Chapter 251: [Bonus Chapter] Taking Control
Under the heavy silence of the grand hall, Liu Zexian, her husband, and Mo Jian fixed their calm gazes on the young man who had dared to question them.
None of their expressions shifted, not even slightly.
The plan was simple, and they all understood it without needing to exchange a single word.
Mo Jian had already made it clear before they entered the clan grounds: no weakness must ever be shown.
The arrogant ancient Liu clan would certainly attempt to test them, humiliate them, and strip away their dignity in front of everyone. But they must not allow even the slightest chance for that to happen.
They would not play by the rules of the Liu clan; they would dictate their own.
They would decide how others spoke to them, how others treated them, and in doing so, they would seize control of the entire flow of this so-called reunion.
As for this sudden challenge? They had long expected it.
Watching the three remain utterly composed, smug expressions began to creep across the faces of several Liu clansmen.
They mistook silence for weakness, calmness for fear.
The Liu clan master, seated on the throne with his ever-indifferent face, cast a side glance at his daughter as if waiting for her decision.
He wanted to see how she would handle this.
Would she cower?
Would she lash out?
But contrary to everyone’s expectations, Liu Zexian’s voice cut through the hall like a blade.
"Sit down!"
Her tone was sharp, commanding, and absolute.
Hiss!
The sound of gasps spread instantly. Almost everyone in the hall sucked in a cold breath, their eyes widening as they stared at her.
Her pride, her sheer confidence—neither elder nor junior could reconcile this woman with the exiled young miss they thought they knew.
Even the clan master himself squinted slightly.
Since his daughter and her family had stepped foot into the hall, everything had gone against the script he had carefully envisioned.
He had expected her to falter, to show cracks after years away from the clan’s resources, yet she appeared untouchable.
He had thought he would discover how she had managed to attend the Summit without backing, but instead... she had become unrecognizable.
Compared to her unshakable bearing, the gathered elders and younger generation of the Liu clan looked like mere background characters.
As for the young man she had commanded to sit, his expression twisted with ugliness. Humiliated twice in one night by the so-called exiled miss, his pride boiled with fury.
He clenched his jaw and prepared to retort when an elder woman’s voice cut across the tension.
"Liu Zexian, this is the ancient Liu clan," the female elder said with disdain dripping from her every word. "You must watch what you say."
She had no intention of showing respect.
Once, perhaps, when Liu Zexian was the young miss of the clan, courtesy might have been extended.
But now?
In her eyes, Liu Zexian was nothing more than a discarded branch of the family tree.
Liu Zexian’s gaze slowly slid toward her, scanning the elder from head to toe. Her voice dripped with unrestrained disgust.
"Who are you?"
Hiss!
Another wave of gasps filled the hall. Her words were not directed at the younger generation, but at an elder of the clan.
"You—You...!" the woman sputtered, veins bulging on her forehead as her rage threatened to explode.
But Liu Zexian did not even allow her to finish.
"Quiet. Your voice is irritating to my ear." She cut her off cleanly and turned her head away, dismissing her as though she were an insect.
The elder trembled with suppressed fury, but she dared not move further without the clan master’s approval.
Without sparing another glance at her, Liu Zexian turned toward her son and let out a soft sigh, her voice suddenly laced with exaggerated sorrow.
"Son, wouldn’t you at least take care of your mother? I have been speaking for so long, yet you haven’t even thought to serve me tea."
Her words were laced with playfulness, but everyone in the room heard them as a casual dismissal of the entire clan.
Before Mo Jian could answer, his father leaned in, his deep voice carrying a tone of solemnity that further fueled the charade.
"Son, you must always put your mother’s health first. Wasting time on unnecessary conversations with some people is not good for one’s mental well-being."
A faint smile tugged at the corner of Mo Jian’s lips. He understood the game perfectly and played along without hesitation.
"Father, I understand." He nodded, then casually reached out his hand and pushed aside the expensive dishes and wines laid out before them.
Crash!
The fine plates and jugs toppled to the floor, shattering with a crisp sound that echoed through the silent hall.
The Liu clansmen’s eyes widened in disbelief.
Did he know how much those delicacies cost?
Their anger simmered, their faces flushing with humiliation. Yet the family of three remained utterly unbothered.
From his storage pouch, Mo Jian calmly retrieved a jade jug and matching cups. At first glance, even a fool could tell they were no ordinary items.
The Liu clan master’s indifferent mask cracked for a brief instant. His pupils contracted ever so slightly.
’That... that jug... where did they obtain something so extraordinary?’
Before anyone could ask, Mo Jian poured a fine spirit tea into the cups. White steam rose from the liquid, fragrant and enticing, as though freshly brewed from the leaves of celestial gardens.
He placed the cups before his parents, then poured his own.
The three raised their cups together, completely ignoring the storm of eyes fixed on them.
"Ah... this is so much better," Liu Zexian murmured softly, taking a sip.
"Indeed," her husband agreed, his tone casual as though he were sitting in his own home.
Mo Jian simply smiled faintly, savoring the tea.
The three looked utterly at peace, while the entire Liu clan seethed in silence.
Finally, one of the elders slammed his palm on the armrest of his chair. His expression twisted in fury.
"What is the meaning of this!?" he bellowed. His cultivation aura briefly leaked, the oppressive weight of a peak Golden Core realm surging out before he restrained it again.
The atmosphere tightened instantly, but Liu Zexian only raised her head and answered with cool indifference.
"Why is it," she said softly, "that everyone from the Liu clan always shouts? If you wanted to taste our tea, you could have simply said so. There is no need to raise your voice."
She smiled faintly, her words a dagger wrapped in silk. "Perhaps you are too shy to ask. I understand. I was like that once."
Boom!
Her words landed like a thunderclap.
The First Elder’s face flushed crimson, his fury burning out of control. This was not just arrogance—this was blatant, open disrespect.
He stood abruptly, his qi surging like a tide as his voice roared through the grand hall.
"Today, I want to see what gives you the confidence to act so brazenly!"
His aura burst forth like a storm, shaking the air itself as his power gushed out without restraint.
And under the crushing pressure of a peak Golden Core expert, the hall trembled.
But Liu Zexian and her family... simply lifted their cups and continued to drink their tea.