The Qin Family, having been subjects of the Chu Dynasty for hundreds of years, why did they not act until hundreds of years later?
Thinking of this, Qin Yu looked at Qin De with confusion and asked, "Father, our Qin Family has not acted for hundreds of years, why must we act five years from now? Does annihilating the Xiang Family really require hundreds of years of preparation? If we were to act, should we not have done so much earlier?" Qin Yu naturally did not believe this.
"Yu'er," Qin De's face suddenly showed a trace of melancholy, "since you've asked, I might as well tell you another secret."
At this moment, big brother Qin Feng's face grew even colder, and second brother Qin Zheng also lost all signs of a smile, and Xu Yuan stopped fanning himself. Qin Yu also felt that the atmosphere in the entire secret room had changed, knowing in his heart that what his father was about to say was extremely important.
Qin De's gaze seemed as if it could travel through time and space, his voice ethereal, "Yu'er, fourteen years ago, when your big brother turned ten, that time your mother died, and that day there was a major fire. I always told you... that your mother died in the fire. But the truth is... your mother was murdered!!!" Qin De's facial muscles all trembled, his eyes filled only with pain and hatred.
"Boom!" Qin Yu's head thundered, and his complexion turned deathly pale.
"Mother was murdered?" Qin Yu's mind was a complete mess at that moment; he was only two years old when he lost his mother. At two, he was far too young to even remember how his mother looked.
Thinking of his mother.
The first image that came to Qin Yu's mind was a painting done shortly after he was born, for his one-month celebration by a painter, where a young woman was holding a baby, smiling lovingly at the infant in her arms, her eyes radiating the brilliance of maternal love.
The young Qin Yu did not know how many times he had foolishly stood before that painting, telling himself, "This is my mother," and trying hard to remember her features. Often, the image of his mother recurred in his dreams. Whenever he saw other children with their mothers in Yan Capital City, Qin Yu yearned for his own mother. How much he wanted to also have a mother! In his younger days, he often cried beside his father, begging for his mother.
As he gradually grew older, the young Qin Yu no longer cried for his mother; whenever he thought of her, he would look at the stars, because Grandpa Lian had once said that when people die, they ascend to the heavens and become stars, and this was also why Qin Yu loved staring at the stars.
Now, that young Qin Yu had grown up. And at this moment, he was being told... that his mother had not died in a fire, but had been murdered.
"Who murdered my mother!" Qin Yu glared at Qin De and shouted, his eyes turning bloodshot.
The sole mother, the deeply stirring emotion at the core of his soul, the image of his mother in his mind shattered like glass, a fury bursting forth from the depths of his soul filling his entire chest, an absolute anger born of hate!
"Who is it, who exactly murdered my mother!" Qin Yu's muscles all trembled, and he was utterly agitated!
Hate also shone in the eyes of Qin Feng and Qin Zheng.
"Could it be..." A sudden flash of insight crossed Qin Yu's mind, quickly guessing a possibility, Qin Yu stared at his own father, "Father, could it be that the people from the Xiang Family were the ones who killed mother? Yes, it must be so."
"Yes, it was the people from the Xiang Family, and the murderer is none other than the current Emperor of the Chu Dynasty, Xiang Guang. It was he who murdered your mother. And this scene was witnessed by your big brother with his own eyes." Qin De spoke in an icy, indifferent voice. At that instant, the entire secret room fell utterly silent.
"Xiang Guang, he thought by forcing Jingyi to death and then setting a fire, he would escape undetected; he thought he would never be found out. But... he didn't know that ten-year-old Feng was hiding in Jingyi's room at the time," Qin De thundered with murderous intent.
"Had it not been for Uncle Feng, I reckon I would have died that time, and the true nature of mother's death would never have been known," said Qin Feng in a cold voice.
All was revealed.
All was clear now.
