Clan Rise: Starting as a Grandfather
Chapter 147 - 143: Yu Lu, a Lady with the Heart of an Orchid and the Grace of a Lily.

Chapter 147: Chapter 143: Yu Lu, a Lady with the Heart of an Orchid and the Grace of a Lily.

The serene sound of bamboo music echoed, while the graceful dancers freely released their mesmerizing movements.

"Master Yang, come come, let’s drink!"

Sha Pingchuan beckoned Yang Zhenshan to drink.

Yang Zhenshan lifted his cup, "Thank you for your hospitality, this humble official is truly honored."

The two drank, exchanging laughs and jokes.

Speaking of which, Yang Zhenshan was not a very talkative person. He could unleash a plethora of principles and theories, but if asked to create a lively atmosphere with wit and humor, that would be a challenge.

Yet, Sha Pingchuan was skilled in this aspect. Even if Yang Zhenshan was somewhat uncomfortable, under Sha Pingchuan’s enthusiastic hospitality, he felt very relaxed and unrestrained.

After three rounds of drinks, the bamboo music gradually ceased, and the enchanting dancers also stopped.

"Yu Lu, come here!"

Sha Pingchuan summoned the leading dancer.

"Yu Lu pays respects to dad, and to Master Yang!"

Yang Zhenshan was stunned!

Dad!

Is this Sha Pingchuan’s daughter?

How is that possible?

It is common for officials to have singers and dancers in their households, and for daughters of prestigious families to be skilled in music, chess, calligraphy, and painting. But who would let their daughter dance for guests?

Ladies from respectable families stay mostly within their confines; even contact with external men follows strict protocols, not to mention dancing dressed like this!

Yang Zhenshan was somewhat astonished as he watched the dancer standing close by.

After a dance session, this girl named Yu Lu had sweat on her pallid forehead and her delicate neck.

There was also a faint elegant fragrance wafting toward Yang Zhenshan.

Smelling this aroma and seeing those faint signs of allure up-close, Yang Zhenshan awkwardly tugged at his beard.

Damn, some little brother of his was rising up!

"Master Yang, this is my foster daughter, Yu Lu!"

"Yu Lu, come and have a drink with Master Yang!"

Sha Pingchuan introduced.

Foster daughter!

Yang Zhenshan realized inwardly, I knew it, who would let their own daughter do such a thing.

Yu Lu stepped forward, first pouring a cup for Yang Zhenshan and then filling one for herself.

With her light, graceful garb and encompassing fragrance, she left Yang Zhenshan a bit dazzled and dazed.

Buddha bless, Buddha bless!

These seductive charms are somewhat excessive; the old monk, no, I am close to losing self-control!

It wasn’t that Yang Zhenshan lacked willpower, but having such a ravishing woman spinning around him was more than anyone could bear!

"Your servant, Yu Lu, toasts Master Yang!"

Her soft voice seemed as if it could impregnate ears.

It wasn’t overly cloying, nor was it an artificial falsetto, rather it was incredibly natural and gentle.

Yes, gentle, like a pet cat purring when it wakes up in your lap.

"Please, Miss!"

Yang Zhenshan’s heart was racing, but he maintained the demeanor of a gentleman outwardly, lifting his head to down the cup in one go.

Yu Lu smiled with her eyes, raised her hand to cover her red lips, and drank the wine in her cup.

"Yu Lu, you may go now!"

"Your daughter takes leave!" Yu Lu bowed gracefully and exited with elegance.

Yang Zhenshan, suppressing the heat within him, was about to continue drinking with Sha Pingchuan, but Sha Pingchuan opened with, "What does Master Yang think of my daughter?"

"Uh!" Yang Zhenshan was unsure how to describe his impressions, only able to say righteously, "Miss Yu Lu has a heart as gentle as an orchid."

"Ha ha~~" Sha Pingchuan gave him a knowing look that only men would understand and said, "I heard that Master Yang’s wife passed away early?"

"Yes!"

