A while passed before Yue Tianhe calmed down.
After a moment’s thought, he waved over some of the servants and ordered, “One of you is to go to the city lord’s manor, another to the Li Family, and another to the Huang Family. Say Yuan Luoxi of the Yuan Family and Young Master Zhang Yuanxing of the Zhang Family are currently dining at our Immortal Gathering House. There’s no need to say anything beyond that.
“I have only one request: be quick about it!”
The servants scampered off to obey his orders.
With this, Fu Shan, Li Tianhan, and Huang Yunchong will all owe me a favor. Furthermore, I can borrow the prestige of the Yuan and Zhang families to boost the Immortal Gathering House’s reputation. Two birds, one stone….?The more he thought about it, the better Yue Tianhe felt.
He was well aware that Fu Shan, Li Tianhan, and Huang Yuanchong would all jump at this opportunity to build a connection with the Yuan and Zhang families.?Even if they failed to build any real connection, they could at least get familiar.
The only one Yue Tianhe didn’t send a servant to inform was Wen Changjing of the Wen Family.
His reasoning was simple: to the best of his knowledge, the Wen Family looked down on their live-in son-in-law more than anyone.?If Yue Tianhe sent someone to inform them, it would almost inevitably lead to misunderstandings.
….
The private room on the second floor.
Zhang Yuanxing apologized, and without any regard for whether or not Su Yi accepted his apology, he turned his full attention toward Yuan Luoxi.
Although Yuan Luoxi was inwardly impatient, she worried losing her temper would make her look bad in front of Su Yi, so she had no choice but to endure.?Any other time, she would have already flipped the table over and stormed off.
Meanwhile, Cheng Wuyong went on chatting and drinking with Su Yi. But then, he was the one doing most of the talking; Su Yi rarely opened his mouth.
As he watched this play out, Uncle Xiong couldn’t help but find it strange.?Even if Su Yi had done the Yuan Family a huge favor in Mother Ghost Ridge, surely there was no need for Cheng Wuyong to treat him with?this?much fervor, right?
As for Su Yi, he occasionally broke his silence to bump glasses with Guo Bing and say a few casual words.?He could tell that although the elderly medicine picker was enjoying his meal, he was very reserved; he didn’t even dare so much as breathe too loudly.
Guo Bing noticed what Su Yi was doing, and it made him feel warm inside.
He was just a low-status medicine picker. The grand fortune of dining with so many distinguished people felt unreal, almost as if he were dreaming.
But his position was so humble, and he was just an ordinary person. It was inevitable that the others would overlook him.?Only Su Yi was willing to chat and drink with him. This made him feel respected, and he felt warm and fuzzy inside.
Suddenly, Yue Tianhe’s humble, impassioned voice rang out from just outside the door.?“Distinguished guests, City Lord Fu Shan and Commander Nie Beihu have arrived.”
Su Yi glanced at Yuan Luoxi and Zhang Yuanxing, then understood.?I’m afraid Fu Shan is here for them.
“What’s Fu Shan doing here?” Zhang Yuanxing furrowed his brow. He’d been chatting away happily, delighted at this chance to get closer to Yuan Luoxi, only for someone to interrupt them. This left him feeling deeply displeased.
But then Su Yi rose to welcome Fu Shan personally.
And Yuan Luoxi, who’d been watching him this entire time, reacted instantly. Her pretty eyes focused, and she shot to her feet, then beat him to the door.
When she saw Fu Shan standing outside, the girl in military attire smiled sweetly. “City Lord Fu, I’d planned to pay you a visit, but you came to see me before I got the chance. Please, take a seat.”
Fu Shan froze momentarily, both stunned and flattered, then clasped his fist. “Miss Yuan, I’ll be satisfied so long as you don’t fault me for showing up uninvited.”
He and Nie Biehu stepped into the room.
The sight of Su Yi in the seat of honor was obviously unexpected. The two of them looked at each other, and their gazes underwent a subtle shift.
