Luoyang Sword House, Elder’s Hall, Grand Assembly Hall.
The Grand Assembly Hall, about to convene, was enveloped in an unusually quiet and calm atmosphere.
“It’s quite tranquil…” muttered an elder to himself as he sat quietly perusing documents.
“Well, the noisiest bunch isn’t here,” remarked his colleague beside him. At those words, the elder raised his head and swept his gaze around the assembly hall.
“The elders from the 3rd Young Master’s faction have been preoccupied with handling the ‘incident’ at the Dragon-Pheonix Branch’s stadium construction site since the day before yesterday.”
“Seems it won’t be easily resolved after all.”
In the seating area for the 3rd Young Master’s faction, only one or two elders were engaged in hushed conversation.
“Thanks to that…” Their heads turned to the opposite side.
“…looks like the 2nd Young Master’s faction is seizing this chance to completely overturn the joint venture between the Eldest Young Master and 4th Young Master.”
“Practically a declaration of all-out political warfare…”In the 2nd Young Master’s faction’s section, a sole elder, Elder Son, occupied a seat.
As long as they had proxy forms from the absent elders, there would be no issues with the vote. Both sides had left behind the bare minimum number of elders.
“…”
The elder who had been observing Elder Son, who simply sat with his eyes closed and arms folded, unengaged by anyone, muttered.
“…So the information about the Jiangnan faction taking a hit from the Luoyang faction was true after all.”
“Their internal situation is complicated too.”
The two men’s conversation ceased.
“…”
“Damn it.”
Unable to focus on the agenda items for the day, the elder finally cast aside the documents and spoke first.
“It’s rare for the phrase ‘calm before the storm’ to be this apt.”
“Turbulent times ahead, turbulent indeed.”
Why did he have such an peculiarly ominous feeling?
“…Now that the 2nd Young Master’s side has launched a full-scale offensive, of course his faction is bound to win this fight. Don’t you agree?”
“…Right. No matter how much the Eldest Young Master’s wisdom is said to have reached the realm of divine foresight, there are limits to resolving matters through unorthodox stratagems in the end.”
“The entire elder’s assembly. The 2nd Young Master has mobilized his entire faction of elders.”
“Indeed.”
It was a resolute declaration of his unwavering determination to seize this opportunity and crush the Eldest and 4th Young Masters.
“…Indeed.”
Nevertheless, there was something odd about the atmosphere in the Grand Assembly Hall.
The 2nd Young Master was marshaling his entire arsenal of political resources.
Objectively assessing the Eldest and 4th Young Masters’ forces, they amounted to a mere handful compared to the 2nd Young Master’s.
“…I heard the Eldest Young Master made his first outing since his seclusion?”
“So I was told.”
Be that as it may…
Among the muttering elders, there was a strange undercurrent that defied logical explanation.
They weren’t supporting the Eldest Young Master per se, nor were they naive youngsters swayed by a subconscious impulse to root for the underdog.
But there was one nagging question that curiously gnawed at them.
A non-logical, non-rational curiosity stemming purely from intuition:
‘Could the 2nd Young Master really overwhelm and crush the Eldest Young Master with his superior forces as they had calculated?’
***
At that same moment.
Luoyang Sword House, somewhere.
A top-level operations meeting was underway.
“Then regarding the disturbance that occurred at the Dragon-Pheonix Branch stadium site…”
“For the time being, it would be best to further observe the 3rd Young Master’s faction’s response.”
“Since the 3rd Young Master’s side doesn’t have a very good relationship with the Luoyang administration, in case of emergency…”
“Then let’s handle it that way…”
Modulated voices echoed through the stone chamber.
“Then moving on to the next agenda item…”
Everyone rustled about, unfolding new documents.
“The deadline for the emergency order supporting Wongak Pavilion is today…?”
“…Today it is.”
As the chamber briefly fell into silence, the modulated voice of the chairman flowed out.
“You all must have received the information that the Eldest Young Master has gone out.”
“Yes, but…”
Even during an ongoing meeting, all important information was set to reach them.
Information from the Luoyang Sword House’s intelligence departments was conveyed to the organization.
The information received in this manner was then delivered by the organization to each of the top committee members.
“The chairman interprets this to mean that the Eldest Young Master has completed all preparations.”
The new female committee member spoke up cautiously.
“However, even combined with the 4th Young Master’s side, the Eldest Young Master’s forces are undoubtedly at an immense comparative disadvantage.”
The new male committee member also chimed in with a dissatisfied attitude.
“Providing more focused support, as we are now, when the 2nd and 3rd Young Masters have found justification that they can accept would be…”
They were by no means siding with the Eldest Young Master in this succession battle, but at the same time, they didn’t wish to see the Eldest Young Master unilaterally collapse either.
“Valid points, but…”
Another committee member’s silhouette shook his head at those words.
“If support for Wongak Pavilion continues further under the emergency order, it would only give those from other factions ammunition to take issue with the Eldest Young Master.”
“But even if not of much help in the face of the 2nd Young Master’s current offensive, support for Wongak Pavilion must be maintained…”
“That may be so, but…”
The chairman, who had been listening to their exchange, interjected.
“Do you believe the Eldest Young Master has no chance of victory?”
The new male and female committee members faltered.
“It seems…”
“Unlikely, isn’t it? We are well aware of the Eldest Young Master’s capabilities, but…”
Small chuckles emerged here and there in response to their statements.
“Ahem, ahem.”
“…We’d appreciate being let in on the joke?”
The chairman wryly smiled at their reaction.
“…It would be nice if we could share our memories. But for now, all I can say is to watch the Eldest Young Master’s moves going forward.”
The Eldest Young Master’s abilities could only be described as truly extraordinary.
His abilities and the feats he had accomplished with them existed somewhere between incomplete records and mutable memories.
