Clan Rise: Starting as a Grandfather

Chapter 201: Chapter 195 Offspring of the Royal Family and Nobility

Yang Zhenshan ascended to the second floor, where the young girl led him to a private room by the window and then withdrew. Soon after, a female shopkeeper came in with tea.

Many merchants in An Yuan City were familiar with Master Yang, the garrison commander, for he often went out shopping.

Whether accompanying his wife, granddaughter, or his daughter’s daughter shopping, Yang Zhenshan had visited the majority of An Yuan City’s shops and was thus recognized by numerous merchants.

Of course, the shopkeeper of Jinxiu Workshop also recognized Yang Zhenshan.

“Does Master have any instructions?” The female shopkeeper served Yang Zhenshan tea with utmost respect and asked.

Yang Zhenshan smiled at the excited Yang Qingwan and said, “Lead my little granddaughter around, wrap up whatever she likes!”

As Jinxiu Workshop catered only to female clients, it was inappropriate for him, as a man, to wander around. It would be better to stay honestly in the private room.

Besides, he wasn’t too familiar with the items in Jinxiu Workshop to make a selection. It was better to let the shopkeeper accompany Yang Qingwan to choose.

Yang Wanqing was very interested in the exquisite embroidered items. Despite her lively and active nature, she was quite engrossed in needlework, such as embroidery. Though only six years old, her works were quite impressive.

“Grandpa, I’ll go first!”

Yang Qingwan informed Yang Zhenshan and then left the private room with the female shopkeeper. Meanwhile, Yang Zhenshan sat leisurely in the room, savoring his tea.

The tea at Jinxiu Workshop was top-quality Yunwu Spring Tea, specially purchased from Qizhou by Luo Shang.

It had a clear and slightly bitter taste upon drinking, but the aftertaste was sweet, mellow, and fragrant. Yang Zhenshan very much enjoyed the aftertaste of Yunwu Spring Tea.

He delicately savored the sweet aftertaste of Yunwu Spring Tea while his gaze casually surveyed the street outside the window.

An Yuan City had undergone considerable changes in just two years. Just by looking at this street, many differences could be observed, such as the intact bluestone pavement and the absence of beggars.

Most of these achievements could be attributed to Lin Shoude, but Yang Zhenshan also played a part in them.

As the military households became more prosperous, they impacted the economic boom of the entire An Yuan City.

Apart from the military households, Yang Zhenshan also provided many suggestions to Lin Shoude.

For instance, regarding the treatment of beggars, Yang Zhenshan proposed that Lin Shoude should gather the city’s beggars, allocate wasteland for the able-bodied to reclaim, and arrange for the elderly, weak, sick, and disabled to be settled in the nursing home, engaging them in light work such as basket-weaving or mat-making to earn some income.

As for the wandering youths, they were to be taken in by city merchants as apprentices, provided with food, under the supervision of the government office to prevent abuse.

Although these arrangements did not completely free the beggars from worry about food and clothing, it was better than having them beg around the city.

Of course, among the beggars, some lazy ones preferred to enjoy free food. For those able-bodied individuals who ate the seeds meant for planting and sold their farming tools, Yang Zhanshan suggested to Lin Shoude that they should be put through labor reformation.

Building roads and walls required a lot of manpower; such people could serve as free labor.

Initially, Lin Shoude only consulted Yang Zhenshan now and then, but as Yang Zhenshan provided more and more guidance, Lin Shoude habitually turned to Yang Zhenshan whenever he faced a problem. This led Yang Zhenshan to become somewhat irritated with Lin Shoude.

You are the Prefect, and I am the garrison commander. The governance of the people should be your official duty, yet you come to me for help every day. What, do you want me to become the Prefect?

Although Lin Shoude’s frequent consultations annoyed him, Yang Zhenshan was still quite pleased to see An Yuan City so thriving under Lin Shoude’s management.

As Yang Zhenshan looked out at the bustling street, a commotion suddenly erupted outside the private room.

“What this young master fancies, you dare not give?”

“Don’t believe me? I’ll smash this Jinxiu Workshop to pieces!”

An arrogant voice came from outside, and Yang Zhenshan’s eyebrow twitched.

Smash the Jinxiu Workshop?

Is there actually someone so bold in An Yuan City?

Everyone in An Yuan City knows how close the Luo family is to the Yang family, and that this Jinxiu Workshop is a place looked after by the garrison commander.

In the past two years, most of those who dared to cause trouble at Jinxiu Workshop or seek trouble with it have moved bricks at construction sites.

The clamor continued, seemingly about to actually smash the Jinxiu Workshop!

Yang Zhenshan stood up, walked out of the private room unhurriedly, arrived at the stair entrance, and looked down at the first-floor hall.

He saw the hall in disarray, with many attendants in blue short outfits smashing the fabrics and embroideries on the counters, while the customers of Jinxiu Workshop had long since fled, leaving only the female shop assistants hiding in the corners.

A young man in a purplish-red robe stood in the middle of the hall, arrogantly looking down at the shopkeeper of Jinxiu Workshop, and beside him was a girl about fourteen or fifteen, bright and charming, though her expression looked somewhat embarrassed.

The female shopkeeper of Jinxiu Workshop protected Yang Qingwan behind her, her cheeks swollen red, obviously having been hit.

As for Yang Qingwan, this girl glared at the young man with a face full of anger, shouting, “You scoundrel, dare to run amok in front of me? Chunhua, what are you stunned for, beat him up for me!”

Yang Zhenshan, who was about to walk downstairs, froze upon hearing this, and watched Yang Qingwan with the corners of his mouth twitching slightly.

My dear granddaughter, when did you learn to order servants to hit people?

