Chapter 1208: Flower Name Tag

Seemingly oblivious to his shock, Sang Hong continued, "Your foundation is truly too shallow. Our Sang family cannot compare to those ancient aristocratic clans with long legacies. If you had Yan Xuehan—not only is she a world-renowned grandmaster, but the White Jade Capital behind her is also a powerful force, no weaker than any aristocratic family."

"Oh, right," Sang Hong seemed to recall something and then cautioned, "Don't provoke that Yun Jianyue. She's the Demon Sect Leader; that identity is too troublesome and would do you more harm than good."

Zu An was speechless. "Uncle, how many dishes did you have tonight to get this drunk? You're overestimating me a bit, aren't you?"

His words sounded, well, how to put it? It was like agonizing as a child over whether to marry Liu Yifei or Gao Yuanyuan, only to realize later that it was all wishful thinking.

Sang Hong said with a complex expression, "You even managed to handle a woman like Yu Yanluo. I believe you're perfectly capable."

What kind of woman was Yu Yanluo? She had been the most stunning beauty in the world for years, captivating countless princes and noble young masters in the capital back then.

Back then, he had seen her from afar just once, and for the next half a year, he dreamt of her almost every night, taking a long time to get over it.

Even the Emperor and Prince Qi had been drawn to her, yet no one had ever succeeded in winning her over.

As for the Duke of Cloud County, everyone in the know understood that he was merely a shield Yu Yanluo had deliberately put forward to avoid trouble.

If Zu An could handle the dream woman of all men in the world, what woman couldn't he handle?

Sang Hong even had a strange feeling that his daughter becoming sisters with women like Yu Yanluo and Yan Xuehan might actually be a step up for them...

But he immediately stifled that thought. Hmph, his own daughter was the best woman in the world.

Zu An was speechless. He had been driven crazy by these women all day and truly didn't want to discuss them further. "What's the situation in Cloud County City now? How did you handle my disappearance, Uncle?"

Seeing that they were discussing serious matters, Sang Hong also became solemn. "Xu Yu has been searching for Yu Yanluo for a long time without any news, and he's gradually given up. The main issue is that the Yu family's mine collapsed, which is far more serious than Yu Yanluo escaping. He's been organizing disaster relief efforts and trying to restore the mine, but with little success."

Zu An sighed. "Such violent spatial tremors probably mean it won't recover anytime soon."

"Indeed," Sang Hong nodded. "However, the Duke of Cloud County has been remarkably quiet. I heard he went into seclusion again. During these troubled times, his silence makes me feel like he's planning something big."

Zu An broke into a sweat. "Uncle, you don't need to worry about the Duke of Cloud County. He's genuinely recovering from his injuries."

He was glad that before rescuing Yu Yanluo, out of concern for implicating the Duke, he had publicly announced his seclusion to recover from injuries. Now that he had left, no one would suspect anything.

"Oh," Sang Hong felt relieved hearing Zu An's certainty. After all, there were no conflicts between him and the Duke of Cloud County anymore; any issues would be Xu Yu's headache.

He thought for a moment and said, "By the way, tell me about that Mimic Scale Deathworm. We need to strategize about this; it can be your secret mission, making it easier to answer the Emperor later. Also, we can take this opportunity to impeach Xu Yu. As the highest-ranking local official in Cloud County, for such a major incident to occur under his governance without his knowledge, requiring others to resolve it, is a clear dereliction of duty..."

Listening to him outline the plan, Zu An was dumbfounded. He thought to himself, "These officials truly possess ruthless tactics. They can exploit angles no one would even consider. This time, Xu Yu will be severely punished, even if he doesn't die."

Zu An secretly rejoiced, grateful that Sang Hong was now on his side. Not only did it mean he wouldn't have to face such a formidable enemy, but he could also use Sang Hong to deal with other adversaries.

"Thank you for your trouble, Uncle. By the way, is there any news from home in the capital? We've been away for so long, and Xiaoqian... I'm always a bit worried about them not having anyone to look after them." Zu An had originally wanted to ask about Zheng Dan, but it wouldn't be appropriate to directly inquire about someone's daughter-in-law, so he could only use Sang Qian as a cover.

