Lu Feng and his uncle made their way to the family hall, none of them speaking first. Lu Feng loved the fact that his uncle was silent but something also tugged at his chest.
It felt like something was not right. Like he should be worried but he was too unbothered to be worried.
’What’s the worst that they could plan to say or do? I don’t think it’ll matter. They’ve already done their worst.’ Lu Feng thought as they closed in, moving through the streets of the family manor.
They quickly arrived at the family hall building, a towering semicircular structure that stretched into the sky at almost forty meters with nine floors. It was over one hundred meters wide from one end to the other and had a very large space at its very center that extended from the ground floor up until the very top of the building. If one stood on top of the building and looked through the center, they would see the surface.
They made their way into the hall’s building, heading for that same center which the entire family referred to as the family hall. It was where the family gathered to either hear important announcements or make decisions as one large family.
Today, it was scanty as many of them were busy and on about their daily lives. Most of the time, only the elders of the family occupied the hall as it also made up their residency. They had their quarters within it.
As Lu Feng and his third uncle approached, drawing closer, he noticed a lady with gracious curves walking towards them. She had brown eyes and raven black hair like most of the family members—with a few exceptions like himself—and a full chest that made a grown man feel like a baby.
Her silver sill complemented her beauty and she wore a smile as she closed in. When she was close enough, her smile changed into a frown.
They were still a few meters about when she clicked her tongue. "Tsk! You’re always an eyesore, Third Brother."
It was only after she spoke that Lu Feng recognised her. A smile slowly revealed itself on his face as recognition dawned on him. "Third Aunt!"
Lu Feng did not hesitate to run toward her with a big smile on his face. He hugged her tightly, and lifted her off the floor for a brief second.
"Hey, brat! Drop me down before I crack your head!" She panicked for a moment and Lu Feng hurriedly cropped her down as per her request.
She placed both hands on his shoulder as she stared at his two colored eyes—one blue and the other green—and his dark silver hair which extended down below his shoulder.
She stared at him for a second more before her smile deepened. "Brat Feng! You’ve grown into such a fine man, huh? You even have two different beautiful eyes now." She pulled him for another hug, pressing his face between her cleavage.
Lu Ruoxi, his third Aunt, had been away from the family, and even the Silver Jade City for a few years now and if there was someone who regarded Lu Feng as an actual person, it was her.
She had noticed his eye colours immediately and had even complimented it while others had dubbed him a freak because of them. The eyes had mutated on the day he started seeing the blue box floating in the air that only he could see.
No one knew why or how it came to be but everyone saw him as a freak after the mutation. He wasn’t bothered though. They had never thought well of him and now that he could see a "blue box" and had different eye colours, he already knew it would be worse.
Lu Feng and his third Aunt were still talking when Lu Bao, his Third Uncle cut in. "Silly brat. You do know the elders are waiting, right?"
Lu Feng paused in the midst of asking why his aunt had suddenly returned, and turned to his uncle. "Apologies for holding you, Third Uncle. Let us continue."
Then he turned to his aunt and bowed to her. "I’ll find you after I’m done with the elders."
"I doubt you’d get the chance to." Lu Bao snickered as he walked off.
Lu Ruoxi heard her brother’s remark and sighed as she walked away. It seemed like Lu Feng was in trouble and she had no idea what sort of trouble her young nephew had found himself in.
She would find out soon enough. She was heading for a different part of the building so the news was bound to quickly reach her. If it didn’t, she would hear it from Lu Feng’s mouth. He’d promised to see her after the meeting.
Remembering how her brother had ignored her completely, she clicked her teeth. "To hell with your grudge."
~~~~~
The Lu Family Hall stood deep within the building. At the far end of the hall rested the ancestral altar, raised on a shallow platform, layered with tablets bearing the names of those long gone. Thin streams of incense smoke curled upward, slow and unbroken, fading into the dim rafters above.
The space between the entrance and the altar was open, but not empty. It felt measured, every step forward carrying weight. On either side of the hall, wooden chairs were arranged in strict order, forming two neat rows that faced inward.
