Dragon King's Hall

“May the Gods protect us Yates’. May our legacy live long, and may our children be special. May our descendants be blessed to be the best of the best.”

Clutching her dragon head cane, the Matriarch of the Yates Clan watched at her clan’s descendants contentedly.

Today marked the sixtieth birthday of the Head of the Yates Clan. Power had been transferred to Old Madam Yates ever since the passing of her husband, Old Master Yates, giving her the final say in matters, regardless of their weight.

Those who came to congratulate her were all distinguished figures within the Yin Perfecture.

Suddenly, a loud cry sounded.

“Tyler of the Yates Clan wishes the Matriarch boundless good fortunes, and longevity. Humbly, I present to you a carved jade vessel!”

“Felix Wilson, the Chairman of the Glenn Group wishes the Matriarch a long-lasting life and presents you with a pair of jade sculptures!”

“The General Manager from the Sea of Harvest Group wishes the Matriarch good health and eternal life. We present to you a gold engraved horizontal tablet!”

…

Every guest who arrived brought along gifts of unimaginable values, though they were secretly envious. As of then, the total price of these gifts must amount to at least five million.

Then came a voice that stunned every guest speechless.

“Yair Xayarath, son-in-law to the Yates, wishes the Matriarch wellness in health for thousands of years to come. I humbly present a rusty bronze pot!”

At that, the guests all turned to look at each other before they burst into a fit of condescending laughter.

“This Yair Xayarath, he’s the little sh*t that married matrilocal into the Yates, right?”

“Yeah, that’s him. Who knows what Old Master Yates was thinking? I mean sure, Yulia’s father was a little less wealthy, but she was still a daughter of the Yates, wasn’t she? Still, he married her off to a nameless commoner.”

“Old Madam Yates hadn’t allowed him to set foot into the Clan at all during the three years they had been married. I suppose that attests to the displeasure she has for him. Then he gifts her this broken piece of metal on the Matriarch’s birthday, what a great person he sure is!”

Yulia Yates was a beauty. She was tall and slim, had well defined eyebrows, and sharp features on her exquisite face.

At that moment, said face was clouded with displeasure.

She dragged Yair from the sidelines into a secluded corner.

“Sweet… Yulia, what’s wrong?” Yair asked, confuddled.

Yulia was angry. “What do you mean ‘what’s wrong’? Where’s the gift I told you to buy with the fifty thousand Yuan I gave you?”

Yair pointed innocently at the bronze pot on the large mahogany desk. “Hmm? It’s that one over there.”

“Fifty thousand Yuan, and you used it to buy a mangled, useless piece of metal? Today’s Grandmother’s birthday, how could you?”

Yulia felt all three years’ worth of grievance surge after her rant. This piece of trash had done nothing but laze around the entire time, staying at home and taking up the role of a househusband. Sure, his cooking was delicious, but what good was that?

A real man was one who produced astonishing results in his very own business. Someone who had cached up a myriad of success and fortune, that, was a true man.

Yair Xayarath, however, with an expression of ‘whatever, I guess’ plastered on his face, only served to infuriate and aggravate her more.

Take today for example, though fifty thousand was not considered much, it was still enough to get a decent gift, a far cry for the chunk of metal in front of them. Consequently, causing her to lose all the respect people had for her, during her Grandmother’s birthday banquet too, no less.

She should never have left something as important as that in the hands of Yair Xayarath, so pray tell why she even tried when she knew he would not produce the desired outcome?

Had the reputation of the Yates Clan not be on the line, she would have gotten a divorce with this worthless trash ages ago.

“Yulia. I know the bronze pot might not seem very promising, but it’s Han Dynasty bronzeware, worth fifty million.”

“Fifty million, you say? What, did you get it from Antiquity Street?” Tyler Yates approached them right at that moment, his face full of scorn and mockery.

Tyler was the Matriarch’s most beloved grandchild. Power over the clan was to fall into his hands as long as nothing went wrong.

The man in question was well aware of it, and as a result he always had his head held high and completely disregarded his second uncle’s side of the clan. As the second uncle was the neglected child, he had separated from the clan to start his own business as well, only returning to the Yates Clan for major festivities and gatherings.

