Night had fallen, and Pan Long had long since taken his leave. But the Wu Family elders were still meeting to discuss the matter.
"I got carried away in my excitement today and lost my sense of proportion," Wu Shansong, the current head of the Wu Family, sighed. "Thinking back, we handled this poorly. Pan Long is a man of extraordinary standing. For our family to marry into his is rather like reaching above our station."
"Then we're reaching above our station. We've already agreed to it, and backing out now would offend him!" his uncle Wu Shoushou urged. "Business is like a vine: when there's a chance to climb, you climb. Our family has never found the right opportunity to reach higher. Now that one's appeared, what's wrong with taking it?"
Wu Shansong nodded, but worry still filled his face. "What concerns me is that our family may not be able to bear the weight of this marriage."
"What do you mean?" asked another uncle, Wu Shuifu.
Wu Shansong sighed. "You uncles can see the state Great Xia is in now, can't you?"
Wu Shoushou said, "Nothing's clear. There's great opportunity, but great danger too... In any case, until the dust settles, our family absolutely won't go to Central Province. Hadn't we already decided that?"
"Yes. Our family has lasted over a dozen generations, but to be honest, we're no illustrious clan in Great Xia. We don't have a single reliable True Person Grandmaster in the martial world, nor have we forged any dependable ties with powerful officials. When all is peaceful, that's fine. But if turmoil comes, whether someone wants to slaughter a pig for its meat or kill a chicken to warn the monkeys, our family is well suited to being the pig or the chicken."
Wu