Chapter 10: My Turn

The moment the name Lao Chao of the Devouring Sea Gang was mentioned, the atmosphere in the hall grew tense.

The shopkeepers exchanged uneasy glances, Master Fang’s face turned ashen, and even Fang Cun furrowed his brow, deep in thought.

…

“Brother-in-law, listen to me…”

The uncle, seeing how terrified Master Fang became at the mention of Lao Chao, mustered a bit more courage. “Times really aren’t what they used to be. Word spreads all through the city: the Fang family’s eldest son is gone. Before he died, he offended some powerful outsider. Who knows when they’ll strike down the Fang family? Nobody fears us now. That Lao Chao has his eye on the Fang family’s business. That business is nothing but trouble for the Fang family now! Holding onto it is impossible. Better to just hand it over to him, it’ll bring peace…”

Hearing this, Master Fang instinctively nodded. Though the shopkeepers and junior owners stayed silent, they privately agreed with this suggestion. For ordinary families like theirs, being targeted by such a demon was an unexpected disaster. Handing over the business outright wasn’t shameful. Trying to stand firm against such a force, only to meet ruin, that would be foolish!

Amidst this heavy silence, Fang Cun suddenly cut his uncle off, smiling faintly. “How much did Lao Chao promise you?”

The uncle’s face instantly flushed with embarrassment. He mumbled wordlessly.

The aunt quickly chimed in. “We’re thinking of the Fang family! What benefits would we get…”

Fang Cun frowned slightly. He took a crossbow from a guard nearby and toyed with it in his hands, its point seemingly aimed at Cao Chang.

The uncle hastily shielded Cao Chang with his body. “It wasn’t much benefit. Lao Chao said… if I gave him the deed for the Twelve Continuous Docks, they’d be his. But he… he promised to let me keep three…”

“So you get nine, he gets three, and my family gets nothing?” Fang Cun chuckled coldly as he handed the crossbow back to the guard. “Such wonderful relatives!”

“Master Lao Chao… he’s not someone we can cross!” Faced with this, the uncle abandoned all pretense. “Brother-in-law, think carefully! Lao Chao is a vicious man! They say he drank with human hearts and livers! In Willow Lake City, his word is law! Now that he’s set his sights on the Twelve Continuous Docks, he thinks of that business as his own! If you refuse him today, he’ll likely bring his men to snatch it within three days…”

Master Fang was pale as a sheet, only holding onto Fang Cun’s arm, murmuring weakly, “Yes… yes…”

“No need for my uncle to trouble himself further!”

Fang Cun, however, seemed unbothered. He simply waved for the guards to clear a path. “If you go back now, and Lao Chao’s lackeys come asking… do us a favor and pass him a message. Whether it’s three days or more… the Twelve Continuous Docks business… he won’t get it.”

“You…”

Hearing this, the uncle was completely dumbfounded.

Where did this good-for-nothing Second Young Master Fang get the nerve to challenge Lao Chao?

Did he truly think his older brother was still alive?

But Fang Cun had made up his mind. He showed no inclination for further talk. With a dismissive wave, he ordered, “See them out!”

He added coolly towards his uncle’s family, “As for your family… best not darken our doorway in the future. Wouldn’t want my Fang Family to exploit the talents of your little Minor Qi Practitioner here.”

…

The uncle’s family acted as if granted a pardon. They hurriedly hauled up Cao Chang, who was foaming at the mouth while sneaking glances around from the floor, and hastily retreated, inwardly cursing the Fang family: their main pillar is gone, yet they still swagger? They’ll be wiped out soon!

Most awkward of all were the shopkeepers. Having silently witnessed this family farce, they scarcely dared utter a word.

Now, with the uncle gone, they felt a mountain of pressure on their shoulders, speechless again.

Though their throats were parched, not one dared reach for the nearby teacups.

“Respected shopkeepers and owners… I’m sure each of you has much you wish to say?”

At this moment, Fang Cun finally turned his gaze towards them, causing several to flinch nervously. Strangely, this Second Young Master Fang still hadn’t dismissed the guards clutching the powerful crossbows; they remained stationed around the hall.

“N-no… no…”

An older, slightly braver junior owner finally spoke, his voice trembling. “We came… we came only to offer condolences for the Young Master…”

Others hastily nodded in fervent agreement. “Yes, yes! Only for condolences!”

“If you have nothing to say… why hasn’t a single family met the Fang family’s demand for the silver payment?” Fang Cun’s tone remained calm, his expression unreadable.

The group of shopkeepers and junior owners immediately looked deeply uncomfortable.

Their minds were in turmoil; they genuinely didn’t know how to respond.

“Actually, I understand everything, even if you choose not to say it.” Fang Cun spoke up suddenly, his voice quiet but firm. “Much of the commerce between you and the Fang family began with your own requests. For the Fang family, it brought effortless profit. But let’s be clear: without the name and protection of the Fang family, the silver you earned wouldn’t have come so easily. Should anyone now wish to withdraw their investment… well, you’re free to go. Only, let me warn you plainly: the Fang family’s threshold isn’t particularly high…” He paused deliberately before finishing, “…but it’s also not something you can step over freely, coming and going as you please!”

