Chapter Eleven: The Tides of the Qin Clan

  The Qin family's ancestral mansion is located in the southeast of Qianchao City, with high dark green walls blocking most people's sight, only to see the towering carved beams and painted buildings inside, with tall trees dotting among them, majestic and awe-inspiring.

  The main gate of the ancestral mansion, a large vermilion-lacquered gate with copper studs, was tightly closed. Two stone lions sat majestically on either side, while four robust and fierce-looking warriors stood guard on the cloud-patterned stone steps.

  Qin Yun stepped forward and bowed his fist to one of the warriors, asking: "Brother, I'm here for the Return Flow Selection. Where do I sign up?"

  The warrior's eyes were originally cold and vigilant, but when he heard that Qin Yun was here to participate in the Return Flow Selection, the frost on his face relaxed slightly: "You can walk over from this side, less than a hundred steps away, there is a special courtyard to receive outside disciples."

  "Thank you!" Qin Yun smiled and walked in the direction he pointed.

  Sure, here is the translation:

  As expected, after walking a few dozen steps, another gate opened in the garden wall. The two large gates were wide open, and young men of the same age as Qin Yun were entering and exiting.

  Qin Yun walked in and found that inside was a not-so-large courtyard, with a three-story wooden building facing the gate, on which hung a huge plaque with the three golden characters "Gui Zong Ge" written in a majestic style.

  In the center of the courtyard stood a wooden table, on which a middle-aged man was writing hastily. Behind him stood two warriors, and beside them were about twenty young boys and girls.

  It should be here! Qin Yun's heart was slightly excited.

  Although he has Qin's bloodline, he didn't grow up in the clan after all. The Qin family is a completely strange and enormous entity to Qin Yun.

  But after all, blood ties can't be completely severed, and now that he's arrived at the ancestral temple of his sect, his emotions are inevitably complicated.

  As for his parents' past, due to Qin Yang's sudden departure from the world, he understood very little about it, only knowing that his father died and his mother was imprisoned. Qin Yang also didn't say anything about the Qin family being in the wrong, so he didn't have any negative feelings about returning to the clan.

  He composed himself and Qin Yun walked in front of the wooden table.

  Before he could speak, the middle-aged man raised his head and asked faintly: "Which branch and house are you from? Do you have a family token?"

  Which branch and which house? Family relies on faith?

  This really stumped Qin Yun, he needed to conceal his true identity and had no idea what branch or house he belonged to.

  Hesitating for a moment, Qin Yun replied: "I've been dependent on my grandfather since I was young and only knew that I'm a descendant of the Qin family, but I don't know which branch or house I belong to."

  He took out the jade token from his bosom and handed it over: "I don't know if this can be considered a family heirloom?"

  It's no surprise that the middle-aged man didn't know, the Qin family has a long history with many branches and descendants scattered all over the place, it's not strange that he doesn't know his identity within the clan.

  The Qin clan holds a returning ancestral home selection every year, which is to select elites from many branch families and collateral branches to supplement new blood. If a big family does not know how to expel the old and take in the new, it will eventually decline.

  He took over the jade plaque and examined it carefully. The middle-aged man nodded: "Not bad, this is our Qin family's engraved jade plaque, which can be used as a family token, however..."

  He suddenly changed his tone: "According to our clan's rules, you still need to undergo a blood test to verify your kinship."

  A middle-aged man pointed to a Qing dynasty porcelain bowl placed on the edge of the table: "It's very simple, just drip a few drops of blood into it."

  This sea bowl Qin Yun had seen it a long time ago and thought it was used for washing brushes, never expecting that it would be used to verify kinship by dripping blood.

  All I saw was a shallow greenish water filling half of the bowl, with a thumb-sized jade stone submerged at the bottom.

  This was undoubtedly the Qin family's means of defense against outsiders impersonating them. Qin Yun pricked his fingertip with a silver needle according to the middle-aged man's request and dripped two drops of fresh blood into the bowl.

  The bright red blood fell into the water and did not disperse, but instead sank directly to the bottom and stuck tightly to that piece of jade.

  After a moment, two drops of fresh blood were gradually absorbed by the jade stone, and the milky white surface of the jade stone quickly turned into a pale pink color.

  "No problem!"

  The middle-aged man nodded in satisfaction and returned the jade token to Qin Yun, picking up his pen again to ask: "What's your name, where are you from, and how old are you this year?"

  Qin Yun, from Qinghe County, fifteen years old.

  A middle-aged man wrote "Qinghe Qin Yun fifteen" on the paper, and then picked up a small iron plate from the table and handed it to Qin Yun: "This is your selection token number. Four days later, you will participate in the return flow and clan selection. You go wait aside first, someone will come to take you to the accommodation place."

  Qin Yun took over the iron plaque and saw the words "368" engraved on it.

  Next to him were about twenty young men and women holding iron plates, some of whom cast kind glances at Qin Yun as he approached, while others chatted with each other, and some coldly averted their gaze.

  A sturdy young man with a robust build was the most enthusiastic, and he proactively came over with a smile, saying: "Brother, are you also from Qinghe County? Then we're fellow villagers! My family is in Lucheng, Qinghe, and my name is Qin Haishan!"

  The Great Yan State of Yanzhou has a total of sixteen counties, and Guiyang is one of the largest counties. Qinghe County, on the other hand, is located in a remote area and is considered a small county with no discounts.

  Qin Yun knew that Lucheng was the county seat of Qinghe County, and this young man named Qin Haiming had an extraordinary bearing, so he shouldn't be from an ordinary family.