But then, both were long accustomed to occasions of all sorts, so they quickly repressed their inner confusion and smiled in greeting. “So you’re here too, Young Lord Su.”
Su Yi smiled and nodded back.
But that was just the beginning. Against all expectations, the Immortal Gathering House was lively as could be today.
Shortly after Fu Shan and Nie Beihu, Huang Yunchong arrived, Huan Qianjun in tow.
Just like Fu Shan, when they saw Su Yi in the seat of honor, they couldn’t help but gasp, and their hearts shook.
They’d long since known that Su Yi had the Spiritjade Marchioness behind him, but they wouldn’t have expected even the young miss of the Yuan Family and the young master of the Zhang Family to make him the guest of honor!
Not much later, Family Head Li Tianhan arrived as well.
When he saw the scene within the private dining room, he was flabbergasted. Waves coursed through his heart, and he couldn’t calm himself down.
So many major powers, yet Su Yi was the one at the head of the table. What was going on?
Despite his vast breadth of experience and vast array of knowledge, he couldn’t make heads or tails of it.
By now, with the sole exception of Wen Changjing, all of the most important people in Guangling City were present.?Any one of them could shake the entire city with a single stomp of their foot!
But today, they could only sit in the last and least prestigious seats of the private dining room.
This was quite interesting.
Su Yi sat at the head of the table. Yuan Luoxi and Zhang Yuanxing sat to his sides, followed by Cheng Wuyong, Uncle Xiong, and Guo Bing.
By the time Fu Shan and the others arrived, they could only take the remaining seats.
The atmosphere in the private dining room instantly dulled. It was a bit strange; although everyone was still chatting, all of them had something else on their minds.
Yuan Luoxi and Cheng Wuyong wanted to get closer to Su Yi, and they were wondering how best to chat and share a few more drinks with him without revealing his secrets.
Zhang Yuanxing was fully fixated on Yuan Luoxi.
Fu Shan, Nie Beihu, Huang Yunchong, and the others subconsciously assumed that Su Yi’s position at the head of the table was due to Yuan?Luoxi?and Zhang Yuanxing’s respect for him.
Li Tianhan thought the same, but he was already starting to wonder if he should stop his son from intervening in Su Yi’s marriage after all…
Guo Bing was increasingly reserved, and he looked unsettled.?He felt like an ant who’d wandered into a banquet of dragons; everyone present was someone he could only gaze upon from afar. It was easy to imagine how tense he felt.
Only Su Yi remained perfectly calm.?His heart was like a mirror; he could roughly deduce everyone’s thoughts, and he couldn’t help but find it funny.?This was what it meant to be a martial artist of the mundane world. They could never escape the shackles of authority, prestige, profit, and desire.
It’s important to know that cultivation was, at its core, a rebellion against fate!
If you wanted to reach greater heights of the Dao and become a peerless, ageless, indestructible, and eternal existence, you’d inevitably have to sever your ties to the trivial affairs of mundanity.
So-called authority, fame, fortune, love, and lust…. They were like flowers reflected in a mirror or the moon reflected in the water, fleeting and immaterial.
Only one’s own strength was a firm foundation upon which to establish oneself. Only this would never change!
Meanwhile, outside the restaurant.
Wen Jueyuan rushed over to the Immortal Gathering House, then stopped outside. He led a group of Wen Family guards.
Wen Jueyuan forcefully repressed his excitement and asked solemnly, “Are you certain that Su Yi is inside?”
His father, Wen Changjing, had returned from Heaven’s Origin Academy just last night, and he brought with him news so wondrous, it left the entire Wen Family overcome with excitement.
Furthermore, that very night, Wen Changjing held a family-wide meeting. It was then that he learned of Su Yi taking first place in the Dragon’s Gate Banquet. He immediately ordered Su Yi to come see him in the clan’s great hall.
But at the time, Su Yi wasn’t at the Apricot Clinic.
