Chapter 535: 483 Boss Ying is just an ordinary person [2 more] Chapter 535: 483 Boss Ying is just an ordinary person [2 more] Ji Yihang was still speaking to Ji Li, “Xiao Li, I said I could go by myself; you stay inside with your mother.”

“Dad, this is the Ancient Martial World,” Ji Li disagreed. “At least I know a bit of combat. You’re a delicate scholar. What would you do if something happened? There are so many guards on the second floor.”

Ji Yihang had no choice but to agree.

In reality, he was just going downstairs to retrieve a map of Judicial City.

The Ji Family’s guards did not recognize Ji Yihang and had not deliberately listened to the conversation between the two, roughly guessing that this father and daughter were likely outsiders invited by some family.

In the Ancient Martial World, the Ji Family was only considered a medium-sized clan; if you were to rank them, they wouldn’t even make the top thirty.

Therefore, the Ji Family was only allotted one private room, unlike other families who had four or five.

As for the top three families in the world of ancient martial arts, they could pick at will.

But Ji Yiyuan was acutely aware of who Ji Yihang was, and he could hardly believe his eyes, blurting out, “What are you doing here?!”

Hearing the familiar voice, Ji Yihang was taken aback, turned his head, and his expression cooled, “If you can be here, why can’t I?”

Ji Li peeked out from behind Ji Yihang, “We’re here because you’re really a ‘Divine Calculation’ master, aren’t you?”

Ji Yihang repeated every word that Ji Yiyuan had said to him before.

Ji Li was also curious – how did you know they could get an invitation from God Ying?

“No!” Ji Yiyuan was going mad, his eyes red and bloodshot, “You shouldn’t be here, how could you be here?!”

Even he could only sit downstairs, so why should Ji Yihang have a private room?

Ji Yihang ignored him and pulled Ji Li along, “Xiao Li, let’s go.”

Ji Yiyuan wanted to lunge at him but was stopped.

“I said, show respect to the people in the private rooms,” the guard frowned. “They are not holding it against you, so stop your nonsense. Do you want to make the Patriarch and the Matriarch of the House anxious?”

These words jolted Ji Yiyuan to his senses, and he had no choice but to follow the guard to pay respects to the Patriarch Ji in another private room.

“May I ask the Patriarch,” after serving the tea, Ji Yiyuan knelt down again, trembling, “Have you also been nurturing Ji Yihang?”

He should not have asked such a question because it was akin to questioning the Patriarch, challenging authority.

The Ji Family was not like the peaceful Lin Family, nor did they have the low profile of the Yue Family.

The Ji Family’s style was as fierce as the Xie Family’s. Had their strength been sufficient, they might have been even more ferocious than the Xie Family.

The Xie Family at least did not allow members of their family to slay each other, but the Ji Family did, without the need for formally issuing a life-and-death challenge.

But Ji Yiyuan just couldn’t accept it. He was very eager to know how Ji Yihang managed to get inside and even access the sole private room allocated to the Ji Family.

Sure enough, once he asked this question, the face of the Patriarch Ji darkened instantly.

A cold snort followed, and a formidable pressure suddenly manifested.

Ji Yiyuan’s body trembled uncontrollably under the pressure, feeling as though his bones were about to be crushed. In a panic, he begged for mercy, “Patriarch, spare my life, spare my life!”

“This humble one didn’t know his place and dared to utter such sentiments.”

As Ji Yiyuan said this, he felt even more aggrieved inside.

As a modern person, every time he came to the Ancient Martial World, he had to learn many ancient etiquette rules and ornate phrases.

Fortunately, Patriarch Ji did not pursue the matter further and simply waved his hand dismissively, “Take him away.”

After bowing with a fist, the guard, this time stern-faced, dragged Ji Yiyuan away.

After the door to the private room closed, the butler spoke up, “Patriarch, this Ji Yihang belongs to the same generation as Ji Yiyuan, but his merit is not high, and his rank in the branch family’s lab is only B.”

“Oh,” the Patriarch Ji lost interest upon hearing this.

There were already so many people in the Main House he needed to manage; he didn’t need to concern himself with these matters.

The butler clearly understood, “However, Wen Fengmian is his brother. He has just returned and has already entered the top fifty of the Merit List.”

Patriarch Ji was a bit puzzled, “Wen Fengmian?”

“Yes, the former Ji Fengmian,” explained the butler. “He faked his death and fled from the Ji Family, changing his surname. Now he has returned.”

“He dared to change his surname? Who gave him the right?” Patriarch Ji’s gaze sharpened, “Find a time to summon him under the guise of a meeting, and bring him to the Ancient Martial World.”

Outside the Ancient Martial World, ancient martial artists were reluctant to take action, but once inside, it was a different story.

Let Wen Fengmian disappear without a trace – the Ji Family specialized in such tactics.

A defector, no matter how strong, was unnecessary for the Ji Family.

The butler nodded in agreement.

**
To the right on the second floor, in front of the central private room’s door, hung a wooden plate labeled “Qingping Yue.”

