Big Data Cultivation

Chapter 255: Chapter 255: No Ordinary Princely Heir

The word “conscription” is understood by everyone; in general, it means the government requisitions private belongings for public use on a temporary basis.

But how significant is this public affair? Who issued the order? And who exactly should be the object of conscription? There are too many considerations involved.

Take a simple example: when the Prefectural Governor’s office conscripts soldiers, they definitely don’t have the nerve to harass the Prince’s Mansion.

Feng Jun’s response was just the same: I’m not interested in knowing who wants to conscript my courtyard. I just want to ask you one thing—do you know who I am?

But even with just this question, it was enough to put the County Soldiers between a rock and a hard place—they truly were unsure of the person’s identity.

However, judging from the way this person dared to injure one’s own people in front of the Iron Guards and even kill military horses, one could tell this person was definitely not ordinary—they were either insane or had a very substantial background.

Did this person seem like a lunatic? Not particularly, so the County Soldiers then looked towards the Iron Guards for help.

The Iron Guard didn’t want to interfere with this messy situation. In fact, he was responsible to the Imperial Guard and the Imperial Family. Even the person he was currently guarding couldn’t earn his complete loyalty—he could lay down his life for them but would never heed their reckless orders.

But since the other party had injured his own people right in front of him, he couldn’t just overlook it. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be living up to the Iron Guard’s attire.

So he snorted coldly, “So, you think you can blatantly injure a captain who is carrying out his mission?”

Wounding a soldier is not a grave crime. However, a soldier on a military assignment is protected by the Imperial Court and the military—as guards are considered sacred and inviolable.

“Who let him strike my people first?” Feng Jun responded lazily. “Coming to my house, injuring my people. I didn’t kill him; that’s already giving you face… Now scram.”

The Iron Guard’s mouth twitched, and he turned his horse’s head without hesitation, twisting his body to leave.

It wasn’t a matter of losing face; staying in place without any solution would make people look down on him even more.

Seeing them leave, Feng Jun put away his musket and jumped down from a tree with a cold smile, “Trouble comes calling, eh? Lao Tian, go check on your family’s disciples and see how bad their injuries are…”

The Tian Family Disciples suffered serious injuries; he was only a High-Rank Martial Warrior, while the attacker was an early-stage martial master. Thankfully, the steel whip wasn’t made purely of steel but mixed with cow tendons, human hair, and the like, making it tough, light, and elastic.

So he had only his shoulder blade and two ribs broken, with some blood in his lungs.

Of course, these injuries were serious and required timely medical treatment and top-quality medicinal herbs, otherwise, his foundation would be greatly damaged.

Compared to him, the Prefectural Soldier Captain shot by the bullet through his shoulder was not that severely injured—as long as his tendons weren’t hit, recovery wouldn’t be too slow.

The most crucial thing was, a Martial Artist who had lost an arm could possibly still reach the level of an Innate Expert. However, if the internal organs are injured leading to significant foundational damage, then the prospect of becoming an Innate Expert is absolutely out of reach.

The Tian Family was not short of medical herbs, but it couldn’t be assumed that because of this battle, the side at the small courtyard had gained much advantage.

In the actions of the other party, Feng Jun sensed a familiar scent: This is them… tentatively probing again?

He found that people in this realm really liked to play this hand, and he truly detested such tactics.

Maybe… is it because the information flow is not fluent enough? At least, such things happen less often in the Earth Realm.

After the vanguard troops left, there was still the issue of finding a place to stay.

However, after seeing the houses and courtyard walls built from Jade, all other houses just seemed extremely crude in comparison—he couldn’t bring himself to consider them. Even though talc wasn’t valuable, it was still much prettier and more valuable than brick and stone.

It just so happened that there was an area where Jade houses were being constructed; those were the Yu Family’s people wanting to take up residence here.

Of course, originally, they didn’t need to build such nice houses. However, the second young master of the Yu Family, for some reason, insisted on doing so. The rest of the Yu Family just went along with it, thinking that Jade was plentiful here.

The people who came to conscript found that the house was only laid with a foundation and weren’t interested in asking further questions.

At noon, a large troop arrived with fifty County Soldiers and a total of five Iron Guards—not a small number either.

It appeared that the people knew that conscripting the house was ineffective, but they didn’t come to trouble Feng Jun either and instead set up camp about two miles away from him.

Although living in tents was definitely not as comfortable as living in houses, Tian Yangni dared not underestimate the opposition and quietly came to find Feng Jun.

He looked terrified, “This is bad, the standards at the camp, they belong to the house of a duke or marquis, and they also have bright yellow tassels on the corners.”

Bright yellow is a color exclusively used by the Imperial Family; its use by others would be considered presumptuous, and if reported, even losing one’s entire fortune would be considered getting off lightly.

A craftsman with the surname Lu once made a screen for the Yu Family, and he used bright yellow for the base. The Yu Family immediately changed the color.

At that time, Yu Zhengqing thought it was an unintentional mistake and didn’t suspect much—after all, bright yellow is also used by civilians. If no one reports it, it isn’t considered a big deal.

It was only until recently, when an enemy was exposed, that Yu Zhengqing realized it was a trap set for the Yu Family.

No matter what, the act of boldly displaying bright yellow on the corners of an outdoor item like a tent points unmistakably to Imperial connections.

Tian Yangni’s worries were quite normal—after all, a visit from imperial relatives was no minor occurrence.