Finally, this morning, Wen Jueyuan heard from his subordinates that Su Yi had been sighted. That was why Wen Jueyuan rushed right over to the Immortal Gathering Horse.
“Young Master, just fifteen minutes ago, I happened to pass by the Immortal Gathering House, and I saw Su Yi and a group of others enter the restaurant. There’s no mistake!” the attendant hurriedly made a solemn guarantee.
“Excellent!” Wen Jueyuan hesitated no further. He led his people directly into the restaurant.
“Young Master Wen?” Yue Tianhe exclaimed. ‘What are you….”
“Which room is Su Yi in?” said Wen Jueyuan coldly.
“Naturally, the first private room on the second floor….”?As soon as Yue Tianhe said this, he saw Wen Jueyuan lead his guards up to the stairs. He couldn’t help but exclaim, “Hey! Young Master Wen, wait! What are you here to do?”
Wen Jueyuan ignored him.
He was completely focused on dragging Su Yi back to the Wen Family for his father and uncle to deal with!
When he reached the private room, Wen Jueyuan stood outside the door. He heard conversation and laughter on the other side, and he laughed coldly to himself,?Su Yi, let’s see if you can still laugh when we’re through with you! 𝒆𝙣𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝙚𝙩
He took a deep breath, put his hands behind his back, and glanced meaningfully at the two guards beside him.
Bang!
They suddenly pushed the door open.
The room instantly fell silent as everyone turned their attention to the doorway.
“Su….” Wen Jueyuan cleared his throat and was just about to bellow for Su Yi to come out, but when he saw just who was seated in this private dining room, the words stuck in his throat, and his eyes widened.
It was as if he’d been struck by lightning; his legs quivered beneath his robe, and sweat poured down his back.
He’d been struck dumb.
“Wen Jueyuan, what are you doing?” Yuan Luoxi’s willowy eyebrows knit together, and her pretty eyes glinted with anger.
“I…..” Wen Jueyuan gulped. “I didn’t realize you were here, Miss Luoxi.”
His gaze swept across the room. The world seemed to darken with each familiar face he saw.
City Lord Fu Shan, Commander Nie Beihu, Family Head Huang Yunchong, Family Head Li Tianhan, Yuan Luoxi of the prefectural capital’s Yuan Family….
Although he didn’t recognize Zhang Yuanxing or his Uncle Xiong, Wen Jueyuan knew that just being at such a feast was proof of their lofty status!
“Who is this barbarian?” said Zhang Yuanxing, his expression dark and unfriendly.
“Wen Jueyuan, the son of the head of the Wen Family.” Huang Qianjun laughed as if twisting a knife. “I’m surprised; when did the leading figure of the Wen Family’s younger generation become so ill-mannered?”
“You….” Shock and fury overlapped in Wen Jueyuan’s heart, but when he saw Huang?Yunchong’s?cold glare, he trembled.
“Even your father, Wen Changjing, isn’t as brazen as you!” City Lord Fu Shan said expressionlessly.
Nie Beihu, Li Tianhan, and the others all looked at him with unconcealed displeasure.
Wen Jueyuan felt as if the world were spinning around him. His heart was on the verge of collapse.
How could he possibly have guessed that so many major powers would be gathered in this one room?
“Get the hell out of here!” shouted Zhang Yuanxing.
It was just a few words, but as humiliating as they were, Wen Jueyuan felt as if he’d received an imperial pardon.
However, just as he was about to lead his people away, Yuan Luoxi said coldly, “Wait. You still haven’t told us why you’re here.”
Wen Jueyuan’s entire body went rigid. He scanned this gathering of influential figures, then looked at Su Yi, who sat among them. His lips quivered, and he lowered his head and said bitterly, “Miss Luoxi, my father returned from Heaven’s Origin Academy last night, and he said he wanted to see Su Yi, but Su Yi wasn’t around. Just now, I heard that he’d been spotted at the Immortal Gathering House, so I came here to tell him to hurry home as soon as possible…”