Ying Zijin lit the incense burner inside and placed it beside Wen Fengmian.

The incense in the burner, developed by practitioners of Ancient Medicine, had calming effects and was very effective.

“Dad, the person you just mentioned–is she your,” Ying Zijin paused, “ex-wife?”

It didn’t seem right to call her his ex-wife.

Because in reality, Wen Fengmian had never been legally married to this woman.

They had been together in Qingshui County, where the local customs were outdated. Until the last century, people in the county would marry by paying respects to the heavens and the earth in front of both families, no ceremony needed.

No civil affairs office, not even a marriage certificate was required.

Wen Fengmian said indifferently, “It’s her, her name is An Roujin.”

So much time had passed, and he had also figured out Wen Tinglan’s thoughts.

No matter what, Ying Zijin was his daughter, and also Wen Tinglan’s elder sister.

Some things could be talked about now.

“At that time, you could say she saved my life,” Wen Fengmian coughed, “I escaped from a small island, my body severely ravaged by the DEATH poison fog, and it was by finding an abandoned fishing boat that I managed to get away.”

“After a lot of wandering, I ended up in Qingshui County. Although the conditions there were poor, the air quality was decent. I had left the Ji Family, but I still had my own assets, roughly adding up to three million.

“When I arrived in Qingshui County, I was very hungry. It was she who gave me a bowl of congee and said she would take care of me.”

Ying Zijin pressed Wen Fengmian’s hand, closed her eyes for a moment, and a mist seemed to pass over the corners of her eyes as she looked back at the past, “But Dad, you don’t know, she had actually been following you for a long time, always aware that you were the genius of the Ji Family, waiting for your return.”

An Roujin was not a Ji Family member after all and didn’t know the ways of the Ji Family.

She only knew that the Ji Family was influential in the imperial capital and also held a respectable status internationally.

So, she thought that once Wen Fengmian returned, he would have a lot of honors.

“Yes, I realized that,” Wen Fengmian smiled, his gaze distant, “Yaoyao, I’m not a saint. The experiment failed, and it caused so many innocent casualties. I was deeply affected and depressed for several years.”

“I initially asked her to leave, but she didn’t. Afterward–”
Wen Fengmian paused, not elaborating further, but simply said, “The child was born, and I couldn’t bear to see them suffer, so I gave her the money, and then… we had Yuyu.”

“You already know what happened next. Not long after Yuyu was born, she took all the money and left.”

He didn’t love An Roujin; he only felt gratitude toward her, so he didn’t fuss over the money.

But all the affection was exhausted the moment An Roujin acted against Wen Tinglan.

Ying Zijin leaned on her elbow, thinking, “Dad, your biological daughter?”

Wen Fengmian fell silent for a moment, “She didn’t take her away; she chose to go with her. I don’t know why she didn’t send the child back, but when she came back that time, she showed me photos, and the child was doing well.”

Ying Zijin didn’t ask any further, unusually earnest, “Dad, don’t worry, both Xiao Lan and I will always be here, and we won’t leave.”

“I was also at fault,” Wen Fengmian sighed lightly, “I really was useless at that time.”

“You’ve said it yourself, you’re not a saint,” Ying Zijin looked down, “It will get better from now on.”

She would protect her family.

**
Elsewhere.

An Roujin had been sitting in the private room for half an hour, feeling stuffy, so she went downstairs to take a walk.

When she went to the garden behind the restaurant, she ran into a young man.

The young man was holding his phone, watching something. Upon seeing her, he put it away and greeted her with a bow, “Good evening, madam.”

Seeing an ancient martial artist being so respectful to her satisfied a vain part of An Roujin immensely, and the frustration inside her dissipated instantly.

She recognized the young man as a member of the Ji Family.

An Roujin smiled, “Tian Hao, what are you looking at?”

“The auction was dull, so before coming here, I downloaded a few variety shows from the outside world.” Ji Tianhao was very respectful, handing his phone over to her.

On the phone screen was the logo for “Youth 202.”

It was the episode of the second performance, where Ying Zijin was supporting Yun Heyue.

The light shone on the girl’s face, revealing a breathtaking beauty.

The smile at the corner of An Roujin’s mouth froze instantly.

“Madam also finds her very beautiful, right?” Ji Tianhao noticed the change in An Roujin’s expression, “I didn’t expect that there would be such beautiful people outside.”

One of the reasons most ancient martial artists looked down on the outside world was because people nurtured by the feng shui of the Ancient Martial World, regardless of gender, were extremely attractive, and ordinary people could not compare at all.

“Yes, she is very beautiful.” An Roujin came back to her senses, “Have you taken a fancy to her?”

Ji Tianhao’s eyes narrowed slightly, “Madam?”

An Roujin picked up a handkerchief to cover her lips, coughing twice, “If you fancy her then act on it. She’s just an ordinary person, and you’re an ancient martial artist. Using some other methods wouldn’t be a big deal.”

What Wen Fengmian cared about, she had clearly understood over a decade ago.

To destroy one more, meant nothing.