Offense

Some people have hearts vast enough to embrace the entire world; others are so narrow-minded they can hold only themselves. Xu Yuan had never considered himself the former, nor did he believe himself to be the latter. His heart was neither too large nor too small—just big enough to hold the people who mattered to him. He was merely an ordinary person. As long as he repaid kindness with kindness, repaid grudges with vengeance, and avoided returning favor with malice, that was good enough. If he set aside his omniscient perspective—knowing that the realm was destined for great turmoil—perhaps Xu Yuan could have understood Xu Xinyao's actions. Her words weren't mere empty talk; she had always put them into practice and strived earnestly for them. Yet in the end, her choices had indeed amounted to repaying kindness with malice. If, at the climax of the story, when her adoptive father and brothers had all perished, Xu Xinyao had resolutely chosen to end her own life to repay the debt of raising her, then the indifference—or even distaste—Xu Yuan had harbored toward her character throughout the earlier plot would likely have vanished. But she hadn't. Consumed by guilt on one hand, she had nonetheless lived happily ever after with the story's protagonist in a grand reunion. Because of that, he felt nothing for her. "Third Young Master... Third Young Master? Third Young Master!" "..." The voice beside him drew Xu Yuan slowly back from his thoughts. He glanced sideways to find Zhou Chen looking at him with a chuckle. "You don't look too well. Still dwelling on what just happened?" Before departing, Eldest Young Master had specifically instructed them to keep an eye on Third Young Master. For the typically tyrannical Third Young Master to look so pale over killing someone who had offended him—that was quite thought-provoking. "What happened just now?" Xu Yuan glanced at him, just in time to see several manor guards carrying a stretcher covered by a white sheet out of the private room from earlier. As they walked, they didn't forget to cast timid glances in his direction. It seemed Xue Yong was dead. Although he hadn't given an explicit kill order, the man's death was well within expectations. Ordering someone killed for the first time did feel rather uncomfortable deep down. However, Xu Yuan merely shook his head dismissively. "More or less. You mentioning that wench just reminded me of a few things from the past." With that, he offered no further explanation and shifted his gaze back toward the young women on the stage down in the hall. While he had been lost in thought, the dancers on stage had already changed. They were now a pair of lovely twin maidens whose facial features were remarkably alike. Perhaps due to Cangyuan's art design, the traditional garb of this world carried a distinct touch of style from his past life. Both wore pink bustiers with high-slit long skirts, displaying slender waists and fair jade legs beneath fluttering sleeves. It was alluring to just the right degree. Noticing Xu Yuan's gaze, Zhou Chen chuckled slyly. "Third Young Master, is your health all patched up now?" "Yeah." Xu Yuan did not deny it. Judging by the severity of the internal ailments he had sensed before, Xu Yuan had originally thought it would take at least six months to a year of slow recovery. Yet, in the end, it had taken less than a month. Perhaps it was due to the Blood Yuan Heart Calamity Art, or perhaps because of his current physique. Hearing this, Zhou Chen grinned. Holding his wine gourd, he leaned in a little closer and lowered his voice. "Third Young Master, these two sisters, Ziye and Zihua, really know their stuff. I watch them dance here every day. The elder's waist, the younger's legs—tsk, tsk... A bit pricey, sure, but absolutely worth every coin. "How about it, Third Young Master? Why don't you have them sent up?" "..." Xu Yuan furrowed his brows, staring at Zhou Chen with a touch of speechlessness. It was one thing to act familiar, but this top-tier expert was truly shameless. Once the top floor of Zuixian Tower was booked, it already came with plenty of pretty, graceful maidservants, and one could indeed summon the courtesans from the private rooms below. But calling up those courtesans from the private rooms incurred an extra fee. Moreover, just as depicted in