“Master Ye, I’m back, I’ve brought Mo Dazhuang!” At this moment, the voice of a guard echoed from outside the hall.
“Bring him in,” ordered Ye Xuan.
“We, Master Ye’s guards, invite you in.”
“Thank you for your troubles...”
As they spoke, Mo Dazhuang once again arrived at the Ye Mansion’s hall and stood before Ye Xuan.
“Good day, Master Ye.” Mo Dazhuang greeted Ye Xuan from a distance.
“Have you heard about the... incident?” Ye Xuan asked Mo Dazhuang.
“Yes, I have,” Mo Dazhuang replied. “I heard my sister was abducted by a despicable abductor last night. Luckily, she was rescued by Master Ye, but she was drugged by the abductor... It was Master Ye who risked his life to save her. You’ve worked hard, Master Ye.”
As he spoke, he bowed in gratitude to Ye Xuan. Ye Xuan’s lips twitched in response. He hadn’t detailed the plot this much, yet those two ingenious guards really knew how to concoct a story. As for Mo Dazhuang, well...
Ye Xuan, with a forced smile, said, “Hardly hard work, but as I’ve had intimate contact with your sister, it wouldn’t be good for her if this spreads. Therefore, I plan to have her stay here and marry her soon. What do you think?”
“That’s wonderful—!!!” exclaimed Mo Dazhuang excitedly. “For Master Ye to fancy my sister, it’s a blessing she must have cultivated over many lifetimes—!!!”
“So, you as her brother agree,” Ye Xuan stated.
“Since the elder brother is like a father, I’ve already sent a matchmaker to your house, and you must have seen the betrothal gifts. Let’s consider this marriage settled. Do you want to see Qingsnow?”
“Ah... yes—!!!” Mo Dazhuang hesitated before agreeing.
“Hm,” nodded Ye Xuan, “come with me.”
Soon, Ye Xuan brought Mo Dazhuang to his room. “Qingsnow is inside. I’ll wait here outside.”
Entering Ye Xuan’s room, Mo Dazhuang curiously looked around, marveling at the exquisite decor. Anything in this room could support his entire life.
“Big brother—!!!” Mo Qingsnow, noticing Mo Dazhuang, called out.
Mo Dazhuang turned to Mo Qingsnow, his face showing excitement: “Sister, you’ve suffered—!!”
“Brother, I...”
Before Mo Qingsnow could say more, Mo Dazhuang gestured towards the door, indicating someone was outside. Mo Qingsnow sighed in resignation.
“Little sister, I’ve heard everything... you were abducted last night and almost lost your innocence. Fortunately, Master Ye saved you, but you were drugged by the abductor. Master Ye risked his life to detoxify you... You must be grateful to Master Ye—!”
“Uh...” Mo Qingsnow was taken aback by her brother’s words.
Hearing Mo Dazhuang’s words, Mo Qingsnow’s face twitched in disbelief. Who concocted such a blatant lie? Does her brother actually believe this?
She looked at Mo Dazhuang, noticing him signaling to her. She realized he didn’t believe it either, but what could they do? Her life was already ruined.
Resignedly, she said, “Don’t worry, brother. I’ll repay Master Ye for a lifetime. I’ll serve him as a slave or a maid, whatever he wants.”
“Little sister, what nonsense are you talking about?” Mo Dazhuang chuckled. “Master Ye doesn’t want you as a slave or a maid; he wants to marry you—!!!”
“What?!!” Mo Qingsnow exclaimed in shock. “Marry me? How is that possible—!”
“Nothing is impossible,” Mo Dazhuang whispered, lowering his voice. “Look, the marriage proposal I brought. It has the official seal... I can’t read, but I’ve seen others’ proposals. This is a marriage proposal, not for taking a concubine...”
Mo Qingsnow, also illiterate, understood the implication. She was puzzled. Why? Why would Ye Xuan do this? He could easily marry her without resorting to abduction. Was this just some rich young master’s perverse thrill?
