Ye Chen teased Huan'er, making the little maid blush crimson, her delicate little fists waving about. Under her flustered and annoyed gaze, he laughed heartily and rushed out of the room, heading towards the Allowance Hall.
After winding his way through the vast City Lord's Manor for quite some time, Ye Chen finally arrived at a spacious and imposing room. Above it, a plaque was clearly visible with the three flamboyant characters 'Allowance Hall' written upon it.
The Allowance Hall was the place where the Ye family distributed the monthly allowances to its members.
Generally, as long as a family member reached the age of twelve, the family would issue a corresponding monthly allowance. Some received more, some less; it was not equal for all, varying from person to person.
Family members who were valued by the clan or had made contributions, such as those with high hopes placed on them or possessing cultivation talent, naturally received a larger monthly allowance. Conversely, others received less.
Although Ye Chen had fallen from genius to a cripple, destined to have his position as future family head stripped away, and even unable to hold important positions within the family, he was still the son of the current family head and the Luo Feng City Lord. No matter how much the family might disregard him, they couldn't ignore him completely or suppress him outright. He still received fifteen gold coins every month.
Such an allowance, even among the current generation of Ye family's younger members, could be considered upper-middle tier, making many of his peers envious and jealous.
Arriving at the Allowance Hall, there were already many family members lined up to receive their allowances, scattered about, numbering several dozen. There were old and young, but mainly from the younger generation.
Ye Chen silently followed the line, at the very back. No one else noticed his arrival.
Behind the tall red sandalwood table, the Allowance Hall staff were calculating the allowances to be distributed. They handed a pouch of coins to a fifteen or sixteen-year-old youth at the front of the line. The youth opened the pouch and couldn't help but wail, "My goodness! Only five gold coins this month? That's so little, how is it enough for me to spend?"
Other family members also received their pouches one after another, finding their allowances weren't much either, mostly ranging from five to twelve gold coins, with some even receiving as few as four.
Generally speaking, two gold coins were enough for an ordinary family's monthly expenses, but for young masters accustomed to lavish spending, it was pitifully little.
At this moment, a commotion suddenly arose in the Allowance Hall.
A young man was seen striding in through the entrance. He was exceptionally handsome, with a tall and straight build, around twenty years old. He didn't join the line, walking directly up to the red sandalwood table.
But no one complained. On the contrary, they all stepped aside to make way, their gazes towards the young man filled with awe and respect.
"Look, it's Cousin Ye Zhengyang! He's one of the few outstanding disciples of our Ye family in this generation, and also the grandson of the Grand Elder. His allowance this month should exceed eighty, right?"
"As much as eighty gold coins? I only got eight this month."
"Eighty is considered a lot? That's actually low. Last month he already received eighty-four. This month is definitely more, maybe even over a hundred gold coins."
Ye Zhengyang's appearance immediately sparked whispers among the other family members. Many revealed looks of envy and admiration, with sounds of envy ringing out incessantly.
Among the new generation of younger Ye family disciples, Ye Zhengyang was one of the rare few outstanding ones.
At merely twenty years old, he was already at the peak of the ninth level of the Houtian realm, just one step away from becoming Xiantian—a minor genius. Although he couldn't compare to the Yang family's proud daughter, Yang Yi, he was still hailed as a disciple who would become Xiantian within three years, with considerable hopes placed on him by the family.
At this moment, Ye Zhengyang received a money pouch from the Allowance Hall elder. It was heavy and bulging, a large pouch that just by looking at it, one could tell it definitely contained no less than eighty gold coins, far more than what others received.
"Truly worthy of Cousin Ye Zhengyang, his allowance is so much. Ours combined aren't as much as his."
The other family members cast envious glances, exclaiming in waves of amazement. One of them couldn't help but ask, "Cousin Ye Zhengyang, if you don't mind me asking, how much is your allowance this month?"
Hearing the question, the other young men and women couldn't help but prick up their ears curiously to listen.
Ye Zhengyang shook his head and sighed, "This month it's a bit less than expected, only a hundred."
Although it sounded somewhat disappointed, his expression clearly held a hint of smugness. A monthly allowance of a hundred gold coins—if not the most among the entire Ye family's younger generation, it was close.
Sure enough, the surrounding youths all couldn't help but suck in a cold breath, revealing looks of shock and envy. Especially the delicate young maidens in their prime couldn't conceal their fiery gazes.
A high-quality young man like Ye Zhengyang, handsome, powerful, and with a grandfather serving as a family elder, was practically every girl's dream lover.
"Truly worthy of Cousin Ye Zhengyang, the strongest among our Ye family's younger generation. His monthly allowance is more than mine for a whole year."
"Cousin Ye Zhengyang is handsome and powerful. He's already at the ninth level of Houtian at twenty. I'm afraid it won't be long before he steps into the Xiantian realm. He's bound to become the number one among our Ye family's younger generation."
"What are you saying? Cousin Ye Zhengyang is clearly already the number one among our Ye family's younger generation now. In the future, he should be the family heir, far stronger than that cripple Ye Chen."
Listening to the waves of admiring voices from the crowd, the smile on Ye Zhengyang's face grew a few degrees brighter. Vanity—it was a temptation many young people couldn't resist.
Especially the position of family head, the position of Luo Feng City Lord—who among the younger generation of the family didn't want to inherit it? He was naturally among them.
One could even say he already considered the position of family head as unofficially reserved for himself. However, he didn't show it on his face, merely waving his hand and saying, "Brothers and sisters, the position of family head should be held by the capable. Although my cultivation is decent, I'm still young and not yet qualified for the position of family head. Don't speak carelessly, lest it invite gossip, which wouldn't be good."
