Chapter 322
As the young clan leader, Lu Ling had naturally received gifts from the Tea King, more than enough to serve as tokens of his loyalty. But could he produce them on the spot?
Will the one who started this practice have no descendants?
Today, because Water Mirror Manor lost its Spirit Transformation Grandmaster Realm, he came to threaten them with his power. After the Tea King passes away, don't blame others for following suit and threatening Fragrant Tea Manor.
Therefore, today he can only threaten the Si Clan in his own name, and he must not bring up the Tea King. This is also the reason why he spoke ambiguously and vaguely just now.
Aristocratic Clan have their Aristocratic Clan rules. We are all civilized people, so we can't be too rude. We can't be like highway robbers, stealing whatever we want. We must abide by the rules. If you don't follow the rules today, don't blame others for using any means to deal with you in the future.
"Alas, my voice carries little weight, it's understandable that your family doesn't believe me. Oh well, I'll go back and ask my great-grandfather after this funeral."
Helpless, Lu Ling could only find a way to save face.
The instant he sat back down, he suddenly realized he had fallen for a trap!
The other party's initial suggestion of "not discussing trivial matters" was actually a ploy to lure him into bringing up important issues "worthy of Spirit Transformation Grandmaster's intervention," thereby forcing him into a mutually destructive situation, forcing him to retreat empty-handed.
Lu Ling looked up at the girl in the host's seat and couldn't help but admire her. No wonder she could take charge of the Lineage at such a young age. Her intelligence and adaptability were truly exceptional. She had set a trap, and she had foolishly jumped in without even realizing it. I'm afraid no one else present was aware of the trap's existence.
Today's joint coercion of the Water Mirror Manor may not achieve its desired outcome. Moreover, even if the Si Clan suffers a loss today, once this young woman becomes the Si Clan head, she will eventually lead the Lineage to recovery. At that time, everyone will likely have to pay back several times over what they have already done, unless they are completely wiped out...
Extermination is a major taboo among the Aristocratic Clan, because no one wants to be wiped out. As long as a seed can be left, there is hope for future revival. Besides, Water Mirror Manor has not done anything that would anger heaven and man. Everyone just wants to take advantage of the situation and has never thought of bloodshed.
It's a pity. If she weren't the young clan leader, perhaps she could have used a marriage alliance to turn someone else's genius into her own...
The thought flashed through Lu Ling's mind and he found it quite absurd. The Si Clan respected women and always had men marrying into their Si Clan. Marrying out was considered the same as a man marrying into another family, which was not respectable. Marrying out the young clan leader was just as the Lu Lineage would never allow him to marry into another Lineage.
However, when Lu Ling raised his head and looked at the girl on the stage with a different feeling, her upright posture, delicate features, stern eyes, pure mourning clothes, and noble temperament... she was beautiful in every way. She was completely different from the delicate women he had seen before who always longed to depend on men. She was self-respecting, self-loving, independent, and strong, which matched his image of the perfect woman.
Previously, harboring hostility and regarding the Si Clan as prey that had to be defeated, Lu Ling naturally had no time to observe their charm. But now, having adopted an attitude of appreciation, he suddenly felt as if he had been punched hard in the chest, and for a moment, he was somewhat infatuated.
"Under normal circumstances, it would be absolutely impossible, but given the current situation, there is still hope. If I were to lend a helping hand when the Si Clan is at their most desperate..."
Si Jingyu didn't notice the infatuated gaze on her; after all, there were too many eyes focused on her to distinguish them all.
She raised her hand to stop her mother from announcing the start of the banquet again, and stood up to address the guests. "Going around one by one is too time-consuming. Besides Jiazhuan Pavilion and Fragrant Tea Manor, is there anyone else who wants to speak with the Water Mirror Manor?"
Those with ulterior motives exchanged bewildered glances, caught off guard by Si Jingyu's unexpected move. This was not part of their original plan; after all, doing so was tantamount to making enemies of everyone, essentially demanding that everyone reveal their cards, leaving no room for maneuver. A single misstep could lead to being surrounded by enemies on all sides, requiring immense courage to make such a decision.
The scene suddenly became very strange. It was clear that there were still many people with malicious intent, and many of them openly displayed greed in their eyes. Judging from their postures, they also had an impulse to try their luck.
However, no one stepped forward.
"... We were completely led by the nose."
Having changed his mindset and no longer intending to take action against the Water Mirror Manor, Lu Ling had the advantage of being a "clear-sighted bystander" and could see through the thoughts of everyone present.
These Aristocratic Clan families wanted to hunt down the Si Clan, but they didn't want to retaliate. They all hoped that others would take the lead while they stayed behind and reaped the benefits. Unfortunately, everyone had the same idea, so no one was willing to take the lead.
In addition, Si Jingyu has now made his stance clear: anyone who dares to stand up and be the first to speak out will face the full force of the Si Clan's retaliation. This attitude has frightened many people.