The bottom card shown by this group of people had caused the surrounding villagers to be terrified; that evening’s night market saw a significant decrease in foot traffic, with only about seventy percent of the usual crowd, half of whom had come to gawk at the nobles.

But this was a matter for later. As the visitors pitched their tents, more than ten people made their way toward Feng Jun’s courtyard.

Upon hearing the news, Tian Yangni immediately led several Tian Family disciples to meet them—it was time for him to stand on his own.

However, when he saw one of them, he was momentarily stunned, then he bowed respectfully, “Lord Beiyuan, I greet you.”

Lord Beiyuan was somewhat fat, with a square face, big ears, and a long beard, exuding an air of authortiy that clearly indicated his extraordinary status.

At the moment, he was not standing in the middle, but rather off to the side, speaking in a low voice with a young man in his late twenties.

The young man was also extraordinarily dignified, but his face was a bit pale and his stance somewhat unstable. Although he had the cultivation level of a junior martial master, it was clear at a glance that he was the type of wastrel who had drained his vitality through indulgence in wine and women.

Since Lord Beiyuan was related to the Tian Family by marriage, he naturally recognized Tian Yangni. He nodded slightly, expressionless, “Yang Ni, go announce that the Yongyi Duke’s princely heir has come to visit, and tell the master of the house to come out promptly to receive him.”

“The Yongyi Duke’s princely heir?” Tian Yangni was suddenly startled. He took a deep look at the princely heir, did not dare say much, and turned around to leave, “Nobles, please wait a moment.”

The Yongyi Duke was a notable duke in Donghua Country, having married the youngest sister of the current Imperial Family, a bona fide imperial relative. This princely heir’s status, in fact, made him a nephew of the Imperial Family.

When Feng Jun heard the news, he also arranged for the Deng Family Brothers to open the courtyard doors, while he himself stood with hands clasped behind his back, not coming out to receive them.

As the princely heir walked in, he was taken aback upon seeing this, then his face darkened, “How bold, why do you not come out to receive me?”

Feng Jun kept his hands behind his back, just giving him a strange look, “Odd, you came looking for me, why should I come out to receive you?”

“How daring!” Seeing this, Lord Beiyuan barked sharply, “The princely heir is the nephew of the current Imperial Family, a noble of great stature. How dare you, this uncouth country bumpkin, be so arrogant and impolite?”

“I may be a bumpkin, but this land belongs to me,” Feng Jun’s face darkened, “you come uninvited, stand on someone else’s land, and yell at the owner… I really don’t understand, who is more uncivilized.”

“You…” Lord Beiyuan, flushed with anger, “Do you realize that all land under the heavens belongs to the emperor, and all who live within its bounds are the emperor’s subjects?”

“I bought this land with money, and the deed tax is also paid,” Feng Jun replied expressionlessly, “Food and clothing come from my own labor. I’d like to ask… what authority does the emperor have over me?”

This was to say, I live in my own house, I do not owe you any taxes, I work honestly for my livelihood, food and clothing come from my own efforts, and I owe no one anything. What does it matter to me if you’re from the imperial family? Even if the emperor were to come, it wouldn’t make a difference.

This argument was not only a joke in the Earth Realm, but there were also those in Donghua Country who had said the same thing.

It was an old farmer, who, when faced by tax-collecting imperial officials, had boldly replied in this manner.

The Imperial Court, of course, became angry and sent people to seize him.

But when they laid hands on him to take him away, they were taken aback… My God, an Immortal? Who set up this trap?

Ever since then, the Imperial Family of Donghua Country established a rule: unless necessary, one should not arbitrarily harass the common people.

Of course, if you’re truly a commoner, then being harassed isn’t a big deal.

Lord Beiyuan’s words had merit, but Feng Jun’s argument held just as much reason.

Seeing the two of them arguing endlessly, the princely heir flung his sleeves and turned around, “Lord Beiyuan, you talk first… I’ll come back after you’ve finished.”

Before anyone could react, he had already walked far away in the blink of an eye.

Tian Yangni was dumbfounded and only after a long while did he sigh, “This princely heir is truly a man of temperament.”

“The princely heir is well-educated, not as unsuitable as you think,” Lord Beiyuan glanced at him indifferently, “He knows we are in-laws and deliberately stepped aside to make it easier for us to talk.”

Before Tian Yangni could respond, a voice came from within the courtyard, “Then you two can chat at your leisure, Lao Er… close the door!”

Hearing this, Lord Beiyuan burst into laughter out of sheer anger, “I say, my younger brother is also your patron, is this how you treat your guests?”

Feng Jun gave him a deep look, “My patron is him, not you!”

“Fine, say whatever you want,” Lord Beiyuan, a man of the world, did not argue, “Aren’t you going to invite me in to sit down?”

“Completely unnecessary,” Feng Jun gestured dismissively, bluntly refusing, “I am fainthearted, afraid that you might bring out a steel whip to beat someone.”

The remark was laden with sarcasm, but Lord Beiyuan did not take it to heart at all, “I’ve seen your lampwork, it’s somewhat interesting, but that formation of yours is nothing but a deception to fool others!”

Feng Jun looked at him, laughing indifferently, “The county soldiers thought the same… what a pity for a good horse.”

Upon hearing this, Lord Beiyuan couldn’t help feeling a touch of irritation, and then he spoke loudly, “Enough, do not argue for the sake of arguing with me. The princely heir has already sent word, he wishes to requisition Mount Zhige for horse breeding.”