Early the next morning, preparations had already begun outside the Ren Family residence. Even the Family Head Guard Squad, which normally would not be deployed lightly, stood ready in full gear. Their armored bearing was no less imposing than that of the Royal Forbidden Army.
As the sun gradually rose, Ren Junyang, Ren Wenxu, and Ren Hanlin emerged from the Ren Family residence in splendid formal attire. They were attending the Imperial Banquet, where they would discuss the Empress Dowager's Birthday Celebration and other major matters.
This had always been a tradition of the Bright Jade Dynasty. Whenever there were major decisions to be made, the emperor would generally sound out the other Four Great Family Heads first, and they would also meet regularly every year. In the past, matters like these had never been within the elders' reach. But ever since Ren Tianxing passed the position of family head to Ren Jie and established the Lineage Council of Elders, Ren Junyang and the others had begun to truly enjoy the treatment reserved for the highest Imperial Banquet of the Bright Jade Dynasty.
They discussed matters there with the emperor and the other great families, seeking benefits for the Ren Family. They now thoroughly enjoyed and eagerly anticipated such banquets.
The Guard Squad of over a hundred men looked mighty and magnificent. Ren Junyang and the others waited a full hour, yet Ren Jie was still nowhere to be seen.
"It's already this late, and he still hasn't arrived. I originally thought we had been too strict with him, which was why last time... Hmph, it seems we still can't let him run wild..." Second Elder Ren Junyang looked up at the sun and angrily slammed his fist against his luxurious carriage.
"Outrageous. More and more outrageous. The Imperial Banquet is about to begin, yet there is still no word from him," Ren Wenxu said unhappily.
Ren Hanlin frowned as well. "Captain Tong, where are your men?"
Seated atop a treasure horse at the very front was a figure entirely wrapped in golden armor, his presence powerful and imposing. He was Tong Qiang, captain of the Ren Family Head Guard Squad.
"They're here." Tong Qiang's voice was low and utterly emotionless, though everyone had long grown accustomed to it.
"Report!" At that moment, a fast horse came galloping from afar. When it reached within less than ten meters of Tong Qiang, it was still racing at full speed. Just when onlookers thought it was about to crash into him, it came to a dead stop within five meters. The rider then clasped his fists from horseback. "The family head has ordered that he will proceed directly to the Imperial Palace. The Guard Squad is to head there immediately."
Rumble... rumble... As the Guard Squad, magnificence and unified motion were what they embodied. Their hoofbeats deliberately shook the ground as though an earthquake had struck. Yet with a mere wave of Tong Qiang's hand, all one hundred and twenty-six members and their one hundred and twenty-six horses moved at once, revealing just how terrifying this force was.
"Tong Qiang... stop! You—" Ren Hanlin tried to shout them down as they departed directly, only to discover that Tong Qiang treated him as though he did not exist.
"You... this is..." Ren Wenxu was so furious that his hands trembled. In the blink of an eye, the magnificent formation had vanished, leaving only their three luxurious carriages. Without the previous sensation of being surrounded by stars and holding the moon, of grandeur and splendor, they stood alone and looked especially pathetic.
Since they were attending the Imperial Banquet with the Guard Squad, they had not brought any of their own people. Who could have expected this...
"Go..." Ren Junyang knew Tong Qiang's temperament. Once a Family Head Token had been issued, he would not question right or wrong, nor ask for reasons. They still needed to see that Hedonistic Young Master Ren Jie and demand an explanation. That brat was becoming more and more excessive. It seemed they needed to have a proper talk with him, make him understand that he had yet to take power. And even if he did take power, with the Ren Family Council of Elders present, he could not act however he pleased.
The emperor's formal Imperial Banquet for the Four Great Family Heads was a highly proper affair. Each family head could bring some members of their family, and most would bring the younger generation they were grooming, allowing them to experience the atmosphere, listen from the side, and learn.
On the plaza before the main gate of the enormous, magnificent palace at the very center of Jade Capital City, some people had already arrived. They were all outstanding juniors from the various great families: Wen Zihao of the Wen Family, Gao Peng, and the Second Prince Li Wenwu, who had come out to receive them. At his side stood Fang Yan, commander of the Imperial Guards.
"I heard something happened to Fang Qi. Is it true? My old man has had me locked up studying lately. If not for His Majesty holding this Imperial Banquet, I wouldn't even have had a chance to come out and breathe. Dark as night, dark as night." Wen Zihao looked nothing like a scholar. His face was broad, his hair somewhat disheveled. If not for his gorgeous clothes, extraordinary bearing, and clean-shaven face, he would have looked like someone just released from captivity.