Sacrificing oneself for the benefit of others—such noble sentiments could never appear among powerful Aristocratic Clan that value profit above all else. If someone were to do such a thing, they would probably curse the other person as a fool while laughing and enjoying the spoils, and might even swallow the other person and the Si Clan whole.
The best way to break this deadlock would be for everyone to stand up together and jointly threaten the Si Clan, but unfortunately, the situation has changed.
If they had done it this way from the beginning, there might have been a real chance of success. At that time, the anti-Si alliance was riding high, and everyone could have pressed their advantage. But after Si Jingyu repelled two waves of attacks with a combination of counterattacks and countermeasures, the Si Clan's momentum had risen, sowing seeds of worry in her opponents—what if this operation failed again?
The already fragile anti-communist alliance, after its momentum was suppressed, saw its trust in each other become even more shaky, and it was in danger of capsizing at any moment.
"Perhaps, from the very beginning, we fell into her trap. She completely anticipated everyone's bravado masking their cowardice and their reluctance to risk their lives when undertaking great tasks..."
Lu Ling cast another admiring glance at the girl, his infatuation growing even stronger.
After waiting a while, Si Jingyu surveyed the room and slowly said, "It seems everyone is more eager to eat, so I hereby declare the banquet officially..."
"Wait a moment, my Heavenly Go Sect has another matter we wish to consult with your esteemed sect."
Suddenly, a person stepped out from the crowd. This person had a slightly dark complexion, giving off a sense of weariness and toil. His eyes were slightly swollen, with faint dark shadows under his slightly drooping eyelashes. His cheekbones were also somewhat high and prominent, making his entire face appear even more gaunt. His hands were dark in color, somewhat dry and thin, like nearly withered branches. It was unclear whether this was due to the burdens of life or the aftereffects of practicing some kind of martial arts.
Although he was thin and frail, his eyes shone with a sharp, aggressive gaze, giving him an impression of audacity, like a serpent swallowing an elephant.
Si Jingyu looked at the other person and found him quite unfamiliar, unable to recognize him at first. He then said, "Our manor has never had any dealings with the Heavenly Go Sect. May I ask what you wish to ask?"
The man chuckled sinisterly, "My name is Guan Chong, a nobody. I've heard that the Water Mirror Manor's 'Water Moon Precious Mirror' is incredibly powerful, hailed as the world's number one soft martial art. I'm indignant and wish to challenge your manor with my own 'Innate Twelve Coils' to see whose martial arts truly deserve the title of the world's number one softest."
Si Jingyu frowned slightly. Demanding a martial arts contest at someone else's funeral was extremely impolite, practically a declaration of "I'm here to cause trouble."
If she had heard this request under normal circumstances, she would probably have immediately scolded him, "Who do you think you are?" and ordered him to be beaten out without paying any attention. But the situation is different now.
She looked around and asked, "Is this only disciple of the Heavenly Go Sect who has questions?"
The representatives of the Si Clan conglomerate exchanged glances and nodded silently, but none of them responded verbally, pretending to be mute.
Seeing this, Si Jingyu understood. She knew that this was the last difficult question those guys had given her. They probably thought that since she had successfully defused the previous two rounds of challenges with words, they had decided to switch from a verbal contest to a physical one.
If anyone else had stepped forward and claimed to have doubts, Si Jingyu Guan Chong without hesitation. But since only he stood up, it meant that the other party had already reached an agreement, and she had no choice but to accept the challenge. If she refused, it would be seen as cowardice and give the other party the opportunity to continue their attacks, and they might even swarm her.
"I understand. Since everyone wants to watch a martial arts competition to liven things up and announce the start of the banquet with a fight, as the host, I can't spoil everyone's fun." Then she turned to Guan Chong, "I accept your challenge. Although the Si Clan has never claimed that the 'Water Moon Precious Mirror' is the best soft martial art in the world, we can't let people underestimate us for no reason."
Si Jingyu believed that since her opponent had come prepared, he was by no means a weak opponent, so she decided to personally step down from the stage to compete.
In terms of martial arts, there are very few people in the Water Mirror Manor who can defeat her, and most of them are old. Not to mention her peers, even if the scope is expanded to those under thirty, she rarely has an opponent.
"Miss, you are of noble birth, not someone that just any Tom, Dick, or Harry can challenge. Let me go first and see if he's qualified."
The one who volunteered was Si Jingyu's personal maid, Si Shuiyun. She was five years older than Si Jingyu and had exceptional talent in martial arts, so she was promoted exceptionally, from a branch family to the main family, and was given the character "Shui" (water) from "Jinghua Shuiyue" (Mirror Flower, Water Moon)—originally only members of the main family could include "Jinghua Shuiyue" in their names.
Si Jingyu did not immediately agree, but instead cast an inquiring glance at Guan Chong. After all, this challenge had another meaning. If the other party felt it was unfair and refused to expend their energy in advance, she could not let Si Shuiyun participate.