NABC Book 6: Chapter 16
Book 6: Chapter 16
Book 6: Chapter 16
Luoyang Sword House.
2nd Young Master’s Faction, Grand Assembly Hall.
Elder Hahu remained motionless, unable to even think about lighting the fresh folding fan he was biting.
‘No need to panic.’
Elder Son and the Jiangnan thugs had recently been bafflingly outmaneuvered by the Eldest Young Master.
But that was only an extremely small fraction of the forces the 2nd Young Master’s faction possessed.
As an actual example, hadn’t the outcome been entirely different when the 2nd Young Master’s faction had exerted its full strength before?
Back then, they had surely emerged victorious.
‘We permitted the Eldest Young Master’s release from seclusion. However...’
Instead, hadn’t they succeeded in reclaiming his most threatening asset, the ‘House’s Seal’?
‘This time is no different.’
This time too, just like then, the 2nd Young Master faction’s practically full might was being deployed here.
All their power was being concentrated.
‘Right. It’s no different from then.’
Right now, they had merely seen the opponent’s opening move, and the grand game was only just beginning.
He had simply been momentarily shaken in his composure by the ‘North Mang Mountain’ card the opponent had abruptly pulled out.
Just then, a scholar spoke to him.
“Elder Hahu. All the elders have gathered.”
Puffing on his folding fan with the ‘three-fire-true-qi’ technique, Elder Hahu turned to face the assembly.
‘As long as we respond calmly, we’ll be victorious this time too.’
His usual self-assured smile returned to his lips.
***
Luoyang Sword House.
Elder’s Hall, Grand Assembly Hall.
Though sitting alone with no one engaging him in conversation, Elder Son wasn’t dwelling on any sense of isolation or loneliness.
Eyes closed, mustering his concentration, he was merely reflecting on all that had transpired thus far.
‘Where did it go wrong...?’
The Eldest Young Master had undoubtedly been swept up in their scheme, ultimately relinquishing his most powerful weapon, the Family Head’s Seal.
But things had been different ever since.
In the process of carrying out the joint venture with the 4th Young Master, the Eldest Young Master had deftly evaded every obstacle.
Not even once had he given them a proper victory.
The finger tapping on his folded arms came to a halt.
‘...Could it be?’
What if the Eldest Young Master had lulled them into complacency by relinquishing the Family Head’s Seal?
What if he had instead deceived them through the unavoidable surrender of the Family Head’s Seal?
And by doing so, induced only his allies to deploy forces sufficient to contend with them during the most vulnerable point, the early stages of the joint venture?
At that moment, a bead of cold sweat trickled down his forehead.
“It’s completely empty today!”
The booming remark of the Elder’s Hall Master shattered the state of extreme concentration he had been maintaining.
“Come on, everyone! Buck up! I’m the busiest and most exhausted person here!”
With the declaration of the session’s opening, the ‘ominous delusion’ about the Eldest Young Master was pushed out of Elder Son’s mind.
‘It’s a notion based on an assumption atop an assumption to begin with. No need to consider it more seriously.’
Right now, he had all the proxy forms from his fellow faction elders.
It was an unprecedented situation where he couldn’t consult with anyone.
It was a time to focus wholly on the Elder’s Assembly.
***
A little earlier.
Luoyang, North Mang Mountain.
Entrance to the ultra-luxurious residential district, checkpoint.
“Affiliation?”
The Emei Sect’s proctor hurriedly answered.
“Ah, Emei Sect.”
“Identification?”
As the other party’s sharp gaze swept the inside of the carriage, the proctor hastily rummaged through her robes and handed over her clan badge and the Emei Sect’s identification documents.
There was no way the 2nd Young Master’s faction elders wouldn’t make the same conjecture as the proctor.
“Here! It’s here!”
An elder pulled out a scroll from a pile of documents.
“I had investigated just in case something like this happened.”
With a slightly smug expression, he unfolded the scroll.
“This is a list of all those who sent congratulatory letters to Wongak Pavilion after the Eldest Young Master ended his seclusion.”
It was an investigation made possible by the fact that those who had visited to deliver the letters loudly announced their clans and the letter’s sender at the entrance of Wongak Pavilion.
“Here, grab that end and unroll it!”
The expressions of those who had initially wondered what kind of scroll it was turned to astonishment.
The list was so long that it could only be compiled in scroll form.
“Everyone! Quickly find out which of the Sixteen Clans sent a letter to the Eldest Young Master!”
Everyone’s eyes were fixed on the list that stretched out longer than a person’s height.
“Here!”
A scholar skilled in speed reading pointed to a spot on the list.
“The Kong Clan! The clan that produced Prime Ministers for three generations!”
Eternal Teacher, Confucian Classics Remain Here, Hall of Virtue and Benevolence, Grand Synthesis of Sages, Unprecedented Guide for All.
The Kong Clan was the direct descendant clan of the great teacher, Confucius, referred to by such glorious epithets.
“Hmm...”
The elder who had compiled the congratulatory letter list stroked his long beard, recalling his memory.
“A figure from the Kong Clan who has a connection to the Eldest Young Master...”
An elder from the Foreign Bureau clapped his hands.
“I remember! I once heard a rumor that the retired previous Clan Head occasionally spoke of his ties to the Eldest Young Master!”
“It just had to be the previous Clan Head...!”
As everyone gulped, Elder Hahu raised his head and looked toward the entrance of the Grand Assembly Hall.
“Still no news from the site?! We need to confirm whether the clan the Eldest Young Master is visiting is indeed the Kong Clan!”
Amidst the urgently unfolding situation, a scholar waiting at the entrance shouted, sweating profusely.
“N-not yet!”
Other elders nearby shook their heads.
“Elder Kang would have barely left the main house by now.”
At those words, Elder Hahu gnashed on his folding fan.
To begin with, obtaining informants in North Mang Mountain was as difficult as plucking stars from the sky, and it was impossible for an intelligence agent to personally enter and gather information.
Thus, they had no choice but to directly dispatch an elder to the scene.
“...For now, under the premise that the Kong Clan is indeed the Eldest Young Master’s planned destination, all we can do is craft potential scenarios.”
At an elder’s mutter, Elder Hahu raised his head and shouted toward the scholars.
“You all heard! Begin immediately!”
Even before he shouted, the astute scholars were already taking action.
“No matter if it’s one of those Sixteen Clans, as long as we clearly grasp the situation, we can sufficiently intervene on our end as well!”
***
Luoyang Sword House, Supreme Council Meeting.
“The Kong Clan?!”
The committee members murmured among themselves.
Tracking the Eldest Young Master’s movements in real-time through the intelligence departments, the committee members were obtaining faster and more accurate information than anyone else within the Luoyang Sword House.
“...There was definitely information that the Eldest Young Master was close to the Kong Clan’s previous Clan Head. I remember it now.”
Hearing the new female committee member’s words, the new male committee member muttered.
“Did he request a meeting through the Kong Clan members who visited him after ending his seclusion...?”
“The Eldest Young Master’s connections are truly astounding. At that age, without the backing of his maternal lineage, and while in seclusion at that, he built such a network...”
Listening to their conversation, a committee member spoke up.
“The Eldest Young Master requested the meeting. Is that really the case?”
At his words, the two new committee members expressed their puzzlement.
“What do you...?”
“Then are you saying the Eldest Young Master just decided to visit, relying solely on his friendship, without even a request?”
Another committee member said with a laugh.
“Why do you think the Kong Clan didn’t take the initiative to send the Eldest Young Master a congratulatory letter along with an invitation?”