Chapter 177: 177- Fang Clan Meeting [3]

"You jest, Matriarch Fang," Fang Chen said, trying to interject, "but at most, the strongest one here is me and I’m barely even at Golden Core Realm."

Lin Zhaoyue turned her gaze toward him, eyes sharp, unblinking, and cold as steel. "So... did I ask you to open your mouth?"

Fang Chen froze mid-sentence. His jaw tightened, and he immediately sank back into his seat, eyes darting toward Fang Yuan as if silently pleading, Nephew... do something.

Fang Yuan couldn’t help the chuckle that rose deep in his chest. Because this was the first time he had ever seen his uncle like this, in his head, he was chuckling, amusement flickering across his mind.

Then, Lin Zhaoyue’s attention shifted smoothly to the right side of the table.

Her posture remained flawless, but her voice... oh, her voice now carried a gentle, soft lilt that seemed almost saccharine.

"Ah, Elder Yin," she said, the tone sweet, almost coaxing, "you’ve come today as well! Would you please tell me what you need? I will do everything I can to help you."

Fang Yuan froze mid-breath. His throat constricted; he nearly choked.

Ghhk... he made a small, surprised sound in his chest.

He instinctively coughed, blinking rapidly, trying to comprehend what he was hearing.

He had to look up, eyes wide, squinting in disbelief. Is that... the same Lin Zhaoyue?!

Elder Yin looked up, her whole face lighting up as if she had just stumbled into spring itself.

"Ah—Clan Head! And... and the Clan Head’s wife!" she said, waving enthusiastically as though the two were across a courtyard instead of within arm’s reach.

Lin Zhaoyue’s shoulders gave the faintest tremor. Though she managed to school her expression this time, the flush that touched her cheeks betrayed her excitement.

She lowered her gaze, lips pressed together, stealing glances at Fang Yuan from the corner of her eye.

Fang Yuan, meanwhile, only leaned back slightly, arms folded behind his back, eyes half-lidded as he watched every flicker of Zhaoyue’s expression, her barely restrained glee, the way she straightened her posture, even the tension in her hands.

He said nothing, but the faint curl of his mouth suggested he missed none of it.

Elder Yin clasped her hands and launched straight into her report. "So, so—Tushar Village, ah, it’s been doing wonderfully, truly wonderfully! The river water, you see, it flows just as we had hoped, and the little streams, such clever streams, they run in neat little fingers across the streams. It’s really quite a sight, especially in the early morning when the mist hangs low, oh, you should see it sometime! And, yes, yes, of course, thank you again, Clan Head’s wife, for sending those young disciples to help me. Such diligent boys and girls! Though some of them can’t swing a hoe straight to save their lives, heavens bless them, they were willing, and willing hearts make the soil soft, don’t you think?"

She chuckled to herself, then leaned in slightly as though sharing a secret. "But, well, you see, after the digging was done, and the water started flowing so smoothly, some of the villagers, ah, how to put this. They’ve... returned to being a bit stubborn, I suppose.

Not unfriendly, no, not unfriendly, they always smile and nod if they meet me, but when I requested of them to let the irrigated waters flow through their fields, they... mm, they didn’t quite budge. They keep saying they will only listen if it’s young master Fang Tian who tells them to. Only Fang Tian, your younger brother, clan head. If he so much as sneezes in their direction, they said they will rush like he’s dropped gold. Hah! Imagine that."

Her laugh was airy, though her eyes lingered on Fang Yuan, as though hoping he would untangle the knot she herself could not cut.

Fang Yuan gave a slow nod, fingers drumming lightly on the armrest of the Patriarch’s seat as he weighed the matter in silence, threads of thought weaving toward a conclusion.

But before he could speak, Lin Zhaoyue’s voice cut through the chamber, sharp, unwavering.

"Who dares disrespect Elder Yin?" Her gaze swept across the elders like a drawn blade, cold and merciless. "I’ll personally visit this so-called Tushar Village and teach them a lesson."

There was no jest in her tone, no performative bluster.

It was like the raw, protective ferocity of a mother who had just been told her only daughter was being bullied.

Her aura surged like a storm tide, making the air itself tighten.

Several elders lowered their eyes, unwilling to meet her gaze. Fang Yin, cheeks flushing, shifted slightly in her seat as if torn between gratitude and embarrassment.

Fang Yuan leaned back, lips curving ever so slightly. He did not miss the way Lin Zhaoyue’s voice trembled with conviction, nor the unyielding fire in her eyes.

She wasn’t posturing. She meant every word.

Fang Yuan’s gaze lingered on her for a beat, unreadable.

Then, with an unhurried calm tone of his, he said,

"Zhaoyue, Tushar Village is one of our key holdings. my ancestors had once swore to the founder of that village that we would protect the village for atleast five hundred years, there’s another hundred years to go. Do you truly think we can afford to forget that and go back on our ancestors words?"

Lin Zhaoyue didn’t flinch. If anything, her eyes glowed brighter, steady against his.

"Husband," she said, her voice soft but firm, "what they’re doing now is not mere stubbornness, it is an open disregard for your authority. I cannot, and will not, stomach such disrespect."

She turned slightly, her gaze falling on Fang Yin, who shifted nervously under the weight of it. "You sent our adorable Elder Yin to guide them, to protect them. And she has done nothing but pour her heart into their welfare. Yet those villagers repay her kindness with coldness? With dismissal?"

Her expression melted into sorrow, her tone thick with pity. "Elder Yin is far too gentle for such cruelty... too innocent. How could they not see the sincerity of her efforts?"

She turned back to Fang Yuan, her gaze steady. "But husband... four hundred years have passed, and Tushar is still nothing more than a village? Surely, something is wrong with them."