Those who spoke were all elders from various branches of the Chu family. Although they were not particularly capable, they were of high seniority and usually held various sinecure positions in the Chu family's businesses.
“That’s right. Ever since Zu An came to the Chu family, there has never been a moment of peace at home.”
"The head of the family made a very hasty decision to take him as his son-in-law."
...
Hearing everyone cursing and blaming Zu'an, Qin Wanru frowned deeply, stood up and shouted, "If it weren't for Zu'an, our Chu family would have been wiped out long ago. Why would you all be here complaining?"
Someone muttered, "They're going to be wiped out anyway, so it's better to let Second Master Chu succeed, since he's a member of the Chu family after all."
Qin Wanru was furious: "What did you say!"
At this moment, Chu Yuepo from the third branch of the family hurriedly stepped forward to act as a peacemaker: "Everyone is doing this for the sake of the Chu family. The most urgent thing now is to think about how to resolve the current predicament, rather than engaging in internal strife."
Qin Wanru then sat down again, still fuming. Unfortunately, after discussing for a long time, the group couldn't come up with any solutions.
Just when everyone was in despair, Chu Yuepo stood up and said, "Actually, I do have a solution, but I don't know if I should say it."
Chu Zhongtian said irritably, "What time is it and you're still keeping me in suspense? Just tell me already."
"The main problem is that if I say it, I'm afraid it will anger the mistress of the family," Chu Yuepo said hesitantly.
The others immediately grew impatient: "Third brother, when did you become so hesitant?"
Qin Wanru snorted, "Why would we be angry if it can help the Chu family get out of their predicament?"
Chu Yuepo then said, "I noticed a loophole in that imperial edict before. We can do it this way..."
Upon hearing this, Qin Wanru immediately stood up: "No, I disagree!"
Chu Zhongtian, who was standing to the side, also said, "That's right. Our ancestor has made great contributions to our Chu family. How can we treat him like this?"
Chu Yuepo sighed: "I know that doing this is a bit unreasonable, but now is a matter of life and death for the Chu family. As the heads of the family, you cannot act on emotion."
Others echoed his sentiments, and Chu Zhongtian's expression shifted between light and dark. Finally, he raised his hand to stop them from continuing their discussion: "No, the foundation of our Chu family's Red Robe Army is to never abandon anyone. If we do something like that now, wouldn't it discourage the soldiers and shake the reputation that the Chu family has built up over hundreds of years? In that case, the Chu family still wouldn't be able to maintain its position for long."
"Husband~" Qin Wanru looked at him with emotion. She had fallen in love with him back then because of his integrity. She never expected that he would still be like a young man after all these years.
The others looked at each other, unsure how to offer advice given how serious he had made the situation.
Chu Yuepo, however, was quick-witted and immediately said, "Master and Madam, you have misunderstood. On the surface, we are abandoning Zu'an, but in reality, we are saving him."
Chu Zhongtian frowned: "What do you mean by that?"
Chu Yuepo explained, "Master, think about it. Why do they still demand that we hand over Zu An within three days, even though they searched the entire Chu family and couldn't find him?"
"This..." Chu Zhongtian fell into deep thought, while Qin Wanru beside him also seemed to be deep in thought.
Chu Yuepo continued, "That's because on the surface they're forcing us to hand over Zu'an, but in reality they're telling Zu'an, who's hiding in the shadows, to use us as leverage to force him to come out on his own."
Chu Zhongtian and Qin Wanru were startled. They weren't stupid; they had just been too concerned to think clearly before. Now, reminded of this, they immediately realized that it was indeed the case.
After discussing it for a while, Qin Wanru spoke first: "Okay, let's do it your way!"
Three days passed quickly, and various forces from Bright Moon City arrived near the Chu family, all curious about how this matter would end.
Even many ordinary people rushed to see the spectacle. Although the Chu family usually had a good reputation, most people would applaud if the victim was someone with a higher official rank or more money than them. Few would delve into what was really going on behind the scenes. Of course, given their limited abilities, they couldn't possibly know the truth.
Zuan then put on a mask he had obtained from Chen Xuan and disguised himself as one of them, blending into the crowd.
Not long after, King Liang and Liu Yao returned to the Chu family with a large group of fierce and ruthless subordinates. Their men brought over a table with an incense burner on it.
King Liang cleared his throat before saying, "This incense stick will burn out soon, and the three days will be up. Why haven't you handed over Zu'an yet? Are you planning to exterminate your entire clan?"
Although he didn't deliberately raise his voice, his master-level cultivation was enough for everyone in the noisy surroundings to hear what he said.
He had been having a very unpleasant time these past few days, mainly because he had gone to see Qiu Honglei, the most beautiful courtesan at Shenxianju, only to find that she had already left when he arrived.
Although the other girls at Shenxianju were of good quality, he was still quite unhappy that he hadn't seen the beauty he had long admired.
Although he was too old to be of much use, he still had hands and a mouth, so that didn't stop him from being so angry.
Zu An frowned; he really didn't want to implicate the Chu family.
Just then, Chu Zhongtian said, "Since everyone is here today, I have something to announce."
Everyone was stunned, wondering what could be so important that he had to announce it at this time.
King Liang sneered, "Now that things have come to this, I really want to see what tricks you're planning to play."
Chu Zhongtian ignored him and stood directly on the high platform, announcing loudly: "Zu An, the son-in-law of the Chu family, did not cherish my daughter after marrying her. Instead, he philandered and even became intimate with women in brothels. He even tried to take the most beautiful courtesan from Shenxianju as his concubine, which caused her to cause a scene at our mansion. He has truly lost all virtue as a husband. In addition, his conduct has been lacking. Therefore, we have decided to write this letter of divorce to sever his marriage with my daughter. From now on, he is no longer a member of the Chu family and has no relation to us!"
This chapter is not finished yet. Please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