"Her residence at Jade Emperor Academy did catch fire. As for anything else, I truly don't know." Gao Peng remained as calm and elegant as ever. Even before Wen Zihao and the Second Prince, he carried an air of lofty detachment. After speaking, he smiled faintly at Wen Zihao. "The Wen Family has produced four top scholars in a single lineage over a thousand years. Naturally, the Wen Family Head hopes that Brother Wen can achieve new brilliance. I believe that before long, the Wen Family having five top scholars in one lineage will surely be recorded in history."
"What does being top scholar matter? Over the past thousand years, counting all the special examinations, there have been at least several hundred top scholars. But how many have truly been recorded in history? Isn't it all the same in the end? Take Brother Gao, for example. With your literary talent and knowledge, I am far beneath you. If you hadn't run into that freak Lan Tian, you could have taken first place in any examination over the past century as easily as playing around. So this thing doesn't represent anything at all..." Wen Zihao waved his hand.
"Indeed, if not for Lan Tian..." The Second Prince turned meaningfully toward Fang Yan.
"I concede wholeheartedly." Fang Yan spoke cautiously. Unlike Gao Peng and Wen Zihao, who had yet to enter official service, he had already done so. Though they were all core descendants carefully cultivated by the Five Great Families and could speak freely even around the Second Prince, he had accompanied the Second Prince out to receive guests. He needed to be careful with his words.
Being careful with his words was one matter, but he also felt somewhat proud inside. Why waste words with this pack of Hedonistic Young Masters? He had climbed step by step through his own ability, and one day, he would surely trample them all beneath his feet.
Just then, a Spirit Beast Carriage rapidly approached from afar. The surrounding Imperial Guards immediately straightened and saluted it with their eyes. A Spirit Beast Carriage held absolutely symbolic significance in Jade Capital City. Without sufficient status, even if one managed to obtain an ordinary spirit beast, one would be reluctant to have it pull a carriage, much less dare flaunt it so openly.
And at this very moment, those who dared drive a Spirit Beast Carriage before the Imperial Palace plaza, apart from the emperor, could only be the family heads of the other four families among the Five Great Families. Yet why was there only one Spirit Beast Carriage on an occasion like this?
"Oh, an Earth Spirit Beast Carriage. What is the Ren Family doing? Could it be that Ren Jie had his allowance cut, so he even saved on the pomp of going out?" The Second Prince seemed to be talking to himself, but anyone could hear the gloating in his voice. Thinking further, however, his words carried deeper meaning. The grandeur of one's arrival at a banquet also reflected one's regard for the emperor, and his words clearly implied disrespect.
"Haha..." Wen Zihao laughed heartily. "Interesting. The way he acts as family head is truly... interesting."
Gao Peng smiled faintly as well. Thinking of certain questions he had considered yesterday, he had gone back and reviewed some of Ren Jie's earlier records. The change seemed to have begun after Gao Fei smashed his head. Had he truly been so overstimulated and oppressed that he became even more of a Hedonistic Young Master, or had he been hiding himself all along?
The Wen Family was gradually declining. In this generation, the Fang Family only had Fang Qi and Fang Yan as notable talents. Yet although Fang Yan was a direct descendant, he was not Fang Tianen's son. Fang Tianen clearly intended to cultivate Fang Qi, while Fang Qi was closely connected to Lan Tian. Therefore, Gao Peng had always understood that his true opponents were only Lan Tian and Fang Qi. But Ren Jie had already succeeded to the position of Ren Family head. The Ren Family had flourished immensely under Ren Tianxing and remained the strongest even now. Thus, Gao Peng cared greatly about any change in Ren Jie.
"Ren Jie, although you have not formally taken control of the Ren Family, you are still its head. Moreover, the Five Great Families share breath and branch alike, and Gao Fei is your classmate. Yet you used vile schemes and underhanded methods that nearly killed him. You must give our Gao Family an explanation for this." Just as Ren Jie's Spirit Beast Carriage came to a stop, Gao Peng, who had already made up his mind, suddenly spoke.
The moment Gao Peng spoke, Fang Yan, Wen Zihao, and even the Second Prince were all stunned.
No one had expected Gao Peng to do this. They all knew he was formidable, and even the emperor and the family heads of the great families praised him highly. Yet they had never heard of any conflict between him and the Hedonistic Young Masters.
Even when he had been very young, he had seemed mature, as though looking down upon the Hedonistic Young Masters from above. What did this mean today? Could it be that the Gao Family intended to use this chance to do something to the Ren Family...
"An explanation? There certainly should be one. Your Gao Family still owes me 500,000 taels of gold. Hurry up and pay." Ren Jie stepped out from the Spirit Beast Carriage, with Tie Ta and the fat Gao Ren behind him. The instant he appeared, he extended his hand toward Gao Peng for money.
