Chapter 845: Burning Down Tonglu to Ashes
The commotion at the ancestral hall, along with the events unfolding in the shops and courtyards within and outside Wenshui City, were reported one by one to the old residence.
The person responsible for delivering these reports was the old residence’s steward. He spoke quickly but with clear articulation, ensuring everyone in the room could understand.
In this room, besides Old Madam Tang and Chen Changsheng, there were also Zhexiu and Nanke. They, too, had come to tell stories, having just finished recounting the tale of the Snow Ridge and that stone mountain.
“The three people he first called into the ancestral hall seemed ordinary on the surface, but in truth, they were the Second Master’s most trusted pillars,” Old Madam Tang said to Chen Changsheng, like a storyteller at a teahouse. “I never expected that after my grandson was confined for three years, he still had people passing him messages, and with such sharp eyes. His methods are also quite clean—first blindfolding the Second Master’s eyes, ears, and mouth, then scattering his forces with the speed of thunder. But in the end, it’s still too conventional.”
Chen Changsheng didn’t know what to say. He wasn’t very familiar with such matters, let alone skilled at them.
Not long after, the old residence’s steward came to the door again and recounted what had happened at the ancestral hall.
“You say he’s doing what? Playing cards in the ancestral hall?” Old Madam Tang’s eyes narrowed slightly, revealing neither joy nor anger.
After a moment of silence, he suddenly smiled at Chen Changsheng and said, “Your Holiness the Pope, would you be interested in playing a few rounds with me?”
Chen Changsheng had no interest in playing cards; he didn’t even know the rules.
However, for someone who had thoroughly studied the Daoist scriptures since childhood and possessed a sharp mind, learning it required very little time—at least not more than an hour.
Playing cards required four people, so Nanke and Zhexiu also sat down.
Zhexiu had to learn on the spot, and while Nanke had played with a few sisters in the Snow Old City, she wasn’t skilled either.
Thus, the card game naturally proceeded at a very slow pace.
As they shuffled and arranged the tiles, news from the ancestral hall and Wenshui City kept streaming into the old residence, arriving right beside the card table.
“The eldest young master sent the Maple Group to the Bamboo Garden.”
“The Cloud Group went to the Quiet Residence and reportedly found several maps.”
“The River Hall went to Hefei, but the accounts the eldest young master wanted were never found. There were scorch marks in the snow behind the house.”
In the wind and snow of Wenshui City, there were two card tables.
One was in the ancestral hall, the other in the old residence.
In truth, today’s game was being played by two people.
Tang Thirty-Six and the Second Master of the Tang family, who wasn’t even at the table.
As more and more reports came in, Old Madam Tang’s pace of playing cards grew slower and slower, and the expression on his face became increasingly complex.
There was relief, regret, vigilance, unease, and a hint of resolve that was rarely seen.
At some unknown moment, a gaunt old man in a gray robe appeared outside the door, making no sound at all.
The gaunt old man wore a calm expression, looking like a retired official who had withdrawn from worldly affairs.
But Zhexiu and Nanke both sensed an intense danger. Even though Old Madam Tang sat at the head of the card table, they still prepared to transform.
The King of Linghai and Anlin, ignoring the objections of the Tang family’s old residence staff, forced their way into the small courtyard outside the room.
Because they, too, sensed extreme danger.
With so many powerful figures present, not one had noticed when this gaunt old man appeared or how he had silently entered the old residence.
The King of Linghai looked at the gaunt old man’s profile and felt a flicker of recognition, as if he had seen him somewhere before, but couldn’t recall where.
Even Old Madam Tang showed surprise at the gaunt old man’s appearance.
“With the snow so heavy, why did you come? Isn’t your rheumatism bothering you?”
The gaunt old man shook his head to indicate it was fine but didn’t speak—either he couldn’t speak or he was sparing with his words.
The old residence’s steward glanced uneasily at the gaunt old man, wiping cold sweat from his forehead as he stammered, “The eldest young master wants to use the Punishment Hall.”
Hearing this, Old Madam Tang fell silent for a moment and withdrew the card he had been about to play.
“Let him use it. For one hour, as long as he doesn’t burn down the ancestral hall, he can do whatever he wants.”
The old residence’s steward trembled, clearly not expecting Old Madam Tang to actually agree to Tang Thirty-Six’s request.
Chen Changsheng glanced at the King of Linghai outside the door, wanting to know what the Punishment Hall was. The King of Linghai gave an almost imperceptible shake of his head, indicating that the Li Palace had no intelligence on it.
The gaunt old man bowed to Old Madam Tang, then nodded at Chen Changsheng before leaving the old residence, never uttering a single word from start to finish.
The card game in the ancestral hall was presumably still ongoing, and the one in the old residence resumed as well. Just as Old Madam Tang won the first round, the steward came again.
This time, the sweat on his forehead was even heavier, and his voice trembled more.
“The eldest young master… wants to use the Five Kinds of People.”
An unusual silence fell over the surroundings of the old residence.
Old Madam Tang’s expression shifted slightly. He slammed a card heavily onto the table and roared, “Is he really planning to tear down the ancestral hall!”
The steward hadn’t seen the old master this furious in many years.
As for Chen Changsheng and the others, they had never witnessed such a thing. Surprised and even more curious, they wondered what the strange name “Five Kinds of People” meant.
Old Madam Tang’s anger gradually subsided, and his eyes grew deep as he said, “Let him use them.”
Not long after, the steward came to the door once more. This time, his clothes were completely soaked through with sweat.
“Tonglu… Tonglu has been burned clean. The eldest young master ordered the Fat Son-in-Law to personally set the fire.”
“Tonglu was the Second Master’s favorite study. Inside were many paintings and calligraphy pieces he had bought with his private funds over the years,” Old Madam Tang said to Chen Changsheng.
Strangely, this time, when Tang Thirty-Six directly ordered the burning of the Second Master’s study, the old master’s reaction was very calm.
Clearly, in his view, this act by Tang Thirty-Six—which might have escalated the conflict and ignited the Second Branch’s anger—was far less significant than the Punishment Hall and the Five Kinds of People.
Soon after, another piece of news came from the ancestral hall.
This one seemed trivial, or more precisely, it was just a minor matter.
The steward said, “The eldest young master said his stomach wasn’t feeling too well, so he sent someone to the Rooster’s Cry Nunnery outside the city to bring back a table of vegetarian dishes.”
Hearing this, Old Madam Tang’s fingers, which were reaching for a card, trembled slightly. Then, as if lost in thought, he fell silent for a long time.
Finally, he pushed over the cards in front of him and said to Chen Changsheng, “No more playing.”
The card game in the old residence ended there. When the one at the ancestral hall would end was anyone’s guess.
Chen Changsheng suddenly understood something.
It turned out this wasn’t a game between Tang Thirty-Six and the Second Master of the Tang family, but between Tang Thirty-Six and Old Madam Tang.
Through the events that had just occurred, Tang Thirty-Six had proven that he knew all the cards in the old master’s hand—and that he could play them exceptionally well.
For instance, the Punishment Hall and the Five Kinds of People.
But what was the deal with the vegetarian dishes from the Rooster’s Cry Nunnery?