Yang Family Scandal

The Yang Residence was festooned with lanterns and colored decorations.

From the main gate to the main hall, red lanterns hung all along the way. The servants hurried about with smiles on their faces.

Waves of meat fragrance drifted from the kitchen. It was spirit beast meat, a rare sight on ordinary days.

Zhou Qi followed the group into the Yang Residence. Looking at the lively scene, his expression remained unchanged, but his mind was occupied with another matter.

"Brother Zhou Qi!" Laifu squeezed through the crowd, his face piled high with smiles. "You were incredible! You took on three clans alone and beat Li Feng, Iron Pagoda, and the rest until they pissed themselves! Now all of Lin'an City is spreading your name!"

Zhou Qi nodded without speaking.

Laifu did not mind and continued flattering him. "Master said there will be a celebratory banquet tonight, and you will be the guest of honor! Oh, and your residence has already been moved to the elder quarters in the central courtyard. Once the banquet is over, I'll..."

"Alright, alright. Thank you." Zhou Qi cut him off.

Laifu froze for a moment, then wisely shut his mouth and stepped aside.

In the main hall, the banquet had already been laid out.

Yang Zhenshan sat in the seat of honor. To his left sat Yang Yuanshan and Yang Jinshan, while a seat on his right remained empty.

Yang Mingyuan sat at the second seat, with several Yang Family clansmen Zhou Qi had never seen seated farther down.

"Zhou Qi, come." Yang Zhenshan beckoned to him. "Sit here."

Zhou Qi glanced at the empty seat. It was the first seat on Yang Zhenshan's right, second only to the seat of honor.

He fell silent for a moment, then walked over and sat down.

Yang Zhenshan raised his wine cup and swept his gaze around the room. In a ringing voice, he said, "At today's tournament, our Yang Family crushed the other three clans and won nearly twenty percent of the Black Iron Mine shares! From now on, our Yang Family will take the lion's share of Lin'an City's weapons business!"

"Congratulations, Family Head!"

"The Yang Family is mighty!"

Everyone raised their cups and drained them in one gulp.

Yang Zhenshan set down his cup and looked at Zhou Qi, his eyes full of admiration. "Zhou Qi, you deserve the greatest credit for today's tournament."

Zhou Qi lowered his head. "I would not dare. It was all due to Master's masterful planning."

Yang Zhenshan burst into laughter. "Good! To render merit without claiming it for yourself is rare indeed!"

He paused, his expression turning solemn. "From today onward, you are an outer elder of the Yang Residence. Your monthly salary will be three hundred taels of silver. You will have an independent courtyard and two servants to attend you."

The moment those words fell, everyone at the table was shocked.

Yang Mingyuan smiled when he heard this and shot Zhou Qi a meaningful look.

Yang Yuanshan's expression remained unchanged, as though he had expected it long ago.

Yang Zhenshan immediately took two booklets from his robe and handed them to Zhou Qi. "These are two high-grade Yellow-rank martial techniques: one is the Army-Breaking Fist, and the other is the Startling Swan Step. Both are private Yang Family treasures, and they are an additional reward for you."

Zhou Qi cupped his fists. "Thank you, Master."

Everyone raised their cups to congratulate him.

"Congratulations, Elder Zhou!"

"Elder Zhou is young and accomplished. Your future is boundless!"

"Please look after us more in the future, Elder Zhou!"

Zhou Qi nodded to each of them in response, a faint smile on his face, yet not a trace of joy in his eyes.

From the moment he had sat down until now, there was only one thing on his mind:

The antidote.

The antidote to the Soul-Splitting Pill.

From beginning to end, Yang Zhenshan had not mentioned a single word about it.

After three rounds of wine and five flavors of dishes.

The atmosphere grew increasingly lively. Yang Zhenshan was in high spirits and drank several cups in succession.

Yang Mingyuan had drunk himself red in the face as well. He dragged a clansman beside him into boasting about how he had possessed the keen eye to recognize Zhou Qi's talent.

Seizing the right moment, Zhou Qi picked up his wine cup and walked before Yang Zhenshan.

"Master," he said in a low voice, "I have a favor to ask."

Yang Zhenshan glanced at him, his smile unchanged. "Speak."

Zhou Qi hesitated briefly before opening his mouth. "The antidote for the Soul-Splitting Pill... when will Master be able to give it to me?"

Yang Zhenshan's smile stiffened slightly, then returned to normal.

He set down his cup and patted Zhou Qi's shoulder. "There is no hurry. You have just finished the tournament, so rest well for a few days first. We can discuss the antidote in a few days."

Zhou Qi's heart sank another inch.

"Master, the Soul-Splitting Pill's onset time..." Before Zhou Qi could finish, Yang Zhenshan interrupted him.

"I know." Yang Zhenshan raised his cup and took a sip. "Rest assured, I, Yang Zhenshan, keep my word. Since I promised to give you the antidote, I will certainly give it to you."

He paused, then added, "It is simply that the antidote is difficult to refine and requires several rare medicinal ingredients. Stay here in peace for now. Once the ingredients are gathered, you will naturally receive it."

Zhou Qi was silent for a moment, then cupped his fists. "Thank you, Master."

He turned and returned to his seat, raising his cup and draining it in one swallow.