Thinking of that passionate night, Zu An's heart was filled with mixed emotions. Their relationship was truly too strange.

Hearing him ask about Sang Qian, a touch of tenderness appeared on Sang Hong's face. "Cloud County is too far from the capital, and it's impossible to discuss family matters via a projection mirror... But you don't need to worry. The capital is not just any place, and Xiaoqian has always been witty and intelligent. With Zheng Dan supporting her, there shouldn't be any problems."

"That's good," Zu An sighed in relief. "Uncle, you can have the postal station send a letter back to let them know we are safe and not to worry."

Sang Hong naturally knew he wanted to report their safety and said with a smile, "Be extra careful outside. No matter how exciting things are out there, don't forget the warmth of home."

"Don't worry, Uncle, I'll be back as soon as possible," Zu An said with an embarrassed chuckle. This was clearly Sang Hong's way of telling him not to be swayed by the temptations of the outside world.

However, the other party had almost explicitly hinted that he should consider the Sang family his own.

Whether it was Sang Qian or Zheng Dan...

"That's good. I'll try to delay things here, but we must return to the capital within three months at the latest. You must be back by then, or I won't be able to report to the Emperor." Sang Hong instructed.

"Alright!" Zu An calculated the time; three months should be enough.

Maintaining the projection mirror consumed an astonishing amount of yuan stones. Even an imperial envoy found it unsustainable, and Sang Hong soon ended the call.

Zu An put away the projection mirror. He had originally thought of going out for a walk, but then he reconsidered. Yu Yanluo was still angry and likely wouldn't be willing to see him. As for the others, seeking them out now would only add fuel to the fire.

He ultimately returned to his room, summoned the system, and decided to try his luck with a draw.

All the events that had occurred recently gave him a sense of crisis; having an extra trump card at a crucial moment was like having an extra life.

He fetched a basin of water, washed his face, changed into new clothes, and then burned incense and prayed.

After completing this series of preparations, he began the draw.

Not much time had passed since the last draw, and he now had accumulated some Rage points.

Most of these had been contributed by those women.

Zu An's expression was strange as he wondered, "Am I truly destined to 'eat soft rice the hard way'?"

It seemed that making them angry sometimes wasn't such a bad thing after all.

Zu An pressed "Start Draw." The cursor spun rapidly on the keyboard. Zu An was already preparing to see "Thank you for participating," but it astonishingly landed on the letter "R" key.

His eyes widened instantly. A single draw success?

Such luck made it hard for him to believe.

It seemed his previous rituals had been effective after all.

He eagerly looked at the screen, where a line of text appeared:

"Congratulations! You've drawn the 'Alias Card'!"

Zu An was momentarily stunned. In the past, he always drew items like "Rich Woman's Pleasure Ball" or "Poisoned Dagger." A name this proper felt unfamiliar now.

He continued reading.

Alias Card Description: In a certain technological dimension, a famous company required all new employees to choose an alias from well-known novels to use instead of their real names. During daily work and life, everyone addressed each other by their aliases. The original intention was to bridge the gap between leaders and subordinates, making it feel more cordial when subordinates called their leaders by their aliases. However, as the company grew and the number of employees increased, people found that there weren't enough names from novels, leading many to reluctantly choose aliases like famous lecherous villains or despicable scoundrels. The creator of this item was one such person. To get rid of his embarrassing lecherous villain alias, he dedicated years to research and finally invented the Alias Card. However, after succeeding, he changed his original intention. Instead of changing his own alias, he changed his beloved female colleague's alias to the name of a woman who had been disgraced by that lecherous villain, causing a huge scandal that ultimately led to legal repercussions...

Zu An stared, dumbfounded. Why did this sound so familiar? He continued to read.

Usage Effect: A single-use item. Write anyone's name and an alias on this card, and it can temporarily change the target's name to that alias.

Zu An: "???"