Chapter 25: Useful

Willow Street, south of the city, Sun Mansion.

The lights were on in the main hall.

Sun Jintang was drinking tea while chatting with Chen Shi about business matters.

Chen Shi kept her head lowered in a submissive manner, her face full of smiles.

At this moment, a maid came to report that the young miss had returned.

Sun Yan'er entered the main gate, but instead of returning to her own courtyard immediately, she hesitated and came to the main hall.

Upon seeing her, Chen Shi smiled and said, "Why are you back so soon? What about Zhaodi and the others? Have they all gone home?"

Sun Yan'er looked dazed and did not answer.

Sun Jintang noticed that her expression was wrong and asked hurriedly, "Yan'er, what is it? Has something happened?"

Sun Yan'er bit her lip, looked at him, and said, "Father, Luo Zijun has passed the scholar examination. Did you know?"

"Who?"

Sun Jintang was stunned for a few seconds upon hearing this before he reacted: "Luo Zijun? The younger brother of Luo Jiaorong and Li Zhengshan?"

Sun Yan'er nodded.

Sun Jintang looked surprised: "Wasn't that boy sent by his sister to the Pharmacy to learn medicine? How did he suddenly pass the scholar examination?"

Sun Yan'er said in a low voice, "It happened just these past few days."

Chen Shi looked at her expression and spoke up: "Yan'er, even if that boy passed the scholar examination, so what? Could it be that you regret it?"

Sun Yan'er shook her head and said, "Of course not, Daughter just... just feels that we don't seem to understand him very well."

She told everyone that it was she who had rejected him.

However, the truth was that although she had indeed prepared to speak the rejection, before she could even open her mouth, the other party had rejected her first.

This was not the result she wanted.

She felt very aggrieved, very angry, and very confused.

It clearly should have been her place to reject him, and he, no matter what, should not have rejected her.

Yet, not only did he decisively reject her, he immediately passed the scholar examination.

And then, tonight again...

"Father, is his family very wealthy? I heard that he went to Tianxian Pavilion tonight and gave them ten thousand taels of silver all at once, just to see a certain girl..."

Even now, Sun Yan'er still felt like she was dreaming.

She certainly knew the weight of those ten thousand taels.

Even she, from childhood to now, had never seen ten thousand taels of silver.

"Ten thousand taels? How is that possible!"

Chen Shi suddenly stood up from her chair, her face full of astonishment.

Sun Jintang also had a look of shock on his face; he frowned and said, "Yan'er, did you hear wrong? Are you sure that boy went to the Brothel tonight and spent ten thousand taels? This is impossible!"

Sun Yan'er nodded, and with her head lowered, she recounted everything she had heard on the stone bridge.

The main hall fell into a brief silence.

Chen Shi suddenly lowered her voice and said, "Master, do you think... could Li Zhengshan have done something unspeakable?"

"Hold your tongue!"

Sun Jintang immediately scolded her, glaring at her as he said, "How can you speak nonsense about such things?"

Chen Shi curled her lips and muttered in a low voice, "He is the only one in his family earning money, just a small Constable. Let alone ten thousand taels, even one thousand taels is something he could never earn in his entire life."

Sun Jintang frowned and pondered for a while, then sighed and said, "The relationship between our two families was very good back then. Ever since the elders of both families passed away, and I have been busy with business all day, we rarely interacted, so the relationship gradually faded. But the Luo Family did indeed have kindness toward our ancestors in the past. The marriage was originally agreed upon, and now that Yan'er has rejected them, I imagine they must be speaking ill of us behind our backs."

He pondered for a moment.

He looked at his daughter and said, "Yan'er, tomorrow night we will go to the Luo Family together to explain this matter clearly to them and, incidentally, offer an apology. Sigh, I have been busy with business during this period, and although we agreed to go and apologize, we still haven't gone."

Sun Yan'er immediately turned away and said, "Father, if you want to go, go yourself. I am not going; I did nothing wrong."

Sun Jintang's face darkened: "You will go whether you want to or not! Our whole family is going! Marriage is a major life event; how can it be treated as child's play? Since you have already rejected them, we naturally must go and explain it clearly to seek their forgiveness; otherwise, people will say behind our backs that we are ungrateful and do not keep our promises! If your grandfather knew of this in the afterlife, he would also blame me for failing to teach my daughter properly and for lacking moral character!"

Seeing him get angry, Sun Yan'er did not dare to make another sound; she pouted, feeling somewhat wronged.

It was clearly that guy who had rejected her first.

