In fact, after dinner, Qian Ye was not entirely clear about what the two elders of Wei Potian wanted. The meal was truly a simple home-cooked dinner with a slightly more sumptuous array of dishes and no complex table manners. It was just like a common family gathering, with only Wei Dongming, Wei Baining, Wei Potian, and him, along with a retainer who seemed to hold a high position in the Wei family.
Wei Potian was unusually well-behaved, and whenever Marquis Wei spoke, it was mostly directed at admonishing him. Wei Baining and the retainer appeared to be quite refined, and their topics for enlivening the atmosphere included local customs and the noble hobbies that Qian Ye had only heard of but did not fully understand. Qian Ye was not good at socializing, and his occasional words were brief answers to questions. Strangely, they did not ask much about his background.
When Qian Ye took his leave, Wei Potian insisted on seeing him off, immediately jumping into the driver’s seat of the off-road vehicle without waiting for an answer. Qian Ye glanced at Wei Potian’s face, which looked somewhat dejected as if he wanted to vent his frustrations.
The off-road vehicle roared and darted out, almost as if it were about to fly. Qian Ye’s residence was just a block away, but Wei Potian took a roundabout route in the opposite direction. However, they arrived at the courtyard in about the same time as usual, clearly indicating that such high speed could somewhat improve his mood.
Wei Dongming and Wei Baining watched the off-road vehicle rush out from the upper floor. The retainer had already excused himself, and there were no maids left in the room, leaving only the two brothers to talk intimately.
Wei Baining first said, “I have examined the scene. Wu Zhengnan’s remains were ignited by origin flames, and Qi Yang cannot do that. His friend seems to lack such origin power attributes either.” He thought for a moment and added, “The headquarters of the Expeditionary Army is not unstaffed. It is impossible that they did not notice the anomaly, but I heard that Qi Yang handled everything from start to finish, and they did not even ask if there were other survivors who could testify.”
Although Marquis Wei had arrived in the Evernight Continent quietly, his target was still too conspicuous, so he went directly to Wei Potian’s office upon entering Blackstream City and did not leave his residence. Everything he needed to see was handled by Wei Baining.
Hearing this, Wei Dongming said indifferently, “Even ‘Black Face Xiao’ made no real move, making a big fuss but delivering nothing. When has he ever been so compliant? My face as the Duke of Bo Wang is not that influential.”
“Does Elder Brother mean that someone else had already smoothed the path at the Expeditionary Army’s headquarters for Qi Yang to topple Wu Zhengnan, and it wasn’t our Wei family’s doing?”
Wei Dongming nodded and said, “That’s possible, but whether Qi Yang knows is uncertain.” He chuckled coldly, “Otherwise, why would Zhang Youheng be so eager to distance himself after the incident? If he had known that the Expeditionary Army headquarters would take such an ambiguous stance, he wouldn’t have simply abandoned the matter.”
Wei Baining frowned, “This man is too opportunistic.”
“No matter, although he carries the Zhang surname, he is not part of the Zhang clan. Being cautious is not a mistake, but we should use him less in the future,” Wei Dongming was not very concerned about the Chief Military Inspector’s withdrawal. He asked, “What do you think of Qi Yang’s friend?”
“A fine sword, but hard to control.”
Wei Dongming was silent for a while before saying, “There is someone behind him.”
Wei Baining agreed, noting that Qian Ye did not seem capable of planning and pacifying Xiao Lingzhi.
Meanwhile, in Qian Ye’s courtyard, Wei Potian, facing the door where A Qi and A Jiu welcomed him, loudly declared, “Bring wine!”
Qian Ye gave him a look, walked into the house, and took two bottles of strong liquor from A Qi, adding a drop of homemade stimulant to each.
Wei Potian snatched one bottle and, tilting his head back, drank most of it in one go before slamming the bottle down on the table and growling, “Tell me, with all the benefits I offered, why won’t that guy stay? Isn’t he deliberately making things difficult for me?”
“Which guy?”
“Who else, Uncle Six. To take over as the regiment commander, one must not only be a war general but also knowledgeable in military affairs. At present, he is the only one available in the family.” Wei Potian felt a bit deflated as he said this.
After Wei Baining returned, Wei Potian took the opportunity to visit him, but he was politely shown out within half an hour, having achieved nothing. Had there been another option, he, the Young Master Wei, would never have endured such a slight.
Qian Ye’s heart stirred; it turned out that Wei Baining was the Wei family’s candidate to take over the Seventh Regiment’s defense. However, from Marquis Wei’s actions, there seemed to be another purpose.
The Wei family likely saw this operation against Wu Zhengnan as another practical exercise for the heir, setting up the overall strategy, but the details were left to Wei Potian. They had reached this point, and the final hurdle was finding a suitable person to reorganize the Seventh Regiment.
