Zongwu: Aspiring to be the mastermind behind the scenes

Chapter 271 Overturning the Peace Talks, Murong Turns Against Her

The next day, the Zhu family head and Yi Jifeng came to the alliance meeting together.

Upon entering, the two discovered that most of the various families had already arrived, especially the local Jiangnan families, led by the Wang family, who were all present.

"Are you so eager to start peace talks?"

The head of the Zhu family sneered inwardly, greeted everyone, and first invited Yi Jifeng to sit in the position of alliance leader, while he himself sat on the left.

Before long, all the families had arrived.

The head of the Zhu family said, "I have gathered you all here today to discuss an important matter. We have suffered heavy losses in our battle with the Sun Moon Divine Cult, but the Sun Moon Divine Cult still has an unknown amount of power that it has not yet revealed. If this continues, I am afraid our losses will be even greater."

Therefore, after much deliberation, I finally decided to negotiate peace with the Sun Moon Cult.

To the right of the alliance leader's seat sat the Wang family's steward, who asked upon hearing this, "Peace talks? I wonder what kind of terms Patriarch Zhu is planning for peace talks?"

The head of the Zhu family said, "The Sun Moon Cult is very powerful, and we have no choice but to cede some benefits to them..."

It's called peace talks, but in reality, it's just that they can't win and are preparing to surrender.

Since the intention is to surrender, a considerable price must be paid.

The territory currently occupied by the Sun Moon Cult is probably beyond their control. They will have to offer additional benefits to get the Sun Moon Cult to agree to peace talks.

The various families have already reached an agreement on this matter, and even the interests that need to be ceded have been discussed.

It was predetermined which party would contribute real estate and which would receive gold and silver.

In fact, Yi Jifeng, the leader of the alliance, was the last person to find out about this matter.

Even the specific rules and regulations were not disclosed to Yi Jifeng by the Zhu family head; he only explained the matter to him yesterday.

At this moment, Yi Jifeng sat in the leader's seat, but he kept his eyes down, looking as still as a wooden or clay sculpture.

The head of the Zhu family then explained the plan that had been discussed and agreed upon beforehand.

After he finished speaking, he looked at the crowd, expecting to receive a chorus of applause, but instead saw that everyone's expressions were uncertain, especially the various families led by the Wang family, who now showed a mocking look.

The head of the Zhu family felt a chill run down his spine, immediately sensing that something was wrong.

This matter may have changed!
Sure enough, the head steward of the Wang family slammed his fist on the table, stood up angrily, and shouted: "Peace talks? Nonsense about peace talks! The Sun Moon Sect is known as the Demonic Sect in Ming Kingdom. Now that it has come to my Song Kingdom, it is causing chaos in Jiangnan. We, the local families of Jiangnan, should defend our land and fight the Sun Moon Sect to the end!"
Oh, I forgot, the Zhu family is not a local family in Jiangnan, so they probably don't have the same family sentiments as us.

And this peace negotiation strategy you just proposed—it's all about sacrificing the interests of us local families in Jiangnan to appease the Sun Moon Cult. Heh, Patriarch Zhu, you certainly have a clever plan!"

The Zhu family head looked grim and said, "Steward Wang, don't try to shift the blame onto me. This peace negotiation strategy was originally proposed by you, and the specific terms were also agreed upon by us."

"You want to deny it now?"

The head steward of the Wang family hurriedly said, "Who! Who said we wanted to negotiate! Patriarch Zhu, don't make false accusations! For the past six months, the Sun Moon Sect has occupied my land, disrupted my business, and killed my servants. This enmity is irreconcilable, and I will never negotiate with them!"

The head of the Zhu family glared fiercely and said, "You were the one who said we should negotiate, and now you're the one who won't! The Wang family... are you just treating me like a monkey on a stage?"
"If that's the case, then I think the Sun Moon Cult is a pretty good place to go!"

"Cough cough..."

The head steward of the Wang family coughed twice and said, "Master Zhu, don't be impulsive. The Sun Moon Divine Cult is a vicious group and is definitely not a wise ruler."

The head of the Zhu family glared at him angrily: "Then what do you mean?!"

The head steward of the Wang family had a glint in his eye.

It's actually quite simple. Murong Fu returned and contacted him directly, announcing that he would become the leader of the alliance.

This is naturally a very good thing for the Wang family, since they were originally vassals of the Murong family, and the interests of the Murong family were closely related to theirs.

Moreover, recently, the Zhu family and other out-of-town families, through the power of the alliance, have swallowed up a lot of their things.

Now that Murong Fu is backing us, we can take all these things back, and even ask for more.

Therefore, the Wang family steward immediately contacted many families, overturned the already agreed peace talks, and decided to launch an attack today.

However, experience truly matters.

When the head of the Zhu family was explaining the terms of the peace talks, he had already realized that something was wrong.

