The news of Chen Ming’s return from seclusion quickly spread throughout the Chen Mansion. Chen Rui was the first to receive the news; while having breakfast, he put down his bowl and ran over.

"Second Uncle is back from seclusion!"

Five-year-old Chen Lirong shouted excitedly, jumping off the chair and following behind her father eagerly.

The nursemaid behind her was afraid she might fall, so she hurriedly chased after her, shouting, "Little ancestor, slow down."

Nine-year-old Chen Lide was stunned for a moment, then quickly shoveled the meat from his bowl into his mouth before chasing after them.

Once everyone had left, the Lady Wei suddenly realized what was happening, and excitedly started running toward Erlang’s courtyard, shouting, "Quick... Quick..."

"Madam, be careful."

Two maids quickly went over to support her.

...

"Brother."

Seeing his big brother running over, Chen Ming greeted him with a smile.

After not seeing him for three months, his brother’s beard had grown longer, and he seemed to have gained some weight, looking even more authoritative.

Chen Rui also observed his younger brother: his hair had grown longer, and there was a short stubble on his upper lip, but apart from that, there was no change.

He said nothing, just nodded.

"It was just a period of seclusion; it’s not a big deal."

Chen Ming asked, "Brother, while I was in seclusion, was everything okay at home?"

Chen Rui responded, "Everything’s fine."

"Second Uncle!"

At this moment, Chen Lirong rushed over, throwing herself into Chen Ming’s embrace, wrapping her arms around his neck. "You finally came out of seclusion."

Chen Ming picked up his little niece and kissed her cheek, "Haven’t seen you for months, you’ve grown chubbier."

"It tickles—"

The little girl giggled as his beard tickled her.

"Second Uncle!"

Chen Lide also came over, having swallowed the piece of meat in his mouth, now trying hard to appear calm and steady.

Chen Ming reached over to ruffle his hair, saying with relief, "You’ve grown taller."

Just then, his sister-in-law also arrived; she seemed much rounder, supported by two maids. Upon seeing him, her eyes turned red, "Erlang, you finally came out of seclusion."

Chen Ming was amused, "Sister-in-law, what’s this all about? I just went into seclusion."

Suddenly, Chen Lirong in his arms said loudly, "Mommy has a baby in her tummy, and she’s worried Second Uncle won’t get to see the baby being born..."

Chen Ming asked in surprise, "Is that true?"

Chen Rui nodded, "Yes, it’s been four months."

"That’s great news!"

Chen Ming was very happy.

In ancient times, the continuation of the family lineage was very important. The Chen Family was thriving more and more, and naturally, the more the next generation, the better. Even having ten or eight children wouldn’t be considered too many.

Since Chen Ming was reluctant to get married, his sister-in-law, Lady Wei, would have to work a bit harder to give birth to more children.

...

In less than two hours, Zhang Mingyu got the message and hurried over. The first question he asked when he saw Chen Ming was, "Did you break through to Five Grade?"

Chen Ming replied with a smile, "It’s not that easy."

Although he could break through any time now, the current situation in Qingfeng City was a bit chaotic, with a few troublemakers coming in; he decided to hold steady for now, not wanting to draw too much attention.

Moreover, he was planning to challenge all the Six Grade Martial Artists in Qingfeng City over the next few days and then reap the rewards.

Hearing his reply, Zhang Mingyu breathed a sigh of relief, "The main thing is your cultivation had progressed so quickly before, I thought..."

Just as they were sitting down, Gu Yuantao also arrived, glancing at Chen Ming and said, "You didn’t break through to Five Grade?"

Though phrased as a question, he used a tone of affirmation.

Chen Ming and Zhang Mingyu exchanged a glance and couldn’t help but laugh.

He laughed, "It’s not that easy, is it?"

Gu Yuantao didn’t know what they were laughing at and didn’t care; he simply said, "I want to spar with you again."

This was his real purpose in coming over.

Chen Ming said, "Sure, but let’s have some tea first."

He poured three cups of the freshly brewed tea and asked, "Where is Brother Weihao?"

"In seclusion." Gu Yuantao said, picking up the tea and taking a sip, suddenly narrowing his eyes and staring at the tea in the cup for a few seconds.

"He broke through to Six Grade?"

"Yes." Gu Yuantao took another sip before setting down the cup.

Chen Ming became a bit worried, "You left him alone in the Gu Family?"

Gu Yuantao replied, "One of his uncles came by; he’s Fourth Grade." He paused slightly and then asked, "Where did you get this tea?"

Chen Ming noticed he seemed very interested in the tea leaves, so he waved Chunxiang over and asked her, "Where did these tea leaves come from?"

Chunxiang replied, "They were given by Young Master Zhao."

Young Master Zhao, of course, referred to Zhao Xiyan, as she always dressed in men’s clothing whenever she visited, so she was always called Young Master Zhao.

Chen Ming asked Gu Yuantao, "Is there something wrong with these tea leaves?"

Gu Yuantao replied casually, "This is the Black Bone Spirit Tea, one of the Nine Great Spirit Teas, extremely rare, only produced overseas on Black Jade Island. It is a tribute item."

Zhang Mingyu, standing beside them, looked at the cup of tea in his hand with astonishment and exclaimed, "It’s the Black Bone Spirit Tea, worth its weight in gold! This is an exceedingly rare spiritual object that can enhance cultivation. Junior Brother, your friend actually gifted you such a precious item."

