The Choice

What I mean is, do you have any objections to this?

Xu Yinhe quietly observed the slightly agitated expression on his eldest son's face, his voice calm.

As he finished speaking, the carriage fell silent.

Xu Yinhe's question is somewhat cold-blooded.

But in this position, one often has no choice but to remain cold-blooded.

No one dislikes power; if someone insists they don't, then they've certainly never experienced power.

"If you have any, you can say so."

Under his gaze, Xu Changge's slightly agitated eyes gradually calmed down, and he sighed:

"Father, are you worried that something like what happened to the Li Family will happen between me and Changtian?"

Xu Yinhe remained silent, which was taken as tacit agreement.

The Li Family, whose surname is Tian.

The current emperor has been bedridden for many years. Although a Crown Prince prince has been appointed, those capable princes are fighting tooth and nail to seize the throne.

Two members of the royal family have already been sent to Heavenly Island, a place specifically for imprisoning them.

Xu Changge took out some tea utensils from his Sumeru Ring, and while fiddling with them, he casually spoke.

The voice was soft and earnest.

"Father, when Mother died in front of me, I made a decision to protect Chang'an and his two siblings."

"But when Chang'an passed away, I was powerless to help. There are many things in this world that cultivation cannot solve, so I agreed to take over the Prime Minister's Estate when you asked me to, just to prevent these things from happening again."

Having said that,

Xu Changge poured a cup of fragrant tea, gently pushed it towards Xu Yinhe, and looked up to meet his hawk-like gaze:

"Father, Changtian has indeed changed a lot, but can he do better than me? If not, then his position will only harm him."

Xu Yinhe did not answer this question directly:

"Still under observation, but his management skills are quite good."

"Very nice"

Hearing her father's comment, Xu Changge murmured and nodded:

"In that Changtian, Changtian is indeed stronger than me; even your subordinates, Father, aren't entirely convinced."

Xu Yinhe picked up his teacup, took a small sip, and commented:

"It's normal to be dissatisfied, Changge, you're too extreme."

Those old friends were all very strong-willed, and when two hot-tempered people met, although the orders that needed to be carried out were still issued, the process was very bumpy.

It was really tough.

Moreover, no one knows how much of it was done out of respect for him, the prime minister.

If he's gone, who can guarantee that it will definitely be carried out?

But if not.

A sigh flashed in Xu Yinhe's eyes.

Xu Changge was well aware of his own personality flaws, and took a small sip of tea:

"I know, so Father, I have no objection to you letting Changtian take over, as long as he can do a better job than me."

"."

Xu Yinhe remained silent, took out a Heavenly Message Crystal from his Sumeru Ring, and poured in a torrent of Source Qi.

Xu Changge hesitated slightly upon seeing this scene:

"Father, what's wrong?"

"Someone contacted me while I was at the Marquis of Martial Achievement Estate. This should be in Changtian. Yesterday, news came from the Wanxiang Sect that the assembly was complete."

Xu Changge smiled gently:

"Is this your test for him?"

"I suppose so, but the Black Scale Guard reported that he's been doing quite well these past few days," Xu Yinhe replied truthfully.

Seeing this, Xu Changge stopped mentioning the matter and instead asked:

"Xin Yao is here too?"

"Hmm." Xu Yinhe.

Xu Changge's eyes softened for a moment:

"Although it's a bit late, it's still a New Year's reunion."

"Changtian?"

When the Communication Crystal connected, Xu Yuan was discussing some array-related matters with Xu Xinyao in the secret room. However, upon hearing this voice, the two of them fell silent.

He paused for a moment,

Xu Yuan carefully considered his words and nodded:

"Father, it's me."

"What's up?"

"I want to confirm some things with you, Father."

"."

Xu Yinhe was not surprised at all, after all, he had only been told to go and negotiate:

"Because of those 40,000 Black Scale Army?"

"No." Xu Yuan gave a direct negative answer.

Xu Yinhe raised an eyebrow for a moment:

"If it's not because of this, then why did you come to see your father?"

After a few breaths of silence,

Xu Yuan took a deep breath and got straight to the point:

"Does Xu Changge know what you're about to do?"

"."

Inside the carriage, Xu Yinhe was somewhat surprised.

He didn't reveal much information to the third son, but it seemed that the third son had already figured out what he wanted to do.

With a smile in his eyes, Xu Yinhe glanced at his eldest son sitting opposite him and asked in a low voice:

"What is it that you need your older brother to know?"

