Chapter 5

Originally, Ren Hanlin and Ren Wenxu, who also had tremendous fluctuations in their power, felt as if they were doused with a bucket of cold water on a scorching summer day, and they shivered. Ren Junyang also trembled.

In the past, they had not paid much attention, but in the Mingyu Dynasty, family and country were paramount. This family was not just a small household; the clan system was even more stringent than national law. The head of the family was the true controller of the clan, akin to an emperor of an empire.

Although Ren Jie was only at the Body Tempering stage, he was indeed the genuine head of the family.

"Just now, I acted out of urgency and did not mean to be disrespectful to the head of the family. However, the head of the family is still young, and the council of elders is there to help and restrain the head of the family in managing the clan. The head of the family is now so reckless, it seems he should study the clan rules properly." Ren Junyang immediately bowed to admit his mistake, but his face darkened as he prepared to counterattack.

"The council of elders has the authority to control all aspects of the head of the family's affairs until he turns eighteen, including his daily expenses. Please be clear about this, head of the family." Ren Wenxu was also furious at being scolded but had no way to vent his anger, so he could only express himself in this manner.

Ren Hanlin nodded in agreement, thinking that they had only intended to warn and slightly control Ren Jie. Since Ren Jie was so reckless, they would have to manage him properly.

"Ha ha..." Ren Jie suddenly laughed, leaving Ren Junyang and the others puzzled.

Ren Jie lightly jumped and stood on the grand chair of the head of the family, which was even more magnificent than the dragon throne in the imperial palace on Earth. He looked at Ren Junyang and the others, spreading his hands and said, "You want to play, right? Then I, the head of the family, will accompany you. If you want to pass this resolution, the true council of elders meeting requires the presence of all seven elders, isn't that right? Immediately let the Great Elder come out of seclusion, contact my second uncle and fifth uncle, and have them return to participate in the council meeting. Only when they all appear can it be done. You want to use the power of the council of elders, fine, then let them all vote at every meeting from now on."

Ah!

Upon hearing this, Ren Junyang and the others were taken aback. Ren Tianheng was the General of the Northwest, commanding 600,000 troops, and could not be easily moved. Ren Tianqi was the General of the South, commanding nearly 500,000 troops, and they could not simply return at will.

As for the Great Elder, he had been in seclusion for many years. How could they gather everyone just to decide whether to reduce the head of the family's expenses? If that were the case, it would truly be a huge joke.

"Not only that, do you think I am young and easy to bully, and that you can treat me, the head of the family, as nothing? You can use the power of the council of elders, but I can use the power of the head of the family. From today on, every penny spent by each of you, every clan treasure used, and every expense must be approved by me, the head of the family. Not only that, I will find someone to study all the powers of the head of the family. I remember I can even change the clan rules. I will target you and change the rules. If I can't deal with all of you at once, I will deal with you one by one."

Comfortable, so damn comfortable.

At this moment, Ren Jie felt a sense of relief. He suddenly realized that being a playboy was actually quite nice. There was no need for scheming; he could say whatever he wanted and achieve his goals with the simplest and most direct methods.

Seeing those who were stunned by his scolding, he felt very comfortable and satisfied.

Because Ren Jie was not very clear about the powers of the head of the family, he was just venting. Of course, if these people continued to make things difficult for him, Ren Jie would not let them off. Even if he gave up being the head of the family, he would not let them off easily. Moreover, in a large family like the Ren family, replacing the head of the family was not that simple.

From the limited information, he deduced that he could become the head of the family because his father, Ren Tianxing, was extremely powerful, powerful enough to be a complete dictator. Even the council of elders was established by him, perhaps to maintain a balance. Since he was not as powerful as his father and could not truly suppress everything, if the council of elders was not established, other things might happen.

The Ren family was vast, and each elder represented a significant branch and involved many forces.

At this moment, Ren Junyang and the others did not know what to say, or rather, they did not dare to say anything. Ren Jie's outburst was too harsh, and as the head of the family, his power was much greater than they imagined. Without further ado, he could sanction and control the expenses and support of the elders and their families and affiliated forces, and it was just a matter of a word, no need for discussion.

"Discuss, continue your council meeting, I, the head of the family, have no time to play with you." Having vented, and seeing that they were not speaking, Ren Jie felt that the timing was right. After all, he had too many things he was unclear about, and it was enough for now. He jumped down from the head of the family's chair and walked out.

Only Wan Hong, holding a teacup, and the three great elders, who were completely stunned by Ren Jie's scolding, remained.

"Phew!" Outside the grand hall, Ren Jie took a long breath, feeling very satisfied.

However, after a moment of calm, Ren Jie also felt some regret. The previous head of the family's mind was filled with nothing useful except women, eating, drinking, playing, and bird fighting. He did not even know the current emperor's era name or how long he had been on the throne, nor did he know the clan rules, the overall situation of the clan, or the situation of the Mingyu Dynasty.

This would not do; he must quickly understand these things. But he could not ask others casually. After some thought, Ren Jie decided to read books to understand. The Ren family, being a large clan, had its own library, which seemed to be very large.

However, when Ren Jie tried to recall where the library was, he found that the original memory only mentioned that the library was huge and magnificent, and then there was nothing more. It seemed he had passed by it at some point but had never paid attention.

Helpless, Ren Jie called a guard to lead him to the library. These ordinary guards were very respectful to Ren Jie, as even if he was not the head of the family, he was still a playboy from the Ren family's main line, and they could not afford to offend him.

