"Third Brother, it's a good plan. You must have long wanted to do this but have been holding it back. You are really patient." Lin Pusheng mocked while looking at Third Grandfather.

Third Uncle lowered his head and murmured, "Fourth Brother, I'm sorry!"

Lin Pusheng turned to look at Lin Wan and said with disdain, "Lin Wan, it’s good to see that you finally dared to kill, but the first person you killed is our own uncle. Well done!"

Lin Wan avoided his gaze because she couldn't bear to look at him.

Mrs. Hong sneered, "Lin Pusheng, stop disparaging us by innuendoes! Lin Pumin deserved it! You can't blame others. You attempt to murder the future householder of the Lin Family, so nothing can extenuate your guilt. Why are you still making excuses?"

Lin Pusheng stood up from his seat and said, "He who has a mind to beat his dog will easily find his stick!"

And then, he turned to look at Li Mu and said calmly, "I did say those words, and I will never bow to you! You don’t deserve to be the son-in-law of the Lin Family, and your b*st*rd doesn’t deserve to be our future householder."

Li Mu didn't talk nonsense but slapped him in the face. When everyone heard the cracking sound, Lin Pusheng’s neck was broken off, and then he fell to the ground.

"How dare you!" Third Brother yelled, pointed at Li Mu, and then fainted with rage.

When Lin Kun jerked his chin, two people stepped forward and carried Lin Pusheng's body out.

Seeing that Li Mu trampled Lin Pumin and slapped Lin Pusheng to death, the rest of the Lin Family did not dare to look directly at him anymore, so they lowered their heads consciously.

Li Mu pulled over a chair, sat down, and said to the crowd, "From now on, my wife Lin Wan is the only householder of the Lin Family. Her opinion is the Lin Family's opinion, and her attitude is the Lin Family's attitude. Any objection?"

Everyone bowed their heads in silence without declaring for or against his words. It seemed killing had not made the Lin Family surrender.

Li Mu was not surprised to see it. The Lin Family had maintained one of the most powerful families in South Seas for many years, so it was impossible to make them submit so easily.

Therefore, he thought he would have to take his time and resort to carrot-stick tactics.

After he gave Mrs. Hong a hint with a nod, she stood up, took out a list, and began to read it out to the crowd.

The people on the list would be tied up and taken away by the warriors of the main lineage as long as they were still alive, and all of them would be executed for offence later.

The situation in the Lin Family had suddenly changed. The usual tranquility was gone, and it was replaced by a bloody storm. The core of Lin Pusheng’s lineage had all been beheaded, and so had their family members.

The slaughter didn’t come to an end until the next day. Li Mu and his people hadn’t left the meeting hall, and the survivors were also detained there.

Third Uncle had woken up. He sat in the chair dejectedly, looking as if he had suddenly turned into an old man.

Li Mu said softly, "Third Uncle, you are old, and it is time to enjoy your retirement. You don't need to worry about family affairs anymore."

Third Uncle nodded silently, got up from the chair, and staggered toward the door. Lin Kun pouted his lips as a signal, and one of his subordinates immediately followed Third Uncle up.

Li Mu said to the others, "If you don't agree to let Lin Wan be your householder, you can choose to leave the Lin Family. You can rest assured. I promise not to hurt anyone who leaves. You’re free to go."

No one answered. Although a few people seemed to be ready to go, they lowered their heads again in the end.

Li Mu looked around at everyone and continued, "You are all smart people, so you should know why those people were killed. I just want to ask you one question. If my father-in-law had not died, would they have dared to act so presumptuously?"

Still, no one answered, but Li Mu ignored their attitude and said, "You have the answer in your hearts. What I did is getting wrongs righted! I just want to get the Lin Family back on track."

After finishing speaking, he winked at Mrs. Hong, and the latter said, "Most of you are from the main lineage, so you should know who is closer to you and who is righteous. I don't want to say nonsense. Declare your stance if you are willing to be loyal to Ms. Lin. Whoever doesn't want to stay in the Lin Family can leave immediately."

No one left, but no one took a clear-cut stand either. Lin Wan stood up and said loudly, "I am Lin Wan, the householder of the Lin Family. If you’re willing to be loyal to me, please stand up!"

Everyone suddenly stood up and looked at Lin Wan firmly.

It turned out they were only willing to obey Ms. Lin’s orders and did not like to be commanded by outsiders.

Li Mu shook his head with a wry smile.

Lin Wan said, "Good! I promise I will lead the Lin Family to a brilliant glory, and we will always be the First Lin Family in South Seas!"

And then, she said softly, "Li Mu, let's go back. Mrs. Hong and Kun will take care of the rest of the work."

Li Mu and Lin Wan then left the meeting building arm in arm. Instead of riding in a car, they walked back home escorted by Zixing sisters and a group of bodyguards.

Along the way, everyone who saw them bowed to salute. Many people who had already known the inside story didn't dare to look directly at Li Mu, so they looked away with their eyes full of fright.

Lin Wan complained softly, "They start to be afraid of you. Is this the result you want?"

"Yes! It's good!"

Lin Wan said, "You! They are afraid of you, but they don't admire you, and they may even hate you! Honey, it's not feasible to rule our family with an iron fist. Pressured hatred will break out sooner or later. At that time, we may get into huge trouble."

