The next day, I was called up early by Old Wu. I put on a white ceremonial outfit, feeling quite awkward since I hadn’t dressed so formally in a long time.
Since I couldn’t leave the Xia Family, Old Wu helped me send out the invitations. I kept the ones for Qin Mengdie and Tang Shuyao; they should be coming along with the clan’s higher-ups.
The succession ceremony was held at a hotel. To put it plainly, it was my time to become the Family Head, and I was inviting a bunch of people to bring gifts.
Although the Xia Family had declined, it was still not a typical family that could be compared to ordinary ones. Establishing connections was important; who knew if our Xia Family would rise again?
“Young Master, Old Master, please get in the car!” Old Wu said respectfully to me and the Old Man.
I was a bit puzzled. Old Wu was a Profound Rank Expert, which meant he could pretty much roam freely in the secular world, yet he chose to stay with the Xia Family as a mere steward?
Even if our Xia Family was at the top of the Four Great Clans, these martial artists shouldn’t care about such things.
Though I couldn’t understand it, I didn’t ask.
Old Wu had been with the Xia Family for decades and would never harm us.
Soon, we arrived at the hotel, where many family enterprises had already gathered, along with some politicians, but they were there as special guests.
“The old Family Head is still as robust as ever!” As soon as we entered the floor reserved for our Xia Family, someone came over to chat.
The others looked annoyed, as if they felt someone had stolen their chance to speak first.
But they still followed up with congratulations.
The Old Man returned their greetings and walked directly to the steps of the main hall, took the microphone, and cleared his throat a couple of times.
The chatter immediately quieted down.
“Today is the day our Xia Tian becomes the Family Head. I’m very happy to have so many friends here to support us!” After the Old Man finished this sentence, almost everyone below simultaneously began to congratulate.
“Young Clan Head Xia, you look like a dragon among men; the Xia Family will surely reach new heights under your leadership!”
“Congratulations to the old Family Head for having such a talented grandson!”
“Young Clan Head Xia has an extraordinary demeanor; he must be a great sage. Congratulations to the old Family Head!”
A bunch of people were flattering me, but I felt nothing. It wasn’t that I knew they were just being polite; the main issue was, come on! You all didn’t even look at me once! How could you tell I’m a dragon among men?
Their gazes were all focused on the Old Man; they couldn’t care less about me.
To put it plainly, even though I was inheriting the position of Family Head today, in the eyes of these people, the real power holder of the Xia Family was still the Old Man. After all, I was just eighteen years old.
What the Old Man said next was merely a hope that everyone would take care of me, the new Family Head. While they echoed him, very few looked my way.
Not everyone had arrived yet, but the purpose of this banquet wasn’t just to announce that I, Xia Tian, had inherited the position of Family Head. After all, sending out a notice would suffice.
The main goal was for me to broaden my horizons and make connections so that I wouldn’t face too many troubles after taking over as Family Head.
After the speech, it was time for the cocktail party. The Old Man went to deal with some people, while I had to grab a glass and mingle.
“Tianma Group presents their congratulations…”
A servant from our Xia Family stood on stage, continuously reading out the gifts from the guests.
In truth, not many people paid attention; after all, everyone here was well-versed in the world, and there wasn’t much that could surprise them.
I sat on the sofa, not going anywhere. If no one came to find me, then that was fine. If someone did, I would chat with them. However, most people were there to see the Old Man.
But I was quite happy to have some peace.
“Boss!” Suddenly, a familiar voice came over. I turned around to see Lu Sen, Diao Sinan, and Hao Shuai, all three of them excitedly walking towards me.
Lu Sen was the first to come up, directly wrapping his arm around my neck and saying, “I told you, Boss, you’re not being fair! If it weren’t for Hao Shuai telling us, we wouldn’t have known you were the Young Master of the Xia Family!”
“Exactly! Boss, are you looking down on us?” Diao Sinan chimed in.
I was initially worried that they would distance themselves from me after learning my identity or try to curry favor with me, but that didn’t happen. They were just like before; it was me who was overly concerned.
“Did you come here because of my invitation, or are you with your parents?” I asked them with a smile.
Hao Shuai chuckled, “Boss, I already knew your identity, so when my dad got the invitation, we came right over.”
“Originally, my dad wanted me to attend this boring banquet, but after receiving your invitation, I came!” Lu Sen said with a laugh.
Diao Sinan scratched his head, looking a bit embarrassed as he said, “Both my second and third brothers are here, so I came too, but my dad is also here.”
It seemed their backgrounds were indeed not simple; otherwise, they wouldn’t have received invitations from the Old Man.
As we were talking, Sister Lin, Xu Xin, and Wang Ziyan also walked over to me.
Sister Lin looked at me, frowning, and said, “I didn’t expect you to be the Young Master of the Xia Family. It’s truly unbelievable!”
“Hey! Now I’m the head of a family; Sister Lin, can you not embarrass me?” I said to Sister Lin helplessly.
Xu Xin’s expression wasn’t good; she sighed as she looked at me, “It seems our gap is getting wider…”
Xu Xin’s words left me somewhat speechless.
If she still didn’t realize by now that she was serious about me, then I would truly be a fool.
But since I already had Mei’er, I really couldn’t accommodate anyone else.
Wang Ziyan, however, seemed quite happy, smiling as she said, “Now you have the capital to be my man. Just remember to have your old man propose when the time comes!”
I had no doubt about Wang Ziyan’s words because Long Qingyang had already hinted to me that the Wang Family was an Ancient Martial Family. Since they were an Ancient Martial Family, they would definitely have strict requirements for choosing a son-in-law.
Due to the memories of Mei’er, Sister Lin and the others had completely forgotten about her, so Wang Ziyan’s behavior was becoming more and more obvious.
Because of the atmosphere, I quickly changed the topic, “Where are Yao Yao and Qin Mengdie?”
“I wouldn’t have known if you hadn’t mentioned it. I didn’t expect them to be the young ladies of the Qin and Tang Families!” Sister Lin was quite surprised, but with her straightforward personality, even if Qin Mengdie and the others were the young ladies of the Four Great Clans, she wouldn’t care too much.
“No way!” Suddenly, a loud voice rang out in the bustling hall, causing the entire room to quiet down as everyone turned their attention to the source of the sound.
We were no exception, and when I saw who had spoken, I was momentarily stunned.
It was none other than Qin Mengdie!