Speak Now, If You Dare
As the Grand Madame's eightieth birthday banquet approached, a strange tension settled over the clan.
What Yi Pyeong and Yi Yeok had done in the garden was not the kind of incident that could be quietly swept under the rug. Word spread through the kin, the servants, and the retainers alike, and eventually it leaked right past the clan's walls and all the way across Wunso City.
Yi Lun, the clan's Vice Head, and his entire household had vanished without a trace. Even the servants, who usually gossiped without pause, kept their mouths firmly shut when it came to them.
The Grand Madame showed no particular reaction. She certainly had the influence to intervene, yet she seemed to restrain herself precisely because both of her grandsons were involved. This meant that the brothers' actions were tacitly accepted not only by the Clan Head but by the most senior elder of the house as well. The fact that Yi Lun's birth mother was not the Grand Madame likely played its part too.
Yi Yeok could sense the mood of the clan without hearing a word from Ju Taek or So Rim. It was no different from the dens of hardened criminals he used to run with. Power was justice, plain and simple.
The only difference was that a prestigious clan didn't even bother with the pretenses that criminals maintained.
The other families of Wunso City, once the rumors reached them, seemed to lower their heads as well.
Their fear stemmed, naturally, not from Yi Yeok but from Yi Pyeong. An extraordinary cultivator had emerged, and he was not to be trifled with. Should they antagonize the Yi clan and annihilate it, the cultivator would inevitably return to tear out the roots of his family's enemies.
But Yi Jo, the Clan Head, was gripped by an unease that something had gone terribly wrong. He could properly control neither of his sons. His only solace was that his elder son still treated him with filial devotion.
In the days before the Grand Madame's banquet, guests from countless prestigious families came flooding in.
The guest Yi Jo fussed over most of all was Jin Ho-un, the City Lord of Jin City. He was among the strongest martial artists of the mortal realm, and his clan had continually raised Cultivation Seeds, producing cultivators of its own. Cultivating a relationship with the Jin family was of paramount importance to the clan's future.
At last, the day of the eightieth birthday banquet arrived.
The very garden where Yi Pyeong and Yi Yeok had caused their incident was hastily repaired and dressed up as the banquet hall. The finest musicians invited from every corner of Wunso City read one another's next notes with a mere glance, stoking the festive spirit.
Delegates from innumerable prestigious families poured in with congratulations. But their true intentions were aimed not at the Grand Madame, nor even at the Clan Head Yi Jo — only at Yi Pyeong, hoping to make his acquaintance and build ties with him.
The Grand Madame sat in the seat of honor at the head of the hall, a smile gracing her entire face. Even in her venerable old age, she could not conceal her joy at seeing the clan enjoy such splendor.
Yi Yeok, for his part, deliberately took a seat in the corner. There was nothing to gain from drawing attention. An Eun-chae, who had spent the past few days trailing after him under the indulgent eyes of the Grand Madame and her grandfather, naturally settled into the seat beside him.
"Why are you sitting all the way back here?"
"Is that a problem?"
"But this banquet is for your grandmother, and you're the legitimate son of this clan. This section is..."
An Eun-chae glanced around. Spotting a hulking retainer across the way wolfing down the food like a starved beast, she wrinkled her nose slightly.
"Isn't this where the retainers and the guests' servants sit?"
"I'm comfortable here. Everyone else is comfortable with me sitting here, too."
"But still..."
"If you want, go sit in the seat of honor next to your grandfather. Why do you keep following me around?"
An Eun-chae pushed out her lips in a pout.
She changed the subject and launched into one chatter after another. She did her best to explain which of the visiting dignitaries she recognized, but Yi Yeok wasn't listening to a word of it, lost in his own thoughts instead.
Once the banquet's over, I'm leaving. And then I'm going after that fat bastard Nui to get my revenge. How dare he put a bounty on my head? Ten thousand silver nyang? He's dead meat.
As the Grand Madame received congratulations in turn from her descendants and the guests, she beckoned Yi Yeok over with a wave of her hand.
"Come here, child. Do you mean to skip your birthday greetings to your grandmother?"
Yi Yeok grumbled internally.
Child? She still thinks I'm a little kid?
Besides, he hated having his face shown off at gatherings like this. What if he ran into a familiar face later, mid-heist at someone's estate? How mortifying would that be?
But he didn't want to embarrass his grandmother either. Left with no choice, Yi Yeok walked over to the Grand Madame and bowed.
"Grandmother, your grandson wishes you a long and healthy life."
