Encountering Evil

In truth, this was also why Feng Xiu was unwilling to face him—the memory of childhood fear under the rod producing filial sons was only one reason.

More than that, in the path of martial arts and the way of combat, eyesight was paramount!

Especially Feng Ao's pair of tiger eyes; even just quietly staring made Feng Xiu feel utterly uncomfortable.

Raising his gaze, Feng Ao's sharp eyes locked onto Feng Xiu, yet a glint of approval flickered in his expression.

Not bad—he knew how to argue back, how to think.

But not yet!

Then, Feng Ao's voice returned to its unyielding coldness.

"This matter is settled. No further discussion. Do your part—pacify, replace people.

If the heavens won't send rain, find another way to survive. But the water of Tang Reservoir is not our solution."

Feng Xiu lowered his head, rapidly running through various possibilities in his mind.

Tang Reservoir was originally a public works project built to suit the plateau's geography, nourishing and irrigating the river valleys and basins.

When handling the Dendrobium Village matter, Feng Xiu had even made a special trip to Tang Reservoir. The River-Suppressing Iron Ruler there stood three times taller than all of Green Rock City, and within it lay a vast expanse of water, no different from a large lake.

Feng Xiu's thoughts flashed like lightning.

Our own granary—Golden Ear Wheat!

Golden Ear Wheat was unique to Cloud Ridge Plateau, and it was the foundation of the Feng Clan and many forces in Green Rock City.

But that made even less sense. Capital would take risks for profit, but it would never sit by and watch its core assets depreciate.

The major grain merchants, including the Feng Clan, were actually watching grain production decline?

Unless... opening Tang Reservoir itself would trigger something far more terrifying than tenant riots or damage to their own interests?

Was there something wrong with the water?

The thought arose, and Feng Xiu immediately dismissed it.

Feng Ao's authority was deeply entrenched, and he dared not argue further. He opened his mouth, then replied, "Yes. Wen Zheng obeys."

"Withdraw."

At that moment, Feng Ao said calmly, lifting his teacup for a light sip.

"Mmm~"

Feng Xiu bowed respectfully, lowering himself as he withdrew. But just as he reached the threshold, Feng Ao's voice sounded again.

"Wen Zheng, and your second brother's matter—you need to take charge of it."

Sensing a faint disappointment in Feng Ao's tone, Feng Xiu startled and asked, "What's wrong with Second Brother?"

"He's been possessed by evil."

"Possessed?"

"He insists on marrying a qinglou courtesan, as if his soul has been stolen. The matter has even reached my ears!" Feng Ao's brows twisted together.

"Do you know? Your second brother has stopped eating for that prostitute. If that isn't possession, what is?!"

Feng Ao snorted coldly, his restrained fury causing Zhou Gang beside him to quickly interject.

"Brother Feng, calm down, calm down."

Feng Xiu's expression shook after hearing this, but he took a deep breath and didn't ask for specifics.

The eldest son, the eldest son—was he not already busy enough?

Feng Xiu was the oldest in the family, the only child born to Feng Ao and his deceased first wife.

Overall, the Feng Clan was currently advancing toward wealth and status, a pseudo-aristocratic household, but perhaps the nouveau riche aura hadn't yet faded.

This younger brother—one could only say he played a bit too hard.

"I'll handle it." Feng Xiu agreed, then turned and walked out.

Possessed?

The moment he stepped over the threshold, a thought suddenly surfaced in his mind.

But before he could dwell on it, Feng Ao's voice chased after him from behind.

"In two days, I'm going out. The household affairs are yours for now. When I return, give me an account."

Feng Xiu paused mid-step, replied "Yes," and quickened his pace away.

Leaving the reception hall, Feng Xiu first returned to his room to change into dry clothes and washed his face with cold water.

Only after the scorching heat on his body had slightly dissipated did he wipe his face dry.

Then he instructed the guard, "Go and invite Uncle Zheng here."

"Yes."

The guard turned and acknowledged the order.

