Chen Chuan turned around and walked toward the center alongside Cheng Zitong.
As he passed before the guests, among whom were personnel from the Disposal Bureau, the Defense Department, the City Patrol, and even Wuyi Academy, they all called out in greeting. Yet their forms of address varied wildly—"Teacher Chen," "Section Chief," "Captain," "Supervisor," and more.
When they saw Cheng Zitong walking beside Chen Chuan in decorative sunglasses, their reactions were a mixed bag: some secretly cursed with jealousy, some sighed in envy, and some sought to curry favor.
For some reason, as Liu Yin watched Chen Chuan approach, a surge of emotion swelled in his chest, and he raised his hand in salute. The peers standing with him subconsciously followed suit, raising their hands as well. This sparked a wave across most of the people on this side; though the gesture appeared ragged and uneven, no one cared about that at this moment.
Chen Chuan saw this and deliberately paused, raising a hand to return the salute to his peers. This made Liu Yin and the young people behind him even more thrilled.
Yet when they looked at Cheng Zitong, they did not harbor such complicated emotions. Instead, they felt as though they saw themselves in this elder; feeling that he had achieved what they could not, a profound sense of exhilaration welled up in their hearts.
After passing this group, Chen Chuan arrived before Cheng Zhou. The two differed in height by nearly a head, so Chen Chuan did not stand too close, halting several paces away.
Some members of the Cheng family and elders of other families standing near Cheng Zhou had felt nothing from a distance. But once Chen Chuan stood right in front of them, an extraordinary pressure suddenly weighed upon them, felt most keenly by the fighters present.
Even though Chen Chuan was already fully capable of restraining his aura, preventing his field from leaking in the slightest, they could still sense an unmistakable contrast in strength from his outward physical cadence and subtle cues.
They knew with absolute certainty that standing before them was a martial artist.
The more one practiced martial arts, the better one understood the weight a martial artist carried, and the greater one realized the chasm was between one's own standing and such an individual.
That was a peak they spent their entire lives wanting to scale yet could never reach, one they could only look up at from below.
Thus, at this moment, with such a person standing before them, they all grew cautious, even somewhat constrained.
Chen Chuan said to Cheng Zhou, "Old Master Cheng, I only rushed back from Haidong Dao yesterday and came straight here without having time to change. If I have breached etiquette, I hope you will forgive me, Old Master Cheng."
Cheng Zhou weighed his words carefully before answering with a solemn expression, "Section Chief Chen speaks too modestly. For the section chief to grace us with his presence is already an immense honor for this old man."
Chen Chuan gestured behind him. Immediately, several orderlies pushed forward a wheeled cart carrying a chest as tall as half a man.
He picked up a gift ledger from atop it and handed it to the Cheng family usher beside him, saying, "I came in haste and had no time to make extensive preparations. I offer this set of *Dan Gu Qi Lue* and a Suiyuan bow as birthday gifts."
Everyone present understood the latter item—it was likely a bow of considerable value. But they had no idea what the former was; only a few seemed to have vaguely heard of it, though they were not entirely certain.
Fortunately, they could search their boundary credentials now. After looking it up for a moment, many uncovered the answer and could not help gasping in unison.
*Dan Gu Qi Lue* was a comprehensive compendium on alchemy and elixirs that had gone out of print back in the Middle Ancient period.
Although the title appeared to concern alchemy, alchemy and martial arts were intertwined in those days. The collection contained a large number of imperial records compiled at the time, documenting and excerpting many of the world's most brilliant combat essentials.
Naturally, if all the recorded volumes were laid out, they would fill an entire storehouse.
But the true essentials did not take up nearly that much room. If this chest was filled with them, their value would be immeasurable.
As for the Suiyuan bow, the gift ledger noted that it was a hunting bow specially used for hunts in the old era. However, it was also a mutated weapon that, when paired with specialized arrows, could hunt small-to-medium-sized creatures from the Melded Lands. With firearms around today, it was of little use unless one had a specific passion for archery.
Yet before joining the resistance army, every member of the Cheng family had mastered archery. Even now, the three Cheng brothers retained this skill, and Cheng Zhou in particular was renowned for it. Clearly, great thought had gone into this gift.
Having reviewed the ledger, Cheng Zhou cupped his hands solemnly and said, "Section Chief Chen, thank you for such generous gifts. Please, let us speak inside." With that, he turned sideways, extending a hand toward the main entrance in invitation. The Cheng family members behind him immediately parted to open a pathway.
Chen Chuan glanced at the grand manor, looked at Cheng Zitong, and said, "Teacher, please lead the way." Cheng Zitong replied, "All right."
However, Chen Chuan deliberately stayed half a step behind Cheng Zitong. The two walked inside together, and the crowd of guests surged in after them.
Upon reaching the doorway, Chen Chuan seemed to recall something and paused briefly. Puzzled, everyone stopped along with him. He then produced an invitation card from his overcoat and signaled to the usher nearby.
"I heard one must present an invitation to enter the Cheng residence; otherwise, the door remains barred. Fortunately, I remembered to bring mine when I came."
