"Don't worry, the Zhao family's daughter is in a very safe place. I haven't touched a single hair on her," Yan Shouyi said.
All the Zhao family members stared at Yan Shouyi. When he said this with a smile, in their ears, the sentence automatically translated to: "Give up, Zhao Yiyao has already been defiled by me countless times, and you'll never get your beloved daughter back!"
After all, in the eyes of the Zhao family, Yan Shouyi was infamous, an even more detested villain than themselves!
Yan Shouyi had no idea his reputation outside had become so terrible. In fact, he genuinely just wanted to convey that Zhao Yiyao was safe.
Zhao Zhenghao took a deep breath. "Then why haven't you brought her to see me?"
"Patriarch Zhao, don't be impatient. Before that, I do have a question for you."
"Speak."
Yan Shouyi put down his wine cup and tapped his bowl with chopsticks, signaling everyone to start eating instead of just sitting there.
Zhao Zhenghao sighed, picked up his chopsticks, and was about to grab some meat when Long Feicheng snatched it away.
Zhao Zhenghao wasn't angry. He turned his attention to the fish beside him, only for Old Jin to take the entire plate for himself.
Fine, if I can't have meat or fish, I can at least eat some vegetables, right?
"Zi Tong, eat more vegetables. They're good for you."
This time, Yan Shouyi himself intervened, piling all the vegetables onto Lin Zi Tong's plate.
This was too much!
Zhao Zhenghao dejectedly put down his chopsticks and said, "If you have something to say, spit it out!"
Yan Shouyi chuckled and asked, "May I ask, Patriarch Zhao, what grudge or enmity do the Zhao family and our Yan family have that you insist on opposing us?"
Zhao Zhenghao's pupils contracted, and his expression turned uglier than before.
What he found absurd was that he had held a grudge against the Yan family for so many years, yet the Yan family seemed to have completely disregarded him. Yan Chou hadn't even bothered to tell his son about the feud between the two families.
He had thought today's banquet was a battle of elites, a match of equals, but it turned out to be...
The thing he cared so much about was dismissed as insignificant by the other party. This stark contrast almost suffocated Zhao Zhenghao.
It represented not just the demeanor of the two families, but also the gap between them.
After taking several deep breaths and composing himself, Zhao Zhenghao said,
"Back then, I had a feud with your father in the martial world. It wasn't a big deal, but he sneaked into our Zhao family and captured my father's Huang Daxian. By the time we found them, they had already roasted and eaten my father's Huang Daxian."
Yan Shouyi: "..."
"Not only did they roast and eat it, but when we went to seek revenge, they complained that our Huang Daxian's meat was too tough and not tasty enough."
Yan Shouyi: "..."
He secretly glanced at Wang Jiwang, conveying with his eyes: "Your dad was definitely involved in this..."
Just as Yan Shouyi was about to express his guilt, the scabby-headed man sneered,
"Zhao Zhenghao, save it. You know what kind of Huang Daxian your father had. How many people did that thing eat alive back then? And as far as I know, it didn't spare the young, old, women, or children! When our eldest brother captured it, it was clearly eliminating a scourge for the people and filling our stomachs. Eating it was just a secondary benefit. If we hadn't been starving for days, do you think we would have bothered eating it?"
Yan Shouyi was shocked. "Uncle Pang, you were involved in this too?"
The scabby-headed man pointed at San Long. "He was too."
Yan Shouyi was speechless, unsure whether to laugh or cry.
He had initially felt a bit guilty, thinking his father had eaten a deity worshipped by someone else's family. However, since that Huang Daxian wasn't a good creature, killing it was justified, and there was no need for guilt.
Zhao Zhenghao was furious, glaring at the scabby-headed man. "Are you still daring to bring this up? Aren't you afraid I'll fight you?!"
The scabby-headed man rolled up his sleeves. "Come on, do you think this Fatty Uncle is afraid?"
Seeing that both sides were about to flip the table and fight, Yan Shouyi quickly stood up to mediate.
He intervened because Yan Shouyi understood that there was no deep-seated animosity between the Zhao and Yan families.
Zhao Zhenghao also knew he was in the wrong.
After finally calming both parties, Yan Shouyi directly picked up his wine cup and approached Zhao Zhenghao, saying,
"Patriarch Zhao, it seems our two families have no insurmountable grudges. Why don't we use this wine to bury the hatchet and let bygones be bygones?"
Zhao Zhenghao pushed away Yan Shouyi's cup and sneered,
"There was nothing before, but this time you killed my son and kidnapped my daughter. Can this matter be let go?"
Yan Shouyi smiled, put down his wine cup, and retorted, "Patriarch Zhao, are you still playing dumb?"
"What are you babbling about, you brat?!" The Zhao family members immediately slammed the table and questioned him.
"Sit down, everyone!"
However, they were reprimanded by Zhao Zhenghao.
The Zhao family members grudgingly returned to their seats, but their eyes remained fixed on Yan Shouyi.
Yan Shouyi said calmly, "I am a descendant of Lu Ban, not some true heretic. It is a fact that your son, Fukada Ichiro, is dead, but can't you really see who killed him?"
Zhao Zhenghao remained silent.
"We did exchange blows that day, but I didn't try to kill Fukada Ichiro. In the end, he left with Wu Zhen Sect's Yi Hehuan... The Wu Zhen Sect, do you understand?"
Zhao Zhenghao of course understood. He knew very well that his son had been killed by someone from the Wu Zhen Sect, but he still came to Rongcheng to find a legitimate excuse to avenge the Yan family.
As for the Wu Zhen Sect, he would deal with them later.
But why did Zhao Zhenghao, knowing he was being used as a pawn, still eagerly rush to Rongcheng?
According to Yan Shouyi's analysis, it was because Zhao Zhenghao's position in the Zhao family was threatened, and he urgently needed to consolidate his status by achieving something.
The Zhao family had resented the Yan family for many years, so it was a perfect opportunity to cause trouble for them. If successful, Zhao Zhenghao's position would be secured.
So, in the final analysis, Zhao Zhenghao didn't have an irreconcilable feud with Yan Shouyi. He was simply forced into opposition due to these reasons.
These deductions were partly extracted from Zhao Yiyao. Of course, that foolish girl Zhao Yiyao had no idea she had revealed so much information.
Seeing Zhao Zhenghao's silence, Yan Shouyi picked up a pot of wine and said,
"The West Lake scenery at night is beautiful. Why don't we take a stroll by the West Lake, Patriarch Zhao, and have a private chat?"
The unaware Zhao family members began to object, believing Yan Shouyi intended to lure Zhao Zhenghao out and kill him. They all urged Zhao Zhenghao not to fall for Yan Shouyi's trap.
But Zhao Zhenghao surprisingly took the wine pot and readily agreed,
"Alright, I'll take a stroll with you!"
The Zhao family members immediately shouted, "Patriarch, you must not! Yan Shouyi is wolf-hearted and will surely harm you!"
Zhao Zhenghao deliberately snorted coldly, "You all stay here. If anything happens to me, fight them to the death. The Lu Shan Sect won't be able to get here anytime soon, so it's not certain who will win or lose!"