Zuo Wushang looked at Liang Qing and Luo Changfeng, wanting to speak but hesitating.
Liang Xiao understood and said, "This is my grandfather, and my fiancée's grandfather. You can rest assured!"
Zuo Wushang then sighed, "He sent word that we should go our separate ways from now on. If we disturb him again, we'll be enemies..."
Liang Xiao pondered this.
In fact, Zuo Wuji had never given up on his ambition to restore his country. He had even lost his beloved wife, Ye Hongyun, the birth mother of Zuo Jing, because of it back then.
It was indeed shameful for Zuo Wushang to borrow nine Cloud Sky Guards, including Zuo Jing, and then surrender, to face Zuo Wuji.
However, only he and Zuo Wushang and a few others knew a shocking truth.
Zuo Wuji's current identity was the Marquis of Zhenbei of the Great Liang Kingdom, holding military power!
But this man was decisive and thorough, leaving no trace. It was impossible to expose him.
Liang Xiao and Zuo Wushang had no need to expose him. It was good to leave some room for maneuver.
Perhaps Zuo Wuji would also submit in the future?
Liang Xiao hesitated for a moment and asked, "Is Lin'er alright?"
"Lin'er?" Zuo Wushang was startled, then smiled bitterly, "It seems she's been trained by the Cloud Sky Guards since she was young. As the leader of the Cloud Sky Guards, it's even less likely she would betray her own father and leave the Great Liang to join the Great Qian..."
Liang Xiao just nodded and said no more.
Zuo Wushang saw this and sighed inwardly.
He still called her "Lin'er," which showed he was still worried about her.
The Cloud Sky Guards had always been willing pawns. Liang Xiao's lack of contempt for these "pawns" was enough to earn him the recognition of his kin.
In the western border of the Great Liang Kingdom, the water flowed murmuringly.
The moonlight was as cool as water.
A figure in white robes stood by the bank, holding a long flute, looking north, lost in thought.
Zuo Jing, wearing a veil, sighed for a moment and began to play the flute.
The flute music was obscure and intermittent.
"Why are you practicing the flute?"
A cold voice came from behind. Zuo Jing's flute music stopped abruptly.
"Father..."
Zuo Jing knelt before the black-robed man, whose face was completely hidden except for his eyes, and dared not look up.
Zuo Wuji glanced north, then stared at Zuo Jing, his eyes full of anger. "I heard you pretended to be 'Lin'er' and met Liang Xiao for the first time while he was playing the flute?"
Zuo Jing's breathing hitched, and she dared not respond.
"The song you're practicing now, isn't it the same one he played back then?" Zuo Wuji's voice grew colder.
"No..." Zuo Jing's voice trembled.
Zuo Wuji's eyes sharpened, and he raised his right hand.
Seeing the familiar large hand, Zuo Jing's delicate body trembled violently.
"Slap!"
A heavy palm strike left half of Zuo Jing's face red and swollen.
"Cloud Sky Guards only obey, they cannot have any superfluous emotions! Don't forget that your mother died at the hands of the people of Great Qian. Better to be a dog of Great Liang than a person of Great Qian! If there is a next time, when that Liang Xiao steps into Great Liang, I will make him crawl! Back!"
Zuo Wuji gritted his teeth and uttered these words before quietly leaving, not even bothering with his daughter's meek responses behind him.
After Zuo Jing watched Zuo Wuji leave from her kneeling position, she covered her cheek and silently shed tears.
The dream was, after all, just a dream. There was no Brother Liang Xiao to step out and block this blow for her and confront her own father...
That night, Liang Xiao's mansion was filled with distinguished guests.
Zuo Wushang, Hong Jie, Hong Qu, Shangguan Jiusi.
Liang Qing, Luo Changfeng, Liu Fan, Yue Qingtian, Zhang Yang, Nie Yuan.
Gu Shaoyan, Mu Hong, Lin Xiu.
And disciples sent by families such as the Huang family and the Wang family, hoping to receive some guidance from Liang Xiao.
Those present set aside their differences in civil and military skills, and their social status, and conversed happily.
However, Yue Qingtian, despite his straightforward nature, dared not speak carelessly in front of these scholars, for fear of embarrassing Liang Xiao.
