Standing at the door, Zhang Yang gave a light smile. "Miss Huang, what is the meaning of this grand reception?

Aren't you just trying to make me look bad?" Though Zhang Yang said this, he wasn't truly angry; it was merely talk. Everyone possessed a degree of vanity, and cultivators of Internal Strength were no exception.

If one truly saw through the mortal coil, they wouldn't be traveling about but would have already retreated into the deep mountains, never to return. This retreat was genuine seclusion, not merely living in the mountains under a different name.

"Director Zhang, you jest. You hold the largest stake in the company and it's your first visit to our capital branch.

Such a welcome is only proper!" Huang Jing smiled, extending her hand to invite Zhang Yang and Mi Xue inside first, following closely behind them. Zhang Yang made no ceremony of it and stepped straight in.

He did this not just for himself, but for Mi Xue's sake as well. Regardless of what position Mi Xue held in the future, even if she wasn't the General Manager, Zhang Yang intended to establish her prestige so that no one in such a large corporation would dare bully her.

He wanted everyone to understand that Mi Xue had him backing her. He held the majority shares; the Huang family held the second largest.

The Huang family was aware of his standing, rendering their opinions on his decisions moot. With this foundation in place, Mi Xue could quickly assert herself once she entered the hotel operations, avoiding unnecessary impediments.

The larger the company, the more complex it became, and this environment was definitely far more intricate than the prior hotel issues. Although many people greeted Zhang Yang at the entrance, only three individuals accompanied them inside: Huang Jing, Ren Lijuan, and the person currently in charge of the capital branch.

The others present were management personnel but lacked the requisite status to enter immediately. After they went in, the remaining crowd outside continued to murmur amongst themselves—the Director was truly young, and the woman beside him was exceptionally beautiful and carried herself with remarkable poise.

"Director Zhang, please?" Beside the largest luxury private room in the hotel, Huang Jing once again gestured for Zhang Yang to enter. This time, Zhang Yang offered a brief show of courtesy before leading Mi Xue inside with him.

The interior decoration was lavish, yet it lacked the vulgarity of sudden wealth; instead, it exuded taste and class. As soon as they were seated, beautiful waitstaff filed in, each carrying delicate silver platters covered with lids.

Each server took a position, and in unison, they set the exquisite dishes onto the table. Soon, sixteen meticulously prepared dishes, a balance of meat and vegetables, hot and cold, were arrayed before Zhang Yang and his company.

"What are all these?" Looking at the spread and inhaling the intoxicating aromas, Mi Xue couldn't help but ask. She owned a restaurant herself, but compared to this, hers was vastly inferior.

Many of these dishes were unfamiliar to her. "This is Camel Hump, using the finest cut from the hump of a camel!" Huang Jing smiled faintly, noticing Mi Xue’s gaze on a particular plate, and explained in a low voice.

As soon as she finished, the branch manager seated beside her quietly added, "Besides the Camel Hump, we also have Deer Sinew, Monkey Brain, and Bear Paw. These four are classified among the Eight Mountain Delicacies of the Manchu-Han Imperial Feast!" He then pointed out the respective dishes.

"Monkey Brain, Bear Paw?" Mi Xue's eyes widened noticeably, her eyebrows twitching unnaturally as she blurted out the question. Camel Hump was one thing; although her restaurant didn't serve it, they had at least heard of it.

Monkeys and bears, however, were wild animals strictly protected by national law. In a five-star hotel, such items should never be prepared so openly.

"Miss Mi, please don't worry. These are not genuine monkey brains or bear paws.

The 'monkey brain' is actually goose brain, processed by our master to replicate the flavor of monkey brain. The 'bear paw' isn't real either.

All of this is explained on the menu. We are not some back-alley joint; we wouldn't dare break the law!" Huang Jing explained with a smile.

If a restaurant actually used monkey brains and bear paws, it would be shut down within days. Hearing this, Mi Xue finally relaxed somewhat and picked up her chopsticks to sample the delicacies.

The cuisine prepared by the chefs of a five-star establishment was indeed superior to what they produced in her own place. Given their status, Huang Jing had given prior instructions that these were exquisite dishes painstakingly prepared by the head chefs.

Even Mi Xue found herself taking an extra helping of these dishes. There were many dishes, over a dozen in total, but the portion size on each plate was modest.

The five of them ate slowly, and in the end, they finished everything. Even Zhang Yang ate significantly more than usual.

This proved that the food tasted excellent; at the very least, both Zhang Yang and Mi Xue were highly satisfied. During the meal, Ren Lijuan remained unusually quiet, which was a stark contrast to her usual demeanor.

After dinner, she left with the manager, while Huang Jing took Zhang Yang and Mi Xue to the hotel lounge to rest for a while. Zhang Yang had already informed Huang Jing about his intention to have his fiancée work at the company.

Initially, he hadn't planned for Mi Xue to take a senior executive role, but it couldn't be too low-ranking either; it needed to offer developmental opportunities without being overly taxing. This had given Huang Jing considerable pause.