He secretly pondered a solution.

There was absolutely no information available, and it seemed that many of the families present were aligned with the Wang family.

This situation is naturally extremely bad.

With a sudden surge of determination, he decided to put pressure on the other party.

Wang's steward was both venting his anger and trying to show off his abilities to Murong Fu, so he became a little carried away and spoke with sharp tongues, without thinking of leaving any room for maneuver.

Zhu's move left him completely bewildered.

After all, the Zhu family was quite powerful, and they were the leading families of many wealthy merchants from other places.

If we force him to side with the Sun Moon Cult, the situation will become difficult to manage.

He could only force a smile and said, "Patriarch Zhu has been racking his brains over this peace negotiation strategy for the sake of the alliance. However, times have changed. The peace negotiation strategy that Patriarch Zhu considered yesterday is no longer applicable today."

The head of the Zhu family glanced at everyone and said, "I wonder what has happened in the past two days?"

The head of the Wang family said, "The head of the Zhu family will understand later."

After this ordeal, he dared not provoke the Zhu family head again and directly turned his attention to his true target.

"Alliance Leader, what do you think is better, negotiating or not negotiating?"

Yi Jifeng naturally saw the current situation as well. After thinking for a moment, he said, "In my opinion, we should proceed from the interests of the alliance. Whether to fight or make peace should be determined by the alliance."

That's a great answer, a perfect non-stick pan!

The head steward of the Wang family originally wanted to seize on the other party's loopholes in his words before making a scene, but he did not expect that Yi Jifeng's answer would be so slippery.

But remembering Murong Fu's orders, he slammed his fist on the table and shouted, "War or peace, so you, the alliance leader, can't make any decisions?"

Yi Jifeng's expression was strange.

Do you not know how I became the leader of this alliance?
Do you still want me to make the decision?
If I make any decision, I'm afraid you'll be unhappy about it!
"In that case..."

"You sit in the position of alliance leader without making any contribution to the alliance. What use is someone like you?" Wang's steward interrupted Yi Jifeng and shouted.

Yi Jifeng sneered: "So you're dissatisfied with me as the leader of the alliance. In that case, I'll resign."

He never intended to continue in that position, so he wasn't too concerned about it.

Upon hearing this, Wang's head steward was overjoyed, never expecting the other party to voluntarily resign.

This is naturally the best outcome.

But the head of the Zhu family was not happy. Yi Jifeng becoming the leader of the alliance represented the interests of him and several other families.

He hurriedly said, "Are the Wang family members so blind? Since becoming the leader of the alliance, how many battles has Young Hero Yi led our alliance against the Sun Moon Cult, and how many people has he saved?"

Leaving aside others, there are probably several people among those present who owe Young Master Yi a debt of gratitude for saving their lives!
How can such actions be considered a lack of contribution?

Everyone immediately lowered their heads in shame, especially those who had actually been saved by Yi Jifeng.

But saving lives is one thing, the interests of the family must also be considered.

A life is nothing compared to gold and silver.
Even Yi Jifeng himself felt somewhat ashamed.

Because he knew perfectly well that most of those battles were just a charade orchestrated by the Sun Moon Cult.

"Uncle Zhu, there's no need to defend me. I only took on the role of leader because the alliance needed me, but now that the alliance no longer needs me, it's only natural that I should step down."

"No!" the Zhu family head shouted. "Young Master Yi has done so much for our alliance, how can he just walk away like this? Aren't you afraid of being ridiculed by the world for driving him away like this? Besides, without Young Master Yi, how can we merchants possibly withstand the Sun Moon Sect?"

"Heh, is the Sun Moon Cult really worth all this trouble?"

The door to the room suddenly opened, and two figures walked in from outside.

The leader was handsome and refined, holding a folding fan and a sword at his waist, exuding the air of a gentleman.

The head steward of the Wang family immediately stepped forward: "Young Master Murong!"

"Young Master Murong!"

"Greetings, Young Master Murong!"

"Young Master, you're finally back!"

Everyone beamed with joy, their faces full of flattering smiles, and they gathered at the door to offer their greetings.

The Zhu family head's expression changed slightly.

In that instant, he finally understood why the Wang family had suddenly changed their previous peace negotiation strategy and why they had suddenly targeted Yi Jifeng.

Everything, everything, is because of this person!

With the Murong family's assistance, the struggle against the Sun Moon Cult might have a different outcome, eliminating the need for peace talks.

However, since Murong Fu has made his move, he must take the position of leader of the alliance.

The current leader of the alliance must naturally step down to Murong Fu.

After some thought, the head of the Zhu family immediately smiled and joined the others in greeting him: "Young Master Murong, you're finally back!"

For a moment, only Yi Jifeng remained sitting in the hall, with no one else around him; everyone else had gathered around Murong Fu.

Murong Fu smiled politely, cupped his hands to everyone, and then looked at Yi Jifeng.

