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

"Hey! Hey! You can hear me, right?"

Jiang Mancang's gruff voice boomed across the sky above Jiangjia Village through the village's highest-spec stereo loudspeaker!

At six o'clock in the morning on the first day of the Lunar New Year, it was still dark.

Qinghe County had just experienced a three-day, three-night blizzard, with outside temperatures dropping to below minus ten degrees Celsius.

"Men, young and old! Young women and wives!"

"Today is the first day of the Lunar New Year, and the clan chief has given an order!"

"The entire village of several hundred people, regardless of their family or lineage, are all wearing the new Tang suits that were distributed yesterday!"

"Meet under the big locust tree at 6:30!"

"Anyone who dares to be late will have half of their year-end bonus deducted!"

As soon as the broadcast came on, the large villa complex in Jiangjia Village immediately became lively, and lights were turned on in every household.

Inside the Jiang family compound, Jiang Chen changed into a dark red Tang suit embroidered with gold thread, fastening each of the frog buttons.

The fabric of this garment is extremely exquisite; every single gold thread is made of real gold thread.

Su Qing stood at the bedroom door, holding the newly awakened An Yan, and smiled.

"Village Chief Jiang, your outfit today makes you look exactly like a wealthy landlord."

Jiang Chen stood confidently in front of the dressing mirror, straightening his collar.

"Today, when we worship our ancestors, we must dress to reflect the grandeur of our Jiangjia Village!"

"You stay home with the kids, and since it's snowing heavily and the roads are slippery, I've led this group of old and young men up the mountain!"

Jiang Chen pushed open the door, and a cold wind carrying snowflakes rushed towards him.

The village's underfloor heating was running at full power, and there wasn't a single snowflake on the main road.

The precious pine trees planted along the roadside were covered with white snow, and the bright red lanterns formed a sea of ​​fire.

At 6:30, under the big locust tree.

Several hundred members of the Jiang clan lined up in a neat square formation, all dressed in custom-made Tang suits with Suzhou embroidery.

The man was dressed in dark blue, and the woman in bright red; they were quite dazzling standing in the snow!

Liu Cuifen held a stainless steel thermos, touched the smooth fabric of her clothes, and spoke in a very loud voice.

"Oh my god! This Suzhou embroidery fabric just feels so different when you wear it!"

"I've never worn such expensive clothes in my entire life!"

Jiang Youfu, sporting a shaved head and without a red apron around his waist, seemed somewhat uncomfortable.

"Fourth Sister-in-law! Don't show off!"

"This Tang suit that Brother Chen is giving away costs nearly 100,000 yuan a set, and it was all handmade by a master craftsman from the provincial capital!"

"Be careful not to get oil stains on it!"

Jiang Shitou stood at the back of the line, constantly tugging at his collar.

"This outfit is nice, but the collar is too tight around my neck. I still feel more comfortable wearing a ripped tank top with my shirt off!"

Jiang Wanshan struck the bluestone slab heavily with his sandalwood cane, making a clanging sound.

"Nonsense!"

The old man sternly reprimanded loudly.

"Ancestor worship is the most important rule in our clan!"

"If anyone dares to go shirtless today, this old man will just snap their legs with my cane!"

The old man was in unusually good spirits today; he didn't even break a sweat.

Jiang Yaohua, an overseas relative, stood beside the old man, wearing a black Tang suit with a front opening.

The elderly man, who had been selling soy milk in Malaysia for decades and had weathered many storms, couldn't help but shed tears as he looked at his rosy-cheeked fellow villagers.

"Brother Wanshan."

Jiang Yaohua wiped his eyes.

"I've lived overseas for decades, and every year I dream of going back to my hometown ancestral hall to kowtow."

"This kind of spectacle, which I never dared to dream of, has actually come true today!"

Jiang Wanshan reached out and patted Jiang Yaohua on the shoulder.

"Brother Yaohua, this will be your home from now on!"

The old man's voice was booming.

"With Chen-ge in charge of the Jiang family, the sky won't fall!"

Jiang Chen strode onto the platform directly in front of the crowd.

Hundreds of people immediately fell silent, and the scene became completely quiet.

Happy New Year, everyone!

Jiang Chen roared with great force.

"Happy New Year, Chief!"

Hundreds of people shouted in unison, the sound shaking the snow off the trees.

Jiang Chen nodded in satisfaction and waved his hand.

"Let's go! Up to the ancestral hall on the back hill!"

The large contingent set off in a grand procession.

A dozen or so bodyguards in black led the way, while a fleet of Hongqi SUVs stood guard on the roadside, and the mountain road was lined with snow-covered landscapes.

Jiang Huixin held Jiang Xiaoshan's hand and walked in the middle of the group.

"Xiaoshan, when you go into the ancestral hall to kowtow, you must follow the rules and absolutely not run around."

"Understood, Teacher Huixin!"

Jiang Xiaoshan shouted loudly.

"I'll kowtow to my ancestors a few more times, hoping they'll bless me with ten more International Mathematical Olympiad gold medals next time!"

Jiang Chen, who was walking at the front of the group, burst out laughing when he heard this.

"Ten gold medals are nothing!"

Jiang Chen turned around and cursed.

"All the children of our Jiangjia Village will be building spaceships and becoming great scientists in the future!"

These boastful words caused the whole village to burst into laughter.

Half an hour later, the team arrived at the mountainside.

