Chaotic World Book-Chapter 468 - 455: Please Invite the Holy Daughter to Take a Seat
Chapter 468: Chapter 455: Please Invite the Holy Daughter to Take a Seat
Lei Ao had once publicly professed his love for Sisi on the streets, to which Sisi responded, "The rules of the Hundred Clans stand here, let’s see if you can defeat me first," and they fought right there on the street.
Although Lei Ao was acclaimed to be at the level of Eighth or Ninth Layer of the Mystical Gate, Sisi was more or less at the same standard. On the surface, they seemed evenly matched. However, when it came to the ingenuity of the moves, Lei Ao was simply no match for Sisi and was unequivocally defeated, ending up "looking for his teeth on the ground"—literally, as he actually got slapped and lost a tooth.
This incident was almost common knowledge in Xizhou Town, and Zhao Changhe had just arrived when Sisi told him about it.
Um, thinking back on it now, he wasn’t sure if Sisi was in a rush to explain this to avoid suspicion? Perhaps that wasn’t her intention, and one shouldn’t read too much into it...
In any case, this unexpected story provided Zhao Changhe with the solid foundation for solving the case, no matter how seamless the makeup on the face could be, or how one could find someone with a similar appearance to fake death, replacing a missing tooth was not something achievable with contemporary techniques.
If the Rejuvenation Technique was successful, one might grow a new tooth while alive, but once dead, it would indeed require a miracle.
This was undoubtedly the fake Lei Ao.
The atmosphere in the hall suddenly turned eerie, and Pan Wan and others began to smile ambiguously, watching how Lei Zhentang would respond.
No wonder. He really thought he could bring himself to kill his own son... Turns out he couldn’t.
Sisi frowned slightly, her expression not looking too good... sensing that Zhao Changhe’s public revelation put the Black Miao in a hostile position against her Spirit Clan seemed like drawing unending enmity. Sisi wasn’t particularly scared of the Black Miao, but she was unhappy that Zhao Changhe took such action without discussing with her first, as it would disrupt many of her subsequent arrangements.
Suddenly, she remembered the past.
She had done something similar to him, hadn’t she? Although the situations were different, they were somewhat similar in nature. No wonder he was so angry back then.
Sisi gave a wry smile, said nothing, and thought to herself that it might be time to retreat completely into the Secret Realm with her clan.
This would settle the scores with this adversary once and for all.
Amidst these varied thoughts, they heard Lei Zhentang slowly say, "Our clan indeed has a method for dental implants. We had already implanted a new tooth for Lei Ao a few days ago. What, does the protector of the Spirit Clan not believe us? Would you like us to knock out one of your teeth and try implanting one for you?"
Zhao Changhe smiled slightly, "Last night, I had a bout with the young master..."
Lei Zhentang narrowed his eyes.
So that was it. No wonder he was certain it was a fake before even checking the teeth... because the two had fought last night, and there might be some injuries on the body that only he would know of, which this corpse did not have.
Lei Zhentang’s hand subconsciously tightened around the armrest, ready to attack as soon as Zhao Changhe started to speak again.
Being a bit tougher to intimidate everyone might not be the worst strategy after all. After all, whatever excuse about a dead son was just that, an excuse. Those who should be united would have already done so, and for those like Pan Wan and Simeng who were not united, it might be better to just kill them all in one go, despite the severe repercussions.
However, Zhao Changhe just hinted at something, then stopped without further exposition about the injuries he might have left, instead saying, "Actually, whether this person is the young master or a substitute, the Xia people’s intent to kill the young master was true; after all, Qi Siyuan had personally confessed... His killing the wrong person does not change the essence of the matter."
Lei Zhentang was dumbfounded, how was he suddenly speaking up for him, and making such logical points? Also conveniently providing the idea of a "substitute" instead of one of his own deceptions... fгee𝑤ebɳoveɭ.cøm
Sisi also paused, looking thoughtfully at Zhao Changhe’s back.
He might have initially not thought much, only wanting to expose this mess, but as he spoke, he remembered that this would be detrimental to her clan, so he backed off...
And that was indeed the case.
Zhao Changhe initially wanted to reveal more, suspecting that it was Qi Siyuan who was truly bewitched, but everyone was only checking if the body was bewitched or falsely dead, and no one checked Qi Siyuan... But he held his tongue, as he recalled that speaking out would be extremely unfair to Sisi’s clan. That was very unreasonable.
It’s unknown whether this was Zhao Changhe’s usual proud self being willing to leave an obviously false case unresolved, instead opting to play along... As Sisi watched, she suddenly chuckled at herself mockingly.
Maybe she was overthinking it; when had he ever cared about this maid?
Then they heard Zhao Changhe say, "If we Hundred Clans were to rise against the Xia people’s tyranny, what would need to be done, and does the Clan Leader of Lei already have a plan?"
Lei Zhentang couldn’t grasp Zhao Changhe’s intent and cautiously said, "The course of action would be to form an Alliance Army, elect a leader to act as the Alliance Hierarch, and together purge the Xia influence from our lands while being united to face suppression from Shu County. Otherwise, fighting separately, once Zhai Muzhi’s massive army arrives, we would all be reduced to dust!"
Zhao Changhe smiled faintly, "So the Clan Leader of Lei is staging this... Oh, regardless of whether the young master is alive or dead, the Clan Leader of Lei had already decided long ago to become the Hierarch, hadn’t he?"
Lei Zhentang couldn’t admit to such a statement and had to say, "Where did that come from? I am merely gathering righteousness. As for who becomes the Hierarch, of course, that depends on everyone’s choice."