Seeing this, everyone fell silent and looked at Yi Jifeng.

Facing the gazes of many, Yi Jifeng stood up, clasped his hands in greeting, and said, "So it is Young Master Murong in person. I have long admired your name. I am Yi Jifeng from Mingjian Manor. I only temporarily assumed the position of Alliance Leader because Young Master Murong was not in Jiangnan at the time and was facing the threat from the Sun Moon Divine Sect."

Now that Young Master Murong has returned, the position of alliance leader should naturally be returned to him.

Seeing this, the Wang family steward hurriedly said, "Young Master Murong, the position of alliance leader was originally set up for you. Please take on the role of alliance leader and save our alliance."

Everyone cupped their hands in unison: "Please, Young Master Murong, take on the role of alliance leader and save our alliance."

Even the head of the Zhu family was among this crowd.

For a time, Murong Fu was the popular choice.

As for Yi Jifeng, even if he didn't voluntarily relinquish his position as leader, probably no one cares about him right now.

For the Wang family and many other local families in Jiangnan, this is already the best possible outcome.

No need for peace talks, just cede flesh to the Sun Moon Cult.

Yi Jifeng voluntarily relinquished his position as leader of the alliance.

Even the head of the Zhu family took the lead in expressing his submission, so other families from other places probably wouldn't dare to say anything.

Everything about it can be described as excellent.

However, Murong Fu was not satisfied.

He looked at Yi Jifeng.

Yi Jifeng remained calm and composed, as if he didn't care about such things at all.

But this wasn't the expression Murong Fu wanted to see.

He didn't actually care about this alliance; he came here simply to get revenge on Yi Jifeng.

In his mind, Yi Jifeng, whose position as leader of the alliance had been taken away by him, should be extremely disappointed and dejected at this moment, or even furious and out of control.

But the reality was quite different from what he had imagined.

This frustrated him, and he snorted coldly, mockingly saying, "So you're Yi Jifeng? You're the one who led my Jiangnan region, yet suffered repeated defeats under the attack of the Sun Moon Sect?"

Upon hearing this, everyone's expression changed drastically.

Even the Wang family steward, who was deeply involved in the alliance and knew exactly what Yi Jifeng had done, and even Deng Baichuan, who had only seen some intelligence, realized that Murong Fu's words were highly inappropriate.

"Young Master!" Deng Baichuan hurriedly tried to dissuade him.

Murong Fu ignored him completely: "Hmph? Is this all the so-called successor of the Famous Sword Manor is capable of?"

Yi Jifeng's gaze turned cold, and he couldn't help but clench his fists.

A fire was burning inside him.

Although I was prepared to leave the league, leaving on my own and being forced to leave are completely different things.

What's more, when he himself took the initiative to withdraw, Murong Fu actually said such things!
"Young Master Murong, I respected the reputation of your Murong family and took the initiative to back down just now. What is the meaning of this?"

"Why should I, Murong Fu, need you to back down? I will take this position of alliance leader myself!"

Yi Jifeng laughed in exasperation.

Having said all that, he could no longer tolerate it.

"In that case, I have no choice but to ask the Murong family for their secret techniques."

Murong Fu snorted coldly, threw away his folding fan, and immediately drew his sword, its blade flashing fiercely.

Yi Jifeng had no weapon in his hand, but with a wave of his hand, endless sword energy transformed into two sword shadows that shot out.

The illusory sword shadow and the sword light collided, causing sword energy to overflow and leaving sword marks all around.

Seeing this, no one dared to linger and they all fled the hall. Only Deng Baichuan remained in the hall, looking anxious.

Murong Fu's face, however, revealed a look of delight.

Previously, he was unable to reveal his true appearance and could only flee under the powerful techniques of the Famous Sword Manor.

At this moment, however, he revealed his true strength.

Although he was obsessed with studying various martial arts, he was also aware that his own family's unique skills were more powerful.

The sword technique being used at this moment is the Murong family's ancestral sword technique, also known as the Dragon City Sword Technique. The sword light shines brightly, like a great river, surging endlessly.

Even though Yi Jifeng unleashed two sword shadows, they were completely blocked by this set of sword techniques.

Murong Fu felt a surge of joy and unleashed several sharp sword energies with his longsword.

Yi Jifeng dodged repeatedly, causing his sword energy to strike the surrounding beams and pillars, leaving deep sword marks.

Seeing this, Yi Jifeng's sword energy surged, and he transformed into a sword shadow and flew out.

The three sword shadows merged into one, transforming into a terrifying sword light that pierced towards Murong Fu.

"It's this move again!"

Seeing this, Murong Fu was secretly delighted: "Before, I couldn't reveal my identity and was repelled by this move. Now that I'm back, I'll show you the true power of my Murong family's 'Shifting Stars' technique!"

(End of this chapter)