395 Family Gathering

"Oh?"

Chen Fan looked up at her cousin and taken aback.

Ever since last year's annual gathering, Chen Ning had seldom talked to him. Her cousin and he had never liked each other, but they were shy of arguing with each other. However, after Chen Fan had risen to power, Chen Ning started to keep things to herself and grow reticent whenever Chen Fan was around.

"Umm…" Chen Fan hesitated.

He never liked her friends and neither was he interested in a teenagers' party.

Chen Fan brushed shoulders with powerful and successful figures such as Li Wuchen, Yang Qinhu, Red Sparrow and Mitsui Kazuo, so the company of a group of youngsters simply could no longer pique his interest. However, Chen Fan felt reluctant to refuse his cousin who had just broken out of her shell and approached him for the first time in a long time.

"Only the heirs of the most powerful families in Jinlin City are invited to the party. The Chen family had just joined the club recently so we had to deal with a lot of bullshit. But I believe that your presence would help to quell the animosity and make things easier for us." Seeing the hesitation on Chen Fan's face, Chen Ning hurried to put in.

Chen Guoguo also popped out from nowhere and shouted at Chen Fan: "Brother Chen Fan, I want to go with you!"

Chen Fan cracked a smile and nodded.

He wouldn't mind showing up for support, what harm could that do?

The party was held at a private club called Red Stone on the outskirts of Jinlin City.

Most of the heirs that showed up were the third generation in their family. Some of them had already started working in managerial positions in their family business. Each one of them commanded as much influence in the city as Shen Junwen, Nin Yuze, or Su Peng. The party was just a disguise for the real agenda of the gathering: to discuss the profit quota of each family.

The discussion would touch upon all the dealings, good and bad, between major families. Although Chen Fan was an outsider, he knew very well how these meetings would pan out. Compromises would be made in the end, and profit would be distributed, fairly or not.

Chen Ning had driven her Cadillac while Chen Fan sat in the passenger seat.

"In the Jinlin City, there are four traditional powerful families: Qiao, Song, Hua, and Ren. Of the four, the Qiao Family and the Song Family are the most influential. Old Man Qiao had run the Jinlin City for many years while Qiao Luoyin also packed significant clout. Although the Song family didn't have any members they could brag about, they had a close tie with one of the major families in Yan Jin. Well, what am I talking about? Of course, you won't take these guys seriously. Not even the family lord of the Song family dares to challenge you, I wager."

Chen Ning said as a strange light came up in her eyes.

While she was working hard for the future of her family, striving to earn the approval of the elders in the family, Chen Fan had already earned enough prestige to sit around the same table with the family lords.

"Why did I fail to notice his talent?"

Chen Ning lamented in her mind.

"So, by your logic, we are the fifth great family of Jinlin City?"

Chen Fan asked Chen Ning while Chen Guoguo sat on his lap.

"There is no such thing as the four greatest family or the five greatest families." Chen Ning let out a wry smile. "Things change all the time. The Qiao Family and Song family might have their hay days now, but without a good heir, they will fall from grace. The Qiao Family, for example, is facing such a crisis. They simply don't have a competent heir to take over Old Man Qiao's responsibility."

"However, we are the only exception. As long as you remain strong, so would the entire Chen family. That is why other families hate us." Chen Ning said proudly.

Chen Fan nodded.

Let it be the Qiao Family or the Song family, the foundation of their influence was power and wealth. However, those worldly possessions would eventually fade away. Martial arts families such as the Gu family were different. As long as each of their generations holds on to their personal strength, they could last forever until the technology had advanced to much that it rendered martial arts irrelevant.

"I think I will have to leave some Martial arts techniques for my family before I leave the earth. Otherwise, the Chen Family would be easily squashed by its enemies without my protection. " Chen Fan's eyes lit up as he pondered on.

Of late, he increasingly felt the need to gather a force for his personal use.

As he gets stronger, he would encounter more and more powerful enemies. Therefore, he might not be able to protect his family even using the Protection Talisman. No Protection Talisman could ward off the attack of a Grandmaster or the raid of an elite special force.

Chen Fan didn't organize his own force early not only became he had to focus on Cultivation but also because he was wary of the Chinese leaders' reaction.

China was a powerful country and she would not tolerate the existence of a personal militia. However, the table had been turned and China desperately needed Chen Fan to be on her side. The nation's leader had even granted him a squad of personal guards. Chen Fan had gotten quiet consent from the Chinese government to organize his own personal militia.

