Any family that can rank among the first-rate has its own sound reasons.
Take the Miao family of Sijiu, for instance.
If it weren't for the countless times the Miao family ancestors had fought their way out of a hail of bullets and gunfire, how could the Sijiu Miao family exist today?
Objectively speaking, the Miao family dared to court death so repeatedly because they had the capital to rely on!
The spirit tablets in this ancestral hall were the Miao family's greatest and last resort.
If—
The Miao family were not facing a crisis of survival, Miao Laotai would not have dared to open the ancestral hall on his own to retrieve the ancestral spirit tablets.
(This point is remarkably similar to how the plaque inscribed by a certain wise man, "A Benevolent Household," hung at the entrance of the old residence of the Lan family in Tiandong, deterred the Li family village from their plan to exact bloody revenge on the Lan family due to Lan Yunhai's forced abduction of Su Ziyu.)
Miao Laotai stood at the entrance, bending over but gazing up at his father's portrait, motionless for a long time.
Behind him, more than twenty core disciples of the Miao family dared not even breathe, maintaining a devout silence.
Alas.
Miao Kaitai finally sighed softly and slowly stepped into the ancestral hall.
His three sons followed him at a measured pace.
The other Miao family disciples remained outside the door.
The ancestral hall was vast, yet apart from the offering table and a futon on the floor, there was nothing else.
Miao Laotai approached the offering table and slightly shifted his body.
His eldest son, Miao Desheng, holding a red tray, bent his head low and strode forward quickly.
On the tray were a bottle of wine and three sticks of incense.
Miao Laotai picked up the wine and poured three cups for his father's spirit tablet. He then lit the three incense sticks and placed them in the censer.
The aroma of wine filled the air.
Smoke curled upwards.
Miao Laotai slowly knelt on the futon.
*Whoosh.*
His three sons and the more than twenty core disciples at the door all knelt on the cold floor.
Fortunately, no expert was present to condemn the Miao family's ancestor worship as a primitive custom.
Otherwise—
Given the Miao family's capabilities and methods, making an expert's entire family disappear was quite simple.
"Father."
After performing the three kowtows, Miao Laotai looked up at the portrait and said with a heavy heart, "Your unfilial son, Kaitai, must trouble you today to help the Miao family withstand disaster."
Upon hearing his words,
The core disciples kneeling behind him all showed shame and anger on their faces.
"That little beast is truly terrifying."
Miao Laotai continued, "In just two days, he has caused the Xu and Du families to be destroyed and forced to withdraw from Sijiu. Even worse, yesterday he went to Tianbei and massacred the Feng family, who were preparing for the wedding of their eldest grandson. He killed three of the Feng family's four sons, and the eldest grandson died on the eve of his wedding. He even forced the bride to remarry. His sins are too numerous to list."
As he droned on,
The more than twenty disciples behind him tightly pursed their lips, silently cursing the little beast.
"Our Miao family, along with the Shen, Du, Feng, and twelve other families, have always advanced and retreated together."
Miao Laotai continued, "If the little beast can massacre the Xu, Du, and Feng families, he might come for the Miao family as well. The day after tomorrow is the hundredth-day celebration for your eldest great-grandson's birth. According to your unfilial son's speculation, there is an 80% probability that the little beast will use the child's hundred-day banquet as an excuse to come and slaughter the key figures of our Miao family."
He had three sons.
At this moment,
Hearing Miao Laotai's words, his three children instinctively shivered.
The little beast was known for targeting direct descendants when massacring noble families.
Miao Laotai's nephews might escape, but the lives of his three sons were in peril.
Who wouldn't be afraid?
Miao Laotai continued to drone on—
"The little beast is backed by Li family village and the overseas Dragon Ruins, and especially enjoys the close protection of Li Wujiang, making his tyranny unmatched."
"The little beast is incredibly cunning. Apart from deploying seven lackeys from Li family village, neither the Dragon Ruins nor Li Wujiang have shown themselves."
"Yet, even so, our Miao family cannot resist."
"It is because certain individuals wish to use his claws to destroy our Miao family!"
"Who these certain individuals are, your unfilial son will not say, but you know."
"These certain individuals will not appear, yet they have dispatched a woman as beautiful as a flower but with a heart more venomous than a snake to assist the little beast in cleaning up the aftermath of his killings."
"That venomous woman named Su is even more terrifying than the little beast."
"If she weren't behind him, wiping his backside, the little beast would have been ostracized by everyone and died without a proper burial when the Du and Xu families were slaughtered!"
"But because of that venomous woman, both the Du and Xu families, after their tragic massacres, told the outside world that the deaths of their family members were accidental and unrelated to the little beast."
"The Feng family, who suffered a massacre yesterday, is no different."
"The Feng family explained externally that the misfortune of their three sons and eldest grandson was due to a car accident on their wedding day."
"Heh, not long after the little beast finished his killing spree, the venomous woman found the Feng family head."
"If the little beast truly comes to our Miao family tomorrow and raises his butcher's knife to slaughter our innocent disciples, the venomous woman will definitely visit me."
"She will use all sorts of means to force me to announce externally that my Miao family has suffered a great calamity due to reasons such as fire, food poisoning, car accidents, and so on."
"Only then did your unfilial son realize that the most terrifying entity is not the little beast, but that venomous woman!"
