The imperial edict had long been sent to Dongyi City, but Dongyi City only responded with humble words and generous gifts of gold and silver, refusing to admit any connection to the manor at the foot of Cang Mountain—an obvious response. The Grand Master of the Sword Hut in Dongyi City maintained his pride and did not want to bring the disaster of war to the millions of people around Dongyi City, so he remained silent.

Meanwhile, the situation in the north was tense. The Northern Qi's internal meddling in Qing's affairs was an undeniable fact, leaving no room for argument. As a result, both sides were mobilizing troops along the border, with small-scale conflicts occurring from time to time between the smaller principalities under their control, suggesting an imminent war.

While dark clouds loomed over northern Qing, the capital was enjoying the height of summer. People strolled leisurely, enjoying the peace and prosperity brought by the golden age. Fan Xian was one of them. Although the Niulan Street incident was not resolved entirely by his own efforts, it was considered a conclusion for himself and for those who had died. In the process of handling this matter, he learned a great deal. Although every step he took relied on the power of the Overwatch Council, he gained a deeper understanding of the Council's procedures, far beyond what Teacher Fei Jie had told him.

The summer heat was oppressive, and the lawsuit between the Fan family and the Guo family finally came to an end. In the eyes of many, this was a trivial matter. Now that Fan Xian had become an Assistant Secretary of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, he would naturally marry a princess or a noblewoman from the palace in the future. How could the mere Guo family dare to cause trouble against the palace? Therefore, they had long withdrawn the lawsuit, and Fan Xian finally received permission to leave the capital.

After such a horrific event, Fan Xian dared to leave the capital so soon, which was undoubtedly a bold move. However, he was now always accompanied by many people protecting him, including old acquaintances from the Fan residence and personnel from the Overwatch Council. Fan Xian now possessed a secret identity—a Supervisor of the Overwatch Council. In addition to Wang Qinian, he had recruited new faces from all quarters to serve under him.

One morning, before the scorching sun rose, the three young masters of the Fan residence climbed into a carriage. Under the protection of the guards and the Qinian Squad, they left the capital and arrived at the Fan family manor not far away. This trip was not to escape the summer heat, but to pay respects at the tombs.

Guards had already set up offerings of fruits, incense, candles, and other sacrificial items in the cemetery. Fan Xian silently looked at the still-new tombstones, his feelings complex. The belief he had held since his rebirth seemed to waver at this moment.

The smoke from the burning paper money was thick. Fan Sizhe could not bear the fumes and retreated to the carriage. Fan Ruoruo, however, endured the smoke, squinting her eyes as she held her brother's sleeve and stood before the tombs. She knew that the three family guards who were buried here had died for her brother, so she was filled with gratitude. Moreover, she had received education from Fan Xian's letters since she was young, so she did not think it was inappropriate to pay respects to servants.

In the smoke, several new guards stood silently behind Fan Xian. Perhaps affected by the smoke or the fire, their eyes were somewhat red. Their gaze towards the young master's back was genuinely different. After a while, one of the guards kindly advised, "Young Master, your heart is with these brothers. That's enough. The smoke is heavy here. Let's go back to the manor first."

Fan Xian's eyes were also irritated by the smoke. He rubbed them with a smile and listened to the guard, getting into the carriage. Inside, Fan Sizhe was reviewing the account books of the Danbo Bookstore for the past month. Seeing his older siblings enter, he shifted his position and suddenly lowered his voice, saying, "Brother, is this a move to buy people's hearts?"

Fan Xian's mood was somewhat gloomy. He smiled faintly and ignored him, only ruffling the hair on his large head, saying, "You, you must believe that some things in this world are true. A heartless man is not necessarily a hero..." Fan Ruoruo softly continued, "How can one who loves their child not be a man?"

Fan Xian looked at his sister with some surprise, "You..." Fan Ruoruo lowered her head and explained, "Brother said it once a few days ago, and I remembered it." Finding his sister so attentive and intelligent, Fan Xian was very happy and said softly, "Remember this, it was said by a man named Zhou."

Fan Sizhe glanced at him and muttered, "Oh, another pen name? When will the last dozen chapters of *The Story of the Stone* be released?"

Fan Xian had no energy to deal with those things now, but hearing the words "pen name", he felt inexplicably embarrassed, thinking that he was indeed being redundant in constantly explaining who wrote it.

He felt slightly annoyed and continued to lecture Fan Sizhe, "People's hearts may be bought, but emotions come naturally. If people lose their emotions, wouldn't they become monsters? If you live in the world and care about nothing, disown your family, and feel nothing for life and death, even if you become an immortal, what's the point?" Fan Sizhe shook his head in rebuttal, "You're not an immortal, how do you know if the feeling of being an immortal is good or not?" Fan Xian replied quickly, "I'm not an immortal, I'm a human, so I know that if you become an immortal in that way, and can't really live forever, the feeling must be terrible."