Nie Yuan was also worried about speaking too much and making mistakes, only responding occasionally. He chatted enthusiastically with Yue Qingtian.
As he was about to marry Princess Ning Shuang, Liang Xiao did not drink a single drop, and everyone understood.
Looking at the people engaged in lively discussion, Liang Xiao still felt a sense of helplessness.
Talent for internal affairs was barely sufficient, but military talent was truly scarce!
Moreover, there was always a generational gap between scholars and generals, making it difficult for them to find common ground.
In the final analysis, it was the great minefield laid by the policy of favoring civil officials over military ones, but favoring civil officials over military ones was not without its merits.
When generals did not know their soldiers, and soldiers did not know their generals, it could effectively reduce the chances of military rebellions. However, favoring civil officials over military ones was ultimately not a good strategy.
Liang Xiao could not possibly travel all over the country to select talent. In the future, he would need to entrust Hong Jie and others to go to various places to act on his behalf.
"Marquis Anguo has been rewarded with another hundred thousand taels of gold. The Ouyang family must be bleeding again!" Gu Shaoyan, for the first time, disregarded his image and laughed heartily.
After Gongyang Shi was brought down by Liang Xiao, Ouyang Sheng and Dugu Xiao shamefully returned to the capital and stayed indoors all day.
The aristocratic families in the capital who had opposed Liang Xiao had also temporarily retreated, no longer daring to clamor or publicly mock Liang Qing and Luo Changfeng as they had before.
These former aristocratic families had accepted Liang Xiao's "family" philosophy, abandoning their old ways of seeking long-term family centralization and monopoly. Instead, they strived to cultivate the disciples within their families, ensuring they were more outstanding, so that they could stand out even in fair competition in the future.
However, because these aristocratic families still had a large number of personnel serving in various positions across the country, without Liang Xiao, they would have been powerless to resist for a while.
Even the fallen Gongyang Shi still had over a thousand disciples and proteges serving in minor positions all over the country, just no longer able to hold positions above the seventh rank.
But some county magistrates were below the seventh rank, and they could not be underestimated...
Xiao Qing had already dispatched troops to escort officials to inspect and supervise the areas where these aristocratic families had personnel, to prevent any trouble.
But in the short term, they could not let down their guard!
If the Ouyang family, the Dugu family, and the He family in the capital were to restrain themselves in court, or even proactively show goodwill to Liang Xiao instead of continuing their opposition, there would be less resistance, and fewer opportunities for Liang Xiao to suppress them. Liang Xiao and Xiao Qing would not be able to deal with them quickly.
Everyone who understood the situation burst into laughter.
When had they ever seen the Ouyang family in such a sorry state?
Because of a bookshop business that they were unwilling to give up, it had become a black hole for money, and they had been dragged into a quagmire by Liang Xiao ever since.
Because they opposed Liang Xiao's bookshop, the Ouyang family's funds were all invested in acquiring Liang Xiao's books. This meant they had no capital left to deal with competitors in other industries.
The Gu family and other families had many family businesses that competed with each other.
Especially the Ouyang family, which had long monopolized the position of Minister of Revenue, and could skim off profits with a little thought. How much they had reaped was self-evident.
With the Ouyang family no longer competing, a portion of their industries was like a dragon released from its cage!
Liang Xiao chuckled, "It remains to be seen who can last until the end. I underestimated the Ouyang family's persistence with the bookshop!"
Unlike the harmonious atmosphere at the Liang mansion, the entire Ouyang family was enveloped in gloom and suffering.
The Ouyang family had been almost completely drained of all its cash by Liang Xiao, and had even ceded a large amount of land!
The Dugu family, the He family in the capital, and the Duanmu family had expressed their support for the Ouyang family, but the main force in the struggle against Liang Xiao was still the Ouyang family!
Ouyang Ji, Ouyang Ping, Ouyang Hong, and Ouyang Sheng, two pairs of fathers and sons, were all worried.
"Father, that beast Liang Xiao only prints the Four Books and Five Classics. Can we still hold on?" Ouyang Ping cried with a mournful face, looking utterly helpless.