CHAPTER 282: CHAPTER 269: REDUCING AND DELEGATING AUTHORITY

Red Tiger Mountain, the newly constructed Council Hall of the Zhou Family.

This newly constructed Council Hall of the Zhou Family is not much different in overall style from the Council Hall on Jade Spring Peak, but the space inside is much more expansive, capable of accommodating thousands for a council.

At the same time, the interior decoration of the Council Hall is far more elegant, not only adorned with more than twenty Jade Lamps refined by Zhou Family Cultivators using Light Jade, but also with hundreds of "Heart-Clearing Meditation Mats" arranged on the ground.

These "Heart-Clearing Meditation Mats" are common auxiliary spiritual artifacts used for daily meditation cultivation by Low-Tier Cultivators, woven from "Concentration Grass," serving to calm the mind and focus one’s thoughts. Placing them here naturally aims to ensure that all Zhou Family Cultivators involved in the council can calm down and think rationally.

Nevertheless, today this many mats certainly won’t be fully occupied, as the attendees of this family council are the true elite of the Zhou Family, excluding those burdened with responsibilities who cannot leave, totaling fewer than forty.

"Today, I have called everyone together to convene a small family meeting to discuss several important matters."

"I also know that all the clan members here are now busy with family affairs, pressed for time, so today I will not listen to your reports on family affairs, but go straight to the points of discussion."

In the Council Hall, Zhouyang sat cross-legged on a Cold Jade Bed at the head of the gathering, his gaze sweeping over the dozens of Zhou Family Cultivators seated cross-legged below, directly addressing the subject.

"The first matter is that since our Zhou Family has been elevated to the Purple Mansion Clan, some outdated family rules need revision. Yes, I’m referring to the matter of clan members automatically being elevated to Clan Elder upon reaching Ninth-Layer Qi Cultivation."

"The second matter is that with the increasing number of cultivators in our Zhou Family, and the many arising circumstances, the previous regulation of the Ministry Hall managing all clan affairs is now outdated and needs change."

"The third matter, as our family grows larger and the number of members increases, some undesirable tendencies have emerged. Today, I have gathered you here to first perform self-check and self-correction, and then go back to question and guide other clan members, establishing a family ethos of integrity, kindness, diligence, and cleanliness for our Zhou Family."

He listed the matters he wanted to discuss one by one and then went silent, waiting for the Zhou Family Cultivators below to carefully ponder the meaning of his words.

After waiting for nearly two quarters of an hour, he then looked at the crowd and said: "Let’s discuss the first matter now. You are aware of the situation; with the family conditions improving, elevating family cultivators to Ninth-Layer Qi Cultivation has become multiple times easier than before, resulting in the Zhou Family now having as many as twenty-two Ninth-Layer Elders, a number likely to only increase in the future."

"I don’t want to discuss what the ancestors thought when they established the rule allowing Ninth-Layer cultivation to ascend to Clan Elder, I’m only here to tell you that if this rule doesn’t change, as the number of elders grows, the status of the Clan Elder identity will undoubtedly diminish in the eyes of clan members and outsiders alike."

"If you, as a Zhou Family Elder, can’t earn due respect in front of outsiders, how can you expect to gain respect for the Zhou Family? Earn the Zhou Family’s reverence?"

Upon hearing this, the faces of some Zhou Family Elders present slightly altered, with some showing expressions of contemplation while others displayed anxiety and concern, yet no one dared to speak immediately.

It was evident that those displaying contemplative expressions were elders who had been Clan Elders for a dozen or more years.

These individuals, when they were first elevated to Clan Elders, there were only a few elders in the Zhou Family, and they truly understood the difference between what a Clan Elder represented then and what it represents now.

Those displaying anxiety and concern mostly became Clan Elders within the last decade, having struggled to ascend to the status of Clan Elder and finally enjoy the envied benefits, naturally feared Zhouyang’s proposal to reform the elder nomination rule, which might weaken their benefits and treatment.

These individuals dared not say anything, yet unanimously looked at the elderly white-haired woman seated in the first row alongside many Foundation Establishment cultivators.

The white-haired elderly woman was the current Grand Elder of the Zhou Family, Zhou Yuanchun.

As the Grand Elder of the Zhou Family, and a direct great-granddaughter of the former Clan Leader Zhou Minghan, Zhou Yuanchun certainly had the qualification to sit alongside those Foundation Establishment cultivators.

Upon sensing the gaze of various younger clan members behind her, the 118-year-old Zhou Yuanchun shakily stood up and saluted Zhouyang, saying hoarsely: "Clan Leader, we all understand your principle. Please state your opinions and thoughts directly."

"Sixth Sister, you’re getting on in years; please sit down and speak."

Zhouyang looked at this elderly, white-haired clan sister with not many years left to live, his heart feeling somewhat conflicted.

After former Clan Leader Zhou Minghan passed away, the majority of his inheritance was given to this granddaughter, except for one thing: the Contribution Points accumulated throughout his life.

Originally, Zhou Minghan had more than thirty thousand Contribution Points, but before he passed away, he destroyed all of them, leaving none behind.

