She was once considered a useless person and could not be successful even though she was the most legitimate heir.
But now…
Chapter 448 - Retrieving The Clan
Everyone lifted their heads and set their eyes upon that extraordinary face, swaying uncontrollably.
This Helian Wei Wei in front of them was not the same trash as before, it was as if there was something else on her, she was able to give out a chilling and cool aura just by raising her arm.
Helian Wei Wei walked slowly toward the throne with everyone's attention on her, imposing a powerful spirit. Her voice was soft, which was just nice for everyone to listen, "This seat seems to belong to me."
Helian Guang Yao did not respond to what she said until he fully understood what she meant.
There was already a commotion going on down there, the sound of the stewards' discussion was like a flood, with assumptions flowing everywhere.
Helian Guang Yao's face tensed up, his fierce gaze pierced straight through Helian Wei Wei. "You shouldn't cause trouble here, go back to your position and sit down, don't break the tradition even before the Clan Meeting starts, even if you're the Third Princess Consort now, you should still be aware of your sense of propriety."
"Of course I know my sense of propriety," Helian Wei Wei's tone was calm as still water. "Maybe Mr. Guang Yao has forgotten, I am the true heir of the Helian bloodline, and you, are just a superfluous son-in-law. I couldn't control whoever was sitting on this position back then when I didn't have the right to attend the Clan Meeting. But since now that I do, don't you think you should return the place which supposedly belongs to me?"
Helian Guang Yao was enraged when he was called a superfluous son-in-law, thus, he slammed on the wooden table heavily. "Helian Wei Wei! Let me repeat, even if you're a princess consort, you can't break the ancestors' rules as well! If you can't bear it, you can dismiss yourself from the meeting now!"
"The ancestors' rules?" Helian Wei Wei laughed and commanded, "Steward Zhang, please tell Mr. Guang Yao, what exactly is the Helian Clan's rule!"
The steward whose name was called could not sit still anymore, his forehead was drenched with cold sweat, but he did not answer.
Helian Wei Wei glanced at him with a faint smile, "Not answering? Fine, I have the genealogy here, it's clearly written on this if the Head of Clan has passed away, the clan's heir will host the Clan Meeting and claim the seat, regardless of their age, as long as they are authorized. All the attending stewards must have known about this right?"
No one spoke a word, the scene was in complete silence.
"Mr. Guang Yao, please move away from the seat." Helian Wei Wei raised her brows provocatively, ignoring the oppressed rage on Helian Guang Yao's face.
Helian Guang Yao's body tensed up because of anger, his gaze was like blades, piercing through Helian Wei Wei!
Helian Wei Wei smirked, "What's wrong? Is Mr. Guang Yao trying to disobey the Helian Clan's rule?"
Su Yan Mo who sat beside him thought of something, she sounded like she was trying to solve peacefully, "Wei Wei was too young back then, so she may have forgotten that if the heir has not fulfilled the right and age requirement yet, the elder has the authority to substitute as the leader."
"As Madam Su said, he only needs to substitute as the leader, not taking the seat." Helian Wei Wei glanced around her surroundings, smiling faintly and looked at Helian Guang Yao again. "Mr. Guang Yao, I'm still here, yet you're sitting on my seat, claiming my family property as if that's normal, isn't that shameful?"
Helian Guang Yao clenched both his hands tightly. "You!"
Helian Wei Wei sneered, "Move aside."
The discussion was still going on below, everyone was putting their attention on Helian Guang Yao.
Helian Guang Yao was suppressing his rage and spoke coldly, "I, Helian Guang Yao, has worked hard solely for Helian Clan all these years, even if there's no credit, there should still be effort, yet I've been misunderstood in such a way, so be it, after the meeting, everyone will know what's right, and what's wrong."
Helian Wei Wei ignored his hypocritical speech. She looked at him smilingly as what he had to say did not matter much because he would still have to give her the seat after all.
Helian Guang Yao had to give her the seat right now, but he believed that this little b*stard could only boast herself for a short while.