"What should I name this militia group? I can't operate under the banner of True Martial Celestial Sect, that's too much to expect from these mortals. Maybe I will call it the Azure Talisman Sect, or the North Mystic Sect?"

Chen Fan rubbed his chin and pondered on.

Meanwhile, famous young men and women poured into the Red Stone club.

Members of Jinlin City's major family had all came back for the spring festival. One of the main tasks for them during the annual gathering was to distribute the profit among all families. Needless to say, it was a zero-sum game.

The Qiao Family, Song Family, Hua Family, and the Ren Family usually took up the lion's share of the profit. The other smaller families could only nibble on the leftovers.

However, a newly risen family had joined this year, intensifying the competition.

The Chen family vied to claim a significant portion of the pie, just like everyone else. The competitors carried no mercy as they walked into the match, and they should leave without any regret. All options would be on the table when the gloves were off.

Inside the meeting hall, the guests were gathered in a few small separate circles. They were all well-dressed and behaved courteously.

"Who do you think the Chen family is going to send to attend the meeting?"

A young man with greasy skin asked with a smirk.

"I am sure Chen An would make it since he is the most outstanding member of the third generation of the Chens. I am not sure about Chen Ning though. I have heard that she was admitted to Harvard, so she might be busy with that. No one knows what An Ya will do, she is the sister of you-know-who." A young man straightened his gold-rimmed glasses and said calmly.

"Tsk, tsk… The Chen family had hit the jackpot to be able to produce such a freak. I have met Ren Dong from the Ren family. His face was long and gloomy like." A young man said gloatingly.

"The Ren Family was the weakest among the major families. The rise of the Chen family is going to squeeze their profit margins even more. Ren Dong is going to look like that for a while." A girl wearing a dazzling dress said coldly.

"I bet the Chen family is going to claim the biggest share this year. None of the other families could compare with Master Chen. He is the General Major of Cang Dragon."

The man with the gold-rimmed glasses held a cup of wine and said matter-of-factly.

Hearing his comments, everyone shook their heads and heaved a sigh.

Chen Fan's battle at Wu Zhou had stunned the entire Jinlin City. He had quelled the combined might of the Ji Family, Su Family, Nin Family, and the Tang Family. If those families couldn't bring Chen Fan to his knees, neither could the Ren Family nor the Hua Family.

Zhou Qinya held a cup of wine and passed the crowd. The conversation spilled out from the small circle into her ears. Mentioning of Chen Fan's name made her feel remorse and envy.

She envied the girl called Fang Qiong whom Chen Fan had fell head over heels in love with; she also regretted that she didn't act sooner before the girl showed up and captivated Chen Fan's heart.

Even as she was lamenting her luck, she heard a young man say under his breath.

"Not likely. I don't think Master Chen will show up for this insignificant event. I also have heard that Song Family is well prepared for today's event."

"What could the Song Family do anyways? Could they be more powerful than the Ji Family of Zhong Hai? They have a provincial minister in their family, yet they were still quashed by Chen Fan." A young woman wearing shiny jewelry said derisively.

"Indeed."

Everyone nodded in agreement.

"The Song Family alone might mean nothing, but what if it was the Song Family and the Han Family combined?" The young man said mysteriously.

"Han Family? Which Han Family?"

Everyone looked to each other and was not sure what the young man was talking about.

Even Zhou Qinya was confused. She had never heard of a Han Family in the entire Jiang Nan Province much less the Jinlin City.

"Do you mean the Han Family of Yan Jin?"

The man with golden-rimmed glasses said as a light glinted in his eyes.

"Indeed. There is only one Han Family in China."The young man said proudly.

Han Family of Yan Jin!

A lot of listeners gasped as realization dawned upon them. Zhou Qinya's face also changed colors.

The Han Family of Yan Jin was one of the elite families in Yan Jin. Their influence and power were only outshined by a couple of the most powerful families in China. The powerful of the Ji Family of Zhong Hai, Su Family of Wu Zhou City, Qiao Family of Jinlin City were all a far cry from that of the Han Family of Yan Jin.

Being a tycoon of a Chinese city was one thing, and being a tycoon in the Chinese capital city was another.

"Han Family sent someone here this year? Yan Dong, ``Are you sure?"

Everyone, including Zhou Qinya, fixed their gaze on the young man called Yan Dong expectantly.

If his revelation was real, then the power dynamic in this gathering was about to change.

Before Yan Dong could confirm anything, a wave of commotion drifted in from the entrance.

Guests from the Chen family had arrived.