Very soon, it was the beginning of the month.
Xie PingYue had already informed the clan elders in advance and opened the ancestral hall.
The Xie clan had only risen to prominence in this dynasty and declined after only two generations. It was only when Xie PingYue became a great general that it rose again.
Because of this, there were not many ancestral tablets in the ancestral hall, making it look somewhat sparse.
Even so, standing beneath those layered tablets still gave people a faint sense of dread.
Following Xie Yi’s gaze, Lin ZhiJi looked toward the offering table, where, besides the sacrificial items, several yellowed sheets of paper were placed.
—Those were Xie Yi’s mother’s slave contract.
It was almost laughable. It was said that Xie PingYue had once doted greatly on Xie Yi’s mother, but when it came time to enter her into the genealogy, he did not even remember her name.
He searched for half the night before finally finding her slave contract and thus recovering her name.
She clearly had a beautiful name—Da Lan Ti—but whether in life or death, she was only ever called “Hu Ji.”
Lin ZhiJi’s feelings were complicated.
He thought again of Xie Yi.
In recent days, because of the matter of entering the genealogy, the entire general’s residence had been whispering in private.
Only then did Lin ZhiJi learn that after Xie Yi was born and Xie PingYue saw the gray haze in his left eye, he disliked him greatly and casually gave him that name, sending both mother and child to a side courtyard and ignoring them ever since.
“Yi,” meaning outsider.
Such blatant contempt and disgust.
Yet now, he was about to record in the genealogy—before the very person who had caused his lifelong tragedy—the name that represented humiliation.
Just thinking about it made Lin ZhiJi feel suffocated.
Yet he could not even go to comfort Xie Yi.
After all, he had also been involved in this matter of entering the genealogy.
In the past few days, although Xie Yi treated him as usual, Lin ZhiJi could still sense a faint distance between them.
He understood—he had been at fault first.
If he were Xie Yi, he would not be happy either.
Lost in thought, he stared at Xie Yi’s interlaced fingers, thinking about how to make amends after this matter ended.
Because he was too absorbed, he did not notice that Xie Yi’s fingertips had suddenly tightened.
At this moment, several Xie clan elders had already begun the ancestral rites. After reciting a long list of ritual proclamations, they brought out the disciplinary whip and looked at Xie Yi.
“Third Young Master, please proceed.”
According to tradition, the third young master should kneel before the ancestral tablets, and with each line of clan law read aloud, he would be struck once by the whip, to show obedience to clan rules and the supremacy of lineage.
The servants had already placed a cushion before the altar table, but Xie Yi showed no intention of kneeling.
The elder paused, then raised his voice: “Third Young Master, please proceed!”
Xie Yi still did not move.
The elder suppressed his anger: “Third Young Master, what do you mean by this?”
Xie Yi instead asked: “If I do not kneel, does the ritual not count?”
All the elders in the hall froze.
It seemed they had never expected anyone to say something like that.
“Preposterous!” the elder frowned and shouted sharply. “The Xie clan has upheld its rules for over a hundred years—never has there been anyone admitted into the genealogy without kneeling!”
“Then,” Xie Yi said carelessly, “I will be that exception.”
As his words fell, the entire ancestral hall went silent. Every gaze fell upon the straight-standing figure.
“You—! You! You are utterly ignorant of propriety!” one elder said, face flushed with rage, words spilling out in anger. “Truly born of Hu Yi—”
Xie Yi’s expression cooled instantly.
At the same time, the incense in the elder’s hand suddenly snapped. He jolted in shock, the rest of his words choking in his throat.
“Elders should choose their words carefully. The ancestors are watching,” Xie Yi said slowly, adjusting his sleeves, his gray left eye fixed on him. “Otherwise, next time it won’t be the incense that breaks.”
The elders were both shocked and furious.
But Xie Yi moved too fast—no one had seen how he did it.
They could only swallow their anger.
Another elder, more composed, turned to Xie PingYue: “Clan leader, what do you say…”
Xie PingYue was also troubled.
He had not expected Xie Yi to be so brazen even in the ancestral hall.
But at this point, the arrow was already nocked to the bowstring.
The Crown Prince was becoming increasingly impatient. If he could not find a suitable candidate, he would either have to bind the Xie clan to the Crown Prince’s ship or face his wrath directly.
Neither outcome was desirable.
Compared to that, Xie Yi’s disrespect meant little.
After all, he himself was hardly respectful in front of his own father.
So he forced himself to ignore the elders’ resentment and said smoothly, “He does not wish to kneel, then so be it. It is a minor matter—no need for the elders to fuss.”
The elders were stunned, unable to believe what they had heard.
Minor matter?!
This was clan law!
Even Xie PingYue’s legitimate son, Xie ChengAn, though already registered in the genealogy at birth, still had to kneel in the ancestral hall and be struck with the disciplinary whip at coming of age.
Yet now this ill-fated son of a Hu Ji could break precedent so easily—it was beyond shocking.
“Clan leader, how can you be so indulgent!” an elder said bitterly. “These centuries of rules—how can they be broken for one person? How will we face our ancestors when we die?”
Xie PingYue grew displeased.
Others might not know, but he did.
The Xie clan had already declined before his time. Forget ancestral tablets—even the ancestral graves had nearly been lost.
If not for his rise, whether this ancestral hall even existed was questionable.
These elders were only a few decades older than him, yet now, relying on the respect he usually gave them, they were trying to pressure him.
