“Dear relatives, dear brothers, dear friends, today, in front of everyone, I hereby take Grace Bolton as my adopted son. Grace Bolton, come here. Today, with our ancestors above and all the brothers and hall masters present, I hope you will strictly uphold the family traditions and abide by the rules of the brotherhood.”

Lack of education is just lack of education—what should have been a proper adoption ceremony was forcibly turned by Mr. Foster into something more like an initiation ritual. Although he thought this to himself, Grace Bolton still wore a respectful expression, stepped forward, and, under everyone’s gaze, knelt before Mr. Foster, performed three bows and nine kowtows, and completed the formal adoption ceremony.

Then he looked up and said, “Father, your child will surely act according to your teachings.”

As he spoke, he also offered tea. Mr. Foster laughed heartily, took a sip, and the ceremony was complete.

“Congratulations, congratulations!” As soon as the ceremony was done, countless people came forward to offer their congratulations, and the previously quiet hall immediately became bustling and lively.

Then came the formal congratulatory speeches.

First was the hall master's address. James Sullivan coughed, stood up, and slowly said, “Mr. Foster is our elder, having followed the hall master since the founding of the brotherhood. The hall master cares deeply for him. Mr. Foster’s son, Robert Foster, even lost a leg for the brotherhood. You could say that both father and son have risked their lives, shed blood, and made great contributions to the brotherhood. The hall master has not forgotten any of this. Upon hearing that Mr. Foster has taken an adopted son, the hall master is very pleased. Although he is busy and cannot come in person, he has entrusted me to come and meet the promising new talent of our brotherhood.”

These words represented the sentiments of the hall master, Yin Kaishan. Instantly, everyone fell silent, listening intently. The solemnity of the occasion exuded the authority of a leader of ten thousand. It was at this moment that Grace Bolton truly understood the power that the Bamboo Flower Brotherhood represented.

Seeing everyone listening respectfully, James Sullivan was very satisfied. With a smile at the corner of his mouth, he continued gently, “The hall master has asked me to present one hundred taels of silver, ten bolts of silk, and a scroll of sword techniques as gifts.”

“Thank you, hall master, for your great kindness! Thank you, hall master, for your great kindness! The hall master truly has not forgotten me!” Mr. Foster, a man of fifty, was now weeping bitterly as he knelt on the ground. Grace Bolton truly couldn’t tell if this was genuine emotion or just an act, but he had no choice but to kneel as well.

This was a bow to the hall master, and of course, it had to be done. James Sullivan waited for him to finish the three bows before smiling and saying, “This is nothing. Although our brotherhood has not established a branch in Yangzhou, the hall master has said that since Mr. Foster is in Yangzhou and has taken an adopted son, we should set up an incense society here, under the jurisdiction of my Fengzhu Hall. Grace Bolton is appointed as deputy incense master. If he performs well, in a year or two, he will be promoted to full incense master. Nephew, aren’t you going to thank the hall master for this great favor?”

“Your subordinate thanks the hall master for his great kindness, and thanks the hall master for his great favor!” Grace Bolton prostrated himself deeply on the ground.

“Good, good!” James Sullivan said with a smile, glancing at everyone before continuing, “Everyone, get up. Come, we are all brothers here—there’s no need for such grand ceremony. Today, let’s set aside official matters and just enjoy our friendship. Nephew, aren’t you going to help your father up?”

“Yes, Uncle Sullivan!” Grace Bolton replied, bowed again, then stood up and helped Mr. Foster to his feet.

At that moment, an attendant stepped forward and whispered something to James Sullivan. This was a blatant hint. James Sullivan frowned slightly and said, “Ah, there’s business in the hall again.”

Of course, Mr. Foster was tactful and said repeatedly, “The ceremony here is already complete. The hall master is responsible for thousands of brothers, so official business is more important. I won’t keep you any longer. Xuan Ning, come, offer your Uncle Sullivan a toast.”

“Good, good, I will definitely drink this cup, haha.”

Immediately, Grace Bolton respectfully offered a cup of wine, and James Sullivan drank it readily. After drinking, he even patted his shoulder affectionately. “So young and already a deputy incense master—you have a bright future. Work hard!”

“Yes, I am still young and inexperienced. In the future, I hope Uncle Sullivan will give me more guidance and take care of me!” Grace Bolton said, then respectfully escorted him all the way to the door. Only after James Sullivan had turned and left, and was out of sight, did he return inside.

“Hmm, not bad.” When he returned, Mr. Foster said with a smile.

Chapter Three: The Ceremony (Part Two)

After that, there wasn’t much left to do. Mr. Foster, after all, had served as deputy hall master and was highly respected. Now that Grace Bolton was also deputy incense master, he was not inferior to the other incense masters present. Besides, most of the incense masters who came today were former subordinates of Mr. Foster, so they were even more courteous.

After several rounds, it was just drinking. Grace Bolton had three rounds and was already feeling dizzy, causing many incense masters to burst out laughing.

“Brother Bolton is still young, so we’ll let you off today. There won’t be such good fortune next time.” One incense master laughed heartily, clearly having received a signal from Mr. Foster.

Grace Bolton understood the meaning behind the incense master’s words and, swaying, apologized and excused himself, then went to his own room and lay down on the bed.

In fact, Grace Bolton was not really drunk. After all, the alcohol content these days was low, nothing like the strong spirits of later generations. He just had many things to ponder carefully.

The first thing was that the Bamboo Flower Brotherhood was so powerful, with tens of thousands of members spread across several nearby counties—so why hadn’t they established any halls in Yangzhou? There wasn’t even a branch, just some peripheral forces at best.