Li Mu replied, "I understand what you mean, but it is a special case now. In a stable environment, we should convince people with reason and give them both carrots and sticks. But is the situation now stable?"

Lin Wan explained, "I know that I didn't do things well in many aspects before, but we can slowly correct them and gradually bring the family back together. Your way of doing things is a little too simple and crude."

Li Mu retorted, "Silly girl! They brought guns into the hall, but you still want to slowly influence them? They forced you to abort our child, but you still want to unite them? It is a pipe dream!"

His words made Lin Wan speechless.

"Lin Wan, don't think about the past. You should focus on the current situation. Now, it is time to make a breakthrough. The clan conference is coming around the corner, but the fourth lineage kept pressing on us. If they hadn’t died, we would have died. Therefore, we could only kill them first!"

Lin Wan sighed and said sadly, "They are my family after all. I understand your thoughts, but you should not have killed them. This will only make the Lin Family repel you more."

"Are you joking? Do you really think I should have reasoned with them instead of killing them? Your seventh uncle took out his gun first. I could not pretend to be a gentleman at such a critical moment. Don't forget it was they who started it. They were too weak, so they deserved to be killed."

Lin Wan didn't say anything more, and Li Mu suddenly stopped his steps and touched his right ear with his hand. Seeing this, Lin Wan asked nervously, "What's wrong?"

"My right ear hurts. Honey, help me check it. Is there anything wrong?"

Lin Wan hurriedly looked at his ear, only to find that there was a wound on the pinna.

"Honey, you are injured! Part of your right ear is gone!"

Li Mu swore, "That explains why it hurts so much. It turns out there is a wound."

There was blood all over his body, most of which was others'. If he hadn’t told Lin Wan his ear hurt, no one would have known he was injured.

Lin Wan quickly took out a handkerchief, pressed it on his ear, and urged him to go to see a doctor.

In the hospital, after the doctor cleaned and bandaged Li Mu's wound, he said, "Mr. Li, this is a gunshot wound. The bullet rubbed your ear and flew past you. If it had deviated a few centimeters, you would have been killed!"

Lin Wan was so frightened that she burst into tears, but Li Mu hurriedly asked whether his ear could be restored to its original state.

The doctor shook his head, "The missing part cannot grow back. Mr. Li, you’re lucky to survive. Don’t let the wound bother you."

Li Mu was so angry that he cursed Lin Pumin harshly, and then, he said to Lin Wan, "Bad! My right ear will look incomplete in the future."

Lin Wan was still suffering from lingering fear, but he had begun to worry about his appearance. Hearing his words, Lin Wan punched him twice angrily and then hugged him, feeling distressed.

The turmoil in the Lin Family’s mansion did not spread out because the Lin Family had strictly blocked the passage of information and prohibited outsiders from entering.

However, such a big matter had still attracted the attention of other families. Seeing the core figures of the Lin Family collectively refused to meet guests, they inevitably felt suspicious.

Therefore, the other seven families turned their attention to the Lin Family at the same time.

In the large living room decorated with antiques of a quiet and old castle, flames were dancing in the fireplace.

A thin old man with a gray beard and a pair of golden glasses was sitting on the mahogany sofa, holding a cane in one hand and a string of Buddhist beads in the other. His eyes were closed, so no one knew what he was thinking.

Opposite him sat two middle-aged men. One was strong, and the other was slightly fat. They were both looking at the old man, waiting for his reaction.

They were three of the householders of the eight major families. The old man was Feng Mingyang, the householder of the Feng Family, nicknamed Heady. The strong middle-aged man was Zhao Linsheng, the householder of the Zhao Family, nicknamed Windy. And the last one was the Shao Family's householder, Shao Danzhou.

"Mr. Feng, what do you think of this matter?" Zhao Linsheng asked softly.

Mr. Feng opened his eyes slightly and replied unhurriedly, "It seems someone in the Lin Family has seized power by force!"

The two people on the opposite side nodded together, and then, Shao Danzhou said, "They should not have made trouble at such a time. This is a chance for us!"

Zhao Linsheng said, "I'm afraid things will not be that simple. I don’t think they will make this matter big. I guess they will at most kill a few executives, and it will have little impact on the Lin Family's overall strength. Since the Lin Family dares to take such a prompt and resolute action now, there must be some hard-ass person behind."

Mr. Feng nodded and said with a smile, "Linsheng’s analysis is reasonable. This matter will have a limited impact on the strength of the Lin Family, but we must pay attention to the person behind it. That person has the courage and determination to seize the power of the family with an iron fist right before the clan conference. Who do you think he or she is?"

"I heard Lin Wan was back. Maybe it is her?" Shao Danzhou said.

Mr. Feng shook his head slightly and said with certainty, "I don’t think so. I know that girl well. She doesn't have the determination and courage to do such a thing."

"Maybe Lin Pusheng did it. He might want to uproot Lin Dantong’s power before she gained a foothold."

"Maybe you’re right. Lin Pusheng had been lurking for a long time, and he did have the reason and strength to do it. But he is a shrewd man. Would he have chosen such a timing? It is out of his character. I don’t think it is him."