Chapter 16: The Rift Between Lin and Zhou
At the Lin family's entrance gate, the Zhou family's ancestor Zhou Quan, along with a talented person named Zhou Zilin, and a younger member, were discussing matters with Lin Batian. This time, Zhou Quan came to the Lin family to propose marriage.
The Lin and Zhou families used to have a period of harmony. During that time, five female cultivators from the Zhou family married into the Lin family, but no one from the Lin family married into the Zhou family. The Zhou family felt it was unfair because female cultivators were also important resources. When cultivators and cultivators joined together, there was a high chance of having descendants with Spiritual Roots, especially if the Spiritual Roots were strong.
"Taoist Friend Lin, you are also aware of our family's Yumin. He just turned forty-five this year, and his cultivation level is already in the mid-stage of Foundation Building. Yumin is from the main branch of the Zhou family and his lineage is legitimate. It is sufficient for him to marry Lin Ying. In order to show sincerity, we are willing..."
Zhou Quan pointed at the young member with confidence. This person's name was Zhou Yumin, and he was one of the outstanding younger members of the Zhou family. At forty-five years old, he had already reached the mid-stage of Foundation Building and has Double Spiritual Roots.
Zhou Quan came this time to propose marriage for him. He wished to marry Lin Ying. Originally, Zhou Quan wanted Yumin Zhou to marry the third eldest, Lin Die, but Lin Die had a cold personality, unlike the lively and adorable Lin Ying, whom Yumin preferred.
The Zhou family also believed that they came with sincerity. If the Lin family agreed, they were willing to offer a generous dowry, including spirit stones, spiritual herbs, elixirs, cultivation techniques, and more. They were also willing to integrate resources with the Lin family.
However, Zhou Quan didn't notice that Lin Batian's expression was already very ugly. Deep down, Lin Batian despised the idea of marriage alliances. He was the founder of the Lin family and a generation of powerhouses. In his opinion, everything the Lin family needed could be gained through force and strength, but not by using women as bargaining chips. If a family needed to exchange women for benefits, then that family was nothing but weak and lacked integrity.
"Steward Wu, please bring Lin Ying here."
Lin Batian didn't immediately blow up. Instead, he sent Steward Wu to call for Lin Ying. If Lin Ying liked this Yumin Zhou, then he would agree, but if she didn't, then he would be sorry.
Soon, Lin Ying arrived in the living room with the guidance of Steward Wu. Lin Batian explained why the Zhou family had come and then asked Lin Ying if she would like to marry Zhou Yumin.
"Getting married? Dad, I won't get married."
Lin Ying was shocked and immediately declined. Despite being in her forties, she still held on to a childlike mindset. She spent her days practicing her magic and visiting her brother for fun. She enjoyed her carefree life and saw no reason to get married.
"Miss Lin, our son Yumin is also here. He is the legitimate heir of our Zhou family. If you marry him, you won't suffer."
Zhou Quan's face turned dark. Lin Ying's rejection was so straightforward that it showed no regard for their feelings.
"Is the legitimate heir very powerful?"
Lin Ying questioned. In the Lin family, the distinction between legitimate and illegitimate was quite blurry, especially since they were a newly established clan. Even for the second or third generation, the distinction was practically nonexistent.
It usually took several generations for a clan to establish a clear distinction between legitimate and illegitimate. When a clan's development was not fast enough and the cake was not big enough, then they had to consider how to divide the cake.
Currently, the Lin family had a positive and upward mindset. The strength of their clan was continually growing, and both legitimate and illegitimate members could obtain satisfactory results. Naturally, this distinction was not emphasized.
"You..."
Zhou Quan became extremely angry upon hearing this and was about to scold Lin Ying, but Lin Batian spoke up.
"My Taoist friend Zhou, you saw it too. If Lin Ying doesn't want to get married, then let's forget about this."
"Taoist Friend Lin, it wouldn't be a loss for me to form an alliance with my Zhou family."
"Whether it's a loss or not doesn't matter. Getting married is about mutual willingness. If she doesn't want to, why force it? A forced melon is not sweet, isn't it?"
"Have you thought it through, Taoist Friend Lin?"
"Yes, I have."
Lin Batian's gaze became even colder. Can't you tell that he is getting impatient?
