Sixtieth Birthday

Sixtieth Birthday

[Brain Depository~~~]

The Great Yan Dynasty possessed a vast territory split across nineteen great provinces.

Central Province was also known as the Central Plains.

It firmly occupied the belly of the world, with gorgeous mountains and rivers, and a flourishing culture and martial path that was peerless across the four seas.

Heaven-Bearing Prefecture was the capital prefecture of Central Province.

South of Heaven-Bearing Prefecture City lay the Xie Household.

The Xie Household had rooted itself in Heaven-Bearing Prefecture for hundreds of years, standing as an old-established martial lineage with profound heritage. Their ancestors had once produced a sword Grandmaster whose mighty reputation shook Central Province, making their household illustrious for a time.

Alas, Heaven did not grant him enough years, and this sword Grandmaster suddenly passed away, departing far too hastily. Many core inheritances were left undelivered to descendants and were completely severed.

Without a Grandmaster powerhouse holding down the fort, the Xie Household's hundreds of years of brilliant glory decayed in a single morning, no longer resembling its former peak.

Yet a starving camel was still bigger than a horse; the Xie Household still possessed contiguous mansions and several street-facing properties. Wine shops, inns, apothecary halls, and escort agencies were scattered throughout the city, and their connections reached the imperial court, the marketplace, and the martial world from north to south, remaining a prestigious gate and noble clan that no one in Heaven-Bearing Prefecture dared to easily slight.

Today was all the more a grand occasion for the Xie Residence, as Xie Xuanyuan, the old master of the Xie family, happened to hit his sixtieth birthday.

Red lanterns hung everywhere inside the estate, red silk was draped across the beams, and joy filled the air.

An endless stream of guests' carriages lined the street from the mansion's gates, stretching for miles.

All sorts of noble lineage celebrities, martial heroes, and civil and military officials successively came to the door to attend the banquet and bring gifts of congratulations. Laughter, chatter, drums, and music filled the hall to the skies, presenting a scene of bustling prosperity and family-wide celebration.

In the main greeting hall, ritual music played leisurely and wine fragrance curled in the air.

The current head of the household, Xie Huaijin, wore an ink-colored brocade robe. With an elegant posture and a steady bearing, he stood at Xie Xuanyuan's side, taking turns socializing with guests from all directions.

Xie Huaijin had served in the imperial court for many years, having long weathered its winds and clouds with a broad horizon and a steady temperament.

After taking charge of the Xie Household, he relied on his years of court experience and worldly methods to desperately steady the lineage's decline, barely preserving the Xie family's century-old foundation and winning widespread prestige among Central Province lineages and the martial world.

He raised a hand with a smile, cupping his fists slightly toward the guests filling the hall, and said in a clear voice, "Today marks my father's sixty-year birthday. Thanks to the condescension of all you martial peers, family friends, and relatives who have spared the time to arrive and offer long-distance congratulations, Xie Huaijin, on behalf of my father and the entire Xie Residence, thanks you all for your great kindness and warm intentions!"

Among the banquet tables, a lineage head clad in brocade raised his cup and stood up, his face full of smiles as he proclaimed in a loud voice, "Old Master Xie's sixty-year birthday brings auspiciousness to the household doors, with boundless fortune and longevity! The Xie family has practiced the sword path for generations, handed down for hundreds of years, with a strict family style and a mighty reputation that has long shaken Central Province. Now the estate is even more productive of brilliant talents, with Eldest Young Master Xie Jinlin possessing transcendent natural talent and youth that accomplishes much, his sword cultivation surpassing his peers. With such a qilin son to inherit the family business and bring glory to the lineage, the Xie Household will surely have a continuous extension of blessings and flourish year after year!"

"Extremely well said! Old Master Xie enjoys boundless fortune and longevity, and the Xie family has successors to carry on, deserving to be the model of a noble lineage!" As his voice fell, the guests throughout the hall successively echoed his sentiment, raising their cups in unanimous congratulations while laughter and cheers reverberated through the room.

