[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-i-am-the-xu-family-s-son":3,"chapter-i-am-the-xu-family-s-son-i-am-the-xu-family-s-son-chapter-40":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","I Am the Xu Family's Son",{"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},2307818,4510,"Chapter 40: Unrecognizable, Yet an Old Friend","i-am-the-xu-family-s-son-chapter-40",40,"\u003Cp>Xu Zaijing returned to the Hou Fu and proudly showed his master the corn seeds.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In his heart, his master was omnipotent, yet upon seeing this, his single eye was filled with doubt.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He said plainly: “I’ve never seen seeds like these.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But when he saw the woven shells sent by the Gu family, he said: “I’ve seen this in books, but it’s been so long I’ve nearly forgotten.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Master, you’re so skilled—do you know any seasoned farmers?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Zaijing’s question left his coachman master momentarily stunned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After a pause, he said: “Aren’t there farmers in the Xu family’s fields? Why ask me?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Mother said the best estates and farmers are all under that aunt of the Sheng family—ours aren’t particularly skilled.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As if remembering something, a soft expression flickered in the coachman’s single eye; he glanced at Qing Yun beside Xu Zaijing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qing Yun looked at his uncle, his eyes brightening.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The coachman said: “Then I’ll give it a try.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jingming Street\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dongchang Marquis House\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Miss Qin Er was having dinner under the service of her maidservants.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Miss, the servant who delivered silver to the Deng family has returned—he says Uncle Deng has moved away.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Miss Qin Er paused her spoon mid-sip.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Was he forced out by Prince Jing’s men?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The servant said nothing more—he only brought back the silver.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“He’s from the Deng family of agricultural learning—perhaps someone invited him to manage their garden trees.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I used to play often in Uncle Deng’s garden at the Yin family—never thought it would come to this.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Don’t speak of it,” Miss Qin Er said, her eyes blank.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Miss, the Yin family has fallen.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Miss Qin Er said nothing, continuing to eat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For no reason, a single tear slipped down her cheek.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Setting down her chopsticks, she looked up at the slightly worn ceiling beams above.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Did their fall happen because of me?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Miss, how could it be your fault? Young Master Yin was always a man of foresight and composure—otherwise the Yin family wouldn’t have…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But he told me he was in business with my elder brother—he vanished without a trace, alive no one’s seen him, dead no body found, and the Yin family’s business was ruined by others.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“My elder brother, at least, lives more freely.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Miss, today when I went to the storage to fetch fabric, I saw your elder sister’s dowry.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What? No wonder my brother-in-law hasn’t come to our house lately—his wife’s scheme must have been exposed.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Miss, there’s something my lover asked if I should tell you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“He used to work for Young Master Yin—what is it?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“He says he thinks he saw Young Master Yin’s nephew.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her eyes no longer blank, Miss Qin Er showed rare agitation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“How? His nephew was only two years old then—how could your lover recognize him?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Miss, he knew Young Master Yin from humble beginnings—they were children together. He noticed the resemblance and the age matched.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Whose son is he?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“He says he’s a servant in the Yongyi Marquis House—named Qing Yun.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No! How could his son become a servant?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Miss, the Yin family is ruined—having food to eat is better than anything.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“His old acquaintances in the capital were long ago devoured—who would raise his nephew? It can’t be.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“True—my lover only said he looked similar.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Miss Qin Er played a few games of weiqi in her chamber, then let her maidservants help her prepare for bed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lying on her bed, Miss Qin Er suddenly said:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If we get the chance, let’s meet Xu’s third son.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yes, Miss.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>All other candles in the room were extinguished; only one flickered weakly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Miss Qin Er closed her eyes, recalling the first time she met Young Master Yin.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Back then, he was a collateral branch of the prestigious Yin family;\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her elder half-sister had married into the Ningyuan Marquis House for five years—though childless, her brother-in-law had never taken a concubine,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>and many women envied her, though gossip abounded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Young Master Yin, a friend of her elder brother, came to visit and they met for the first time in the garden.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In her elder brother’s words, he was precocious—but he stared at her, dazed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Afterward, Yin’s younger sister often invited her to visit.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Each time, she’d find him practicing martial arts in the garden—the Yin family’s garden was meticulously tended, lush and thick with foliage.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Later, her elder brother gradually understood the Yin family’s intentions. Though no formal betrothal was made, both sides knew the Yin family waited for Miss Qin Er to grow up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In memory, Young Master Yin told her he’d come to the Qin family to propose when he returned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, for reasons unknown, the Yin family offended Prince Jing—their entire fortune was seized, her beloved vanished without a trace. When she asked her half-brother,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>he said they’d been ambushed by Northern Liao cavalry, their goods stolen, and the family either dead or scattered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A few years ago, her elder sister returned to the Qin family from the Ningyuan Marquis House, weeping daily, soon falling into melancholy and dying; her father’s health declined, and he handed household affairs to her elder brother.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Qin family, seeing no promising heirs, slowly declined.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After marrying her sister-in-law, the Qin family worsened day by day.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sometimes she attended noble social gatherings, but with no dowry, no reputation, and no future for its heirs,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>the Qin family was often mocked and ridiculed—who would come to propose?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her clothes were worn, her jewelry outdated—she was often the target of whispered scorn among the ladies.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Besides, she had no wish to marry—the figure practicing martial arts in the garden remained forever in her heart.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“He is the last blood relative—perhaps we can find a way to rescue him from the Yongyi Marquis House.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yongyi Marquis House,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>deep in the stables,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>an elderly man, eyes brimming with tears, trembled as he gripped the coachman’s clothes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He tenderly stroked the coachman’s maimed hand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was a collateral branch of the Deng family of agricultural learning, invited by the Yongyi Marquis House to tend exotic crops.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At first, he refused—he saw the nobles of Bianjing as ravenous beasts, utterly faithless scoundrels.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When his main family fell, he vowed never to enter another wealthy household again, accepting only rare invitations to heal precious plants cherished by Bianjing’s rich.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Today’s messenger claimed to be an old acquaintance of the Yin family, so he came—he was past fear by this age; if it were truly an enemy, he’d spit right in their face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But he never imagined he’d see this man.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old man was too overwhelmed to hold himself up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Young Master, you’re still alive—why didn’t you come find old man Deng?” His voice cracked with sobs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He strained to find, in this unrecognizable stable servant, the shadow of the once-vibrant young man he remembered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He failed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Hou Fu coachman—single eye, gray hair, lame foot, maimed hand—was no longer the man he knew.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The once-towering, robust youth now hunched daily, his frame seemingly shrunk by two sizes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Uncle Deng, please look after Third Young Master of this household.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Young Master, you’ve entered the Hou Fu?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yes—if not for the Marquis, I’d have become a dry bone in the northern grasses.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But didn’t Qin’s eldest son ruin you?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Don’t speak of the past! Xu’s third son is my true heir.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Good, good—knowing you’re alive makes me happy, so happy. I’ll treat this Hou Fu as my own home—rest easy, Young Master.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Good, good—tidy up, don’t let Third Young Master notice anything.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thank you, esteemed readers—thanks to your support, this novel is entering its second recommendation round.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I am filled with trepidation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I can only bow deeply in gratitude for your support.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I bow again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1290,"2026-06-20T10:32:38.675Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","ed18d6e1c628edc6b2d17674dfa26c187a01ca4464e0df5fefaf1d340121b297","i-am-the-xu-family-s-son-chapter-41","i-am-the-xu-family-s-son-chapter-39",790,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fi-am-the-xu-family-s-son-cover.jpg"]