Chapter 322: Sichuan and Shu Twists and Turns
November 23rd, early morning, Tang Clan meeting hall.

"boom!"

In the silent hall, Tang Yuan, with a gloomy face, slammed his palm heavily on the table, which immediately made a loud noise and made the people present tremble in their hearts.

"Bring them up!"

Following Tang Yuan's order, Tang Ji and Tang Xiu, who were tied up, walked tremblingly into the hall under the escort of four Tang Sect disciples, and knelt down in front of Tang Yuan with a plop.

At this time, Tang Ji and the other man both had disheveled hair, tattered clothes, and were covered in scars and blood, which surprised the other four homeowners sitting on both sides.

"Tang Yi!" Tang Yuan said coldly, "Tell them what day it is today?"

Hearing this, Tang Yi's expression changed slightly, and he looked at Tang Ji and Tang Xiu with complicated eyes, and said reluctantly: "Reporting to the chief steward, today is... November 23rd."

"Tang Ji, Tang Xiu." Tang Yuan asked without looking away, "Do you remember what day it is today?"

"us……"

"Today is the day you should give an explanation." Without waiting for Tang Ji to speak, Tang Yuan suddenly shouted, "On August 23, also at this place, I gave you three months to get to the bottom of the leak of 'Heavenly Maiden's Clothes'. Today, three months have passed, what have you found out?"

Tang Xiu said anxiously: "Reporting to the chief steward, we have indeed found out the person behind the scenes, it is Tang Xuan..."

"Where is Tang Xuan?" Tang Yuan interrupted ruthlessly, "Even if you say something fantastic, where is Tang Xuan? Where is the 'culprit' you mentioned?"

"We had already captured Tang Xuan, but on the way back..."

"But they were rescued by the Mongols on the way, right?" Before Tang Ji finished speaking, Tang Yuan sneered coldly, "I have heard you say this excuse more than a dozen times, but after all, you can't come up with any real evidence. How can you convince others?"

"Every word we say is true. If we tell even a single lie, we will be struck by lightning!" Tang Xiu swore hastily, "General Manager, please believe us..."

"Tang Xiu, you are the owner of the inner discipline room. Let me ask you, is there any rule in the Tang Clan's family law that can be used to shirk responsibility by empty words?"

"This..." Tang Xiu was speechless when Tang Yuan questioned him face to face.

"Right is right, wrong is wrong." Tang Yuan said in a deep voice, "Although you two are of high seniority in the Tang Sect, the rules of our ancestors cannot be broken. No matter who it is, as long as they make a mistake, they must be treated equally, with clear rewards and punishments. I don't want to listen to your meaningless excuses, and I don't want to see you crying and begging for mercy. Tang Sect disciples, you must be brave and responsible, and fearless of life and death! If you two can't give an explanation today, you will be punished according to the rules set three months ago."

Tang Yuan had a cold expression and a firm tone, and he would not allow anyone to doubt him at all.

As soon as these words were spoken, Tang Ji and Tang Xiu collapsed to the ground like deflated balls, while the other four homeowners all changed their expressions, knelt down on the ground at the same time, and pleaded with Tang Yuan together.

"A country has its own laws, and a family has its own rules." Tang Yuan said coldly, "If we cannot severely punish Tang Ji and Tang Xiu today, where is the dignity of the Tang family's ancestors? Where is the face of the Tang family in Shu?"

"General Manager, uncles Tang Ji and Tang Xiu have been diligent and hardworking throughout their lives, serving the public and being honest. They are loyal to the Tang Clan and have never had second thoughts. How can they be punished for the mistakes of others today?" Tang Yiyi bowed his hands and pleaded, "I believe in what the two uncles said. This matter must be caused by a villain, and it has nothing to do with them."

"That's right." Tang Ren agreed, "Everyone can see the character of the two elders. They will never fabricate and frame others in order to escape responsibility."

"Please think twice!" Tang Zhang advised, "Don't let your temper get you into trouble and fall into the villain's scheme to sow discord."

"Just a moment of anger?" Tang Yuan narrowed his eyes slightly, and asked with a half-smile, "You mean... I intentionally protected Tang Xuan and deliberately made things difficult for Tang Ji and Tang Xiu?"

