Return of the King, Dominating the City
Chapter 913: 902: Entering the Family Register

Chapter 913: Chapter 902: Entering the Family Register

“Why don’t I feel the same way?” Song Yun said, “It’s just going to work for a year. You see, countless ordinary people’s children go out to work at this age!”

“Didn’t you mention those ordinary people!” Song Laifu laughed and said, “Luoshen is part of the Song Family. Growing up, not to mention suffering, she hasn’t even done household chores. Such a girl suddenly becoming an ordinary worker, do you think there will be a significant gap?”

“Yes!” Song Yun replied.

“Right, the good and the bad in any situation are generated through comparison. If your original monthly salary was only five hundred yuan and suddenly increased to one thousand yuan, that’s a great thing. But for us, what is one thousand yuan? If our pocket money is reduced from ten thousand yuan to five thousand yuan a month, though still several times more than the thousand others get, for us, who originally had ten thousand, that’s a fifty percent shrinkage; that’s bad!” Song Laifu laughed and said, “Luoshen has never done any hard work since she was little, but once she starts, she’ll have to do it for a year. We can see how tough it will be.”

Song Yun nodded and said, “But it’s also a good thing, at least it will teach her self-sufficiency and help her understand that earning money is no easy matter.”

“Yes indeed, I wonder if you’ve noticed, many of the punishments in our Song Family are essentially not about punishment itself, but rather what you gain from the punishment,” Song Laifu said.

Song Yun thought carefully; his three hundred lashes and Song Luoshen’s physical labor couldn’t exactly be considered bad because they indeed benefitted the person involved! He nodded in agreement and said, “Definitely.”

“Our Song Family’s elders have always believed that the ultimate purpose of punishment is not punishment itself but learning from it and gaining improvement.” Song Laifu said, “So in our Song Family, punishments are not scary, of course, you shouldn’t violate those things that are absolutely forbidden, the consequences are extremely severe, like murder, if there’s internal conflict among us, the result couldn’t be more significant!”

“Oh? What result?” Song Yun asked.

“For example, if I kill you, then I must die as well; it’s that simple,” Song Laifu said, “Or if you kill me, then you must die too, even if you are part of the main lineage, death is unavoidable! This is to prevent infighting within our Song Family.”

“Oh!” Song Yun nodded and asked, “So, when we enter the Song Family’s genealogical record, are there any things we should be aware of in the future?”

“Not really, upon entering the genealogy, especially the main lineage’s genealogy, it signifies you have become a genuine member of the Song Family’s main lineage, which is a significant thing. At that time, we will notify the upper society in Beijing, and soon, this news will spread throughout Shen Zhou, then, the upper society across Shen Zhou will know that our Song Family’s main lineage has gained a few new members, which is entirely different from being nominally part of the Song Family!” Song Laifu said, “If you are just a nominal member of the Song Family’s main lineage, maybe others will respect you, but they won’t fear you because you are nominal, not substantial, without inheritance rights. Once you enter the genealogy, it means you have inheritance rights, and in the future, you may become the Song Family Master, and the future Song Family Master is a top-tier figure across Shen Zhou; no one can underestimate you!”

Upon hearing this, Song Yun wasn’t particularly surprised; this was close to what he expected. That’s also why he valued entering the genealogy so much. Once successfully inscribing his name, Song Yun’s plan to advance into the Pearl River Delta can be better realized. As long as Song Yun stands firm, the Pearl River Delta will become a huge piece of rich meat.

Time swiftly moved forward, soon approaching four o’clock, and the whole hall and the open space outside gradually gathered a large group of Song Family members. This ceremony of ancestor worship and entering the genealogy is a major event within the Song Family, so much so that Song Family members from cities near Beijing received notification last night and came to the Song Family’s ancestral house. Song Yun looked outside from the hall, at least several hundred people were gathering on the open ground, with even more people entering from outside.

His parents had already appeared in the hall.

“Will we worship ancestors here?” Song Yun curiously asked.

“No, we go to the ancestral hall behind!” Song Laifu said quietly, as the time drew closer, speaking in a hushed tone.

“What about these people?” Song Yun pointed to the dense crowd outside and asked.

“After the worship in the ancestral hall, you come outside and in front of these Song Family descendants, inscribe your names into the Song Family’s genealogy! It means the Song Family’s descendants witness your entry into the genealogy!” Song Laifu explained.

Song Yun nodded.

Shortly after, Mr. Song and the heads of four other branches appeared in the hall, then Song Yun saw Elder Wang!

Today, Elder Wang was wearing a very strange outfit that Song Laifu said was worn every time for the ancestral hall events; this outfit had been passed down for hundreds of years.

Elder Wang stood in the center of the hall, even Mr. Song had to stand behind him, and Song Mei Qin, Song Mei Feng, Song Dong, Song Chun each stood behind Mr. Song.

The previously noisy hall instantly became silent.

Elder Wang held a bell in his hand, shook it, and said, “The ancestor worship ceremony begins now, Song Family Patriarch, Song Wu, Song Family member Song Mei Qin, Song Family member Song Mei Feng, Song Family member Song Dong, Song Family member Song Chun, Song Ergou, Ye Qingsi, Song Yun, Qingluan, follow me into the ancestral hall to face the ancestors!”

The sound was long, with incredible penetration power; no matter how far people were, they heard Elder Wang’s words clearly.

It turns out his Second Grandpa’s name is Song Wu! Song Yun learned Mr. Song’s name for the first time, then thought of his grandfather’s name, which is probably Song Wen, seemingly chosen to represent one civil and one military.

Elder Wang walked at the forefront, Mr. Song followed slowly behind, and others bowed their heads and walked directly through the hall to a locked wooden door.