As such, they could not be fully conveyed through the imperfect medium of language.
“…”
As the group was momentarily engulfed in silence, the chairman unfolded a note delivered through the metal tube installed in his room.
Confirming the information on that note, the chairman grinned.
“Allow me to share this information with all committee members.”
With his permission, notes entered through the small metal tubes installed in each of their rooms.
“…What is this?!”
“Hmm…”
The new male and female committee members couldn’t hide their astonishment upon unfolding the notes.
In fact, not just them, but even the other committee members unwittingly gasped.
“Have you seen the Eldest Young Master’s first move?”
Still looking at the note in his hand, the chairman chuckled.
“You too will come to understand on this occasion, I believe.”
***
Luoyang Sword House, 2nd Young Master’s faction.
Grand Assembly Hall.
“I trust everyone is diligently preparing their prediction scenarios for the Eldest Young Master’s moves?”
Elder Hahu was waving his folding fan about, pacing around the Grand Assembly Hall.
“As I said from the start, there’s no need to share opinions at this stage! Don’t even do it! Everyone must push their imagination to the utmost limit to eliminate all blind spots!”
He continued his rounds, boosting morale.
“We have resources approaching infinity that the Eldest Young Master’s side lacks! What I’m saying is, nearly all of our esteemed elders in the next room are racking their brains just like you!”
The scholars filling the Grand Assembly Hall were scribbling away, sweating profusely.
They were in the process of preemptively constructing all the possible moves the Eldest Young Master might make while undertaking this joint venture.
“Good! Very good!”
Elder Hahu burst into a grin and applauded.
“Elder Hahu, sir!”
Just then, a messenger dashed in and handed Elder Hahu a note.
“Urgent news!”
Everyone’s eyes were riveted on Elder Hahu.
“From now on, there’s no need to discreetly deliver these to me!”
Elder Hahu instructed the messenger without accepting the note.
“Announce it right away so that everyone in this conference room can hear! Understood?!”
“Yes, sir!”
The messenger unfolded the note and read aloud.
“The Eldest Young Master has currently passed through the entrance of North Mang Mountain!”
Elder Hahu’s body stiffened.
“…What?”
He stuck his folding fan back in his mouth and snatched the note from the messenger’s hands.
“…”
The Grand Assembly Hall fell silent.
Elder Hahu didn’t bother asking the scholars who had been envisioning the Eldest Young Master’s moves to make predictions about “North Mang Mountain.”
Because it was something even he hadn’t considered.
Instead, he shouted at the messenger.
“Tell all the elders in the next room to come here at once!”
***
At that moment, Emei Sect’s Grand Preceptor was suppressing her discomfort to the utmost while meeting with a neutral faction elder.
“…Concessions in Sichuan Province, you say.”
The Luoyang Sword House elder sitting across from her shook his head with a disinterested expression.
“Doesn’t seem like a very enticing deal. For Sichuan trade, Tang Clan is still better. Or the Dali Clan, perhaps.”
“…”
Grand Preceptor barely restrained the force gripping her teacup.
In preparation for the worst-case scenario, she needed to borrow the strength of even one more person.
“…That may be so for now, but looking ahead five years…”
Grand Preceptor’s attempt to press on with his persuasion was abruptly cut off by those who suddenly barged in.
The messenger who entered behind the elder and the messenger who entered behind Grand Preceptor revealed themselves almost simultaneously.
“Hmph.”
Receiving a note from his own messenger, the elder gave a slight nod to Grand Preceptor, who dazedly accepted a note from her own messenger.
“The 3rd Young Master’s side is certainly thorough in sharing information. Haha.”
“…”
As Grand Preceptor ruminated on how the 3rd Young Master’s faction had discerned her destination, which she thought she had concealed, she unfolded her note.
“…!”
“This is…!”
The old woman’s eyes bulged, and the elder let out an exclamation almost in unison.
‘That damned Eldest Young Master entered North Mang Mountain?!’
Regardless of the old woman’s trembling, the elder kept exclaiming in admiration and nodding.
“As expected of the Eldest Young Master…. North Mang Mountain. Ho, well then. Nonchalantly pulling off something unimaginable.”
He examined Grand Preceptor’s face, on which veins bulged across the old woman’s forehead, and slyly smiled.
“…I trust you are aware of North Mang Mountain, Grand Preceptor?”
Judging solely by Grand Preceptor’s reaction – no, even without seeing her reaction – there was no way someone of the old woman’s standing would be unaware of North Mang Mountain.
“Wow. The ultra-luxurious residential district of North Mang Mountain!”
But the elder deliberately began prattling on about North Mang Mountain.
“The very place that families who have attained the highest rank in the Central Plains are sure to secure.”
Since ancient times, North Mang Mountain had been renowned for its exquisite feng shui, making it a famous site for the grave plots of high-ranking officials seeking auspicious burial grounds.
As such, North Mang Mountain was filled with ultra-luxurious mansions, including ancestral shrines, and served as a sort of villa where those retired from the imperial court could enjoy the splendor and abundance of Luoyang in their twilight years.
“If a family hasn’t reached the uppermost rank for generations, they can’t even dream of acquiring a single patch of land there…”
At first, the elder had intended to mock Grand Preceptor of the Emei Sect by exaggerating his exclamations, but soon even he began to feel a growing sense of astonishment.
“The families there wield the most formidable ‘political power’ in the Central Plains.”
He drew in a sharp breath.
“Even the heirs of the main houses cannot freely come and go as they please…”
Families that had served closest to the Emperor for generations.
Retired dignitaries of the imperial capital whom even the heirs of the top clans in the land could not meet at will.
“How in the world did the Eldest Young Master…?”
A heavy silence descended upon the drawing room.
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