He would wait until the stewards made their decisions.
Helian Guang Yao brushed his sleeves as he got up, he then strode toward the side and sat down, that seat was not low either, but compared with Helian Wei Wei's master seat, there were a few levels of difference.
Helian Wei Wei did not sit down immediately, instead, she glanced over at Su Yan Mo who sat beside the seat; her gaze turned even colder.
That was supposed to be her mother's seat.
In her memory, her mother sat beside her grandfather with full armored, ruling over a big clan.
Yet this woman, what was her right to sit there?
Helian Wei Wei smiled, but her eyes remained emotionless. She stared at Su Yan Mo but did not talk to her, instead she called out to the steward again, "Steward Zhang."
The steward could not understand the reason why the princess consort could remember him so well today. He then answered her troublesomely, "Yes?"
"In this dignified Clan Meeting, how dare you to allow a second wife who has no relation to the clan to sit on the second highest seat," Helian Wei Wei spoke coldly, "Throughout the seven years of my absence in the Clan Meeting, has the clan become undisciplined?"
The other stewards other than Steward Zhang needed to reconsider upon hearing that.
Obviously, Helian Wei Wei would point this out.
It was not as difficult for steward Zhang to decide for Su Yan Mo as he did before for Helian Guang Yao. He stretched out his arm. "Madam, why not you change a seat?"
Except for that time on the street, Su Yan Mo had not been humiliated as such before in front of so many people like today!
Yet, the circ.u.mstances did not give her a choice to reject.
She had prepared for a whole day for this Clan Meeting, especially her outfit, she did all these with the hope of winning back her reputation.
However, now she was forced to change her seat. Su Yan Mo's c.h.e.s.t was filled with rage as if they would explode anytime, but she retained her smile. "It's my fault, after all these years, I thought of myself as a part of the clan, but I can't avoid being excluded, just as Guang Yao mentioned, we shall see what happens after the Clan Meeting has ended."
Upon finishing her sentence, she stood up, planning to sit next to Helian Guang Yao, but she then realized that there was no space left, hence, she could only stand at the side awkwardly. Her eyes were filled with malicious intent, she wanted to see how that little b*stard would react once the hidden army appeared later...
Chapter 449 - Leaving You Speechless
Helian Wei Wei did not even look at Su Yan Mo's eyes. With a sweep of her robe and a swing in her step, she sat down on the main seat.
Looked down upon the stewards below, she took a deep breath.
For seven years, she had not even had the right to enter the family Clan Meeting.
Seven years later, she finally reclaimed the seat which originally belonged to her grandfather!
Helian Wei Wei narrowed her eyes. It seemed like this was the only way that she was able to get a grip on the emotions surging through her blood.
Calm down.
This was nothing.
The show was just about to start.
Helian Wei Wei smiled, signaling the start of the meeting.
The stewards glanced at each other before a more experienced steward spoke up in a low, aged voice, "Since this Clan Meeting is distinct from the ones before, we shall not waste any more time. A Clan Meeting notice was announced half a month ago and as made known, although the Helian Clan remained prosperous after the passing of the Old Master, the Clan is
no longer held in high regard as we were before. The clansmen cannot be united with just a substitute patriarch, so we must choose a legitimate patriarch. Now, there are ten candidates who attend this meeting and one of them will become the patriarch tonight. Assuming that everyone already has their preferred candidate, let us now begin voting by a show of hands to come to a decision fairly."
The steward spoke of 10 candidates.
However, those who truly understood the nuances of the situation knew that in reality, this was but a showdown between Helian Guang Yao and Helian Wei Wei who were both of the direct lineage and bloodline.
For seven years, Helian Guang Yao who was just a son-in-law had held all the power in the Helian Clan.
Helian Wei Wei had been completely useless in the past and had not even been worth mentioning, so naturally, Helian Guang Yao took up her birthright.
Indeed, the Helian Clan was built up single-handedly by the Old Master.