  "My name is Qin Yun, and I'm from Qinghe County's Shanglie Village."

  "Shang Lie Village..." Qin Hai Shan rubbed his head, clearly having never heard of the name before. However, he turned around with a smile and said: "Come on, I'll introduce you to two fellow villagers who have also just arrived from Qinghe County."

  Qin Haishan introduced his fellow villager and cousin, Qin Mingzhu, who was beautiful and shy, evoking sympathy and affection.

  Another 15- or 16-year-old handsome young man named Qin Liren came from Dongshui City in Qinghe Prefecture.

  After getting to know each other, the four of them quickly became familiar with each other. Qin Haishan said: "Later, after we settle down, let's gather at Longqing Wine House nearby for dinner tonight. There are fellow townspeople who have booked a place there!"

  It can be seen that Qin Haishan has a wide range of connections, and as soon as he arrived, he contacted other fellow villagers, and Qin Yun naturally had no objection.

  He is unfamiliar with the place here, and it's also a good thing to know some fellow villagers.

  After a while, the sky gradually darkened, and a Qin family manager came over with several servants.

  He led more than twenty Qin family children out of the small courtyard, and after walking a hundred or so steps along the stone path, they arrived at a mansion with its back against a small hill.

  The manor is vast in scale, with lush greenery surrounding it and offering a beautiful view. Rows of wooden houses are scattered throughout the courtyards.

  Qin's family affairs arranged for more than 20 people to be distributed separately, with two people living in a small house. Qin Haishan, who was straightforward and had a good temper, asked the person in charge if he could live with Qin Tian in the same room, and was allowed to do so.

  The power of the Qin family can be seen from this wooden house alone. Although the rooms inside are not large, there are bedrooms, quiet rooms, and bathrooms, and a small study has been opened on the attic.

  The interior decoration is clean and tidy, even the bedding is brand new, at least much better than Qin Yun's original house in Shang Lie Village.

  The housekeeper told them that all the new young masters of the family would have to live here for a year or so before the family made further arrangements, and it was also possible that they would stay in the manor permanently.

  After settling down, Qin Haishan left and came back quickly, excitedly saying to Qin Yun: "Let's go, they've been waiting for us at the Longqing Building!"

  The wine house Qin Haishan mentioned was not far from the Qin family mansion, and the four of them arrived on foot in less than half a cup of tea.

  Longqing Tavern is also at the foot of the mountain, next to which there is a small lake like a bright mirror. Qin Haishan has obviously been here before, he tells Qin Yun that this mountain in the city is called Xiaogushan and is very famous in Yanyun Prefecture.

  Legend has it that a thousand years ago, when Qianchao City had not yet been established, the Sword God Yan Bei returned to Xiaogushan and beheaded the strongest of the Northern Witch Tribe, forcing back the witch tribe's army of one million, thus sparing Yanyun Prefecture from a great calamity.

  Yan Bei Hui was actually the founding emperor of Great Yan, and Qin Yun had heard many stories and legends about him.

  Under the night sky, the seven-story high Longqing Wine House was brightly lit and bustling with business. Qin Yun and others followed Qin Haiming to the second floor.

  Fifty or sixty members of the Qin family from Qinghe County gathered together in a grand hall, occupying seven large tables and almost taking over the entire floor.

  Qin Haishan dragged Qin Yun to a young man with an arrogant expression, who was the organizer of tonight's gathering, Qin Jun.

  Qin Jun joined the Qian Chao Qin Clan five years ago and is now a disciple of the Law Enforcement Hall of the Qin Clan's Mu Yang Dao. Among the Qing He Zi brothers, he can be considered one of the best.

  Qin Jun was not very enthusiastic about Qin Haisan, and even more so towards Qin Yun and Qin Liren, just nodding as a greeting. However, when he saw Qin Mingzhu, his eyes lit up, and he said a few more words.

  Most of the Qin family members present are newcomers who have just arrived to participate in the Return Flow Selection, and attending the gathering is nothing more than seeking mutual support and reliance. After all, there are many people from the Qin family, but they basically have no relatives or friends here, so it's normal for them to interact with each other and seek help.

  Everyone has arrived, and the wine and dishes were quickly served.

  The location of Longqing Hotel is very good, although it's only on the second floor, but through the open windows, you can see the beautiful scenery of Xiaogushan, and the nearby lake is sparkling, with a gentle breeze that makes people feel relaxed and happy.

  Qin Jun complacently regarded himself as the master of the Eastern Road and a leader among his fellow townspeople, with some people on the side flattering him to curry favor, which made him even more arrogant.

  "The return of the clan is for selecting elite descendants of our Qin family, anyone who is a descendant of the Qin family has an opportunity, but not everyone can rise to prominence because of this!"

  "Who wouldn't want to join the Tiancheng Sword Sect? But the mountain gate of the Tiancheng Sword Sect only opens once every three years, and each time it only recruits a maximum of 300 disciples. Among them, our Qin family only has ten recommended quotas, making it extremely difficult to get this opportunity."

  "Retreating to seek the next best option, the Tiancheng Sword Sect's affiliated side door, Nulan Gate, has a deep relationship with our Qin family. Every year, they recruit a batch of young disciples into the gate, but only twenty people are accepted, and there are many monks but little porridge!"

  In the wine tower, only Qin Jun's voice was left, and all the Qin family juniors who had just arrived listened carefully.

  What Qin Jun is saying now concerns their future prospects and destiny.