With the Crown Prince already causing him headaches, their words only made them seem even more annoying than Xie Yi.
His face darkened. “I have made my decision. If you still acknowledge me as clan leader, stop dwelling on such trivial matters.”
The elders dared not speak further.
Though unwilling, they had no power to oppose him.
So the ceremony continued.
But since there was no kneeling or whipping, the ritual felt hollow.
The elders stiffly completed the rest of the proceedings.
When Xie Yi’s name was finally written into the genealogy, Lin ZhiJi’s system panel immediately updated.
【Main storyline mission one completed. Progress: 5%.】
Lin ZhiJi let out a breath of relief.
That exhausting ordeal was finally over.
But at that moment, commotion erupted at the entrance of the ancestral hall.
Xie PingYue frowned. “What is going on?”
Before a guard could report, a richly dressed young man stormed in, his face full of anger.
It was Xie PingYue and Madam Jiang’s legitimate eldest son—Xie ChengAn.
Xie ChengAn had been weak since childhood, pampered by his mother, lacking martial skill, and had instead taken to scholarship at MingZhang Academy.
Earlier, he had received a secret message from his mother’s confidant saying she had been confined, and had hurried back after requesting leave.
Who knew that upon arriving home, he would hear that his father had opened the ancestral hall to enter Xie Yi into the genealogy.
He was completely stunned.
How could a bastard born of a Hu Ji become his brother?
If this got out, how could he ever raise his head in front of the other noble heirs?
Moreover, he had heard from his mother’s confidant that his mother’s troubles were also related to Xie Yi.
So he became even more certain—Xie Yi had schemed against his mother and tricked his father into entering him into the genealogy.
Thus, the moment he rushed in and saw Xie Yi, his eyes turned red with hatred, and he tried to rush forward to beat him—
But he was stopped by the arriving guards.
Xie ChengAn struggled desperately: “Let go of me! Today I will beat this little bas—”
Before he could finish, a heavy strike landed on his back.
Xie Cheng’an sharply drew in a breath from the pain, only then realizing that the one who had struck him was actually Xie Yi. He was so furious he cursed out loud: “Y-you actually dare hit me!”
Who would have thought Xie Yi, holding the disciplinary whip, struck again without the slightest mercy, then said unhurriedly: “Clan rules state that the ancestral hall is a solemn place, one must maintain respect and silence. Those who violate it shall be punished by family law. I am merely enforcing the clan rules and teaching you, on behalf of the clan elders, a lesson for your loose tongue.”
“Elder, you agree with this, right?”
The elder who had suddenly had the whip taken from him was completely stunned.
He very much wanted to say that the least obedient person to clan rules here was Xie Yi himself, but because Xie Pingyue was present, he could only swallow his anger and give a vague acknowledgment.
Xie Cheng’an stared at them in disbelief, never expecting even the most strict clan elders to become accomplices of Xie Yi.
He glared at Xie Yi: “You—bastard…”
“Enough!” Xie Pingyue cut him off sharply.
Xie Cheng’an widened his eyes, looking at him in shock and grievance: “Father!”
Xie Pingyue’s headache deepened. The transaction between him and Xie Yi was not something he could explain, so he could only put on a stern expression and use a father’s authority: “I have my own judgment in my actions. When did it become your place to interfere? Go back!”
After reprimanding Xie Cheng’an, he also intended to scold Xie Yi, but saw that Xie Yi had already tossed the whip back to the clan elder and walked out of the ancestral hall without haste.
Lin Zhiji saw that after Xie Yi left the ancestral hall, he fell into silence, and after hesitating for a moment, still spoke: 【Host…】
Almost at the same time, another voice sounded: “Cousin!”
Xie Yi raised his head. Lin Zhiji followed his gaze and looked toward a young scholarly man with a refined, upright appearance.
He walked over quickly, speaking warmly: “I thought it was you from afar, and it really is! I heard you moved to Qingping Courtyard. That place is good, quiet. I’ll come find you when I have time. Oh right, I brought gifts for all of you this time. I’ll have them sent over together later…”
Lin Zhiji did not expect that this person, who looked cold and reserved, turned out to be a chatterbox.
What surprised him even more was that Xie Yi did not show impatience, and instead just listened like this to his rambling speech.
This was rare.
Was there such a character in the original book?
While Lin Zhiji was racking his brain trying to recall the original story—
Xie Pingyue also came out of the ancestral hall with Xie Cheng’an, looking quite disheveled. Seeing the young scholar, he was pleasantly surprised: “Wenxu, when did you return?”
Wenxu?
Liang Wenxu?!
Lin Zhiji froze instantly!
In the original book, Xie Yi was bloodthirsty and cruel, leaving rivers of blood wherever he went, but he usually killed directly and rarely used methods like torture.
However, this Liang Wenxu was someone he personally ordered to be subjected to the “scraping torture.”
The so-called “scraping torture” involved using a fine iron brush, like a comb, to scrape off a person’s flesh layer by layer until only bone was exposed.
During the entire process, the victim remained conscious, watching as their flesh was slowly stripped away piece by piece. The double torment of body and mind caused many people to go insane before dying from blood loss.
Because this punishment was so brutally horrifying, Lin Zhiji remembered it clearly, and thus remembered the name Liang Wenxu.
But… how could this be!
His moment of失态 only lasted a brief instant. Though he quickly recovered, it was still noticed by Xie Yi.
Xie Yi understood immediately and said with certainty: 【You know him.】