However, even an outsider like Qian Ye could see that deploying someone like Wei Baining to the Evernight Continent’s defense was a waste of talent. It seemed Marquis Wei intended for Wei Potian to recognize the difficulty and give up on this small place. But if Wei Potian could persuade Wei Baining to stay, it would be a decent outcome, at least giving the Wei family another base on the Evernight Continent, though a bit of a mixed blessing.
Qian Ye thought of the contents of the box Song Zining had given him and the conversation between Wei Baining and the retainer, suddenly grasping the meaning.
“Why doesn’t he want to take the position of the Seventh Regiment’s commander?”
“How should I know! Who knows what Uncle Six is thinking? If he didn’t intend to stay, why would he travel all the way to Blackstream City!” Wei Potian ranted, gulping down the rest of the second bottle of wine.
Wei Potian rambled on for over half an hour, getting increasingly drunk and unsteady. Finally, he sighed deeply, called for his bodyguards, and swayed out. Most of Wei Potian’s complaints were about the trivial matters he had to deal with these days. He had probably been holding in a lot of frustration, using this as an opportunity to vent.
Throughout the entire time, Qian Ye mostly listened quietly. As the heir to the Duke of Bo Wang and the future leader of the family, this was a responsibility Wei Potian would eventually face, more complex and tedious than a small city like Blackstream. Wei Potian clearly understood this, so tonight, all he needed was a listener.
After Wei Potian left, Qian Ye entered his bedroom, lost in thought as he looked at the wooden box on the bedside. He now knew that the item inside was intended for Wei Baining. After a while, Qian Ye smiled and shook his head. Was this “appealing to his interests”?
The night passed peacefully. Qian Ye was a man of action, and early the next morning, he sought out Wei Baining’s residence to meet him.
When Wei Baining asked about his purpose, Qian Ye hesitated, knowing he was not good at lengthy persuasion. He decided to be direct, “General Wei, you are the best candidate to take over the Seventh Regiment. But why are you reluctant to accept the position?”
Wei Baining countered, “Why do you think I should take the position of the regiment commander?”
Qian Ye was taken aback, realizing the question was hard to answer.
“Prospects…” Qian Ye began, then shook his head. With Wei Baining’s background, he could easily get a command position in any main army, and the prospects would be much better than in the second-rate Expeditionary Army.
Qian Ye thought for a moment and asked, “Do you have any plans to advance further?”
Breaking through during life-and-death situations is a creed of the powerful in the Great Qin Empire. Many warriors achieve their status through relentless battles. The upcoming war with the dark races in the area where Blackstream City is located might attract those who seek to become even stronger.
Wei Baining chuckled self-deprecatingly, “I know my own limits. It is unlikely that I can advance further. Given that, I might as well live a peaceful life and let my family be at ease.”
This shut down Qian Ye’s next words. If, as Wei Baining said, his strength had reached a bottleneck, he would naturally prefer a more stable life, which is human nature. Especially for aristocratic offspring with many family members to consider, losing their sharpness was not impossible. Perhaps the Wei family currently only had Wei Baining, a free warrior, due to such reasons.
Silence fell in the reception hall, but Wei Baining remained calm, showing no sign of impatience.
“But tens of thousands of people live in these two cities…”
Wei Baining laughed, “The tens of thousands of people on the Evernight Continent are no more important than my people in the Far Eastern Province. If not here, serving elsewhere would be the same.” His words were polite, but for the empire, the native subjects were certainly more important than the residents of the forsaken lands.
Qian Ye took out the wooden box and placed it on the table, saying, “Then, how about this as your reward?”
Wei Baining’s eyes flickered, and he chuckled, “I’m sure you know that the Young Master Qi Yang has promised me quite a few conditions.”
Wei Baining noticed that Qian Ye’s gestures were a bit tense and awkward, and his words were obviously from someone inexperienced. However, he did not point it out, merely playing with the wooden box without opening it, examining Qian Ye with interest.
Qian Ye answered candidly, “Potian didn’t tell me the details, but he mentioned that he offered you favorable terms, but you declined.”
“I am quite curious, what did you bring me?” Wei Baining smiled and undid the jade clasp. As he opened the box slightly, a smaller, more exquisite wooden box was revealed, with a gilded seal visible from the angle.
Wei Baining’s expression changed as soon as he saw the seal, his chest rising and falling rapidly. His hand, which had been casually holding the box, trembled, and he had to close the lid and put it back on the table.
He looked up at Qian Ye with a bitter smile, “Truly embarrassing! It… it is actually this thing!”
Wei Baining took a deep breath and slowly reopened the box. The lid was fully open, revealing a palm-sized, exquisite black lacquered box. On the top of the box was a prominent, ancient seal, every stroke imbued with the weight of time.
Qian Ye recognized the ancient character “Ji” on the seal because he had seen the item’s description.
Tai Sui Yellow Amulet Paper FuLu Taoist Love Talisman Traditional Chinese Spiritual Charm Attracting Love Protecting Marriage