Chapter 194 Ancestor Worship
The large family has many rules. At seven o'clock in the morning, all the direct and collateral branches of the Zhou family who could come would gather on time behind the hexagonal incense burner in the ancestral hall, waiting to offer the first incense of the new year to their ancestors.
They rarely had the chance to return to the old house, and the opportunity to see Zhou Pingchuan was even rarer. Therefore, inside the ancestral hall, everyone, young and old, male and female, was eagerly waiting at the entrance, hoping to show off in front of the head of the family when he arrived.
Aside from the servants coming and going, they never saw that cold, aloof figure at the door. They couldn't help but mutter to themselves:
"Why hasn't the head of the family arrived yet? He's never late!"
“The head of the family used to live in the old house, but he moved out this year after getting married. Maybe there was a traffic jam or something else that delayed him.”
"Why is there such a traffic jam on the morning of the first day of the Lunar New Year?"
"Shh, keep your voices down. Don't drag us down with you if you don't strive for improvement yourself."
"We're just having our own conversation, it's none of your business! You're such a suck-up, you're practically being reassigned to the Congo-Brazzaville branch already, go get yourself into the mud!"
As the saying goes, "A large forest has all kinds of birds," and with so many people in the Zhou family, it's inevitable that some relatives will try to undermine each other and look down on one another. Everyone's long been used to this, letting them spit at each other while they go about their own business.
This was also Xia Mingzhao's first time visiting the Zhou family to pay respects to their ancestors.
As the eldest son of the Zhou family, he and Zhou Ting stood in the middle of the second row, where they could hear everything clearly. He whispered to Zhou Ting, "How dare you make noise in the ancestral hall? Aren't you afraid of angering our ancestors?"
"They rushed over here eagerly, ten percent for ancestral worship, and the remaining ninety percent to curry favor with Uncle San. They wouldn't be afraid of offending their ancestors." Zhou Ting's voice was calm, with a sense of detachment.
Xia Mingzhao instantly understood. At this stage, the entire Zhou family business empire was in Zhou Pingchuan's hands. Whoever he gave a lucrative position could rise to the top, and whoever he looked down upon could be cast into hell. Compared to the ethereal and unpredictable ancestor, currying favor with the family head and flattering him was more effective and allowed them to obtain the benefits they wanted.
"Oh, I see," Xia Mingzhao said, feeling a little uneasy. "A-Ting, I think Third Master values you quite a bit. Do you usually chat with him or ask him for advice?"
Zhou Ting lowered his eyes: "Third Uncle is very busy, I can't keep bothering him with my own things."
"This isn't your own business. You're working hard to improve yourself and lay the foundation for entering Kepler in the future. How can that be considered disturbing him? Besides, blood is thicker than water. Caring for him, respecting him, serving him well, and sharing his burdens are all part of your duties, aren't they?"
Perhaps in her haste, Xia Mingzhao's voice unconsciously rose. Zhou Ting's father, Zhou Zhenhai, standing at the very front, turned and scolded, "Mingzhao, keep your voice down! Don't be disrespectful to our ancestors!"
Zhou Zhenhai knew his son far better than Xia Mingzhao. If he hadn't been born into the Zhou family, Zhou Ting would never have gone into business.
Zhou Zhenhai never asked his son to flatter or fawn. As a sibling, he knew Zhou Pingchuan's personality. His younger brother believed in seeing is believing and wanted to see tangible results. Flattery would have no effect on Zhou Pingchuan and might even have a negative impact.
Most importantly, Zhou Pingchuan and Zhou Ting are nearly ten years apart in age. Sooner or later, Kepler will eventually be handed over to Zhou Ting, so why rush it?
Given Zhou Pingchuan's methods, even if his entire family were tied together, they might not be able to match even a tenth of his abilities. Waiting for the right opportunity is the best option.
I don't know what's wrong with Mingzhao.
When Ah Ting confessed his relationship to him, he felt that Xia Mingzhao's background was of no benefit to the eldest branch of the family and had always disagreed. Later, at Zhou Ting's insistence, he met Xia Mingzhao once and felt that the girl was simple and kind-hearted. Although she was not a good match, she had no ulterior motives and would not covet the Zhou family's property or cause any trouble in the future, so he reluctantly agreed.
Who would have thought that in just a few months, he would learn to instigate Ah Ting? Was it a sudden change in personality, or did he simply give himself away and slip up?
Zhou Zhenhai frowned, regretting his earlier decision to let the two get married.
Xia Mingzhao's expression was also not good. Why is it that, despite both being descendants of the Zhou family, Zhou Ting is so detached and indecisive, while Zhou Pingchuan is so ruthless and decisive, inspiring both fear and...admiration?
Lost in thought, Xia Mingzhao heard a commotion at the door, followed by a chaotic chorus of greetings. Having experienced this more than once, she knew it was Zhou Pingchuan.
Xia Mingzhao didn't want to look up, because he knew that someone else was also receiving flattery along with the family head—Xia Mian, who had accidentally married Zhou Pingchuan by sheer luck. He didn't want to see Xia Mian smug and self-satisfied.
But when Zhou Pingchuan parted the crowd and walked to Zhou Zhenhai's side, he didn't see Xia Mian. Xia Mingzhao was secretly delighted. It seemed her previous guess was true; all of Zhou Pingchuan's kindness towards Xia Mian was just an act. The fact that Zhou Pingchuan didn't bring Xia Mian today was the best evidence—Zhou Pingchuan disliked Xia Mian, so much so that he didn't even want to acknowledge her in front of the ancestor!
Xia Mingzhao's expression softened slightly, and then she glanced at Zhou Ting again.
Zhou Ting kept his eyes down, his expression as calm and composed as before.
"Hmph, that's more like it," Xia Mingzhao thought, feeling even better. She sweetly called out, "Third Master."
"How should I address him?" Zhou Zhenhai scolded, "Call him Third Uncle!"
"...Third Uncle."
“Mingzhao is still getting used to his new identity. Third brother, why are you so late? You’re a full twenty minutes late.” Zhou Zhenhai then turned to Zhou Pingchuan.
"There was a traffic jam on the way," Zhou Pingchuan casually brushed off.
It wasn't a traffic jam. When he woke up in the morning, someone was clinging to him tightly, like an octopus with powerful suction cups, leaving him helpless.
Zhou Pingchuan didn't want to wake him up because he went to bed too late last night. He moved very gently and it took him a long time to pull the man off him, which made him twenty minutes late leaving the house.
As the person from the side branch just said, where did all those cars come from on the first day of the Lunar New Year?
Zhou Zhenhai naturally understood this as well, so he didn't ask any further questions and changed the subject, asking, "What about Xia Xia?"
Zhou Pingchuan hesitated slightly: "He'll come later; he won't participate in the ancestral worship ceremony."
Xia Mingzhao thought to himself, "Since I'm coming, why not participate in the ancestral worship ceremony? This is a custom passed down for thousands of years. How prestigious it would be to stand before a hundred or so people and bow to the ancestors!"
And why did Third Master hesitate?
Is it because... he never intended to bring Xia Mian along, and was he just trying to appease Zhou Zhenhai in front of his ancestors?
That must be it! Xia Mingzhao's mood improved even more. If the atmosphere hadn't been so serious, he would have even wanted to hum a song.
What he didn't know was that Zhou Pingchuan's hesitation stemmed mainly from uncertainty—uncertainty about when that lazybones would get up. If he slept until evening, there would be no need to bother him, and since the Zhou mansion didn't have any dishes to his liking, he could just have dinner at Longxi.
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