Naturally, the Cheng residence sent invitations to all higher-ups in Center City. After all, the old patriarch had spent most of his life in Center City; though he had never attained the highest office, he was not far from the top tiers. Whether the upper echelons attended was up to them, but proper respect and social courtesy had to be extended. Thus, an invitation had been delivered to Chen Chuan well in advance.
Cheng Shang stepped forward at this point and said with a smile, "Section Chief Chen is joking. The entire Cheng family couldn't be more delighted by your arrival. Besides, our Cheng family has always valued harmony. How could we ever shut someone out over a mere invitation?"
Chen Chuan hummed in acknowledgment and turned to Cheng Zitong. "Teacher, it seems your student may have misunderstood."
Cheng Zitong chimed in, "Is that so? It's your teacher's fault for not explaining things properly to you, Chuan. Look at the mess this made—I should apologize to you."
Immediately, a Cheng family usher stepped up to take the blame. "It was our failure to explain clearly to Section Chief Chen! And Third Brother, this is by no means your fault—it was our improper handling. We must apologize to Section Chief Chen, and Third Brother, it was our offense."
With that, he bowed deeply to Chen Chuan first, then turned and bowed deeply to Cheng Zitong, saying earnestly, "Third Brother, we were remiss."
In the back, Ni Xixi nudged Captain Li with her elbow, her eyes gesturing toward the front. "You see that? You see that?"
Captain Li answered with a glance. "I see it. I see it."
As for the others, they all watched the scene unfold. They had already learned more or less about Cheng Zitong's circumstances and were watching with an amused eye. Yet at the same time, they felt that starting from today, something seemed to be changing.
After Chen Chuan and Cheng Zitong entered the residence, guided by the Cheng family, they walked straight forward into the main hall.
Cheng Zitong headed toward his original table, and Chen Chuan naturally followed him.
The Cheng family usher hurriedly said, "Section Chief Chen, please take a seat inside."
Cheng Zitong, however, had already sat down.
Chen Chuan asked, "Teacher, what are you doing?"
Cheng Zitong looked up. "Your teacher's seat is right here."
Chen Chuan nodded. "Since my teacher's seat is here, your student should be here as well." He looked around. "I wonder if another seat could be added for me here?"
At this moment, all eyes snapped toward them. In particular, the younger generation and older relatives of the Cheng family who had been relegated to the outer tables felt a sudden stirring in their chests; some who shared his sentiment could barely resist cheering out loud.
The Cheng family members found it awkward to speak up, and could not help looking at Cheng Zhou, the only one who could make decisions here. The latter said to Cheng Zitong, "Little Tong, take a seat inside."
Cheng Zitong had originally wanted to say, *Aren't there Cheng family rules here? If I go inside, wouldn't I be breaking them?*
But looking at his aging father's heavily wrinkled face, he thought better of it and held his tongue.
Standing back up, he said, "Fine. Little Chuan, if we stay here, everyone won't feel comfortable either, right? Let's go inside. It's easier to talk once the doors are closed, isn't it?"
Many present thought to themselves, *No, please don't! It's great if you talk right here!* But the Cheng family let out a sigh of relief.
Chen Chuan nodded, and so he and Cheng Zitong walked together up to the formal hall. His seat was arranged at Cheng Zhou's head table. Cheng Zhou gestured in invitation; this time Chen Chuan did not refuse. Thanking him, Chen Chuan waited for Cheng Zhou to sit before taking his own seat.
Cheng Zitong took off his sunglasses with a chuckle and plopped down at Qiao Linhu's table.
Cheng Zhou lifted the cup of sweet dew on the table with both hands and said, "Section Chief Chen, thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule to celebrate this old man's birthday. Allow me to toast you."
Chen Chuan picked up his cup, said, "Please, Old Master," and took a sip.
After taking a drink and setting his cup down, Cheng Zhou said, "Section Chief Chen, if this old man's guess is correct, connecting the Skyline over these past few days must have met with quite a few twists and turns?"
Chen Chuan looked at him and said, "Old Master Cheng has also been paying attention to this matter?"
Cheng Zhou said, "Though I have been retired for twenty years, as for all the changes in Center City..." He pointed to his own eyes. "...these old eyes of mine can still see rather clearly. If the Skyline were so easy, it wouldn't have been talked about for so many years without making any headway."
Chen Chuan replied, "There were indeed some obstacles. But you may rest assured, Old Master Cheng, it has been resolved. Even if something else arises, both Center Cities can handle it."
Cheng Zhou said, "Section Chief Chen, you gave me a set of books and a bow just now. This old man likes them very much. Had I been younger, I would have been overjoyed beyond measure and would certainly have regarded Section Chief Chen as a kindred spirit. But upon hearing that the Skyline was safely connected, I feel that the finest gift of all was Section Chief Chen telling this old man about it in person."
He said slowly, "A gift received by me brings joy to only one person. The gift Section Chief Chen has brought brings joy to hundreds of millions. How could I not rejoice?"
Chapter 1000