remain so utterly unambitious.

On the contrary, he had already begun entertaining the idea of a magpie occupying the magpie's nest. Naturally, he wanted to show himself more.

He wanted to bring the entire Second Branch—and even the entire Meng Family—under his control.

If Heaven bestowed something and one refused it, one would instead suffer its blame. Since Heaven had brought him into this world and given him the exact same appearance and body as the real Meng Zhao—

He had to seize this opportunity and make this identity completely real.

As for his former identity as a beggar, along with his inconsequential origins, they held no meaning whatsoever for someone who had crossed over from another world.

And the path to accomplishing all this was actually very clear.

Improving his personal strength came first.

So long as he was strong enough, even if his identity was exposed in the future, he would have the ability to protect himself. He could even roam the rivers and lakes and forge another foundation for himself.

To achieve this in the shortest possible time, he would have to make proper use of the Sky-Illuminating Mirror. Energy points were also indispensable.

Therefore, he needed to use the resources at hand to scour for objects that might contain energy points.

Second, he needed to gain the recognition and affection of the elders as much as possible, while consolidating and taking control of the resources and forces in his hands.

Only with money, people, and power would he have the capital to contend with that mysterious person and break free from them.

There were certainly madmen who fought alone, but Meng Zhao knew that, for the time being, he did not possess that kind of ability.

Most crucially, Meng Zhao carried within him a strange poison the mysterious person had used to control him. He had to take the antidote on time to suppress its toxicity, or his life would be in danger.

It was a sword hanging over Meng Zhao's head, and also a rein fastened around his neck, leaving him threatened and humiliated at every moment.

To detoxify himself, personal strength alone might not be enough. Most likely, he would still need to rely on power and influence to seek out divine physicians and miraculous medicines.

Only after gaining complete freedom and escaping the mysterious person's control would Meng Zhao have the desire and time to think about his future life and path.

Having thought it through, Meng Zhao no longer felt the slightest confusion. He quickly swept the table clean of its food.

Streams of scorching vital essence rose from his stomach and spread throughout his body. It felt as comfortable as soaking in a hot spring.

They nourished his physique and strengthened his blood and qi, before finally being broken down and digested by the Arhat Young Monk Skill, transformed into threads of pure internal force, and stored within his dantian as reserves for the next opening of his dantian.

Yesterday, I received the site message about signing a contract. I may have to wait until Monday to print it, so please feel free to add it to your collections.

At least for the near future, there is no need to worry about it being dropped.