Xie Huaijin pressed his hand down emptily, smiling warmly as he raised his cup to toast the guests in all directions with an appropriately modest demeanor: "You all flatter me. My father has labored half his life to guard our home, protecting the Xie clan's century-old peace. Today's birthday is honored by your willingness to grace our banquet with your presence, which is the utmost glory of the Xie Household. My unworthy son Jinlin is diligent and making progress in his youth, possessing a meager reputation, but it is merely the result of hard practice and diligent training under the shade of our ancestors. He is hardly worthy of such high praise from you all. In the future, the Xie Household will still strictly guard its original heart, deeply cultivate the martial path, and maintain lasting goodwill with all you neighbors and family friends to jointly protect our region."

His words were humble and his advances and retreats were appropriate, fully displaying the bearing and framework of a lineage head, which once again drew a chorus of praise from the entire hall.

Only, no one perceived that deep within the smiling brows and eyes with which Xie Huaijin socialized, there lurked a trace of imperceptible worry.

Just now he had secretly surveyed the entire audience, slowly scanning his gaze across the guests filling the hall, but he had never found the figure of Xie Jinlin.

Seven days ago, he had deliberately dispatched his eldest son Xie Jinlin—who carried the Xie Household's heavy expectations and possessed outstanding talent—to the Central Province renowned sect, the Azure City Sword Sect, to pay a visit to Elder He Zhaoming, deliver the banquet invitation, and invite him to attend.

He and He Zhaoming had long-standing relations. This invitation was, on the one hand, to maintain past friendship and consolidate the origins of the Xie and He lineages; on the other hand, it was to borrow the Azure City Sword Sect's towering reputation to steady the Xie family's foundation and deter the undercurrents stirring blindly all around.

Yet now the banquet had opened and the guests had gathered, and Xie Jinlin—who logically should have returned to the estate early to report his mission and line up to greet guests—was gravely overdue. He Zhaoming, who ought to have attended the banquet, had also failed to arrive after all this time, leaving no trace.

At this thought, all of Xie Huaijin's inner composure receded. His mind was restless and uneasy, and he secretly surmised that an unexpected accident had likely occurred along the journey.

At his side, Xie Xuanyuan wore his birthday robes, his gaze deep as he had long since seen through the hidden worry in the depths of Xie Huaijin's eyes.

Taking advantage of the gap while everyone at the tables raised their cups for casual conversation, he lowered his voice to ask, "Today the hall is full of guests, so why is Jinlin nowhere to be seen? Where has he gone?"

Xie Huaijin immediately reined in the worry in his eyes, pressed down his chaotic thoughts, and bowed low to reply in a low voice, "Father need not worry. Jinlin is presumably delayed by matters along the way, and judging by the passage of time, he should be returning shortly."

Xie Xuanyuan nodded slightly, his expression calm as he instructed indifferently, "Be sure not to become negligent because of this, and do not treat the honored guests filling the hall with discourtesy."

Pondering for a moment, his gaze rose slightly and he casually ordered, "Since Jinlin has not returned, have Jinghan come out to socialize and act on our behalf to entertain the various young talents at the tables, lest outsiders say the Xie Household lacks proper etiquette and treats its guests coldly."

"Understood, this child will arrange it immediately."

With those words, Xie Huaijin turned slightly and raised a hand, signaling the servant standing quietly at his side to immediately command him to head to the side hall and summon the second young master to come to the tables to socialize and host the guests.

Compared to the bustling noise of the main hall, the seating in the side hall appeared somewhat desolate.

A youth of sixteen or seventeen sat alone in a corner. A set of elegant, refined brocade garments set off the cold and aloof temperament surrounding him. His brows and eyes were handsome and tranquil, his expression indifferent and without ripples, all sharp edges and piercing light restrained within his person.

The sword at his waist was placed horizontally before the table, his left hand resting casually upon the scabbard as he occasionally raised a hand to pick up a mouthful of food with his chopsticks. His demeanor was relaxed and detached—he was none other than the second young master of the Xie family: Xie Jinghan.