Zhouyang understood Zhou Minghan’s reason for doing this, which was not wanting Zhou Yuanchun to obtain a large amount of contribution points and exchange them for Foundation Establishment Pills for her two sons with low-grade spiritual roots.

So when Zhou Yuanchun brought the Magical Artifact and Spirit Stones left by the old clan leader Zhou Minghan a few years ago to seek an exchange for family contribution points from him and his father Zhou Xuanhao, he and Zhou Xuanhao both refused.

Because of this, the relationship between Zhou Yuanchun and them became distant, and presumably, she harbored some resentment towards them.

Nonetheless, Zhouyang did not believe that he and his father had made a mistake.

The Zhou Family’s resources were limited, and the precious Foundation Establishment Pills could not be wasted on Zhou Yuanchun’s two mediocre sons.

In fact, if her two sons had demonstrated outstanding talents beyond their spiritual roots, Zhouyang would have been willing to give her a chance.

Unfortunately, her sons not only did not have such talents, but were also somewhat spoiled and arrogant, so how could Zhouyang be willing to waste precious Foundation Establishment Pills on such undeserving individuals?

"My opinion is simple: In the future, clan cultivators should only be promoted to Supreme Elder after reaching the Purple Mansion Stage, and those who succeed in Foundation Establishment can be promoted to Clan Elders."

"Of course, Foundation Establishment Cultivators should focus primarily on cultivation rather than putting their main energy into specific family management, so the family should select some Ninth-Layer Qi Cultivation Cultivators with excellent related abilities to appoint as Deacon Elders, who will be responsible for managing various family affairs."

"The number of Deacon Elders should be fixed at seven, divided into Preaching Elder, Internal Affairs Elder, Miscellaneous Affairs Elder, Finance Elder, Law Enforcement Elder, Security Elder, and Foreign Affairs Elder, each responsible for a different aspect of family affairs management."

"Managing the Scripture Cave, detecting spiritual roots for clan members, and teaching those with spiritual roots in cultivation shall be the responsibility of the Preaching Elder; the Internal Affairs Elder is responsible for reviewing and assessing family personnel promotions and demotions, and for counting the number of clan cultivators and mortals, their cultivation realms, and levels in the Hundred Skills of Cultivation; the Miscellaneous Affairs Elder deals with applications submitted by clan cultivators and handles the centralized release of various family and private commission tasks."

"The Finance Elder is responsible for auditing and tallying the family’s financial income and expenditure, and managing the operation of various family industries; the Law Enforcement Elder is naturally responsible for the enforcement and supervision of family rules and laws; the Security Elder is naturally responsible for maintaining the security within the family’s territory, including eliminating Demon Beasts and capturing offending cultivators; the Foreign Affairs Elder is mainly responsible for external trade and introducing outstanding talents to the family."

"These seven Deacon Elders are of equal status with the clan’s Foundation Establishment Cultivators, and all clan members must salute the elders whenever they see them in public. The annual benefits they receive should be increased to 300 contribution points!"

Looking at the present Zhou Family cultivators, Zhouyang spoke his long-considered thoughts with a resounding voice.

Suddenly, the entire Council Hall fell silent.

"Seven, seven elders! Isn’t that number too small? Clan Leader, we all understand your intention to improve the family’s efficiency, but having just seven elder positions does seem too few, doesn’t it? What if an elder goes into seclusion or has an accident? We won’t even have a replacement!"

Breaking the silence, it was not Zhou Yuanchun who spoke this time, but Zhouyang’s cousin, Zhou Yuanpeng.

Zhou Yuanpeng was ranked tenth among his peers and was two years younger than Zhouyang. Given that a Qi Cultivation Stage Cultivator has a lifespan of about one hundred and twenty years, he could live for approximately ten more years.

Furthermore, due to his contribution in discovering a new mortal grain crop "White Sand Taro," he had received special contribution point rewards from the family and was quite respected among the Zhou Family Elders.

"Tenth brother, naturally, I considered these issues, so what I also want to say is that those seeking to gain the family’s generous benefits and high status must be prepared to make sacrifices."

"Therefore, once appointed as a family elder, do not expect further progress on your path to cultivation. Going into seclusion, unless for healing purposes, will be out of the question!"

"As for replacements, this is related to the second matter I want to address!"

Zhouyang nodded lightly as he spoke, casting a glance at the Zhou Family Elders whose expressions were changing unpredictable, and continued:

"The second matter is, I plan to set up seven management institutions within the family: the Preaching Hall, Internal Affairs Hall, Miscellaneous Affairs Hall, Punishment Hall, Finance Hall, Security Hall, and Foreign Affairs Hall. Each hall will have one corresponding elder as Hall Master, and one or two Vice Hall Masters to assist in handling affairs within the hall."

"These seven halls are directly accountable to the Clan Leader and the Elder Council. The allocation of personnel and recruitment for each hall require the Clan Leader’s signature for validation!"

"Even if you lack the ability to become an elder, you can still compete for the positions of Vice Hall Master or Deacon within the hall. Joining one of these seven halls will entitle you to a certain amount of position subsidies, ensuring that even if you exceed the age of sixty, you can continue to receive family benefit offerings!"