The Eldest Daughter of the Sichuan Tang Clan Protects Her Family

“Brother, you seem to grow more radiant with every passing year.”
“Haha. And you’ve grown more eloquent. How have you been these days?”
“I’d like to say I’ve been well... but I’m not sure I can.”
“Hmm? Has something happened to you?”
The young warrior from the Pang Clan smiled bitterly.
“In truth, the plan to be dispatched to the main headquarters has fallen through.”
“What? What do you mean? Sit down and tell me everything.”
The Pang Clan warrior sat down naturally at the Zhuge Family’s table.
Those glancing that way sighed inwardly.
“Ah, lucky him...”
Because the Martial Alliance headquarters was based in Hubei, many within it were from the Zhuge Family. Even the Head of the Four Seasons Pavilion—one of the central halls—was the Zhuge Patriarch’s third son, not yet forty.
To be dispatched to a branch, one only needed their family head’s recommendation, but to enter headquarters, an additional endorsement from a current member was required.
That was no trouble for the Zhuge Family, but for other Alliance warriors, it was not so easy.
To wear the symbol of the headquarters—the fifteen moons—on one’s chest was the dream of every young Alliance warrior. Thus, any chance to mingle with those from headquarters was precious.
Perhaps for that reason, even though the Alliance meeting was being hosted by the Tang Clan of Sichuan, the Zhuge Family still seemed to be the stars of the gathering.
Of course, there were some who cared nothing for such atmospheres.
“Lady Pang Udan!”
A young man with a mole on his cheek waved toward a woman of the Pang Clan.
“It’s been too long. Lady Pang grows lovelier by the day—my eyes might go blind.”
At those words, the Pang Clan warrior furrowed his brows. But Namgung Gangchang, smiling broadly, dragged his chair closer and gestured.
“Please, have a seat here. It’s been a while—let’s catch up.”
The Pang warrior, about to refuse, fell silent as his eyes shifted to where Gangchang’s hand pointed.
Beside Namgung Gangchang sat a man he had never seen before.
Sunlight should fall equally on all, yet for some reason, that man seemed to shine on his own as he calmly sipped his tea.
“…Since when did Namgung have such a face? Ah, is that the Clan Head’s second son?”
He had heard that the Namgung Patriarch, Namgung An, was a remarkably handsome man, and that his direct descendants were likewise striking—but this was excessive.
Or perhaps, seated beside that notorious lecher, the contrast merely made him seem even more brilliant.
Lady Pang hesitated.
Namgung Gangchang, arrogant and insolent, was someone best avoided—but the direct descendant sitting beside him was simply too handsome.
At that moment, the younger sister standing next to her poked her in the waist.
“Shall we sit for a bit?”
Her sparkling eyes suggested the same thought.
Lady Pang eventually nodded.
“Yes. It would be rude to refuse a gesture of goodwill outright.”
The sisters exchanged a look of agreement and made their way to the Namgung table.
Not all who attended the Five-Family Alliance came chasing ambition.
Most attendees were young warriors in their twenties or thirties. Moreover, those who qualified to attend were those with stable standing in their clans and verified identities. Naturally, it wasn’t uncommon for relationships to form during the meeting.
Indeed, the Five-Family Alliance served as a stage where elders could safely arrange meetings between the vigorous younger generation.
As the two women from the Pang Clan approached, the Namgung warriors exchanged uneasy glances.
“Why are they all actually sitting down this year?”
Normally, whenever Gangchang invited women like that, they would frown or snap at him to stop his tricks before storming off. Yet today, his success rate had soared past ninety percent.

“Do you really not get it?”
One warrior gave them a pitying look and jerked his chin toward the side. Their eyes naturally turned in that direction—where sat the illegitimate son of the Clan Head.
“Wow... never thought I’d see the day that bastard was actually useful.”
As if uninterested in the commotion, the illegitimate son gazed quietly out over the rippling lake, his expression one of sheer boredom.
Though the women of the Five Great Families gathered near him, he seemed wholly indifferent.
“So that’s what a top predator looks like...”
Namgung Gangchang’s followers, overcome with an inexplicable sense of defeat, looked on with dull eyes.
Yet Gangchang—eldest son of the Grand Elder, pampered and praised all his life—possessed an unshakable ego.
He assumed, of course, that the women were drawn to him.
Smiling, he stroked his chin.
“Lady Pang, do you notice anything different about me?”
“I don’t think so.”
Lady Pang replied curtly without even looking.
But Gangchang’s self-esteem was immense.
Covering half his face with his hand, as if to hide her shyness, he urged her gently.
“Haha, don’t be shy—take a good look.”
“I said I don’t know.”
Lady Pang turned sharply, glaring at him without hiding her irritation.
Yet Gangchang mistook the look for admiration and slowly lowered his hand.
