"Mother," Madam Xie swallowed nervously, "you mean our family can take its place?"
"Not bad," Jiang Nuan said, giving her daughter-in-law an approving look. "It hasn't been long, and you already know how to use idioms."
"I know everything Mother taught me," Xie said with a smug look in her eyes, then asked in a soft, sweet voice, "Mother, what does this have to do with dividing the meat?"
“It’s a big deal,” Jiang Nuan narrowed her eyes. “The cooking has been going on for a long time, and it can’t be linked to the replacement of the clan leader. But distributing meat at this time has the suspicion of winning people’s hearts. If it’s not handled properly, it will become a handle for your uncle to talk about in the future.”
“Mother,” Jin said in surprise, “you think my eldest uncle would become the clan leader? That doesn’t follow the rules.”
“Rules have to be applied in a certain way,” Jiang Nuan sighed. “In any case, the Huang family has already incurred the wrath of the masses. Even if they are the eldest son, they cannot become the clan chief. Perhaps, out of concern for the impact, the clan will leave them a little hope to prevent them from resorting to desperate measures.”
Jiang Nuan's guess was correct; the clan elders were also having a major headache over how to deal with Chief Huang's family.
Inside the ancestral hall, Old Man Huang sighed deeply, "Tell me, what do you all think about this?"
"The position of clan leader cannot be held by the eldest branch," Uncle Huang said solemnly. "From Huang Shicheng to Huang Zhen, neither father nor son has accomplished anything. The grandchildren are too young to be judged. If they follow the same path as their elders, our Huang family will be truly doomed."
"Second Brother, Fifth Brother," a pale and thin old man spoke up at the end, "Shicheng's matter requires a lot of consideration; it can't be resolved simply by whether or not he becomes the clan leader."
"Seventh Brother is right," Old Man Huang nodded, "It's really a case of not being too gentle or too harsh, it's a headache."
“Why should he be treated so leniently?” Uncle Huang Wu retorted indignantly. “If the punishment is too lenient, not only will we be unable to explain it to the officials, but the clansmen will also be dissatisfied. Even setting aside the fact that he offended the officials, the disgusting things he did have brought shame to our ancestors. With such an unfilial descendant, our ancestors will be turning in their graves with resentment.”
“That’s true,” Uncle Huang said slowly, “but Shi Cheng won’t be satisfied with that. If it’s really a fight to the death, he’s capable of anything. This time is a prime example.”
"Can we let him do whatever he wants?" Uncle Huang frowned, then snorted coldly, "By the time he comes out of the ancestral hall, it will be too late."
“If we don’t let him know anything,” Uncle Huang said, somewhat speechlessly, “won’t we become bandits?”
It's not like it's anything shameful. If we keep it from people, we'll be in the wrong.
“We know Shi Cheng’s character to some extent. He doesn’t care about the means he uses; as long as he gets what he wants, that’s all that matters,” Old Man Huang said after thinking for a while. “If we leave him any room to maneuver, he’ll do everything he can to cause trouble. You can’t prevent this kind of thing forever. If we keep dragging it out, he’ll eventually get his way. It won’t be as easy to deal with him then as it is now.”
We have the upper hand now, and the opportunity is rare. If we don't eliminate it completely, it would be a waste of this heaven-sent opportunity.
These are just things he can't say himself.
“That’s right,” Uncle Huang Wu immediately chimed in. “This kid is cunning and petty. He’s probably already held a grudge against us old folks. We’re fine now, but once he makes a comeback, the younger generation in the family will inevitably suffer.”
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