CHAPTER 283: CHAPTER 270: ESTABLISHING FAMILY VALUES!

Small things relate to the family, while significant ones concern the nation.

The principles of governing a country and running a family are actually interconnected.

Using national governance methods for family affairs might not be ideal, yet it is undoubtedly a very useful approach.

He set the Zhou Clan’s Deacon Elders as seven, each dealing with different aspects of affairs, thus clarifying responsibilities and enhancing efficiency. The benefits of this system are obvious to any intelligent person.

Under this mechanism, the one who truly suffers the most is the Clan Leader of the family.

Previously, in the Zhou Family, the Clan Leader could decide everything big or small single-handedly; for various affairs, whoever the Clan Leader wanted to assign could be appointed, as long as they held the title of an Elder.

But now, it is a situation where the Seven Elders and the Clan Leader govern the family together.

Because the Deacon Elders hold a position in the clan equivalent to that of a Foundation Establishment Cultivator, even the Clan Leader does not have the power to arbitrarily appoint or dismiss them. Decisions made during their governance require persuasive reasons to be refuted or reversed.

According to the rules set by Zhouyang, Deacon Elders must first be nominated and self-recommend from within the clan. Before taking office, their cultivation must not be lower than Ninth-Layer Qi Cultivation, their age not higher than 110, and not less than 60.

Then, each Zhou Family Cultivator aspiring to be a Deacon Elder must pass various tests by the Clan Leader, Foundation Establishment Elders, and Supreme Elders. They also have a protracted trial period of three years before they are considered qualified.

This thorough screening almost guarantees that the chosen Deacon Elders would not be ignorant fools in their professional fields.

To dismiss a Deacon Elder, apart from the Supreme Elder being able to do so with a single word, the Clan Leader can at most suspend a Deacon Elder’s duties for a month.

Then, they must either invite the Supreme Elder to directly dismiss the Deacon Elder or assemble other Deacon Elders and Foundation Establishment Cultivators to express the mistakes of the implicated Deacon Elder and launch a vote to decide whether or not to dismiss the culprit from their position.

As long as Zhouyang, this Supreme Elder, can maintain his integrity, this system can be regarded as "perfect".

As for if he cannot maintain his integrity... this need not be considered at all.

In conclusion, the emergence of Deacon Elders has weakened the Clan Leader’s power while enhancing the Elders’ power, presenting a situation with mixed blessings for all Zhou Family Elders currently possessing Ninth-Layer Qi Cultivation.

Who would admit to being inferior to others if ability, rather than seniority, is considered?

Moreover, even if they did not become Deacon Elders, with their cultivation level, they could still assume Vice Hall Master or Steward roles within the seven governing bodies and continue receiving their position allowances, right?

So after Zhouyang voiced his opinion, those former Zhou Family Elders quickly agreed after a brief discussion, thus settling the matter thoroughly.

After the decision, Zhouyang looked at the Zhou Family Cultivators in the Council Hall and said sternly, "Finally, let’s talk about the issue of family reputation!"

"I’ve heard recently that as the territory occupied by our Zhou Family grows, and the number of clan cultivators increases, especially after I advanced to the Purple Mansion Stage, some cultivators in the clan have already started tarnishing the family name for their personal gain! This is utterly disgraceful!"

"Generations of our Zhou Family have sacrificed their lives, youth—everything!"

"Only then did we achieve the Zhou Clan’s current prosperity and flourishing state!"

"Now, while the ancestors’ bodies are not yet cold, some people, for their selfish gains, are willing to ruin what our forefathers sacrificed everything to build—their foundation and reputation!"

"I absolutely cannot tolerate this!"

"I put it out there today, as long as I’m alive, as long as I manage the Zhou Family, I will absolutely not tolerate any Zhou Clan Members doing those lawless, reputation-damaging deeds!"

Rumble!

A tremendous aura erupted from Zhouyang with his grave and severe words, pressing down on all the Zhou Family Cultivators in the Council Hall, turning their faces pale, and making them afraid to breathe.

This was the first time Zhouyang used his authority to oppress the clan internally since he assumed the role of Zhou Family Patriarch.

Previously, no matter how angry he was, he would not act like this, because during those family meetings, a group of elders were always present, and exerting pressure based on cultivation status would be highly disrespectful to the elders.

But now that the old Clan Leader Zhou Minghan has passed away, and Zhou Xuanhao is tied up in Red Fox Ridge, today’s cultivators in the Council Hall are all peers or juniors to Zhouyang.

In this situation, using his dominance can truly make these people understand his determination, leaving them with an extremely profound impression, ensuring they remember the reason for Zhouyang’s suppression by force for decades to come.

At this moment, Zhouyang, his imposing aura overshadowing all the Zhou Clan Members present, solemnly looked at everyone and loudly declared:

"I tell you here today, as Clan Leader, I do not oppose you spending time traveling and using the clan’s and my name to build connections and gain advantages."

"However, if anyone dares to use this as a pretext to extort Spirit Stones and treasures from outsiders or to commit atrocities such as tyranny or murder, if I, Zhouyang, find one, I will deal with one; if I find a hundred, I will deal with a hundred, without any mercy!"