“Don’t you think I’ve grown even more refined since last year?”
“……”
“I underwent acupuncture treatment to stimulate the blood points and refine my facial contours and skin. The results were extraordinary. The girl who gave me the treatment came along today—Lady Pang, would you like to try it as well?”
Lady Pang’s facial muscles began to twitch.
“What madness possessed me to sit beside this lecher?”
This was precisely why all the Namgung women avoided dining with him.
Letting out a sigh, she rose from her seat.
Her posture made clear she could no longer tolerate sharing a table with him—but emboldened by his earlier “success,” Gangchang grabbed her wrist.
“Ah, not now. The Clan Heads are all still seated, aren’t they? Once the ceremony ends, I’ll introduce you # Nоvеlight # properly. Just wait until it’s over.”
Finally, Lady Pang snapped.
“Sir! Please come to your senses! Not a single woman among the Five Families has any interest in you. Stop acting as if we all belong to you! It’s embarrassing!”
At her outburst, Gangchang exhaled sharply, clearly displeased.
“Then why did you come sit beside me? Did I force you here? You came of your own will and flirted with me all this time—”
“Flirted? You mad fool, are you picking a fight?”
Lady Pang was about to strike when her younger sister stopped her.
“Sister, calm down! People are watching!”
But such words could never pierce Gangchang’s fortress of self-regard.
“A fight, you say... such scandalous language in broad daylight...”
“Brother!”
Unable to bear it any longer, Gangchang’s followers rushed over and covered his mouth.
Fortunately, Lady Pang did not catch the swallowed remark. And as a well-bred noblewoman, she knew how to control her anger.
Aware of the many eyes upon her, she exhaled softly and withdrew.
It was the first time anyone had seen the Pang Elder’s niece lose her composure like that.
The other Pang young ladies seated nearby quietly rose and returned to their family’s table.
Seeing this, the curious young women from other families also slipped away.
“Lady Pang, don’t go!”
The Namgung men sighed in disappointment—then burst out in frustration.
“Why!”
Their pleasant gathering now ruined, they all turned their accusing eyes toward Namgung Gangchang.
Their looks were anything but kind.
But Gangchang, thinking they were simply worried for him, frowned.
“What’s wrong with all of you? Because of your rude behavior, the ladies grew upset and left!”
“Brother…”
“What?”
“They left because of you.”
Gangchang’s standing within the clan was strong.
As the Grand Elder’s only son born late in life, he had been coddled endlessly—praised even more gently than the Little Clan Head himself.
So he was utterly unused to blunt words.
“…Are you jealous of me, then?”
Of course he would take it that way.
Sighing as if deeply pained, Gangchang murmured,
“Yes... I knew this day would come. It must be hard—watching a man born with everything. Painful, even. But still, I can’t be expected to excuse your poor temperament out of pity, can I?”
“Son of a—”
“Son of what?”
The young Namgung warrior bit back his curse just in time.
Then, forcing a kind tone, he tried to reason with the Grand Elder’s spoiled heir.
“Brother, didn’t you find it strange how easily the Pang ladies agreed to sit with you this year?”
“Well, yes, it was a bit unusual. I didn’t expect the acupuncture’s effects to show so quickly.”
Gangchang touched his cheek, clearly satisfied.
“It wasn’t the acupuncture.”
“Then perhaps this splendid robe Madam Mi tailored for me?”
“Brother... the reason is sitting right beside you.”
One of the Namgung warriors finally cut in.
“Beside me?”
Turning his head, Gangchang at last noticed the illegitimate son.
He had been in such good spirits that he’d momentarily forgotten the man’s existence—but the instant that pale, refined face came into view, his mood plummeted.
Then one of the men who had covered his mouth earlier whispered,
“The ladies were all looking at him! It’s the first time we’ve ever benefited from that bastard’s presence, and now you’ve gone and ruined it—look at everyone’s faces! They’re furious!”
Unable to believe it, Gangchang looked around.
His usual companions were staring into their cups.
For the first time, the dominant group of their age—the circle ruled by Namgung Gangchang—was hesitant.
Since the Little Clan Head had entered closed-door training, his own circle had likewise secluded themselves for cultivation or gone on journeys abroad.
For Gangchang’s group, these two years had been like heaven.
So this sudden hostility felt alien.
Under the weight of their heated gazes, Gangchang began to sense reality.
Turning back, he saw the picture-perfect man gazing idly at the sunlit ripples of the lake.
Even in boredom, he seemed neither dull nor gloomy, but rather radiant—like a white egret poised in calm waters.
By now, even Namgung Gangchang could no longer deny what was happening.
He asked in a voice tight with frustration,
“…Don’t tell me—the reason the ladies sat at our table this year was because of Namgung Hyun?”