229: Women are in the way.

Feng Mian said, "This woman is too much of a hindrance. She has caused trouble time and again; we must find an opportunity to kill her."

Feng Ming nodded.

"I didn't expect her to go down this path back then. When the chance arises, I'll kill her."

"Mm!"

Everyone nodded in agreement.

Since it was clear that Huangfu Yunyan was definitely targeting them in secret,

Feng Ming would no longer indulge her.

However, with two Elders following them now, he still had to give them some Face.

But once they reached the Liangzhou Trial, nothing would be able to stop him... The next morning, as the sky was just beginning to brighten, Feng Ming and the others set off for Liangzhou City.

Meanwhile, the messenger guard returned to the Xiao Residence. When Xiao Ze heard that his only son had actually been killed, he instantly flew into a rage.

"Qingyang City, Huangfu Family... Good, what a fine Huangfu Family."

"To dare kill my son, you're truly seeking death. Men, take a group to Qingyang City immediately and capture the remnants of the Huangfu Family for me."

With the command given, a large group of people set off in a grand procession toward Qingyang City.

Xiao Ze also donned the armor he hadn't worn in a long time and led his men straight toward Liangzhou City.

Everything was developing exactly as Feng Ming had anticipated.

As the days passed, Feng Ming and the others finally arrived at Liangzhou City.

At this time, there were only five days left until the Liangzhou Trial.

At the gates of Liangzhou City, Feng Ming looked at the grand gates and couldn't help but sigh, "Liangzhou City, we've finally arrived."

After entering the city gates, everyone discovered that Liangzhou City was indeed rumored to be the most prosperous city, without exception.

This was indeed the case; walking down the streets and seeing the dense rows of shops and various vendors, Feng Ming felt that those words were not an exaggeration at all.

Seeing such a scene for the first time, Chun Tao was incredibly excited, like a child with a hundred thousand questions, constantly asking Jiang Shuwan.

Jiang Shuwan answered them all with a smile.

Returning to the place where she grew up, Jiang Shuwan's mood was also exceptionally pleasant.

Her entire spirit seemed different.

Feng Ming could also see that Jiang Shuwan was very happy, even somewhat expectant.

Her heart had likely already flown to the Jiang Family, to her mother's side.

The inn where everyone stayed was located at a crossroads. In the very center of the crossroads, a very special tavern had been built, bustling with people coming and going.

On one side of the crossroads was the Liangzhou branch of the Hua Clan Merchant House. This crossroads was considered the liveliest place in Liangzhou City. The two Elders cautioned, "After checking in, do not wander around. Once you miss the Trial in five days, there won't be another chance. You must remember that Liangzhou City is a mix of dragons and snakes; be careful when you go out and do not cause trouble."

Everyone nodded and returned to their respective rooms.

Jiang Shuwan had long been impatient. As soon as she entered the room and put down her things, she wanted to pull Feng Ming to the Jiang Family.

Feng Ming understood her feeling of wanting to return home, so he immediately had Feng Da and Chun Tao tidy the rooms and gave them a few instructions.

He told Feng Da to wait for him at the tavern at the crossroads after finishing his tasks.

And to keep an eye on the Bounty Notice so that no one else would beat them to it.

According to the information Feng Ming had obtained earlier...

The Jiang Family was looking for a Ninth-Rank Alchemist in exchange for a Ninth-Rank Herb. Taking down the notice meant accepting the Jiang Family's Alchemy task.

However, since Jiang Shuwan was in a hurry to visit her Family, Feng Ming could only wait for now.

On the other side, Huangfu Yunyan stared at Huangfu Rui, waiting for him to speak his mind.

Huangfu Rui said, "The previous lead went cold. For now, we can only go to the tavern at the crossroads to try our luck. That place is a melting pot, and I've heard many young masters of the Jiang Family like to sit there when they have nothing to do."

"If we run into them, we might have a chance to connect with the Jiang Family."

"Many participants will also gather there before the Trial begins, so our presence won't be too conspicuous."

Huangfu Yunyan nodded and looked at the Maid beside her, saying, "Then pack up; let's go to the tavern."

The Maid quickly nodded, "Yes!"

...Liangzhou City Main Street.

Feng Ming and Jiang Shuwan walked down the street. Jiang Shuwan was like a happy bird, chirping away as she told Feng Ming about everything on the roadside.

"Husband, look, that side is the Jiang Family's property, and the one opposite it is too."

The more Feng Ming heard, the more confused he became. "Wait, the Jiang Family is one large Family, why do they have so many mansions?"

Usually, no matter how large a Family was, there would be one landmark estate where many clansmen lived together.

But the Jiang Family in Liangzhou City seemed to have many mansions.

Jiang Shuwan smiled and said, "Husband, it's actually not hard to understand. The Jiang Family has many people. As the saying goes, a large tree branches out, and a large Family splits up. As the overlord of Liangzhou City, the Jiang Family has numerous members. Just the wife of the Family Head alone occupies nearly half of the rooms in the Main Family Branch!"

"It's clearly impossible for everyone else to live in the Main Family Branch, and with many wives, there would be many inconveniences. So, living in separate branches became a necessity!"

Jiang Shuwan laughed as she spoke. "The courtyard where my mother and I lived before was independent of the Jiang Family's ancestral home. There are many such courtyards. Before I got married, only Family Head Jiang Yan's Family and some Family Elders lived in the Jiang Family's Main Family Branch."

"My second uncle's Family has already moved out to a separate courtyard!"

Feng Ming realized he hadn't considered this model before.

After all, although he had read many cultivation Family novels in his past life, he hadn't really paid attention to the housing distribution of these large families.

In those novels, the land of these large families seemed to be as large as needed—the larger the population, the larger the area!

Thinking about it, that was actually impossible. After all, they were just a large Family, not royalty!

If everyone lived together, wouldn't it be comparable to an imperial palace? Even King Haoyue would probably be displeased!

The two of them talked all the way and soon arrived at the gates of a residence.

Feng Ming saw a plaque hanging above the courtyard with four large characters: Jiang Family Mansion!

Jiang Shuwan explained to Feng Ming, "In the Jiang Family, only the plaque of the Main Family Branch has the words 'Jiang Family' on it; all others include the word 'Mansion'."

"Hello, I am Jiang Shuwan, daughter of Jiang Qi. I have specifically come back to visit my mother today."

As she spoke, Jiang Shuwan stepped forward, took out a jade pendant representing her identity, and handed it to the guard.

The guard took a look and said indifferently, "Visiting requires a Visiting Card. Please submit a Visiting Card first!"

"A Visiting Card?"

Jiang Shuwan was stunned and hurriedly said, "What Visiting Card? I've come back to visit my own mother, and this is my home!"

"When I got married, no one said I needed a Visiting Card to come back and visit my mother!"

The guard said indifferently, "It seems you married quite far away!"

"The Family Head issued an order last month: any female members of the Jiang Family, whether their husbands have passed away or they are unmarried women, must first submit a Visiting Card to go out or receive friends!"

"Visits can only be made after the Family Head approves. If you don't have a Visiting Card, you can write one now or leave!"

"You!"

Jiang Shuwan was so angry she could hardly contain herself.

Feng Ming stepped forward, patted her, and said to the guard, "A Visiting Card, right? Fine! We'll write one now!"