Gongsun Wenjin glanced at Ye Xuan before explaining, "You’re applying the mindset of a small town to a city. I know battles are always breaking out in weak towns like yours, and whoever wins becomes the new Town Mayor. But that’s not how it works in a city. Even if you win, you don’t have the qualifications."
Ye Xuan’s sharp brows furrowed. "Then how does one get the qualifications?"
"First, you must become a major power within the city and secure a firm foothold. Then, you have to wait for an opportunity."
"What opportunity?"
Gongsun Wenjin answered solemnly, "The fall of the City Lord."
"You mean the next City Lord can only be chosen if the current one dies? If I kill him, doesn’t that count as him dying?"
"By ’fall,’ I mean a natural demise. For example, dying in a war between two nations, or perishing inside a Secret Realm while exploring at the behest of a Main City Lord. I don’t mean a private feud. Do you know what happens to someone who secretly murders a City Lord?"
"No."
Gongsun Wenjin’s expression remained stern. "To secretly assassinate a City Lord is to make an enemy of all one hundred and eight Sub-Cities! That includes the City Lords of the three-star cities. In other words, unless you have the strength to fight one hundred and eight Sub-City Lords, taking control of a city will be incredibly difficult. Moreover, even if you could defeat all of them, could you stand against the eight Main Cities?"
"That..."
Ye Xuan was dumbfounded. Didn’t Gongsun Wenjin’s words mean that killing a Sub-City Lord would result in being hunted down by one hundred and sixteen cities, including the eight Main Cities?
No wonder the people from the City Lord’s Mansion were so arrogant. Barring any unforeseen accidents, the position of City Lord could be passed down through generations.
"Grandfather, does the Gongsun Family control Dapeng City because the previous City Lord fell?"
Gongsun Wenjin said flatly, "Strictly speaking, it wasn’t a natural fall. Back then, the Patriarch of the Hu Family was deliberately sent into a Secret Realm by the Main City Lord on a suicide mission."
"Why?"
"Because the Hu Family hadn’t produced a genius in a long time, and their overall strength had consistently ranked at the bottom. Outsiders can’t kill a Sub-City Lord and steal their position, but a Main City can. So, he died. The moment he died, every major power in the city became qualified to fight for the City Lord’s seat. That was a true bloodbath. It was then that the ancestor of the Gongsun Family carved out a bloody path and successfully claimed the title."
"Grandfather, I have another question. The ’natural demise’ you mentioned seems to always involve the Main City Lords. What if a Sub-City Lord duels someone and is accidentally killed? Or what if they meet with an accident or die exploring a dangerous place on their own? Does that also disqualify everyone else?"
"In those situations, while you wouldn’t be hunted down by all the Sub-Cities, you still wouldn’t be qualified."
Ye Xuan’s expression turned slightly grim. To summarize his grandfather’s point, it meant that unless the royal family or a Main City Lord ordered a City Lord to handle a task, their death under any other circumstances would simply lead to their family’s heir succeeding them.
No wonder some families could govern a city for thousands of years. The only ones who could determine their "natural demise" were the Main Cities and the royal family. A change of power only happened if *they* wanted it to happen!
"Sigh, why am I even telling you all this? In short, it is as difficult as ascending to the heavens for the Ye Family to govern a city!"
Hearing this, Ye Xuan remained silent for a long time. However, his mind was eventually made up. No matter how difficult it was, he would plant the Dragon Totem on the city walls and have the Ye Family govern a city. It sounded daunting, but compared to destroying the Profound Cloud Sect, it didn’t seem all that impossible.
"I understand, Grandfather. I’ll take my leave now. Don’t forget about the Night Moon Tree."
"Rest assured, I’ll have someone handle it shortly. However, it will likely take two or three days to transport the tree and the soil intact."
"Alright."
Ye Xuan nodded and left the hall.
After he left, Gongsun Wenjin let out a slightly mocking chuckle. "This kid actually wants to be a City Lord. His ambitions are higher than the sky. It’s a pity his surname is Ye and not Gongsun."
"Father, what if he changes his surname to Gongsun?" Gongsun Xin suddenly spoke up.
As a Ye, Ye Xuan had almost zero chance of becoming a City Lord! But what if he was a Gongsun?
"Hmm? If he changes his surname, then there really might be a sliver of a chance. This kid most likely awakened a Fierce Beast Soul. I’ve only ever seen a Fierce Beast Soul on a Main City Lord. But alas, he isn’t a Gongsun."
Later.
Unaware of their conversation, Ye Xuan quickly returned to the Lingxuan Courtyard. As soon as he arrived, he saw Ye Ling’Er and Gongsun Yanran drinking tea and basking in the sun in the courtyard, but Liu Ruoxi was nowhere to be seen.
"Mother, where is Liu Ruoxi?"
"She’s not used to being around strangers, so she locked herself in her room."
Ye Xuan frowned. "You arranged a separate room for her?"
Gongsun Yanran glared at him. "What? Did you want to sleep together right now?"
Gongsun Yanran’s words amused Ye Ling’Er. The girl covered her mouth and giggled nonstop. She was probably thinking to herself that her brother was a massive pervert.
Ye Xuan replied calmly, "There’s nothing wrong with an engaged couple sleeping in the same room. Besides, if she doesn’t live with me, how are we supposed to adjust to each other?"
He still intended to torment Liu Ruoxi. How could they sleep in separate rooms? Absolutely not!
"Xuan’Er, tell me," Gongsun Yanran said, her expression suddenly turning serious. Pausing for a moment, she added, "What is your true attitude toward Liu Ruoxi? Xuan’Er, if you really want to be together, treat her a little better."
Ye Xuan answered composedly, "Mother, I told you, I won’t let anyone else bully her."
Gongsun Yanran shook her head and asked softly, "What about you?"
It was obvious she had picked up on the underlying meaning of his words.
"Xuan’Er, I know why you harbor hostility toward her. But listen to me: just vent your anger and leave it at that. Don’t go overboard. Arguments between men and women are resolved in bed anyway. Not to mention, she hasn’t actually harmed a single member of the Ye Family. Even if she had, you couldn’t really kill her, could you? You should know that you’ve already lost your chance to take her life."
Ye Xuan remained silent. He knew his mother was absolutely right. He had no opportunity to kill Liu Ruoxi now. His only chance had been during the tournament at the Liu Family’s estate. Since he hadn’t killed her then, it was impossible to do it now.
Otherwise, the consequences would be severe. The Liu Family could do nothing to the Gongsun Family, but crushing the Ye Family would be child’s play for them. At the end of the day, Liu Ruoxi was a member of the Liu Family.
"Mother, I know my limits."
"Good. Today is her first day here, and she is a guest from afar. Let her sleep in her own room for now so she can adapt to the environment. I’ll arrange for you two to share a room in a couple of days."
Gongsun Yanran didn’t actually take the matter between Ye Xuan and Liu Ruoxi too much to heart. Ye Xuan might harbor hatred for the girl, but Liu Ruoxi was ultimately a breathtaking beauty. When a man hated a woman, he would likely vent it on her body. And the more he vented, the more he would fall in love with the feeling.
Eventually, the hatred would fade, and the two of them might enter an even more wondrous stage in their relationship. As someone with experience, Gongsun Yanran knew better than anyone the marvels of intimacy between a man and a woman. The more arrogant the woman, the fiercer and more forceful the venting would be.