Why did you provoke me?

On the way to Kyoto, Jing Ancheng revealed this news to Jia Chengping.

Jing Wu looked at the communication bell in her hand, secretly surprised. Wasn't this thing already useless? Why would the sect still have it?

Sitting across from him, Jing Ancheng naturally offered an explanation: "This was made by Teacher Yu. If you need it, you can submit a report to Secretary Wu for approval. But whatever you do, don't disassemble it to try and copy it; if you do, it'll be truly ruined."

"Brother Cheng, we've known each other for a long time. Tell me, what kind of person is this Teacher Yu?"

"Mysterious, powerful." Jing Ancheng only used these two words.

Jingwu raised an eyebrow. "To receive such high praise from you, this person is no ordinary individual."

Jing Ancheng frowned. "Haven't you seen her before?"

"I did see her, but I didn't speak to her."

"Didn't say a word?"

"No, I was just introducing myself." Then he added, "I was going to say something, but none of my four senior brothers said anything, so I kept quiet."

Jing Ancheng was silent for a moment before asking, "So what exactly did you do to make Teacher Yu trust you so much and entrust you with such an important task?"

"I wish I knew. To be honest, I have absolutely no idea right now."

"Teacher Yu's judgment is always right. Since she trusts you, then don't let her down," Jing Ancheng could only say.

"Of course. I took an oath when I joined the sect."

Jing Ancheng remained silent. It seems he wasn't a disciple of the sect yet.

Upon receiving Jia Chengping's message, Jia Daoyi was stunned into silence.

Jia Chenglong was also present. He looked at his cousin in surprise. "Brother, this is no joke."

"Jing Ancheng gave me this information; he wouldn't joke like that."

"Which faction does the person who came to discuss the contract with us belong to?"

"They only said it was under Teacher Yu's name, and didn't say anything else."

"Go and summon the clan elders, then hold a meeting in the main hall," Jia Daoyi finally came to his senses and issued the order.

The atmosphere in the meeting hall was heavy. The elders of the Jia family all knew that the Jia family was now under the control of a bone-drawing master, but the patriarch did not reveal who it was.

Today, the primary battlefield is both a coveted prize and a hot potato in everyone's eyes.

Letting the Jia family take over—isn't that just using the power of those four great families to trample the Jia family into the mud?

Jia Daoyi sat in the main seat, watching them argue endlessly.

He tapped on the table, and the meeting room fell silent.

"Since it's Teacher Yu's decision, we have no right to object. What we need to think about now is what kind of power we can fight for and what benefits we can gain in return."

"Chieftain, isn't this blatantly putting us in the spotlight while she reaps the benefits behind the scenes?"

"Patriarch, our Jia family is not what it used to be. If this Teacher Yu continues to kick us when we're down, our Jia family will truly have to withdraw from the ranks of reclusive families."

Jia Chengping was busy serving tea and water to the elders. Listening to their conversation, he was also worried.

"My thoughts are different from yours, brothers," a man in his forties said slowly, holding a teacup.

His words immediately silenced the council chamber.

"Youngest brother, you speak," Jia Daoyi said.

"Clan leader, firstly, Teacher Yu is not short-sighted; she would never push a clan like ours out to take the fall."

"Youngest brother, if we take over the first battlefield, we'll become targets, it's not a question of whether she wants to or not."

"Fifth Brother is overthinking it. The Jia family is not as powerful as before, but they are not a top-tier family that can be offended."

"But that's not just one family, it's four, no, including the Wang family behind them, it should be five families, and they're willing to do it."

"That's my second point," the youngest person said slowly.

"The people Teacher Yu sent have arrived. What we need to discuss with them is: what should we do if these families want a share of the profits?"

Everyone fell silent; they hadn't thought of that problem yet.

"My third point is just a rough estimate from what Chengping got. Instead of discussing whether Teacher Yu had malicious intent, let's prepare my second point first."

An old man sitting to Jia Daoyi's left tapped the ground with his cane.

"In any case, this is good news. With the capabilities of my Jia family, there is no way we could have won control of a battlefield. Now, my Jia family has gained such a huge benefit without exerting the slightest effort. Even if we only get 10% of the battlefield's gains, it's still a freebie."

After he finished speaking, the people in the conference room began to discuss quietly again.

"Yes, we didn't even know what was going on. This windfall just fell into our laps. Uncle was absolutely right. This is truly a good thing, an incredible good thing."

"I misunderstood something. Even if we're just doing gatekeeping and registration work, we'll still get a share of the profits."

Jia Chengping was somewhat stunned. Just one sentence, and the atmosphere in the meeting room had changed? How come his second grandfather's words carried more weight than the clan chief's?

He glanced furtively at Jia Daoyi, who was seated in the main seat.

Jia Daoyi wasn't unhappy; he just narrowed his eyes and slightly curved the corners of his mouth.

But Jia Chengping knew that his uncle was satisfied with the current situation.

Only the core members of the Jia family knew the true situation within the family. Jia Chengping had also come into contact with some of the details of how large the hole was.

Now that such a good opportunity is available, his clan elder uncle will definitely not give it up. Obviously, his second grandfather should also be in the know.

Just then, Jia Daoyi spoke up, "I know everyone's concerns. I'll put one thing here for now: even if we are being used as pawns, with the strength of my Jia family, we will still take a piece of their flesh when we get out unscathed."

The council chamber fell silent. Jia Chengping didn't know who the other party was referring to, but it was clear that if they really angered the Jia family, they would drag the other party down with them.

With the clan chief's words, it seemed as if everything was resolved, and they sat down to drink tea and chat. The atmosphere gradually became lively.

"Chengping, you're something else! Jing Ancheng managed to tell you such confidential information in advance. Tell me, how did you manage that?"

"The elder is joking. I was just helping him with a small favor. He is a man of great loyalty and righteousness."

"Chengping, I'd like to know too. What kind of small favor could make someone give you such important information?"

Jia Chengping looked up at Jia Daoyi, who was holding a teacup and looking at him. Clearly, he also wanted to know.

Jia Chengping's back was instantly soaked with cold sweat. "I... I just used the Jia family's intelligence network to investigate his private affairs."

"What personal matter?"

Jia Chengping knew he had no choice but to speak up, so he silently apologized to Jing Ancheng, "It's about the Zhou family."

"The Zhou family in Kyoto, who were completely fooled?" someone asked.

"Yes, it's the Zhou family."