The elders sat there according to rank, not age alone but influence and standing within the family. Closest to the altar, near the front, were the most respected—those whose voices carried the most weight. Their seats were slightly larger, their posture straighter, their silence heavier.
Further down the rows, the seats grew simpler. The elders there still held authority, but less of it, their presence quieter, their gazes often shifting toward those seated ahead of them before speaking. No one sat carelessly. Hands rested on knees or folded neatly, backs held firm, as if the hall itself demanded discipline.
At the center, left clear between the two rows, was a narrow path leading straight to the altar. It was not just a walkway but a line of focus, where anyone summoned would stand, exposed to every watching eye. And above it all, the silence lingered—not empty, but watchful, as though the ancestors themselves were listening.
Standing before the elders, Lu Feng bowed his head deeply to show his utmost respect for them. "Greetings to the elders of the Lu Family. Your child, Lu Feng, had answered the summon of the elders."
One of the elders at the very front of the altar spoke first, his voice echoing through the complete silence of the hall. "Lu Feng, you have come. Good. Good."
Lu Feng recognised the elder who had spoken but this wasn’t the place for discussions. He had been summoned as he was here on those grounds.
There was silence in the room for a few seconds and Lu Feng was starting to get tense. He had shoved it away earlier when he asked himself what the worst thing they could do to him was. Now that he stood before them—their pressure almost crushing him—-and waiting for them to declare their reason for the summon, he didn’t feel all that invincible anymore.
After another minute of silence, the same elder spoke again. "Lu Feng, you are now an adult and as such, you are free to make your own decisions. However, before that would happen, the elders have come together to make one last decision concerning you."
Suddenly, Lu Feng did not like where this discussion was going.
"Pardon, Great Elder Meng. But if I am now an adult, why do the elders still need to make a decision concerning me?" Lu Feng spoke up.
"I was coming to that." The elder replied. "It is no secret that everyone in the family views you as a freak and a failure and even the citizens of the city. As such, we decided it would be best to send you off to neighboring city to start a new life there and to live life to the fullest."
In simple terms, they were sending him off to live a life of his choice!
In harsher terms, they were kicking him out of the Lu family.
"Wait... do my parents know about this?" Lu Feng inquired, almost speechless at the fact that they didn’t send him out of the family. They sent him out of the city as a whole.
"Your parents agreed and that’s why we’re telling you about it now." Great Elder Meng replied almost instantly.
He knew the elders decision was final and that his parents decision wouldn’t have mattered much unless his father became the family head which wouldn’t be happening anytime soon. Still, a small part of him had hoped his parents still held enough love for him to refuse his leave.
They didn’t.
"Oh..." Lu Feng bowed his head for a moment, utterly silent. In fact, he had become lost in his head that he didn’t hear anything the elder was saying.
Suddenly, it made sense why his Third Aunt rarely visited. They had sent her off too.
Great Elder Meng continued speaking but Lu Feng heard nothing except the last part. "...hundred gold coins."
Lu Feng raised his head. "Forgive me, Great Elder. I did not quite catch what you just said."
"You dumb brat! You want the Great Elder to repeat himself?" One of the elders yelled at him.
Lu Feng wanted to retort but he didn’t. He chose to respect them till the end. ’I guess severing ties wouldn’t be bad. I hate all of them already.’
Great Elder Meng sighed and began speaking again. "You can choose when you would like to leave for the Crystal Palace City and we will prepare transportation for you since the journey is six days long by carriage. You will be given an accomodation in the city along with a hundred gold coins."
Lu Feng sighed. There was an undertone in the Great Elder’s words that suggested he had been given a deadline as well.
He remained silent for a minute and sighed. He wasn’t going to pretend to respect them anymore. "I would like to leave today. If you all want to rid me from the Lu family, at least do it properly. There’s no need for the ride or accommodation. You all can keep the family name and die with it for all I care."
There was a wave of gasp in the hall. No one had expected him to talk back rudely.