Chapter 13

Chapter 13

Wei Chengshu had consumed quite a bit of alcohol the previous night and woke up only when the sun was high in the sky at his friend's place. With a splitting headache, he just managed to grab his phone when his mother, Shu Wanrong, called from distant Europe. She began with, "Your brother is back home."

"That's quite a surprise," Wei Chengshu remarked, slightly stunned for a moment but quickly recovering. He massaged his temples and continued, "To be honest, I'm already amazed that he hasn't starved to death after being out for three months."

Shu Wanrong was displeased by her son's indifferent tone. "Chengshu, don't always think you're the smartest person in the world. He is, after all, your elder brother, your father's legitimate firstborn son..."

Wei Chengshu interrupted her, tsking. "Enough with the old lecture. Do you or I not know what Wei Xi is like? The courage to speak up loudly is something he lacks. Isn't it exhausting for you to keep doing this every day? Besides, it's still the middle of the night where you are. Is it worth waking up to call me just because he came home?"

Shu Wanrong sighed. "I didn't deliberately wake up to call you. Your father's call disturbed my sleep. He was furious, scolding your brother for yelling at him on the phone and hanging up. Now, we can't even get through to the landline. Uncle Zhou said your brother smashed it."

"......" Wei Chengshu fell silent for a moment before pushing the girl who was lying on him aside. "Wow, I really should applaud him then."

"Stop joking around. Your father is extremely angry. This is only the second time I've seen him so enraged, and the last time was when he saw a photo of your brother with Ruan Shihang," Shu Wanrong lamented. "Your brother still holds some weight in your father's heart."

Wei Chengshu replied, "Isn't that obvious? He's the son of your father's first wife, more legitimate than your own son."

Shu Wanrong flew into a rage. "Wei Chengshu!"

Wei Chengshu: "What now?"

Outsiders praised the young master of the Wei family as a bright and promising youth, an embodiment of a tiger father's offspring. Only his mother, Shu Wanrong, knew the true nature of her son behind closed doors. Frustrated, she still had to soften her tone: "Your father is still angry. Call him later and chat about your winning thesis."

After hanging up, Wei Chengshu's smirk remained. The girl he pushed away climbed back, but he didn't even glance at her. "Get lost. Don't bother me."

The girl froze, catching a glimpse of his handsome face mostly hidden by his fallen bangs. His gloominess intimidated her, leaving her too scared to move. Fortunately, the door opened, and a group of young men and women entered. Xing Kai, the leader, laughed upon seeing the scene. "Wow, such fiery passion early in the morning? Can Young Master Wei still leave the house today?"

Wei Chengshu glanced at him, then pushed aside the girl to get up. "I have something to attend to at home. I won't be joining you guys today."

"No way!" Xing Kai panicked. "We agreed on this. Ruan Shihang is even coming. He's the young master of the Ruan family. I heard he has a childhood friend from the Lu family. Wouldn't it be a shame if you don't meet him?"

At the mention of that name, Wei Chengshu chuckled. Adjusting his belt, he looked at Xing Kai with a crooked smile. "My brother is obsessed with his ass. Aren't you afraid I might be too?"

Xing Kai's playful expression turned blank. "How could that be? Who told you?"

"Oh~" Wei Chengshu nonchalantly pulled on a T-shirt. "I was wondering. After that incident, not only did his film project go down the drain, but Wang Yue even refused to marry him. You used to be close friends with my brother. Even if you didn't speak up for him, it's beneath you to stab him in the back secretly."

Xing Kai fell silent for a moment before he awkwardly chuckled. "Yeah, I have no benefit from harming him."

Pausing, he added, "I didn't speak up for him because the situation is truly indefensible. But I didn't expect that you two brothers have such a good relationship. You still care about him after he's been missing for months."

Wei Chengshu, already dressed, laughed in response. "Care about what? I just mentioned it casually."

With that, he walked straight towards the door. Reaching the entrance, he suddenly paused. "Oh, I forgot to tell you earlier, he's back."

Wei Chengshu had already disappeared from sight, but the others in the room were still in a daze. Xing Kai turned his head and met the equally grim faces of his friends behind him.

Someone whispered, "Is it true? Is Wei Xi back? Didn't he contact you when he returned?"

Xing Kai was silent for a long while before he spoke with a strained expression, "Let's not worry about that now. Quickly call Wang Yue and tell her that Wei Chengshu won't attend today's gathering and that Wei Xi has returned."

At the Wei family residence, Wei Xi dragged Unity Righteousness into his own room with a grave expression.

He couldn't endure this starvation any longer.

Unity Righteousness had cleaned himself up and changed into new clothes prepared by Butler Zhou. His clean-shaven appearance was a stark contrast to his disheveled look before. However, he still trembled in front of Wei Xi.

