Chapter 21 : Chapter 21
Chapter 21: Family Council
Early the next morning.
Qingfeng Valley, the family council hall.
The six family Elders were already waiting there.
“Second Elder, who would have thought you would quietly break through to Physical Body Realm Perfection? Truly a joyous occasion.”
Several Elders offered their congratulations with smiling faces.
The Second Elder laughed and stroked his beard, answering modestly, “It was only luck. You old fellows should hurry up too. Time waits for no one, and not much is left for us old bones.”
The Third Elder, Li Xuanyong, sighed.
Shaking his head, he said, “My aptitude is too poor. This life of mine is probably as far as it goes. I might as well focus on guarding the Family Head’s money pouch properly.”
Everyone chuckled.
The group chatted idly until suddenly a loud voice rang out from outside—
“The Family Head has arrived!”
Li Xingge strode in with steady steps.
Once he took his seat in the Family Head’s position, grand and commanding, all the Elders except the Grand Elder rose together, cupped their fists, and said, “We greet the Family Head.”
“Please, Elders, be seated.”
Li Xingge smiled.
Once everyone had sat down again, Li Xingge announced that the family council was formally beginning.
“Family Head, the casualty figures from the battle against the Mangshan Su Clan have now been tallied.”
The Grand Elder was the first to speak.
“In that battle, our Li family lost seventeen cultivators in combat, and another nine were wounded or crippled. All were Body Tempering Realm cultivators.”
Li Xingge nodded after hearing this, his expression somewhat grave.
“For those of the Li family who died in battle, issue a one-time compensation payment of fifty taels. For those wounded or crippled, twenty taels, and assign them suitable work according to their circumstances. All clan members who participated in the battle are to receive five taels each as a reward.”
None of the Elders objected to Li Xingge’s arrangements.
At that moment, the Grand Elder spoke again. “Family Head, the Hao family fought on behalf of our Li family in this battle and also suffered serious casualties. Should the Li family not show some consideration? Otherwise, the world may grow cold-hearted toward us and call the Li family unfeeling.”
Li Xingge thought for a moment and felt the Grand Elder was right. In the battle to destroy the Su family, the Hao family had contributed greatly.
That Hao family head whom he had bestowed the name Hao Zhongli upon had even slain one of the Su family’s Physical Body Realm cultivators.
So Li Xingge nodded.
“The Grand Elder speaks reasonably. Then let us reward them with five hundred taels of gold, and in addition grant them that small iron mine at Ximei Mountain. What do you all think?”
A lump sum of five hundred taels was already very generous.
For a small family like the Hao family, that was likely about equal to their entire yearly income.
As for the Ximei Mountain mine, its reserves were low and the mining process was complicated.
To the Li family, it was chicken ribs—tasteless to eat, but a pity to discard.
It was better to give it to the Hao family as a favor and win their loyalty.
This time, even the stingy Third Elder said nothing.
Seeing that no one had objections, Li Xingge asked, “Grand Elder, do you have anything else to say?”
The Grand Elder shook his head.
“Nothing more.”
“Then next.”
Li Xingge spoke lightly.
“Second Elder, has the Enforcement Hall encountered any problems lately?”
“We do not have enough people.”
Li Xingge directly chose to ignore that answer.
The Li family had expanded greatly. There was a shortage of manpower everywhere.
Then the Third Elder spoke. “Family Head, the Su family’s properties have all been taken over. Everything went very smoothly. However, I’m afraid we will not be able to take over the Su family’s largest mine.”
Li Xingge frowned.
He knew of that mine. It was the Su family’s most valuable property.
“Has someone interfered?”
Li Xingge asked coldly.
The Third Elder shook his head. “Not exactly. It is just that the Su family’s largest mine had already been mortgaged.”
“Mortgaged?”
Li Xingge looked puzzled.
“Yes. Mortgaged to the Myriad Treasures Pavilion.”
The corner of Li Xingge’s mouth twitched slightly.
