"Enough!" The Jin family head slammed the table. "If we establish a disciplinary hall, who do you think can take on the role? Is there anyone more suitable than the Grand Elder?"
"Family head, I believe the Fourth Elder can fulfill this duty," the Third Elder spoke first. "The Fourth Elder acts impartially towards everyone. If it were him, he would surely be just and upright."
"I second that," the Second Elder glanced at the Fourth Elder. Indeed, only this person, who feared nothing and dared to confront anyone, showing no respect for anyone, could lead the disciplinary hall without favoritism.
"I object!" the Fifth Elder was the first to oppose. "The Fourth Elder is currently in charge of the Forging Hall. How can he also oversee the Disciplinary Hall? What would be the point of establishing a separate disciplinary hall then?"
"Elder Tie from the Forging Hall is perfectly capable of serving as an executive elder."
"Elder Tie is surnamed Tie, not Jin!" the Fifth Elder immediately retorted. "How can such an important position as an executive elder be given to an outsider?"
"Outsider?" The Fourth Elder let out a cold laugh. "So, Elder Tie, who has diligently served the Jin family, is considered an outsider. No wonder Elder Shen left with people from the Royal Beast Sect. No matter how hard he worked, he was still an outsider. Seeking better prospects was a wise choice."
"How can these be compared? Elder Shen is a Nascent Soul expert, while Elder Tie is merely at the late stage of Foundation Establishment!"
"A pity that a Nascent Soul expert has defected to the Royal Beast Sect, while Elder Tie, who is not as highly regarded, has always been loyal to the Jin family. I wonder if Elder Tie's heart will grow cold upon hearing the Fifth Elder's words, causing him to leave the Jin family in anger."
"Fifth Elder, speak with caution!" the Jin family head said coldly. In the past, he always believed that with the Heavenly Sword Sect as their backing, the Jin family's future was bright. But watching them bicker among themselves, he suddenly realized that at some point, the vast Jin family had lost its unity. The elders of each hall harbored their own intentions and attacked each other.
This was no longer the impregnable Jin family of the past. It was like a sieve, riddled with holes! No wonder someone could infiltrate the Jin family undetected, blow up his courtyard, and destroy their golden goose. It was all because these people were not united!
"I always thought the Jin family was deeply rooted and solid, an unbreakable iron plate," the Jin family head scanned the room. "But your behavior has made me realize that the Jin family is just a pile of loose sand!"
"Family head, please don't be angry."
"How can I not be angry?" The Jin family head trembled with rage. "If the Jin family declines, it will not be due to suppression from outsiders, but because you are destroying it from within! You will all become eternal sinners of the Jin family!"
"Family head, you who indulged your concubine and second son in plotting against the young master are the eternal sinner of the Jin family!"
"Jin Lei, you are insolent!" The Jin family head, enraged, slammed the table and hurled a wine cup at the Fourth Elder.
The Fourth Elder dodged, but the Jin family head's furious attack was not easily evaded. The surging energy ripped across the Fourth Elder's face, and blood dripped down his cheek.
"Although this is the truth, there's no need for the family head to become enraged," Jin Lei wiped the blood from his face with his sleeve, still speaking in a gentle tone that was infuriating. "To curry favor with the Heavenly Sword Sect, you married Chang Fengzhi, the Heavenly Sword Sect Master's junior sister. To appease the Chang clan, you indulged Chang clan in persecuting the eldest son and young master. You suppressed the young master's maternal clan, mistreated the young master, and even conspired with the Chang clan to harm the young master. Family head, you have made a great contribution to the Jin family becoming what it is today!"
"Jin Lei, do you think I dare not kill you?"
"Family head, you jest. You dared to kill your own son, so what is a mere me?" the Fourth Elder said indifferently. "If the family head cannot bear to hear the truth, then I shall not speak."
"Speak, I want to hear what you can come up with."
The elders in the hall sat upright. They were all aware of the eldest son's situation, but the direct disciples might not be. Moreover, if they heard such a secret, would the family head kill them to silence them?
"Originally, the Jin family was very united. The eldest son was diligent, progressive, and of excellent character. But the family head, to gain more benefits, married into the Chang clan. Madam Mu had passed away many years ago, and you remarried, which is permissible. But you remarried to gain the Heavenly Sword Sect's support; this is the first mistake. Indulging the Chang clan in persecuting the legitimate son, the young master, is the second mistake. To show loyalty to the Heavenly Sword Sect by plotting against your own son is the third mistake. Trusting the Heavenly Sword Sect and putting the entire Jin family on the line is a mistake upon mistakes."
"What is wrong with me striving for the Jin family's prosperity?"
"Family head, do you still not know where you went wrong?" the Fourth Elder sighed. "Before, when people mentioned the Jin family, they would praise it as a prominent clan with unwavering integrity. Now, when they mention the Jin family, they spit and call us lackeys. The Jin family has not prospered by associating with the Heavenly Sword Sect; instead, it has declined. Family head, do you know why?"
"Are you lecturing me?"
"Family head is mistaken. I am just an unknown nobody. If I were to leave the Jin family, no one would recognize me, so how could I dare to lecture the family head? I am merely telling the family head what I have seen and heard outside," the Fourth Elder smiled gently. "A reminder to the family head, do not forget the previous lesson of the Qin family."
"Fourth Elder, what you are saying is a bit excessive."
"Excessive?" the Fourth Elder said nonchalantly. "Back then, the Qin family ancestor, Qin Aotian, was a cultivator at the God Transformation stage. The ancestor of the Heavenly Sword Sect had a slightly lower cultivation, and they were as close as brothers. Today, the Heavenly Sword Sect is still the Heavenly Sword Sect, but the Qin family has long since turned to dust. Even if there are collateral descendants alive, they are captured and used as medicinal ingredients, treated worse than animals. Why?"
"The Qin family's downfall was due to the Qin family ancestor's arrogance. Possessing a heaven-defying bloodline like the Myriad Poison Golden Body, he still dared to leave, and his family was annihilated. He deserved it."
"The Qin family ancestor and Elder Sect Master Yue were sworn brothers. Why did the Heavenly Sword Sect not offer assistance when the Qin family was in trouble?"
The hall was dead silent. No one answered. They understood the intricacies, but they dared not speak!
"The Qin family patriarch at that time was married to Elder Sect Master Yue's own daughter. This relationship is even closer than a junior sister, so why did they not offer assistance to the Qin family, but instead allowed others to swallow the Qin family whole, leaving no one and no horse behind?"
"Because the ones who attacked were the Heavenly Sword Sect. If they had offered assistance, wouldn't they be slapping their own faces?" A voice rang out, and everyone looked. The Third Elder glared fiercely at Xiao Man.
"Elders are speaking, why are you interrupting? No manners!"
"She is right. It is because the Heavenly Sword Sect was friendly with the Qin family that they sought to destroy the Qin family!" A figure walked slowly from the doorway and stopped in the hall. "The Qin family is the Jin family's lesson!"