Zhou Qi naturally knew that Yang Zhenshan was employing a delaying tactic, but there was truly nothing he could do about it.

The wine had been brewed from spirit fruits, sweet and mellow, yet it felt like a blade sliding down his throat.

Just as Zhou Qi ate in sullen silence, a burst of footsteps came from outside the hall.

Following the sound, he saw two people walk into the main hall, one after the other.

The one in front was an elderly man of around sixty. He was broad and powerfully built, with a gloomy face and eyes that revealed undisguised arrogance. He wore a dark-purple brocade robe, with a fine jade pendant at his waist. As he walked, his gaze never strayed.

Following behind him was a middle-aged man of around fifty. He was thin, with triangular eyes and thin lips. A faint, elusive smile hung at the corner of his mouth as his gaze swept over everyone's faces, and he nodded to them one by one.

The once-lively main hall fell silent in an instant.

Zhou Qi did not recognize these two men, but seeing everyone's expressions, he knew they had come with ill intent.

Still, he was happy to sit back and watch the show. Even the mood ruined by Yang Zhenshan's trickery improved somewhat.

Yang Zhenshan waited until the two men reached him before setting down his cup. His brows furrowed slightly, but he still rose to his feet and cupped his fists. "Eldest Brother, Third Brother, what brings you here?"

Eldest Brother?

Zhou Qi's heart stirred, and he studied the two men closely.

The system panel appeared:

[Name: Yang Yueshan]

[Realm: eighth-layer Qi Refining (Peak)]

[Techniques: Broken Heart Palm (Perfected), Blood Shadow Step (Major Mastery)]

[Weakness: An old injury; his left arm cannot exert force smoothly]

[Name: Yang Junshan]

[Realm: Qi Refining, Seventh Layer (Peak)]

[Techniques: Thousand Illusion Finger (Major Mastery), Trace-Lost Step (Major Mastery)]

[Weakness: Greedy for wealth and profit]

Yang Yueshan.

The Yang Family's First Elder.

Zhou Qi recalled what he had heard about the Yang Residence when he was still a servant: the Yang Family had four elders. First Elder Yang Yueshan and Second Elder Yang Junshan had spent years outside managing the medicinal herb and brokerage businesses, rarely returning to the residence.

Zhou Qi had been at the Yang Residence for nearly two months, and he had indeed never seen either of these men even once.

Yang Yueshan stood with his hands behind his back. His gaze swept over the banquet and lingered on Zhou Qi for a moment before shifting away and settling on Yang Zhenshan's face.

"I heard our Yang Family won the Great Clan Tournament today?" His tone was mild, giving no hint of joy or anger. "Such a great occasion, yet you did not even send someone to inform us?"

Yang Zhenshan smiled. "Eldest Brother and Third Brother are usually busy. I did not dare trouble you over such a minor matter."

"A minor matter?" Yang Yueshan raised a brow and sneered. "Twenty percent of a Black Iron Mine's shares is a minor matter? Second Brother, your horizons as Family Head are growing higher and higher."

As he spoke, he walked forward. When he reached Yang Zhenshan's left side, he patted Yang Yuanshan on the shoulder, signaling for him to move back a seat.

Yang Yuanshan's expression changed slightly, but he said nothing. He pulled Yang Jinshan aside, and the two silently stood to one side.

Hmph!

Yang Jinshan, that blockhead, clearly had some grievance with the two men as well. Though he obediently followed Yang Yuanshan to the side, he still let out a heavy snort.

Yang Junshan followed closely behind and sat beside Yang Yueshan. Smiling amiably, he nodded to everyone as though he had merely come to attend an ordinary family dinner.

Yang Zhenshan remained standing as he watched this unfold, and the smile on his face faded somewhat.

He slowly sat down, picked up his cup, drank a sip by himself, then set it down.

"Eldest Brother, did you come today for something?"

Yang Yueshan leaned back in his chair, crossed one leg over the other, and spoke in an exceedingly casual tone. "Nothing much. I simply heard that our Yang Family had struck it rich, and thought that since we are brothers of the same family, we should share blessings together, shouldn't we?"

The moment Yang Jinshan heard this, his expression changed. He opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but Yang Yuanshan stopped him with a look.

Yang Zhenshan said nothing. He merely looked at Yang Yueshan.

Yang Yueshan continued, "Third Brother and I have spent all these years outside, guarding the Yang Family's medicinal herb and brokerage businesses. We can hardly return home year-round. Even if we have no merit, we have at least endured hardship, have we not?"

"The Blackstone Mine is our Yang Family's main business, accounting for nearly half of our income. Now that the Black Iron Mine has expanded, you cannot possibly continue to ignore us two old fellows, can you?"

Yang Junshan chimed in from the side, his tone gentle and agreeable. "Second Brother, Eldest Brother has a point. We are all family, so naturally we should share the benefits together. Besides, the Black Iron Mine is such a large piece of meat that you cannot swallow it all by yourself. Give us a little—it would only be reasonable."

Upon hearing this, Yang Zhenshan leaned back in his chair, picked up his wine cup, and rolled it around in his hand. After several seconds of silence, he said, "Eldest Brother and Third Brother, why not speak plainly?"

Yang Yueshan raised two fingers. "Give Third Brother and me twenty percent of the Black Iron Mine's profits."