"Cousin Ye Zhengyang, you're being too modest. If you're not the one to take the position of family head in the future, then who will?"
"That's right! Cousin Ye Zhengyang is not only handsome and dashing, but he's also reached the peak of Houtian at twenty, just a step away from Xiantian. He's definitely going to be the next head of our Ye family. Our Ye family will rely on you, Cousin Ye Zhengyang, to lead us to glory."
The young men and women of the clan hurriedly spoke up one after another, expressing such flattery and adulation, which only added to the smugness on Ye Zhengyang's face, impossible to conceal. He waved his hand and laughed, "Brothers and sisters, you flatter me. Don't say such things about your cousin. Don't speak carelessly."
"Pfft—"
Ye Chen, standing at the very back of the line, couldn't help but laugh out loud. This guy really didn't know how to act. He clearly wanted it badly but insisted on saying he didn't. He'd seen people putting on airs, but never someone who did it so blatantly.
This laugh was particularly loud, causing everyone to be taken aback. When they followed the source of the sound and saw it was Ye Chen at the back of the line laughing, they were even more astonished.
To mock Ye Zhengyang like this... wasn't that a bit too bold?
Ye Zhengyang couldn't help but frown slightly, his expression darkening a bit, but he didn't speak.
As someone whose cultivation and status ranked at the forefront of the Ye family's younger generation, he had always had a strong sense of superiority. Especially when facing Ye Chen, who was only at the third level of Houtian, it was like an aristocrat looking at a beggar, full of arrogance and contempt. He simply disdained speaking to the cripple who had brought shame upon the entire family.
Moreover, he understood that sometimes, even if he didn't speak up, someone would do it for him.
Sure enough—
"Ye Chen, what are you laughing at?" A youth about Ye Chen's age stepped forward, pointing at Ye Chen's nose and snorting a rebuke. "Are you questioning whether Cousin Ye Zhengyang is qualified to be the next family head?"
With that one sentence, he pushed Ye Chen into direct opposition with Ye Zhengyang. Everyone couldn't help but cast strange glances his way.
Even Ye Zhengyang looked over with interest, wanting to see how this family cripple would be humiliated by his clansmen.
Ye Chen recognized this youth. His name was Ye Hua, the same age as him, the only son of a family steward from a collateral branch, spoiled since childhood. However, because Ye Chen had a good father, even though his cultivation was inferior, the monthly allowance he received was considerably more than Ye Hua's, making him jealous and green-eyed. Therefore, Ye Hua would often seize opportunities to target him.
In his memories, he had been targeted many times over the past two years. This time was no exception.
Facing Ye Hua's finger-pointing and rebuke, Ye Chen merely frowned but didn't get angry and retort.
Having lived two lives, a supreme among the young generation in his previous life, the founding ruler of an immortal divine kingdom—all of it made him far more mature than he appeared on the surface. His mental cultivation was excellent. How could he get angry immediately over such trivial matters?
In his eyes, both Ye Hua and Ye Zhengyang were merely children playing house. He simply couldn't be bothered to lower himself to argue with them. He shrugged and said, "I didn't mean that."
However, his concession was seen by Ye Hua as an act of cowardice and retreat. How could Ye Hua, who had always been jealous of Ye Chen, let go of this opportunity to make Ye Chen lose face in public? He sneered, "At least you, this cripple, know your place. Cousin Ye Zhengyang is a cultivation genius of our Ye family, not someone like you, a cripple who can't even cultivate, can compare to. In the future, it will always be Cousin Ye Zhengyang who holds the position of family head."
Ye Chen couldn't be bothered to pay him any mind, directly stepping forward to the counter to collect this month's allowance. Arguing was less practical than quickly getting his allowance.
But precisely because of this, he was looked down upon and scorned by the other family members.
Nowadays, even an ordinary family member could casually insult him. It just showed how spineless this cripple was. If it weren't for his father being the family head and city lord, he would have long been expelled from the Ye family and banished to the borderlands.
Ye Chen didn't want to cause trouble, but that didn't mean others wouldn't actively provoke him. Seeing Ye Chen remain silent, Ye Hua thought he had turtled up. The smugness on his face grew even thicker. He stepped forward and directly snatched the allowance pouch Ye Chen had just received from his hand, saying viciously, "How can a cripple like you get a monthly allowance of fifteen gold coins every month? If it weren't for your father, what ability do you have?"
"Give it back to me," Ye Chen reached out to take it back.
But Ye Hua took a big step back, revealing a cold smile. "You can have it back, as long as you kneel on the ground and bark like a dog three times. Then I'll give it back to you. Maybe if I'm happy watching, I'll even reward you with a few copper coins to buy some dog food."
The surrounding family members didn't stop him. On the contrary, they burst into loud laughter, all wanting to see how ridiculous and funny it would be to watch Ye Chen get down on all fours and bark like a dog.
Ye Zhengyang on the side also watched Ye Chen with interest, arms crossed. He naturally took pleasure in seeing the family head's son learn to bark like a dog.
*Slap!*
A loud slapping sound suddenly rang out. Ye Chen raised the hand he had just used to fiercely slap Ye Hua across the face. Looking at Ye Hua, who was covering his cheek, his face full of shock and anger, Ye Chen said coldly, "Not arguing with you is because I can't be bothered with a boring person like you. Do you really think you're somebody? In my eyes, even a dog knows how to behave better than you."
Under the astonished gazes of everyone, the youth's icy words instantly echoed throughout the Allowance Hall.