"Ah, all of this was because the Fang Family pressed us too hard. There really was no other choice. Now that you, the King of Xia, have shouldered a substantial part of the You Family's burden, the You Family has managed to hold on all these years. I... I'm not refusing to let you and Lian'er acknowledge each other, it's just... I'm afraid it would expose the relationship between the You Family and you. Although the Fang Family has noticed some signs over the years, they merely think that you, Li Jiqian, King of Xia, are on close terms with the You Family. If they ever learned of our relationship, I'm afraid they would stop at nothing to attack the You Family. With its current strength, the You Family simply couldn't withstand an all-out assault from the Fang Family." The woman before him was Madam You, You Lian'er's mother, and You Lian'er's father was none other than Li Jiqian. This was also why Li Jiqian had forbidden his sons, Li Deming and Li Dezhao, from harboring any romantic thoughts about You Lian'er: they were siblings who shared a father but had different mothers.
Tracing Li Jiqian's Li Family back a thousand years, their ancestors had also belonged to the Heavenly Demon Sect. Unlike the You Family and the other lineages, however, the Li Family had increasingly turned toward the Imperial Court over the years, with descendants of successive generations serving as officials. During the previous dynasty, for instance, it was precisely because their ancestors held official posts that they later had the opportunity to obtain many of the Tang Dynasty's imperial texts. Together with some texts they possessed from the Heavenly Demon Sect, these had formed the Li Family Armory. The Fang Family was eyeing the Li Family Armory most