Xie Manor welcomed distinguished guests that day, and Madam Zhuge from the Main Estate personally came out to receive them.
On a path in the West Courtyard.
At the head of the group walked a middle-aged Confucian scholar with an upright bearing and handsome features.
He wore a blue robe, and the jade pendant at his waist chimed softly. A scholarly air overflowed from his every word and gesture, yet beneath it lay an unspoken authority that inspired awe.
Behind him, Zhang Yunzhi and Xie Yuan followed closely.
As the middle-aged scholar walked, his doubts steadily grew. His gaze swept across the West Courtyard, and he frowned slightly. "Yun Zhi, could it be that you are trying to fool your father? Shouldn't this West Courtyard be where the servants live?"
Zhang Yunzhi and Xie Yuan exchanged a look. Both fell silent, not knowing where to begin.
This middle-aged scholar was Zhang Yunzhi's father, Zhang Shizai, the commander-in-chief of the Marsh Lake Demon-Slaying Office. Though born a Confucian civil official, he had earned his fame through illustrious military merit. He was also the legitimate second son of the main branch of the Zhang Family, one of the Nine Great Surnames.
He had been born noble, but his temperament was unyielding. Time and again, he had offended Chancellor Su, and as a result, he had been demoted to Marsh Lake for many years.
Now, the demons of Marsh Lake had lost their leader and all entrenched themselves beneath the great lake, where they were easy to defend and hard to attack.
Because Zhang Shizai had dealt a crushing defeat to the Great Sui troops and earned outstanding merit, he had been transferred back to Bianjing to reunite with his family.
Today, he had originally come to Xie Manor to bring his daughter