"At that time, the person responsible for receiving them was He Weidao, who had just ascended as the Chairperson of the State Council of Xida State, and the heads of the three great noble families."
"Back then, although He Weidao was nominally the highest official of the state, in reality, the entire Xida State was still under the control of the three great noble families."
"The Security Bureau, various Governing Halls, and even the federal Defense Team reorganized from the royal guards of Xida Country were basically all controlled by the Bai Family, Jiang Family, and Si Family."
"Although He Weidao supported a group of his own people from the Commoner Faction in various departments, the general trend remained unchanged, and they were always on the fringes."
"Clearly being the Chairperson of the state, but within the 72 Council Members of the State Council, only a minority were from the Commoner Faction, truly loyal to the federation. The others were controlled by the three great nobles."
"In Xida State, he was almost a figurehead, as everyone only heard about the three great nobles and not the federation."
"Therefore, even when the federal Chairperson and his wife visited, he still had to first discuss the itinerary with the three great nobles before he could decide."
"And to make the Chairperson and his wife feel at home, he repeatedly requested the Si Family to vacate one of their properties in the Provincial Government as a temporary residence for the Chairperson and his wife."
"After several rounds of discussions, the Si Family finally agreed reluctantly."
"Although they agreed to let the Chairperson and his wife stay temporarily in their family's property, the Si Family was extremely uncooperative during the handover."
"Their domestic servants were not only rude to the Chairperson's entourage but also occasionally threw chilly remarks, worrying for instance, that the Chairperson and his wife might damage the valuable antiques and paintings in the Si Family's property and would not be able to afford the compensation."
Speaking of this piece of history, the old man's gaze became distant, as if piercing through time to see the scene from a decade ago when the federation was weak, and the nobility was powerful, each ruling their own states.
The aide who had been listening clenched his fists involuntarily.
After all, he too was a commoner and worked in the federal Defense Team, a direct violence organization of the federation, thus, an insult to the federation was an insult to him as well.
Possibly sensing his emotions, the old man, with his hands behind his back, gave him a light glance, then continued, "These matters reached the ears of the Commoner Faction elites led by He Weidao. They, like you, were greatly angered."
"But because the three great nobles were so powerful, they could only swallow their anger and go again to negotiate with the Si Family."
"It's unclear what the Si Family did behind the scenes, but publicly, they indeed punished their own servants and replaced a batch of slaves to serve and be commanded by the Chairperson's entourage."
"And the original group of slaves was called back to the Si Family main house to serve and prohibited from visiting the property during the Chairperson's visit."
"Then the Chairperson arrived."
"That day, both He Weidao and the three great nobles who were opposed to the federation all personally welcomed them."
"That day, Silver Dragons led the way, Fire Phoenixes flew in accompaniment, and Law Rain fell from the sky as fire clouds burned from the horizon all the way to Xida State. Above the red clouds, inspection teams rode on rainbow bridges."
"At that time, the entire Provincial Government, whether genuine or just for show, was completely ecstatic, with hundreds of flowers blooming at once."
"Normally, on that day, the important officials of Xida State would hold a welcoming reception to greet the Chairperson and his wife."
"This reception indeed took place in the Si Family's property as scheduled."
"At the reception, guests felt at home, and there was harmonious merriment."
"That night, it seemed like everyone laid aside their prejudices and conflicts, all enjoying this rare joyful moment."
The aide looked up, his gaze also becoming distant, as if seeing the revelry of that night."
Just then, the old man shifted his tone, "Until... the dinner ended."
"The Chairperson's wife suddenly discovered that her Golden Sparrow Flower was missing."
The aide instantly became tense.
And the old man slowly said, "The Golden Sparrow Flower is a very magical and also very precious Extraordinary Plant that only grows in rich Qin Ore regions."
"It takes ten years to root, ten years to sprout, and ten years to bloom. Once it blooms, it remains eternally unfading. Moreover, no matter the season, rainy or cloudy day, it always displays different colors."
"And, more importantly, it is said that this flower has regenerative powers. Once plucked and re-planted in a different place, it will grow again. And, as it grows, it will promote the growth of a small-scale Qin Ore vein nearby."
"With such a precious item lost, one can imagine how tense the atmosphere at the scene was."
"The Chairperson was furious on the spot and demanded a thorough investigation of this matter."
"Since He Weidao had no real power, he had no choice but to assign the Jiang Family, who controlled the Governing Hall, to investigate."
"The Jiang Family gladly took the command and then summoned a group of Investigators from the State Investigation Bureau to start investigating the case. And in just a few days, they had a result."
At this point, the old man suddenly stopped talking.
The story, stopping halfway, made the aide feel as if his heart was being tickled."
So, he couldn't help but ask, "What was the result?"
The old man's face, shrouded in darkness without any lights illuminating it, seemed completely engulfed in darkness. He slowly said, "They identified a group of 21 people from among the Si Family's slaves, a small anti-federation, anti-human group."
"These people all had Bloodlines of Disaster Creatures or were quasi-human Disaster Creatures sparked by the Si Family's 'dark' abilities."