Speaking with a clever child like this saved quite a bit of trouble.
After He Shengyuan finished paying his respects, Yang Lingqing said frankly, "Elder Andao taught you well, and you have learned no poorly either."
At those words, clarity dawned in He Shengyuan's heart, and reverence rose within his chest.
Skipping all those useless steps of self-promotion, he decisively stepped forward, bowed down, and began by thanking her for her grace.
The appearance of this quick-witted child was truly an unexpected delight of Yang Lingqing's journey.
And from He Shengyuan's circumstances, it was clear that the internal struggles of great Lineages were exceptionally brutal as well.
Had an external force like Yang Lingqing not appeared, He Shengyuan would likely have had to keep pretending to be ordinary for the rest of his life. In the end, as He Andao had said, becoming the steward of a spirit-plant garden would have been the height of his prospects.
Such circumstances were difficult to avoid in the development of a Lineage. As its numbers grew, after several hundred years, the Lineage would inevitably become an immense and exceedingly complex collective.
When benefits and resources were limited, open and covert struggles were bound to arise.
Those in charge might even deliberately create internal conflicts within the Lineage, using them to balance the various factions and safeguard their own position of leadership.
This was likewise a necessary method of governance. If there was no competition within a major power, it would be difficult to foster any drive to strive upward.
The sole difficulty was grasping the proper "measure" of that competition. Conflicts could not be allowed to grow too fierce, nor could they be allowed to become too placid.
Too fierce, and they would affect unity; too placid, and they would fail to create