Unable to run or fight back, he had already resigned himself to his fate. His tall figure curled up, casting a substantial shadow on the carpet. With a timid voice, he called out, "Master."

Wei Xi stroked his head, which was much larger than his own palm, and handed him a packaged bag. "Eat something first. Then we can talk about reviving the sect."

Inside was a bag of small biscuits shaped like bones, intricately designed with English letters covering the packaging, giving it an expensive appearance. Unity Righteousness had been hungry for nearly two days; even though he was scared, his instincts couldn't resist. He opened the package and took a bite. The taste was strangely delightful. Indeed, imported cookies tasted different from the cheap ones he usually ate.

Seeing how much Unity Righteousness enjoyed it, Wei Xi couldn't help but swallow his saliva. Being a good master truly wasn't easy. In the past, as a bachelor, he could eat as much as he wanted and still not feel full. Now, with someone to worry about, he had to save a portion for his disciple.

Unity Righteousness wouldn't have been so hungry if not for that Shuo Zong spoiling his plans, and this thought filled Wei Xi with anger.

Unity Righteousness's ears perked up at the mention of Shuo Zong. "Shuo Zong? Master, do you mean one of the people who brought us to the capital?"

Wei Xi nodded. "Do you know him?"

Unity Righteousness hadn't paid much attention in the car that morning due to his drowsiness, but the name Shuo Zong rang a bell the more he thought about it now. He took out his phone to search, and soon jumped in surprise. "It's really him!"

Only then did Wei Xi realize that his disciple also possessed the mysterious artifact that had left him puzzled throughout their journey. He snatched the phone to inspect it and saw Shuo Zong's face, which made his teeth itch with hatred. Below the picture were tiny words, just like those in the book, incomplete and confusing. They seemed to be related to companies or corporations, leaving one clueless.

Unity Righteousness, however, was agitated. "Damn, I knew that face looked familiar! The mobile game I play is developed by their subsidiary company! Back then, many female players in the forums were gushing over him. How could I not have remembered? I never expected to meet such an impressive person in my life!"

Wei Xi was perplexed. "Is he that impressive?"

United Righteousness replied, "Of course! He's on the Forbes list every year, with countless businesses under his name. His wealth is so immense that he couldn't possibly spend it all in this lifetime. And he has a good-looking face too. When I first saw someone with such a perfect life, I had nightmares for a month."

Wei Xi didn't understand the double entendre and frowned. "Did he hurt you?"

United Righteousness sounded weary. "Yes, my love interest called him husband. How could I not be hurt?"

"..." Wei Xi sensed that his disciple might have been wronged and patted his head affectionately. "It's alright. I'll avenge you."

United Righteousness waved it off. "Oh, no need. Later, I found out that my love interest was actually a man pretending to be a woman. We've already broken up." He continued, "What a hypocrite, pretending to be weak online. I bet his 'equipment' is bigger than mine."

Wei Xi was taken aback. "...?"

United Righteousness felt a bit embarrassed. "Besides, I call Mr. Shuo 'husband' now."

Wei Xi fell into a thoughtful silence, contemplating whether to kill this traitorous disciple immediately. "Just because he's rich?"

"Also because he's handsome. If they're not good-looking, we call them 'dad'," United Righteousness noted Wei Xi's disapproval and thought to himself that the wealthy really lived in a different world. He sighed. "Ah, nowadays, everything requires money – food, clothing, shelter, even going to the toilet. You can't expand your sect without money, right? Ordinary people can't get by without it."

Wei Xi had spent so many years in the mountains that he didn't really have an understanding of money despite watching Wei Dedao fiddle with the silver taels they had saved to rebuild their sect. Hearing Junjie's words, he was stunned. "Does it take a lot of money to strengthen a sect? I can take you to find a mountain... somewhere."

Junjie was momentarily lost. He glanced at the distant, delicate rooftops and trees outside the window and thought to himself, This is the capital, right? A mountain? Fragrant Hill? Jing Mountain? The Great Wall? Damn, did I randomly pick such an amazing master?

With a face full of shock, he stared at Wei Xi and muttered, "Husband..."

Wei Xi: "?"

Junjie shook his head vigorously and swallowed. "M-Master, would it be convenient for you to tell me how much startup capital our sect has?"

Wei Xi wondered what money had to do with it; wasn't defeating the original mountain lord enough? Nonetheless, he looked at the bamboo basket where he had stored all the coins he had earned since descending the mountain and counted them. "Four hundred."

Junjie: "..............."

Junjie thought to himself, I really should've known better.

He realized that his master must have grown up sheltered by his family, never wanting for anything and oblivious to the struggles of ordinary people. No wonder he could end up in rags after only a few months away from home.

Moreover, his master loved joking around. Presenting two bank checks as a prank, pretending they were worth two hundred yuan – even though Junjie lived on the lower rungs of society, he still watched TV dramas, okay?

