[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-even-a-gentleman-must-be-careful":3,"chapter-even-a-gentleman-must-be-careful-even-a-gentleman-must-be-careful-chapter-14":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Even a Gentleman Must Be Careful",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2268634,4429,"Chapter 14: Fourteen: The Xie Family","even-a-gentleman-must-be-careful-chapter-14",14,"\u003Cp>Fourteen: The Xie Family’s Daughter Comes of Age\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A girl who is both thin and tall does exist in reality.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This is not Ouyang Rong’s fantasy—it was proven by his junior sister.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Chenjun Xie clan, the top aristocratic house of Jiangyou, may or may not produce only orchid-like talents with elegance overflowing the southern courts; Ouyang Rong was unsure. The only thing he could confirm was that the Xie family’s meals in Wuyi Alley were far from ordinary.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If you claimed commoners could not produce noble sons, Ouyang Rong might have lightly argued against bloodline theories. But if you claimed commoners could not produce a daughter like his junior sister, he would wholeheartedly agree without a shred of doubt.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because commoner households simply could not keep up with his junior sister’s growth rate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ouyang Rong admitted that when Xie Lingjiang suddenly turned to greet the teachers, he was momentarily dazzled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The slender girl from the day before paled in comparison—this was the real high-level game… and if he remembered correctly, his junior sister was only sixteen or seventeen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Why is Master Tan so slow? Did you make your junior sister wait all this time?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhen Shi smiled as she entered and scolded Ouyang Rong, yet he knew her eyes were secretly glancing at the Xie maiden, likely inwardly delighted beyond measure.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xie Xun said to Ouyang Rong: “Our boat arrived at Penglang Ferry this morning. Your aunt brought us up the mountain. After entering the temple, we paid our respects to the Buddha. We originally planned to wait for you, Lianghan, but your aunt insisted it was unnecessary—and indeed, we could not delay further—so I left Wanchan behind to wait for you. She went to the Sutra Recitation Hall and burned nine incense sticks. You two should know each other by now.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Know each other? They were nearly inseparable. The man with a still-aching waist thought.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xie Lingjiang seemed about to apologize: “Father, I just mistook…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ouyang Rong cut in: “We know each other. I just saw Junior Sister Lingjiang—quite unexpectedly. Over the past two years, I’ve often read in Master’s letters about her. Today, seeing her in person, it’s true: Junior Sister is indeed a willow-like literary talent, curious and eager to learn. She even came to debate Buddhist sutras with me just now.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xie Lingjiang glanced at this “senior brother,” who stared straight ahead, answering her father’s questions without blinking.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Good. When Wanchan went to Bailudong Academy, you were just setting off for Luoxia to take the exams. Then came your passing the Metropolitan Exam, your mother’s death, your appointment… We hadn’t seen each other in ages. Wanchan heard many stories about you, the senior brother, at the academy. One day, she even told me: ‘Before twenty, I have three wishes: first, to read every book in our family’s collection; second, to meet the true Lianghan.’”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’m unworthy.” Ouyang Rong smiled. Reputation, it seemed, had some use—what use? Fooling naive, literary young ladies.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Father…” Xie Lingjiang lowered her head, as if embarrassed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ouyang Rong had wanted to hear the “fierce” junior sister’s third wish, but Xie Xun smiled, stroked his beard, and said no more.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“So there’s this lovely tale? Your daughter admired the senior brother’s deeds?” Zhen Shi’s eyes lit up. She immediately took Xie Lingjiang’s hand and began chatting warmly, then turned back to scold the man: “Hey, Tan Lang, why don’t you write more letters to your junior sister? Why do you waste time writing to irrelevant people? You’re neglecting your own family.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“… ” Ouyang Rong.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was now terrified Zhen Shi might slip and say aloud what she secretly thought: “our own family,” “our future daughter-in-law.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After paying respects to the Buddha, Xie Xun and the others went to the pagoda grove on the back mountain to pay homage to a stone pagoda, personally guided by the abbot of Donglin Temple. But Master Shandao had not yet arrived, so the group rested briefly in the Sanhui Courtyard.