Yair calmly spared him a glance before answering honestly. “Indeed, it was from Antiquity Street.”

At that, the seated guests burst into laughter.

“Is it not common knowledge, that eighty to ninety percent of what is sold at Antiquity Street are fakes? But, disregarding the fact that you bought a fake for a second, at least choose something that looks authentic, no? Look at what you got, then look at what I got for Grandmother!”

Tyler Yates walked toward the jaded vessel that was almost half his height, evidently proud of himself.

Not that he was wrong, for Yair’s gift was nothing in comparison to Tyler’s.

Right then, the Matriarch walked over with the help of her dragon head cane, prompting all relatives and guests to stand in respect.

“Grandmother, Yair is still new to this. I hope you do not fault him for his ignorance. I shall begin preparations on a gift better fit for you when I return.”

Yulia walked forward and curtseyed apologetically to the Matriarch. Despite her and Yair Xayarath not being a couple emotionally, he was still her husband in name. It was only right she stood up for him in front of her relatives.

Staring at the bronze pot, disdain flashed across the Matriarch’s expressions and she huffed a faint exhale from her nose.

“Forget it. Your family doesn’t make much anyway, so keep it for yourself. Tyler, my boy, help me over, the banquet is about to begin.”

Tyler Yates hummed a sound of acknowledgement before he quickly held on to the Matriarch’s arm, not forgetting to turn around one last time to spare Yulia a prideful, snooty glance before escorting their grandmother away.

Yulia Yates bit her lip. She had planned to leave a good impression on the Matriarch through this banquet, only for it to be all for naught.

She was about to follow before she heard the Matriarch’s indifferent tone. “You need not follow me to the main table, it is full.”

Yulia halted mid-step as humiliation boiled in her heart.

Casted off to sit with the outsiders despite being a daughter of the Yates Clan, numerous curious glances were sent her way. Yulia wished for nothing more than to leave the venue.

Tilting her head to look at the main table, in the limelight where everybody laughed and talked to each other. The discrepancies in treatments enforced the idea that the Matriarch no longer fancied her family’s side of the clan.

Having one useless figure was enough, especially when it was her father, but she was still a Yates, was she not? Then again, she had married herself off to a good-for-nothing as well. As far as the Matriarch was concerned, Yulia Yates’ branch of the clan was doomed beyond repair.

“Are you envious, Yulia?” Yair Xayarath asked as his eyes turned into mirthful crescents.

Pissed, Yulia refuted, “What’s the point of being envious? That’s the main seat, only to be seated on by the Matriarch. Who am I to sit there?

“Our family moved out after Grandfather had fallen ill, and our days have only gotten worse as time passed!

“Here I thought that maybe I could use this chance to get on the Matriarch’s good side, you know? Then hopefully the Yates Clan would spare us some resources, and yet?

“Forget it. It’s not like you understand anyway.”

Overdue tears from feeling wronged fell as Yulia spoke.

Yair Xayarath froze, ‘Not like I understand?’

‘Didn’t they say, ‘the will of men was strong enough to compel swans to shake the sky’?’

The reason why he had never thought to participate in any of the Yates Clan’s business was not that he did not want to, but rather because he did not find it worth his time.

Yair Xayarath was the founder of the top-secret organization behind the Dragon King Hall, mortally known as the Dragon King. He had four main Archangels and 12 other Seraphim under him and held half of the entire world’s riches and power in his hands.

Forget the Yates Clan, one word was all Yair needed to turn every major clan in the Yin Prefecture into dust as they chatted happily!

‘He didn’t understand?

‘He had been their son-in-law for three years, just to fulfill his dying wish from years ago.

‘Now that he had finally made Yulia his wife.’

Yulia always had a smile on her face every time she returned from the Yates Clan. So, it was only natural for Yair to believe that Yulia had quite the status among the Yates’.

Only to realize today, that the truth was far from what it seemed.

Reaching that conclusion, Yair Xayarath stated calmly. “Yulia, if it is what you wish for, I can get you on that seat.”