Otherworld Advance Team-Chapter 1816 - 1809: The Patriarch’s Concerns

When Jiuyun Shuang was paying respects to his eldest brother Jiuyun Ying, the Patriarch Jiuyun Zheng was in the inner hall. Jiuyun Ke found an excuse to leave Jiuyun Shuang and followed his father to his room, cautiously calling, "Father."

"Are you here to offer incense to your elder brother?" Jiuyun Zheng asked in a muffled voice, without turning his head.

"Yes."

"So many years have passed, and he still can’t forget the eldest..."

"Didn’t Father also not forget..."

"Hmph," upon hearing his son’s words, Jiuyun Zheng turned and glared at him, coldly snorting, "I not only can’t forget him, I also can’t forget the ’great kindness and virtue’ of the Wen Family. If it weren’t for the Wen Family, I wouldn’t have lost this son."

Saying this, he looked at Jiuyun Ke, continuing to ask, "Are you perhaps feeling quite fortunate over your elder brother’s death?"

"No..." Jiuyun Ke lowered his eyes, speaking somewhat wistfully, "I know I am not as good as my elder brother. Father wanting me to succeed is indeed a great favor. I have always doubted whether I could do it well..."

"If...if the fourth younger brother is willing, I would rather let him have the position of future Patriarch and retreat to my own place." Jiuyun Ke said earnestly.

Jiuyun Zheng’s four sons were friendly with each other, bringing him some comfort internally. This was also thanks to the teachings of Madam Gaofeng Yu. Without this knowledgeable and sensible daughter of the Gaofeng Family, these four sons would probably not have reached such a level of mentality.

Yet, the more he thought about his four sons respecting and loving each other, the more inexplicably angry Jiuyun Zheng felt.

He could never forgive the Wen Family for causing his son’s death. If it weren’t for that damn deadly expedition, his son wouldn’t have been stricken with illness and died.

Therefore, the more he saw his sons treating each other with humility, the angrier he became. Standing there, he gritted his teeth, making his fists crackle.

To be fair, Jiuyun Ying’s death couldn’t entirely be blamed on the Wen Family. After all, it was Jiuyun Ying himself who volunteered to get the opportunity to go on the campaign back then.

Regarding Jiuyun Ying’s death, the Wen Family in the Imperial Court could only say it was a case of an inept commander wearing down the troops. The incompetent at the top led to losses below.

But no matter what, at least Jiuyun Ying did not die directly on the battlefield. Instead, he returned to the court and endured for roughly a decade before passing away.

Jiuyun Zheng hoped his four sons would all achieve something, but he was also worried they might encounter accidents, making him quite conflicted.

But this kind of conflict had never existed in the past.

Because the Jiuyun Clan was a typical military aristocratic family, and Jiuyun Zheng secured the position of Patriarch through his cultivation.

In terms of cultivation, few in the Jiuyun Clan were a match for Jiuyun Zheng. While all four of his sons were cultivators, none surpassed him in cultivation.

However, during Jiuyun Zheng’s tenure as Patriarch, the societal atmosphere significantly differed from before.

Throughout Kyushu society, from the Imperial Court down to the rivers and lakes, there was a noticeable trend of valuing literature over martial skills. Even as powerful as the Jiuyun Clan was, they couldn’t avoid making a choice.

It coincided with the time when Jiuyun Zheng’s first wife passed away, and the elders of the Jiuyun Clan devised a wedding for him, having him marry the sister of the Gaofeng Family Patriarch, Gaofeng Yu.

This wedding seemed like a powerful alliance between two military aristocratic families, but as mentioned earlier, Gaofeng Yu was knowledgeable and reasonable, with strong tendencies toward the Wen Family. Thus, the Wen Family in the Imperial Court strongly supported this confusing union, even sending lavish gifts in the name of the court.

Gaofeng Yu’s arrival brought notable changes to this martial-focused family.

Young Jiuyun Ying just lost his mother, and this eldest daughter of the Gaofeng Family personally raised this son with whom she had no blood relation.

Under Gaofeng Yu’s careful guidance, Jiuyun Ying exhibited exceptional talents from a young age. At the age of sixteen, he entered the Military Scripture Department of the Imperial Court as a cultivator.

The Military Scripture Department was an institution cultivating and reserving talents for leadership. Jiuyun Ying’s admission as a cultivator indicated that his cultural cultivation was also not low.

All of this was credited to the nurturing of Gaofeng Yu, who nearly single-handedly redirected the development inclinations of the Jiuyun Clan within a single generation.

