77: The past is like the wind

Ye Yuhuang's words completely piqued Ye Xuan's curiosity, and she urged him to quickly clear her doubts.

"He should be Zhu Deyuan, the son born to Dragon Snow, the daughter of the Long Family, and Prince Fu of Daming!" Ye Yuhuang said in a deep voice.

"Zhu Deyuan?!" Ye Xuan was a little confused. Long Yuan suddenly became Zhu Deyuan, which made her feel both unfamiliar and excited. The rapid development of events was truly thrilling!

"Father, what exactly is going on?" Ye Xuan recovered and asked hastily.

Ye Yuhuang sighed, "The past is like the wind... About twenty years ago, our Ye Family had already risen in Fengyang. As the eldest son of the Family's direct lineage, I was the chosen successor for the next Family Head of the Ye Family, as long as no accidents occurred. So, at that time, I was high-spirited, riding through Fengyang and the surrounding areas in splendid attire, living a carefree and enjoyable life. One day, I came to a farm on the outskirts of Fengyang and met a woman. I was attracted by her youthful beauty, bright eyes, white teeth, graceful figure, and Immortal Qi. With just one glance, I fell under her spell. Later, I inquired and found out that this woman was Dragon Snow, the daughter of the farm's owner!"

"This..." Ye Xuan's eyes widened as she listened. She never expected her usually dignified and somewhat reserved father to have such a wild and reckless youth. What kind of experiences could have changed him into his current self?!

Was it the heavy burden of the Family's development? A crazy Cultivation life? Or was there another reason?

Ye Yuhuang was immersed in the memories of the past. After a long while, he sighed softly again and said, "I thought that with my status, position, and the future glory of being the Ye Family Head, proposing to her would be a sure thing. So, I prepared generous gifts, intending to go to the Long Family to propose..."

"And then?" Ye Xuan asked urgently.

"Then... when I arrived not far from the Long Family's entrance with gifts the next day, I was stopped by a team of Xuanwu Guard!"

"What? Xuanwu Guard?!" Ye Xuan was startled.

"That's right, it was our Daming's Xuanwu Guard! I was startled at the time and quickly retreated, not daring to state my intentions. I mingled among the onlookers to observe the situation. Later, I saw Dragon Snow actually walk out with a man dressed in royal robes, get on his horse, and the two of them rode off into the distance..." Ye Yuhuang said slowly.

"Oh my God... Could that person be Prince Fu of Daming?!" Ye Xuan exclaimed.

"Exactly! It was him! That playboy, that shameless scoundrel of the Daming imperial Family! It was him... who stole my beloved. Poor Dragon Snow didn't even know that I, who was preparing to propose to her, existed in this world..." Ye Yuhuang said through gritted teeth.

"This..." Ye Xuan looked at her father's never-before-seen expression and suddenly understood. No wonder her father changed from that wild and reckless state to his current taciturn appearance. Perhaps Prince Fu of Daming taking Dragon Snow had the greatest impact on him!

At this moment, she couldn't help but feel a little pity for her father. Witnessing his beloved being taken away by another man, the blow he suffered at that time must have been immense. Even if he was the future Family Head of the Ye Family, what did it matter? Compared to a prince of the imperial direct lineage, would Dragon Snow have fallen for him?

Absolutely not!

If it were her... of course, she wouldn't either!

The facts also proved her point of view. Sure enough, Ye Yuhuang continued, "Later, a major event happened in our Fengyang. Dragon Snow of the Long Family was taken away by Prince Fu of Daming and became one of his concubines!"

"Concubine?!" Ye Xuan exclaimed.

"That's right, Prince Fu already had a Princess Consort, so Dragon Snow could at most be a concubine if she followed him. But being a concubine was much better than being an ordinary concubine, as she still had a certain title and status, because she could receive recognition from the imperial Family!" Ye Yuhuang explained.

"So that's how it is..." Ye Xuan said, suddenly understanding.

"It was the establishment of Dragon Snow's status that also caused the Long Family to rise in prominence because of this matter. From a small farm, they quickly developed into a large Family in our Fengyang within a short period. Several of our Families, who had struggled for hundreds of years, were quickly about to be surpassed by them. However, at this very moment..." Ye Yuhuang's tone changed.

"What happened?!" Ye Xuan knew that things would definitely change, otherwise, Long Yuan couldn't be staying in Fengyang now, so she quickly pressed for an answer.

"Dragon Snow was defeated in the harem struggles of the Prince Fus Mansion and was forced to leave the Residence, returning to Fengyang!"

"Is that so? So, Long Yuan has always been with his mother? And he took his mother's surname?" Ye Xuan said.

"No, Dragon Snow died!!!" Ye Yuhuang said fiercely.

"What? Oh my God..." Ye Xuan exclaimed, her face slightly changing. She never expected the turn of events to be so terrifying and strange. Could it be that she was eliminated by someone sent by Prince Fu?

Seeing her expression, Ye Yuhuang knew exactly what she was thinking and couldn't help but shake his head, "She was not killed by someone sent by Prince Fu, but rather she should have died of depression!"

"How could that be?!"

"I guessed it! Because after Dragon Snow returned, the Long Family, seeing her return in disgrace, feared being implicated and therefore adamantly refused to acknowledge her, expelling her and her son from the Family!" Ye Yuhuang explained.

"The Long Family actually did such a thing?!" Ye Xuan said angrily.

"That's right, the Long Family members acted too heartlessly, but they didn't have a good end either. After losing Dragon Snow as their backing, the Long Family's status in Fengyang plummeted. Apart from our Ye Family, all the other big Families took advantage of their misfortune, especially the Qin Family, Wang Family, and Zhang Family, and even the Luo Family did the same. The Long Family's properties were quickly divided up among them, and in the end, the Long Family was only left with a bit of its original aquaculture foundation to maintain its facade..." Ye Yuhuang said.

Ye Xuan listened, utterly shocked. She never expected the struggles between Families to reach such a cruel extent. No wonder her father wanted to save Ye He no matter what. If a Family had no backing, then perhaps only its own strength could support its survival and development. After all, relying on others is not long-lasting; relying on oneself is the true Dao...

But she quickly thought of something and asked, "Then how did you know Dragon Snow died, Father? It seems our school doesn't know either? We always thought Long Yuan lived with his parents!"

"No! After I recently learned that Geng County sent people to protect him, I also sent people to secretly investigate Long Yuan. The result was that he was living alone in a large mansion in Hengbi Garden. So, I investigated further and found that he had been living there alone for six or seven years, and according to the property management company, his mother passed away six or seven years ago!"

"Oh my God..."

"So I went further to check the records of people who died in the county six or seven years ago, and I was startled to find Dragon Snow's name! And the person who handled her funeral arrangements back then was Long Yuan!!!"

"Wuwuwu..." Ye Xuan burst into tears. The truth finally came out. No wonder she couldn't help but feel sad and shed tears over the fate of Dragon Snow and her son...

...