103: Chapter 103 Ten Years of Bitter Waiting

Chapter 104: Ten Years of Bitter Waiting

In the backyard of the External Affairs Office, Feng Yan was tidying up today's documents.

The night was already deep.

Outside, the mountain wind blew past the lanterns under the corridor, causing the flames to flicker, stretching the shadows on the window paper to great lengths.

Feng Yan had been in the Gu Family for ten years.

Ten years ago, when he was sent by the Han Family to the Gu Clan, he was only at the second level of Qi Refining.

At that time, the instructions given to him by the Han Family were very simple.

"Survive, hide well."

"Wait for an opportunity to send back major news."

During these ten years, he started as a minor official in the granary, moving spiritual rice, transcribing inventory books, and guarding the night gates.

It was only because he wrote a neat hand that he slowly moved into the External Affairs Office.

He dared not make mistakes, and dared not stand out.

Even when chatting with others, he would go over his words twice in his mind first.

Yet the more he did this, the more he felt like a rat trapped in Qingwu Terrace.

The Han Family wanted merit.

Without merit, he could not go back, and even if he did, no one might acknowledge him.

He kept his head down every day in the Gu Clan, yet in the Han Family, he was never considered a true member of the Han Family.

Sometimes Feng Yan would even think, would he spend his whole life just wasting away in the Gu Family's External Affairs Office?

Suddenly, footsteps sounded outside the door.

Feng Yan looked up and saw Manager Gu Huaiheng walking in, carrying a jug of wine.

"Brother Feng."

Manager Gu Huaiheng smiled and shook the wine jug.

"Still not leaving today?"

Feng Yan quickly stood up.

"Manager Gu."

Manager Gu Huaiheng waved his hand.

"What manager or not manager? You and I have known each other for so many years; calling me that in private is meaningless."

Feng Yan smiled along, saying, "Propriety cannot be abandoned."

Manager Gu Huaiheng scoffed and sat down at his desk.

"Whether it's abandoned or not, it's all the same."

As he spoke, he placed the wine jug on the table and poured himself a cup first.

"I am now considered a manager in the eyes of outsiders, right? And what is the result?"

"I can't get involved in major clan matters, but the dirty and tiring work is never lacking. Today, I even had to go deliver some lousy letter."

He looked up and took a drink, his face already showing signs of drunkenness.

Feng Yan's heart stirred slightly, but he still just smiled.

"Manager Gu is valued by the clan, which is why you are so busy."

"Valued?"

Manager Gu Huaiheng sneered.

"If they truly valued me, they would have me follow the Young Lord to discuss matters, instead of sending me to deliver letters."

"What is the situation in the Gu Family now? The Shen Clan is watching, the Han Family is watching, the Jiang Family is even less of a worry-free thing, and the east side is in such chaos."

"Yet when these matters fall to me, all that's left is running errands."

The more he spoke, the angrier he became, and he drank several more cups in a row.

Feng Yan just accompanied him on the side.

The two had known each other for many years.

Before Manager Gu Huaiheng became a manager, he often came to the External Affairs Office to find him for drinks.

Feng Yan had a steady temperament and was tight-lipped, never spreading others' complaints, so Manager Gu Huaiheng gradually treated him as someone he could talk to.

Feng Yan had always handled this very well.

Today was the same.

He just poured wine, listened, and occasionally responded with a word or two.

By the end of his drinking, Manager Gu Huaiheng's words became increasingly slurred.

"Brother Feng, do you think this world is ridiculous?"

"Some people, clearly just a small, humble family yesterday, dare to climb my Qingwu Terrace today to test our attitude."

"And some others, clearly just having entered the Dao, are treated by their clan as pillars to be nurtured."

Feng Yan's hand holding the wine jug paused slightly.

Manager Gu Huaiheng, however, didn't seem to notice and just lowered his head to drink another cup.

"Forget it, let's not talk about this."

He stood up unsteadily, the drunkenness surging up, and then he collapsed onto the table.

A thin bamboo tube suddenly slid out of his sleeve.

Clatter.

The bamboo tube fell to the ground and rolled half a circle.

The seal was already a bit loose, and with this fall, a corner of the letter inside was exposed.

Manager Gu Huaiheng was already slumped by the desk, eyes half-open, motionless.

Feng Yan looked down.

On the exposed letter, a few words happened to catch his eye.

"Jiang Xingshi, Silver Scroll."

Feng Yan's pupils constricted slightly.

He immediately averted his gaze, but his heart was already pounding.

He bent down to pick up the bamboo tube and whispered, "Manager Gu?"