If it had not been for Old Master Helian's military accomplishments during the war, the Helian Clan would not have blossomed into the family they were today.
However, Helian Guang Yao was not going to let go of all the power he had held close to him for so many years easily.
Now that Helian Wei Wei wanted to reclaim her rights to the Clan, not only did Helian Guang Yao's consent to handing over the power pose a problem, she also needed to deal with the problem of affirmation from the stewards who stood behind Helian Guang Yao.
Since the beginning, they had betrayed Old Master Helian's will in following Helian Guang Yao and had received many benefits for it in return all these years.
If Helian Wei Wei reclaimed her position in the Clan, not only would their acceptance of benefits be made known, even the fact that they had betrayed the Old Master would come to Helian Wei Wei's knowledge.
In other words, it was not going to be an easy fight for Helian Wei Wei to get back what was rightfully hers.
Many of them did not have high hopes for Helian Wei Wei's result and merely looked at each other as they shook their heads.
Helian Wei Wei calmly drank her tea as if everything that was happening around her had nothing to do with her.
None of the first eight candidates received a single vote.
After seeing the stewards acting according to his plan, Helian Guang Yao's eyes gleamed brightly from the side in which he had been chased off.
This was exactly how it has to be.
She needs to see clearly who will be the one inheriting the Helian legacy!
"Next, Helian Wei Wei." A ripple of murmurs and whispers spread across the crowd and it went rowdy again as soon as Steward Zhang mentioned Helian Wei Wei's name.
Helian Wei Wei stood up assuredly, her long robe smoothing out effortlessly and her sleeves fluttering exquisitely, "As I've said before, seven years ago, I was too young and inexperienced to understand that I was being used. Moreover, I was poisoned, so it is entirely understandable that my actions were nothing short of disappointing to everyone. However, now that I'm healed, I will ensure that the entire Divine Mainland respects the Helian Clan. They will never dare to cross us again!"
Her words left the audience below in shock in the knowledge that this had been the Old Master's greatest ambition when he was still alive.
Other than the Old Master himself, no one else had ever had the courage to make such a promise.
Is it because of the fact that she is his directly descended granddaughter?
As the audience mulled over the thought, Helian Guang Yao suddenly started to laugh coldly without a hint of warmth, he taunted flatly, "Wei Wei, some things require more than just promises. You were never involved with handling anything in the Clan, so how much do you even know about the Clan? A great patriarch doesn't just solve things with passion and a hothead." Helian Guang Yao did not give Helian Wei Wei any chance to speak up as he turned his head toward Steward Zhang and said, "Okay, continue with the voting."
Steward Zhang nodded as he made eye contact with Helian Guang Yao and raised his hand to signal the stewards to continue voting.
Seeing this, Su Yan Mo felt a rush of vindication as she sipped her tea. That little bit*h probably doesn't know it yet, but the stewards were already bribed from the start.
Aside from Steward Zhang being in their confidence, a few of the other stewards were also receiving benefits from them and had been waiting to force Helian Wei Wei off the seat ever since the Clan Meeting had begun.
However, there was still one old geezer who they could not settle.
As Su Yan Mo put her teacup down, her gaze turned to Helian Wei Wei, waiting to watch the drama unfold.
"Come, the stewards will now vote." Just as Steward Zhang finished speaking, none of the stewards present but Old Man Zhong raised his hand. As such, he considered this round of voting negligible and smilingly said, "Since no one voted, then we'll…"
Whoosh!
A sudden whooshing noise disrupted his voice!
Steward Zhang paused in disbelief as he watched the other stewards raised their hands one by one and subconsciously shifted his eyes toward Helian Guang Yao.
Helian Guang Yao froze on the spot and his eyes widened instantly as if he suddenly remembered something. His face was firstly filled with shock, then it changed into an unquenchable rage!
Even Su Yan Mo could hardly contain herself!
How could this be possible?
Why could they vote for Helian Wei Wei?