But ten thousand yuan doesn't get you very far in Beijing.

It took him great effort to explain to this young master, who clearly had no experience with renting, the average cost of housing in the capital. Wei Xi was astonished by the figure. "Is it that expensive?"

"Not just that." Unity Righteous Heart, although inexperienced, saw founding a sect as similar to starting a business from scratch. He searched for a collection of information on Zhihu and explained each point to the other party. "Look, apart from rent, there are plenty of other miscellaneous expenses. You need to register officially, right? Otherwise, it would be considered an illegal operation, and the Industrial and Commercial Administration might come to investigate. Then there's furniture, tools, office equipment, renovations – which can be particularly costly – and labor costs. The average salary in the capital is quite high; I've heard that university graduates easily earn thousands or even tens of thousands per month. Even if you don't pay your disciples, the state now requires employers to provide social insurance and a housing fund..."

With each item he mentioned, it was as if a colossal mountain was pressing down upon Wei Xi's head. Despite his fearless nature, even he grew flustered by the end, muttering to himself, "How could the world have become so harsh?"

With a splitting headache that felt as if it would shatter his skull, Wei Chengshu stepped through the door of his home. Only upon seeing his beloved dog did the gloom on his face slightly alleviate.

"Mike." He waved his hand, unsure if it was just his imagination, but Mike seemed particularly listless today.

Wei Chengshu assumed that the creature was upset about his absence last night. Gently rubbing its fur in a circle, he suddenly noticed a patch of missing hair beside its head. He stroked the spot with his finger and asked, "Why is this area bald?"

Could it have a skin condition?

Upon hearing this question, Mike started wailing, as if it had an endless amount of grievances to vent.

"Second Young Master," Butler Zhou emerged upon hearing the noise, greeting him promptly and then hastening forward when he saw him. "The Eldest Young Master has returned."

Wei Chengshu nodded. "Where's he?"

Housekeeper Zhou replied, "Young Master is upstairs. Should I call for him?"

Wei Chengshu frowned, staring at the staircase. After a moment, he irritably ruffled his hair, unsure why he had rushed back home. "No need. Just get me something to eat. My head's killing me after all that drinking."

When the eldest young master had returned, the Wei family's nanny had barely done any work, only preparing some porridge. But now, faced with Second Young Master's request, they were all eager to please. Without waiting for Housekeeper Zhou's instructions, the cook rushed into the kitchen and immediately froze when she opened the fridge. "Where are the vegetables?!"

The refrigerated compartment was empty. All the produce and fruits she had bought that morning were gone, leaving only crumpled plastic bags and empty sauce bottles on the shelves. Thinking she could still make chicken soup, she opened the freezer, only to find it empty too. There wasn't even a frozen chicken left, let alone the Jinhua ham that had been consumed.

Hearing her exclamation, Housekeeper Zhou hurried over and panicked. "What have you done? You didn't prepare any vegetables?"

The nanny was both startled and frightened as she tried to explain. "That's not right. They were there this morning..."

Housekeeper Zhou had seen the contents of the fridge when she told the nanny that Young Master wanted a meal. It had been fully stocked, but the nanny hadn't touched anything, only taking out a salted duck egg because she didn't feel like serving the eldest young master. It was impossible for her to have misremembered.

Of course, Housekeeper Zhou didn't believe her and scolded her for her usual laziness at work.

Wei Chengshu was also stunned when he realized there were no ingredients at home. He was starving, but ordering takeout would take time. With no other choice, he rummaged through cupboards and drawers to find a dusty pack of instant noodles.

Returning home with a hangover, Wei Chengshu sat on the couch that Mike had scratched to pieces, feeling utterly frustrated. Mike, seemingly oblivious to his mood and extremely hungry, kept trying to dig into his noodles. When scolded, he stood by the coffee table and barked at him in protest.

Unable to eat amidst the commotion, he asked Butler Zhou, "Did you feed Mike today?"

Receiving an affirmative answer, Wei Chengshu still hesitated to give Mike an extra meal, considering the dog was already plump. However, Mike seemed highly dissatisfied, even throwing a tantrum, refusing to let Wei Chengshu touch him.

With no other choice, Wei Chengshu, who had spoiled the dog, reluctantly gave in, offering a small bag of biscuits. Yet, this didn't lift his spirits. He held his bowl of noodles for a long time but couldn't bring himself to take a bite.

Frustrated beyond measure, he couldn't pinpoint the source of his anger. When his older brother was home, his submissive demeanor annoyed him, but now that he had run away, Wei Chengshu was on the verge of madness.

His anger intensified, and he slammed down his chopsticks. Hearing some movement from the stairs, he angrily rose to his feet, ready to lash out. But as he looked up, he nearly froze in disbelief.

