Chapter 129: The Southern Province Aristocracy [asking for a monthly pass! ]

After a while, the three of them worked together to knock down all the black-clad minions.

The scene finally calmed down.

It was then that Liang Yue noticed that a large group of people had gathered outside the wall to watch the scene. Although this was not a busy area, it would be strange if no one saw such a big commotion and it was not completely dark yet.

For the onlookers, it is safe to watch the excitement as it is not dangerous.

Watch the dangerous excitement stealthily.

Including the troops from the nearby Imperial Capital Guard Station, they had actually arrived a long time ago, but this kind of battle was too advanced for them and they could not get involved at all. They could only watch from the sidelines and wait for stronger reinforcements to arrive.

These assassins probably wanted to destroy Wei Kangnian and the firewood room with one strike of the Vulcan Crossbow, without any trouble at all. Even if they didn't kill him, he would have been in a very bad state after escaping. A fifth-level warrior with a group of younger brothers to finish him off would definitely not miss any opportunity.

In just a few breaths, the battle can be resolved and the task is done and then you can leave.

But he didn't expect that there were three people inside, and they were all so skilled. He fought for so long personally, but was finally captured.

Now the battle was over, Liang Yue waved to the Imperial Guards and asked them to come over. There were about a dozen Imperial Guards, and the young guard officer leading the team was a third-level warrior, so they were very cautious.

Liang Yue said: "I was also a member of the Imperial Guard before, and I was stationed in Fukangfang, not far from here. We are all brothers."

After hearing this, the solemn imperial guards finally relaxed. "Brother, were you under Lao Hu before? Then we have a relationship."

"Brother Hu is my good brother!" After a brief exchange of words, Liang Yue said, "I am currently working at the Zhuxie Yamen. During the investigation, I encountered a sneak attack by this group of assassins. Fortunately, they did not succeed. These people and the battlefield here, I will trouble you to deal with them."

He used to be in the Imperial Capital Guard and often did jobs like helping people clean up battlefields.

Now that I have reached the top of the imperial food chain, I can finally command the Imperial Guards.

The young guard patted his chest and said, "Don't worry, brother. Just tell me where to take the person and what to do."

Wei Kangnian came over and whispered, "Brother Liang, can we discuss something?"

"What's wrong?" Liang Yue asked.

"Can you lend me some money?" Wei Kangnian said, "The store owner took me in to stay in the firewood room and didn't charge me for the room. It was out of kindness. But now because of me, they have suffered losses. I can't just walk away."

"You're so righteous." Liang Yue smiled, "I can lend you the money, but you have to tell me the truth later."

"Okay." Wei Kangnian nodded seriously.

Then Liang Yue turned around and looked at Ling Yuanbao with a smile, "Captain Ling, can you lend me some money?"

"How much?" Ling Yuanbao asked.

"Twenty taels." Liang Yue said.

His money had been taken away by his mother before, leaving only some for daily expenses. When he bought hidden weapons a while ago, he secretly asked Xiaoyun where she hid the money and took it out quietly.

The reason I didn't tell my mother was because I was afraid she would be sad.

Although buying hidden weapons and drugs were necessary expenses, my mother probably wouldn't stop me, but in her eyes, the money meant a big house and a big carriage in the future, and she couldn't help but feel sad to see that most of it was gone.

Liang Yue thought about not telling his mother yet, and would tell her when he got rewarded for his meritorious service. Anyway, the money was buried underground, and his mother shouldn't be such a miser that she would take it out and check it every now and then.

The quality of this hidden weapon did not disappoint him.

I can only say that the money was not wasted.

Ling Yuanbao casually pulled out a silver note from his sleeve and said, "I took some loose change and a silver note with me when I went out. You can take the whole amount."

Liang Yue took it and looked at it. Wow, it was worth one hundred taels.

As expected of the eldest daughter of the Godly General’s Mansion, she took it out without blinking an eye.

When Liang Yue handed it to Wei Kangnian, the other party exclaimed: "Wow, this is enough to buy my life."

Wei Kangnian took the money to the shop owner to compensate for the woodshed and the yard. The shopkeeper, who had a worried look on his face, immediately held the scholar's hand tightly when he heard that the compensation was twenty taels, as if he had seen his own son.

His dead woodshed was certainly not worth that much money.

After finishing the aftermath, Wei Kangnian came back, returned the eighty taels he had found, and said, "I'll go back to the Zhuxie Yamen with you. It's safer there."

The three of them returned to the Zhuxie Yamen together. Xie Wenxi arranged for people to interrogate the surviving killers and found a single room for Wei Kangnian.

He looked around, sat down on a chair, and smiled, "I've never lived in such a nice room in my life."

"If you like, you can live here before the exam," said Xie Wenxi.

"No need." Wei Kangnian shook his head and said, "I probably won't need it."

Before anyone could ask, he said, "You guessed it right. I was the one who killed Princess Fuyang."

……

This sentence made the expressions of the three people opposite tense.

Although he said he would tell the truth, wasn't that too straightforward? Even the investigators were not mentally prepared.

Ling Yuanbao was the first to react. She glanced at Xie Wenxi and asked in a low voice, "Who guessed correctly? Did you guess it?"

