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Chapter 52
An old man's face, who was sitting in the rows of guest, turned ugly when he saw Xiao Yu directly go to his seat instead of greeting them. The old man was wearing a luxurious robe with gold threads embodied in it. It showed the wealth and status of the man.
However, Xiao Yu was invincible as he had conquered east and west of his territory. There were few people who he respected and naturally the guests weren't on that list.
Xiao Yu was the lord of the Lion town and respective territory. In short, he was the king of a small kingdom. The Sky Lion Dynasty was in decline and separate vassal territories already didn't depend on the dynasty. They ruled as they wished and Xiao Yu was such a person at this point in time. He didn't fear any invasion so he was full of himself. He was a self-sufficient lord who ruled in the northwest. He didn't need anyone's support as he was the most powerful man in the northwest. Why would he greet the person who has come as a guest to him?
"Who are these guests?" Xiao Yu already knew that the guests were from Wang family which fifth sister-in-law belonged to but deliberately asked the question.
His fifth sister-in-law's original name was Wang Seewen. (I have used Siwen in previous chapters but changing to Seewen so that the name sounds close to the original when you pronounce it in English. If you guys want Siwen back then lemme know)
Housekeeper Hong understood the meaning behind Xiao Yu's question. He pretended that he was unaware of Xiao Yu's intention: "Lord, the guests are relative of the fifth lady and have come to visit her because they haven't seen her for a long time and miss her."
Housekeeper Hong would normally call Xiao Yu, young master or master, in the absence of the outsiders. However, when other participated then he would give face to Xiao Yu and call him Lord.
Xiao Yu pretended as he continued to talk: "Oh, so they are from Wang family. I have recently been busy with cracking down bandit camps so haven't been able to meet them. I hope guests will forgive my rudeness. But since they belong to fifth sister-in-law's family then they are not counted as outsiders so I believe they won't blame my rudeness."
Xiao Yu's remark was neither overbearing nor humble. It had a bit of humility which was appropriate for the dignity of the Lord.
Housekeeper Hong praised Xiao Yu in his heart. He didn't think that Xiao Yu would be able to say such words. It showed that Xiao Yu had the demeanor of the Lord. He felt happy as the successor to the Xiao family wasn't a waste anymore.
In fact, Xiao Yu was just saying the phrases which he had seen in the movies. In the past, he had downloaded a lot of movies and TV dramas about emperors, history and so on. He had watched them day and night and remembered the phrases or words used by the actors.
"I have heard that young master of the Xiao family most of the time is busy at nights. He would not return back to his territory for few days sometimes. We confirmed the things we heard by seeing it today. Your reputation is well-deserved." The old man said in a polite manner but his intention was obvious. He didn't even lift his ass to stand up. In addition, he was referring to eating, drinking, gambling and all the debauchery that Xiao Yu was used to do but using polite words to cover the meanings.
A lot of people knew that Lion town got weaker in the recent years. Xiao Zhan Tian was a famous general of the Sky Lion Dynasty and his reputation was spread wide and far. It was the reason why he was able to get so many good daughters-in-law. Xiao Zhan Tian was the sole reason why other powers were concerned about status of the Lion town. However, after his death, most of the eyes didn't even take a glance at this north-western region. Additionally, Xiao Yu's reputation as a prodigal son was spread much farther than his father's heroic reputation. So most of the other powerhouses thought that the Lion town was finished but it was just matter of time when the winter ("fall", winter is a pun used by TL to refer to Game of Thrones) would come.
Other powerhouses of the continent weren't aware of the Xiao Yu's recent actions against the bandit camps and defeat of Carrie's army. They didn't even pay attention to this area anymore.
The first reason was that they didn't even think that this territory was worth their attention. The second reason was that Carrie's father went through many ways to make sure that the information about their defeat wasn't spread. The others only knew that Principality of David and Lion town had some conflict where soldiers faced each other. But all the information was vague.
As a result, Xiao Yu had done earth-shaking changes in the recent months but the other powerhouses thought that nothing had to change in here. They thought that it wouldn't take long before Xiao family gets into the pages of the history.
In addition, Wang family's territory was thousands of miles away from the Lion town. It was natural for them not to be aware of local politics of the areas. That was the reason why they looked down at Lion town and Xiao Yu.
