The Villain's Counterattack

Chapter 341 My kindness, you have to accept it even if you don’t want to

In spring and summer, flowers bloomed in Mantuo Villa. Under the pavilion, Murong Fu was reading a book carefully. Around him were thirty to fifty little girls aged between ten and fifteen. The one in the middle, wearing a white long dress and looking at him in a daze, was his cousin and fiancée Wang Yuyan. The four girls beside her were the best among these little girls, the four maids in red, purple, green and blue.

If we talk about the overall strength of the Murong family, it seems to be somewhat dominated by women and weak by men in the eyes of outsiders. The head of the family is often called the young head of the family, and the real head of the family is the old lady Murong in everyone's mouth. This title alone makes Murong Fu look a little dim in the eyes of outsiders.

While two officials, one civil and one military, emerged from the five villas under his command, the most important foundation, Gusu Academy, was controlled by Wang Erlang of Mantuo Villa. While a fine man, Wang Erlang was the younger brother of Madam Murong and was considered a member of the Murong family's female faction. Furthermore, Wang Erlang's reputation for doting on his wife and daughter was not unearthed; despite having a son, he doted on his wife and daughter even more.

Outsiders often make fun of him for being henpecked, but Wang Erlang doesn't care at all. He only believes that harmony in the family is the key to success, and men are responsible for the outside world while women are responsible for the inside world. How can a man not be a real man if he loves his wife and children?

"I'm admired by everyone and enjoy immense glory outside. When I get home, I need to stop being bossy and arrogant. A warm and harmonious home life is worse than a harsh and cold one. I have a virtuous wife who manages the household well, and my children are smart and not spoiled. What else can I be dissatisfied with?"

Just as Wang Erlang himself said, he lived a happy life. Under his and Murong Fu's guidance, Li Qingluo became more gentle and docile. However, when facing the outside world, she would not give in at all when she needed to be tough. She was Wang Erlang's best assistant.

Murong Fu has four maids, Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter. Although they were also taught by Murong Fu himself and have high status and can be shown off anywhere, they are mostly ordinary personal maids who take care of Murong Fu's food, clothing, housing and transportation.

With the help of Madam Murong, he adopted many orphans and young girls early on, and raised them together with Wang Yuyan since childhood. He taught them the skills of playing the piano, chess, calligraphy, painting, and needlework, and also taught them literary and military strategies. Among them, the four maids with the highest qualifications were selected to be Wang Yuyan's personal maids, and would inevitably become concubines in the future.

And these four maids are the four great handmaids Zhu, Zi, Qing and Bi. Among them, Ah Zhu is flexible and good at intelligence collection and analysis. She studied under Li Kuilei, one of the Eight Friends of Hangu, and is good at disguise. She has begun to contact the Murong family intelligence system.

A Zi is eccentric and clever. She studied under Feng Asan, one of the Eight Friends of Hangu. She has a pretty good casting skill, and is even more proficient in the art of making hidden weapons. She also practices poison. Among the four maids, she is the best at assassination, yet she was chosen as the successor to the leader of the secret guards.

Ah Qing seems a little aloof, but he has a very useful brain. He studied under Fan Bailing and Shi Qinglu, the Eight Friends of Hangu, and learned the art of Qimen Dunjia from Murong Fu. His favorite subjects are astronomy and geography. At a young age, he has become a first-class staff member. He participated in the layout of formations on the major islands of Taihu Lake and made many contributions to the business planning of the Murong family.

A'Bi's aptitude is only above average, but her character is the best and she is also the most meticulous. She studied under Kang Guangling, one of the Eight Friends of Hangu, and her music is ranked among the best in the entire Gusu Academy. She is also an excellent cook. She is very popular at a young age and takes good care of girls like Wang Yuyan. She is Wang Yuyan's designated maid for her dowry.

The Song Dynasty not only valued civil officials over military officials, but also the status of women was not high. However, it was different in the Murong family. The existence of Old Madam Murong, Li Qingluo and Murong Fu's indulgence made the women in the entire Murong family quite outstanding. Even the men were willing to give way, which made the females seem more dominant than the males.

