Harmonious Banquet

A.N.

Well guys I recommend you read the new fanfic Reverend Insanity- True Freedom by Moist_BedBugs btw let's see how long until he drops this to

And talking about dropping, I started writing again in my fanfic Reverend Insanity - The Prophet of Christ and I will be posting chapters there every three days and I recommend that everyone read it as it is a good breath of fresh air in these stories about demonic cultivators

-----------------

"Ah, young master Yi Zhan, it is truly an honor to have you accept my invitation!" Li Xin has a broad smile on his face as he sees Chen Wei enter the banquet hall calmly.

"It's an honor for you indeed..." Chen Wei sits in the principal chair, which has been left empty for him.

Of course, it is usually common practice for the host of the banquet to sit in the main chair, but an exception to this custom can be made when the cultivation rank of a guest is much higher. In such a case, it depends on the host to offer the main seat as a demonstration of respect.

"And I really have to thank you for the accommodations..." Chen Wei glances at the three girls sitting in the seats beside him. "...as well as the beautiful and luxurious clothes, which are much better than the rags we wore before."

The three girls are elegantly dressed in beautiful traditional Chinese dresses that are quite conservative, revealing little skin, which gives them an air of even greater elegance and grace, like dignified and untouchable ladies.

"I'm glad you liked the gift, as these dresses come directly from the best tailor in the village," Lin Xin takes a sip of his wine while closely observing Chen Wei's words and reactions.

"It is indeed a piece of the highest quality," Wang Mei, who is sitting next to Chen Wei, speaks politely with her cute and delicate voice, which could make any young man's heart waver. "I would really like to speak to the tailor to get some more dresses if possible."

"Of course! If little sister wants, I can accompany you since I am a regular customer of the shop!" A beautiful young woman with brown hair wearing an elegant yellow dress speaks enthusiastically.

"Ah, it seems I haven't introduced you yet... This is my eldest daughter, Li Liu," Li Xin has a calm expression on his face as he watches Li Liu making a polite bow to Chen Wei.

"And this is my youngest daughter, Li Bai..." Li Xin sighs as he sees his daughter making a bow to Chen Wei while trembling with nervousness. "...don't worry too much about her nervousness, she has been quite shy since childhood."

"It's a pleasure to meet both of you, and I see you take after your mother's beauty, I presume," Chen Wei says his words of false politeness and delight perfectly, as he was taught since childhood as the heir of the Chen family.

"I am flattered by your words, young master..." A beautiful lady in her early fifties sitting next to Li Xin speaks while using a fan to cover her mouth. "...but my youthful days when I turned the heads of young men wherever I went are long gone."

She speaks with false humility, for she still takes great care and pride in her appearance, believing it surpasses even the young girls of the village, and that's just considering her age. She knows that in her youth, no one could compare to her beauty.

It is no wonder she managed to seduce and become the only wife of Li Xin after he became the village leader, even though he was initially hesitant due to her promiscuous reputation with the Gu Masters who occasionally came to guard the village.

Moreover, she hasn't lost her promiscuous habits from her youth, as she routinely sneaks around and sleeps with the Gu Masters who visit the village, who never refuse her advances despite her advanced age.

"Well, this is my lovely wife, Lan Ming," Li Xin concludes his words and looks at Chen Wei, waiting for him to do the same.

"Well, these are my wives Yi Lan, Yi Ling, and Yi Xiu..." Chen Wei doesn't bother to speak much, merely pointing to Yu Lian, Wang Mei, and Feng Hua, stating the names he had prepared beforehand.

"Those are truly beautiful names fitting for beautiful ladies," Lan Ming gazes at the three while trying to mask the sense of envy in her heart.

This is because, now seeing such great beauties next to Chen Wei, which makes even her feel somewhat inadequate in beauty, her plan to have one of her daughters seduce the legendary Rank 4 Gu Master seems even harder to implement.

Given that he had requested a large number of women to be brought to his room tonight, she thought he might be lustful and easy to seduce. But now, after the introductions, he didn't even give Li Liu or Li Bai a second look.

"Yi? Are you all from the same clan or village?" Li Bai asks innocently, trying to overcome her shyness.

"Li Bai! My deepest apologies, young master, for my daughter's insolence. She has been very spoiled by me and therefore lacks proper manners!" Li Xin's heart races with nervousness as he tries to appease Chen Wei, who fortunately doesn't seem angry.

His reaction is not an exaggeration because, in the Gu world, there are various taboos regarding what can be said or asked, one of the most common being the taboo against asking about someone's Gu, which even mortals know about.

But there's also a less known taboo for mortals or for his daughter, who has never dealt with the dirty and dark aspects of this world, and that is asking about the clan or origin of a demonic Gu Master.

This is a common mistake because most Gu Masters use their clan names as a source of pride, but for demonic Gu Masters, who often have bounty posters or may have betrayed their original clans, false names are common. So asking too much about this is a great disrespect.

"No, there is no problem. I am not like those masters who hide like rats in the shadows," Chen Wei has a confident smile on his face, demonstrating determination. "The four of us are children of a lonely Rank 3 Gu Master called Yi Bei, but from different mothers as well."