Chen Shi hurriedly persuaded her: "Yan'er, Mother will go tomorrow too. We will buy more gifts to offer an apology, and if our attitude is sincere, this matter will be over. As for who you want to marry or don't want to marry in the future, isn't that still up to your own heart?"

Sun Yan'er kept her head down and did not speak again. Meanwhile, elsewhere.

After Luo Zijun returned home, he was given a beating by his sister with a broom.

After eating dinner, he went to the backyard to practice boxing.

Li Zhengshan felt his hands itching and sparred with him for a few rounds.

Only then did Luo Zijun discover that whether it was his moves, his Internal Energy, or his defensive power, he was far behind his brother-in-law.

"Take it slow, no rush."

"I started practicing from a young age. My entire body's muscles, bones, and skin have all undergone constant Flesh Tempering to reach my current constitution. You have only just begun, so naturally, you cannot compare."

"Martial Artists have ranks, and after entering the path, they are called Martial Artists. The Martial Artist Nine Realms are also known as the Great Perfection. You currently only have the strength of a Martial Artist First Realm beginner, while I am at the Third Realm, so naturally, you cannot beat me. Don't look at it as only a difference of two small realms; sometimes, there are some Martial Artists who cannot cross even a single small realm in their entire lives."

"Without good cultivation techniques, without good medicinal baths, and without other opportunities, even the best talent is useless. Cultivating Internal Energy and Flesh Tempering need to be carried out simultaneously; otherwise, one can only enter the path, and it is very difficult to advance further."

"The only thing you have to rely on right now is a bit of Internal Energy. Therefore, when you are out and about, do not rely on having practiced martial arts to go looking for trouble. If you encounter a Martial Artist, you are simply no match for them. You cannot beat them in moves, your defensive power is even worse, and you want to compete with them in Internal Energy? How many days have you even been practicing?"

The reason Li Zhengshan taught him so much tonight was naturally because he was afraid he would become too arrogant and go out to cause trouble.

!

Luo Zijun kept it in his heart, practiced for a while longer, and went into the room to bathe.

After bathing, he returned to his room.

Xiaohuan had already made his bed and was sitting obediently by the bedside with her head lowered, waiting for him.

Thinking of what the Madam had taught her today, her little face began to burn.

"Go to sleep."

Luo Zijun came to the bedside and took a look at her.

Xiaohuan hurriedly got up, her little face flushed, and helped him undress.

Luo Zijun said, "I can do it myself."

Xiaohuan did not speak, nor did she stop; she helped him take off his outer robe, then knelt on the ground and helped him take off his shoes.

It must be said.

The feeling of being served by someone is really quite nice.

Luo Zijun got onto the bed and looked at the Young Maid, whose little face was pink and who was currently bowing her head to undress, thinking to himself: No wonder people with money and power keep many Young Maids at home.

Xiaohuan took off her outer robe, shyly got into bed, and burrowed under the quilt.

Luo Zijun blew out the candle by the bedside and lay down.

After a moment of silence, the foot of the bed suddenly moved.

Then, the Young Maid actually crawled over from under the quilt, hid in his embrace, pressed her flushed, burning little face tightly against his chest, and curled her entire petite body into a ball.

"What are you doing?"

Luo Zijun asked.

The Young Maid did not answer; she remained motionless in his arms, her little heart beating "thump, thump."

After a long while, seeing that he did not move either, the Young Maid finally spoke in a shy, trembling voice: "Young... Young Master, let this servant serve you, okay?"

Luo Zijun asked a question he already knew the answer to: "How will you serve me?"

The Young Maid's body trembled slightly; the techniques the Madam had taught her surfaced in her mind, as did the pictures she had seen that evening, making her even more shy and nervous.

"This servant... this servant..."

She tremblingly reached out her little hand, clumsily stroked his chest, and then slowly moved downward: "This servant... will grab..."

Luo Zijun's mouth twitched; he immediately grabbed her little hand and whispered, "Sleep, stop grabbing; I still need to cultivate."

Grab?

With those little hands of yours, what could you possibly grab?

The Young Maid struggled a little but could not break free, then she raised her flushed little face from his embrace, her eyes brimming with tears.

"Young Master, if... if you don't want this servant, this servant... this servant will be driven away..."

Luo Zijun comforted her, "That won't happen; Sister won't drive you away."

Tears fell from the Young Maid's eyes, and she cried, "But, but this servant is useless..."

"You are useful."

Luo Zijun picked up her petite body, placed her back at the other end, tucked her in, then went back to lie down himself, reached out from under the quilt to hold her tiny feet, and said, "Look, isn't this useful?"

The Young Maid: "..."

(End of this chapter)