"."

This question startled Xu Yuan, who was in the secret communication room.

He didn't think that the father, with his shrewdness, wouldn't understand the meaning behind his words.

Is he asking this question now because his initial judgment was wrong, or because the other party is deliberately trying to get him to admit it himself?

But how do you bring this kind of thing into the open?

Should I just ask, "Father, are you planning to let me inherit the throne?"

After a moment's thought, Xu Yuan said in a calm voice:

"Aren't you doing this to test my character?"

"Yes," Xu Yinhe replied briefly.

Upon hearing this, Xu Yuan's eyes flashed for a moment:

"In that case, I think we need Xu Changge's consent for this matter?"

A steady breathing sound came from behind him. After a moment, Xu Yinhe asked in a serious tone:

"Changtian, can I take that as you thinking I'm planning to hand over the Prime Minister's Estate to you, rather than your elder brother?"

"."

ah?

The old man's questioning tone made Xu Yuan feel uncertain.

All of the previous information was speculation.

Perhaps, this old man just wanted him to be Xu Changge's second-in-command?

The moment the thought of hesitation arose, Xu Yuan rejected it.

The structure of the Prime Minister's Estate dictates that there can only be one top leader. The second-in-command can be Lou Ji, Hua Hong, or even anyone in the staff, but it can never be one of the two brothers.

Once he gets to do the work and become familiar with the people below him, Xu Changge will only be a puppet. This kind of structure will never have a stable power center.

If this father really does that, he is setting himself up for future internal strife.

They may not fight in their generation, but what about their next generation, and the generation after that?

Having thought this through, Xu Yuan no longer hesitated and stated his judgment:

"Father, you can understand it this way."

Hearing this firm answer, Xu Yinhe smiled, a rare occurrence.

"Heh, you're right. Are you willing?"

Xu Yuan let out a long sigh of relief. His father actually tested him in something like this:

"Father, what I want to know now is whether Xu Changge knows about this?"

"I know." Xu Yinhe glanced at his eldest son across from him again.

Xu Changge wore a relieved smile.

He made inferences based on limited information and insisted on his own opinion when questioned by his father.

very nice.

At this moment, Xu Yuan's voice rang out again:

"Does Xu Changge have no objections?"

Xu Yinhe did not answer directly, but said meaningfully:

"Changtian, the Prime Minister's Estate is ruled by your father."

"But my elder brother's opinion is very important." Xu Yuan was unusually insistent on this issue.

"."

Hearing this, Xu Yinhe smiled and, while observing Xu Changge's expression, replied in a low voice:

"Hmm, probably not. You know your older brother's temperament. But how did you figure that out? Just from those two Painted Skin your father gave you?"

Xu Yuan sighed, his tone somewhat helpless:

"I know Xu Changge too well. I made this judgment mainly because of his bad temper. He must have had a lot of conflicts with Aunt Lou Ji and the others during the years he was in charge, right?"

Xu Changge's eye twitched.

Xu Yinhe glanced at him indifferently.

Xu Changge sighed silently.

Xu Yuan is right.

Lou Ji and Wu Zigen, who manages the Tian'an Martial Hall, almost got into a fight at the Prime Minister's Estate over the year-end allocation of funds. They slammed tables and had countless verbal conflicts.

However, Xu Yuan hadn't finished speaking, and he kept rambling on:

"Xu Changge seem glamorous to outsiders, but to your old friends, he's probably just a greenhorn."

"." Xu Changge.

"And he's the kind of pretentious, bossy brat. I don't know about others, but Aunt Lou Ji's personality probably wouldn't tolerate him."

"."

"And also, Xu Changge."

"Changtian."

Xu Yuan immediately muted his microphone.

"When you return to the Imperial Capital to get engaged, your brother will come out of the city to meet you."

"." Xu Yuan.

Xu Xinyao tried hard to suppress her laughter.

For a moment, the atmosphere froze.

In the end, Xu Yinhe spoke up to bring the topic back on track:

"Alright, Changtian, you came to me just to confirm this?"

Xu Yuan coughed lightly and said in a low voice:

"Well, there are two more things, one small and one big."

"Oh?" Xu Yinhe's tone rose slightly.

"It's a small matter, but I want to ask you, Father, for a favor."

Xu Yuan whispered, glancing at Xu Xinyao beside him, "There's a leader of the Pingshui Gang in Wanxiang City who knows my identity."