Manager Gu Huaiheng did not respond.

"Manager Gu, your letter fell."

Manager Gu Huaiheng remained slumped on the desk, his breathing heavy, carrying a strong smell of alcohol.

Feng Yan held the bamboo tube and stood there for a long time.

He should have stuffed the letter back into Manager Gu Huaiheng's sleeve and pretended he had seen nothing.

Feng Yan slowly lowered his head.

The letter was still exposed outside the bamboo tube.

If he just unfolded it a little more, he could see more.

Ten years.

He had been lurking in the Gu Family for a full ten years.

Every day he had to read people's expressions, living in fear, yet most of the information he sent back was just fragmented news.

The replies from the Han Family were becoming increasingly cold, as if they had almost forgotten about him.

If there was no real merit, he would only be able to continue wasting away here.

Wasting away until neither side wanted him.

Feng Yan's Adam's apple bobbed.

He called out again, "Manager Gu?"

Manager Gu Huaiheng was even more deeply drunk, even starting to snore softly.

Feng Yan closed his eyes.

When he opened them again, he finally steeled his heart and pulled out the letter.

What was written on the letter was indeed about the Jiang Family.

"The Jiang Family of Baili Mountain, the new Clan Chief Jiang Xingshi, has received the secret transmission of the Heavenly Silver Scroll, inheriting the Fourth-Grade Qi of the Spring Equinox."

"This child concealed his talents in his early years; his temperament is gentle and kind, but in reality, his Foundation is extremely stable, and his Dao Heart is extremely profound."

"Although Jiang Yuhe's sharpness is intense, she is too cold and isolated, and her fate involves external situations; she may not be able to remain in charge of the Jiang Family for long."

"Jiang Xingshi is different."

"He inherited the Spring Equinox, obtained the secret interpretation of the Silver Scroll, and now governs clan affairs with the position of Clan Chief."

"The Jiang Family has now tilted a large amount of spiritual resources towards him, wishing to cultivate him into the next generation's leader of the clan."

There was even a comment in the letter.

"In terms of temporary combat, Jiang Xingshi is far inferior to Jiang Yuhe."

"In terms of the ability to hold the clan and the appearance of inheriting the legacy, Jiang Xingshi may be above Jiang Yuhe."

Feng Yan's heart was pounding.

The latter part wrote that Jiang Xingshi is taking many wives and concubines, not out of youthful lust, but because he saw that the Jiang Clan's original lineage was thin while the attached families were growing stronger.

"He wants to use marriage to bring women from various families into Baili Mountain, to supplement the Jiang Clan's Bloodline Foundation."

"If this move succeeds, in twenty years the Jiang Clan's original lineage will gradually flourish, and the attached families will find it difficult to usurp the master's position."

"If this child is not eliminated, the future trouble will be immense."

After reading it, Feng Yan's heart was burning.

What major news.

So the Gu Clan was also wary of the Jiang Family.

So they had also already seen the threat of Jiang Xingshi.

No wonder that new Clan Chief of the Jiang Family, having just entered the Dao, dared to come to Qingwu Terrace personally to test the Gu Clan's attitude.

No wonder the Gu Clan's attitude towards the Jiang Family had been so ambiguous recently.

Feng Yan suppressed his racing heart and stuffed the letter back into the bamboo tube.

He took another look at Manager Gu Huaiheng, who was passed out at the desk.

Manager Gu Huaiheng remained motionless.

Feng Yan gently placed the bamboo tube back on the ground, but then seemed to feel it was inappropriate, and finally stuffed the bamboo tube back into Manager Gu Huaiheng's sleeve.

But the content of that letter had already been firmly memorized in his mind.

He could not wait any longer.

Once this news was sent back to the Han Family, it would be a great merit; even if he were exposed because of it, it would be worth it.

Feng Yan turned and left the External Affairs Office.

As the night wind blew under the corridor, he suddenly felt a layer of cold sweat on his back.

Taking advantage of the night, he bypassed the Shoushan Cultivators, took out an escape talisman he had hidden for many years, and silently left Qingwu Terrace.

After passing the mountain gate, he dared not stop again.

He ran all the way towards the east of the river.

He had only one thought in his heart.

Return.

Bring the news back.

It had been ten years.

He could finally go back.

When dawn was about to break, Feng Yan arrived at the outer mountain of the Han Family.

His face was pale, his lips were cracked, his breathing was severely disordered, yet his eyes carried a surging excitement.

A Shoushan Cultivator stopped him.

Feng Yan only handed over a dark token, his voice hoarse: "I need to see the Clan Chief."