The handsome man and the woman used Niu Tong as a human footstool, alighting from the carriage one after another with effortless grace.
This scene stunned the surrounding onlookers.
"This... the Town Mayor is actually... actually acting as a footstool for someone else! Who is this young man?"
"Shh, keep your voice down. Even if you don’t recognize the young man, don’t you recognize the clan crest on his chest?"
"His chest?"
The person who asked took a closer look and quickly clamped his mouth shut. Embroidered on the youth’s chest was a two-headed snake.
"Let’s go, stop staring. We don’t want to bring about our own demise."
Realizing the young man’s identity, the onlookers quickly scattered. The sight of the Niu family groveling was rare, but staring for too long was an invitation to death!
"Young Master Ning, who is this..." After standing up, Niu Tong kept a fawning smile plastered on his face.
"My wife," the youth replied.
"Ah, so it is Madam Ning." Niu Tong immediately bowed to the woman.
The woman’s face flushed. "I’m not yet. We haven’t even gotten married," she explained.
The young master laughed out loud. "It’s only a matter of time. What, do you dare refuse when I’m the one telling you to marry me?"
"You’re so domineering. I wouldn’t dare."
"HAHAHA. A man who isn’t domineering is either a coward or completely useless!" The young master guffawed. As he spoke, he brazenly fondled her twin peaks right in front of everyone.
Knowing his place, Niu Tong immediately turned his head away. However, the two guards at the gate were blind fools. They stared, unblinking. Such a stunning beauty being molested right out in the open street—it was a rare sight indeed.
"Do you like what you see?" the youth suddenly asked.
The two guards froze, completely at a loss for words. One shook his head frantically while the other nodded. But no matter their reaction, their heads were destined to roll. With a mere wave of his hand, the young man severed both of their heads.
"Remember this in your next lives: looking at things you shouldn’t is a one-way ticket to the grave." Leaving them with that cold remark, the youth strolled into the Niu family villa. "Old Ma, wait for me out here," he tossed the instruction over his shoulder to the carriage driver as he walked in.
The driver was an old man wearing a bamboo hat that cast shadows over his cold, sinister eyes. He didn’t say a word in response, remaining perfectly still as he gripped the reins. Under his control, the unicorn pulling the carriage didn’t dare to make the slightest movement.
Once the young man was inside, Niu Tong finally turned to his servants. "Hurry up and get these corpses out of here! Those blind fools almost brought ruin to our Niu family." With that, Niu Tong hurried to catch up with the young master.
"Young Master Ning, what brings you to the Niu family in person? Is it about the tribute? I’ll have someone prepare it immediately!"
Although Ye Xuan had plundered a significant portion of the tribute the Niu family collected from their subordinate factions, their reserves were still abundant.
The youth replied nonchalantly, "That is only one of my reasons."
"Young Master Ning, is there something else? Please, name it. As long as it is within my power, I will make sure it gets done."
"Don’t be nervous. This is a good thing for you. Hasn’t it been four years? It’s time for subordinate factions like yours to enter my Ning family’s Secret Realm again."
"Has it been four years already? If you hadn’t mentioned it, I would have completely forgotten. Still, there was no need for you to come deliver the message personally."
"It’s nothing. I was just passing by anyway, since I’m heading to Hongtu Town in a few days."
"Hongtu Town?" Niu Tong’s expression drastically changed. Hongtu Town was a subordinate town under his jurisdiction! "Young Master Ning, did someone in Hongtu Town offend you? If so, I’ll immediately send out my men to level the entire town to the ground!"
"Level it to the ground?" Ning Zheseng’s face abruptly turned icy. "If you level Hongtu Town to the ground, do you expect my wife to weep daily?"
"Ah? What do you mean? Young Master Ning, did someone not offend you?" Niu Tong was dumbfounded.
"Of course not. I’m going to Hongtu Town because my wife’s family lives there."
"May I ask which family Madam belongs to..."
Before the youth could speak, the woman took the initiative to answer. "The Fang family of Hongtu Town. Fang Tianming is my grandfather, and my name is Fang Lian."
"What!" Niu Tong gasped in shock. His mind raced as he thought rapidly. He desperately tried to recall if the Niu family had ever done anything to bully the Fang family over the years. Racking his brain, he figured that aside from collecting the standard tribute, the Niu family hadn’t caused any trouble for the Fang family. After all, the Fang family was located two hundred miles away. Who would go out of their way to look for trouble there?
PHEW!
Thank god.
"Niu Tong, I brought Lian’Er here today just to tell you this: treat the Fang family with absolute courtesy from now on. Otherwise, I can easily have the Fang family replace your Niu family. Understood?"
"Understood! I will definitely take good care of the Fang family in the future. Tell you what, I will have someone deliver Frenzy Soul Crystals to them right away. I know the strongest expert in the Fang family is only at the 9th Layer of the Strong Spirit Realm; they will definitely need them."
As Niu Tong finished speaking, the youth shot him a glare. "If you send them now, what am I supposed to gift them when I visit in a few days? This is my very first time visiting the Fang family, so of course I have to present them with a grand gift."
"This is your first time? Didn’t you and Madam meet at the Fang family estate?"
"No, our meeting was pure fate. I was traveling that day and happened to bump into Lian’Er while she was out for a spring outing. We met by a stream, under a locust tree. She was wearing a veil that hid her features, so I used Spiritual Qi to stir up a gust of wind, blowing away her veil and lifting the hem of her skirt... That scene was so beautiful. I still remember it clearly—it was white. I only caught a glimpse of her from afar, but I was utterly captivated."
The young master spoke with deep affection.
Fang Lian merely rolled her eyes at him. "So, you forcibly carried me back to the Ning family and slept with me?"
The young man replied domineeringly, "If you like someone, you sleep with them. Otherwise, what’s the point of just liking them? That is how I, Ning Zheseng, do things."
"Domineering! Young Master Ning is truly domineering!" Niu Tong applauded continuously.
Ning Zheseng completely ignored Niu Tong and continued, "Lian’Er, you should feel honored. There aren’t many women I take a liking to. And among those I do, you are the only one I haven’t grown tired of."
With that said, he leaned in and kissed Fang Lian directly on the lips. What an incredibly overbearing young master. It took quite a while before he finally pulled away.
"So when are we heading back to Hongtu Town?" Fang Lian asked again. She had been away from the Fang family for three months now, though she had kept in touch via letters.
"Didn’t I say? We’ll head back in a few days. For now, just stay here at the Niu family villa. I still have some business to take care of."
"Sheng, what kind of business?"
"The Ning family received word that a Fire Attribute Treasure of Heaven and Earth might be unearthed in the Asura Forest. It’s too dangerous for me to bring you along. Stay here at the Niu family villa, and once I return, I’ll take you home for a visit."
"A Fire Attribute Treasure of Heaven and Earth? Sheng, you absolutely have to get it! I’ve heard those things are exceedingly rare!"
"Naturally. But I still need to investigate to see if the information is accurate. If it truly exists, it will be mine! Within the Ning family’s territory, who has the right to snatch it from me? Anyone who tries will die!"