Xu Yuan stopped there.

Xu Yinhe listened carefully and then asked:

"You want to save his life?"

"Um."

Xu Yuan nodded and said truthfully, "I think he was quite capable. It's a pity he died like this."

Xu Yinhe did not answer the question immediately, but sat on the futon and savored the spiritual tea sent from Tianshan.

After a while,

He then slowly spoke:

"Changtian, is this what you think, or Xin Yao thinks?"

Xu Yuan asked with slight hesitation:

Does it matter?

"Very important."

"."

Xu Yuan thought carefully, but his answer was indeed ambiguous:

"Father, many people's achievements are limited by the platform they use. I think the potential of this Bai Zhao is far greater than that."

"So, you really value talent?" Xu Yinhe asked.

"Hmm." Xu Yuan nodded and then briefly explained the reasons for his judgment.

"."

After listening to the story, Xu Yinhe neither agreed nor refused, but instead uttered a meaningful sentence:

"Changtian, if that person were truly intelligent, they wouldn't have put you in such a difficult position."

midday,

West of the city, the main house of the Pingshui Gang leader's residence.

The room was quiet, with sunlight streaming in through the open doors and windows. Dust motes danced and swirled in the light, and a light meal lay on the table in the center of the room.

It's simple, but very heartwarming.

A middle-aged man with graying temples stood at the door, watching his daughter skip and hop towards the yard with tender eyes, glancing sideways at the woman beside him.

Under the sunlight, the woman's face, as the wife of the Pingshui Gang, appeared somewhat ordinary, but Bai Zhao's gaze towards her was very gentle.

When he first arrived in this Wanxiang City as a teenager, she took him in and made him a long-term worker in her family's butcher shop. When they got married, she threatened to kill herself to prevent him from becoming a live-in son-in-law. Now, thirty years have passed in the blink of an eye.

Why are you looking at me like that?

The woman's voice sounded very gentle.

Bai Zhao shook his head and said with a smile:

"It's nothing, you're just as beautiful as you were when you were young."

"Saying such things in broad daylight, aren't you ashamed?"

The woman rolled her eyes; she wasn't alluring, but Bai Zhao liked it. He smiled and whispered, "Qu'er, someone will come to pick you up after you and Qingqing leave the city this time."

The woman looked at her husband beside her and noticed something unusual in his eyes:

"Has something happened?"

Bai Zhao smiled and casually uttered two words:

"Avoid disaster."

More than twenty years of mutual support made Bai Zhao realize that he couldn't hide it from the other party, so he might as well be more direct.

The woman asked, but it was clear that this wasn't the first time such an attempt to avoid disaster had occurred:

"Is it serious?"

Bai Zhao shook his head:

"It's not serious, but for your safety, it's best to leave the city beforehand. I'll be back in a couple of days, and maybe in a week or two."

The woman didn't say anything more after hearing this, and smiled gently:

"Qingqing and I will be waiting for you outside the city."

Bai Zhao looked at the figure that had lost its slenderness with the passage of time, shook her head and smiled, preparing to turn around, close the door, and go inside. But in the end, she paused, gritted her teeth, and said:

"Zhang Qu."

"."

The woman walking in the courtyard turned around with some confusion and looked at her husband at the door:

"Just say everything you have to say at once."

Bai Zhao spoke very seriously:

"Thank you for all these years."

"."

The woman was slightly taken aback.

The sunlight in the courtyard suddenly became quite strong, so strong that she couldn't clearly see him standing in the shadows.

Her eyes darted around unconsciously a few times, and as she turned around, she spat out:

"Nonsense, I... Qingqing and I are waiting for you outside the city."

"."

Bai Zhao did not answer, but silently watched the other person leave before slowly turning to the door and personally tidying up the scattered bowls and chopsticks on the table.

Sure enough, she always hides her worries in times like these.

Just like when we were starting out, we were stitching up his wounds while simultaneously spitting on him.

After carefully putting everything away, he silently sat down in the main seat, looked at the luxurious room he had worked so hard for his entire life, and sighed.

In the end, it was all for nothing.

As he spoke,

Bai Zhao smiled as he recalled the scene of his family eating here before.

"It wasn't entirely a complete loss."

Bai Zhao lit a cigarette with a tinderbox, and as the smoke rose, he slowly drew a short dagger from his waist.

His hand was steady, but through the gleaming blade of the dagger, he could see his own lips trembling slightly.

It got stuck last night.