Chapter 37: Family Division

Yun Chen never understood why everyone was afraid of Huo Gannian.

Even Ye Yan, the personal guard who had been guarding him closely for more than five years, felt a mixture of respect and fear.

It was not until the day of the Huo family's meeting that Yun Chen truly witnessed the intimidating side of Huo Gannian.

The main hall of the Huo Mansion was packed with more than 800 members of the Huo family, from Huo Gannian's uncles in their sixties to his distant nephews who were only seventeen or eighteen years old and had just started working as deacons.

Two rows of Huo Gang guards surrounded everyone, with a very stern atmosphere.

When Huo Gannian's wheelchair rolled in, the guards tapped their swords lightly, making a unison sound.

Everyone fell silent at the same time and stood in line properly. The younger generations all bowed respectfully.

As usual, a group of people took turns to come forward and report on the affairs of their respective halls.

Huo Gannian had a blank expression on his face and was intimidating without being angry. He only asked detailed, accurate and thorough questions about the key points.

Anyone who was vague in his answer would struggle under Huo Gannian's interrogating gaze, and would be frightened into breaking out in cold sweats.

If he encountered someone so daring as to falsify accounts and make false reports, Huo Gannian would only need to move his fingers, and the accountant beside him would throw the hard evidence in front of that person, and the strict family rules of the Huo family would be waiting for him.

In the worst case, the victim will be severely injured or even beaten to the point of being on his last breath. The whole family will be expelled from the Huo family and will never be allowed to enter Yancheng again.

The affairs of each hall are complicated and numerous, but Huo Gannian knows them all like the back of his hand. He has a clear decision in his mind about all rewards, punishments, promotions and demotions.

Under his iron face, no matter how close or distant they are, everyone is strictly disciplined, which forces people to submit.

Yun Chen stood by and felt that Huo Gannian was really smart. He managed the huge Huo Gang with nearly a thousand branches in an orderly manner without any effort.

Every time he gave an order, few people came out to oppose or question it. This shows how ruthless his methods of ruling the Huo Gang were.

Halfway through the meeting, everyone's faces gradually showed signs of fatigue.

Only Huo Gannian still had the same sharp gaze and undiminished momentum as at the beginning.

While the heads of the various halls had finished reporting, Huo Gannian's sixth cousin hesitated for a long time, and finally mustered up the courage to step forward and speak:

"I... I, Huo Xiaohan... would like to go out alone. Please grant me permission, Young Master!"

As soon as these words were spoken, the whole room was in an uproar.

"Did I hear correctly? Are you going to split up the family?"

"Now is the time for the Huo Gang to share the territory with the Yu Family. Splitting up at this time? It would not sound good if the news got out!"

"You're crazy! The Huo Gang has established dozens of new branches recently, and it's a time of both wealth and power! After the family splits up, where can we find such a big tree to lean on?"

"It's not impossible to split up. The Huo Gang is getting stronger and stronger, and we have more and more enemies. It seems that we are already at loggerheads with the Yuyangji. Who knows, one day we may only be able to make money but not spend it."

For a moment, the whole room was filled with discussions, and everyone had different expressions on their faces. In the end, they all looked at Huo Gannian at the same time.

There was no trace of surprise on Huo Gannian's face, and he remained as cold as usual.

He picked up the tea beside him, blew it slowly, and sneered:

"Huo Xiaohan, think it through carefully. After you split up from the family, your life, death, wealth, and success will no longer have anything to do with the Huo Gang. Think it through."

Huo Xiaohan thought this was a good idea and quickly stepped forward and said:

"Young Master, I, Huo Xiaohan, am not a heartless person. I have already calculated the accounts of the hall and the share of the profits. I will not take a single cent from the Huo Gang. Please rest assured, Young Master!"

"Now that things have come to this, if I don't agree, wouldn't I be relying on my status as the head of the Huo Gang to bully your family of nineteen, Huo Xiaohan?" Huo Gannian said coldly, raising his hand to signal the accountant to get the agreement for the division of the family.

He stared at Huo Xiaohan with a cold gaze, then moved from Huo Xiaohan to the group of people behind him, and finally scanned the entire audience, his tone calm and majestic:

"Anyone else want to split up? Let's talk about it today, and I'll do it all at once."

For a moment, the whole place was silent and no one dared to speak.

Huo Gannian sneered and his gaze fell back on Huo Xiaohan, "Bring the accounts here. If there are no problems, you can issue a single order."

Huo Xiaohan was stunned for a moment. He didn't expect Huo Gannian to respond so readily. He couldn't help but look happy and subconsciously turned his head to look at his eldest son Huo Shuming behind him.

There was no expression of joy on Huo Shuming's face. Instead, her body stiffened and she looked a little nervous.

Seeing Huo Shuming didn't move, Huo Xiaohan hurriedly whispered, "Shuming! Hurry up and show the accounts to the young master!"

Huo Shuming seemed to have just woken up from deep thought. He uttered a soft "Ah?" and his face turned pale. He slowly took out the account book from his pocket and said:

"This concerns my family's wealth. I want to... present it to the young master myself... no, I want to present it to him myself... is that okay?"

Hearing the word "with one's own hands", Yun Chen, who had been dozing off nearby, immediately perked up.

It's not that she is not responsible, it's just that Old Master Huo has given her too many tonics recently, and she is often mentally sleepy. After standing for a few hours, her eyelids can't help but feel heavy.

Seeing that Huo Shuming was unwilling to give out the account books, Huo Xiaohan became anxious:

"Just ask the stewards to pass it on! Why bother with these things at this time?"

Huo Shuming shook her head, clutched the account book tightly, took a step back, glanced at Huo Gannian with a fearful expression, and said worriedly:

"No! If the account books are lost and the young master doesn't let us split up, what can we do?"

This is true. A complete account book not only includes the more than a dozen gangs in the hands of Huo Xiaohan's family, but also the property and escape routes of the whole family, and even the money for the children's weddings.

If Huo Gannian took the account book but regretted not to divide the family, it would mean that he had firmly grasped the assets of Huo Xiaohan's family and could do whatever he wanted in the future.

From this perspective, Huo Shuming's cautious response is not unreasonable.

Huo Xiaohan was so angry that he wanted to curse.

He couldn't understand why his son, who was the most easily influenced, was so stubborn today.

Worried that Huo Gannian might regret it if he was in a bad mood, Huo Xiaohan urged again:

"What nonsense! How could the young master be that kind of person? Hurry and give the account book to the manager! Don't dawdle!"

Huo Shuming clutched the account book tightly, shaking his head with a determined look, "Or... forget it... Dad, forget it... Let's not split up the family..."

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone around them became anxious: How could such a big matter of dividing the family be treated so lightly?

Huo Xiaohan couldn't wait any longer and rushed over to grab the account book.

Huo Shuming was prepared and immediately stepped back, walked around Huo Xiaohan, and walked quickly towards Huo Gannian who was sitting on the high seat.

"No, no... I'll go give it to the young master myself..."

Before the managers around Huo Gannian could react, Huo Shuming had already lowered his head and walked under the high seat, with a hint of ruthlessness in his eyes.