xiao shushu - uncle (father's youngest brother). Jin Ling calls Jin Guangyao xiao shushu.
Jinlin Tai - the Jin Sect's residence in Lanling
Zidian - Jiang Cheng's whip, transliterated as 'purple lightning'
'Master Jin, we know you're young and desperate to prove yourself as a goody-two-shoes follower of the 'be wherever the chaos is' motto, but you need to think about the practicalities.' Senior Jin patronised.
Jin Ling clenched his firsts under the table. Senior Jin was his grandfather Jin GuangShan's second cousin and right-hand man. When his xiao shushu was the Sect Leader, Senior Jin loudly expressed his belief he should have been the Sect Leader instead of the 'son-of-a-whore' Jin Guangyao. Of course, his xiao shushu was famed at the time as a hero of the Sunshot Campaign and a sworn brother of the famous Zewu-Jun; Senior Jin was quickly demoted within the sect. After his xiao shushu's death, Senior Jin had been in the process of smugly establishing himself as Sect Leader when Sect Leader Jiang walked up the steps of Jinlin Tai, Zidian in hand. Since that day, Jin Ling had been the unacknowledged Sect Leader, blatantly patronised at every meeting.
'Senior Jin,' Jin Ling said with forced politeness, 'multiple families have reported strange noises in that area. One man has been scared to death. This is occurring within Lanling our territory – does this not warrant at least an investigation?'
Senior Jin shook his head. 'Every second day some psycho hears strange noises and someone says someone was scared to death.' Many nodded in agreement.
'As a cultivation sect, our job is to protect people of Lanling in situations like this.' Jin Ling pressed on.
Seniors around the room seemed to find Jin Ling's words comically absurd. 'We the LanlingJin Sect do not exist to let random people bother us with trivial matters.'
Making change was difficult; making change when no one cared to listen to you was impossible. Centuries of precedent said the LanlingJin Sect was nothing short of the sun in the sky, too proud to engage with common people. Looking at the faces around the room, Jin Ling knew this was not the day for change to be made.
Jin Ling suggested instead, 'How about we assign a group of juniors to investigate this as a night-hunt task?'
A few seniors around the room nodded in agreement; most did not move to agree or disagree.
'Absolutely not!' Senior Jin refuted, 'our sons are to be training for their night-hunt debuts, taking top prizes at competitions. They will not waste their time on stupid townspeople.'
'That's right!' Senior Kong agreed.
Jin Ling looked around the room. Now that Senior Jin and Senior Kong had expressed strong opinions on the matter, none of the other men cared enough to argue. Jin Ling wished he could investigate the matter himself, but he really couldn't carve out time in the next few days. If only he hadn't fallen behind on work.
'I understand we the LanlingJin Sect is limited in time and resources.' Jin Ling settled for another suggestion, 'The GusuLan juniors have been looking for a different night-hunt location. I can invite them here to investigate in a few days.'
Seniors around the room nodded. It wasn't Jin Ling's preferred option, but it was the one no one would care enough to object to. Who knows, they might have fun with the change in scenery.
'Absolutely not!' Senior Jin refuted loudly. Surprise came over the faces around the room.
'If the Lan Sect's kids want to bother themselves with stupid townspeople, just let them.' One of the seniors spoke. The men around him nodded in agreement.
'Absolutely not!' Senior Jin repeated. 'Have you forgotten those brats would bring around the Yiling Patriarch and his dog the Ghost General?'
Jin Ling opened and closed his mouth. He did not expect objections to having the GusuLan juniors investigate the matter, let alone such an argument.
No one else seemed to know what to say either. Taking advantage of the silence, Senior Jin declared, 'the Lan Sect's kids are not welcome in Lanling!'
With this statement, the room fell into stunned silence. Most LanlingJin seniors were aware of the sect's tenuous position in the cultivation world, having lost its place as a Great Sect with the revelation of Jin Guangyao's crimes. Though most continued to radiate repulsive pride, not many would go as far as declaring juniors of a Great Sect unwelcome on their land.
Only Senior Kong spoke in support of his cousin. 'Hear, hear! No associates of the Ghost General are welcome in Lanling! We must never forget the LanlingJin lives taken under his hands!'
It was ridiculous how the same men who secretly imprisoned Wen Ning under Jin Guangshan's orders, were the same men speaking of him in such a way. Looking around the room, Jin Ling knew it would be pointless to press the matter further. Senior Jin and Senior Kong had made up their minds, and although others were perplexed, no one cared enough to argue with them.
Closing the meeting, Jin Ling wondered why he wasted time on meetings at all.
Thankfully, the issue seemed to resolve itself. The townspeople stopped coming to Jinlin Tai, and when he went to visit two weeks later, they thanked him graciously for the spirit-repelling talismans he'd given them. Jin Ling was glad no townspeople were hurt, but he'd be lying if he said he wasn't somewhat annoyed - Senior Jin was proven right in dismissing his concerns, and the LanlingJin Sect would not change its ways anytime soon.