Small Talk is fun...not really...

"Alexander! You fat bastard, it's been ages! How's life?," Zhen Yan called out as he exited the carriage. He was soon followed by his wife Daria, holding Zhen Hei and Zhen Bai in her arms, and then Zhen Hai. Zhen Liu and Jin Fang moved to join them after they had all gotten off the carriage.

The two entourages then moved to meet each other upon the steps leading up to the auction house entrance.

Once they got close enough, the leaders of each entourage embraced each other.

"Haha! I swear you get skinnier everytime I see you, fire cat!"

"Hah! It's because you get fatter everytime we meet!"

"Ain't that the truth! Say, how goes things back in Stone Claw?"

As the two old friends caught up with one another, their respective wives proceeded to interact in their own way.

"Malina, it has been ages!," Daria said in a sweet tone that Zhen Liu found a bit jarring. He knew that his mother would adopt a different tone voice when meeting others in a formal setting, he just hasn't heard this tone before. It was shockingly sweet.

"Indeed Daria! It's been far too long," Malina replied in an equally sweet tone as she moved to hug Daria, "Tell me, how are the kids?"

"Oh just brilliant, as you can see!," Daria answered while showing Zhen Bai and Zhen Hei off a bit, "I heard one of your sons just got engaged?"

"He did."

'Good to know parental humble bragging is about as universal as potatoes...,' Zhen Liu thought to himself.

Malina Goldshire was a mature woman with red curly hair and surprisingly pale skin given how Emerald Eye City was in the middle of a desert. Zhen Liu presumed she either cultivated a formula that helped her maintained her appearance, she just spent most of her days indoors, or both. Evidently, Alicia appeared to take more physically from her mother than her father, speaking of...

"Hi Ali-"

"How do you do, honored guests of the Zhen Clan?," a young woman dressed in what Zhen Liu could only describe as a "battle maid" interrupted as she curtsied.

"My name is Matilda, and I am the personal attendant to Lady Alicia Goldshire. May I have the pleasure of knowing who I am addressing?"

"Huh? Oh, uh I'm-"

"Matilda! There's no need for such formalities. We already know each other," Alicia admonished. "Apologies Zhen Liu, it's good to see you again."

"Kuu!"

"You too, Mini."

"Kuu."

"Good to see you too. You're looking better since we last met," Zhen Liu joked.

"Well I was running for my life," she retorted.

"Fair enough."

Alicia did look a lot better since the last time Zhen Liu saw her. Gone was the torn and slightly bloodied traveler's clothes and somewhat ragged complexion, replaced with a ruddier complexion and a modern style purple dress and corset combination. Tying the whole ensemble together was a gold and blue hair brooch.

'How Victorian steampunk,' Zhen Liu commented to himself as he looked her up and down.

"Is that a new ear piece? I never took you for the jewelry type."

"New puppet actually, can show ya later."

"Ah."

For reasons beyond his understanding, when Zhen Liu set Frosttusk into "carry mode", he turned into an earring for him. It didn't look bad, it was just...big.

"Hold up, you two know each other?," Zhen Hai interjected, noticing the familiar rapport the two seemed to have with one another. As far as he knew, Zhen Liu spent most of his time with Jin Fang and/or working on his puppets...now a days. Before he was kind of a depressive layabout. Regardless, he never expected him to be the sociable type.

"Apologies, and you are...?"

"Zhen Hai, the First Young Master of the Zhen Clan. Pleased to meet you."

"I thought I already-no, wait...I only told grandpa, my parents and Jin Fang...Right, well long story short, Alicia here is the reason why I found out about my own funeral in the first place," Zhen Liu explained nonchalantly, "She was being attacked by bandits, so I swooped in to the rescue."

"Well aren't you chivalrous?," Zhen Hai joked.

"Yes...very chivalrous," Jin Fang reiterated in a somewhat icy tone. The way Jin Fang said that sent shivers up Zhen Liu's spine, the kind of shivers he'd get when his mother got angry. It was mildly terrifying.

'Oh shit, is Jin Fang the jealous type?,' Zhen Liu thought to himself. Judging from the icy gaze aimed at him... maybe? Granted her intimidating image was kinda thrown off by the baby hippo in her arms.

"Kuu."

The conversation between the younger generation was soon interrupted by Alicia's father, Alexander.

"Hey, the auctions won't start in another hour or so, why don't you youngins go and see what Emerald Eye has to offer. Alicia, why don't you show our guests around the city?," Alexander suggested.

"Of course, father," Alicia agreed with a nod of her head. She began to make way down the steps of the auction house, Matilda following a few steps behind her, and towards the city proper.

"Shall we?," she asked the Zhen Clan heirs.

Zhen Hai and Zhen Liu looked at each other for a few moments before shrugging.

"Sure, why not? It'd probably be more interesting than just us standing here."

Once the group of young adults were out of ear-shot of the parents, Zhen Yan and Alexander began to talk on more...private matters.

"So that's the prodigal First Young Master, huh? I must admit Zhen Yan, he does seem a bit...blunt? I should say," Alexander whispered as he watched the group go. He had never met Zhen Hai until now, but he really couldn't understand how he was one of the Zhen Clan's biggest talents.

"Yeah... he's a damn good warrior, not so much a diplomat...speaking of sons however, what do you think of my own? Think he'd be a good match for your precious marigold?"

"Perhaps...they do a have a nice rapport, but there's a big difference between good friendship and good marriages, although the way she was looking him...bah! Enough on that, tell me now, your family wouldn't send Lightning Pigeon in the dead of night unless you had something important to share, so pray tell what is it?"

"Well...," Zhen Yan took a quick look of his surroundings before leaning in close to whisper, "You ever seen a natural cultivation array, up close?"

"Only...no...," Alexander whispered in disbelief, "how'd you get your hands on one?"

"Well, it's a long story, but my son plays a crucial role in it..."