Later on, the Qiao family's ancestral house became a memorial and a place to worship their ancestors.
But in reality, the Qiao family's ancestral house hid a huge secret of their family.
This secret had been passed down for more than a hundred years, at least four generations of the Qiao family. The Qiao family's patriarch, who left behind this secret, had also left behind ancestral teachings that the Qiao family would remember for generations.
However, only the patriarch of the Qiao family knew what this secret was, and it had been passed down by word of mouth over the past few generations. No one other than the patriarch was allowed to know.
Of course, knowing the secret and knowing what it was were two different things. Therefore, all the core members of the Qiao Family knew that there was a secret in the Patriarch's house, and only the family head, Qiao Feigong, knew the details.
The thief had gone straight for the Qiao family's ancestral house. Fortunately, the pet beasts guarding the house noticed him and prevented the thief from getting away.
However, the thief was a savage one. Not only did he injure many members of the Qiao family and pet beasts, but he also left behind a message before he left.
"I know you don't have the guts to report this to the authorities. So if you know what's good for you, hand over what's in your ancestral house in five days. Otherwise, your Qiao family will be exterminated."
Having said that, he left.
These words came out of nowhere and most people probably wouldn't understand what was going on.
But when Qiao Feigong mulled it over, he broke out in cold sweat.
Others might not know what was going on, but he did.
When someone suggested reporting this to the authorities, Qiao Feigong stopped him.
Just as the thief said, the Qiao family couldn't report this to the authorities because there were other secrets involved. After all, the Jade Dragon Kingdom's city lords wielded great power and their positions were hereditary. It was the same for Reed City's city lord.
The previous city lord of Reed City somehow heard about the Qiao family's secret treasure, so decades ago, he paid them a visit to take a look. Back then, it was Qiao Feigong's father who managed to fool the city lord with a few words. Later on, rumors spread that the Qiao family had a secret treasure and that the Qiao family controlled the largest medicine shop in Reed City. One version of the rumor was that the Qiao family had a miraculous medicine that could heal the dead.
At first, no one paid attention to these rumors and they slowly faded away.
Who knew that something would happen later on.
At that time, the wife of the City Lord of Reed City had suddenly fallen gravely ill. The City Lord of Reed City heard the rumors and came to the Qiao family again.
At that time, the City Lord had pleaded in every possible way, saying that if the Qiao Family really had a family heirloom and immortal medicine, could it save his wife's life?
Of course, the Qiao family didn't and denied it.
However, the City Lord of Reed City was extremely anxious at the time, so he asked the Qiao family if they had any family heirlooms.
At that time, Qiao Feigong's father had misgivings about the ancestral teachings. Secondly, he knew that the Qiao family's secret treasure was not a miraculous elixir. Therefore, in order to dispel the thoughts of the castellan at that time, he lied and said he did not have it.
As a result, the city lord of Reed City returned in disappointment. Not long after, his wife passed away due to illness.
The current city lord of Reed City was his son, and the one who died of illness was the current city lord's mother. That was why the Qiao family could not be reported to the authorities.
Or was he afraid of stirring up trouble?
At that time, when their lie was exposed, how could the current City Lord let their Qiao Family off so easily?
That was the pain of losing his mother.
That was why Qiao Feigong was worried. He wanted to settle the matter in private, and that was the only way to settle it. That was why he had been recruiting guest officials these days. He was worried that the Qiao family was not strong enough. If the thief came again, they would have a way to deal with him.
Even so, Qiao Feigong was still anxious these days. He had a feeling that the matter would not be resolved so easily, which was why he was frowning so much.
Behind him, his son, Qiao Xing, was at the prime of his youth. When he saw his father frowning, he said, "Father, the Qiao family has been prosperous for five generations. What haven't we seen? Back then, my great-grandfather even killed a group of mountain bandits. He single-handedly killed more than thirty experts. Everyone in Reed City knows of the Qiao family, and no one dares to provoke us. I may not be talented, but if that thief comes again, I will definitely be able to kill him. I will show him that the Qiao family is not to be trifled with. "
The young members of the Qiao family were also eager to give it a try. They looked like newborn calves that were not afraid of tigers.
"It's not that simple." Before Qiao Feigong could speak, his second uncle spoke up.
According to seniority, Qiao Xing had to address him as second grandfather.
Qiao Feigong nodded. "Xing'er, your second grandfather is right. This matter is definitely not that simple. The fact that the thief was able to locate the Qiao family's ancestral home so quickly shows that he is not a simple person. Moreover …"
Qiao Feigong did not finish his sentence. There were some things that no one else in the Qiao family knew except for him.
For example, the small grudge between his father and the previous City Lord of Reed City.
The thief's insistence that the Qiao family did not dare to report the matter to the authorities and borrow their power to resolve the matter was enough to explain everything.
That was what worried him the most.
The thief must have come prepared.
Moreover, the thief was definitely not fighting alone. Since he had given them a deadline of five days, he must have a backup plan. Qiao Feigong was the head of the family after all, so he had at least this much experience and insight.
However, Qiao Feigong was not a timid person. While he was worried, he had no intention of giving in.
What a joke. Asking the Qiao family to hand over their family heirloom just because of a few words from the thief was a joke. No matter how bad Qiao Feigong was, he would never do something like that.
In fact, Qiao Feigong already had a plan in mind.
Although the Qiao family had not continued to expand over the years, they had been able to consolidate their territory and influence. Not only did they have many friends in Reed City, but they also had backers in other places.
In the royal city, the Qiao family had a close relationship with a high-ranking official in the imperial court. Every year, they would send some rare herbs over to build a good relationship.
However, in order to deal with the possible arrival of a powerful enemy, the Qiao family had entrusted Reed City's Ji'an Escort Agency to escort the herbs to the royal city.
Ji'an Escort Agency was a long-established agency in Reed City. When Qiao Feigong's father was still alive, he had a good relationship with Ji'an Escort Agency and they were trustworthy.
Just then, someone came in to report that Escort Zhang from Ji'an Escort Agency was requesting an audience.
"Huh?" Qiao Feigong was taken aback.
Under normal circumstances, Escort Zhang and the others should be on their way to the royal city. Why would they be here to request an audience?
"Are you sure?" Qiao Feigong asked the servant with a frown. The latter quickly replied, "Master, what are you talking about? I've seen Escort Zhang many times. There's no way I'm mistaken."
"Go get him." Qiao Feigong immediately led his men to the guest hall. When they arrived, Escort Zhang was already waiting inside. When he saw Qiao Feigong, he immediately stood up and greeted, "Greetings, Master Qiao!"
"Escort Zhang, why are you back?" Qiao Feigong was puzzled, so he asked directly.
As he asked, he noticed that Escort Zhang looked well, especially the docked-tail mountain lion beside him. It had an inexplicably powerful aura.
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