Yi Yeok drew the gift he had prepared from inside his robes. It was the Vitality Blood Pill, sealed in a crystal vial.
"A gift from your grandson. They say it extends the years and adds to one's lifespan. Please stay strong and well."
The Grand Madame was overjoyed. As the Grand Madame of the mighty Yi clan, she naturally had the discerning eye to recognize a treasure when she saw one. But had it been a gift from Yi Yeok, she would have been just as delighted even if he'd brought her a nameless wildflower picked from the roadside.
One of those seated near the Grand Madame in the seats of honor spoke up. They appeared to be the heads of the various families.
"A young man I haven't seen before. Might this be the young master who returned, of whom we've heard so much?"
"It is. By heaven's grace, we recovered him."
Yi Jo, seated at the Grand Madame's side, forced a twisted smile.
"That's right. Just as Mother says, fortune favored us."
The Grand Madame disregarded the malice laced through Yi Jo's tone and said,
"He's been away in the outside world, so he still has much to learn. But he is clever and kind at heart, so I ask the City Lords and Clan Heads here to look upon him kindly."
The clan heads merely smiled. They were all well aware of the rumors that the "returned young master" was an incorrigible delinquent. A few of the better-informed heads even knew that Yi Jo despised him thoroughly. Even if the boy was being tipped as the next Clan Head, there were doubts about whether he could hold onto that position.
Just then, Jin Ho-un addressed Yi Yeok.
"Young master, would you grant this old man the honor of pouring you a cup?"
Yi Yeok hesitated for a moment, but with so many watching eyes, he had no choice.
"Of course, Lord Jin. The honor is entirely mine."
Jin Ho-un chuckled to himself as he watched Yi Yeok approach and respectfully offer his cup. The boy carried himself every bit the part of a young master from a prestigious clan. So this is that same hellion from before.
"I hope you'll visit our Jin household often in the days to come. It would bring this old man no greater joy."
Jin Ho-un said this as he poured the wine.
Yi Yeok merely bowed his head and gave no answer.
The Grand Madame smiled with satisfaction, but every other clan head present could hardly contain their astonishment.
Among all the clan heads gathered here, Jin Ho-un possessed the most formidable martial arts. That he would lower himself and act so warmly toward a rumored delinquent was beyond comprehension.
Was it simply because of his connection to the exceptional talent named Yi Pyeong? But the Jin clan had produced plenty of cultivators of its own — so many that, until Yi Pyeong's emergence, it had held even greater sway than the Yi clan.
Could it be that this delinquent possessed some special hidden depths that the rumors hadn't captured? The clan heads exchanged glances with one another and resolved to learn more about Yi Yeok.
Unbelievable. Being this deferential to a thief who robbed his own house. Old men's whims are beyond figuring out.
That was all Yi Yeok grumbled internally.
He handed his empty cup to Jin Ho-un and poured the wine for him.
"Lord Jin, as the Grand Madame says, I still have much to learn. Your praise is so excessive I hardly know where to put myself."
"Such humility at so young an age."
Jin Ho-un recalled Yi Yeok's arrogant words and deeds from that night long ago and laughed to himself once more.
"I will be awaiting your next visit before long."
Yi Yeok bowed his head in courtesy and returned to his seat.
An Eun-chae, as if she'd been waiting, launched back into her chatter.
The mood ripened and reached its peak. The voices of the flushed guests grew louder and louder, until the banquet hall buzzed like a marketplace.
Then Yi Pyeong rose from his seat and, with a small gesture, silenced the musicians.
Every voice died away. This was Yi Pyeong — the talent the Yi clan had raised, a genius renowned even among the sects, and one who had, by all accounts, already reached the realm of the Immortal. Everyone waited, rapt, to hear what he would say.
Yi Pyeong opened his mouth with a satisfied smile. As always, his voice was soft — yet every soul in the hall heard it clearly.
"I thank you all for celebrating my grandmother's eightieth birthday in such splendor. Taking advantage of this occasion, I have one important announcement to make."
Everyone held their breath. Only Yi Yeok snorted and tipped back his cup.
"From this day forward, the Yi clan shall be the foremost family of Wunso City. My father and head of the Yi clan, Lord Yi Jo, will become the City Lord — and my younger brother, Yi Yeok, shall become the Vice City Lord and the next City Lord after him."
Yi Pyeong slowly swept his gaze across the faces of the crowd, their eyes bulging with shock. His gaze was gentle, yet the people felt as though a blade were tracing the line of their throats.
"If anyone has an objection, will you speak it now?"