"It’s not good for a man like Master Yang to be without a woman’s care!" Sha Pingchuan said smilingly, "My daughter is quite capable of taking care of people and would really suit Master Yang!"

"Enough, today I will decide. I’ll betroth my daughter to Master Yang!"

Sha Pingchuan did not even wait for Yang Zhenshan to respond; he made the decision directly.

Yang Zhenshan was a bit dumbfounded. What does this mean?

Giving away a woman?

He didn’t believe Sha Pingchuan wanted him to marry Yu Lu as his legitimate wife.

If Sha Pingchuan truly intended that, he wouldn’t have let Yu Lu dance before everyone, degrading her.

If not as a legitimate wife, then as a concubine.

This was undoubtedly offering a woman.

In that moment, Yang Zhenshan’s heated heart calmed.

Something was amiss.

Why would Sha Pingchuan give him a woman?

To please him?

That’s obviously not possible.

He is a subordinate of Sha Pingchuan; there’s no need for Sha Pingchuan to please him, it should be the other way around.

For a while, Yang Zhenshan couldn’t fathom Sha Pingchuan’s motives, only able to say, "Sir, this isn’t appropriate, is it!"

"What’s inappropriate? My daughter is also unfortunate; she lost her parents when she was little."

"Yu Lu has grown up, and it’s time for her to get married. I know Master Yang is a devoted man, and I believe with Master Yang’s care, Yu Lu can live a good life!"

"Don’t consider that Yu Lu isn’t my biological daughter; I truly raised her as my own. In the future, you cannot mistreat her."

Sha Pingchuan spoke at length, to the point that Yang Zhenshan felt bored.

Raised her as your own daughter?

If she were really your daughter, you wouldn’t have her dance like this.

This isn’t raising a daughter; it’s like raising a courtesan!

"Let’s settle it then. I’ll have someone prepare Yu Lu, and when you leave, you can take her with you!"

Sha Pingchuan did not give Yang Zhenshan the chance to refuse, he got up and immediately began giving orders to the servants outside.

Yang Zhenshan didn’t stop him because he knew he couldn’t.

There was no way to decline such courtesy!

Sha Pingchuan’s hospitality was surely prepared beforehand, just waiting for his arrival.

An hour later, Yang Zhenshan left Songzhou Guard along with Yu Lu and two young maids.

At this moment, Yu Lu had changed into a crimson padded jacket, draped in a moon-white cloak. Although her delicate figure was tightly wrapped, the gentle aura she exuded could not be concealed.

She and the two young maids sat in the carriage, while Yang Zhenshan rode a horse in front, and Yang Minghao led soldiers as guards on both sides.

"Dad!"

After leaving the city, Yang Minghao trotted his horse forward, calling softly beside Yang Zhenshan.

"Let’s talk when we get back!"

Yang Zhenshan said calmly.

At this time, he felt even more that something was wrong!

Sha Pingchuan was very suspicious!

From beginning to end, there was an indescribable strangeness.

Giving a woman away is not impossible, but definitely not in this manner.

This was clearly a forced gifting.

Not even giving you the chance to refuse.

...

Back in An Yuan State City, Yang Zhenshan looked at Yu Lu coming down from the carriage and felt somewhat of a headache.

This woman was very tempting, but he truly did not want her.

Before figuring out Sha Pingchuan’s purpose, he really dared not get involved.

Who knows if there’s a trap waiting for him to jump into.

"Master!" Wu Hai and a group of servants came out to greet.

Yang Zhenshan thought for a moment and said, "Arrange a courtyard for Miss Yu Lu to stay in for now, and assign two more maids and two older female servants to attend to her!"

Since she was brought here, he definitely couldn’t send her away; he could only keep her at home for the time being.

Wu Hai glanced at Yu Lu, then quickly lowered his head, "Miss Yu Lu, this way, please!"

Yu Lu looked towards Yang Zhenshan, bowed respectfully, and said, "This humble one takes her leave!"