The weather was scorching, but the Feng Mansion naturally had means to beat the heat—two basins of saltpeter ice sat in the cool shade of the room.

Taking advantage of this moment, a knock came from outside the door.

"Eldest Young Master, you sent for me."

The visitor knocked first, then entered only after receiving Feng Xiu's permission.

Uncle Zheng was about fifty, with a gaunt face and graying hair combed immaculately, bound by an ordinary wooden hairpin.

His build was not that of a burly warrior, but his steps were steady. His indigo cotton robe, washed pale, bore the calm composure of years of handling affairs.

Feng Xiu raised a hand, guiding him to the rosewood chair in the adjoining hall, and gestured for him to sit. "Uncle Zheng, have a seat. Do you know what Shouzhuo has been up to lately?"

Uncle Zheng was an old hand who had fought alongside Feng Ao in building the family fortunes. His body was still hale, and Feng Xiu treated him with courtesy.

Uncle Zheng did not sit immediately. Instead, he bowed slightly and perched on the edge of the chair.

After a moment's recollection, he replied, "To answer Eldest Young Master, the Second Young Master went about eight days ago with several fellow students from the city to attend the Wenjin Society's ten-day gathering. After the meeting, they were invited to the Fragrant Flower Pavilion."

The Wenjin Society was a refined literary gathering formed by private-school Confucian scholars in the city, its name sounding grand.

In truth, it was a front for wealthy young masters with backgrounds similar to Feng Shouzhuo's to gather for amusement and pleasure trips.

They wrote few essays but had mastered all sorts of frivolous pastimes, like "beauty paper" and "flesh inkstones."

"And after that?"

Suppressing the helplessness in his heart, Feng Xiu pressed on.

For him right now, the urgent matter was not the rain-prayer in White Willow Village, nor arranging for a matchmaker to find new honest tenant farmers, nor investigating what was amiss at Tang Reservoir.

None of that mattered. What mattered was that, as the eldest son of the Feng Clan, Feng Xiu had to put the appearance of family harmony on display!

If you can't even manage your own younger brother, how can you be expected to lead the family to prosperity?

Just now, because Feng Xiu was unaware, it had already displeased Feng Ao, prompting that deliberate show of lingering anger as a reprimand.

"According to the man following him," Uncle Zheng lowered his voice, "the Second Young Master spent two hundred silver at the Fragrant Flower Pavilion's private viewing, winning the first night of a newly arrived virgin courtesan. The next day, he made a fuss about redeeming her and taking her out of the pavilion."

Uncle Zheng's expression turned reminiscent. "This woman is named Su Wantang. According to the Fragrant Flower Pavilion's madam, she came to Green Rock City three months ago to sell herself, with a clean contract."

"She claims to be a refugee orphan from Jin Province, but this old servant had people check—none of the passes or relay stations along the route have any record of her entering the region."

"In just over a month, she's risen to fame and become the top virgin courtesan in the pavilion."

The Second Young Master's sudden illness had only allowed him to investigate this much.

Feng Xiu frowned. "Who went with him to the Wenjin Society?"

"There's the third son of the Li cloth merchant from the north of the city, and the nephew of Wang the scribe from the yamen."

Uncle Zheng listed several names, all of them idle rich youths from well-off families in Green Rock City, born to concubines, with no scholarly rank or future prospects.

In the end, the methods of great families for grooming talent were all the same.

The family could cover for your lack of learning, but you couldn't truly be ignorant.

"The ringleader was Liu Wenjun, the only son of Manager Liu of the Juyuan Pawnshop."

"Liu Wenjun?"

A glimmer of understanding flashed in Feng Xiu's eyes. This man was a notorious wastrel in the city, steeped in gambling and debauchery. He'd learned plenty of his dirty secrets from Master Black.

What good intentions could he have in taking Shouzhuo to a place like that?

Su Wantang had appeared out of thin air three months ago, with no travel records to trace, and become the top courtesan in just a few months.

Selling herself, no entry records, and a clear target aimed straight at Shouzhuo?