Though the descendants of the Qin Family were of Emperor Qin Shi Huang's bloodline, for hundreds of years, the Qin Family had settled in the Eastern Domain Three Prefectures, living a carefree life. Many of their ancestors had advocated for a peaceful existence, as overtaking the Chu Dynasty was daunting; it might even lead to the Qin Family's downfall. For centuries, the Qin Family had hesitated to abandon their current life to seize the Chu Dynasty. However, the death of Qin De's wife had resolute his decision, and thus, for the past fourteen years, Qin De had been laying plans, even activating arrangements made hundreds of years earlier.
"Father, I want to lead the army. I must avenge mother!" Qin Yu said firmly to Qin De. There were only two ways to seek revenge, the first was assassination, and the second was to use a large army to annihilate the Xiang Family and then easily kill Xiang Guang.
Assassinate Xiang Guang?
Qin Yu thought it over and immediately abandoned the idea. Xiang Guang was the Emperor of the Chu Dynasty, surrounded by countless experts. Even an Innate Expert probably had no chance, let alone him, who practiced Outer Strength. Therefore, he could only join Qin De's plan.
"Nonsense!" Qin De scolded Qin Yu, "You, a young lad, have neither learned the art of leading troops nor the art of managing subordinates. You lead an army?"
"Then I'll be a vanguard, a foot soldier," Qin Yu immediately responded, understanding that he indeed knew nothing about leading troops in battle. However, he could not bear to stand by idly, especially since it involved avenging his mother.
"Vanguard? Foot soldier?" Qin De shook his head, "Warfare, to annihilate the Xiang Family, would absolutely involve tens of thousands of soldiers. When the battle begins, the lines of soldiers are endless. With so many people fighting together, what effect could you have? Without the strength of an Innate Expert, you'd not even save your own life in the midst of thousands of troops!"
Qin Yu was rendered speechless.
"But..." Qin Yu wanted to argue.
Qin De walked up to Qin Yu, patting his shoulder and spoke earnestly, "Yu'er, you must understand, you are the descendant of our Qin Family, our bloodline must not be lost. I am at ease with your elder brother being a general and having reached the Innate Realm. I am also at ease with your second brother handling administrative affairs and such. If you were to be a vanguard and you died, how could I answer to our ancestors, how could I face your deceased mother?"
"Yu'er, stop being willful. Your joining the army would only cause me more worry. Yu'er, you are already an adult and must learn to consider the bigger picture," Qin De said, looking intently at Qin Yu.
Qin Yu thought for a moment.
He realized that if he handled administrative affairs, he might be more of a hindrance than a help. Being a foot soldier or vanguard could indeed force his father to consider his presence during military strategizing, which might negatively impact the plan.
And his individual attack power could be considered negligible amidst thousands of troops.
Qin Yu concluded in his heart that joining would be utterly useless and might even have adverse effects.
"Father, I understand. I won't be a burden to you all," Qin Yu said, nodding, then turned and left straightaway. Qin De, seeing Qin Yu speak this way, couldn't help feeling a pang of distress. Qin Feng, Qin Zheng, and Uncle Xu all stood up and watched Qin Yu's departing figure.
As Qin Yu reached the doorway, he suddenly stopped, turned and said, "Father, Big Brother, Second Brother, Uncle Xu, I leave the vengeance for my mother to you."
"Third brother, don't worry, we will definitely destroy the Xiang Family," Second Brother Qin Zheng said resolutely, and Qin Feng also solemnly nodded at Qin Yu. The looks in Uncle Xu's and Qin De's eyes also completely conveyed their intentions to Qin Yu.
"Thank you!" Qin Yu said, then without turning his head, he left the secret chamber and entered the hallway. It was already late at night, the sky filled with countless stars, and the chill of the late night made Qin Yu shiver involuntarily.
Qin Yu suddenly turned around, looking at the room next to the corridor under which the secret chamber was located. "Perhaps Father and the others are discussing some important plans, and here I am, unable to help in the slightest," Qin Yu thought wistfully, and then turned and walked away.