“Alright, sister, listen to me,” Mo Dazhuang cautiously glanced outside, fearing Ye Xuan might overhear. “Our family is in debt to Master Ye, and you’ve lost your innocence to him. Marrying him is the only option.”
“I know you’re aggrieved, but think of me, think of mother... Be a good wife to Master Ye. Forget what happened as a bad dream.”
Mo Qingsnow clenched her fists, sighing in frustration, “I understand, brother... That he’s willing to marry me, I’m already... more than grateful.”
In her eyes, a fierce hatred flared up – to be grateful to her enemy simply because he decided to marry her. But the hatred faded with the helplessness of accepting her reality.
Watching the unfolding scenes, Elder Qingxue’s mind seemed to be flooded with memories of her own past experiences. Her gaze shifted towards Ye Xuan, filled with a mix of hatred and a rising intent to kill.
The grievances she had once endured were still unbearable. Why should she forgive Ye Xuan for his past actions just because she later developed feelings for him?
“Uh, Elder Qingxue, what are you planning to do?!!” Yu Ling’er stepped in front of Ye Xuan, trying to protect him.
However, in the next moment, a figure flashed across the sky, and Yu Ling’er couldn’t react in time to stop Elder Qingxue.
Slap, slap!
Elder Qingxue struck Ye Xuan with two slaps, then returned to her original position. Ye Xuan’s face immediately swelled up.
“Anyway, I’m going to kill him later. These two slaps are just to vent my anger,” Elder Qingxue remarked coldly, finding some satisfaction in Ye Xuan’s swollen face.
Ye Xuan, on the other hand, could only offer a bitter smile. Indeed, he was paying for his past misdeeds. What he enjoyed before, now returned as punishment.
Two slaps were nothing compared to what he deserved. He decided to endure it, thinking of getting back at her later.
“Ye Xuan, are you okay...?” Yu Ling’er asked worriedly, seeing Ye Xuan’s swollen face.
“Do I look okay to you?!!” Ye Xuan replied, his face still swollen.
Yu Ling’er tried to hold back her laughter, seeing Ye Xuan in this state. Despite feeling sympathetic pain for him, his appearance was somewhat amusing.
Ye Xuan, observing Yu Ling’er struggling not to laugh, felt a bit exasperated.
“Have you heard? Young Master Ye is getting married.”
“Really?!”
“Who is he marrying?”
“Is it Miss Jiang from the Jiang family? I’ve heard that Young Master Ye and Miss Jiang have been close.”
“Jiang Ling’er, huh? She’s like a fairy, so beautiful. She’s finally getting married?”
“But honestly, in our Wuyuan Town, only Young Master Ye is worthy of Miss Jiang.”
“Hehe, you guys guessed wrong. Young Master Ye isn’t marrying Miss Jiang, but Mo Qingxue.”
“What?”
“He’s marrying Mo Qingxue? Why, is she worthy of him?”
“Exactly, given Mo Qingxue’s family situation, being a concubine would be more suitable. You must have mistaken him taking a concubine for him getting married, right?”
“No, he really is marrying Mo Qingxue.”
“Ah?”
Young Master Ye’s marriage was a big deal in Wuyuan Town. That he was marrying Mo Qingxue was even more surprising. It’s undeniable that Mo Qingxue is beautiful, but there are plenty of pretty girls in wealthy families.
And considering Mo Qingxue’s family situation, they might soon be selling their daughter. Why marry Mo Qingxue now when you could buy her cheaply later?
“Man, had I known, I would have made Mo Qingxue my concubine earlier, before Young Master Ye beat me to it.”
“Pfft, look at yourself in the mirror. She’s so pretty; do you think you could just marry her?”
“Even though Mo Qingxue’s family was struggling, she never showed us a good face.”
“Speaking of which, why is Young Master Ye marrying Mo Qingxue?”
“Yeah, why not marry the nice Miss Jiang?”
“Haha, looks like you don’t know. I heard Miss Jiang got a chance to cultivate immortality and left Young Master Ye to ascend the mountain.”
“Ah? She’s so lucky. Too bad she didn’t take me with her.”
