Chapter 1126: Every Family Has Its Troubles

"Oh, you don't have a place to spend the New Year?" Chen Xi teased.

Wu Yuan shot him a vexed glance, clearly annoyed. Right now, the last thing she wanted was for anyone to suggest she had no home to return to. Despite her frustration, Wu Yuan maintained a professional smile, though her displeasure was still evident in her expression.

"Alright, I’m just joking. Don't you have any old acquaintances or friends from Jizhou?" Chen Xi asked, shifting to a more serious tone.

"My family is originally from Chenliu. I have friends in Chang'an, and I used to have some connections with Cao Mengde. If you go back another generation, you could even call us old friends. But here in Taishan and Ye City, I don’t really know anyone well," Wu Yuan explained, her earlier smile replaced by a serious demeanor.

Chen Xi was aware of the connections between various major families, thanks to Jia Xu informing him of important relationships to keep in mind. The Wu family had a rather good relationship with Cao Cao, but years ago, when Wu Yi’s father had a close relationship with Liu Yan, the Wu family followed Liu Yan and moved their entire family to Yizhou.

If not for that move, when Cao Cao raised his army, it wouldn’t have been just Wei Zi standing alone against him; the Wu family would likely have offered significant support, as Cao Cao was indeed a powerful leader.

"In this place, the only people you could connect with are Zhen Mi and Mi Zhen. I don’t believe they didn’t invite you to join them," Chen Xi shook his head, suspecting Wu Yuan was deliberately trying to get closer to him.

"You're right. I’m indeed aiming to do just that," Wu Yuan said with a lazy stretch, shattering the poised image she had been maintaining with a nonchalant gesture.

Her seductive demeanor caught Chen Xi off guard for a moment. Although Zhen Mi, Cai Yan, and Mi Zhen were all beautiful, they remained mindful of decorum and never displayed such behavior in front of him.

Wu Yuan then pulled out a scroll from her sleeve and tossed it onto the counter, signaling Chen Xi to open it. From the portion that unraveled, Chen Xi immediately recognized what it was.

"When only Yizhou remains, a single letter will be enough to bring peace to the world. This is useless," Chen Xi said dismissively. Though the map was detailed and well-drawn, it was of no use to him. A map of Yizhou wasn’t something he needed.

"Could it be that Marquis Chen desires this little woman instead~?" Wu Yuan feigned a timid expression, shrinking back as if fearful. Yet, the hint of disgust in her eyes didn’t escape Chen Xi’s notice.

"Alright, alright. Give me a reason—why do you want to stay at my place?" Chen Xi, noticing her expression, grew more interested.

"I need someone to protect me," Wu Yuan replied calmly.

There was no need for further explanation. Chen Xi already understood the situation. "Don’t tell me only your brother and you are the sensible ones in your family?"

Wu Yuan remained silent, but the look of helplessness on her face revealed everything. As expected, her family had those with some rather irrational ideas—perhaps the natural barriers of Shu had given them too much confidence.

"But are you sure I can protect you? Aren’t you worried?" Chen Xi asked, curious. "What if I’m unreliable?"

"At least if you’re unreliable, it’s within my acceptable range," Wu Yuan yawned lazily as she spoke.

"Oh, quite clever," Chen Xi remarked, suddenly finding Wu Yuan rather sharp. He took the two pairs of bracelets and, without paying, pocketed the map as well.

"Wait a bit. My carriage will come by later. You can ride it to my place," Chen Xi said as he waved his hand with the scroll in hand, already knowing how to arrange things for Wu Yuan.

Wu Yuan didn’t seem concerned that Chen Xi might go back on his word. Even if he did, she figured that getting to know him for the cost of a couple of bracelets wasn’t a bad deal.

After leaving the shop with the two pairs of bracelets, Chen Yun touched the bracelet on her wrist and hesitated for a moment before asking, "Master, are you really going to let Miss Wu stay at your home?"

Though her question bordered on crossing a line, Chen Xi didn’t mind and smiled, replying, "Of course not. If she’s looking for protection, besides me, there’s another place she can go. It’s just that we happen to get along well."

Chen Yun seemed visibly relieved. She had always felt that Wu Yuan was somewhat scheming. In contrast, Chen Lan was completely innocent and naïve, Fan Jian always spoke her mind, and Zhen Mi, though capable of keeping secrets, would eventually reveal them. Wu Yuan, however, gave Chen Yun a very different feeling.

Chen Yun had no desire for another cunning mistress in the household. Even though she had no real ambitions regarding Chen Xi—since the gap between them was too large—she worried that having a calculating mistress would spell the end of her peaceful life. As a personal maid in such a precarious position, she couldn’t afford not to fight back, even if she didn’t want to.

"Ah-choo!" Far away in Chang’an, Xu Zi, who was drinking wine at Liu Yu’s residence, sneezed. 【Could it be someone is cursing me for not releasing the civil official rankings because I haven’t done a thorough enough investigation?】

"Zi Jiang, you should see a doctor and take some medicine. Don’t die before you’ve even finished releasing the rankings," Liu Yu said, laughing heartily. At his age, he didn’t shy away from such topics.

"Being remembered as a lost masterpiece wouldn’t be so bad," Xu Shao replied nonchalantly. He wasn’t in any rush to release the civil official rankings. Until he had personally met the likes of Xun Yu and Xun You, he wouldn’t commit his thoughts to paper. He needed to be absolutely sure.

Previous rankings had been composed with some degree of spontaneity, but the civil official rankings couldn’t be handled in such a casual manner. They had to be convincing and accepted by all!

"You rascal!" Liu Yu set down his chopsticks, laughing heartily as he looked at Xu Shao. "How is the Gongsun family? And what about the Lu family?"

"Liu Xuande is a man who, whatever else you may say about him, treats his people well. Lu Ziji has been taken in as a disciple by Jia Wenhe, and the Gongsun family has been properly settled," Xu Shao said seriously, knowing exactly why Liu Yu was asking.

"That’s good to hear," Liu Yu stroked his beard and smiled. His eyes glinted as he said, "Now that I think about it, I’ve outlived that old rascal Gongsun Bogui. Haha! Laozi was right, 'the soft overcomes the hard.' Gongsun Bogui was too rigid—he didn’t have to die."

Xu Shao rolled his eyes. The conflict between Liu Yu and Gongsun Zan had no resolution, and with Gongsun Zan long dead, there was no one left to argue with.

"It’s a pity, though. The Han Dynasty lost a great border general. Aside from his ruthlessness, he did quite well in the north. His descendants should at least be able to enjoy the benefits of his work," Liu Yu remarked, suddenly changing his tone.

Liu Yu was quite concerned about his reputation, so he didn’t mind praising Gongsun Zan now. After all, it wasn’t as if Gongsun Zan could climb out of his grave to argue, and it would give Liu Yu the reputation of being magnanimous. Bringing up Gongsun Zan from time to time, he thought, always lightened his mood.

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