Chapter 420
Chapter 420: I Came From Faraway To Make Our Appointment
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
The oil lamp in the study flickered, and the room brightened then dimmed again . Fan Xian looked at the changing yellow light on the general's face . He narrowed his eyes and didn't speak for a while . An oil lamp flickering should be, according to Qing Kingdom's superstitions, a joyful thing . However, Fan Xian currently could not confirm this fact .
"Talk about your past and speak your thought . "
Fan Xian slowly sucked in a breath and tried his best to make his expression softer .
"My name is Xu Maocai . " The general smiled slightly and began to narrate his identity and connection to Fan Xian .
Fan Xian nodded . Such a normal name was indeed a necessary requirement for those who wanted to hide their identity . However, he did not know the other person had escaped the purge back then . He understood even less why the other person would choose this moment to show himself .
"Young master, I am not a person of the Fan manor or a person of the Overwatch Council," Xu Maocai calmly said . "I am a person of the Ye family . More accurately, I was the Mistress' person . "
"You were one of the Quanzhou Navy?"
After confirming his guess, Fan Xian's brows did not relax .
"Correct," Xu Maocai replied . "Twenty years ago, I was an officer on a Quanzhou Navy ship . After the Quanzhou Navy was disbanded, it became the three large navies of today . I came to Jiaozhou and have stayed in the military until now . "
Fan Xian knew the story of this part of history . It was connected to the Ye family, and a story that could never be ignored . That year, something happened in Jingdou and his mother was suddenly attacked in an isolated manor of Taiping . Uncle Wu Zhu only had time to pick up . Perhaps it was because of Fan Xian that Uncle Wu Zhu didn't use the might of one person to challenge the entire country…
The old Ye family in Jingdou was destroyed in one day . The problem was, the Ye family was not limited to just Jingdou . They had property in various provinces and roads . This kind of influence had already extended to all aspects of Qing Kingdom . The military was not an exception .
After the Emperor had come back to the court with Fan Jian and Chen Pingping had hurried back to the capital, the situation was already set . Other than revenge, the problem placed before the officials was how to deal with massive property the Ye family had left behind, as well as their influence .
Just as history recorded it, and just as Fan Xian knew, the Ye family's three large workshops were taken by the royal family and became the palace treasury that was now Qing Kingdom's economic lifeline . The shopkeepers of the Ye family were put under house arrest by the court, and the Ye family was thus pinned with the crime of rebellion .
Four years after the Jingdou incident, the Emperor led Chen Pingping and Fan Jian in a bloody counter-attack and revenge . He wiped out one-third of the noble families in Jingdou . He even went as far as to completely wipe out the empress' very powerful family . Yet, he was still unable to change some things, such as the Ye family's crime and how the Ye family was punished, because this matter was certainly related to that old woman in the Palace and involved the peace under heaven .
Ye Qingmei had died strangely and unjustly . In order to prevent a counterattack from the Ye family, the court had to carry out a purge on the Ye family and a screening of their inheritance . For the stability of Qing Kingdom, this was the only option . Judging from later developments, it looked like Chen Pingping and Fan Jian had implicitly consented to this point .
Thus, all the shopkeepers of the Qingyu Hall who were Ye members were allowed to struggle on whilst at death's door . Many years later, they were released to breathe the fresh air by the grown Fan Xian . However, the powers the Ye family had left in the court and military were mercilessly swept clean, leaving behind not a trace .
Because the Quanzhou Navy was once responsible for protecting the shipping of palace treasury goods, it was particularly saturated with the Ye family . From various perspectives, it could be said it was Ye Qingmei family's private army . Thus, in the purging after the incidence, the Quanzhou Navy was targeted first and merciless split by the court into three parts . After being secretly purged and stabilized, it became the present three navies of Qing Kingdom .
Every time he thought of the events of the past, the sinister fire that had long been suppressed in the depths of Fan Xian's heart began to rise . He knew that since Ye Qingmei had already died, those elders had to make this choice for the sake of the world's stability . If he was the Emperor, he was sure that he also wouldn't have been lenient . However, he was still uncomfortable and unhappy in his heart .
Seeing that Fan Xian's mind was starting to wander, the Quanzhou navy elder, Xu Maocai, gently coughed a few times .
Fan Xian's attention snapped back . He looked at General Xu with a complicated expression . Countless questions welled in his heart . How could this old member of the Ye family have survived the purge? How had he hidden his identity until today? The power of the Ye family had not died completely . However, most of the people were like the treasurers in the palace treasury…forgetting their past identity . After revealing themselves, they became a member of the court .
Xu Maocai was clearly not like this .
Fan Xian expressed his questions straightforwardly .
Xu Maocai replied even more straightforwardly, "I entered the navy too late . The Mistress had originally arranged for me to train for two years on the sea and then enter the Overwatch Council to help the Direction…however, as you know, some things happened later, so I never had the chance to connect with Director Chen . Very coincidentally or fortunately…I have survived until today . "
"What you mean is if Chen Pingping knew you were someone of the Ye family, he would not tolerate you remaining in the military," Fan Xian said coldly .
Xu Maocai was slightly startled . After thinking for a moment, he slowly replied, "I don't know but my luck is already sufficient, so I wouldn't bet on it . "
"What about my father?"
Xu Maocai knew that this young man was certainly not talking about the man on the dragon chair but Minister Fan of the Ministry of Revenue . After thinking for a moment, he said, "Matters back then were too strange, I…didn't dare trust anyone . "
Didn't dare trust anyone . Although his tone was still calm, Fan Xian could hear a glimmer of coldness and disappointment in it . After the Jingdou incident, no one in the court had cried injustice for the old Ye family . Furthermore, the situation at that time was indeed too strange . As an agent of the Ye family, Xu Maocai always had suspicions in his heart as to just what role Chen Pingping and Fan Xian had played in the incident .
Fan Xian's expression still did not change . Instead, he smiled slightly and said, "I trust that you know my connection to the Ye family . However, I don't understand why you are telling me all this at this time . "
This was a test, from the beginning of their chat to now, Fan Xian had not expressed anything that could be used by others against him .
Xu Maocai raised his head with confusion, looking at Fan Xian like he was looking at a stranger . He had suddenly forgotten, before today, he and Fan Xian were strangers .
"Young master, you are the Mistress' only flesh and blood," Xu Maocai said in a deep voice . "The Mistress' family property must be inherited by you and her revenge…as her son, naturally it also falls on your shoulders . I have no talent, but I am willing to serve . "
Fan Xian was silent for a while before slowly saying, "According to what I know, the nobility that participated in that matter had all been killed 13 years ago by the wisdom of the Emperor, even though these shameless bandits had lived an extra four years . Revenge? Who should I find for revenge?
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