"Master!"

The middle-aged man Jiang Chen was staring at saw the crowd arrive and bowed to Ouyang Zhen, giving Jiang Chen a subtle glance.

Ouyang Zhen spoke softly, "Steward Chen, have all the guests arrived?"

"The people from the major families in A Province have all arrived, and so have those from the Tang Family and the Mo Family!" Steward Chen responded quietly.

"Good!" Ouyang Zhen nodded and stepped toward the banquet hall.

...

The Ouyang Family's grand banquet hall.

At this moment, the banquet hall was bustling with people, men and women emanating faint but formidable auras as they conversed with one another.

In the second row of the hall, the Lou Family and Tang Family members sat at a table.

"Qiangqiang, what happened at the entrance?" Lou Wenkang looked at Lou Qiangqiang beside him.

After entering the Ouyang's residence, Lou Qiangqiang had followed the Tangs to the banquet hall and hadn't accompanied Jiang Chen to enter the fifth courtyard.

"Dad, let me tell you, today I really taught Ouyang Liang a good lesson. When we arrived..." Lou Qiangqiang animatedly recounted his glorious deed.

After listening to Lou Qiangqiang's story, Lou Wenkang slightly furrowed his brows: "It seems that Zhu Wenqiang's return this time is somewhat unsettled."

"Dad, you can't just stand by!" Lou Qiangqiang looked anxiously at Lou Wenkang.

Lou Wenkang glanced at Lou Qiangqiang, "Are you only thinking about chasing after Mr. Jiang's sister, neglecting the family affairs?"

"Dad, I am doing this for our family too! Look, in our generation, I am the only male. If I can't find a wife, wouldn't our line come to an end?" Lou Qiangqiang spoke with righteous indignation.

Lou Wenkang was at a loss for words, unable to find a retort.

Lou Fengfeng and others chuckled softly.

"Head of the Lou Family, may I have a word?" Tang Chengye glanced at Lou Qiangqiang, then turned to speak quietly to Lou Wenkang.

"Old Tang, there's no need for secrecy, I know what you want to talk to my dad about. The matter my elder brother wanted to discuss with you, we all are aware, and my dad will discuss it with you too," Lou Qiangqiang interjected.

Upon hearing this, Lou Wenkang instantly understood and nodded to Tang Chengye, "Head of the Tang Family, indeed, you need to hear this out. It's about..."

At this point, Lou Wenkang paused, turning his head to glance at the girl beside Tang Chengye.

Tang Chengye's eyes shifted, his brows furrowed tightly, staring straight into Lou Wenkang's eyes.

"That force targeting Ancient Martial Artists has some leads!" Lou Wenkang spoke in a low voice after looking around.

As the words fell, three Innate Grandmasters and one Semi-Innate aura suddenly burst forth from Tang Chengye and his group. Apart from the thin elder, the other four struggled to contain their inner turmoil!

"What's going on?"

"I have no idea, what happened?"

"Is the Tang Family going to clash with the Lou Family?"

"Impossible, right? This is Elder Ouyang's birthday banquet! They wouldn't really fight here, would they?"

The crowd in the banquet hall all turned their attention to the table where the Lou and Tang families were sitting.

At the first-row table to the left, a formally dressed middle-aged man softly said, "Yu Lin, is that girl Tang Wanru from the Tang Family who practices Ancient Martial Arts?"

"Yes, Dad, she's Wan Ru." A young man beside him responded quietly, his eyes filled with admiration when he looked at Tang Wanru.

"Dad supports you, pursue her boldly!" the man spoke softly.

"Thank you, Dad!" The young man was overjoyed and quickly expressed his gratitude.

In the second row, Lou Wenkang spoke in a low voice, "Gentlemen, restrain your auras. This matter is of great concern and must not be publicized for now!"

The people from the Tang Family took a few rapid breaths and withdrew their auras.