These thirty or fifty young girls were all talented young men, painstakingly nurtured by Murong Fu and Madam Murong. They would undoubtedly contribute to the Murong family's founding mission. Raised in the Murong family from infancy, their loyalty was unquestionable, and their abilities were exceptional; otherwise, they wouldn't have stayed with Wang Yuyan. After all, Murong Fu would be the future emperor of Great Yan, and Wang Yuyan would be the designated empress. She would inevitably be in charge of the harem, and if these young girls were to become members of the harem, they would fall under her command.

If she didn't enter the harem and was just a female official, it would be different, but she would inevitably have to come into contact with Murong Fu, and Wang Yuyan would also have to intervene.

These little girls have been exposed to higher education since childhood. Not only the Murong family's internal education, but also the Eight Friends of Hangu often give them lessons. The "flower-crazy" Shi Qinglu is a frequent visitor to Mantuo Villa and even has her own small courtyard in Mantuo Villa.

Murong Fu, however, really enjoyed the time he spent with them, it was warm and natural.

At this moment, a light sound of footsteps was heard not far away, and the laughter of the girls slowly died down. Wang Yuyan stood up and led the girls out to greet them. Murong Fu looked up and saw his mother and Madam Wang Li Qingluo walking slowly towards them. There were no guards behind them, not even a single maid.

Not to mention that Mantuo Villa was originally their own territory, their own martial arts are also extraordinary. Madam Wang Li Qingluo's martial arts are already first-class, not much different from Wang Erlang, but this is the credit of Wang Erlang and Murong Fu, and Madam Murong's martial arts are even more top-notch. In the entire Murong family, no one can defeat her except Murong Fu.

However, Madam Murong was quite reserved. Even though she usually acted in a tough manner, she rarely displayed her martial arts skills. Apart from Murong Fu, Wang Erlang, Li Qingluo and the other four owners of the manor only knew that the old lady was a skilled martial artist, but they were not sure how skilled she was.

Apart from their own people, only Ding Chunqiu, the "relative" who had suffered several hardships, knew a little about the strength of the old lady Murong. After all, he had used his methods many times, but was blocked many times. He was even secretly taught a lesson several times, which made Ding Chunqiu more wary of the Murong family. He even dared not to approach Taihu Lake, and his relationship with Li Qingluo gradually became distant.

Murong Fu stood up, greeted them, and led them to a seat. Ah Bi and Ah Zhu served them fragrant tea. Madam Murong took a sip before saying, "That group of scholars has been causing quite a stir. Waves of mindless ruffians have arrived, and most have been dispatched by the manor's guards. The few who managed to sneak into the lake have mostly been apprehended. With your uncle and the Eight Friends of Hangu, nine top-notch masters, in charge of the academy, it's as safe as a rock."

At this point, Madam Murong paused slightly, moistened her throat, and continued, "It's just that Taihu Lake is too vast. Ordinary servants and guards can't stop a true master. If Fu'er hadn't used Qimen Dunjia and Wuhou Bagua Formation to hide Zhuangzi, I'm afraid there would be a lot of trouble."

All the water forces in Taihu Lake belong to the Murong family. The patrolling pirates are at least third-rate players, and there are hundreds and thousands of them. This is after deducting the remaining ones sent to Ryukyu and Goryeo. However, their individual strength is still insufficient and they cannot withstand the real masters.

"Recently, someone actually found their way to a hundred feet outside of Chanhe Mountain Villa. If Fu'er hadn't used a formation to change the water flow, he would have already reached the villa." Old Madam Murong said with a hint of meaning, "This person was able to find the villa by feeling. I'm afraid..."

"An acquaintance." Murong Fu sighed softly, his gaze casting towards the nearby dock of Mantuo Villa. He said softly, "Compared to Chanhe Villa, Mantuo Villa has more communication with the outside world. If he can really get within a hundred feet of Chanhe Villa, it should be easy for him to sneak into Mantuo Villa. In that case, give him a chance to enter Chanhe Villa. Let's set the time for tomorrow evening. It's always easier to hide at night than during the day, isn't it?"

Li Qingluo and Madam Murong rolled their eyes at him: You are really a considerate person, but I don’t know whether the other party is willing to accept your kindness.

Murong Fu: You have to accept my kindness whether you like or not!