"You, you all…" Helian Guang Yao could not finish his sentence as he puffed in anger like he was trying very hard to control his emotions.
One of the stewards said pleasantly, "Don't be like that, Brother Guang Yao. At times like this, we follow whoever that pays us more silver."
Helian Guang Yao's face darkened upon hearing him, but he knew that anger would do him no good. He turned to Helian Wei Wei and said, "It seems that I underestimated your methods."
"Mr. Guang Yao, you seem to have forgotten that you were the one who started it, I just added some silver on your basic plan because I thought it was a good plan." Helian Wei Wei sat on the seat nonchalantly, leaning her head on her palms as she raised her eyebrows at Helian Guang Yao. "I left Steward Zhang alone since he's your confidante, but the rest of them voted out of their own free wills. Nine to one, this must have been your plan from the start, but alas, I got the nine, and you have the one!"
Chapter 450 - Appearance Of The Hidden Army!
Following Helian Wei Wei's last sentence, Helian Guang Yao's normally proud face expressed never-before-seen anxiety and insecurity.
Su Yan Mo panicked as well, rushing over to Helian Guang Yao as if to ask him what they had to do now.
Helian Wei Wei watched the two in front of her. Once upon a time, she too had been kicked out of the Clan just like that.
She was forced to leave and forced to give up everything she had. Additionally, she had been left with all the pain, hatred and regret her mother left her just before she died. All of this had contributed to the cold gleam that arose in Helian Wei Wei's eyes.
"Steward Zhang, did you turn mute? Do you not know how to announce the results?"
The pressurized aura that Helian Wei Wei exerted when she was displeased was on par with that of Baili Jia Jue's.
Steward Zhang trembled in fear as he stuttered, "I declare…"
"Wait!" Helian Guang Yao interrupted Steward Zhang as he spoke coldly, "Originally, I didn't want to announce this matter so quickly, but do you stewards remember how the Old Master said before his death, that if anyone were to win over the hidden army's support, a single vote from them would be equivalent to ten votes?"
Everyone present knew that the hidden army had already vanished for 10 years.
For a decade, they had tried every method conceivable to locate the hidden army but to no avail.
Even if there was news about them from time to time, the information would usually turn out to be useless.
From the beginning itself, t
he hidden army had only followed the Old Master and only him alone!
"Guang Yao, you…you mentioned the hidden army, is it…is it because you know where they are?" One of the stewards stood up excitedly as he could not control his emotions.
Helian Guang Yao lifted up his chin, revealing a hint of a smile. "Of course, truth to be told, I've been exchanging letters with the current general of the hidden army these past few days. He's in attendance at this meeting as well, among the audience below."
"Really?!" The rest of the stewards began whispering to one another.
Helian Guang Yao laughed once again, "I have no reason to lie to any of you. For the greater development of the Helian Clan, finding the hidden army was crucial. So all this time, I've been working hard to locate the hidden army, but it seems like someone took advantage of me being preoccupied."
Everyone knew who that someone was.
The stewards glanced hesitantly toward Helian Wei Wei and lowered their voices, "Princess Consort, according to the Old Master's instructions before he died, the hidden army is indeed more important, so this… the patriarch's seat, how about you just…"
"The hidden army isn't even here yet, and here you are, Steward Xu, asking me to give up so soon?" Helian Wei Wei chuckled as she leaned back and crossed her legs, unable to contain her playful attitude. She then said flatly, "Let's wait till Helian Guang Yao requests for the hidden army soldier to appear before we do anything, shall we?"
Su Yan Mo sneered. This little b*tch just would not give up!
Without wasting any more of his breath, Helian Guang Yao shouted toward the crowd, "General Chi, are you there?"
"Yes."
Among the crowd, Chi Yan stood there, clothed in full black and emerged slowly from the crowd.
Perhaps, his appearance was just too charming.
Just as he revealed himself, all the girls present could not help but look at him almost instantly.
They gazed at his calm, collected and gallant aura.
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