With a grave expression, Tang Chengye spoke, "Head of the Lou Family, what exactly is going on?"

"Let's talk about it after the banquet. This was identified by the Head of the Jiang Family, and it's more appropriate for him to explain!" Lou Wenkang whispered back.

As he spoke, a burst of shouting arose, and everyone's gaze shifted toward the entrance of the banquet hall.

"The elder has arrived!"

"Elder Ouyang has arrived!"

"Who are those people? I've never seen them before!"

"Why are there people from the North Union here?"

At the entrance, Ouyang Zhen, leading Jiang Chen and others, walked into the banquet hall.

"Happy birthday to Elder Zhu!"

"Wishing Elder Zhu a fortune as vast as a forest and a lifespan longer than Mount Nan!"

"Wishing..."

As soon as Ouyang Zhen entered, a chorus of congratulations rang out.

Ouyang Zhen smiled at the crowd and made his way to the front of the banquet hall, while Jiang Chen and his group headed towards the area where the Lou Family sat.

"Head of the Jiang Family, you..." Upon seeing Jiang Chen approaching, Tang Chengye spoke up hastily.

"Head of the Tang Family, please be patient. We can talk after the banquet!" Lou Wenkang said softly, interrupting Tang Chengye.

Jiang Chen instantly understood and said softly, "Head of the Tang Family, let's sit down at your place after the banquet. I will tell you everything I know!"

"Okay!" Tang Chengye nodded emphatically.

"Ladies and gentlemen!"

A loud call came, and Ouyang Zhen arrived at the main table in the front of the banquet hall, turned around, and clasped his fists towards the crowd: "Thank you all for attending the old man's birthday party. Here, the old man wants to express his thanks in advance!"

After thanking the guests, Ouyang Zhen also clasped his fists in a gesture of greeting specifically to the people seated at the first row on both sides before taking his place at the center of the main table.

"They are..." Jiang Chen glanced at the two tables and asked Lou Qiangqiang softly.

In the first row of the banquet hall, there were only four tables—members of the Ouyang Family at one table, people from the Dong Family at another, and the remaining two tables each seated only four or five people, in stark contrast to the dozen or more at the other tables.

"The table on the left is the Xi Bo Tang Family, and the table on the right is the Mo Family from Yue City. They are the other two of the Four Great Families," Lou Qiangqiang explained softly. Since Jiang Chen came in with people from the Dong Family, Lou Qiangqiang did not introduce them.

Jiang Chen immediately understood and nodded slightly.

"Today is my father's birthday. Here, I have two announcements to make!" Seeing everyone seated, Ouyang Nan stood and spoke aloud: "The first matter is that my son, who has been lost for thirty years, has returned."

"A son?!"

"Does the head of the Ouyang Family have another son?"

"So, the rumor is true? The head of the Ouyang Family really has an illegitimate child!"

"What's he coming back for all of a sudden?"

The words of Ouyang Nan sparked a buzz among the crowd.

Turning his head towards Zhu Wenqiang, Ouyang Nan said with a light smile, "Wen Qiang, you should be sitting at this table."

All eyes in the banquet hall turned to Zhu Wenqiang.

"So that's the head of the Ouyang Family's son?"

"He really does look a bit like him! Just a bit too chubby!"

"Indeed, he does resemble him!"

The crowd began murmuring quietly again upon seeing Zhu Wenqiang.

Zhu Wenqiang hesitated upon hearing the words, looked at Jiang Chen, and Jiang Chen nodded slightly.

Zhu Wenqiang stood up, glanced at Ouyang Nan, stepped forward, and sat next to Ouyang Zhengqi at the main table, under the gaze of everyone.

"For the second matter, I want to thank a distinguished guest, for the head of the Jiang Family of Jincheng has come to wish my father a happy birthday!" Ouyang Nan spoke again, smiling at Jiang Chen.

As his words ended, the entire room fell silent.

Jiang Chen then stood up.

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