Chapter 529: Xianshui Guard Report: The Second Fallen Prefect?

"Close associates? Why so?"

Qin Wang was momentarily stunned and asked instinctively.

Yu Wenfeng glanced at him: "If the Cangwu Jiang family refuses, forcing them is useless—any attempt to coerce them into submission will inevitably lead to a bloody battle."

"But if we appoint someone close to them as a bridge between us and the Cangwu Jiang family, it will surely give them pause and win their goodwill, preventing further escalation of conflict..."

Hearing Yu Wenfeng's analysis, Qin Wang suddenly understood and nodded.

He silently thought how thorough the State Tutor's thinking was.

Then, steadying his composure, he asked: "Your Excellency, do you have a suitable candidate in mind?"

"Or are you planning to pick one from among the factions led by the Cangwu Jiang family?"

Yu Wenfeng shook his head: "Compared to them, I have an even better candidate."

Oh?

Qin Wang blinked slightly: "Who might that be?"

Yu Wenfeng resumed fanning himself gently and said softly: "Among the many forces in that alliance, even the Cangwu Jiang family, with their Ten Thousand Manifestations True Lord as their pillar, likely see them as nothing more than insects—easily swatted away, not even worth calling friends."

"Moreover, those few families have little connection with the Cangwu Jiang family—if we truly put them in charge of Tiandou Prefecture Prefecture, they won't drag the Cangwu Jiang family into this."

"But the person I speak of will surely make the Cangwu Jiang family rein themselves in and reduce their hostility toward the imperial court."

Hearing this, Qin Wang grew even more curious.

Who could this person be? How could they possibly influence the unfathomably powerful Cangwu Jiang family?

Under Qin Wang's puzzled gaze,

Yu Wenfeng mused: "In recent days, I specifically instructed the Xianshui Guard to gather more intelligence on the Cangwu Jiang family..."

"The speed of their rise defies all logic—their number of prodigies is astonishing!"

"Among the reports, one piece of information stood out: it is said the Cangwu Jiang family's patriarch, Jiang Daoxuan, shares a deep bond with Ding Xuan, the Lord of Wudan City."

"They met in obscurity, and Ding Xuan repeatedly risked his life to shield Jiang Daoxuan."

"He concealed Jiang Daoxuan's true strength and the Cangwu Jiang family's extraordinary nature from higher authorities!"

"He has since been invited multiple times to visit Cangwu Mountain."

"It is rumored that recently, Ding Xuan even took several elderly members of the Cangwu Jiang family stationed in Wudan City as his adoptive fathers."

"All signs point to an extraordinarily deep relationship."