I couldn't take it anymore; when I went home for Chinese New Year, the family genealogy book ha

Qingshui County, suburbs.

From the foul-smelling sewage ditch came Jiang Haoran's pig-like screams.

However, in Jiangjia Village, dozens of kilometers away, the scene is quite different.

The fragrance wafts for miles through the valley.

The ceremony for adding members to the family genealogy concluded successfully, and a grand banquet was held in the square of Jiangjia Village.

More than a hundred large round tables were set up from one end of the village to the other, creating a scene even more lively than during the Spring Festival.

The kitchen area was bustling with activity.

Jiang Youfu, shirtless with a greasy apron tied around his waist, was standing in front of a large iron pot with a diameter of two meters.

He was wielding a large ladle longer than his arm, and in the pot was stewed pork until tender, bubbling and steaming, the rich aroma of meat mixed with the smoky scent of firewood wafting into one's nostrils.

"Don't grab! Don't grab! There's enough for everyone!"

"Is the stewed pork belly and sauerkraut with glass noodles on that table ready yet? Hurry up and bring it over!"

Jiang Youfu was cooking while shouting instructions, working up a sweat but beaming with joy.

More than a hundred local pigs fed with revitalized spring water, and hundreds of free-range chickens roaming freely in the back hills, have now been transformed into mouthwatering main dishes on the table.

Braised pork with vermicelli, braised chicken with mushrooms, braised pork trotters, stir-fried pork kidneys...

The simplest of dish names, yet they exude the most exquisite aromas.

Inside the inner courtyard, the core clansmen were packed together, their faces glowing with health, eating meat and loudly playing drinking games.

Meanwhile, in the square outside the ancestral hall, the hundreds of top billionaires, whose net worth was in the billions, had long since lost all airs of being big shots.

They stubbornly stayed, and one of them bought a large porcelain bowl with a Pleasant Goat pattern from the village store and lined up to get food from the pot at the banquet.

After getting their food, they didn't care about fuss and just squatted down on the curb.

Mr. Qian, a financial tycoon in Nanjiang Province, was squatting next to Su Tianhao, with a large pig's trotter in his left hand and a white steamed bun in his right, his mouth full of oil as he ate.

He buried his head in his hands, shoveled a large mouthful of pork stew into his mouth, and his eyes lit up instantly.

As he chewed, he mumbled a thumbs-up at Su Tianhao.

"Chairman Su! Chairman Su! Try this! What kind of cabbage is this? It's even fresher than the lobsters I had air-freighted back from Australia last time!!"

"And this pork, it melts in your mouth, not greasy at all! Absolutely amazing! Absolutely amazing!"

Mr. Li, who was standing next to him, also came over with his bowl, which was piled high with food, and he had a satisfied, almost intoxicated expression on his face.

"Who can disagree! I feel like I've been eating the finest delicacies of the past few decades for nothing! This is the ultimate taste of life!"

Su Tianhao looked at his old friends who were usually high and mighty, but were now fighting tooth and nail for a few pieces of pork. He kept a straight face, but he was secretly overjoyed.

He slowly and deliberately picked up a piece of translucent white meat with his chopsticks, put it in his mouth, and savored it carefully.

Yes, no wonder it's a pig raised by my son-in-law's family.

On the main table in the inner courtyard, Jiang Chen leaned comfortably against the grand chair that belonged to the clan leader, holding a cup of tea and smiling as he watched the harmonious scene below.

This feeling of everyone being united and the fireworks lighting up the sky made him feel more comfortable than earning a trillion dollars.

Just then, the noisy scene suddenly quieted down.

All eyes turned to the courtyard gate.

Jiang Wanhai, the third grandfather who was always arrogant and had the worst relationship with Jiang Chen, was carrying a steaming cup of Da Hong Pao tea and walking step by step toward the main table.

He walked with a steady posture, his back straight, and his perpetually taut face carried a complex expression that no one had ever seen before.

The entire room fell silent.

Jiang Shitou and Jiang Youfu, who were playing rock-paper-scissors, stopped what they were doing and looked over nervously.

Everyone knew Sanjiangtou's temper and was afraid that he would cause some trouble on this joyous day.

Ignoring everyone's gaze, Jiang Wanhai walked straight up to Jiang Chen.

He didn't act like an elder as usual, puffing out his beard and glaring at people.

Instead, he bent down slightly.

Amidst everyone's shocked gazes, he respectfully held up the teacup in his hand and presented it to Jiang Chen.

"Tatsuko!"

Jiang Wanhai's voice was loud and clear, echoing throughout the entire courtyard.

"Third Master used to be... he was blind, he didn't recognize your greatness, and he opposed you at every turn."

"Today, thanks to you and our ancestors, my decades-old leg ailment has finally been completely cured!"

Jiang Wan (Hai) took a deep breath, his gaze sweeping across the entire room, and said loudly, word by word:

"From this day forward, you, Jiang Chen, are the sole head of our Jiang Family Village and our Jiang Clan! You are the clan leader!"

"If anyone dares to utter a single word of dissent against you, the clan chief, I, Wan Hai, will be the first to grab my cane and smash their head in!"

These words struck like a thunderbolt, resounding in everyone's hearts.

This effectively silenced the last remaining dissenting voices within Jiangjia Village.

After a brief silence, thunderous cheers erupted in the courtyard.

"Third Master is right!"

"We will all listen to the clan leader!"

The atmosphere reached its true peak at this moment.

Jiang Chen looked at the old man in front of him who had finally let go of all his stubbornness and prejudice, and a sincere smile appeared on his face.

He stood up and took the cup of scalding hot tea with both hands.

"Third Master, you flatter me."

"We're all family, no need for formalities."

After saying that, Jiang Chen drank the tea in his cup in one gulp.

This gesture represents acceptance and also a commitment.

Jiang Wanhai watched Jiang Chen drink the tea, and finally, a relieved smile appeared on his face, which had been tense his whole life.

He nodded and stepped aside.

Jiang Chen sat down again, but his gaze inadvertently swept over the corner of the courtyard where a group of old men were gathered together, excitedly waving their arms and having an arm-wrestling contest.

Those old men were all centenarians in the village, with an average age of over seventy.

At this moment, they all had rosy complexions and were full of energy, arm wrestling so hard that the table was shaking.

Jiang Chen's brow twitched almost imperceptibly.

He turned his head and whispered an instruction to Wang Dagou, who was gnawing on a pig's trotter beside him.

"Da Gou, go and send someone to keep a close eye on those old buddies in the back mountain."

Wang Dagou, his mouth full of meat, asked indistinctly, "Huh? Brother Chen, why are we watching them?"

Jiang Chen picked up his teacup, gently blew on it, and looked at it with a hint of amused helplessness.

"I saw that they were a little too excited after they received the wooden plaques."

"Don't look back with too much energy, or you'll cause us some trouble."