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhen Shi continued pulling Xie Lingjiang aside for gossip: asking about her studies, her private life, whether she had a sweetheart.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet this Xie clan heiress from Wuyi Alley seemed slightly resistant to being hugged and chattered at by women. Still, she answered each question politely and composedly, occasionally glancing toward the stone table where her father and senior brother were catching up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On the other side, Ouyang Rong had no idea what Xie Lingjiang was thinking—he was slightly tense.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ouyang Rong was, in truth, somewhat afraid of this master. And this fear stemmed mostly from guilt.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xie Xun belonged to the Jinling branch of the Chenjun Xie clan. The Chenjun Xie were one of the Five Great Clans and Seven Prominent Families of the Great Zhou, known alongside the Langya Wang as “Wang-Xie”—a true six-dynasty aristocratic house.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>During the Northern and Southern Dynasties, after the northern elite migrated south, the Wang and Xie ancestors co-ruled with the southern imperial house, wielding immense power. Even emperors tacitly agreed to marry only Wang or Xie daughters. Later, the northern line prevailed, the empire unified, and with the establishment of the Gan and then Zhou dynasties, the north rose while the south declined. The Wang and Xie faded, barely clinging to the bottom of the Five Great Clans. In recent years, rumors said many Wang and Xie main branches had relocated back to Guanzhong, closer to the empire’s power center.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet in Jiangnan Circuit, the Chenjun Xie remained one of the most respected and admired Jiangzu aristocratic houses.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Chenjun Xie leaned toward Confucianism and Xuanxue. Xie Xun rose to prominence through Confucian scholarship, once serving as Minister of the Imperial Academy, hailed by scholars as a “great Confucian.” But when Wei Zhao declared himself emperor and changed Gan to Zhou, Xie Xun resigned his post, refused to serve under the Zhou, and returned to Bailudong Academy to teach. It was said that Wei clan princes had personally visited to offer him official posts, all of which he declined.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet Xie Xun never barred his disciples from entering court service. When Ouyang Rong first arrived in Chang’an, his smooth rise was due entirely to his status as Xie Xun’s disciple. This protective umbrella was so strong that Ouyang Rong suspected even the Empress Dowager had granted him his post with the intent of “buying a horse’s bones”—to attract talent by honoring the master.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ouyang Rong also vaguely knew this master had not truly transcended worldly ties or settled into quiet seclusion. The plaque in his study bore the words “Drinking Ice”—clearly, his blood still burned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As for which side he favored in the Li-Wei rivalry, it was obvious.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Ouyang Rong’s earlier death petition had deeply offended Princess Lele, who belonged to the pro-Li faction. Later, it seemed, Master Xie Xun had used private connections to save his “top disciple’s” life, though he was exiled to the flood-ravaged Longcheng County.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So how could he not fear his master’s reprimand?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Why didn’t you write to inform me you were coming?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Didn’t your aunt tell you?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No… well, maybe she mentioned it. I was bedridden recovering, my head often dizzy—I must have misheard.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Is your injury still troubling you?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No, I’m fine.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Good.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Then get down the mountain immediately and resume your duties. Don’t delay.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yes.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The master and disciple fell silent for a moment—yet this was how they had always interacted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xie Xun was the type who seemed approachable normally but transformed into a stern, commanding scholar the moment matters turned serious. Ouyang Rong, in his youth, had been equally reserved and taciturn.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even when expressing concern, their exchanges were brief and direct: one question, one answer. “I’m fine” meant fine—no further inquiry into how bad the wound had been. It was past. Only the present mattered. Unlike Zhen Shi’s womanly pity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xie Xun fell silent again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Your mistress believed in Buddhism. I erected a stone pagoda for her at Donglin Temple. Every year, during the plum rain season, I come to pay homage. This year is no different—I brought Wanchan along.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I didn’t plan to notify you. You’ve just taken up your post in Longcheng—you must be busy.