Fortunately, the company had numerous positions available, and such a role could certainly be found. After sampling some fine tea, Zhang Yang smiled at Huang Jing and said, "Miss Huang, my Medical Saint lineage has recently established the Medical Saint Martial Sect (Yisheng Wuzong) and is currently recruiting disciples!" "Medical Saint Martial Sect?" Huang Jing jolted abruptly, immediately turning her head to stare at Zhang Yang blankly.

Her heartbeat began to accelerate rapidly. She had fully expected Zhang Yang to discuss Mi Xue's employment, as Mi Xue had already graduated and was about to join the company.

But she never anticipated Zhang Yang dropping such a bombshell. "Exactly.

If you have any suitable children, you can recommend them to join!" Zhang Yang smiled faintly. Huang Jing stared at him mutely, her heart now racing so fast she felt a sense of suffocation.

The entire Huang family, high and low, desperately wished to return to their status as a lineage of Internal Strength cultivation, but they were unable to manifest Internal Strength, nor could they achieve it using the remnants left by their ancestors. At this moment, they desperately needed a true Internal Strength master to assist them.

Previously, they had been dissatisfied with Huang Jing’s arrangement—the primary reason being that she seemed focused only on herself and not the entire clan. If they had leveraged those previous resources to ask Zhang Yang to train two disciples for them, perhaps their family could have seen the emergence of Internal Strength practitioners once more.

"Miss Huang, disciples of the Medical Saint Martial Sect must remain loyal to our sect. However, once they mature, assisting your family in cultivating your own techniques is certainly possible!" Zhang Yang added quietly, and Huang Jing felt a sudden surge in her chest, as if struck by a heavy hammer.

Disciples of the Medical Saint Martial Sect would, of course, owe primary loyalty to their school, but they would still be Huang family members, and thus naturally hold a different regard for the family. Zhang Yang would not prevent them from helping their clan, provided it did not compromise the sect's interests.

The Huang family was intrinsically a family of Internal Strength practitioners; they possessed their own cultivation methods. What they lacked was, at minimum, a catalyst—a genuine Internal Strength master to serve as that spark.

Zhang Yang was now offering them that catalyst. The techniques of the Medical Saint Martial Sect could not be taught externally, but instructing them in their own inherited methods was fine.

The Huang family already had its own cultivation arts. This arrangement served as a form of reciprocation from Zhang Yang, given the significant benefits he had already received from them.

"Mr. Zhang, thank you, thank you.

I thank you on behalf of the entire Huang family!" After a long pause, Huang Jing finally reacted, dropping to her knees and repeatedly kowtowing to Zhang Yang. It took Zhang Yang urging her several times to stand before she finally complied.

At this moment, Huang Jing was profoundly moved; the family's long-held, deepest wish was finally within reach. Although it would take a significant amount of time for the entire family to fully regain its status as an Internal Strength lineage, and she herself would never become an expert, at least now there was hope.

Furthermore, by Zhang Yang accepting a Huang family child into the Medical Saint Martial Sect, it meant they now possessed a new shield. With this connection, the Medical Saint lineage would not stand idly by if the Huang family faced threats.

If their family's chosen child grew to become a true Internal Strength master, they would naturally show favor to the Huang family. This was analogous to renowned schools like Shaolin or Wudang accepting a disciple from an ordinary family; while that disciple was active, those ordinary families would invariably receive protection and some form of benefit.

"Go back and send any children in the family under the age of six to Changjing. Regardless of their aptitude, I will accept one," Zhang Yang announced.

He stood up, then took Mi Xue's hand and headed toward the exit. His objective for the day had been achieved, and there was no need to prolong their stay.

Huang Jing nodded excitedly, forcefully suppressing her elation as she saw Zhang Yang off. Then, with trembling hands, she began relaying the momentous news to her family.

Huang Jing's father, stationed far away in Canada, couldn't help but have his arm shake upon hearing the news. He swiftly issued the most urgent decree to the entire Huang family.

All children under the age of six were to assemble at headquarters immediately. He couldn't help but regret not encouraging the clan disciples to have more children; there were simply too few under six now, not many even counting collateral relatives.

If they had more children, they could select the absolute best candidate, whose superior talent would lead to greater future achievements. The higher this Huang family disciple's future accomplishments, the greater the benefit to the clan, allowing the Huang family to gradually reestablish itself as an Internal Strength lineage.

However, regret was useless now. He resolved firmly that in the future, he would encourage the disciples to have more children, ensuring that once the chosen disciple matured, the family would have more suitable candidates for cultivation.

By the time that current batch matured, the Huang family would truly stand tall once again. Another crucial point he placed great emphasis on was the relationship with the Medical Saint lineage.

Having a Huang family disciple enter the Medical Saint Martial Sect was an opportunity for them—a chance to formally establish a bond with the Medical Saint lineage. He was unaware of the true strength of the Medical Saint lineage at this moment, but Zhang Yang's evident personal power was more than enough reason for them to act decisively.

"Ring ring!" As Zhang Yang drove, his phone suddenly buzzed. Taking it out, he saw Yang Guang's new number flashing, and a smile touched the corner of his lips as he pressed the answer key.

"What did you say? Where are you?

I'm coming immediately!" As soon as the call connected, Zhang Yang's expression shifted instantly, and he slammed the accelerator, the car surging forward in immediate acceleration.