They came over respectfully, but when they heard Ren Jie say he wanted to go to the library, the guard was stunned, even shaking his head.

Did he hear wrong? What a joke, going to the library for what? There was no gambling, no beast fighting, no beautiful women, no fine wine...

Only when Ren Jie asked again did the guard, somewhat dazed, lead him to the library. When he saw Ren Jie enter the library, his expression was even more bizarre, as if he were watching a rat run into a cat's den.

Strange, was the head of the family sick? Otherwise, why would he go to the library? He should go to the Red Sleeve Pavilion!

...

The Ren family's mansion was enormous, covering an area of more than thirty miles. Inside the mansion, one could ride horses without any problem. At the back of the mansion, there was an area of about four to five miles with no buildings, only natural plants, like a wild forest.

Wan Hong, who had been walking quickly, immediately slowed down here. He knew that when there was no urgent matter, the Sixth Master did not like people to walk quickly or make loud noises in this area.

In the bustling and prosperous Yujing City, the Ren family's mansion had such an area with no buildings, only two small wooden houses in the center. At this moment, a middle-aged man in a light blue robe was sitting on a wooden stool in the courtyard, calmly reading an ancient book.

Wan Hong carefully walked to the side, holding his breath and standing quietly. Although he was only in his early twenties and already had the cultivation of the Divine Realm, he would have been a famous young hero in the capital, but because he had grown up by the side of the Sixth Master, Ren Tianzong, he knew how insignificant he was.

Pride often comes from limited vision. A sparrow can arrogantly look down on countless ants because it does not know that there are phoenixes in the sky. Wan Hong, who had been by the Sixth Master's side for years, was not as arrogant and self-important as other young people in the capital. However, when he occasionally went out or saw the so-called geniuses in the clan, he realized how lucky he was to be by the Sixth Master's side.

"What's wrong? Did something special happen at today's council meeting? Why are you so agitated?" The Sixth Master, Ren Tianzong, held a book in one hand and a cup of freshly brewed tea in the other, sipping it slowly as he asked.

Wan Hong's emotions were still not completely calm, as what had happened in the grand hall was too shocking, too unexpected, and too unbelievable.

"Today's events were very strange. The elders wanted to reduce the head of the family's expenses, and the head of the family suddenly burst out, jumping and cursing, scolding the Second Elder, Third Elder, and Fourth Elder thoroughly." In front of the Sixth Master, Wan Hong did not dare to hide anything and spoke straightforwardly.

"Jumping and cursing, scolding those old men?" The Sixth Master's teacup trembled slightly, and a few drops of tea fell, but they were instantly evaporated by an invisible force before they could stain the book.

The Sixth Master, Ren Tianzong, put down his teacup and book, looking at Wan Hong with surprise. "Tell me what happened in detail."

"Yes." Wan Hong bowed and then recounted everything that happened in the grand hall, even describing Ren Jie's actions, such as flipping the table and pointing to the head of the family's throne, which he found unforgettable.

"This little rascal can actually do this, and he is quite good at throwing tantrums." After listening to Wan Hong, the Sixth Master's usually calm face showed a rare smile.

Seeing the Sixth Master's smile, Wan Hong was surprised. He had not seen the Sixth Master smile for years. Although it was a faint smile, it made Wan Hong feel that even if Ren Jie was a clown, he had done something right.

"Indeed, the Second Elder and the others did not dare to say a word and no longer mentioned reducing the head of the family's expenses. If the head of the family had been like this earlier, they would not have been so bold." Seeing the Sixth Master's happiness, Wan Hong also spoke happily.

The Sixth Master did not comment, saying calmly, "They are just a bunch of idle people. Children and old children do not need to be managed. However, investigate that woman Fang Qi and keep an eye on what the head of the family is doing. Inform the people protecting the head of the family to send people inside the academy as well. Although the five major families have an agreement and no one dares to take risks, we must still be cautious. Some people might be restless and want to see our Ren family in chaos."

"..." Wan Hong was stunned for a moment and then quickly replied, "Yes."

As he left, Wan Hong couldn't help but glance at the two wooden houses. Since that incident, the Sixth Master had been disheartened and had not asked about anything for years. Even when he heard reports, he would only say "hmm" and be done with it.

Giving him instructions like today was a first in recent years. Could it be related to the previous head of the family, Ren Tianxing, who had forced the head of the family position on Ren Jie? Everything today was abnormal, and Wan Hong was not used to it.

"Main worries, ministers are disgraced; main disgraced, ministers die." As Wan Hong left, the Sixth Master, Ren Tianzong, softly recited these words, then stood up and walked into the room. On the simplest wooden bed in the bedroom, a beautiful woman lay, not as stunning as a national beauty but giving a sense of closeness and naturalness, lying quietly as if asleep.

"Phoenix, I didn't find anything interesting in the books today, but the little playboy from the head of the family's branch caused some interesting trouble and said, 'Main worries, ministers are disgraced; main disgraced, ministers die.' I wonder where this little rascal heard it, but the more I think about it, the deeper the meaning. It can be the best phrase to describe the relationship between ruler and minister, master and servant. And what he did today was also quite interesting..." Sitting by the bed, the Sixth Master, Ren Tianzong, spoke softly with a warm expression, recounting the events of the day.

In the vast and prosperous Yujing City, there was such a wild forest and such a place.

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