Chapter 3127: Showing Guests the Door
Few of the players present found it strange. For large, established player families, this was also the norm. After all, to strengthen the family, any method would do. Hadn't the Field family even accepted the child Carmen's ex-wife brought back from her remarriage?
It was just a bit unsightly in practice. With so many people in the Field family, why confirm the adoption of this particular one? They didn't believe Carmen had nothing better to do in his lifetime than casually acknowledge descendants for fun. It was probably the handiwork of someone else in the Field family.
Judging by Sensen's attitude, she didn't seem entirely thrilled about it either.
In any case, in the player world, strength was everything. If the Field family could do this, it meant the strongest force within the family approved of such an approach.
Xu Huo gave a slight nod but made no comment.
Sensen, however, cast him an appraising glance. "Have you met Mr. Carmen?"
"By chance." Xu Huo had only seen residual images from the past, but he had indeed met him—and encountered a version of Carmen Field far more real than the videos the Field family had screened.
Sensen was still young and had never met Carmen in life. Curious, she asked, "What was Mr. Carmen like?"
"A very humorous person," Xu Huo said flatly.
Open-minded, confident, broad-minded... many fine words could describe that predecessor. Even the few recordings the Fields had provided showed Carmen as a very amiable man, nothing like the unapproachable super players. But humorous? From the rumors about Carmen circulating in District 001, that wasn't evident.
Could it be that Xu Huo had truly interacted with Mr. Carmen?
Sensen wanted to ask more, but just then, the middle-aged man from before appeared. "Sorry to interrupt. I need Sensen for something."
Sensen composed herself and followed the man away. Xu Huo and the others found a nearby spot to rest.
By now, the estate was bustling. A large building on the southern side had been set aside exclusively for Field family members attending tonight's banquet. They were scattered across different buildings—some gathered in groups chatting, others congregating on floors separated by instruments, discussing who knew what.
After a few minutes, an elderly man emerged from the building. Accompanying him was Daiting Field, who was currently running for Archon. Four players followed behind them. Field family members nearby all bowed slightly in acknowledgment.
"That's the current head of the Field family," Cui Tan said in a low voice. "I hear he's Mr. Carmen's cousin."
"Even the family head showed up. Quite the honor," Li De said with a grin.
"Can't you tone it down a bit?" Cui Tan said helplessly. "These are people you can't afford to offend."
"Such a big player family, and they'd bother with a small fry like me?" Li De retorted. "If they did, would they even be worthy of being Mr. Carmen's kin?"
The other players didn't know what to say. They felt that besides his general dislike of player families, Li De also had some personal grudge against the Fields.
But Li De wasn't stupid. He'd throw a few sarcastic remarks and leave it at that.
Before long, Sensen returned to escort them back to their rooms—preparations for the banquet were about to begin.
"Isn't it a bit early?" Xu Huo glanced at the sky outside.
"There might be many more guests arriving tonight," Sensen said meaningfully. "Plenty to keep us busy."
At this point, guests shouldn't cause trouble for the hosts. Xu Huo and the others returned to their rooms.
Soon after, the tower they were in was sealed off by instruments. Cui Tan and the others panicked briefly, but Sensen quickly explained: with so many people around, the family was worried about potential friction between outsiders and family members.
After all, in a big family, there were always troublemakers.
"I hope this isn't a way of keeping us here," Xu Huo said with a smile, but his eyes were icy cold.
Sensen smiled and withdrew.
"What do they mean by this?" Li De immediately said. "Are they trying to restrict our freedom?"
"Probably not," Cui Tan said. "This was done openly in front of the district government. If they pulled something like that, how could the district government ever earn the trust of outer-zone players again?"
"It's probably because the Field family is unstable internally. They're worried about friction leading to grudges."
Of course, the main concern was Xu Huo.
Xu Huo didn't seem like a scion of a player family, but no one could guarantee he didn't have teachers or seniors backing him.
Cui Tan's words weren't wrong, because in less than half an hour, someone tried to break through the external barrier.
Forcing their way through the blockade barrier—clearly someone who wasn't supposed to be there. Xu Huo and the others looked outside. It was a young man with multicolored hair, obviously sent as a pawn. "I heard Seventh Uncle found a very talented player, someone to inherit Granduncle's legacy? Is that true?"
Someone came to persuade him to leave, but the multicolored-haired man said dismissively, "I don't mean any harm. I just want to spar with this genius and learn a thing or two!"
He cupped his hands around his mouth like a megaphone. "Genius, don't hide up there! Come down and play!"
The fact that someone could find the tower, and that no senior Field family member stepped in to stop him, meant they were taking a wait-and-see approach. But whether it was tacit approval or the result of internal power struggles, this behavior was extremely offensive to Xu Huo and his group.
They had been "invited" by the Field family, not come begging for a meal. No guest should have to endure the host's "tests" and "provocations."
"This is too much!" Li De said angrily. "We can be ignored—we're just extras—but what do they mean by treating Xu the genius like this? Doesn't the Field family want to recruit him? Is this their sincerity?"
Inviting someone over only to cause trouble—this could practically be considered making an enemy.
When the young player appeared, Xu Huo knew the Field family had already reached a conclusion about him internally.
Perhaps they had initially wanted to recruit him, but after half a day of probing, combined with other considerations, the family had abandoned that idea.
The senior members of the family couldn't very well show the door themselves, so they let the younger generation stir up trouble. A minor friction would deliberately provoke his displeasure.
Xu Huo couldn't help but laugh. Who would want to cling to the Field family anyway?
Li De and the others, hearing his laughter, fell silent and glanced at his expression.
But Xu Huo sat generously on the sofa and said with a smile, "The Field family wants to show us the door. We'll leave after dinner."
The others didn't understand. If they knew the Fields were kicking them out, why stay?
But they didn't ask. Since they were already here, they might as well take the chance to get to know the Field family members.
The multicolored-haired man shouted downstairs for a while without any response from inside the tower, growing awkward. Eventually, someone pulled him away. Shortly after, Seventh Uncle and Sensen came to apologize, explaining that the young player was a family genius, too arrogant and eager to prove himself.