"Ah, you are siblings? Sorry if the question was too intrusive," Li Liu now has her turn to speak too much after being shocked by Chen Wei's words.

"Yes, we are, as I said," Chen Wei speaks naturally, as if it were nothing of importance.

Of course, there is a reason behind Chen Wei's story. Although the past of demonic Gu Masters is usually not discussed in normal situations, he is certain it will be necessary for his schemes with the elders of the Huo clan and other future plans.

If so, it is better to create an extremely difficult-to-verify story because who could really discover the lie about this supposed lonely Rank 3 Gu Master called Yi Bei who is their father and could have lived and been born anywhere in the southern border?

He also wants to take advantage of cultural taboos about relationships between those of the same blood to further create a barrier for anyone asking about his family or anything of the sort, thus reducing conversations on this topic.

Well, of course this lie could attract the disdain and judgment of various righteous forces since he not only broke the custom by having more than one wife but also that they are his half-sisters. But why would he care about these judgments?

In truth, almost all demonic or lonely Gu Masters take multiple concubines, break moral laws, rob, and kill without care, so why would he limit his lies for his plans because of the morality of righteous Gu Masters?

A morality that is still quite hypocritical since many clans trace their origins to demonic or lonely Gu Masters who established a fixed base after taking hundreds of concubines and having thousands of children.

Actually Chen Wei has always wondered how the clans of the southern border, which intermarry for endless centuries, do not have genetic problems since in the end, everyone shares the same blood. For example, he and Wang Mei are distant cousins in a way since the Wang family and the Chen family have intermarried multiple times in the history of the He An clan.

"Well... I would be interested to know what brings you to Jie Mountain. Is it the widely known Riding Lizards?" Li Xin quickly tries to change the subject before it reaches an uncomfortable point.

"Riding Lizards?" Chen Wei asks in doubt, as he has never heard of that particular animal.

"Well, they are a famous mount in the region, being the first choice for many Gu Masters who want practicality..." Li Xin speaks with enthusiasm but also careful with his words. "...not that I am belittling the young master's knowledge, of course."

"No need for your careful words regarding my knowledge..." Chen Wei says as he looks at a group of servants arriving with the food. "...I come from quite far away, so I've never heard of this local mount."

"As expected. Well, the Riding Lizards are large lizards that are easy to domesticate and are great for carrying either people on their backs or objects in their bellies," Li Xin smiles calmly as he begins to eat the food placed on the table by the servants.

"In their bellies? I imagine it is an uncommon beast," Chen Wei looks at his food, frowning before he starts to eat, followed by the three girls at his side, who also begin eating, watching his actions.

Of course, their concern here is obviously poisoning, but he remains secure in the fact that his healing Gu would be capable of suppressing and extinguishing the effect of any mortal poison. As for poisons made by a Gu Master, it is unlikely that Li Xin would have any, given how underdeveloped and rare the poison path is in this era.

"You really have excellent cooks, I must say," Chen Wei looks at the fish on his plate and speaks honestly for the first time to Li Xin.

"Haha, everyone says that when they eat the smoked catfish typical of Jie Mountain" Li Xin responds, his heart relieved and satisfied with Chen Wei's words.

"I am also quite satisfied. Honestly, I missed such well-prepared food..." Feng Hua comments in a low voice but quickly falls silent again.

The reason why the three girls have been quiet for most of the banquet is because of Chen Wei's orders, so they don't say anything that could compromise their disguise.

"That is splendid, and since my sister will be buying clothes with Yi Ling, how about we visit some of the best restaurants in the village?" Li Liu has a smile on her face as she speaks gently to Yu Lian and Feng Hua.

"Of course, if you would like..." Feng Hua responds simply, nodding her head.

Yu Lian, for her part, only nods with pity for Li Liu and Li Bai because she knows that this morning will not come as they expect, well not according to Chen Wei's plans if they succeed.

"Well, all this talk is irrelevant to my main reason for coming to Jie Mountain..." Chen Wei speaks simply as he savors the richly prepared fish.

"If it is not insolent of me to ask, what would that objective be? I can help a lot with my connections!" Li Xin speaks enthusiastically because he understands that if Chen Wei brought up the topic to him, he wants to talk about it and probably needs Li Xin's help.

"Well, nothing much, I just plan to invade and take control of the Huo Clan," Chen Wei, acting as if it were not a big deal, continues eating his food without even raising his head.

At this moment, Li Xin's face freezes in an expression of endless shock, his heart pounding so hard it seems ready to leap out of his mouth at any moment.

"Excuse me, I believe I misheard. You plan to attack the Huo Clan??" Li Xin tries to control his shock as he asks again, praying that his ears deceived him.

"Exactly. I am tired of a lonely Gu Master's life and now want to rest with my wives, and the Huo Clan seems like a great place for that!" Chen Wei raises his head and looks directly at him with a broad smile on his face.

"...." Li Xin just observes, speechless, but now he knows in his heart that if he had any doubts that meeting Chen Wei was the greatest misfortune of his life, those doubts no longer exist.