"I have absolutely no such intention! I just said something inappropriate. I hope you will forgive me, General Manager!" Tang Zhang realized that he had said something inappropriate. He turned pale with fright and kowtowed to Tang Yuan in a hurry to apologize.

"Tang Xuan and I are brothers from the same mother, that's true." Tang Yuan ignored Tang Zhang's fear and said, "But the brotherhood between him and me has been severed since the day he betrayed the Tang Clan. In my heart, he no longer exists as my elder brother. Tang Xuan even regards me as a thorn in his side. To this day, I only have hatred for him, not gratitude. You all remember this, one day, I will kill Tang Xuan with my own hands and clean up the mess for the Tang Clan!"

"So, the steward is willing to believe what Tang Ji and Tang Xiu say?" Tang Yu hesitated.

"Belief is belief, and rules are rules." Tang Yuan said expressionlessly, "The reason why the Tang Sect has been able to stand firm in the martial arts world for a hundred years is because of rules, not emotions. Now, the Tang Sect's hidden weapon 'Heavenly Girl's Weaving Clothes' has been leaked. This matter has caused an uproar in the martial arts world and has attracted a lot of criticism for our Tang Sect, so it must not be left unresolved. Tang Ji, as the head of the hidden weapon room, is the first to bear the blame and should be punished. Tang Xiu, as the owner of the inner discipline room, has failed to supervise his duties, and his crime is also unforgivable. Come..."

"Manager Tang is wrong!"

Before Tang Yuan finished speaking, a hearty voice suddenly came from outside the hall. Then, Deng Quan strode into the meeting hall regardless of the Tang Sect disciples' obstruction.

Seeing this, the faces of the people in the hall all changed. A hint of anger emerged from between Tang Yuan's brows.

"Deng Quan?"

Tang Yuan first waved his hand to dismiss the gatekeepers, then suppressed his anger, stared at Deng Quan with a bad look, and asked quietly, "I think you came from afar, so I treat you as a guest and treat you with great courtesy. Have I been neglectful in the slightest during this period?" "What are you talking about, Steward Tang?" Deng Quan smiled and bowed, "The Tang Sect treated me with great consideration and care, so how could I be neglectful?"

"In that case, I have a question for you." Tang Yuan replied in a bad tone, "Since you know that I treat you well, why don't you follow the rules of our Tang Sect and barge into the meeting hall? It is said that the guest should follow the host's wishes, so why do you like to take the initiative and meddle in our family affairs?"

"What Steward Tang said is like a mountain pressing down on my head. The crime is so serious that it almost suffocates me." Deng Quan shook his head and said, "I would never dare to make trouble in the Tang Sect, let alone in front of Steward Tang. There are many heroes in the Tang Sect in Shu, and Steward Tang is even more famous. With your majesty, I am already trembling with fear. How dare I turn the tables?"

"Then why are you doing this today?" Tang Yuan frowned, his tone quite displeased.

"To be honest, I, Tang Ji and Tang Xiu, the two landlords, and I went through life and death together in Luoyang. Although I dare not claim to be friends in life and death, we do have some friendship." Deng Quan said, "Today, I see that they are about to suffer severe punishment, and I can't help but feel sad. That's why I dared to offend them and appeal to the chief steward Tang for them."

"Are you going to complain?" Tang Yuan was stunned and asked, "As Tang Sect disciples, they accepted their crimes and were punished according to Tang Sect's family rules. How is it wronged?"

"The person who made the mistake was obviously Tang Xuan, why should they be punished?" Deng Quan asked puzzledly, "Isn't Tang Xuan considered a disciple of the Tang Sect?"

"Even if Tang Xuan deserves to be cut into pieces, since the two of them failed to capture him, their words are just empty evidence and they can only accept the punishment." Tang Yuan said in a deep voice, "As the masters of the Hidden Weapon Room and the Inner Discipline Room, they should be implicated even if they did not make the mistake themselves. This is the rule of our Tang Sect, and outsiders are not allowed to interfere!"

"I dare not question the rules of the Tang Sect, but there is still one thing I don't understand. I would like to ask the chief steward Tang for advice." Deng Quan pretended to hesitate and said, "Since they, as the owners of the house, should be implicated, then as the chief steward of the Tang Sect... should you also be blamed?"

"Asshole!" Tang Zhang was furious and shouted, "This is the Tang Sect. How can we allow an outsider like you to point fingers at us? If you dare to talk nonsense again, I will cut off your tongue!"