Chen Ming was also quite surprised, seeing Chunxiang beside him looking uneasy, he didn’t say much and waved her away.

He took a sip of the spirit tea in the cup; it was indeed sweet and refreshing, quickly generating a bit of coolness in his lower abdomen that merged into his True Qi, yet he almost couldn’t feel any growth in True Qi.

He smiled and said, "Such a good thing should naturally be shared with friends. If you like it, take some with you when you leave."

Zhang Mingyu hurriedly refused, "That won’t do, it’s too precious. We cannot accept such a gift without merit."

Just then, someone else arrived, it was Feng Siyuan, who shouted as soon as he entered the courtyard, "Chen Brother, you’re finally out of seclusion. You don’t know, several major events happened while you were in seclusion... Oh, you have guests here."

Chen Ming said, "Just in time, let me introduce you all."

...

After introducing them, Chen Ming asked, "I was just wondering, the one who founded the Dragon Tiger Sect, who is he?"

Feng Siyuan answered eagerly, "You’ve asked the right person. His surname is Pang, but he’s actually of Qin Family bloodline, an illegitimate child of one of Qin Family’s elders. The Qin Family has long coveted maritime profits, but for some reason, they’ve been afraid to set foot in Qingfeng City. This time, sending Pang Shaoxuan to establish a sect must have ill intentions."

Chen Ming was taken aback.

The Qin Family is one of the Three Great Families of Jiangzhou, now attempting to extend their reach into Qingfeng City, naturally causing the Seven Great Sea Merchants to become like a cat on hot bricks.

However, how did the Qin Family know that the taboo of Qingfeng City has been lifted?

Could it be that Elder Shang’s incident is related to the Qin Family?

In a top-tier family like the Qin Family, there must be First Grade or higher experts stationed. If anyone in Jiangzhou could threaten Elder Shang, the Qin Family must be included.

Chen Ming further asked, "What about the Red Sea Gang?"

Feng Siyuan replied, "Pan Chihai of the Red Sea Gang is an outer disciple of the Wushan Sect. Hehe, while he is an outer disciple, he practices one of the three Divine Skills of the Wushan Sect, the ’Nine Dragons Treading Sea.’ Who doesn’t know what’s going on?"

Chen Ming nodded. The Wushan Sect is one of Jiangzhou’s four major sects, a thousand-year-old sect.

These top-tier families and sects are sending people to Qingfeng City, clearly eyeing the giant profits of maritime trade and planning to get involved.

The Seven Great Sea Merchants will certainly not easily let go of their interests, and when the time comes, there will definitely be a fierce competition.

It is foreseeable that Qingfeng City will become increasingly chaotic.

Feng Siyuan continued, "While you were in seclusion, a hall master under Pan Chihai came to challenge you, clearly intending to establish dominance through you. Their sinister motive is to defeat the young talents of Qingfeng City and establish the invincible reputation of the Red Sea Gang."

Chen Ming laughed, "Then he picked the wrong person."

He changed his tone, "However, the Gang Leader of the Red Sea Gang is likely very protective. I don’t want to provoke him into action, better to avoid conflict by a margin."

"Would he dare?"

Feng Siyuan quickly said, "You can rest assured, our Seven Great Trading Firms will not allow them to break Jianghu rules and bully the weak."

Jianghu rules only have binding power when those major forces need them.

Now in Qingfeng City, the Seven Great Trading Firms obviously need to use Jianghu rules to restrain the Dragon Tiger Sect and the Red Sea Gang. To put it bluntly, it’s all a form of negotiation.

Chen Ming doesn’t mind being used as a chess piece as long as there are sufficient benefits. It depends on how much sincerity the Seven Great Trading Firms are willing to show.

He’s expressed this attitude, now just waiting for Feng Siyuan to return and discuss the outcome with his father.

...

After nightfall, the guests had left.

Chen Ming sat in the courtyard, sipping tea, watching the newly sprouted green leaves on the parasol tree, savoring this long-lost leisure.

"You haven’t broken through to Fifth Grade?"

A sudden voice interrupted the peaceful atmosphere.

Chen Ming didn’t turn around but smiled and asked back, "Does that disappoint you?"

Only to see Zhao Xiyan in white clothes, holding a fan, walking over from the courtyard gate, sitting across from him, eyeing him with a hint of perplexity, "Strange, I can’t quite see through your cultivation. What cultivation technique are you practicing?"

She couldn’t hold back her curiosity and asked the question.

Chen Ming didn’t hide it from her, "Have you heard of the Fiery Sun Divine Skill?"

Zhao Xiyan’s eyes first showed surprise, then realization, "So that’s the cultivation technique."

She didn’t ask how he obtained it; after pondering, she said, "This cultivation technique involves quite a bit of trouble, don’t tell anyone about it in the future. If someone asks, you can say I gave it to you."

Chen Ming poured her a cup of tea and said, "Thank you for the Black Bone Spirit Tea you sent, I like it very much."

Zhao Xiyan’s expression softened, her eyes flickering with joy, and she gently said, "Since you like it, I’ll bring you more once it’s finished."

He asked, "Why did you come back?"

"I heard my father captured the Blood Demon Sect’s members in one fell swoop, even catching the demon child. Thinking Qingfeng City shouldn’t be dangerous, I bid farewell to my grandmother and returned to the industry."

It meant that Zhao Shouchang didn’t ask her to return. She insisted on coming to Qingfeng City of her own accord.

Chen Ming didn’t say much, only silently refilled her tea cup.