Chapter 181: Chapter 179: Returning Home in Wealth and Honor

The trio’s carriage was low-key, entering Yellow Sand City without any fuss. However, to Qin Li’s surprise, a dense crowd of people was gathered at the city gates.

Even the coachman was startled. ’I didn’t see any motorcades for important figures behind us,’ he thought. ’Why are so many people here for a welcome party?’ 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦

Still, the coachman felt a certain thrill. From his perspective, it looked as if the large crowd in the distance, numbering in the hundreds, was there to welcome him!

Qin Li was also a bit puzzled. ’I only told Hu, Leng Yao, and Bu Yunyan that I was coming back,’ he wondered. ’How did so many people show up all of a sudden?’

Little did he know, while Hu, Leng Yao, and Bu Yunyan could conceal their identities in Cyan Dragon City, the shrewd families of Yellow Sand City had guessed who they were the moment they returned. Countless people had been secretly monitoring their every move. Today, they saw the trio quietly leave the city and wait outside the gates.

In the entire world, who else besides Qin Li could make these three wait for them?

And so, in no time at all, people flocked like a tide. More than ninety percent of Yellow Sand City’s most important figures had gathered at this very spot.

There really aren’t that many fools in this world. How could there be so many coincidences?

Especially since after using his Disguise Skill, Qin Li couldn’t even be bothered to change his name. What did that imply? It implied that he didn’t care about his identity at all! The so-called Disguise was merely to fool a small number of people and reduce some hassle; he never intended to deceive the people of Yellow Sand City!

He was bound to return sooner or later!

These were the exact words Fang Haonan had spoken to his father after returning from his unsuccessful search for Qin Li in the Imperial Capital!

The time when Qin Li was shining brilliantly in the Imperial Capital, his fame soaring, was also the most agonizing time for the Shangguan Family. The old Patriarch, Shangguan Tie, had flown into a rage and gone into complete seclusion, washing his hands of the family’s affairs. Meanwhile, the current Patriarch, Shangguan Buhui, was practically sick with regret.

Who could have imagined that a once-desolate illegitimate son would see his stock rise so dramatically in the blink of an eye? In fact, according to news from Princess Consort Shangguan in the palace, the Second Prince was able to ascend the throne precisely because Qin Li had personally killed the Crown Prince, Zhao Xinghe!

This was what you called an earth-shattering contribution!

For the New Emperor, Zhao Xinghai, if not for the fear of opposition to directly making Qin Li a Prince and the fact that Qin Li himself couldn’t care less about the title, he would have likely been made a Marquis long ago!

This news was sheer torture for the Shangguan Family. The person they had most wanted to curry favor with was dead. Their proud boast of producing ten Celestial Level masters in twenty years was now meaningless; in Qin Li’s eyes, they were utterly defenseless.

The man could defeat a genius young Martial Artist from the Mysterious Land and scare away two peerless experts of the Celestial Shattering Realm with his aura alone. How could a family like the Shangguans possibly dare to provoke him?

Although the Shangguan Family currently held a monopoly of power in Yellow Sand City, their influence was limited to this city alone!

But Qin Li had become Yellow Sand City’s eternal king!

This was fundamentally different from the weaker Mo Family! Mo Qianxiong was merely the city lord, an official of the Cyan Dragon Kingdom, but Qin Li was the master of this city!

It was no exaggeration to say that Yellow Sand City was now a kingdom within the Cyan Dragon Kingdom!

As long as the Shangguan Family wanted to continue surviving in Yellow Sand City, they had to repair their relationship with Qin Li. From now on, their very existence would depend on his whims.

For Shangguan Buhui and his son, who had once been so arrogant they thought they could touch the sky, this was worse than eating shit. But the intense pressure from the other branches of the family forced them to bow their heads and admit their disastrous mistake.

The reason was simple. The Shangguan Family had backed the Crown Prince. After Zhao Xinghai ascended the throne, he had moved with lightning speed to purge Zhao Xinghe’s faction, punishing, killing, and confiscating assets without mercy. The only reason the Shangguan Family was ignored—the only reason they were spared—was because Qin Li’s fiancée was a daughter of their family.

Princess Consort Shangguan had personally written a letter back home warning Shangguan Buhui not to anger Qin Li again, or else no one would be able to protect the Shangguan Family.

Among all the families in Yellow Sand City, the happiest was undoubtedly the Fang Family. The father and son duo, with stunning foresight, had predicted that Qin Li’s future achievements would be limitless and made an emotional investment in him ahead of time. They had even managed to get word of Fang Haonan’s search for him in Cyan Dragon City to Hu and the others, confident that Qin Li would eventually find out.

And their investment had paid off miraculously in less than three years. Now, even the Shangguan Family had begun to consciously or unconsciously yield to the Fang Family in their many overlapping business dealings.

This was a form of intangible power!

The Fang Family was on the rise; the Shangguan Family... was in decline.

Shangguan Xuanyu stood in the crowd, his face dark with fury. He couldn’t understand how that good-for-nothing Qin Li could have possibly reached such heights with a combat technique that had terrifying flaws. Moreover, the memory of those two vicious slaps still flashed before his eyes from time to time. Every time he thought of it, he was filled with a sense of shame. Gazing at the approaching carriage, Shangguan Xuanyu’s heart was a knot of complicated emotions.

