Deities: Starting From Goblins - Chapter 471: 286_1
Chapter 471: 286_1
Upon returning to the Westman Family, the Family Head immediately summoned his trusted aide to ask how the task he had assigned him was progressing. The aide trembled in fear, knowing that their displeasure meant that something had surely gone wrong.
However, he didn’t dare tell the truth. So he said, “It’s done, but that Logan is exceptionally greedy. He wasn’t content with two hundred thousand Spirit Stones and was cursing and grumbling about it. It makes me so angry, I think we should just not give him any. Better still, why don’t we assign some of our talented members to eradicate them?”
“Fool, they are not as simple as you think,” the head of the Westman Family glared at his trusted aide, but subsequently waved his hand dismissively. Regardless of how disgruntled Logan was, all that mattered was that he had fulfilled his promise by delivering two hundred thousand Spirit Stones. As far as he was concerned, this matter was settled. No more drama from Logan was expected.
The aide was startled. He had initially believed that Logan and his companions were just average folks who had somehow duped the Family Head into giving them two hundred thousand Spirit Stones. However, seeing the Family Head’s reaction made him realize that he had been wrong, pushing him further into fear. Because he had only given Logan twenty thousand Spirit Stones.
He had pocketed the remaining one hundred and eighty thousand for himself. But he was in a predicament now, having taken a wrong step. If he confessed everything to the Family Head now, his life would be in peril. At this point, all he could hope for was that Logan and his men would leave as soon as possible and never come looking for trouble at the Westman Family.
The Family Head saw his aide trembling and asked, “What’s wrong? You look like you’re hiding something from me. Did something go wrong with the task I assigned you? If anything unexpected has happened, explain it right now so we can rectify it. If I find out you were responsible for any mishap, you will be subject to the Westman family law.”
“I dare not. My loyalty to the Family Head has never wavered!” The aide broke out in a cold sweat and fright overwhelmed him. In his desperation, he lied, regretting why he had given in to temptation and lured himself into such a situation. Those one hundred and eighty thousand Spirit Stones he had pocketed felt like a hot potato now.
Who could resist the allure of two hundred thousand Spirit Stones? Any cultivator would be tempted. He himself was close to reaching the Half-Step Sovereign level. If he could use these Spirit Stones, he could potentially break through to the Sovereign tier and become a powerful figure, no longer having to obey the Westman Family Head’s orders.
However, the aide then came to a painful realization. He couldn’t cover up the issue. Sooner or later, the family head would find out that Logan had only received twenty thousand Spirit Stones, and would immediately suspect him. What should he do next? Suddenly, a daring idea popped into his head. What if he passed this information on to the elders?
The Family Head only had the authority to use fifty thousand Spirit Stones. He took out four times that amount and didn’t even notify the elders. Once the elders found out, they would certainly be furious. They might even use this event to dismiss the Family Head from his position and send several strong fighters to deal with Logan. He could take advantage of the situation and quietly claim the one hundred and eighty thousand Spirit Stones as his own.
Of course, he couldn’t tell the elders directly. The aide thought of a plan. He wrote a letter and had someone deliver it to the elders. An elder read the letter and immediately deemed the matter serious, so he gathered all the elders of the clan. Moving two hundred thousand Spirit Stones without anyone else knowing has significantly harmed the interests of the Westman family.
At that moment, an elder walked in. He was the Law Enforcement Elder. “Upon auditing the accounts, we indeed discovered that two hundred thousand Spirit Stones were missing from the treasury today. The account manager admitted that it was the Family Head who asked him to take it out, even threatening him against telling anyone thereby allowing the matter to remain hidden until this point.”
“Why did he suddenly use two hundred thousand Spirit Stones?” none of the Eldest understood. Only when the Westman Family faced a catastrophe and all the elders unanimously agreed could such a massive amount of wealth be spent. This was equivalent to half a year’s income, the Family Head had indeed gone too far.
“There must be an ulterior motive. He may be trying to embezzle the Westman Family’s Spirit Stones. The Westman Family has six rooms and three side branches, with, in total, three to four hundred people. The head of the family really thinks everything belongs to him?”
A leading elder coldly hummed, “We must thoroughly investigate this. If he can’t provide a satisfactory explanation, I will request that all elders elect a new Family Head. He has become too comfortable over the years, thinking that we won’t interfere with family affairs anymore.”
“I share the same opinion. The Family Head has been too arrogant lately, suppressing us elders. Our monthly allowance was reduced from three thousand Spirit Stones to just one thousand. We thought he was being selfless, but it turns out he had appropriated two hundred thousand for himself.”
“Indeed, although he is a Dominator Realm cultivator, his only child is just barely of the Transcendent Tier, causing trouble every other day. How can the young master of Westman Family lead our family? Some of the younger generation from the side branches seem to be better, maybe one of them should be elected as the Young Master.”
“There are rumors today that August Westman created a commotion again. The Family Head needed to save him personally. He has completely lost the face of the Westman Family. If the Family Head doesn’t back off a bit, what will the townspeople think of the Westman Family? The City Lord has already expressed dissatisfaction last year.”
All the elders chattered, indignant. As the Family Head walked in, already aware that the elders knew, he brooded over how to come up with a reasonable explanation for using two hundred thousand Spirit Stones to rescue his son, something the elders would never approve of.
Just as he was lost in thought, someone rushed in, “Alert! Three men have come to our mansion and have injured all the guards. They demanded justice from our Family Head. Judging by their imposing manner, they are all at least of the King rank. Thousands of spectators have gathered.”
“I’ll go immediately.” The head of Westman Family thought instantly of Logan. But why would Logan come after he had already given him two hundred thousand Spirit Stones? Did he think it was too little? Just as the elders were preparing to chastise the Family Head, he had already hurried away with the informer.L𝒂aTest nov𝒆ls on (n)𝒐velbi/𝒏(.)co𝒎
“Too presumptuous, completely disregarding us, the elders.” One of the elders complained angrily. He left without saying a word, at least he could have notified us. Even though he is the head of the family, he was elected by all the elders.
The leading elder, with a discerning eye, looked at the other elders: “Take a look. It’s been decades since anyone dared to stir up trouble in the Westman Family. This incident might be connected to the two hundred thousand Spirit Stones. No matter how wrong the Family Head was, we should present a united front. Don’t oppose him.”
He was the oldest and most respected among the elders, already making a statement like that, naturally, no other elder dared oppose him. They all nodded their heads and followed the leading elder to the front entrance to see who dared to cause a disturbance.