90 Unsealed, Unexpected Reveal - 29.1
After Fan Song Xue came out, he was greeted by his two sons along with two of his grandchildren, one of which is his new granddaughter.
When his younger son; Fan Hui Liang left with his eldest grandson; Li Jie, the only ones that were left behind were his son; Hui Zhong and granddaughter; Zhu Xia.
With a fond smile at his new granddaughter, Fan Song Xue then sent a look towards his son them said, "Zhong'er did anything happen during my closed-door cultivation?"
"About that, how about you let this son of yours bring you up to date? Neither Liang'er nor I were really able to talk to you about what's been going on before you went into seclusion."
"Ah, yes yes... I was in a hurry at the time. Let's go inside my study here then."
With a nod, Fan Hui Zhong took a step to follow when Fan Song Xue suddenly stopped and turned to look at Fan Zhu Xia who was just about to leave to go back to her room.
"Little Xia, where are you going?"
"Sorry Grandpa, I was just going back to my room while you and Father talk."
"Nonsense! You come with us, there are also things that Grandpa wants to talk to you about."
A bit surprised to hear that, Fan Zhu Xia could only nod as she replied, "Oh, alright then."
Without further ado, both father and daughter silently followed the old patriarch and was led into a comfortably-sized room with a desk, a couple of bookshelves and a table with a couple of seats.
"Alright, now tell me Zhong'er, what have I missed?" Fan Song Xue asked.
"You didn't really miss a lot during your secluded cultivation since this past couple of days, Liang'er and I were all focused on our family and consolidating our power. The biggest news that happened is probably the fact that I received an imperial edict that allowed me to build up and expand my own army."
"Build up your army? What exactly does that entail?"
"Well first of all, I can only accomplish this if I return and actually stay here and fulfill my role as the Lei Wangye since this gives me the right as an honorary member of the imperial family. Aside from this development, I was also given all the plots of land surrounding Dark Flames Mountain so me and Liang'er decided to move Fan Estate to the eastern side of the mountain, that way, the estate's entrance will be nearer to the district housing other military families while the Lei Palace is currently being constructed on the western side so that it'll be closer to the imperial palace."
"Mmhm, I understand... Anything else?"
"The current Fan Estate which will shortly e vacated once the move is done, Liang'er left the decision on what to do with it to me."
"As he should since you exchanged one of the properties bestowed upon you by His Majesty with him... Tell me Zhong'er, what are your plans for this?"
"I'm planning on leaving it for my daughter so that she has room to grow on her own."
Upon hearing that, Fan Song Xue's brows raised slightly as he shot Fan Zhu Xia an inquiring look.
"Grow on your own?"
With a small smile, Fan Zhu Xia replied and said, "Yes, Grandpa. Xia'er wanted to train and raise her own people. Father already agreed and I also wanted to help nurture some talents that could be useful for everyone too."
"Is that so?"
"Yes, Father. As you have already realized, Xia'er is an extremely talented doctor and she will be helping us by providing a source of good physicians which will be quite useful for my Lei Palace and the family should you and Liang'er approve." Fan Hui Zhong interjected while explaining the reasoning behind the decision.
"I understand... But are you sure you can do this, Little Xia?"
"I can, Grandpa. Please trust Xia'er with this, Xia'er promises not to let you nor anyone else down."
"Alright then Grandfather will leave this matter up to Little Xia."
"En." Fan Zhu Xia nodded her head with a smile.
Turning his head towards his son, Fan Song Xue then asked, "Is there anything else besides this matters?"
"As for the things concerning our Fan family, I believe Liang'er will be better suited in explaining things to you but aside from that, there is one more matter we have to trouble Father with." Fan Hui Zhong said seriously.
"What is it?"
"It's regarding a young boy who has a seal placed on him... When Liang'er checked him, he said that the spiritual qi that was used when placing the seal was extremely familiar and... and closely resembled yours, Father..."
"Seal? On a boy you say?" Fan Song Xue queried absent-mindedly when his eyes widened as he shot up to his feet all of a sudden, knocking the chair he was sitting on to the floor and startling both Fan Hui Zhong and Fan Zhu Xia.
"Father? What is it?" Fan Hui Zhong asked with worry laced in his voice.
"No time! I'll explain things later, let me confirm things first. Where's the boy? Take me to him now!"
With a quick look at each other, Fan Hui Zhong quickly got on his feet and led his father out the room with Zhu Xia trailing closely behind them.
As they rushed through the estate to go to Fan Zhu Xia's Blooming Phoenix Courtyard, Fan Song Xue kept asking question after question about the boy they found and after each answer they gave, the expression on his face became darker and darker.
"Everything fits! How could I have let this go on for so long... what if something bad happened before I woke up... should have told someone about this before I passed out! Stupid, stupid! Agh!"
Rambling angrily under his breath, Fan Song Xue ignored Fan Hui Zhong and Fan Zhu Xia and practically flew into the courtyard the moment he saw it, leaving the two behind to rush after him.
The scene they came upon to stunned both father and daughter when they saw the Old Patriarch; Fan Song Xue standing in a daze as he stared at the young boy who was startled into waking up due to how the Old Patriarch charged into the room, scaring the two children who now stood huddled together to one corner.
Seeing them enter, the young boy's eyes lit up with obvious relief and a hint of happiness can be heard in his voice when he called out to Fan Zhu Xia.
"Elder Sister!"
As if shocked out of his dazed stupor, Fan Song Xue's eyes widened in surprise when he heard the young boy address his new granddaughter and calling her elder sister.
Turning to face them, he then asked, "Elder Sister?"
Knowing that her grandfather was confused, Fan Zhu Xia shot a reassuring smile towards the children before starting to explain the situation to Fan Song Xue.
"Grandfather, it's like this... The young boy over there is named Shi Hong and the one beside him is his friend Mu Lan Fen. Shi Hong happened to be adopted by his master who was a member of my late clan which is why I told him to refer to me as Elder Sister instead of Miss..."
A few seconds passed as Fan Song Xue processed her words when he suddenly burst out into stunned yet joyful laughter, surprising everyone there.
Feeling extremely baffled at his father's fluctuating mood, Fan Hui Zhong couldn't help but hesitantly call out, "Father?"
Realizing that no one there could understand his current thoughts and actions, Fan Song Xue felt a bit embarrassed but whatever embarrassment he felt completely dissipated when his eyes once more landed on Shi Hong's form.
With his gaze filled with indescribable fondness looked at the young boy and saw his small and skinny form, guilt filled him and Fan Song Xue couldn't stop the tears that formed in his eyes.
Upon seeing that, Fan Hui Zhong and Fan Zhu Xia's eyes met and they both sprang into action.
With Fan Hui Zhong going to his father while Fan Zhu Xia ushered out the confused Mu Lan Fen and handing her to Chun Tao who was staying in the courtyard to keep an eye on the children and was drawn there due to the noise.
After giving her maid instructions and telling her to look after the little girl, Fan Zhu Xia quickly returned to the room where she saw her father standing quietly to one side while watching her grandfather standing over the young Shi Hong who was sitting down cross-legged on the bed with his eyes closed while Fan Song Xue's hands was pressed firmly on his forehead and chest.
Apparently, the removal of seals has begun.