“So, Young Master Ye was abandoned by Miss Jiang, that’s why he’s marrying the lowly Mo Qingxue?”
“But I heard that it was something between Young Master Ye and Mo Qingxue that made Miss Jiang angrily ascend to immortality.”
On the streets and in the market, many people were discussing Young Master Ye’s marriage. It was shocking that someone of his stature would marry a woman of humble origin.
Meanwhile, at home, Young Master Ye was standing solemnly at a desk. In front of him, Mo Qingxue was holding a book, reading it word by word.
“White... sun... shadows... the mountain, Yellow... River... flows... into... the... sea...” After struggling to finish one sentence, Mo Qingxue cautiously looked up at Ye Xuan, who was watching her without speaking.
She swallowed nervously and continued, “Desire... to... exhaust... a... thousand... miles... vision, climb... one... more... level... of... the... tower...”
Seeing Mo Qingxue’s fearful expression, Ye Xuan couldn’t help but smile internally.
“Ye... sir... I... have... finished...” Mo Qingxue spoke to Ye Xuan. Reading, something she never thought she would do in her lifetime, was now being taught to her by Ye Xuan.
For a woman like her, what was the use of reading? Reading couldn’t fill her stomach. In her view, Ye Xuan was surely finding ways to torment her for amusement.
This must be the lifestyle of a rich young master, who, having nothing better to do, finds pleasure in tormenting others.
“Do you think reading is useless?” Ye Xuan asked, observing Mo Qingxue’s expression.
“No, I didn’t think that,” Mo Qingxue hastily shook her head, cursing inwardly at Ye Xuan’s ability to guess her thoughts.
“As long as you read enough books, you can know what others are thinking,” Ye Xuan said with a smile.
“Really?!” Mo Qingxue’s eyes lit up, having never heard such a miraculous thing in her life.
Ye Xuan chuckled at her reaction.
In the next moment, Mo Qingxue realized she had been fooled by Ye Xuan, feeling a wave of frustration. It seemed that Ye Xuan had just guessed her thoughts.
“Reading might not let you know what others are thinking, but it can give you an ability beyond ordinary people,” Ye Xuan explained.
“Ordinary people only understand the world through what they see and hear. But once you can read, you can learn about the world through books. As the saying goes, ‘Without stepping out the door, one can know the world’”
“You might think reading is useless because you haven’t had the chance to apply these skills. But what if one day you get the chance? What if a immortal being suddenly dies in front of you, leaving behind a secret scripture for cultivating immortality, and you can’t read the words? How sad would that be?”
“How could such a thing happen?!” Mo Qingxue countered.
“Daring to argue? Stretch out your hand; let’s see the power of the ruler,” Ye Xuan said.
“Uh...” Mo Qingxue, a bit scared, obediently stretched out her hand and received a strike from Ye Xuan’s ruler.
“Next, I’ll explain the meaning of this poem to you. After you understand it, you’ll need to memorize it and recite it with emotion,” Ye Xuan instructed.
“What does it mean to recite with emotion?” Mo Qingxue asked, puzzled.
The scenes flashing across the screen stirred a sense of reflection in Qingxue. She couldn’t help but feel grateful for Ye Xuan insisting on teaching her to read.
Without those skills, she might never have had the chance to cultivate and become who she was today.
Indeed, as Ye Xuan said, it seemed useless at the time, but when the moment came, it proved invaluable. She was fortunate that Ye Xuan taught her to read, or she might have missed a tremendous opportunity.
Watching the unfolding events in the scene, Yuling’er felt somewhat jealous. For some reason, she couldn’t shake off the feeling that the Ye Xuan in the picture was the same as the one beside her.
Previously, she felt embarrassed and pitied Mo Qingxue for what happened between her and Ye Xuan. But now, seeing Ye Xuan being so kind to Mo Qingxue, she started to feel jealous.
Meanwhile, Ye Xuan was regretting his past actions. He regretted not being harsher on himself. His face still ached from the earlier slap, a reminder of his past misdeeds.

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