The shock and fury surged in his heart, such a poison, they did not possess, such a targeted toxin could only be created after experimenting on tens of thousands of people, possibly even hundreds of thousands, who had Inner Qi within them.
These commoners, not belonging to the noble families or ducal ranks, how could they possess such a divine gift...
Only to see that the descendants of the great aristocratic family there had all been captured.
On this day, the great noble families all maintained silence about the affair of Marquis Qin Wu, which spread throughout Jiangnan. The aristocratic families said nothing, and because they had a grip on the situation, they kept a dutiful demeanor for a short while. Meanwhile, the commoners, upon hearing the news, were extremely delighted and happy.
Thereby, the public favor surged overwhelmingly.
Only then did the Qilin Army finally enter the State City of Jiangnan’s Eighteen States.
The aristocratic families were infuriated and also feared this madman who was the first in hundreds of years to act against the aristocracy.
Uncharacteristically, they did not place their bets as they had during every major upheaval before, nor did they go out to welcome the Qilin Army entering the State City. They planned to make their stance clear, to let Li Guan Yi know that even though he was famous everywhere, without the support of the noble families, he was merely entering an Empty City.
At that time, it would be up to the Qilin Army and Li Guan Yi themselves to come here and apologize.
The proud aristocratic families still believed that without them, there would be no world.
On that day, aside from the Chen Family, not a single family went out to welcome them; they all sat comfortably in their courtyards, playing chess, believing that they controlled everything. However, suddenly hearing the noise outside, they sent a family servant to check.
The servant returned even faster than he had left, his face deathly pale as if he had seen a group of tigers, and said, "Family Head, Family Head, something’s not right! Something’s terribly wrong!"
The refined gentleman calmly asked, "What is not right?"
"What is the cause of all this noise?"
The servant wanted to explain, but for some reason, he was completely unable to put into words what he had seen. He even disregarded the concept of hierarchical respect and grabbed the composed scholar, saying, "You, you must go out and see for yourself!"
As the refined scholar was pulled out, his face gradually turned pale. He saw the commoners, those numb, cunning folk, who looked like sheep, their eyes filled with light, gathered on both sides of the main road. Men let children sit on their shoulders, and women wore smiles.
The buildings on both sides were fully occupied by the people.
On that day, the Qilin Army entered the city.
The aristocratic families scarcely reacted.
Commoners swarmed to welcome them, fifteen li outside the city, bringing food and wine.
As the Qilin Army entered the city, their military appearance was impeccable, all clad in armor, carrying weapons, solemn as if in a military formation, not glancing around as they passed through the crowd. When the refined scholar saw the Main General, he suddenly felt dazed.
A crimson flag fluttered in the sky, the crowd occupying the buildings and roads on both sides made of blue bricks.
A fiery Qilin paced, a young general in dark-colored armor and a battle robe approached.
On his face, he wore a dark gold face mask!
Thus, memories revived as if from a decade ago, when a similar army had appeared here, and then the Confucian Scholar saw the young general look up. In the midst of the Qilin Army, there were descendants of the Murong Family, all clad in battle robes, wielding long-handled double-edged swords.
By this stage, everything became clear.
The refined scholar’s mind went blank, his teeth clenched, his hand tightened into a fist, his voice trembling, "...the Murong Family, Li, the Qilin did not capture its fortune by mere luck... he, his father, is Li Wanli, is the son of Li Wanli...!"
"The Murong Family has always kept silent about this, are they waiting for us to stand against him?"
"He’s laying a trap for us to fall into, so insidious, so venomous!"
"What a ruthlessly sharp and bitter person!"
"Marquis Qin Wu, the foremost aristocratic family of Jiangnan, the Qilin Army."
"He, intends to strike against us!?"
He staggered backwards half a step, suddenly feeling that the ardently passionate young general, seen by many, was so cunning and detestable; he had deliberately intercepted intelligence, and intentionally concealed the Murong Family’s trump card, making many families oppose him.
And now, he pushed everything forward at this moment.
If Li Guan Yi had been known as Marquis Qin Wu, the son of Li Wanli, belonging to the forces of the Murong Family from the start, given the nature and experience of the aristocratic families, they would never have openly conflicted with Li Guan Yi. All conflicts would subside into dissemblance and noncompliance, and the choices of Li Guan Yi and Yuan Zhi brought this conflict straight to the table.
Then, directly rolled over it.
The tributary of the great river ran through the State City of Jiangnan.
The ennobling procession, Pang Shuiyun, and Yan Daiqing were waiting here; they saw the favorably regarded commoners, under the blue sky, the crimson flags slowly fluttering like in a dream, with the young general walking in front, and someone suddenly shouted:
People laughed, then those on both sides suddenly threw up flowers.
The petals scattered from the loft fell down; the young general rode the Qilin, stretched out his hand, his fringe slightly lifting as he sprinkled the petals from his hand, which fell into the river and created ripples.
Pang Shuiyun, in his reverie, could not tell if this scene was now or a memory of when the Taiping Duke came to Jiangnan to seek a marriage alliance.
It seemed as if the past and the present fused at this moment.
The aristocratic families fell silent, the commoners were visible in their support.