There were certainly many others who felt the same way he did.

Who could have imagined it? A once-shameful illegitimate son of the Qin Family, cast out at his lowest point—how could a teenager possibly change his own destiny? Yet, in just over three short years, the boy everyone had seen as trash had suddenly become a hero of the entire Cyan Dragon Kingdom.

And now, his wealth and status were simply staggering.

"We respectfully welcome Duke Qin!"

"Welcome back to Yellow Sand City, Duke Qin!"

"Duke Qin’s return is a blessing for all the people of Yellow Sand City!"

"We respectfully welcome Duke Qin..."

"..."

Inside the carriage, Zhao Qianqian, who had been dozing on a soft couch, and a similarly drowsy Min’Er were both startled awake. Zhao Qianqian asked groggily, "Qin Li, is... is all this to welcome you?"

Qin Li nodded and gave a wry smile. "I suppose so."

The coachman had been lost in a pleasant daydream, imagining that this reception from obvious bigwigs was for him. The sudden shouts startled him, and he quickly brought the carriage to a halt. He craned his neck to look far behind him—there wasn’t a second carriage in sight!

How could he know that to welcome Qin Li, many of the more thoughtful families had long since sent people to clear the road and intercept any carriages behind his, redirecting them to another city gate? If this crowd of Yellow Sand City’s great figures and high-society nobles were to welcome some random, unimportant people, what face would they have left?

Hu, Bu Yunyan, Leng Yao, and Leng Ping, who had also arrived quietly, found themselves relegated to spectators, pushed to the back. The important figures, who usually carried themselves with steady gaits, wore fine clothes, and maintained stern expressions, were now like a crowd of rabid fans seeing their idol. Their faces beamed with the most brilliant smiles they could muster as they swarmed the carriage.

It was only then that the coachman realized the man he was transporting, along with the two women, was an incredibly important person. And judging by the form of address, he was a Duke!

’Heavens, a Duke has actually ridden in my carriage!’ the coachman roared inwardly. ’When I get back, I have to brag to everyone that I gave a ride to a Duke!’

He didn’t know that there was also a princess on his carriage... otherwise, it was uncertain if the poor man could withstand such a shock of happiness.

Qin Li opened the carriage door and saw the group of people standing at the very front. He had seen most of them at the Shangguan Family’s banquet back then. Although a long time had passed, Qin Li still remembered the expressions they had worn.

Shangguan Buhui and his son, standing right at the front, looked particularly awkward, as if they didn’t know what to do with their hands.

As the saying goes, attaining wealth and glory without returning to one’s hometown is like wearing finery to walk in the dark!

But to Qin Li, he had never truly cared for this kind of wealth and glory, nor had he ever imagined that he would one day appear before these people with such a commanding, king-like presence.

The vast majority of them were nothing but sycophants who flocked to power.

Qin Li had never had a good impression of such people. However, he caught sight of Fang Haonan standing quietly in the crowd and offered him a slight smile first.

Then, he sneered inwardly. He opened his mouth and, in a perfect Great Qi accent, said, "Hehe, my name is Qin Li. This is my first time visiting this place. Although the Emperor has enfeoffed this land to me, I never expected such a warm welcome from everyone. Thank you, thank you!"

Watching the dumbfounded, stunned crowd of Yellow Sand City’s elites, Fang Haonan almost burst out laughing. ’Qin Li is such a prankster,’ he thought. ’Even though his Disguise Skill is exquisite and his accent is that of a standard Great Qi noble, who here doesn’t know his real identity?’

But the man himself was pointedly refusing to admit it! What could they do?

The crowd was awkward for a moment, but they reacted instantly. ’This must be Duke Qin’s way of saying he doesn’t want anyone to bring up his past! You have to remember, the Duke used to be an illegitimate son...’

In an instant, all the important figures present filled in the blanks themselves, quickly arriving at what they believed was the most perfect explanation.

"Welcome to Yellow Sand City, Duke Qin!"

"We respectfully welcome Duke Qin to his fiefdom!"

In a flash, another wave of flattery washed over them. Some of the remarks left Zhao Qianqian and Min’Er, still inside the carriage, dumbfounded. They had seen ministers suck up to the emperor, but there was always a degree of subtlety and restraint. This group, however, was engaged in a naked display of goodwill and loyalty.

’Have they no shame?’ Zhao Qianqian wondered, genuinely puzzled.

’They’re so shameless!’ was Min’Er’s thought at that moment.

"I am Shangguan Buhui, Patriarch of Yellow Sand City’s Shangguan Family. Greetings, Duke Qin!" Shangguan Buhui’s mind raced. ’If Qin Li doesn’t want to admit his identity, that’s perfect. I can use this opportunity to test his attitude!’

"Oh? You... you’re the Patriarch of the Shangguan Family?"

Qin Li studied Shangguan Buhui with a curious expression for a long moment, making Shangguan Buhui’s skin crawl, before finally giving a cold smile. "This Duke has heard that there’s a person with the same name as me. I’ve also heard that your Shangguan Family was quite unfriendly to him. Therefore, this Duke... doesn’t have a very good impression of you either!"

(To be continued. If you want to know what happens next, please log in to www.qidian.com. More Chapters, support the author, and support legitimate reading!)