"Ren Jie, if you weren't truly so rotten and worthless, like a lump of mud, I would want to beat you up personally. Unfortunately, you are not even qualified to make me act. You do not even have the courage to duel Gao Fei. He fought you with only one hand, yet you are still the head of one of the Five Great Families. Though you cannot truly wield power and are manipulated by several elders in your family, your father was such a hero in his day. Why have you learned nothing from him? You want money? If you are willing to fight Gao Fei openly and honorably, then forget 500,000 taels of gold—even 5,000,000 taels of gold would be no problem. And I will give it to you whether you win or lose. Sigh!" At that point, Gao Peng sighed softly and shook his head with deep disdain.
That feeling was ten times harsher than cursing someone outright.
It looked entirely as though he was furious over his younger brother being beaten and was standing up for him. Yet Gao Peng's spiritual sense remained fixed on every minute expression and change in Ren Jie.
This was crucial. If Ren Jie truly had been hiding himself deeply, then with the foundation laid down by his father Ren Tianxing, his danger level would absolutely be no lower than that fellow Lan Tian's. Among the Five Great Families, including the imperial clan, every generation had its strong and weak members. When Ren Tianxing had led the Ren Family, it had reached a prosperity unseen in a thousand years. Though Ren Tianxing had gone missing in recent years, then suddenly returned and passed the family head position to Ren Jie, causing internal problems in the Ren Family and a gradual decline, the great families all understood in their hearts that they absolutely could not allow another Ren Tianxing to emerge from the Ren Family at such a time.
"Meal Ticket Boss, that grandson is insulting you without a single curse word. I hear people like that are the scariest—they're rotten to the core but pretend to be lofty and pure. You need to watch out for him!" Gao Ren turned his head as though whispering to Ren Jie, but everyone could hear his words.
"Pfft..." Wen Zihao could not help bursting into laughter.
The Second Prince rolled his eyes for quite a while before he managed to hold it in. He thought to himself, Ren Jie is quite a specimen. The people around him are indeed specimens too.
"Insulting?" Tie Ta scratched his head. He was rather simple and straightforward, so he truly did not immediately understand all these twists and turns.
"That's right. This type is fucking rotten, even worse than that Gao Fei. I know exactly what I'm doing. Watch how this family head deals with him." Ren Jie turned toward Gao Ren and spoke with great seriousness. He was even more cautious than Gao Ren, keeping his voice very low.
At an ordinary distance, Ren Jie's voice truly could not be heard. But the Second Prince, Fang Yan, Wen Zihao, and Gao Peng himself all stood there speechless.
At this distance, their spiritual senses could already cover the area. Without spiritual sense interference, they could hear even the faintest sounds.
Was he doing it on purpose or what? This was too ridiculous, wasn't it?
"Deal with me? Heh!" Even Gao Peng could not help laughing aloud. This was too absurd. If this fellow was not pretending to be insane and playing the fool, then he truly was just like Gao Fei and the others—a Hedonistic Young Master whose mind had never grown up and contained nothing much.
"Laugh. It's funny, is it? You think you're so damn amazing, do you? You came here intending to lecture me—what the hell are you? Keep laughing. In a moment, I'll make you kneel and cry." Ren Jie seemed enraged by Gao Peng's laughter as he pointed at him.
"I would very much like to see how you plan to make me cry. Unfortunately, you are not even qualified to make me act. The same words: you are not qualified..."
"Qualifications? You think you're worthy of talking to this family head about qualifications? Didn't your father teach you? You juniors were brought here by your elders to broaden your horizons. The Imperial Banquet is where the emperor hosts the Four Great Family Heads to jointly discuss important affairs of state. You little brats came along to learn. Didn't anyone teach you not to spout nonsense? Didn't they tell you that if you talk recklessly here, you'll get your backside smacked when you return? Talking qualifications with this family head? You want to fight this family head, but why don't you take a look at who you are first? Are you qualified?" Before Gao Peng could finish, Ren Jie had already exploded.
Rumble... rumble... At that moment, a formation of orderly thunderous sounds approached. Tong Qiang had arrived with the Ren Family Head Guard Squad.
"Men, seize this bastard for this family head!" Ren Jie had been waiting for exactly this. The moment Gao Peng opened his mouth, he gave off the feeling of a trap, a snare. Even the way he looked at people was unpleasant. Ren Jie could also sense Gao Peng's spiritual sense observing him. This fellow was deliberate; he was not truly a Hedonistic Young Master like Gao Fei and the others, nor was this really about what had happened to Gao Fei. Whatever Gao Peng's intentions, he made Ren Jie extremely uncomfortable.
Now that Tong Qiang and the others had arrived, Ren Jie directly shouted.
"Yes." Tong Qiang, riding at the front, answered without the slightest hesitation. In the next instant, he had leapt from his horse, appearing in midair as he reached directly for Gao Peng.
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