Inside the main assembly hall of the Xiao Family.
By the time Gu Changqing, Xiao Xun'er, and the First Elder arrived, quite a few people were already seated inside the hall.
Occupying the uppermost seats were Xiao Zhan and two calm-faced elders—the Second and Third Elders of the Xiao Family—whose authority was scarcely inferior to that of Xiao Zhan himself.
Seeing the three of them arrive, all three elders nodded with mild expressions.
"Xun'er, Changqing, go sit over there."
The First Elder gestured with his hand toward the seating area reserved for the younger generation of the Xiao Family.
There, the primary seat and the adjacent secondary seat had been specifically left for Gu Changqing and Xiao Xun'er.
Even the younger family members who had arrived early did not dare to sit in the exclusive seats belonging to Gu Changqing and Xiao Xun'er, sensibly choosing to take their places further back.
Gu Changqing and Xiao Xun'er nodded and walked forward to take their respective seats.
Inside the hall, besides the many members of the Xiao Family, there were three strangers.
The three strangers sat on the right side of the Xiao Family members, positioned to the right of Xiao Zhan and the others.
Among the three was an elderly man dressed in moon-white robes. He wore a beaming smile and radiated vitality. Though his eyes were somewhat small, occasional sharp gleams flickered within them. When his gaze landed on Gu Changqing and Xiao Xun'er, he let out a surprised, light gasp.
He had not expected that a small clan like the Xiao Family would suddenly produce two youths who looked so exceptionally extraordinary.
Beside the old man sat a young man and woman, both similarly attired in matching moon-white robes.
The young man appeared to be around twenty years of age, with handsome features and an upright posture that possessed a certain charm.
Naturally, what drew the most attention were the five gold stars embroidered upon his chest, representing the youth's cultivation level: a Five-Star Dou Zhe! To possess the strength of a Five-Star Dou Zhe at such a young age certainly attracted the attention of quite a few Xiao Family youths within the hall.
However, a moment later, they caught sight of Gu Changqing and Xiao Xun'er sitting there with utter composure.
One was a One-Star Dou Zhe only a year or two younger than this youth; the other was a genuine Five-Star Dou Zhe at just fourteen or fifteen years of age.
They were by no means inferior to this youth!
In an instant, the young man's charm plummeted by several notches.
At that moment, the young man's attention remained firmly focused on the beautiful young woman beside him.
The girl was around Xiao Xun'er's age, perhaps slightly older, but what was even more astonishing was that her appearance was on par with Xiao Xun'er's.
Yet, while Xiao Xun'er's temperament resembled a pristine, otherworldly blue lotus, the girl's disposition was more akin to a delicate, pampered peony.
Dangling from the girl's tender earlobes were a pair of green jade pendants that emitted a faint, crisp chiming sound as they swayed slightly.
Most astonishing of all, however, was that upon the beautiful girl's chest were embroidered three gold stars, signifying her strength as a 3-Star Dou Zhe! At fourteen or fifteen years of age, a 3-Star Dou Zhe—her talent seemed scarcely inferior to Xiao Xun'er's.
At that moment, the girl's gaze was fixed admiringly in the direction of Gu Changqing.
It seemed she had not expected that in a place like the Xiao Family, she would encounter such a strikingly handsome youth as Gu Changqing.
"Hmph!"
Noticing the beautiful girl's gaze, the young man followed her line of sight to Gu Changqing and immediately let out a displeased, soft huff.
His gaze flicked toward Gu Changqing with a hint of warning, as though cautioning him that the beautiful girl by his side was not someone he could dare to covet.
Swish!
As an absolute brother-obsessed maniac, how razor-sharp was Xiao Xun'er's perception? Seeing the handsome youth project a trace of hostility toward Gu Changqing, an icy glare instantly swept toward the young man.
Despite his extraordinary background and formidable personal strength, the handsome youth felt a slight chill strike deep within his heart beneath Xiao Xun'er's gaze, as though he had been targeted by some terrifying existence.
"Heh."
Gu Changqing let out a soft laugh, his refined and flawless countenance momentarily dazzling the beautiful young woman opposite him.
Clack! Clack!
At that moment, Xiao Yan, the protagonist of the day, arrived fashionably late.
Quickly scanning the scene, Xiao Yan hurried forward to pay his respects to Xiao Zhan, the First Elder, and the others.
"Father, Three Elders!" Xiao Yan bowed toward Xiao Zhan and the others seated in the center and at the top.
"Heh, Yan'er, you're here. Go take your seat quickly."
Xiao Zhan's expression softened considerably as he nodded and waved a hand toward Xiao Yan.
Xiao Yan smiled in response and turned to look for his seat.
However, the very next second, his expression froze in awkwardness.
All around, muffled titters broke out among many of the Xiao Family disciples.
For in the entire venue, there was simply no seat prepared for Xiao Yan.
Even some of the younger Xiao Family juniors, whose ages were lower than Xiao Yan's, made no move to stand up and yield their places to the Third Young Master of the Xiao Family.
For a moment, Xiao Yan could only stand frozen in place with a dark, gloomy expression.
"Second Elder, you..."
Xiao Zhan, noticing Xiao Yan's predicament, angrily demanded an explanation from the Second Elder seated beside him.
"Ahem, my deepest apologies, I actually forgot about the Third Young Master! I'll have someone prepare a seat right away!"
The Second Elder offered an apologetic smile and hastily motioned for a Xiao Family disciple sitting further down to stand up and give up his seat.
Xiao Yan did indeed have a seat now, but it was squeezed into the rear edge of the hall.
In an instant, the atmosphere in the hall grew even more awkward.
Bang!
"Second Elder..."
Xiao Zhan opened his mouth, burning with anger to question the Second Elder, but Xiao Yan interrupted his father's wrath with a light chuckle.
"Heh, Father, do not be angry. The Second Elder must simply be growing senile in his old age, which is why he forgot to arrange a seat for me."
"It doesn't matter where I sit, but the Second Elder is a pillar of our clan and handles many vital affairs for the Xiao Family. If he is growing senile, it could very well bring many unnecessary losses to our family."
"Second Elder, if you truly are growing senile, I boldly suggest that you should retire and enjoy your twilight years in peace."
With that, Xiao Yan walked calmly and composedly toward his seat in the very back row.
Xiao Yan's words left quite a few people in the hall dumbfounded.
The Second Elder, in particular, saw his aged face turn a solid shade of greenish-black.
Little bastard! Sharp-tongued wretch!
To dare call him senile, yet he could find no grounds for rebuttal.
"Heh, Yan'er certainly makes a valid point. Second Elder, if you are losing your faculties, I can easily arrange for someone else to take over the family affairs."
Xiao Zhan also gave a hearty laugh as he looked toward the Second Elder's gloomy, aged face and spoke.
"Hmph! Sharp-tongued indeed! This old man has not yet reached such a state of senility, so there is no need for the Patriarch to trouble yourself over it!"
The Second Elder flicked his sleeve, turned his aged face away in a huff, and refused to look at the father and son any longer, speaking with palpable displeasure.
"Enough! Today we have honored guests present in the clan. What kind of propriety is it to sit here bickering?"
The First Elder let out a sudden, sharp reprimand, cutting off the gloating father and son and the Second Elder.
Knowing the gravity of the situation, Xiao Zhan and the others dropped the matter of the seating and resumed their enthusiastic conversation with the strange old man seated at the upper right.
Yet, that old man seemed to harbor some unspeakable difficulty, opening his mouth several times to speak before helplessly swallowing his words back down.
Whenever that happened, the pampered young woman at his side could not help casting a sideways glare at him.