The shopkeepers and junior owners exchanged uneasy glances. After a long moment, heads started bobbing rapidly in assent.

Some had prepared lengthy arguments. But now, they couldn’t bring themselves to utter a word. Others had indeed intended to clear the air during this opportunity. Yet this sudden display of magnanimity from Second Young Master Fang gave them pause. Does the Fang house still possess some hidden backing, despite the Young Master’s death? Might there be influential friends left from the Young Master’s illustrious, yet deceased, acquaintances?

…

“Enough. We’re old partners with years of history. There’s no need to spell everything out. You may all go.”

Fang Cun gently lifted his teacup, adding mildly, “The Fang family is observing mourning rites recently. Should any matters arise, please discuss them with the steward.”

“Y-Yes… yes, understood… We’ll take our leave now…”

“Master Fang, our deepest condolences… We bid you farewell…”

The shopkeepers and junior owners finally seemed released. They edged nervously past the glinting crossbows and out of the hall, mopping cold sweat from their brows.

Soon, only Elder Fang and Fang Cun remained in the suddenly quiet hall.

Outside, waiting maids and servants scarcely dared breathe. They silently entered to clear the shards of porcelain scattered on the floor.

“Ah… my Rain-Green porcelain cup…” Elder Fang glanced heartbrokenly at the fragments, then quickly snapped back to reality. Leaning closer to Fang Cun, he grasped his sleeve and whispered urgently, “My son! That talk you just had with those people…”

Fang Cun sighed wearily. “Just meant to scare them. To keep some face.”

“You scared me too!” Elder Fang stared, momentarily blank.

Fang Cun gave his father a deeply exhausted look.

Snapping out of it, Elder Fang asked anxiously, “Will it work?”

Fang Cun shook his head slowly. “They aren’t fools. Right now, it’s just the lingering awe of my brother keeping them hesitant. In a few days, the sharper ones will start pondering the situation. Especially now that Lao Chao has openly set his sights on us. All they need to do is wait. If Lao Chao succeeds in taking what he wants, these people will know where the wind blows. When they move then… likely no one can stop them.”

“This…” Elder Fang’s face twisted with distress. After a long moment, he sighed heavily. “Cun’er… your father knows we need to save face before others. Blustering a little is fine. But since Lao Chao has fixed his eye on our family… better to give up wealth to avoid trouble, eh? Hand it over…”

“It wasn’t just empty words.” Fang Cun looked at his father, then slowly rubbed his face. “Brother gone… jackals circling our door… it was predictable. Just not this fast. Businesses outside the city? Fine, we can give them up if we must. But the shops inside the city… those must be kept. They provide your support for the future… my studies… they cost money. How can we just give it all away?”

“The city shops…” Elder Fang blinked in confusion. “The Twelve Continuous Docks… weren’t they outside the city?”

“Under other circumstances, I absolutely wouldn’t fight Lao Chao for the Twelve Continuous Docks! Let him have them.” Fang Cun frowned. “But not now. He’s too hasty. Brother’s grave isn’t even cold, and he’s the first one jumping out to prey on the Fang family. If we just roll over and hand them over? The others will see the Fang family as plump, easy meat. They’ll follow suit, swarm us like vultures. Not just our businesses outside the city… we won’t even keep a single city shop!”

“Then… how… what do you intend?” Elder Fang stammered nervously. “You… you plan to go against Lao Chao?”

“Lao Chao isn’t like our cousin. The Fang family can’t oppose him directly.” Fang Cun slowly shook his head. “In Willow Lake City, only the Academy and the City Governor possess the power to deal with Lao Chao.”

Hearing this, Elder Fang perked up slightly. “Then I’ll plead with the City Governor! I know him well…”

“Well?” Fang Cun couldn’t help a bitter laugh. “Before. Right now, you might not even get to see the Governor. And think, Father, how has Lao Chao remained prominent in Willow Lake City all these years? Bullying common folk is trivial. But flouting the small families and Minor Qi Practitioners, stirring resentment? How has he avoided reprisal? Can it truly have nothing to do with the City Governor?”

He stopped short of voicing his deepest suspicion aloud.

Is Lao Chao perhaps secretly the City Governor’s man? Was this entire plot against the Twelve Continuous Docks originating from the Governor’s office?

“This… this…” Elder Fang’s face turned despairing. After a long moment, his shoulders slumped. “The family fortune… your elder brother earned it. Losing it… losing it is fine. Going back to hard times… nothing I can’t handle. But you, and your mother… your health…”

Fang Cun glanced at his father’s prominent waistline. A wave of helplessness washed over him.

“Just calm yourself, Father. I will manage this.”

After a moment’s consideration, Fang Cun stated with quiet certainty, “I lived a peaceful life for over a decade under my brother’s shadow. Now… it’s my turn.”

…

“This…” Elder Fang looked at his son, sitting perfectly still in the high-backed chair with that unnervingly calm, detached expression, his mind full of confusion and unease.

For a fleeting moment, the aging eyes of Master Fang blurred. In Fang Cun’s composed and stern face staring back at him, he caught a ghostly, unwelcome glimpse of his own deceased elder son.