The Zhao Family

"You... I... Fifth Young Master?"

The steward was suddenly stunned upon hearing the words of this gallant hero.

This shock was not due to the Fifth Young Master changing his name, but because the Fifth Young Master had returned!

"No wonder he looked familiar... so it really is the Fifth Young Master..."

The steward was somewhat agitated.

He also understood that if this news were to reach the manor, it would be no less than throwing a Thunder Fire Bomb into the household!

"Fifth Young Master..." The two guards had only arrived a few years ago and did not know the specific events of the Zhao family from ten years prior.

But having occasionally heard people talk about it, they knew the Fifth Young Master's appearance was supposedly a bit strange.

Yet, no one had ever said the Fifth Young Master looked this imposing!

"How is this strange? This is clearly the face of a valiant general!"

Seeing Chen Guan's physique and rugged features, the guards felt that Chen Guan was exceptionally manly!

However, before they could look any longer, the steward reacted to the news of the Fifth Young Master's return and hurriedly said to Chen Guan, "Young Master, please wait a moment; this humble servant will go report this to the Patriarch at once!"

With that, the steward rushed hurriedly toward the inner courtyard.

He even forgot to first invite the "guest" into the side hall of the front courtyard to wait and have some tea.

In the dining hall near the back courtyard.

Patriarch Zhao, the young masters, and the female relatives were still eating breakfast, unaware of the news that Chen Guan had returned.

"Come... open wide..."

At the table with the female relatives, a slightly lowered voice could be heard.

It was the Second Young Master's wife, feeding their two-year-old son.

Everything was as peaceful as usual, the family enjoying a warm and mundane meal.

Whoosh, whoosh—

But at this moment, the sound of hurried footsteps came from outside the small courtyard.

"Hmm?"

Patriarch Zhao heard the chaotic footsteps, set down his bowl and chopsticks, and frowned.

However, when the owner of the footsteps appeared outside the courtyard, Patriarch Zhao realized it was the old steward who usually understood the rules very well, so he did not lose his temper.

Because this man, who had helped manage their family business from the beginning and had now become the "head steward" and trusted confidant, was considered both a servant and a brother to Patriarch Zhao.

The two had a friendship spanning over thirty years.

But the others were somewhat curious to see the steward in such a rush.

"Uncle Lin is usually very disciplined; why is he in such a hurry today?"

"Is there an honored guest? But who would visit so early in the morning?"

"Could something have happened in the manor?"

Seeing the old steward act this way, everyone began to speculate in their hearts.

"What is it?" Patriarch Zhao asked in a steady tone, looking at the steward who had just trotted to the doorway.

To maintain propriety, Patriarch Zhao still spoke with a hint of reproach:

"Steward Lin, being so flustered in front of the younger generation is inappropriate, isn't it?"

"Patriarch... Patriarch..."

The steward was panting slightly, and his expression showed no sign of having done anything wrong; instead, amidst the increasingly puzzled gazes of those present, he revealed a rare sense of excitement.

"The Young Master has returned! The Fifth Young Master! The Fifth Young Master has returned!"

"What? Fifth?" Upon hearing this, all of Patriarch Zhao's reproach vanished instantly.

At the same time, his expression held a mix of curiosity and relief after worry, but even more so, a sense of anger.

"He dares to come back?!" Patriarch Zhao was furious, his left fist clenching until it creaked.

"Fifth Brother is back?"

The Eldest Young Master and Second Young Master exchanged a glance, their expressions filled with deep, intriguing contemplation.

"I wonder if he's here to fight for the family inheritance..."

"Why did this brat come back all of a sudden?"

The two of them were mostly worried, fearing that someone might compete with them for the family business.

This was because the third and fourth children of the Zhao family were both girls.

The third and fourth daughters had already married and were no longer in the manor.

"Fifth Brother?"

The fourteen-year-old Sixth Young Master, who was the beloved son of the "Fourth Madam who snatched the house and the people," spoke up.

He had a somewhat scholarly appearance.