conventional novels, the courtesans on the ninth to eleventh floors who had their own private rooms enjoyed a certain degree of autonomy, and Zuixian Tower prioritized their personal wishes. However, given Xu Yuan's status, their wishes were practically negligible. Ordinary noble scions and young masters could do the same, but most would refrain from doing so to avoid tarnishing their reputation. Yet did Xu Yuan—Xu Changtian—even have a reputation left to ruin? Forget courtesans; even if he demanded the untouched maidens living on the twelfth floor, or insisted on the still-charming madam herself coming up to warm his bed, there would be no room for argument. It was nothing more than throwing more money around. All he'd have to do was steal a few more calligraphies, paintings, and antiques from home to sell. At the absolute worst, the study at home still held a stack of old manuscripts left over from his cheap old man practicing calligraphy. The Prime Minister's handwritten calligraphy was hard currency in connoisseur circles; wealthy merchants and officials posing as refined scholars all coveted that stuff. Smiling faintly, Xu Yuan scoffed lightly. "Mister Zhou, as I've said, I have no desire to walk the same path as you." Zhou Chen was visibly disappointed. Smacking his lips, he muttered under his breath, "If we're not taking the same path, can't I just take the back door...?" "..." Xu Yuan remained silent. Seeing the slight twitch at the corner of Xu Yuan's eye, Zhou Chen coughed lightly, a frivolous glint in his eyes as he chuckled. "Ahem, Third Young Master, you're not planning to swear off women and become an ascetic from now on, are you? No way, that's not like you at all~" "An ascetic?" Xu Yuan murmured softly. Then, casting his eyes down to his own palm, he didn't answer, asking quietly instead, "Mister Zhou, may I ask about your cultivation talent?" "Huh?" Zhou Chen had seemingly not expected Xu Yuan to ask about this out of the blue. After a pause, he answered anyway. "Out of one hundred and twenty-seven meridians, ninety-six were naturally open at birth, and my intent-soul strength is first-rate." Saying this, he stroked his stubble and grinned. "I suppose I'd qualify as a genius." "By that measure, Mister Zhou truly is a genius." "Haha, not too bad, not too bad," Zhou Chen waved a hand, chuckling. Xu Yuan did not laugh. After offering that quiet compliment, he stared at Zhou Chen's smiling face and abruptly asked, "Since you dare call yourself a genius, Mister Zhou, has your cultivation progressed even an inch as of late?" "..." Zhou Chen froze. Gazes locked in silence. If Zhou Chen was truly stuck at a bottleneck where his cultivation couldn't advance an inch, Xu Yuan's words amounted to naked ridicule. "..." And sure enough, Xu Yuan's remark caused the smile on Zhou Chen's face to stiffen, then vanish. Evidently, Zhou Chen's cultivation was indeed stalled at a bottleneck, and it had been vexing him for a long time. Zhou Chen's originally indolent gaze gradually took on a deeper, more profound edge under Third Young Master's mockery. Xu Yuan's eyes turned cold bit by bit as he held his gaze. After locking eyes for a long moment, Xu Yuan spoke. "Zhou Chen, you don't need to look at me like that. To have reached this stage, you certainly couldn't be indolent by nature. Yet here you are, indulging yourself without restraint day in and day out. Deducing that you've hit an insurmountable bottleneck isn't difficult." It was the first time Xu Yuan had addressed Zhou Chen directly by name. As he spoke, Xu Yuan narrowed his slender eyes slightly. "I stayed with Ran Qingmo for over two months. Not a moment went by that she wasn't cultivating. "Zhou Chen, I'm curious." In Xu Yuan's eyes appeared a well-measured gleam of mockery framed as curiosity. "If you could cultivate without bottlenecks like Ran Qingmo, would you still be indulging yourself so recklessly as you are now?" With those words, Zhou Chen understood what Xu Yuan meant and fell silent. Raucous clamor rose from the hall below, while cold stillness hung over the top floor. Xu Yuan stared into Zhou Chen's eyes, enunciating each word. "Zhou Chen, answer me." "..." Zhou Chen's eyes flickered for a moment. He lowered his gaze, bowed slightly, and cupped his hands. "Third Young Master, forgive my offense just now."