"I'll just ask the grandson of the Colonel. The kid is an instructor of any culturally influenced instrument." The old man said. Then, a cough.
The old man slowly looked back to Baron.
"You've done well, Wirtz Jr. Your father should be proud of you."
Following the praise of the old man, Baron felt like a horse was riding within him. He felt on top of the world. There was no doubt. His family will definitely get the favor of the old man.
He could walk back to his family with his head in the sky. His father met him with a big smile. There was no limit to chivalry and planning.
"I'm very proud of you. Today can't get any better." Wirtz playfully pat Baron on the shoulder. "In fact, I forgive your mother."
While they revel in the moment, an activity ensued across the aisle.
A certain smell swelled across the hall, influencing the air with something somewhat foul and pleasant at the same time.
"What's that smell?"
"It smells very different. Ancient, you would say?"
Archie rose to his feet. In his hand was a black pot from which light dribbles of smoke danced. It was not a farce that the smell was coming from that pot.
"What the hell is that?" Wirtz jumped up on his feet, smacking the table. "Is this family a joke to you? How dare you make a smoke here?"
"Are you a dragon or what!!!" Another thunderous voice came out of nowhere.
That was Marcus. Obviously, everyone was very displeased by the stunt Archie was pulling. Not one of them knew what to expect at this point.
"I mean, I understand that everyone is trying to impress Grandpa, but is this not going overboard? What madness is this?"
In the face of the disapproval and insults, Archie was not fazed. He kept on walking with a majestic gait towards the old man. It would seem as though he didn't have any business with the rest of the family. So it seemed.
The caregiver was seen meeting him in the way as he approached the old man.
"What are you doing, son?" She looked really concerned.
Although Archie was her son, as the wife of the old man, she couldn't take sides. That was why she even cheered on Baron when he brought the Guqin.
Regardless, Archie was her son. She had to make sure that he was in his right mind and was not doing what would not get him kicked out of the family.
All of a sudden, the hall became still and silent. Just like it happened earlier when the old man spoke. Only that this time, the old man didn't utter a word.
The old man moved in his seat, pushing his body forward.
"What the hell is happening?" Someone muttered.
Archie dropped on his knees and held the pot high above his head, such that it was directed towards the face of the old man.
The old man continued to bend his body forward as he moved his face in the direction of the pot Archie was holding above his head.
"Honey." The caregiver ran to the old man to make sure he doesn't roll over from the chair.
The caregiver stopped in her tracks when she saw the old man shutting his eyes. The old man started sniffing the smell, allowing the light smoke wash all over his face.
All jaws dropped as they watched this scene. It was unbelievably preposterous. It was unexpected.
"Is that the Golden Heaven root?" The fifth aunt muttered, careful not to smear the ethereal silence.
"What's that?"
"It's a long lost herb that can strengthen the bones of an old person if the smell is inhaled continously for a long time." The fifth aunt explained carefully.
"So you're saying we'll be here for another three hours?"
All of a sudden, the old man opened his eyes. When his eyes opened, he gasped. He gasped so hard that he almost went out of breath.
He started to cough vigorously.
"What have you done?!!!" Wirtz bellowed and threw the chair in his way away. "Were you contracted to kill my father?!"
"Don't say something like that because it's not coming from your family!" Elaine snapped at Wirtz.
The caregiver was all over the old man, trying to attend to him.
"Honey. Are you alright? What's wrong?" The caregiver was almost in tears as she was clueless.
"Stop fighting and attend to your father! Someone please call the doctor!!!"
While all of these were going on, Archie remained unfazed as he still held the same position. The pot was still in his hand and was positioned towards the old man's face.
Baron saw this, and his eyes turned red. He stomped off his family's spot and headed straight to Archie.
Bang!!!
Baron hit the pot off the grasp of Archie. The pot fell on the hard floor and was shattered into shards!
To everyone's surprise, when the pot hit the floor, nothing spilled on the floor. It was just the smoke. The smoke vanished into thin air.
"What sort of witchery is this?" Someone exclaimed.
As soon as the smoke disappeared, the old man stopped coughing. Glares were thrown at Archie in the very instant.
"Have you lost your mind? Did you want to kill Grandpa?" Baron yelled at Archie, almost smacking him across the face.
"Did you and your mother plan this? Is this your way of wanting to snatch power?" Wirtz added.
"Why did you do it, Archie? Are you truly an evil person?" Elaine didn't hold back either.
Even though they all had this rivalry against themselves, they surely had something in common. It was the love for the patriarch.
"Why did you break the pot?" Archie suddenly sprang to his feet. His eyes were murderous.
He grabbed Baron by the collar and was ready to punch him.
"Tell me, bastard! Why did you break the pot!!!" He yelled in Baron's face, spurting saliva.
"Do you want to die?!!!" Baron punched Archie so hard in the face.
Archie stumbled but didn't fall. He felt dizzy from the punch.
"You just tried to kill Grandpa and still had the guts to worry about that useless and godforsaken pot?!!!" Baron said furiously. "Do you want to get locked up? And charged for attempted murder? Is that when you will snap out of it?!!!"