When he heard that Chen Guan had returned, his expression did not fluctuate much, though he was mostly curious.

Because when Chen Guan had left, he was still very young and did not remember what this Fifth Brother looked like at all.

He had only heard his mother mention occasionally that his Fifth Brother's appearance was very strange.

"Mother? Who is Fifth Young Master? Is it Fifth Uncle?"

"Fifth Uncle? Is it the Fifth Uncle who ran away from home that Father mentioned?"

At the table for the female relatives, some of the grandchildren in the family also looked at their respective mothers with curiosity.

Chen Guan's sudden return today had broken the Zhao family's long-standing tradition of silence during breakfast.

Seeing this, Patriarch Zhao did not reprimand anyone, but instead tried to keep his tone steady as he looked toward the steward at the door and said:

"Bring him to the dining hall!"

After giving the order, Patriarch Zhao closed his eyes and stopped speaking, not even continuing his meal.

"Wait..." First Madam, whose hair was already somewhat gray, called out to the steward before he could leave.

At the same time, First Madam walked out of the hall and whispered instructions to the steward:

"Prepare a few extra portions of food. Little Wu used to eat a lot when he was young, and I don't know if the child has eaten anything this morning since he returned in such a hurry."

"This..." The steward paused for a moment, glanced at the silent Patriarch inside the hall, and then bowed quietly, saying: "Yes, First Madam, this old servant will have the kitchen prepare it immediately."

As he spoke, he seemed to recall something and asked:

"Fifth Young Master also brought a few... friends. Should I invite them into the manor as well?"

"Yes." First Madam nodded and whispered again: "Steward Lin, when you go to the kitchen, call Xiao Hua over as well.

Little Wu was close to Xiao Hua when he was a child. Let Xiao Hua come over and chat with him more.

Otherwise, the child is stubborn, and our family's Patriarch also has a headstrong temper.

After ten years, if this father and son meet, they might end up parting on bad terms."

First Madam was the daughter of a declining minor noble family in the city.

She had always been sensible and well-mannered.

In the past, whenever Chen Guan received strange looks from some of the madams in the manor, it was always First Madam who spoke up to reprimand them and resolve the situation for Chen Guan.

Of course, she did not think of this as helping Chen Guan.

She mostly wanted the family relationships within the manor to be more harmonious.

Because the reason her own family had declined was due to years of infighting and internal strife.

The next moment.

As the steward followed First Madam's instructions, sending people to the kitchen to cook and call for others while returning to the entrance to receive the guests:

"He has returned..."

Fourth Madam, who was in the dining hall, no longer possessed a graceful figure, but had instead become slightly plump.

Because of past events and the Patriarch's command for her to "get out," she was no longer favored by him.

Now, she relied entirely on her son, the Sixth Young Master.

Fortunately, the Sixth Young Master was promising and studied well; according to the teacher in town, if he studied for another four or five years, he might be able to try the imperial examinations and see if he could obtain the lowest rank of Xiucai.

Fourth Madam still held high expectations and wanted her child to advance even further.

But before she could think much more, several sets of footsteps approached from the distance.

The next second, a tall figure walked into the courtyard.

Chen Guan returned home openly, his gaze leveled toward the hall.

"Is this Fifth Brother?"

"Fifth Nephew..."

When Eldest Young Master and the others saw Chen Guan, they truly did not recognize him, and they dared not acknowledge this "tough guy" whose presence was so oppressive.

"Ling'er?" Patriarch Zhao did not recognize this "rugged hero" at the first glance.

But when he saw his child's distinctive ears, he called out directly.

"Father, your son has returned." Chen Guan paused for a moment before saying it somewhat awkwardly.

Regarding familial affection, Chen Guan felt somewhat conflicted.

But if one were to ask whether he cared about this old man?

At this moment.

When Chen Guan saw the white hair at his temples and the way he looked at him with a mixture of anger and concern.

Chen Guan truly did not know what to say.

After all, although the old man did not care much for him, he had still provided him with seven years of full meals.