His usually impeccable and considerate older brother was now clad in tattered clothes, looking disheveled and unkempt, even barefoot. He carried a hammer nonchalantly, striding as if the road belonged to him.

Butler Zhou greeted him, but he merely acknowledged with a casual hum, not bothering to spare a glance as he passed by.

A young man with a grim expression suddenly blocked his path, and Wei Xi almost instinctively raised the hammer to strike him.

Fortunately, he recognized the resemblance to his little unlucky brother in the man's face, which prevented him from acting on his impulse. However, he had little patience for humans, so he simply gazed at the man coldly and asked, "What do you want?"

Wei Chengshu stared intently at his older brother's disrespectful behavior, "What's wrong with you?"

"What's wrong?" Wei Xi pushed him away, "Move aside, I have things to do."

Stunned, Wei Chengshu was pushed aside, watching as his brother walked past with a hammer in hand, without the usual warm greeting or the subsequent dismissive huff that followed.

In Wei Chengshu's memories, Wei Xi always had a smile on his face, whether it was a gentle smile, a wry one, or a helpless one. He never displayed this impatient and indifferent demeanor.

Although he had learned from his mother's phone call that his brother had changed, even daring to smash their father's phone, a device he once wouldn't raise his voice near, he had assumed it was just a brief eruption of pent-up frustration. He never imagined the transformation would be so profound.

Could it be that under his older brother's years of endurance, this was his true nature?

Manager Zhou whispered discreetly, "Young Master, Eldest Master has been like this since he returned. It's not aimed at you; he probably had a tough time during the past three months and has been affected."

Wei Chengshu stood there in a daze for a moment before suddenly rushing after his brother, "Where are you going?!"

Wei Xi found his younger brother's endless questions annoying, but unable to eat him, he replied patiently, "I'm going to nail the sect's sign at the entrance."

In fact, he was quite reluctant to do so. He had planned to find a mountain to settle down, but who would have thought that the rent, prices, and labor costs in the capital city would be sky-high? His savings were far from enough to purchase a mountain, and even renting a place was a tight squeeze. After much searching, the only suitable option turned out to be this free little house belonging to the Wei family.

Wei Chengshu's anger was momentarily stunned by this answer, his mind filled with question marks.

Housekeeper Zhou wore a wry smile. "Young Master Two, Young Master One just instructed us to find an ax and planks. He wants to establish a sect called Ta… something Zong at home."

For the first time, Wei Chengshu felt that his intelligence was insufficient. What on earth was going on? "What does that mean? Are you planning to run a business at home? Father won't agree to it."

Wei Xi had already claimed this territory as his own and paid no heed. "It's none of his damn business. This will be the cave abode of my Taicang Sect from now on."

Wei Chengshu nearly lost his ability to think as he listened to his older brother mention their father with such disregard. Suddenly, he heard a howling dog, and his own Husky, Unity Righteousness, ran into his field of vision.

Unity Righteousness, still on edge from the earlier conflict, couldn't help but seek conversation. "Master, those cookies you gave me were pretty tasty. What brand are they?"

Wei Xi replied nonchalantly, "I don't know. Mike gave them to me."

Unity Righteousness wondered who Mike was; the name sounded foreign and somewhat familiar. Just then, he heard the voice of the person who had just argued with his master behind him. "Mike!"

Without thinking, he turned around and saw the silver-gray giant dog he had encountered earlier in the morning running swiftly towards him.

Assuming that his dog was about to act up as it usually did in front of his elder brother, Wei Chengshu subconsciously tried to stop it after the recent shock.

To his surprise, the dog that had just been bickering with him skidded to a halt before Wei Xi. It then started wagging its tail wildly and, with small steps, approached the shoe cabinet by the entrance. From there, it fetched a pair of slippers and placed them precisely beside Wei Xi's bare feet.

Staring at his usually clueless dog that couldn't even coordinate to shake hands, Wei Chengshu was speechless: "......."

Mike lowered its body, wiggling its butt as it wagged its tail so vigorously that its entire rear end was swaying. Wei Xi looked down at it calmly for a moment before finally extending a hand as if bestowing a favor.

Mike, who had just been refusing Wei Chengshu's touch, now acted as if it had received an immense blessing. Its big head eagerly leaned into the hand, pushing against it. Overwhelmed with joy, the dog began bouncing around, grinning with its tongue lolling out. Suddenly, it seemed to remember something and froze as if a pause button had been pressed. It turned around and ran away.

In just a couple of seconds, Mike returned like a bolt of lightning, carrying a bag in its mouth. It offered the item to Wei Xi as an appeasement.

Looking at the bag of dog biscuits he had given to Mike not long ago, Wei Chengshu was at a loss for words: "............"

Unity Yi: "............"

What kind of karma have I accumulated?