Golden Branch

Chapter 1 Secret Talk
In the spring of the ninth year of Yongtai.

The dark clouds that had been hanging for several days finally slowly dispersed, revealing the long-lost sunshine.

On a bright spring day, the river flows quietly and the grass grows and the birds fly.

"Aww!"

A yellow-striped tabby cat, with a big belly but an agile body.

With a whoosh, it leaped up from the grass, crossed the moat, went through the dog hole in the city wall, passed through the green vegetable plots, and came to a slightly old and dilapidated house.

The house looks dilapidated, but the vermilion gate, the red tiles on the roof, and the eaves and corners on the walls all demonstrate the house's former luxury, nobility and solemnity.

The orange cat found the dog hole in the corner of the wall as if it were familiar with the place and slipped in.

He walked through the courtyard planted with crabapple blossoms, crossed the winding corridor, and took a look at the pond with lotus flowers. Tsk, there were no fish. The fat orange cat shook its tail in disappointment and headed towards the inner courtyard.

The layout of ponds, rockery, pavilions and towers is unique and ingenious, and there is a new scene at every step.

However, perhaps due to years of disrepair or the collapse of the political situation, the flowers, plants, and scenery in the courtyard all have a sense of decay.

It's like a dynasty that is about to decline, or a family that has long been ruined.

After wandering outside for most of the day and failing to find any fresh food, the fat orange cat had no choice but to return to the place where the "little devil" lived.

There's no way. Although the little devil is naughty, he is also generous. I always give it delicious fish, meat, and cakes as bait.

"Ahri! You're running around again!"

The fat orange cat had just rushed into a small courtyard when he heard a familiar baby voice.

The voice was sweet and soft, like a delicious glutinous rice dumpling, but the fat orange cat's ears couldn't help but tremble.

A hint of helplessness and resignation flashed across his round vertical pupils.

Here it comes! The little devil is coming!

Sure enough, the next moment, the fat orange cat was firmly pinned down by a small body that pounced on it.

"Aww!"

A pair of chubby little hands tightly held the cat's neck, and the cat stuck out its tongue.

"Be hungry!"

The little devil almost strangled the cat to death, but was completely unaware.

She was still happily playing with the cat. "You're not a good boy! Mother said there are thieves out there, roaming the mountains and plains looking for food. If a fat, plump cat like you is caught by thieves, they'll just stew you!"

"...You must be hungry! I saved some roasted lamb for you! It's incredibly delicious and isn't usually available. Mother Fu said that because a distinguished guest had come to our house, the kitchen only roasted one lamb, and I only got one plate. I saved half a plate for you..."

The little devil, a fair-skinned girl of five or six years old, continued to hold the fat orange cat's neck with one hand, and took out an oil-paper bag from the small basket at her waist with the other hand.

The paper package unfolded, revealing the golden, fatty roasted lamb.

The unique smell of mutton spread out instantly, causing the cat, which had already stuck out its tongue, to struggle desperately.

"Be good! Be obedient! Don't run around, and you'll get some meat!"

Seeing that the cat was extremely hungry, the little girl let go of its hand while muttering to herself.

As expected, the fat orange cat did not run away. It made a gurgling sound in its throat and waited anxiously for the little devil to put down the oil paper bag.

Seeing this, the girl did not delay and hurriedly handed the oil paper bag to the cat.

Aaaaaah! Aaaaah!
The cat ate ferociously. There wasn't much roast meat, only five or six slices.

The extremely hungry cat finished the meal in just a few bites.

After the meal, before the girl could pick up the cat again, the cat pounced and ran away.

"Ah Li! You're not a good boy! You bad raccoon slave!"

The girl was dumbfounded, her big eyes full of disbelief: This raccoon slave ate her flesh and didn't even let her touch it?
The girl was unwilling to give up, so she ran after the orange shadow.

The girl had no idea that she had run into the courtyard of her grandmother, whom she usually avoided.

Whoosh!
An orange figure climbed up the courtyard wall like lightning, ran along the top of the wall, and then jumped down.

"Ahri!"

The girl shouted and chased, and when she found out that she was in the Great Mother's Mercy Hall, she quickly covered her mouth with her hands.

The eldest mother was the most strict and disliked her and A Niang the most.

Everyone in the family thinks she is young and ignorant.

She understands!

She knew that her eldest mother, who came from a top family, had always looked down on her mother, who came from a poor family. As a result, her eldest mother also disliked her, her daughter.

