"Did Wu Zhaode really say that?"
At some point, cold sweat had appeared on the Patriarch's face.
The muscles beneath his skin twitched uncontrollably.
Only after a long while did he manage to let out a ragged breath. His trembling right hand fumbled for the armrest of the chair. "Wu Zhaode and that Shen Youli—are they really so close they'd share a pair of pants, or is he afraid of that neither-man-nor-woman freak?"
"Wu Zhaode, you coward!"
As he spoke, he crushed the armrest in one hand.
A venomous, snake-like glint lurked in his eyes.
As the splinters slipped from his fingertips, his retainer carefully tested his master's mood. "Wu Zhaode clearly doesn't want to offend Shen Youli. Patriarch, what should we do? Even leaving aside that we can't produce evidence, would Shen Youli admit to it even if we did? Though she hasn't claimed the throne, she already has the bearing of a king. She's only one step away from ascending the throne and founding a state. This alone would be enough to convict us of gross disrespect and bring about the Extermination of Three Generations..."
The Patriarch reflexively snapped, "Would she dare?"
Those two words seemed to give him all the courage he needed.
He sprang up from the mat, steeling himself. "She isn't Sovereign yet, and hasn't ascended the throne or founded a state. But even if she had, so what? She hasn't even found her footing, and already she's trying to run. She'd better watch out or she'll take a tumble and break her neck! Take my private seal and contact the other families. We'll discuss it!"
Discuss what?
Certainly not how much money to donate.
He wanted to take Shen Tang out while she was still finding her footing! It was an audacious plan, but