Chapter 4: Arrangements

Main Hall of the Duke of Zhenguo's Manor

"Xu Yuandao! Are you going to let me go after those bastards at the Wanbao Tower or not?!" A cold, strikingly beautiful tall woman pointed at the black-robed man seated to the side. Her golden vertical pupils were wide with fury, a faint oppressive pressure radiating from her, her sharp, cool face filled with anger.

The middle-aged man didn't lift his head, but even so his handsome features were unmistakable, his deep eyes calm as an ancient well. With no expression at all, he said flatly, "Wait until Ping'an wakes up."

"Wait? Fine, keep waiting! How the hell did I end up marrying such a useless coward as you!!" The beautiful woman trembled with rage, her pale hands clenched tight. A metallic sheen seemed to ripple over her smooth, porcelain-white skin. Her white crossed collar rose and fell with her violent breathing, and her magnificent, round breasts pressed a deep fold into the bright red chest-wrap beneath her robe, as if one hard breath would burst the fabric open.

"They've already bullied us right up to our doorstep, Ping'an he..."

"Enough!" The elder at the head of the table knocked once on the tabletop and let out a long sigh before slowly speaking, his face full of deep helplessness.

His hair and beard were all white. He was already nearing the end of his life, yet his spirit remained sharp. His fierce gaze carried a murderous edge, and his broad, powerful body exuded a towering presence that made the whole room feel as though a mountain had been set down there.

When the woman saw the old patriarch had spoken, she could only stomp her long, strong legs and obediently shut her mouth, though the anger in her eyes did not lessen in the slightest.

"Master! Madam! Young Master has woken up!!" A maid hurried in and reported with a bow.

Those words were like the warm sun of early spring. The stifling atmosphere in the room melted away at once, and everyone visibly brightened.

"Really? Where is he?" The beautiful woman lit up and hurried forward two steps, asking in excitement. The others were all overjoyed as well, rising to their feet to look toward her.

"He's on the way. He'll be here any moment..."

Before she could finish, a figure wrapped in bandages was helped inside.

"Ping'an!" Yin Mei's face filled with delight. She quickly stepped forward to steady him, and the other two also rushed over.

A fragrance belonging to a mature woman, mixed with the fierce, savage aura of a beast, hit him in the face. The moment Xu Ping'an saw the tall woman on his right, he instinctively shrank back, a primal fear rising in him.

"Ping'an, are you all right... Don't worry, Second Aunt will avenge you." The beautiful woman lowered her head. Her high, straight nose was almost touching his face. Her elegant features carried a trace of killing intent, and those bright golden vertical pupils stared directly at him. Her enormous breasts were pressing his arm between them, the soft yet firm sensation making his heart stir uncontrollably, but even though he knew she was concerned for him, that primitive fear still made his scalp tingle.

Yin Mei, princess of the Eastern Sea Dragon Clan, had willingly married his father as a wife. She was also the person Xu Ping'an feared most in the entire household. But she had never struck the original Xu Ping'an, nor had she ever even shouted at him. It was only the faint dragon might emanating from her that had made the original, as a child, grow up fearing her from start to finish.

He froze, not daring to speak.

"Ping'an, is your injury any better?"

The black-robed middle-aged man placed both hands on his shoulders, his handsome face wearing a gentle smile, his deep eyes full of affection.

Xu Ping'an looked at the man before him, his birth father, and also the fourth Confucian Dao Saint of this world, not to mention the current chancellor of the Great Yan Dynasty.

Yet at this moment, he was looking at him like an ordinary father, with genuine concern.

"Ping'an, your bones will still need some time to recover." A rough, broad hand stroked his head. The tall, imposing elder stood before him, a faint pressure rolling off his body.

Xu Changping, the original owner's grandfather, was the true master of the Duke of Zhenguo's Manor, and also the hardest boss in the entire game.

Xu Ping'an felt a bit conflicted. Unlike the characters in the game who all wanted the protagonist dead, the pure concern from these elders warmed him somewhat. But the memories of his previous life also left him feeling a little distant, and for a moment he didn't know how to respond to them.

He opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but the several gazes around him made him uncomfortable. His soul from another world was ultimately separated by a layer from this one, and he looked somewhat pleadingly at Liu Yuxian, who was holding him up on the left.

Seeing his childlike awkwardness, Liu Yuxian couldn't help but smile. As if she had seen through his embarrassment, she leaned her body a little closer to him, letting him feel more at ease, then softly encouraged him, "It's all right. Say whatever you want. We're all family."

The other three found it a little strange as well. This boy used to be so carefree, so why was he suddenly so shy?

He took a deep breath and gathered himself, then looked toward Xu Changping, the one who could make the decisions, and cautiously said, "Grandfather..."

The old man turned his head a little more kindly and looked at him with gentle eyes, signaling that he was listening.

"...I want to cultivate."

Xu Ping'an practically forced the words out between his teeth, because in his memories the original owner had been lazy, ignorant, and always resistant to cultivation. Suddenly bringing it up now could easily arouse suspicion.

But he had no choice but to say it. After all, it was precisely because the original had not cultivated that he had been so easily killed. Xu Ping'an did not want to end up being casually cut down one day while strolling through a pleasure house.

The old man's eyes narrowed slightly, his expression somewhat surprised. Not only him, but the other three all showed looks of astonishment as well, though in the end none of them said anything.

He smiled and teased, "What, didn't you say that if you cultivated again, you'd be a dog?"

Only then did Xu Ping'an remember that when he was young, this old patriarch had once washed out his meridians and forcibly used spiritual power to open his body. The pain had been so intense the original owner had nearly died, and from then on he had refused to cultivate again, even declaring, I'm a fucking dog if I ever cultivate that useless thing again.

