The Chu Family compound was littered with corpses, and fresh blood had stained the ground crimson. The overpowering stench of blood hung in the air, refusing to dissipate. Several of Chu Tianxiang's children were also injured.
Among them, Chu Qianqian's injuries were the lightest, with only a gash on her left arm. Her beautiful face, however, was bruised black and blue.
The most severely injured, surprisingly, was Chu Peiyu. A long gash across his stomach had nearly disemboweled him. Blood gushed out, and most of his intestines were exposed.
"Grandpa, what happened?"
The next second, Chu Yan anxiously ran into the courtyard, heading straight for Chu Tianxiang, who was seated at the head.
"Xiaoyan and Xiaofan are here!"
Chu Tianxiang forced a smile, then looked at a man to the side. "Leader Fan, I'll have to trouble you with this matter."
"Don't worry, Elder Chu. The Wolf Fang Association will find the culprit."
The leader nodded, his expression unreadable. He waved to the few men beside him and turned to leave. As he passed Zhou Fan, he acted as if he didn't know him, not even sparing him a glance.
Zhou Fan frowned slightly. After the leader and his men left, he looked down at the small slip of paper that had appeared in his palm.
He gently unfolded it. There were only three words on it.
"Chu Yifeng defected!"
'Defected?'
Zhou Fan pondered for a moment and quickly pieced together what had likely happened.
'Elder Chu must have gotten the call from Chu Yan and decided to teach Chu Yifeng a lesson. He never expected Chu Yifeng to show up with men and nearly wipe out the entire Chu Family!'
'But does that guy really have that kind of power?'
'And even so, would he really go so far as to nearly kill his own father, Chu Peiyu?'
"Qianqian, you and Xiaofan handle things here, then come to the ancestral hall." Chu Tianxiang glanced at the dead Chu Clan members in the courtyard. It would be a lie to say he wasn't grieving, but after so many years of weathering storms, he knew the most crucial thing right now was to stabilize the morale of the Chu Family.
"Honey, I'll go with Grandpa to the ancestral hall first."
Chu Yan supported Chu Tianxiang and left with the others. Chu Qianqian looked at Zhou Fan and slowly walked up to him. "What should we do?"
"Huh? You don't know what to do? I'm supposed to be assisting you!"
Zhou Fan looked at Chu Qianqian speechlessly, only to see an awkward expression on her face.
"Alright, why don't you just sit down, ma'am, before your wound starts bleeding again." Zhou Fan waved his hand. A member of the Chu Clan brought over a chair, and Zhou Fan pushed Chu Qianqian down into it before turning to the others.
"First, check for any survivors. If you find any, get them to a hospital immediately. For those who are already gone, register their names right away and have their immediate family come to confirm their identities."
"Once there are no other issues, send the bodies for cremation. Then, follow your Chu Family's procedures. Distribute the bereavement compensation to those who should receive it, and console those who need consoling."
"Remember, a time like this is when your enemies are most likely to take advantage. Don't worry about the money. Maintaining stability is the most important thing."
As soon as he finished speaking, Zhou Fan signaled for everyone to begin. The crowd instantly seemed to have found their leader, and they started checking the bodies one by one.
In the end, only three or four were still alive; the rest were all dead. Though everyone was heartbroken, there was nothing they could do.
"You seem very familiar with all this."
Chu Qianqian's beautiful eyes shimmered as she watched Zhou Fan directing everyone.
"Oh, this? I learned it from TV."
Zhou Fan said casually, the dismissive tone in his voice obvious. "Let's go. Shall we head to the ancestral hall?"
"Help me walk! You're going so fast, I can't keep up!"
"Where are you holding me? My arm is injured. Why are you holding my waist?"
Zhou Fan was speechless. 'Damn it, why is this woman so annoying?'
'If you weren't Xiaoyan's aunt, I would've kicked you to the curb ages ago. So what if you're beautiful? So what if you have a great body?'
'Damn.'
"Is this better?"
Though he cursed her a hundred times in his head, Zhou Fan could only force a smile and carefully support Chu Qianqian by her arm.
"Mm, that's more like it. My nephew-in-law is so considerate!" Chu Qianqian said with a bewitching smile, lightly covering her red lips with her hand. It was as if she had completely forgotten the terrifying slaughter that had just happened.
'Damn, this woman is only four or five years older than me, right?'
The two of them arrived at the entrance to the ancestral hall and saw five people already seated inside: Chu Tianxiang, Chu Peiyang, Chu Peiyu, Chu Yan, and Chu Wen.
"Auntie, after you," Zhou Fan said, gesturing toward the entrance of the ancestral hall.
"Aren't you coming in?" Chu Qianqian asked, confused.
"It wouldn't be appropriate for me to go in, would it? This is a family matter."
"Come in with me. You're married to Xiaoyan now. If anyone dares to say a word against it, your auntie here will back you up!"
Chu Qianqian declared with surprising authoritativeness, seeming like a completely different person from the one who was constantly finding fault with Zhou Fan just moments ago.
"Close the doors. The secrets we are about to discuss must only be heard by those in this room."
Chu Tianxiang signaled for Zhou Fan and Chu Qianqian to shut the doors, his expression extremely solemn.