Greenview Manor, Banquet Hall.
Seeing the square-faced, imposing middle-aged man striding toward her, Faye Shangguan's expression changed abruptly. Instinctively, she wanted to let go of Ian Song, but she immediately caught herself. Instead of releasing him, she clung even tighter, nearly hanging her whole body on him.
Sensing Faye Shangguan's change, Ian Song subconsciously followed her gaze, just in time to see a grim-faced middle-aged man hurrying toward them.
"Who is he?"
Ian Song asked Faye Shangguan in a low voice.
"My big brother—a self-important guy!" Faye Shangguan replied, her tone tinged with obvious resentment.
Gaopeng Shangguan quickly reached the trio and snapped coldly, "How long are you going to keep hugging him? Let go, now!"
"I'm not letting go!"
Faye Shangguan glared back without flinching. "And what exactly are you going to do about it?"
Gaopeng Shangguan was so furious he nearly burst a lung, but he knew this wasn't the time or place to argue with Faye. He exhaled sharply and said in a low voice, "You know perfectly well where we are. Don't be reckless—let go of him, now!"
The reason he brought Faye Shangguan here was to introduce her to the Long Family's Third Young Master. If Damien Long took a liking to her, a marriage alliance between the two families would greatly benefit the Shangguan clan.
But now, Faye Shangguan was clinging tightly to some pretty boy. If Damien Long saw this, the entire Shangguan family might end up in serious trouble.
"So what if I'm being stubborn? I'm not letting go!"
As she spoke, Faye even pressed her cheek against Ian Song's shoulder, putting on a sweet, affectionate display.
"...You...!"
At this, Gaopeng Shangguan's eyes narrowed and his fists clenched tight. "Faye Shangguan, if you're doing this just to spite me, congratulations, you succeeded. But tonight's banquet concerns the very survival of our entire family. I hope you won't let your stubbornness drag the Shangguan clan into the abyss!"
At this, he fixed Ian Song with a sharp glare. "You seem like a smart guy. If you know what's good for you, stay out of Shangguan family business. Let go of Faye and leave right now, and I'll pretend nothing happened. Otherwise...!"
Hearing this, Faye Shangguan suddenly exploded, fixing Gaopeng Shangguan with a frosty glare. "What do you mean by that? Who gave you the right to threaten my friend?"
Just then, the previously noisy banquet hall suddenly fell silent.
A white-haired elder, leading a group of imposing men and women, slowly entered from the inner hall.
Sensing that something was off in the banquet hall, Gaopeng Shangguan glanced over and saw the group emerging from the inner hall. When his eyes landed on a handsome young man among them, his expression changed dramatically.
That handsome young man was none other than Damien Long, the Long Family's Third Young Master.
The white-haired elder leading the group was the current Long Family patriarch. Walking behind him was Long Jian, the most outstanding member of the Long Family's second generation, while Damien Long was one of the brightest stars of the third generation.
The Long patriarch swept his gaze across the hall, suddenly spotting something and quickening his pace toward Ian Song's group.
Seeing the Long Family entourage heading his way, Gaopeng Shangguan's face stiffened, and cold sweat broke out all over him. He thought to himself, "It's over. The whole Shangguan clan is doomed."
The Long patriarch strode over in just a few quick steps, soon arriving in front of Ian Song and the others.
"G-Greetings, Long Patriarch!" Gaopeng Shangguan stammered out his greeting.
The patriarch nodded at him, but his gaze quickly shifted to Ian Song. Then, with a hearty laugh, he said, "Mr. Song, thank you for coming! I apologize if our hospitality has been lacking."
"You're too kind, Patriarch Long," Ian Song replied with a smile.
Witnessing this, Gaopeng Shangguan was stunned. He glanced back and forth between Ian Song and the Long patriarch, utterly confused as to why the Long patriarch was treating this young man with such respect.
Suddenly, he remembered that he had just threatened a young man whom even the Long patriarch treated with respect. Instantly, the cold sweat pouring from him got even worse, and he nearly lost his balance.
"Minister!"
Long Jian stepped forward with a smile and greeted Ian Song with a formal salute.
Seeing this, Gaopeng Shangguan nearly fainted. Long Jian was the top figure of the Long Family's second generation, and this banquet was being held to celebrate his breakthrough to Innate Ninth Layer.
Yet such a pinnacle figure was actually bowing to that young man.
How could someone like him possibly threaten a person of that level?
At that thought, he wanted nothing more than to slap himself. Worse, a sudden urge to pee welled up in his gut...
As for Faye Shangguan and Cynthia Murong, who were clinging to Ian Song's arm, they were left utterly stunned. Even though they'd known Ian was impressive, seeing him treated as an equal by the Long patriarch was still a shock.
Of course, in one corner of the hall, Easton Ma watched the scene with lingering fear.
With the Long Family gaining another Innate Ninth Layer expert, their prestige and influence were bound to soar. Yet even so, the Long patriarch was still treating Ian Song with utmost courtesy—proving just how powerful Ian truly was.
Thinking of this, Gaopeng Shangguan couldn't help but feel relieved. Thankfully, he hadn't completely offended Ian Song earlier—otherwise, his father would never have let him off the hook, even if Ian didn't do anything himself.
"We're all on the same side, Minister Long—no need to stand on ceremony!" Ian Song said with a cheerful grin.
At that moment, several third-generation members of the Long Family stepped forward, all bowing to Ian Song with even greater respect.
After some polite small talk, Ian Song introduced Faye Shangguan and Cynthia Murong to the members of the Long Family.
Immediately, the Long Family members' gazes toward the two women changed, and their greetings became exceedingly polite—leaving both Faye and Cynthia a bit flustered.
Just then, another group entered the banquet hall.
The leader was another elderly man.
Suddenly, he noticed Ian Song and the Long Family crowd, and hurried over with a smile to greet them.
"That's Wang Huaqing, the head of the Wang Family."
Gaopeng Shangguan recognized the elder at once, and instinctively pressed his legs together, terrified he might wet himself.
Next, the heads of several other major families made their appearances.
Each one, upon arrival, immediately headed toward Ian Song, greeting him with wide smiles. Even Li Mu from the Li Family was no exception. In the end, only the Zhao Family hadn't arrived yet.
However, just before seven o'clock, Zhao Changsheng arrived with the Zhao Family members.
This time, instead of waiting for them to approach, Ian Song strode over, took Zhao Changsheng by the arm, and led him over with a laugh.
With the heads of the ten great families gathered, there was naturally another round of polite conversation.
About five minutes passed.
A group of ten people walked into the banquet hall together.
The ten family heads all stepped forward to greet them.
These ten people were the nation's most powerful figures—the Head of State and the nine Elders, arriving together.