Subsequently, Gaofeng Yu bore three sons for Jiuyun Zheng, second son Jiuyun Ke, third son Jiuyun Li, and fourth son Jiuyun Shuang.

Among these three biological sons, Gaofeng Yu was especially fond of the youngest, Jiuyun Shuang, because he possessed great intuition from a young age, much like Jiuyun Ying.

These four sons were Jiuyun Zheng’s hope and also the hope of the Jiuyun Clan, which is why he paid exceptional attention to them.

And because of this, he became so grief-stricken and resentful towards the Wen Family when Jiuyun Ying passed away.

Gathering his thoughts, Jiuyun Zheng felt no relief; in fact, his anger intensified.

In a rage, he slammed the table forcefully. Being a high-level cultivator, his strength was immense, shattering the table into pieces, causing Jiuyun Ke to lower his head, silent.

"The Wen Family caused the eldest’s death back then, and now they’re eyeing the fourth. These scoundrels! Are they determined to kill all my sons before they rest?"

"Father, please calm your anger. The court probably doesn’t mean that..."

"Are you making excuses for the Wen Family too?" Jiuyun Zheng sternly asked.

"No, I wouldn’t dare, but indeed the eldest brother’s death can’t be entirely blamed on the Wen Family... And now the court has given the fourth a chance to establish himself, I think..."

"Hmph, establishing himself," Jiuyun Zheng scoffed in extreme anger, pointing out the door, "Look at the stationed troops outside; there aren’t even ten thousand of them, and all of them are a rabble. Letting the fourth lead these people out to fight, isn’t that wanting to kill him or what?"

"Our Jiuyun Clan has defended the Northern Province for generations, and you and I both know the enemies beyond the border, as does the Imperial Court of the Wen Family."

"I can see right through it. The Wen Family Court says it wants the fourth to establish himself, but I think it has other intentions. Hmph, they know the fourth can’t defeat the Yipa people with these men; their aim is to force me to send troops, thus cutting down the edge of the Jiuyun Clan to achieve unprecedented merit for the court."

"If they succeed, the credit naturally belongs to our Jiuyun Clan. But if we fail, I imagine they’ll surely shift all the blame onto that foolish fourth. Hmph, ten thousand to fight the Yipa, truly laughable!"

Having listened to his father’s ramblings, Jiuyun Ke roughly understood his father’s concerns, hesitated for a moment, and then carefully said, "Father, the fourth said he is confident in handling the three parts of the Yipa with ten thousand men, I think..."

Upon hearing this from his son, Jiuyun Zheng’s unfounded anger rose again. He was about to slam the table, but suddenly realized it had already shattered. So instead, he forcefully shook his hand, pointing furiously at Jiuyun Ke’s nose, cursing, "The fourth is being immature, and are you following suit? Can’t you tell he’s talking nonsense!?"

"Father..." Jiuyun Ke patiently waited for his father to vent, then cautiously spoke, "From the fourth’s tone, it doesn’t seem impulsive but rather confident, it seems he is truly assured."

"You dare talk back!"

"I wouldn’t dare..."

"The fourth went to the court at a young age; how can he know the peril of the Yipa. You’ve crossed the border more than a dozen times; don’t you have a sense of the Yipa people’s strength and yet dare to make excuses for him? I see you truly want your brothers dead."

"How can Father say such words," Jiuyun Ke’s eyes glistened with tears, speaking indignantly, "After Eldest Brother passed, I’ve always strived to follow his example. As of now, with brotherhood ties by blood, how could Father think I would harm my own sibling? Could it be that in Father’s mind, brotherhood means less than a power struggle?"

"Hmph..."

Jiuyun Zheng, stunted by the retort, could only coldly snort without further words, barely maintaining his dignity.

Jiuyun Ke stepped forward, continuing to say, "From the fourth’s words and deeds, he obviously knows what he is doing, hence I wish to assist him. Now, Father is making all kinds of excuses to evade and refuse to send troops. Such actions, how are we to exemplify brotherly love and harmony?"

"If Father doesn’t want to send troops, then I shall don armor and enter the battlefield alone, joining the fourth to repulse the foreign invaders, united as brothers, to conquer strong enemies!"

"Are you out of your mind!"

Jiuyun Zheng’s expression changed instantly because this wasn’t the first time he’d heard such words.

Madam Gaofeng Yu had already told him something similar yesterday, and now with Jiuyun Ke mentioning it again, Jiuyun Zheng had to consider the consequences of being obstinate.

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