Speaking of this, Fan Xian suddenly thought of Uncle Wu Zhu, and a strong sense of unease and self-reproach surged in his heart. He was very worried that Wu Zhu would really become a silent old man when he grew old—but Wu Zhu insisted on hiding in the darkness, and Fan Xian had no way to actively find him.

The carriage left the family cemetery and drove somewhat laboriously along the widest path between the fields towards the manor. As the carriage approached the bottom of a large slope on the outskirts of the manor, people from the manor came to greet them. Not only tenant farmers lived here, but also some impoverished families from the Fan clan. Unable to stay in the prosperous and expensive capital, they had to move to the nearby farm. However, they did not own any land and were unwilling to lower themselves to planting crops and paying rent like the tenant farmers. Although Si Nanbo Fan Jian was not one to spend generously to take care of poor relatives, he could not bear to watch these people starve to death, so these Fan clan members helped the Fan residence look after the farm and manage the affairs here, earning a small income each month to support their families.

Strangely, Fan Jian never mentioned the matter of Fan Xian returning to the clan and recognizing his ancestors. Fan Xian also pretended to have forgotten about it, as he still had some unanswered questions in his heart. However, no one in the current capital looked down on Fan Xian as an illegitimate child anymore. The Fan clan even knew that the future wealth and glory of the Fan clan would likely depend on this handsome young master, so they were especially respectful.

Accepting the tea handed over by an elder, Fan Xian drank it in one gulp, nodded to those around him, and then walked to a small courtyard by the woods on the west side, led by a family guard. This was Teng Zijing's courtyard. Upon entering, he found that Teng Zijing had already gotten up and was standing respectfully in the courtyard, waiting. Teng Zijing looked at Fan Xian with embarrassment and said, "Young Master, I wanted to go out to greet you, but Hou San'er wouldn't let me."

Fan Xian did not stand on ceremony and helped him into the main room, explaining, "Don't blame Hou San'er, I told him to do that." Hou San'er was a guard who had recently joined Fan Xian's ranks and had previously arrived at the farm as the advance party. Fan Xian looked at Teng Zijing's slightly plump face and asked, "How has your leg been lately?"

Teng Zijing chuckled, "It's fine, I can move it a bit now. I should be able to return to the capital in a few days."

"If you feel that it's not easy to recover here, you might as well go back to the capital to recover." As they were talking, Teng Zijing's wife and daughter came in to pay their respects to the master. Fan Ruoruo distributed some money as gifts and asked Teng Zijing's five-year-old daughter a few questions before taking the child out, leaving the men in the room.

Fan Sizhe was still calculating accounts, only humming in acknowledgement of Teng Zijing's greetings. Fan Xian helplessly glanced at his younger brother and listened to Teng Zijing explain, "I'll stay in the manor for now, since my wife and children are here. Once my injury is healed, I'll naturally return to the capital to serve the Young Master."

These two could now be considered people who had gone through life and death together, so their conversation was much more direct. Fan Xian nodded and said approvingly, "Wife, children, and a warm bed. You certainly know how to enjoy yourself." Teng Zijing chuckled, "It's hot these days. If the bed is too warm, it'll be too much."

Danzhou had an excellent climate, with warm winters and cool summers, so no one used heated beds. After entering the capital, however, it was during the spring and summer months, so Fan Xian had no opportunity to sleep on a heated bed. Hearing these words, he pressed the bed he was sitting on and found it cool and comfortable. His eyes rolled, and he thought that if he were to live on the mountainside of Cang Mountain for a while after his marriage, he would definitely have to find a way to build a heated bed.

Teng Zijing had no idea that the Young Master's mind had suddenly wandered to the cold winter months after October. He said, "Young Master, have some fruit later and then return to the residence. There's nothing good to eat in this manor. Besides, if you delay any longer, it'll be too late to enter the city gates when you return to the capital."

Fan Xian smiled and waved his hand, "I've already reported to my father before coming. The three of us will stay in this manor for one night and return tomorrow. I've been mentally and physically exhausted in the capital for the past few months. It's rare to have a chance to relax. Although I don't dare to stay long, you should at least entertain me for one night." Only then did Teng Zijing know that he was planning to stay overnight. He quickly called his wife in and asked her to prepare guest rooms, hot water, and other things. Although life on the farm was not wealthy, it was abundant in manpower. Upon hearing that the Fan residence's Young Master was going to stay overnight, a dozen middle-aged wives busied themselves. Before long, everything was ready. Fan Xian's eyes rolled, and he leaned close to Teng Zijing's ear and said, "Arrange for those who are with me to stay in places that are close by."