On the mountaintop next to Changsheng Reservoir, the ancestral hall made of Phoebe zhennan wood, constructed entirely of mortise and tenon joints without a single iron nail, stands solemnly in the snow.

A rich aroma of nanmu wood mixed with the scent of incense wafts over, creating a magnificent atmosphere.

The ancestral hall's gate was wide open, and the huge incense burner made of pure gold in front of it shone brightly under the reflection of the snow.

On the viewing platform of Changsheng Town in the distance.

More than thirty national treasure-level veterans, wearing military overcoats, were observing the commotion through binoculars.

The old academician looked at the neat and orderly formation of several hundred people and exclaimed in admiration.

"This kind of family cohesion is more effective than any advanced weapon we can develop!"

"This is the very essence of Chinese civilization, passed down for five hundred years!"

On the high platform in front of the ancestral hall, the incense table was filled with whole pigs and sheep, as well as various rare fruits cultivated with the finest spiritual springs.

Jiang Youfu strode forward, holding three incense sticks as thick as an arm in his hands.

"Brother Chen, the auspicious time has arrived."

Jiang Youfu lowered his voice to report.

Jiang Chen nodded, took the incense stick, and strode to the pure gold incense burner.

He took out a windproof lighter from his pocket, pressed the switch, and a blue flame shot out, instantly igniting the top of the incense stick.

The smoke rose straight into the sky.

Jiang Chen gripped the incense sticks tightly with both hands and raised them high above his head.

He took a step forward and steadily inserted three sticks of incense deep into the incense burner, then took a half step back.

Jiang Chen turned around and looked down at the hundreds of Jiang family descendants standing in neat rows.

No one whispered or moved around.

"Jiang family members, heed my command!"

Jiang Chen mustered all his strength and let out a thunderous roar.

"kneel!"

With a whoosh, hundreds of people knelt down in unison, their knees slamming heavily onto the cold bluestone slabs.

Their movements were remarkably synchronized, creating a scene so shocking it sent chills down your spine!

Jiang Chen suddenly lifted the hem of his Tang suit and knelt directly on the gold-threaded prayer mat at the front.

"Our ancestors are above!"

Jiang Chen raised his head and shouted loudly at the snow falling from the sky.

"The Jiang family enjoys peace and prosperity today, with the nation at peace and the world at tranquility!"

"I kowtow!"

The entire village, young and old, bowed their heads.

boom! boom! boom!

Hundreds of heads slammed heavily against the stone slab, the enormous echoes reverberating through the valley.

The moment Jiang Chen raised his head, a system anomaly, visible only to him, erupted above the ancestral hall!

A massive golden dragon, formed from dazzling golden light, spiraled and rose directly into the sky from the roof ridge of the main hall.

The golden dragon's body blotted out the sky and rolled wildly in the snow-covered clouds.

The enormous dragon's mouth opened, emitting a deafening, silent roar.

The dragon's roar was extremely penetrating, striking Jiang Chen's mind directly!

Immediately afterwards, the golden light transformed into countless invisible specks of light that fell down and merged into the bodies of every clansman who was kneeling and kowtowing.

Jiang Mancang had just raised his head when he reached out and touched his aching lower back.

"This is weird. Why do I feel like my bones feel so much lighter after that kowtow?"

Old Master Jiang Wanshan had a ruddy complexion, and even his white beard looked shiny.

"This is called ancestral divine intervention!"

The old man shouted loudly.

"Our ancestors saw that our whole village had become successful, so this Lunar New Year's Day is a blessing for us!"

At this moment, the blessings and lifespan of the entire Jiangjia Village were pushed to their peak by the Golden Dragon of Fortune.

All the villagers who stood up had a surge of energy, and their complexions were remarkably good.

After the ceremony, Jiang Chen patted the snow water off his knees and stood up.

"The ancestral worship ceremony has concluded!"

Jiang Chen announced loudly.

"Everyone's back in the village for the New Year! Uncle Fu is hosting a banquet in the square at noon, serving only giant soft-shelled turtles from Changsheng Reservoir!"

The villagers erupted in cheers and walked down the mountain chatting and laughing.

Jiang Chen straightened his clothes and was about to turn around and get into the car when he heard hurried footsteps behind him.

Jiang Yaohua, an overseas relative, hurried over to Jiang Chen.

The weathered old man's face was flushed red, and he gripped Jiang Chen's arm tightly with both hands.

"Great-Grandpa Yaohua? What's wrong with you?"

Jiang Chen asked, puzzled.

"Did you catch a cold because of the strong winds up the mountain?"

Jiang Yaohua's chest heaved violently. He glanced back at the magnificent ancestral hall, then turned to stare at Jiang Chen.

"Brother Chen..."

Jiang Yaohua's voice trembled.

"Come with me."

"Where to?"

Jiang Chen looked puzzled.

"To your yard! To your study!"

Jiang Yaohua's tone was very firm.

"It's Chinese New Year, can't we talk about anything after we finish eating dumplings?"

Jiang Chen retorted bluntly.

"It's terribly cold outside."

Jiang Yaohua gripped Jiang Chen's arm even tighter, the veins on the back of his hand bulging.

"No! We can't wait even a second longer!"

Jiang Yaohua roared urgently.

"I didn't sleep a wink all night yesterday!"

"Brother Chen, take me to the study right now."

"Go get me that satellite phone that can make international calls!"