Chapter 28: Greedy for Wealth and Profit (Please add to favorites and keep reading)

“Uncle.” Wei Tu knew his second aunt Wei Hong’s temperament well, so he was not particularly surprised. After glancing at Master Huang before him, he cupped his hands in greeting, formally accepting this kinship.

By conventional standards, given Wei Hong’s status—even if she hadn't previously been "snobbish"—he, as a nephew through a concubine, had no right to call Master Huang "uncle."

The only ones entitled to call Master Huang "uncle" were the children of his wife's siblings. To claim such a relation haphazardly would be a breach of social hierarchy and etiquette.

While Wei Tu himself did not care whether he was officially connected to Master Huang, if calling him "uncle" could benefit his second aunt, he was more than willing to do so. It was a small matter that cost him nothing.

Since ancient times, it has been easy to add flowers to a bouquet, but difficult to provide charcoal in the snow.

The investment and help provided by the Li family and Li Yaozu mostly fell into the former category. Though he felt gratitude and held a sense of appreciation, it was not profound. Once he had repaid those favors, he would have no further ties to the Li family.

However, despite Wei Hong’s disdain for her nephew from her maiden family three years ago—even hinting that "all sentiment had been exhausted"—she had still granted his request to let Martial Master Ruan teach him the Health Cultivation Arts.

This, however, was no different from providing charcoal in the snow. At the very least, when Wei Hong made that decision, she was acting out of familial affection rather than seeking any reward from him.

***

The City God Temple.

On the plaza in front of the main temple.

Upon hearing Wei Tu call him "uncle," a faint smile appeared on Master Huang’s face as he responded.

"Young Master Wei, come to my home with your uncle. I shall host a banquet to celebrate your good news," Master Huang repeated what Wei Hong had just said.

He had originally thought that once Wei Tu achieved fame and success, he would be "difficult to deal with," harboring resentment due to the Huang family's previous estrangement from him. He had not expected Wei Tu to acknowledge the kinship so quickly.

To be so tactful...

*As expected, those who understand the times are the truly wise,* Master Huang thought to himself.

A martial artist from a humble background, even with excellent constitution and innate strength, would find it difficult to reach the end of the martial examinations and achieve official status. The fact that Wei Tu had lacked a master's guidance had already become a consensus among the local gentry.

According to Master Huang's speculation, Wei Tu's current attempt to curry favor with his "uncle" was likely to secure a bright future from the Huang family, or perhaps to use the Huang family's wealth to hire a renowned master to compensate for his shortcomings.

However, Master Huang did not mind. Money could be earned again, but finding a martial artist who was both a relative and possessed excellent physical potential was no easy feat.

*If I nurture him well, once he succeeds in his martial arts and achieves official rank, he will be a great asset to the expansion of our Huang family...*

With such thoughts, Master Huang invited Wei Tu into his carriage.

"Is that the country bumpkin who asked for the Health Cultivation Arts back then?"

On the other side, seeing Wei Tu enter the carriage, the overlooked Martial Master Ruan finally recalled his memory of the young man.

His brow furrowed deeply; he found it difficult to reconcile the martial artist who had just achieved a top-tier score in the stone-lifting event with the impoverished country youth in his memory. The gap between the two was simply too vast.

"My... my scores in every category of skill and courage were inferior to his, even in his worst category, the blade dance..." Thinking of this, Martial Master Ruan felt a surge of indignation, his fists tightening instinctively.

After Wei Tu's stunning performance in the stone-lifting event had captivated the onlookers—the commoners, gentry, and officials alike—the other martial artists participating in the examinations had paid intense attention to his subsequent scores in every category.

Had Wei Tu been a stranger, he would have felt mere envy toward a successful martial artist. But unfortunately... he knew Wei Tu.

Furthermore, he had shown contempt toward Wei Tu when the latter had sought his guidance. Instead of following Wei Hong's instructions to personally teach him the Health Cultivation Arts, he had simply tossed him a manual and dismissed him.

"Had I known it would come to this, I should have taken him as a registered disciple and taught him a few moves..." Martial Master Ruan was filled with regret.

If news of this reached the outside world, he would surely be mocked by the martial artists in the county town, and he might even be dismissed by the Huang family. Judging by Master Huang's current emphasis on Wei Tu, if Wei Tu were to utter even a single disrespectful word or complaint, he would likely be sent packing from the Huang residence by tomorrow.

*I must admit my mistake and apologize; I just hope he isn't the type to hold a grudge,* Martial Master Ruan thought privately as he followed the Huang family carriage.

***

Half an hour later.

The Huang Residence.

Inside an exquisite pavilion.

"Qinghe, where is the gift Young Master Wei sent me three years ago? I want to see it," Wei Hong commanded, rushing back into her room.

"Second Mistress, who is Young Master Wei? And... what gift?" Seeing Wei Hong's anxious expression, Qinghe's heart tightened, and she hurriedly pressed for details.

"It was..." Wei Hong thought for a moment and said, "A gift box sent over three years ago. It should be a brocade box from that rouge shop in the west of the city."

"The rouge shop in the west?" Qinghe muttered to herself as she entered the inner chamber and began rummaging through the cabinets.

After the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Qinghe seemed to remember something. She stood on her tiptoes, retrieved a dusty brocade box from the top of a wooden cabinet, and placed it on the table.

"Second Mistress, is it this one?" Qinghe asked.

"That's the one."

A look of joy appeared on Wei Hong's face. She took the box from Qinghe, tore away the wax paper seal, opened it, and took out a small container of rouge.

"Is this actually Golden Swallow Rouge?" Wei Hong was astonished by the color of the rouge and the scent she caught from it.

This time, she had returned to her room to retrieve the gift to get a sense of what it was, hoping to avoid any awkwardness during their upcoming conversation. But upon opening the box, she realized that the rouge Wei Tu had sent her was not some cheap trinket, but the expensive Golden Swallow Rouge.

A box of Golden Swallow Rouge cost five taels of silver, which was roughly equivalent to two months' wages for one of her maids.

Without a doubt, this had been a significant gift.

Wei Hong felt a sense of shame, feeling that she had perhaps been too harsh toward her maiden family in the past.

***

Meanwhile, in the living room of the Huang residence.

Master Huang was hosting Wei Tu, having a maid brew a pot of fragrant tea and inviting him to partake.

"This tea is Pre-Ming Cloud Mist Tea. After being brewed three times, the tea mist hangs over the cup like actual clouds..."

"Such fine tea costs three taels of silver for a single tael. If Young Master Wei had not come today, I certainly would not have had the maids brew such fine tea for hospitality..." Master Huang picked up his teacup, used the lid to gently skim off the floating froth, took a sip, and spoke with a smile.

Regarding people like Wei Tu—those who loved wealth and sought prosperity from the Huang family—Master Huang had long developed a method of dealing with them: using extravagance to display his wealth, thereby tempting them to pledge their loyalty to him.

As he finished speaking, Wei Tu's brow furrowed slightly. After a moment of thought, he lifted the lid of his teacup, took a shallow sip, and set it back on the tea table.

Then, his gaze drifted toward the calligraphy and paintings hanging on both sides of the living room, appearing entirely uninterested in Master Huang's conversation.