"I do not demand that you actively do good deeds to enhance the reputation and family style of the Zhou Family, but if anyone dares to commit crimes that sully the family’s reputation, do not blame me, Zhouyang, for being heartless, for taking your head to apologize to the victims and to warn the clan members!"

His voice boomed like thunder, echoing through the Council Hall, shaking the eardrums of those present.

All Zhou Clan Members present in the Council Hall could hear the decisive and unquestionable determination in his shout.

Therefore, after he finished speaking, no one dared to question him as they did before; instead, they all kept their mouths shut and did not say a word.

Zhouyang usually had a very amiable personality and did not act high and mighty before the clan members due to his cultivation status.

However, when he released the imposing pressure of a Purple Mansion Stage Cultivator, no one could ignore—or dared to ignore—the fact that he was a Purple Mansion Stage Cultivator.

The fact is, once a Purple Mansion Stage Cultivator makes a decision, it absolutely cannot be influenced or changed by Foundation Establishment Cultivators and Qi Cultivation Stage Cultivators.

Thus, Zhouyang’s decision was, of course, passed unanimously without any doubt.

Once this matter was passed, Zhouyang’s goal in convening this clan meeting was achieved.

Hence, he quickly reined in his aura, gave a slight wave of his hand, and said, "Alright, the clan meeting today ends here. Regarding the matter of selecting Deacon Elders, think carefully about which elder role suits you best and then go to Guangxiang to sign up. After the one-month registration period is over, you will be informed about the subsequent steps!"

"One more thing, once you are outside, remember to immediately convey the content of today’s clan meeting to all clan members, especially the establishment of an upright, virtuous, diligent, and honest family style; this needs to be heavily promoted. Make sure all clan members understand that this is an inviolable iron rule!"

Having said that, he moved and was the first to leave the Council Hall.

The content of this meeting soon spread throughout the Zhou Family.

Upon hearing the meeting’s content, among the Zhou Family Cultivators, some were joyful, some were fearful, and some showed a determined expression as if they had made some important decision.

Afterward, Zhouyang specially paused his cultivation to busily work along with Zhou Guangxiang on selecting the Deacon Elders.

According to Zhouyang’s thinking, the position of Deacon Elder is very important; once decided, it is best not to change for at least ten or twenty years.

Therefore, when specifically selecting Deacon Elders, he prioritized younger people.

Of course, he could not appoint all young people as Deacon Elders to take into account the sentiments of those clan members of his generation.

After being busy for half a year, they finally decided on the first generation of Deacon Elders.

They are respectively Preaching Elder Zhou Yuanpeng, Internal Affairs Elder Zhou Yuanchang, Household Affairs Elder Zhou Yuanliang, Finance Elder Zhou Guangyun, Law Enforcement Elder Zhou Guangkun, Security Elder Zhou Guangtai, and Foreign Affairs Elder Tan Qiu.

Coincidentally, there are three cultivators with the "Yuan" generation and three with the "Guang" generation, with an additional foreign relative cultivator, and among them, Zhou Guangyun is a female elder.

Once these Deacon Elders were selected, the establishment of the seven administrative institutions came to fruition quickly.

According to the result negotiated by Zhouyang and these elders, combined, the total number of personnel in the seven administrative institutions should not exceed half of the total number of clan cultivators.

Thus, calculating based on the current population of nearly two hundred Zhou Family cultivators, the final result temporarily set five members each for the Preaching Hall, Internal Affairs Hall, and Foreign Affairs Hall; seven members each for the Punishment Hall, Household Affairs Hall, and Finance Hall; and the most, ten members for the Security Hall.

The individuals within these administrative institutions are required to have at least Mid-Stage Qi Cultivation, and those serving as stewards can receive an additional 50 contribution points subsidy annually, while vice hall masters can receive an additional 100 contribution points subsidy annually.

Of course, where there are rewards, there are punishments. While serving in the seven halls allows one to receive a position subsidy, if one is ineffective or if dereliction is found during inspections in the Internal Affairs Hall, not only will the subsidy be deducted, but annual benefits may also be reversed.

Zhouyang no longer needs to be concerned about the specific recruitment in each hall; it is all entrusted to the hall masters of each hall, and he only has to review and sign off on the final details.

With the operation of these seven halls, not only does he, as the Clan Leader, have many fewer matters to attend to, but Zhou Guangxiang, who he had always tasked with handling clan affairs, can finally retreat to his cave dwelling and concentrate on breaking through as a Tier Three Array Master.

However, Zhouyang was not truly idle. Even if he did not handle clan affairs, the matters of cultivation were enough to keep his schedule packed.

Like the cultivation tasks he set for himself after advancing to the Purple Mansion Stage, completing them would take at least a decade or two.

Nonetheless, he reveled in the busy work of completing cultivation tasks and never tired of it.

Because each time he completed a cultivation task, he was able to unlock and master new Divine Techniques, directly and significantly enhancing his own strength.