Many things have to wait until everything becomes clear before the parties involved realize what's happening.
Thinking back, Cheng Jinyang only confirmed his grandfather's health issues after everything was revealed, which is why he arranged so many things in advance.
For instance, attending the clan school first, then joining Tianluo, allowed him to meet Cheng Yuexian and Cheng Huaiyan, while also establishing connections with the second and third branches. Is it coincidence? It may seem so, but it's not.
Similarly, Uncle Cheng Qingxin's "betrayal," while influenced by the decisions of the main branch, may have had grandfather's guidance and approval.
On the train, Cheng Huaiyan had already compiled a list of clan members and handed it to Cheng Jinyang.
Currently, the surviving clan members are being sent to the urban area in six batches:
- Including the second and third uncles, there are a total of 7 sixth-grade supernaturals.
- Including cousin Cheng Huaiyan, there are 38 seventh-grade supernaturals.
- Including himself, there are 202 eighth-grade supernaturals.
- Including cousin Cheng Yuexian, there are 487 ninth-grade supernaturals.
In addition, there are 290 people whose bloodlines are not strong enough for the ninth grade but are actively involved in maintaining clan affairs.
In total, there are 1024 people, which is the entire list of current members of the Shendu Cheng family. However, considering that there were over 2000 people in the clan before the war, it means that more than half were either killed or lost.
Of course, lost clan members, as long as they are not captured by the Longxiang Army, still have a chance of being found in the future.
Even more devastating is the loss of clan assets.
Due to the clan businesses of Cheng and Xing, "Tianluo" and "Ground Network," both headquarters and warehouses are located in the Pukou District. It's impossible to temporarily transport the massive assets elsewhere, so they undoubtedly fell into the hands of the Longxiang Army.
Of course, the most valuable asset is ultimately people. As long as the clan's Tianluo assassins and Ground Network merchants remain, they will eventually rebuild another brand-new "Tianluo" and "Ground Network." However, when it comes to people, another problem arises.
The Shendu Cheng family no longer has a fifth-grade supernatural.
The prerequisite for joining the gentry is for the family to have fifth-grade supernaturals. This is not a rule explicitly stated, but rather an unspoken consensus among all gentry.
In fact, having a fifth-grade supernatural does not immediately elevate a family to gentry status, just as losing one does not immediately result in expulsion from the gentry. The dynamics here are similar to those in officialdom; once in power, it's hard to come down, and vice versa.
For example, the Wuxing Shen family, Shen Shiju, has already become a fourth-grade supernatural, yet the Wuxing Shen family is still a humble family, far inferior in resources and strength even to fifth-grade families.
Why?
There's only so much to go around. In a situation where the existing overall market resources are divided among all the gentry, for the Wuxing Shen family to join the ranks of the gentry, some family must inevitably eat less or even go without. Who specifically bears the loss?
There is no strong centralized leader here who can say to a family, "The Wuxing Shen family is stronger than you, so step aside," but rather a long process of mutual bargaining among all families.
Similarly, the Shendu Cheng family lost its last fifth-grade supernatural, but it won't immediately be expelled from the gentry. No one has the qualifications or the willingness to do such a thing that would offend others, after all, the resources held by the old fifth-grade families are there. If you really want to offend someone, both sides will suffer, and there is no way to do it.
However, the subtlety of the overall atmosphere lies in the fact that once your family no longer has a fifth-grade supernatural, even though it's not said openly, internally, the rating of your family will be lowered.
As a result, in the coming years or even decades, the Shendu Cheng family will inevitably face increasingly greater obstacles in various fields: fifth-grade families who used to interact with you will gradually decline in willingness to do so; business partners and employers with whom you cooperated will slowly terminate their cooperation or employment.
The first to respond will definitely be the family's finances. With decreasing income and deteriorating finances, the family's operational status will inevitably further decline, leading to a reduction in influence within the gentry circle.
Making an analogy is like stocks in a bear market: the manipulators quietly sell off, causing the stock price to start falling. More people become bearish on the stock, so the price falls further... until it drops to a level even stock experts don't recognize, leaving everyone puzzled about why it fell so low.
Of course, this takes time. So, one must make good use of this precious buffer period, swiftly utilizing the remaining resources of the family before it plunges uncontrollably to its lowest point, ensuring personal growth to a strength capable of supporting it.
Some things can be postponed, while others must be done as soon as possible, such as maintaining existing alliances and obtaining support from the court.
To tackle the current difficult situation and plan for the future direction, Cheng Jinyang, who is about to take over as the head of the family at a critical moment, must start by taking action:
Negotiating with Xing Shuhe, the head of the Xing family.
The Hejian Xing family, though not closely related to the Cheng family in the bloodline, is bound to become intimate allies due to the highly complementary abilities of the two clans.
Even after the Shend Cheng family enters a downturn, the Hejian Xing family is the least likely ally to abandon cooperation. However, the two clans are expected to gradually shift from an equal position of mutual assistance to a clear-cut relationship of strength and weakness.
Cheng Jinyang realized he may not be able to stop this shift, but he must at least try to reverse the decline and fight for more benefits for his own family.
When his grandfather was on his deathbed, Xing Shuhe was also present in the main hall.
Therefore, when they subsequently evacuated, he also boarded the same subway train with everyone else and is assigned to the last carriage.
It's a perfect opportunity to talk to him.
Arriving at the rear carriage and informing the Xing family descendents at the door, they quickly came out to greet him.
Cheng Jinyang entered the carriage and saw Xing Shuhe talking to Xing Yuanzhi. Seeing him approach, Xing Shuhe said, "Qingfeng, you go to the back first."
"Okay." Xing Yuanzhi left the carriage, leaving the conversation environment to them.
After exchanging pleasantries, Cheng Jinyang, seeing that the other party was unmoved, decided to state his purpose directly:
"... My grandfather passed away, and the people in the clan are in panic. Both of our ancestral properties have fallen into the hands of Longxiang Army in Pukou district and have not been salvaged. The road ahead will certainly be difficult. In this crisis, I hope our two families can continue to work together and overcome the current predicament as soon as possible."
As for the situation of the Shendu Cheng family, Xing Shuhe is naturally well aware.
Seeing this younger generation not resorting to weakness or trying to gain sympathy, nor putting on airs or bluffing, but rather calmly communicating with him, he couldn't help but have a slightly higher opinion of him.
"I am of the same generation as your grandfather, but now that you are already the head of the Cheng family, I will call you my nephew." Xing Shuhe stroked his beard and said, "Actually, your grandfather had already discussed matters concerning you with me before his passing."
Cheng Jinyang's expression remained unchanged, but he thought to himself:
Could it be that Grandfather has already paved the way for me here?
Well, it makes sense. Since he had an early succession plan, he wouldn't have left anything unplanned with our allies.
"Next, the cooperation between the Hejian Xing family and the Shendu Cheng family will not cease," Xing Shuhe said calmly. "At the same time, the originally agreed-upon profit-sharing ratio will not change."
"Oh?" Cheng Jinyang was surprised. This condition... it's just incredibly generous.
But the more generous the terms, the more uneasy he felt. What kind of price did Grandfather set to make Xing Shuhe still willing to abide by the agreement after his passing?
"Of course, I suppose you can guess even without me saying it," Xing Shuhe didn't intend to continue playing games. "Your grandfather has agreed that your engagement with Yuanzhi will be put on hold indefinitely until you reach the fifth grade."
Cheng Jinyang: ???
(An expression of disbelief) Damn it, always talking about canceling the engagement!
Just you wait!
When I reach the top grade, I'll summon Susanoo and send you all to the heavens!!