Who would give tribute to the territory that was about to get destroyed? If Xiao Zhan Tian was still alive then his name was enough to put fear in hearts of others. But he had died and his son was involved in debauchery...
Xiao Yu wasn't a fool and could see what this old man was referring to. Xiao Yu's character was a bit different though. He saw that Wang family didn't care about him so he decided to let them think that he was so. First, he had to clean the northwest from bandits and establish a strong territory. Afterward, he would catch everyone by surprise. They were in troubled times so it was best to keep the trump cards behind the closed doors.
Housekeeper Hong and Captain Hui were angered by the attitude of the old man from Wang family. He didn't even get up to salute Xiao Yu. Who did he think he is? It's too much even if he was from Seewen's family!
Both of them wanted to make remarks but Xiao Yu stopped them by making eye gestures. Xiao Yu still didn't know the intention behind their visit.
Lion town didn't have any Noble guests in a long time. This visit from Wang family didn't seem to have a good meaning behind it.
Everyone would run to flatter you when you are rich and powerful. However, it would be reverse when you are weak and poor. Right now, Lion town had such a weak image in their eyes so they shouldn't have come with good intentions.
"I would like to know the reason why so many guests have come to visit. It isn't just to visit Lion town, is it?" Xiao Yu snorted.
He wasn't going to be polite if the other side kept being rude. Actually, he was still continuing to listen to them since he wanted to give face to his fifth sister-in-law. Otherwise, he would have already thrown out these rogue people.
Even if Xiao Yu offended them nothing would change. Wang family's territory was so far away from Lion town and there were lots of other territories in the middle. It was impossible to send troops to retaliate. What would Xiao Yu be afraid of?
Xiao Yu was just fearless at the moment.
The greatest force around him was Principality of Wei and David. However, none of them would be going to attack him. It was enough of break for Xiao Yu to establish his power and strength.
"We have come to visit 4th lady. Her mother is seriously ill and misses 4th lady. We want to take her back to visit her mother." Old man sipped from tea and said. (Xiao Yu's 5th sister-in-law is 4th daughter of Wang family. )
"So that's the case. If 5th sister-in-law's mother is seriously ill then she should take a trip back. But why so many people have come here instead of sending a messenger?" Xiao Yu knew that the words spoken by the old man were just an excuse and there were other reasons hidden behind which he may not be aware of.
Old Man Mo saw that Xiao Yu was sharp enough to see through the play. He secretly whispered: "We were told that the successor to the Xiao family is a prodigal son without any knowledge about anything. How come he is so sensitive?"
Housekeeper Mo pondered for a moment: "The reason this old man had come over is that the situation of the Lion town is very bad because of internal and external problems. Lord Xiao Zhan Tian has died so we fear take our 4th miss would be wrong in here. We want to take her back to live at her father's house for some time."
"Oh? How long is 'some time'?" Xiao Yu narrowed his eyes as a cold light flashed past.
In fact, housekeeper Mo had already made it clear that some time is going to be a long time. Wang family thought that the Lion town was in decline so food and clothing would be problem. Her husband has died too. Does she have to live in here anymore? They were planning to take her back to never return again.
Xiao Yu remembered peeping 4th and 5th sisters-in-law bath. He had heard 4th sister-in-law Suesha tell Seewen to go back to her homeland. Xiao Yu looked at the old man. He knew that they were planning to take back Seewen and remarry her to someone else.
Housekeeper Hong and Captain Hui stood up when they heard housekeeper Mo speak. However, they stayed silent as Xiao Yu hadn't spoken yet. Xiao Yu was a good ruler now so they didn't dare to speak before him.
Xiao Yu's other sisters-in-law also frowned when they heard housekeeper Mo's words. In fact, they had understood the Wang family's intentions since the beginning. However, speaking so boldly was humiliating the Xiao family.
Originally, Qiyin and others advised Seewen to go back to her family to have a better life. However. Xiao Yu had made a huge change in the Lion town. The territory was nothing like before so none of the other sisters-in-law were planning to persuade Seewen to go back.
It was one thing if Xiao Yu took the initiative to send Seewen back. However, it was another thing if they pushed her out.
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