At the same time, the Sixth Elder, Li Yanzhao, slapped his thigh hard.
“So that’s why they were spending money so lavishly that day. Turns out the wastrels mortgaged away the family’s lifeline.”
Everyone burst into laughter.
“If it has been mortgaged to the Myriad Treasures Pavilion, then let it go. Our Li family cannot afford to offend them.”
Li Xingge shook his head.
He was not like certain Long Aotian types from novels.
Those people offended enemies they clearly could not handle, and if not for protagonist plot armor, they would probably die in under three minutes in a fantasy world like this.
A qualified Family Head first had to possess a clear understanding of his own family’s strength.
The Myriad Treasures Pavilion could casually hang even Qi-Blood Realm Major Accomplishment cultivators to death, much less the little scraps the Li family had.
Though somewhat unwilling, everyone understood what kind of existence the Myriad Treasures Pavilion was.
The Fourth Elder had nothing to say.
Then it was the Fifth Elder, Li Xuanqi.
Li Xuanqi also served as the chief steward of the Li family’s lifeline, the Silver Ridge mineral vein, and held the power of life and death over several thousand mine slaves.
He rose, cupped his fists, and said, “Family Head, over this recent period, the losses among the mine slaves at the Silver Ridge mineral vein have been rather severe. I wish to petition the family to purchase another two thousand mine slaves. In addition, I ask that the family dispatch an elite squad to suppress the mine.”
The Silver Ridge mineral vein was of immense importance and could not be allowed to fail.
Thus Li Xingge granted the Fifth Elder’s request.
As the meeting continued, matter after matter of clan business was decided.
When no one else spoke, Li Xingge gave a light cough and said slowly, “Elders, there are two matters I wish to discuss with you next.”
All six Elders straightened in their seats, their expressions turning solemn.
“First, I intend to adjust the supply of resources to the family’s cultivators. From today onward, all cultivators of the family will receive double their previous allotment of cultivation resources.”
Everyone was visibly shaken.
“Family Head, double? Is that not too much?”
The Grand Elder sounded uncertain.
“Not at all. The family’s sphere of power has expanded by more than double, yet the family’s overall strength has not kept pace. It may not show in the short term, but if this continues for too long, problems will arise within the family sooner or later.”
Li Xingge spoke calmly.
The Grand Elder turned to the Third Elder. “If the supply is doubled, can the family treasury support it?”
The Third Elder clenched his teeth. At this moment, he felt as though his heart were bleeding.
But very quickly, he said with finality, “It can.”
Hearing that, the Grand Elder nodded. “If that is so, then this old man has no objections.”
Since both the Family Head and Grand Elder agreed, the other Elders naturally had no objections either.
If anyone did object, tomorrow the clan members’ spit alone would probably drown him.
The first matter passed unanimously.
“Since no one has any objections, then I will speak of the second matter.”
“I intend to implement a birth incentive policy within the family.”
Li Xingge smiled.
“The family’s population is far too small—just over a thousand. Now that the family’s territory has expanded, that number is proving insufficient. People are lacking everywhere. If the population does not keep up, then how can we talk about strengthening the family? Therefore, I plan to have the family institute a population incentive policy.”
Several Elders nodded in agreement.
A family certainly needed strong experts.
But if it lacked enough people to pass down and continue the line, it would decline sooner or later as well.
Unless one could live forever.
“And with more newborns, the likelihood of children with cultivation talent appearing also rises. I need not explain what gifted children mean to the family, do I?”
Li Xingge spoke with a smiling expression.
The Elders nodded like pounding garlic. This point, more than anything, they truly understood.
Because a living example was sitting right in front of them.
“As for the specific regulations, I leave them for you to draft. There is no issue with that, I trust?”
“This matter benefits the family and is a plan for the long future. The Family Head is wise. We have no objections.”
The Elders spoke in unison.
“In that case, Elders, return and attend to your respective duties.”