’Bastard?’

Chen Yi’s interest was piqued. Judging from Chen Yunfan’s curse, he clearly knew Liu Wen and was somewhat familiar with him.

’Ah, I’d forgotten about that.’

The Jiangnan Prefecture Chen Family and the Jing State Liu Family were both prominent Noble Families of the current era, so it was only natural that they knew of each other.

Moreover, with elders from both the Chen and Liu Families serving as officials in the same imperial court, it was perfectly normal for the younger generation to associate with one another.

He figured they had probably met on a few occasions.

As Chen Yi mulled this over, he knew it wasn’t the time for idle chatter, so he held his tongue.

As Chen Yunfan looked toward Liu Wen’s group, Liu Wen, Liu Zhaoxue, and the others naturally spotted them as well.

He saw them pause in their tracks.

Liu Wen seemed a little surprised, a grin spreading across his face. "Chen Yunfan?"

After a moment’s hesitation, Liu Wen gestured to the people behind him and walked straight toward them, a faintly sinister smile appearing on his handsome face.

His narrow eyes, however, completely ignored Chen Yi, fixing solely on Chen Yunfan.

While still a good distance away, he smiled and spread his arms wide. "Brother Yunfan, it’s been too long! I’ve missed you dearly."

Chen Yunfan shot him a sidelong glance and snorted. "This young—ahem. This official is not familiar with you."

With that, he seemed to recall something. He straightened up, clasped his hands behind his back, lifted his chin, and drawled:

"You audacious commoner! Why do you not kneel upon seeing this official?"

The smile on Liu Wen’s face froze. He slowed his pace, and his raised hands trembled slightly.

"Brother Yunfan, surely that’s not necessary?"

"What? You, Liu Wen, don’t even have the rank of a Scholar. You’re just a commoner. You are required to perform the proper ceremony upon seeing an official. Or does this official need to teach you etiquette on behalf of your Jing State Liu Family?"

Liu Wen’s anger flared at these words, and a cold glint flashed in his narrow eyes.

"Chen Yunfan, don’t think that just because you became the top scholar, you can disrespect my Liu Family!"

Chen Yunfan pursed his lips. "You are mistaken. This official simply doesn’t respect *you*."

"You..."

Now Liu Wen was utterly enraged. His previously feigned magnanimity and warmth vanished without a trace.

The disgusted look on his face, as if he’d just swallowed a fly, was so amusing that Chen Yi couldn’t help but give Chen Yunfan a mental thumbs-up.

’When it came to having a sharp tongue and infuriating people, if Chen Yunfan claimed to be second best, probably no one would dare claim first.’

Just then, Liu Zhaoxue, who was waiting in the distance, bowed gracefully in their direction.

"Zhaoxue greets you, Lord Chen. I hope Your Lordship will not make things difficult for my second brother, for the sake of the generations of friendship between the Chen and Liu Families."

Hearing her voice, Chen Yunfan’s gaze fell upon Liu Zhaoxue, and his eyes immediately brightened.

He then dropped his haughty act and said with a cheerful laugh:

"Zhaoxue, you worry too much. I was merely joking with your second brother just now."

"Isn’t that right, Liming?"

Liu Wen, however, was not having any of it. He shot Chen Yunfan a glare and turned to leave.

Moreover, after rejoining the rest of the Liu Family’s group, he even snapped at Liu Zhaoxue, "Did I ask you to speak up?"

"...My apologies, Second Brother."

"Hmph. I’ll teach you a lesson about your place when we get back."

With that, Liu Wen, his face dark, followed the Xiao Mansion’s second steward toward Qingjing Residence.

Seeing this, Liu Zhaoxue hesitated for a moment. She gave Chen Yunfan and Chen Yi another apologetic bow before hurrying to catch up.

As he watched them walk away, the smile on Chen Yunfan’s face faded, and he said with a slight frown:

"That Liu Wen is a real piece of work. He’s definitely up to no good coming to Shu State."

Upon hearing this, Chen Yi thought for a moment and asked, "How does he compare to Liu Jing?"

"Who’s Liu Jing?"

"..."

Chen Yunfan clearly had no memory of the man. After wracking his brain for a long moment, he gave up.

"In any case," he said, "Liu Wen is not a good person. You should stay far away from him."

Chen Yi smiled and nodded, but he sighed internally.

’I’d love to stay away from Liu Wen, but unfortunately, he’s not just a piece of work—he’s the type that sticks to you like glue.’

After a few more words of idle chat, Chen Yunfan decided not to stay any longer. He told Chen Yi to join him for a meal at Tingyu Pavilion when he had time, then hurried off.

Chen Yi agreed and watched him go.

He stood silently for a moment.

Seeing that it was getting late, he straightened his clothes and began walking at a leisurely pace toward Qingjing Residence.

’Since some things are unavoidable, there’s no point in trying to hide from them.’

’They just need to be dealt with.’

「A moment later.」

When Chen Yi arrived at Qingjing Residence, he immediately spotted Xiao Wuge waiting in the pavilion, which made him raise an eyebrow.

’The Liu Family is here, but the Old Master didn’t have Xiao Wuge stay in the main hall?’

As this thought crossed his mind, he glanced toward the main hall.

He was surprised to find that the doors to the hall, which should have been wide open, were now closed.

’It looks like they’re discussing something in secret.’

’Strange.’

According to the etiquette of the times, one should be open and have nothing to hide.

When guests came to call, unless they were close relatives or it was for a banquet, the host family would typically leave the main doors wide open.

This was a symbol of being open and aboveboard.

The current situation, however, naturally made him suspicious.

Just then, Xiao Wuge saw him approaching. He stood up and waved. "Brother-in-law! Brother-in-law! Over here!"

Chen Yi snapped out of his thoughts, smiled and nodded, then went to sit with him in the pavilion.

After a moment’s thought, he asked in a casual tone, "Did you give the gift to the Old Master?"

Xiao Wuge nodded and said with a smile, "Grandpa was very happy. He even praised me for being so thoughtful."

But his smile quickly faded, and he pouted. "It’s a shame some bad guys showed up right after. They kept me from talking more with Grandpa."

"Bad guys?"

"Yeah! The same bad guy who said he wanted to marry my big sister. He had such a long face. You can tell he’s no good just by looking at him."

Chen Yi chuckled at his words, his eyes glancing toward the main hall.

’With Liu Wen’s Martial Arts Cultivation,’ he mused, ’he should be able to hear us from over there.’

After a moment’s consideration, Chen Yi smiled and said, "You’re right. He certainly doesn’t seem like a good person."