When he returned to Qiuyang Prefecture, it was already afternoon.
Chongxuan Laifu was pacing anxiously outside the family estate. The moment he spotted Jiang Wang in the distance, he hurried over to greet him.
"Young Master Jiang, you're finally back! This morning, I thought you were cultivating, so I didn't dare disturb you. Then you were still nowhere to be seen at noon. I was worried sick, thinking I'd been inconsiderate and driven you away!"
His anxiety wasn't entirely exaggerated.
He truly feared he'd touched a nerve in Jiang Wang, some string that must never be plucked. He'd meant well, but was afraid he'd offended a person of importance instead.
"I went out for a stroll." Jiang Wang didn't elaborate. He waved a hand. "Take me to your Ancestral Shrine. I'll offer incense for Young Master Sheng."
Chongxuan Laifu knew where he stood. Perhaps he hadn't always, but after Chongxuan Xin had reprimanded him, he'd long since understood Jiang Wang's weight—and that weight had only grown.
"This way, Young Master. The incense sticks are ready, and the censer has been cleaned for you." He respectfully led the way, asking nothing more.
Jiang Wang had come to Qiuyang Prefecture in the first place on the pretext of offering sacrifices at the Ancestral Shrine for Chongxuan Sheng. Chongxuan Laifu had naturally made preparations.
The entire Chongxuan family estate was like a small city.
It had no towering, solid walls, but the glory of sharing the nation's fate and the foundations of a thousand-year-old aristocratic lineage were a high wall in themselves.
Chongxuan Laifu was a bondservant born into the household, granted the surname Chongxuan. His status was higher than that of an ordinary servant. And a servant's standing rose with his master's. Chongxuan Xin was doing well overseas, and Chongxuan Sheng, the