Look at that posture, that demeanor, that language, it’s no different from the young man opposite, both have the air of a spoiled young master.

Chunhua is Ms. Wang’s head maidservant, who was only thirteen or fourteen years old when she came to the Yang family and is now the most helpful aide by Ms. Wang’s side.

But being helpful is not everything, don’t forget the servants of the Yang family are all trained in martial arts, and those who joined the Yang family two years ago are now martial artists, and Chunhua, as one of the earliest servants, her cultivation has even reached the Postnatal Realm.

So there is a reason Yang Qingwan asked Chunhua to take action, because she knows Chunhua is very formidable.

Meanwhile, Chunhua had not made a move. She and the shopkeeper protected Yang Qingwan behind them, warily watching the young man and his entourage.

“Miss!”

She gently patted Yang Qingwan’s shoulder.

Behind her were two other little maids, trembling and clutching at Yang Qingwan’s clothes, afraid that Yang Qingwan might rush forward.

These two maids were by Yang Qingwan’s side, one ten and the other eight years old, usually following her around.

“Where did this wild girl come from? Daring to scold this young master, do you know who I am!”

The young man glared at Yang Qingwan, looking ferocious and malevolent.

“Who are you?”

Yang Zhenshan descended the staircase and asked the young noble coolly.

The young man was slightly taken aback upon seeing Yang Zhenshan, perhaps not expecting someone to interfere at this moment.

“And who are you, daring to meddle in this young master’s business?”

“I am the Garrison Commander of An Yuan City!”

Yang Zhenshan approached the young noble, his expression placid: “And you are? A member of the royal family? Or perhaps nobility?”

There’s no such thing as a member of the royal family in An Yuan City.

Yang Zhenshan introduced himself, but the youth remained undaunted and sneered, “A mere Garrison Commander dares to be so insolent in front of this young master!”

“I am not of the royal family; I am the seventh son of the Marquis Jingyuan Mansion!”

Yang Zhenshan’s brow rose slightly.

Marquis Jingyuan!

Indeed, he was the scion of nobility!

No wonder he was so arrogant.

An Yuan City was but a small place, where a son of a marquis indeed had the right to be arrogant.

But what was someone from the Marquis Jingyuan Mansion doing here?

It seemed that no one from the Marquis Jingyuan Mansion held a post in Chongshan Town.

“Marquis Jingyuan!” Yang Zhenshan scrutinized the pair of youths before him.

The young man was dressed finely, with a jade pendant at his waist clearly not of common make, and his entourage were all martial artists, signifying an extraordinary background.

The girl, though beautiful, was dressed quite ordinarily in a simple white embroidered dress.

Feeling Yang Zhenshan’s gaze, the girl curtsied, “Ning Qing of the Earl Changping Mansion greets the Garrison Commander!”

Yang Zhenshan was stunned.

Earl Changping!

Damn, there truly was a member of the royal family here.

The Earl Changping Mansion belonged to Emperor Chengping’s in-laws, as it was the maternal family of the empress, who had passed away a decade prior. Unlike the Duke Shou Mansion, Earl Changping Mansion did not have a large family enterprise; hence among the nobility, Earl Changping was a peripheral figure with almost no influence besides his earldom.

But regardless, the Earl Changping Mansion was the maternal family of the late empress, and the current Earl Changping was the emperor’s father-in-law.

The young lady from Earl Changping Mansion before him was genuinely a member of the royal family.

Yang Zhenshan was puzzled; what was this member of the royal family doing in An Yuan City?

A son from the Marquis Jingyuan Mansion, a daughter from Earl Changping Mansion—what was their purpose in An Yuan City?

Just as Yang Zhenshan was wondering, the impatient young man beside him spoke again, “That Master Yang, since you’re here, do me a favor and smash this Jinxiu Workshop for me, and I’ll owe you one!”

“…”

Yang Zhenshan looked somewhat speechless at this spoiled young master.

“Guards!”

He couldn’t be bothered to argue with this idiotic fellow.

“Commander!”

Han Fei immediately entered from outside.

“Arrest them and take them to the construction site outside the city to move bricks!”

So what if he’s from the Marquis Jingyuan?

To put it bluntly, this is Chongshan Town, not the Capital City; in the Capital City, Yang Zhenshan would have to give some face to the Marquis Jingyuan Mansion, but here, the local commander has the last word!

If this young man were the son of the Marquis Changping, Yang Zhenshan wouldn’t hesitate to escort him politely to Chongshan Pass.

After all, Liang Chu, Marquis Changping, is the General of Chongshan Town, and Yang Zhenshan couldn’t afford to disregard Liang Chu’s dignity.

Hearing this, the young man became enraged, “How dare you!”

His entourage, who had been destroying property, now gathered around him, warily regarding the trusted aides flooding in.

Yang Zhenshan ignored the shouting youth, his gaze coldly sweeping over his entourage.

“What? You want to fight with the Garrison Commander in An Yuan City?”

The expressions of the entourage froze; fighting with Yang Zhenshan in An Yuan City was suicidal.

Perhaps Yang Zhenshan wouldn’t dare to harm their young master too severely, but he would certainly dare to kill them, the followers.

“Young Master!”

An older follower tugged at the young man’s sleeve.

The young man’s face turned crimson, and he glared at Yang Zhenshan with fiery eyes.

“You just wait!”

“Wait for nothing, take them away! If they resist, beat them to death!” Yang Zhenshan said, growing impatient.

He had no fondness for these privileged young nobles.

Not all noble scions were terrible—Zhao Yuan was also a noble scion, and at Chongshan Pass, there were many other noble youths who, like the sons and grandsons of Liang Chu, did not have a reputation for bullying and oppression.

So whether a noble scion is good or not often depends on whether their family instills strict discipline.