Yan Xinmei burst into tears like a rain-soaked pear blossom, leaving all the other Yan family juniors exchanging bewildered glances. At an occasion like this, for Yan Xinmei to lose control of her emotions was definitely not normal.
A shadow of dark clouds flickered across Yan Zhenhuai's chiseled features. As the family's foremost genius, he naturally understood the importance of reading the room. He could also tell that Yan Xinmei had likely been bullied by someone.
"Xinmei, lift your head and wipe your tears. Don't embarrass our Yan family," Yan Zhenhuai transmitted via voice. "Did someone bully you? Which family was it?"
Hearing Yan Zhenhuai's voice, Yan Xinmei's emotions steadied slightly. She slowly stopped crying and wiped her tears away before finally raising her head.
She said in a low voice, "I'm sorry. I've made a fool of us all."
"Xinmei, why are you crying? Did someone bully you?" Yan Qingsang couldn't help asking.
Yan Xinmei's face went pale, and she shook her head bitterly. "Don't ask. I'm fine."
"You don't look fine at all," Yan Qingsang said, shaking his head.
"I'll be fine in a little while." Yan Xinmei forced herself to look composed. But there was no question — she wasn't doing a very convincing job of hiding it.
Even someone like Jiang Chen, an outsider, could tell from Yan Xinmei's behavior that she must have suffered a significant injustice. However, at an occasion like this, if a Yan family junior had been wronged and wanted to get even, it was practically impossible.
Even Yan Zhenhuai, the Yan family's top genius, could at most ensure that no one else bullied them at an event like this. As for reclaiming their dignity with an imposing aura that suppressed everyone around — that was obviously unrealistic.
"Everyone, keep your composure. At an occasion like today, plenty of people are just waiting to cause trouble for our Yan family. If you act on impulse, you'll be walking right into their trap."
Yan Zhenhuai swept his gaze across everyone and continued, "Today, you don't need to step forward. I'll shoulder everything. Even if someone wants to slap our faces, they'll be slapping mine — Yan Zhenhuai's. As long as I'm here, I'll be their primary target, not you. Understood?"
Yan Zhenhuai's words gave everyone else in the Yan family pause.
"Brother Huai, how can we let you do that alone? We're all Yan family juniors — we share hardships together and share blessings together. At worst, we shoulder it together!"
"Shoulder it together? How? Do you think this is a battlefield? Open spears are easy to dodge, but hidden arrows are hard to guard against. You'd all better use your heads."
Yan Zhenhuai's awareness and perspective exceeded those of his peers by a wide margin. There were certain matters he naturally saw more clearly.
Under Yan Zhenhuai's warning, the young Yan family members gradually suppressed their emotions. They weren't stupid — they knew that with their strength and status, they were definitely not the main players at an occasion like this. If someone truly wanted to cause trouble for the Yan family, it would most likely fall on Yan Zhenhuai to handle it.
Jiang Chen observed Yan Zhenhuai from the corner of his eye and found himself with a bit more respect for the man. As the family's foremost genius, Yan Zhenhuai truly had a sense of responsibility. He was somewhat different from the top geniuses of other families in that regard. In Yan Zhenhuai, Jiang Chen saw the bearing expected of a family's leader.
Just as the atmosphere was growing awkward, someone suddenly called out from the crowd, "Miss Ying is about to come out! Everyone, keep your eyes peeled! Let's welcome Miss Ying!"
At this point, the guests at every table had basically all arrived. And the young miss of the Xiahou family, who had kept everyone waiting, finally made her entrance.
Xiahou Ying wore a light pink gown, as lovely as her name — she was as beautiful as a cherry blossom. Among young women, Xiahou Ying was exceptionally tall and slender. What was even more rare was her impossibly slender waist, which gave her figure a more elegant curve.
Flanked by several Xiahou family geniuses, Xiahou Ying wore a bright smile as she waved in every direction, welcoming and thanking her guests.
The moment Xiahou Ying appeared, the emcee responsible for energizing the atmosphere launched into a flurry of words.
"Distinguished guests, today is the birthday celebration for Miss Xiahou Ying of the Xiahou family. All of you who have come to attend this banquet are outstanding geniuses of our Eternal Divine Kingdom. Being here today proves that you are the future of the Eternal Divine Kingdom. Perhaps, among you, will be the one who becomes Miss Xiahou Ying's future Dao companion!"
"Now then, let's proceed to the first segment. Honored guests, please present your gifts. None of the gifts will be publicly displayed, but Miss Xiahou Ying will select her three favorite gifts. She will also select three gifts that she likes the least."
A gift ceremony — they actually needed a whole ceremony just for presenting gifts?
Jiang Chen found this somewhat absurd, but he didn't pay it too much mind.
However, Yan Jinnan clearly had no intention of letting the matter drop. He let out a cold chuckle and said, "Master Shaoyuan, Brother Huai thought highly enough of you to grant you a seat. Now that you're seated, you're a guest here. Surely you don't intend to just sit there and stare? Coming empty-handed just to eat and drink for free?"
Yan Qingsang didn't like hearing that at all.
"Yan Jinnan, what do you mean by eating and drinking for free? My gift is two pieces of Blue Smoke Island barren jade — one piece of ancient jade for each of us. Isn't that enough?"
"Tsk, tsk. One gift split into two? Isn't that just inviting everyone to laugh at our Yan family's poverty?" Yan Jinnan mocked.
"Brother Huai, I'm really not trying to stir up trouble. But if word of this gets out to other powers, they'll probably laugh at our Yan family's poor manners again."
For all that Yan Jinnan claimed he wasn't stirring up trouble, he was doing exactly that.
Yan Qingsang opened his mouth to retort, but Jiang Chen smiled slightly and said, "Who says I haven't prepared a gift?"
"Oh? A wandering cultivator like you, scrambling together something at the last minute — how impressive a gift could you possibly come up with? Another piece of ancient jade, I suppose? For all we know, those are nothing but tricks," Yan Jinnan said, his resentment palpable. "Besides, giving the same gift as someone else — don't you think that's embarrassing?"