Immediately, a friendly clan leader shouted, "I nominate the Clan Leader of Lei! The Black Miao are indeed the clan of the former king, legitimate and just. Now, being the most powerful and with the Clan Leader being the strongest among us, who else but the Clan Leader of Lei could serve as the Hierarch?"
Then someone sneeringly said, "What, are you trying to restore the Black Miao Country?"
The crowd turned to the source of the voice, only to see a leader of the Miao in white robes sneering, "The tyranny of the Xia, how much better could the Black Miao be? It’s been less than a few decades, have you all forgotten what the Black Miao King used to do? You, you, and you..."
He pointed around, "Your ancestors were tied up and flayed alive as sacrifices, have you all forgotten that?"
Lei Zhentang coldly said, "Is your White Clan determined to be the lapdogs of the Xia?"
The White Clan, originally known as the White Miao, is a super clan in this region with great influence.
The leader of the White Clan sneered, "The people of Xia are no good, and neither are you Black Miao. Forming an alliance to resist Xia is fine with me, as long as you are not the Alliance Hierarch. Otherwise, it’s damn it all, let’s first have a fight!"
The Pan Wan Yi Clan is also a major clan here, and they did not show weakness to Lei Zhentang, coldly responding, "So, Clan Leader Lei, are you truly calling for a united resistance against the tyranny of the Xia people, or do you have other ambitions? It only depends on whether you want to be the Alliance Hierarch."
Lei Zhentang began to sneer.
Some of the tribes here had already been secretly subdued by him while most others were just small clans going with the flow. If he needed an excuse to take action, it was aimed at these widely dispersed smaller groups; otherwise, relying purely on suppression would not be sufficiently stable for future plans. Hence, if Zhao Changhe had exposed him earlier, resorting to a bloody suppression would have been a last resort.
However, at this moment, since he hadn’t been exposed and his "righteousness" remained intact, he was not afraid. He was mentally prepared for thorns like the White Clan and Yi Clan. By eliminating them on the spot, others would not hugely resist, and at this stage, a firm hand was necessary.
Just as he was about to make a move, that "Simeng" leisurely walked towards Qi Siyuan: "Let me check the poison..."
"Wait!" Lei Zhentang took a deep breath, "If Your Excellency has something to say, please speak directly."
"Nothing much. I was just thinking, we all talk about uniting to resist the people of Xia but end up fighting amongst ourselves; maybe even having a few battles first, what’s the point?"
Lei Zhentang said coldly, "Protector Simeng, do you have any opinions?"
Zhao Changhe said, "Why not choose five major clans to form a council and decide everything by voting?"
Lei Zhentang twitched his cheek, really not wanting to mess around like this.
But his hands were tied by this man; one moment the corpse shows no wounds, another moment checking whether Qi Siyuan was poisoned. If he got exposed, everything would crumble.
He flicked his finger stealthily, sending a hair-thin needle silently toward the ribs of Zhao Changhe.
Yet, Zhao Changhe, as if prepared, brushed it off lightly; the needle stuck onto his robe sleeve, inadvertently providing him with evidence.
It’s not the brains that are fearsome, it’s that the person with the brains is also a master.
Lei Zhentang stared intently at Zhao Changhe before saying, "Do the nobles all follow the Protector’s orders? Representing the Holy Daughter fully?"
Sisi, having understood the tricks here, beamed beautifully: "He represents me."
"Fine," Lei Zhentang finally said, "Do the White Clan and Yi Clan have any objections?"
The two Clan Leaders looked at each other, knowing that to rebut forcefully meant bloodshed on the spot. The proposal by this ’Simeng’ was the best bargain for everyone’s interest, so they both shook their heads: "That would be good."
Lei Zhentang secretly considered that with just these two clans, as long as they could secure the other three seats, their proposal would be pointless, and said: "Then let’s have the five clans represented on the council, and we can start the selection."
The hall became chaotic, everyone speaking all at once, a cacophony of voices.
Sisi leaned closer to Zhao Changhe, murmuring, "Based on the strength of each group, it’s very likely that the Black Miao, Yi Clan, White Clan, and Yi Clan will securely hold four seats. No matter what, they can’t escape this overall power ranking. There’s contention for the fifth seat... At least it’s hard here to find another force clearly surpassing the other clans. Since you proposed this council, you must have some plan for the fifth seat—who do you intend to give it to?"
Zhao Changhe whispered back, "Aren’t you contesting it?"
"Me?" Sisi looked curious, "My clan has only a few hundred people here."
"Then which other clan do you fear?"
"Besides these four, not really any."
"Then why not contest it?" Zhao Changhe whispered, "I was negligent earlier, spoke too hastily and put you in a difficult spot; I’m truly sorry... I owe you compensation..."
Sisi stared at him intently.
Zhao Changhe continued, "How about I fight for a seat for you... In the future, when your Spirit Clan needs to come forth massively, this will be your base."
Sisi paused for a long while: "How do we contest it?"
Right then, Lei Zhentang also asked, "Protector Simeng, everyone is selecting their favorites, why don’t you promote a suitable clan?"
Zhao Changhe promptly said, "No nepotism here; I nominate my Spirit Clan for the fifth seat."
The room fell silent again, looking at Zhao Changhe as if witnessing a miracle.
Zhao Changhe, unperturbed, stated lightly, "I believe someone just mentioned that Clan Leader Lei’s strength is unmatched... This indicates that everyone not only recognizes the overall strength of the clans but also respects the powerful, right?"
Lei Zhentang smiled, "Not bad, what’s your proposal?"
"Simple!" Zhao Changhe drew his longsword, "Whomever defeats me, please take the fifth seat; if no one can, then please invite our Clan’s Holy Daughter to join the council."
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