The older woman never said it, nor did she ever show it, but the girl knew it. It was a contempt and indifference that came from the depths of her soul, as if the older woman and she were not related by blood as grandmother and granddaughter, but rather two opposing classes!
Perhaps the girl did not understand these principles, but she just had a feeling: her grandmother did not like her.

On weekdays, apart from following her mother to visit her in the morning and evening, she rarely set foot in this yard.

If she hadn't been so engrossed in chasing the cat today that she hadn't paid attention to her surroundings, she wouldn't have come in at all.

Realizing that she had entered a place she shouldn't have been, the girl covered her mouth and stood on tiptoe, preparing to leave quietly.

Just as she turned around, the girl heard intermittent conversations, in which "Ajahn" was mentioned.

Ajaan?

In the entire Wang family, only A Niang has the surname Jiang.

Is the mother you are talking about?
Realizing that it was related to her mother, the girl stopped in her tracks.

She thought about it again and again, and finally decided to go and eavesdrop.

She tiptoed to the steps, took off her shoes, and only wore white silk stockings. The girl went up the steps quietly and came to the window under the corridor.

She pricked up her ears and listened carefully—

"Mother, I offered him a hundred kilograms of gold bricks, but that warrior still refused to lend me his troops. I really don't know how to impress him."

"The warriors you're talking about aren't crude soldiers. They call themselves the Hongnong Yang family. Although their origins are unknown, the Yang family has been prosperous for decades."

They can barely be considered a wealthy family.

If it prospers for another one or two hundred years, and the family produces several prime ministers and nine ministers, it will be able to successfully become a noble family.

Mrs. Xie, the wife of the Wang family, who is over sixty years old, comes from a top clan. Her knowledge and vision are not that of an ordinary old woman.

She sat cross-legged, holding a string of ancient Buddhist beads in her hand.

"Yang Chong, the eldest son of General Yang Qi, is twenty-eight years old and married to a woman named Li."

"Last autumn, the Grand Chancellor sparked the Kuimao Rebellion, causing unrest throughout the country. The Yang family also took advantage of the situation and launched an army to 'suppress' the rebellion!"

"Yang Chong started out with just 300 personal guards, and within half a year, his army grew to 30,000. Now, he's even taken over Jizhou, Yizhou, and other prefectures, clearly a force to be reckoned with."

In order to avoid disaster, the Wang family also returned to their hometown in Yizhou at the end of last year.

There was a mutiny in the capital, and Yizhou was not at peace either. Three consecutive years of drought had already turned this fertile land into a purgatory.

Fortunately, the Wang family has an ancestral fortress, which contains the accumulation of one or two hundred years and several generations.

The food alone is enough to feed the hundreds of people in the Wang family for three years.

However, although we have enough food, farmers outside do.

Although the drought finally ended after it rained in the spring this year, the suffering of the previous years had already made the people starving.

There was food in Wangjiawubao, but there were also "rioters" besieging the fort.

The Wang family does have two or three hundred followers, as well as armor, bows and crossbows and other weapons.

There is also this fortress, with strong walls, which is easy to defend but difficult to attack.

Inside the fort, there are farmlands, wells, workshops, etc.

Even if besieged, we can still be self-sufficient.

However, there were more and more rioters, and some fleeing soldiers gathered together, eyeing the Wang's Fort covetously.

Everyone in the Wang family was trembling with fear and could not sleep at night.

Just at this time, Yang Chong led his troops to occupy Yizhou. When the Wang family got the news, they hurriedly sent someone to send an invitation and invited the distinguished guest to the fort.

The Wang family was willing to offer a hundred kilograms of gold, only asking Yang Chong to lend troops to help the Wang family eliminate the bandits and protect the fort.

The head of the Wang family, Wang Lin, who was now kneeling in front of the lady, had just finished the banquet and seen off the guests, and he hurried to ask his mother for advice.

"The eldest son of the great general's family is naturally not short of wealth."

The lady narrowed her eyes and pondered, "Then, what men seek is nothing more than wealth, power, and sex..."

If he is not greedy for money and has a large army, then the only thing left is... lust!

Wang Lin's wife, Jiang, was a beauty that captivated the whole country. When she was in the capital, she was known as the most beautiful woman.

"Mom!"

Wang Lin seemed to be stung by something and stood up suddenly.

Ajahn is his first wife!
Wife is Qi.

How could a son of the Wang family offer his wife to flatter his superior?!
(End of this chapter)