"That's right!" Tang Ren threatened with a sinister look on his face, "Deng Quan, do you think this is the Xianwang Mansion? How dare you question the orders of the chief steward? Just for this one thing, according to the rules of the Tang Sect, you should be executed!"

"Master Deng, we miss you as a guest and cannot bear to expel you. Please leave on your own!" Tang Yi saw that the situation was not good, and hurriedly said, "Don't be so reckless and playful here. You will only bring trouble upon yourself."

"General Manager Tang, everyone, please calm down." Deng Quan bowed to Tang Yuan and said, "I am not deliberately making things difficult for you. I just want to say a fair word for the two owners Tang Ji and Tang Xiu. I have already told you everything that happened in Luoyang. You can doubt that Tang Ji and the other two have no evidence to prove their words, but can you doubt the sincerity of the Northern Xian King? Do you think that the Xian King's Mansion will collude with them to fabricate facts and prevaricate?"

"Deng Quan, these are our family affairs after all, you'd better not interfere." Tang Yu replied expressionlessly.

"Knowing that it was Longxiang Mountain and the Mongols who were behind this, you still insisted on punishing Tang Ji and Tang Xiu, causing one of them to die and the other to be injured, and they will never be able to serve the Tang Sect again in this life. The result can only make their loved ones sad and their enemies happy." Deng Quan ignored the cold eyes of the crowd and said stubbornly, "If the rules of the Tang Sect are so unreasonable and do not distinguish between right and wrong, then I will leave immediately and go back to report to the Palace Master that he has made a mistake. The Tang Sect in Shu is not a heroic group, but a group of ignorant rats who are self-pitying and are not worthy of being friends with the Northern Sage King. Goodbye!"

After saying this, Deng Quan pretended to be indignant and resolutely left with a wave of his sleeves.

"How dare you, Deng Quan, insult our Tang Sect. Do you think you can leave alive?"

Tang Yu shouted coldly, and dozens of Tang Sect disciples armed with swords and knives rushed in from outside the hall, surrounding Deng Quan in an instant.

"What? I hit you so hard that you got angry and wanted to kill me to silence me?" Deng Quan was imprisoned but showed no fear. He looked around with cold eyes and said contemptuously, "If that's the case, come on. I, Deng Quan, would rather die than escape!"

"Deng Quan, you have insulted our Tang Sect. Your crime is unforgivable. Today is the day you will die..."

"stop!"

Without waiting for Tang Yu to make a move, Tang Yuan, who hadn't said a word, suddenly shouted, "What are you doing?"

"Butler, Deng Quan..."

"Deng Quan is alone, but we mobilized a large army and used our numbers to bully the minority. If this matter were to be made public, wouldn't the Tang Sect be ridiculed by heroes all over the world?"

"Then I will fight him one-on-one, and life and death will be decided by fate..."

"Asshole! Can't you see that he is deliberately provoking me?" Tang Yuan glared at Tang Yu, then turned his gloomy gaze to Deng Quan and said faintly, "Deng Quan, I know what you are thinking, why you have come from afar, and why you want to save them. You don't have to put on airs in front of me. What exactly does Luo Tianjin want to do? You and I both know it very well."

"In that case, why don't Manager Tang..."

"Unfortunately, the opposite happened!" Tang Yuan did not give Deng Quan a chance to explain, and sneered, "You think that by showing favors to Tang Ji and Tang Xiu, you can win over the Tang Sect? Wrong! Very wrong! The grudges in the martial arts world are not children's play. The relationship between the Tang Sect and the Golden Sword Dock is not something that you can easily shake with a few tricks."

"But……"

"Deng Quan, I think you are a guest, so I won't make things difficult for you." Tang Yuan said quietly, "The Tang Clan has always been clear about gratitude and resentment, and gratitude and resentment must be repaid. In any case, the Xianwang Mansion once saved Tang Ji and Tang Xiu, which is considered a favor to the Tang family. Today, I will temporarily spare them both, just as a way to repay Luo Tianjin's favor. In the future, the Tang Clan and the Xianwang Mansion will owe each other nothing. Go back and tell Luo Tianjin that there is no need to waste his efforts, and you don't need to lobby me anymore. That's all I have to say, you can do whatever you want. Sorry I can't see you off!"

……

(End of this chapter)