A pig-butchering scheme—no, a con game from the Thousand Doors—he'd read about such tricks in his miscellaneous notes.

This one was probably spot on, nine times out of ten.

The conclusion was a bit hasty, but that was all he could think of.

As for true love or not, that never entered Feng Xiu's considerations. The Feng family's rules were strict; Feng Shouzhuo couldn't possibly be unaware of the consequences.

"Investigate two things." Feng Xiu pondered a moment, then gave a decisive order.

"First, dig into everything about that Su Wantang—everyone she's contacted, her daily routine, her preferences. I want to know it all."

"Second, prepare a modest gift in my name and send it to Manager Liu of the Juyuan Pawnshop, thanking him for his son's care of Shouzhuo."

Uncle Zheng's expression sharpened. "Yes, this old servant understands."

"Also, arrange for me to go see Shouzhuo."

If it really was a Thousand Doors scheme, the other side would surely have a follow-up move. As long as he could see Feng Shouzhuo soon, he could confirm the illness on one hand.

On the other, he might be able to pry some details about Su Wantang from his mouth.

Soon after, Uncle Zheng went to the stables, drove the carriage himself, and before long, a horse-drawn cart stopped at the mansion's gate.

Once he was seated in the carriage, it slowly rolled toward the outer city.

To avoid harming the family's harmony and to keep Feng Shouzhuo from developing any ambitions for power, his residence was not located within the inner city.

To be honest, Feng Xiu found this incomprehensible.

The eldest legitimate son, a non-eldest legitimate son—the distinction between legitimate and illegitimate placed their statuses on entirely different levels.

Feng Xiu, given the name Xiu, had undergone the capping ceremony and taken the courtesy name Wen Zheng.

Feng Shouzhuo, given the name Shouzhuo, had no courtesy name.

Judging solely from the naming and the laissez-faire attitude toward Feng Shouzhuo, unless Feng Xiu died, the position of family head would never fall to him.

So how exactly did Yuan Shen rise from being the son of a concubine to the head of the Yuan family?

On the street.

Street vendors hawked loudly, commoners in coarse linen clothes mingled with armed warriors carrying blades and swords on their backs.

Amid the laughter of a few lightly dressed women in plain attire, beside a corner shop, three or five warriors with slightly sunken temples stood.

One hand used a bamboo hat to fan away the heat, the other held a large bowl of cold tea.

After traveling for the time it takes to drink half a cup of tea, the carriage slowly stopped before a secluded courtyard in the eastern part of the outer city. Uncle Zheng spoke up to remind him.

"Young master, we've arrived."

Feng Xiu and Uncle Zheng pushed open the door and entered together. The courtyard was simple overall, with little architectural decoration. Only two guards, one male and one female, attended Feng Shouzhuo.

"Eldest young master."

Seeing Feng Xiu, the young male guard froze for a moment, then spoke respectfully.

"Take me to see him."

Feng Xiu's expression was cold, his brow furrowed with barely concealed anger.

The guard trembled at his words. The purpose of the eldest young master's visit was self-evident.

He quickly led the two to the side room.

Beside the bed, a maidservant with a pretty face was patiently wiping the thin sweat from the gaunt man's forehead with a towel.

"How is the second young master's health?"

The room was mixed with a somewhat pungent smell of Chinese medicine. Before Feng Xiu could speak, Uncle Zheng asked.

"The second young master has taken a calming sedative and has just fallen asleep now." The maidservant was very afraid of the old man, stammering as she spoke.

Feng Xiu's gaze fell on Feng Shouzhuo in the bed. He was now a completely different person from the image in his memory.

His body was gaunt, not quite skin and bones, but he had long lost his former air of wealth and nobility. His face was as pale as paper, and he trembled from time to time, cold sweat seeping out.

Feng Xiu was jolted. The last time he had seen him was ten days ago.

In just ten days, he had become hardly human?

This wasn't some evil possession—someone wanted Feng Shouzhuo dead!