Yang Zhenshan nodded, his eyes following her as she walked towards the western courtyard.

"Make a note, keep an eye on this person."

Wu Hai’s expression shifted slightly, "This old servant understands!"

Only then did Yang Zhanshan return to the main courtyard. After changing into more comfortable clothing, he went to the front courtyard and called for Wei Cen.

"Have you looked into Sha Pingchuan?"

In the study, Yang Zhenshan asked solemnly.

"Sha Pingchuan!" Wei Cen’s expression changed slightly, "We’ve looked into him!"

"Is there no issue with him?"

"There are issues, but those are not for us to handle!" Wei Cen said.

Yang Zhenshan fell silent.

Secret Martial Guards were responsible for major and important cases; although Sha Pingchuan had committed many crimes, it had not reached the level of gaining focused attention from the Secret Martial Guards.

"I always feel there’s something off about Sha Pingchuan!" Yang Zhenshan still expressed his feelings.

"What feels off?" Wei Cen asked.

Yang Zhenshan fell into deep thought.

There were many things that felt off.

But where to start?

He pondered for a long time, then suddenly a thought flashed through his mind.

"If you’ve looked into Sha Pingchuan, then you should know how he acquires his wealth, correct?"

Wei Cen hesitated a bit but nodded, "Since taking office, Sha Pingchuan has extensively occupied the garrison farms, and by now he owns several hundred acres of them. Besides, he has bought many shops and estates, not only in Jia City, but also in Chongshan Pass, Jing’an Prefecture, Qi State City, and other places, the Sha family owns considerable assets!"

Yang Zhenshan’s eyes narrowed slightly, asking, "Is the Sha family a powerful clan?"

"Can’t be considered a powerful clan, only one family member previously served as a Commander, and before Sha Pingchuan, the Sha family was not very wealthy!"

"Then the question arises, how did Sha Pingchuan amass so much property!" asked Yang Zhenshan.

Occupying garrison farms is not uncommon in Chongshan Town.

Many Military Officers would claim the garrison’s farms for their private use, although most wouldn’t do it excessively since the farms are the means for the military households to make a living; if too much is appropriated by officials, these households would lose their livelihood.

Sha Pingchuan could occupy so much farmland because he was the Commander of Songzhou Guard, which allowed him to intervene in all the garrisons under Songzhou Guard.

Hundreds of acres of land indeed brought considerable income to Sha Pingchuan, but it definitely wasn’t enough to accumulate such vast family assets.

Wei Cen frowning, thought for a moment, then said, "He has been operating in Songzhou Guard for more than ten years!"

"If I remember correctly, he was promoted to the role of Commander of Songzhou Guard in the nineteenth year of Chengping!" Yang Zhenshan stated.

It is now the twenty-fifth year of Chengping, which means Sha Pingchuan has been the Songzhou Guard’s Commander for six years.

Before becoming the Commander of Songzhou Guard, he wouldn’t have been able to possess so much farmland.

In just six years, not only had he occupied hundreds of acres of farmland, but he also purchased a large number of shops and estates.

This obviously didn’t make sense.

"Are you suggesting he might be involved with smuggling?" Wei Cen also thought of this possibility.

Yang Zhenshan stroked his beard, "Possibly, apart from that, I can’t think of where else he might have gotten so much money."

At this point, he had figured out what was off about Sha Pingchuan.

Extravagance, extreme extravagance.

From Sha Pingchuan’s food and other expenses, it was evident—honestly, even Zhou Lan couldn’t match his level of lavishness.

Lamb, fine wine, delectable dishes.

A single meal would likely cost several hundred Silver.

And he also kept so many dancers; even without that Miss Yu Lu, maintaining so many dancers was a significant expense.

Just in terms of Sha Pingchuan’s lifestyle, let alone him being just a Commander of the Guard, even those wealthy princes couldn’t afford such luxury.

"Look into this further, I feel there might be something amiss!"

Wei Cen nodded, "I will report this matter to the admiral."