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But when we changed from river to land transport in Jiangzhou, I met your aunt. We knew each other from when she visited you at the academy. She was rushing to catch the river route and passed quickly, yet she told me you’d nearly drowned and been injured… So today, I brought Wanchan. I hope I haven’t disturbed your duties. But I leave tomorrow, so it’s no matter.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ouyang Rong fell silent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Master and student sat together on a stone bench, silent. Above them, pale gray clouds drifted. Behind them, the bamboo grove swayed violently in the mountain wind, filling their ears with rustling leaves—yet the silence between them remained unbroken.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Until the bamboo stilled, the clouds paused. Ouyang Rong turned his head: “Master… about Luoyang…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The abbot should be finished. Let’s go. We’ll wait for him at the back mountain pagoda grove.” Xie Xun shook his robe, as if he hadn’t heard, rose with a smile, and called to Xie Lingjiang and Zhen Shi.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ouyang Rong watched his master’s back and swallowed his words.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The group proceeded to the pagoda grove. Along the way, they happened upon Master Shandao, who was again pausing to interpret dreams and fortunes for female devotees. They waited a moment until he finished, then followed him to the stone pagoda on the back mountain, donated and built by Xie Xun.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The pagoda stood nine stories tall, surrounded by green bamboo on all sides.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As they paid respects, Xie Xun gazed up at the pagoda’s spire. Ouyang Rong stood behind him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I used to laugh at her for being superstitious. Later, I realized: sometimes, a person truly needs to build such a ‘pagoda.’ Within it, one may place anything. Even if separated by thousands of mountains and rivers, knowing it exists brings peace.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Master, please accept my condolences.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Standing beside the pagoda, Xie Xun seemed to speak more freely. Ouyang Rong chose to be a quiet listener.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Smoke curled at the pagoda’s base.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>During a pause in the Buddhist rites, amid the drifting blue smoke, Xie Xun suddenly turned to him: “Actually… you didn’t do wrong, Lianghan. I am glad to have a disciple like you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ouyang Rong was speechless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After the rites, the group turned to leave the stone grove. Xie Xun’s party would spend the night at the temple and depart after morning porridge.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On the way back, whether intentionally or not, Zhen Shi and Xie Xun walked ahead, chatting together, leaving Ouyang Rong and Xie Lingjiang behind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The senior brother and junior sister walked side by side, yet their arms remained far apart.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Ouyang Rong found it perfectly normal—whether because his junior sister had tightly bound her chest to flatten it, or because her arms were too slender, if they walked too close, he wouldn’t know whether he’d first brush her chest or her arm…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Senior Brother Lianghan, why did you lie just now?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Impertinent. Call me Senior Brother.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xie Lingjiang’s eyebrows slightly furrowed as she stared straight ahead. “I won’t. We’re not much different in age. Let’s discuss the Dao as equals—‘Brother’ is better.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ouyang Rong noticed his junior sister had a habitual little pout. Normally, such a gesture on a woman might seem cute—but with her serious, focused gaze fixed ahead, it looked… even cuter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Does Senior Brother think small lies are harmless?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I don’t know. But Junior Sister is right.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Does Senior Brother indulge me because I’m young?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Then why?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Because Junior Sister is the greatest.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Isn’t that the same meaning?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“It’s not the same meaning.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“It’s one meaning!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Then let it be one meaning.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“… ”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xie Lingjiang suddenly thought it wasn’t entirely unreasonable that her senior brother had been kicked.\u003C\u002Fp>",1977,"2026-06-19T21:28:25.445Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","aa4f2bb50e704c236a42f9dc40437f329402c37d64239a1ea8abcb502fe2ff38","even-a-gentleman-must-be-careful-chapter-15","even-a-gentleman-must-be-careful-chapter-13",864,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Feven-a-gentleman-must-be-careful-cover.jpg"]