Xie Wenxi shook his head.

Ling Yuanbao looked at Liang Yue again, "Did you guess that he was the one who killed her?"

Liang Yue didn't answer her, but looked straight at Wei Kangnian and asked, "Why?"

Xie Wenxi also gestured for him to elaborate.

"In recent years, many people in Nanzhou have died from using Miracle Incense. My father is physically disabled and suffers from severe pain whenever it is cloudy or rainy. Some people say Miracle Incense can relieve pain, so my mother bought him some to try. It really worked, so he started using Miracle Incense for a long time. Later on, he became crazy and would go mad if he didn't smell it. But my family was already poor, and I almost spent all my money to buy Miracle Incense for him."

Wei Kangnian put away his usual joking expression and spoke seriously.

"One day last year, he sneaked out alone and drowned himself in the river."

"I already knew that the Mi Luo Xiang was brought by Princess Fuyang and her husband, but I hadn't thought about revenge. It wasn't until I went to Beijing to take the exam that someone from the Wei family contacted me."

He emphasized, "It's the Wei family, one of the three great families in Qingdu. My mother is a member of the Wei family, but because she forced her to marry my father, a soldier in the army who was not one of the hundred clans, they have never recognized my mother or me."

The three people present had all heard of this "hundred tribes" he mentioned.

People in Nanzhou attach great importance to blood ties and clans. The three major families once jointly compiled a book called "Records of the High Families in Kyushu".

The above divides the world's aristocratic families into different levels, and lists a total of one hundred aristocratic families.

The three great families of Qingdu and the four great families of Shendu ranked in the first tier, with twenty-three clans ranked in the second tier, and sixty-nine clans ranked in the third tier. If the royal family that was above all the high families was included, there were a total of one hundred aristocratic families.

They believed that the bloodline of the noble families had been passed down since ancient times, and they were more noble than ordinary people, and that people outside the hundred clans were inferior. Children of the clan were not allowed to marry people outside the hundred clans. If they violated this rule, they would be expelled from the clan tree and oppressed in every way.

This must have been the treatment Wei Kangnian's family received.

However, these noble families are most prevalent in the Southern Province, and they are less recognized as you go north.

In Nanzhou, the scrutiny of family name has reached an outrageous level. Even if you are richer, more powerful, or hold a higher official position, but my family name is higher than yours, then I will look down on you.

The descendants of the three great families in Qingdu have always been high and mighty in Nanzhou.

But it’s not very popular outside of Nanzhou.

Although the four great families in the Divine Capital were also ranked as first-class, they placed more emphasis on real strength.

It may be because the four major families in Shendu must have power in official circles. If they want to have enough reputation in the court and win over enough people's hearts, they have to respect talented people.

Liang Yue agreed with this.

The trajectory of history tells us that if a dynasty reaches the point where it uses birth as the basis for distinguishing who is superior and who is not, and the class barriers become unbreakable, it is not far from its demise.

In fact, the reason is very simple. The bottom layer needs an upward channel.

It's ok if you insects who can only reincarnate account for a part of it, but if you want to block it completely, I'm sorry.

People with truly outstanding abilities all have strong ambitions and a strong desire to pass something... If they can't pass the exam, then they can rebel.

If the entire Yin Dynasty believed in the theory of bloodline like those people in Nanzhou, the "Record of Noble Families" would sooner or later become a book of life and death.

The house was quiet.

Wei Kangnian continued speaking over there.

"The Wei family's steward said that if I can complete the task of assassinating Princess Fuyang, they can recommend me to be on the list of this imperial examination and assign me a powerful official position back in Qingdu. If my mother wants, she can also include both of us in the family tree."

"I already hated people who sold Milo incense, so I agreed."

"But now it's clear that the group of Nanzhou nobles want to kill me and silence me. They don't want to keep their promise." Wei Kangnian said a little angrily, "Of course I have to give them up."

"Tell me in detail the process of how you killed Princess Fuyang." Liang Yue said.

"According to the information they provided, I attended the banquet first, then sneaked out and arrived at Princess Fuyang's bedroom. I heard no movement inside and wondered if she hadn't come back yet, so I planned to go in and wait for her. But just as I climbed in through the window, I saw her escaping from a secret door in a secret room." Wei Kangnian recalled slowly.

"I stepped forward and strangled her to death. At this time, another person was about to rush out from the secret door. I was afraid of being discovered, so I used my magical power to knock him back."

"Knowing that there was someone in the secret door, why didn't you kill him?" Liang Yue asked again.

Wei Kangnian shook his head and said, "I don't want to kill people recklessly. The poisonous gas of the Milo flower tree in the secret room was very thick at that time and was about to overflow. He didn't see my face, so it was enough to beat him back."

"By the way." Liang Yue suddenly changed the subject and asked, "Do you know Zhou Xuanci?"

Wei Kangnian frowned, hesitated for a moment, and then said, "I've met him a few times and I'm a little familiar with him. What's the matter?"

"If you are only slightly familiar with him..." Liang Yue said in a deep voice: "Why would you take the blame for him?"

　Good morning.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)