"If she hadn't handled the aftermath, the little beast would have already faced just punishment when he slaughtered the Du family."
"Father—"
Miao Laotai's voice grew increasingly agitated, his old face flushed, and tears welled up in his eyes.
His voice choked, "If your spirit in heaven could strike the little beast with lightning, and the venomous woman could die of some filthy disease, how wonderful that would be!"
The core disciples behind him now clenched their fists tightly, their teeth grinding audibly!
The words spoken by Miao Laotai were what they had repeatedly discussed and analyzed in their panicked meetings over the past two days.
The Dragon Ruins, though powerful.
Li Wujiang, though terrifying.
The status of Li family village, though unshakeable.
Yet, these three forces had remained completely inactive while a certain little beast stirred up a storm against thirteen noble families. (Li Qianfan had only mobilized seven lackeys from Li family village; the elders of Li family village had not intervened, meaning Li family village itself had not acted.)
Even Ding Xiaolang, who should have been the first to appear, had gone to the Xu family in advance to prevent Li Qianfan from showing up for a killing spree.
These people had not moved!
Only the venomous woman named Su had provided the most powerful support to Li Qianfan.
Why did the venomous woman do this?
The young and old gentlemen of the Miao family quickly analyzed it: the venomous woman was acting as a scapegoat for the Dragon Ruins, Li Wujiang, and Li family village, and Ding Xiaolang!
This way,
Even if the wrath of the entire world was provoked, it would only be directed at Li Qianfan and that venomous woman.
If—
Li Qianfan could no longer withstand the world's indignation, the venomous woman would willingly step forward and accept all the blame, perhaps by committing suicide to atone.
But it would have no impact whatsoever on the Dragon Ruins, Li family village, and Li Wujiang, who truly supported Li Qianfan.
"Therefore, your unfilial son has decided—"
Miao Laotai took a deep breath and said slowly, "After you, Father, help us weather this calamity, we will definitely kill the venomous woman!"
The twenty-odd disciples behind him also shouted in unison, "After this disaster, we will definitely kill the venomous woman!!"
Definitely kill Su Nanyin.
This was a solemn oath sworn by Miao Laotai and all the core members before their ancestors.
It was also the conclusion reached by the heads of eleven noble families, including the Shen family of Sijiu, after an emergency consultation yesterday.
The combined strength of the eleven noble families was formidable, even terrifying.
Although they had been actively plotting and employing underhanded tactics before,
They had not resorted to direct methods!
With the tragic massacres of the Xu, Du, and Feng families, the eleven noble families had finally made up their minds to assassinate Su Nanyin through direct means.
Eliminating Su Nanyin—
Not only would it be a catharsis, but it would also be the most potent revenge against the Dragon Ruins, Li family village, and Li Wujiang for supporting Li Qianfan's indiscriminate slaughter: "You sent Su Nanyin to be your lackey? Fine. Then we'll break this lackey's leg! Let you know that we are not to be bullied."
In fact,
As early as when the thirteen noble family heads, angered by the castration of their twenty-six sons, jointly pressured Manager Zhao to seek justice, Su Nanyin had brazenly released that video, causing the thirteen noble families to lose all face. At that point, they had already harbored murderous intent towards her!
After Li Qianfan returned to China and began his indiscriminate slaughter of the thirteen families (and the Xu family), Su Nanyin continuously emerged to clean up his mess, further intensifying the hatred of noble families like the Shen and Miao families towards her.
Facing a crisis, the eleven noble families dared not directly assassinate Li Qianfan.
Were they also afraid to kill a venomous woman?!
"If the venomous woman is not killed, the world cannot be set right, nor can public indignation be appeased."
After uttering these words, Miao Laotai slowly stood up, cupped the spirit tablet from the offering table in his hands, and with an expression of utmost solemnity, said, "Father, your unfilial son can only ask you to come out of seclusion."
At this moment—
The atmosphere in the ancestral hall was heavy, solemn, and sacred.
Miao Laotai, holding the ancestral spirit tablet, walked out of the ancestral hall.
The heavy ancestral hall door slowly closed.
Miao Laotai gazed up at the sky.
After a long pause.
He calmly instructed his eldest son, Miao Desheng, "The ancestral spirit tablet has been retrieved. The 'Dragon Slaying Plan' can now be initiated."
"Yes."
Miao Desheng bowed his head in agreement and quickly walked out of the courtyard of the ancestral hall.
The first step of the Dragon Slaying Plan was to spread fatal rumors about Su Nanyin.
The sky
Gradually darkened.
Su Zui, with hurried footsteps, entered the living room of the back courtyard.
Su Nanyin, dressed in a black silk robe, sat on the sofa with her left hip resting on her leg, holding a glass of red wine, her posture languid as she stared blankly at the unlit television screen.
After entering the room, Su Zui asked, "Mom, has Qianfan come home yet?"
Su Nanyin, lost in thought, blinked and looked at Su Maomao, who was gazing at her with adoration, and said, "No."
Su Zui casually asked, "Why isn't he home? If he came home, where did he go?"
Before Su Nanyin could reply,
Su Zui, having changed her shoes, quickly walked over and sat beside her, frowning, "Mom, when I was about to get off work, I heard some rumors."
Su Nanyin paid no attention and asked, "What rumors?"
Su Zui's lips moved.
Su Nanyin frowned.
Su Zui whispered, "Young Master Qianfan is your secret lover."