"Alright, alright! The Lin family's threshold is too high, and our Zhou family can't climb up. Hmph!"
Zhou Quan snorted and left in a huff, followed closely by Zhou Zilin and Zhou Yumin.
"Father, I..."
"No need to say more. Go back to practice. I, Lin Batian, would never use my daughter for personal gain."
"Thank you, Father. Then I'll go."
Lin Ying, carefree and oblivious to the significance behind this, quickly ran away.
"Master, it seems that the Lin and Zhou families are going to break apart."
As Lin Ying left, Steward Wu emerged from the corner and said to Lin Batian.
"If they want to break apart, let them. I've had enough. Old Wu, find a pretext for the Zhou family to make the first move, and I'll annihilate them."
"Master, Zhou Zilin has already advanced to the golden core stage. You..."
"It's okay, let's do it together."
"Over there..."
"Yun State is a remote place where nobody cares."
Lin Batian said lightly, "The cultivation world in Yun State is already a remote place, and where they are is even more remote. Who would care about a mere golden core family?"
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"Zhou family wants to marry Lin Ying, it's really unfortunate."
Lin Jiang heard about Zhou family wanting to marry Lin Ying at the Spiritual Peach Mountain Villa and thought it was unfortunate.
Because Zhou family had a bad reputation, outwardly they bullied the weak and even had incidents of clan members robbing independent cultivators. Furthermore, the big Zhou family had plenty of dirty secrets and a lot of shady things going on internally. Lin Jiang didn't like the Zhou family.
"Zhou family is indeed not good, in this aspect your father did a great job, standing up for himself."
Zhuang Rong nodded as Lin Batian married four daughters, none of whom were brought for marriage but were found by the daughters themselves, regardless of their wealth. Zhuang Rong admired this.
"However, the Lin and Zhou families are on the verge of breaking apart. Within twenty years, it is certain that there will be a fierce battle between the two families."
"Jiang'er, isn't it common for proposals to be unsuccessful? It's not such a serious matter, right?"
"This matter has nothing to do with it. It's purely about interests. The Lin family has no small forces around us anymore, and the Zhou family is slightly weaker. In addition to the incident with the Iron Wood Demon Wolf in previous years, Father is holding a grudge. Mark my words, Zhou Quan's passing might be a signal."
Lin Jiang analyzed that the Lin family expanded too quickly in previous years, leaving many territories unmanaged. Over the years, with the growth of the Lin family's second and third generations, they had gained complete control. Now, the Lin family was about to embark on another expansion.
Due to their past conflicts over the Iron Wood Demon Wolf, the Zhou family was trying to anger Lin Batian again by relying on Zhou Zilin's recent attainment of Golden Core, hoping to marry Lin Ying.
Why did angering Lin Batian matter? First, Lin Batian had a strong temperament and never arranged marriages for his children. Second, the Lin family had few individuals in the Foundation Building Period. Did the Zhou family really think they could take away the Lin family's Foundation Building daughter? It was a delusion to weaken the Lin family's power. From Lin Batian's perspective, this was likely a scheme from the Zhou family, and it was bound to provoke his anger.
Zhou Quan didn't have much time left in his life, and it was unknown how many years he had left. However, if he died, it was very likely that the two families would take action. With Lin Batian's character, once things escalated, it would end in a battle to the death, and one family was bound to perish.
"Jiang'er, if things really escalate, please don't go."
"At that time I had no control over it, but with my limited abilities, I suppose my father would not be impressed."
Lin Jiang jokingly said, "There are quite a few Qi Refining cultivators at the fourth level in the Lin family. At least twenty or thirty. One more won't make much difference, and one less won't make much of a change. I don't even know if Lin Batian would find me worthy."
Late at night, Lin Jiang closed his eyes and pondered about the future. He foresaw a conflict between the Lin family and the Zhou family before Zhuang Rong's ascension. There was a high possibility of him being called upon to fight for the family. He realized he needed to change his plans as he couldn't just die there.
"Upgrade equipment, practice real combat."
After much contemplation, Lin Jiang devised a plan. He couldn't immediately improve his cultivation level, but he could upgrade his equipment and strengthen his combat skills to develop a sense of battle awareness.