His cheeks reddened slightly, but he couldn't deny it. He could only lower his head, think back to the original owner's tone, and stiffly retort, "I changed my mind. I want to cultivate now."

"Ping'an, cultivation isn't something that happens overnight." Xu Yuandao sighed. He clearly knew exactly what kind of son he had, and advised, "After you start cultivating, you'll suffer a great deal. You'll enter many people's sight, and you'll face many dangers."

As he spoke, his eyes never stopped watching Xu Ping'an's expression. But Xu Ping'an showed no fear; if anything, his gaze had become even firmer.

"Yes... I know, but... I'm even more afraid of dying."

As soon as he said that, the room fell instantly silent. A trace of guilt flashed through the eyes of the four people present. Yes, they had fought their whole lives, and in the end they still couldn't even protect a child.

The old man remained silent for a moment, his expression complicated, the killing aura around him seeming to grow even heavier. Then he raised a hand and gently stroked Xu Ping'an's head, speaking in a warm voice, "Good child. Since you've made up your mind, go and do what you want."

Seeing that even the old patriarch had nodded, Xu Yuandao let out another sigh, then took a silver-white jade token from his interspatial ring and handed it to him. "With this, you can go anywhere you want in this manor."

The jade token was heavy, forged from some unknown material, and carried a metallic feel.

Xu Ping'an took it, and then saw his second aunt, Yin Mei, letting go of him. She stood up and scratched her head, looking a little embarrassed. "Ping'an, Second Aunt doesn't really have anything to give you. Here, take this."

But Xu Ping'an didn't notice her words at that moment. He was completely drawn in by her extremely tall figure. At over six feet tall, he barely reached her sharply carved shoulders. The two towering, beautifully shaped peaks on her chest defied gravity as they stood proudly in front of her, wrapped tightly in that fitted red dress like two round, swelling giant melons. Yet the clearly visible weight still forced the sturdy fabric upward, filling it with an overwhelming pressure.

Below that, her waist tightened sharply under a snug sash, outlining her perfect figure. Farther down, the skirt flared out as though it had been forcibly pried open by brute strength. Her massive, grinding hips stretched the otherwise tailored long dress taut, throwing out a spectacular curve behind her. Beneath that near-perfect silhouette, her lower half was filled out by two sturdy, straight jade-like legs, the flesh smooth and supple, extending with the crisp, fluid beauty of something carved by a blade.

Unlike the frail, willow-like women of the Jiangnan region, she carried an air of valiant vigor and decisive strength. Standing there, she radiated an imposing presence like a great warhorse, as though she were a steel pillar driven into the ground.

Xu Ping'an stared blankly as she took a black inner armor from her interspatial ring. The armor was full and contoured, seemingly built from layer upon layer of thick, raised scales, and not just one layer at that. The patterns on the plates were clearly visible, and a vast, weighty aura rushed toward him. He could even distinctly feel a trace of dragon might. For some reason, the surface of the inner armor also glimmered with a faint scarlet sheen.

Xu Ping'an recognized at once that those were dragon scales, and a treasured armor forged by Yin Mei, a true dragon, was naturally no ordinary item.

Yin Mei said a little awkwardly, "Don't look down on it either. This was originally meant to be given to you when you came of age, but you wouldn't take it..."

Xu Ping'an honestly wanted to curse his former self as a complete idiot. Even if he was afraid of her, he should have known that a gift from a Saint would absolutely not be ordinary. And he still refused to accept it. If he'd had this thing, how could he have been killed so easily back then?

He quickly put the item away. The primal fear in his heart seemed to ease somewhat, and he reached out to hug her directly. If he lowered his head a little more, he could have buried himself in those snowy, white, generous breasts, but Xu Ping'an only rested his head against her chest. The huge breasts that pushed the dress up high pressed tightly against his face, and the scent of milk mixed with the sweet fragrance of a mature woman seeped into his nose. The solid, springy flesh and the pressure of being squeezed were all very real against his face.

He forcibly suppressed the tremor in his heart and whispered, "Second Aunt, thank you."

A rare flush rose on Yin Mei's cold, beautiful face. Her two slender jade hands moved awkwardly in the air, and she stammered in some confusion.

Seeing that, Xu Yuandao also felt somewhat comforted. He knew there had been some distance between his son and his second aunt, but some things could not be forced. Now that the situation had improved somewhat, he was naturally very happy as well, and said with a smile, "Ping'an, how about you handle the negotiation with the Wanbao Tower this time?"

Xu Ping'an froze for a moment, turned to look at him, and asked subconsciously, "Negotiation?"

Yin Mei had also recovered by now. She brushed aside the strands of black hair falling over her forehead and explained with a smile, "You didn't know? That woman is backed by the Wanbao Tower. Now that she's been captured, of course they'll come to redeem her."

The Wanbao Tower was one of the three great powers of the Merchant Alliance, and the Merchant Alliance itself was made up of countless large and small merchant houses, controlling the vast majority of the trade throughout the world.

Xu Ping'an understood at once. He naturally knew what kind of position that woman held in the Wanbao Tower. It made sense that they'd come to redeem her. But whether to release her or not depended entirely on whether his side agreed, and if he was the one handling the negotiation, then the room for maneuver would be much greater.

But to have an inexperienced wastrel like him do this...

He frowned slightly and looked at his father in some confusion, but the other man's expression did not change. Clearly, he was serious. Perhaps this was compensation for him, and also a trial, to let him come into contact with more things.

"Conveniently, the Merchant Alliance is holding an auction in Di'an City three days from now. You can go take a look and broaden your horizons while you're at it."

Xu Yuandao added.