He had never lacked for food, clothing, housing, or transportation.

Except for the fact that he had no personal maidservants to serve him after the age of six or seven.

Compared to some families in reality, this was already considered a relatively good father.

In the next instant.

Several bandits entered the courtyard.

Chen Guan quickly put aside these sentimental thoughts and tilted his head slightly to look at the bandits.

Thump, thump...

At the same time, when the bandits saw the expert looking over, they trembled in fear, turning toward the hall and kneeling in a row behind Chen Guan.

"What is this?!"

The women near the door, as well as a few young masters, hurriedly moved away from the entrance in a panic.

Because even though these bandits were keeping their heads low and acting submissive, they could not hide their fierce and menacing appearances.

Even Second Young Master and Sixth Young Master dared not meet the bandits' eyes, looking instead at the sturdy-framed Chen Guan.

Chen Guan's appearance was more rugged, and he was a blood relative.

On some level, there was a sense of closeness and familiarity, which was better than looking at these vicious men.

"Who are they?" Patriarch Zhao frowned incessantly as he looked at the bandits.

Especially two of the bandits, whom he had seen twice within this period.

"You... Shopkeeper Peng?"

Patriarch Zhao looked at the bandit leader, then shifted his gaze to the man beside him.

"And you are Member Heng?"

In order to scout the location better, the bandits took turns casing the area.

Sometimes, they even went into the Zhao family's shops to look around, seeing if they could use business discussions as a pretext to find out information.

"Master Zhao... I was wrong..."

"This lowly one dares not do it again... This lowly one dares not covet Master Zhao's wealth anymore... I only hope... I only hope Master Zhao will spare me..."

"I shouldn't have gone to your estate to scout..."

When the bandits saw Patriarch Zhao looking at them, they kowtowed and begged for mercy.

Now that they heard Chen Guan was a descendant of the Zhao family, they were even more terrified, feeling that they were essentially dead!

After all, when it came down to it, they were robbing the man's money and planning to kill his family members.

This was a blood feud.

But if there was even a tiny bit of connection, the bandits felt there might be a sliver of hope.

Even now, they were still thinking about whether they could try begging for mercy.

They did not want a mutual destruction.

Because with an expert in front of them, even if they wanted to launch a desperate counterattack, they could not move.

"What is going on?" Patriarch Zhao was bewildered to see the bandits kowtowing.

However, through their words and mentions of scouting, Patriarch Zhao understood that his family had been targeted by these people!

At the same time, everyone in the hall understood what had happened based on the bandits' pleas for mercy.

"I returned to the town yesterday."

Chen Guan pointed at the bandits.

"I ran into this group of a dozen or so men in the forest.

I heard them say that there are still over twenty others currently in town.

I intend to capture them all today."

"What? There are over a dozen men in the woods? And another twenty in town?"

"So many bandits?"

"They... they were actually planning to rob us... thank goodness Fifth Nephew ran into them..."

Hearing these words and looking at these vicious, murderous bandits, everyone was overcome with lingering fear.

Eldest Young Master, who was supposed to deliver goods and collect payment in the middle of next month, turned deathly pale, his hand trembling against the table.

I was... just one step away from death...

In the dead of winter, Eldest Young Master's back was soaked with sweat.

The immediate wave of terror made his eyelids twitch as he secretly wiped the sweat from his forehead.

"Fifth Brother... did he subdue them all by himself?" Second Young Master wondered, casting a furtive glance at the sturdy Chen Guan.

Patriarch Zhao, hearing that there were over a dozen bandits in the woods but seeing only four kneeling before him, felt a mix of curiosity and anxiety. Without even realizing it, he asked Chen Guan in a tentative tone:

"Then... my child... those in the woods? They...?"

Following Patriarch Zhao's inquiry, everyone else turned their gaze toward Chen Guan, eager to know what had become of the others.

Chen Guan, however, replied with complete indifference:

"The twelve bandits in the woods and I had a score to settle. Since this grudge could not be resolved, I naturally killed them all."