Orphan

"Which sect were you from before?"

"No sect, no affiliation."

"Where's your family?"

"My ancestral home is beyond the Pass."

Hua Rongyue acted on impulse and paid a heavy price for it. Now, she sat upright before Yan Sheng, honestly recounting her background. — Of course, Yan Sheng wasn't interrogating a criminal at the moment.

He wasn't even wearing his official robes. It seemed he had merely passed by Baicao Hall today, heard some commotion, and decided to come in to take a look— just in time to witness the scene.

He was now quietly sitting there, sipping tea, without any intention of holding anyone accountable. After all, Doctor Qi and Wan Fulián had already explained the situation to Yan Sheng in hushed tones.

The broken counter was still on the ground, surrounded by dust and wood debris. Everything was crystal clear. No matter how you looked at it, this incident couldn't be blamed on Hua Rongyue.

If anything, Xiao Han bore more responsibility. Xiao Han had initially been crouching off to the side, but after receiving repeated meaningful glances from Wan Fulián, he had slipped away.

"You couldn't just detain Hua Rongyue because she knew martial arts. Why not? Hua Rongyue had made it clear on her first day here. —"I used to roam the jianghu for a while."

Everyone in the clinic knew this, and Yan Sheng had just heard it from Doctor Qi as well. Hua Rongyue was straightforward and had no intention of hiding anything.

Incidentally, Doctor Qi used to chuckle whenever this was mentioned. Now, his expression was... A bit hard to describe. Of course, if Hua Rongyue said something wrong at this moment, Yan Sheng, who was quietly sipping tea, would definitely not maintain this calm demeanor.

This was not an easy situation to bluff through. After all, Yan Sheng specialized in this field— seeing through lies was as natural to him as drinking water.

Hua Rongyue wasn't foolish enough to attempt lying to someone who might someday become the head of the Six Doors. That would not only be easily exposed but would also invite suspicion about why she felt the need to lie.

Still, Hua Rongyue had some wiggle room to maneuver— after all, she wasn't truly Yi Linglong. Before coming here, she had been an ordinary civil servant.

Two intertwined stories of her background could be mixed and matched. She could choose whichever fit the situation best. Since both were true, Hua Rongyue felt more confident.

For the first time in her life, she lied so smoothly. Even so, she couldn't help feeling a bit nervous inside. Hua Rongyue forced herself to stay calm. Yan Sheng kept his head down, sipping tea without any discernible expression.

Hua Rongyue couldn't tell whether he believed her or not. At least for now, he hadn't shown any strong reaction or detained her outright, which suggested everything was fine.

"Didn't you say before that you had no interest in the jianghu?" Yan Sheng asked.

Hua Rongyue replied, "Yes."

"That's rare." Yan Sheng set down his teacup. "With your skills, you could have made quite a name for yourself in the jianghu. Why would you end up in such a small place?"

This was clearly an inquiry into her background. If she didn't answer well, trouble might follow. In other words— this was a question that required extreme caution.

How should she respond to this seemingly innocuous but actually quite tricky question?

Hua Rongyue stared at the tabletop, silent for a moment.

She didn't say something lofty like "life is about striving" or "the jianghu is too perilous."

Instead, she offered a response that sounded dismissive to outsiders: "Because I'm tired and wanted to rest."

With this one sentence, Yan Sheng, who had been about to ask more questions, suddenly swallowed his words. He looked at Hua Rongyue, and even his perpetually stern face showed a hint of melancholy.

Whatever he imagined as he stared at Hua Rongyue, who was gazing down at the table, he lowered his head and silently took another sip of tea. The jianghu was a place where countless events unfolded daily.

Many entered it, and many left, each for their own reasons. Among the reasons for leaving, Tiredness was not uncommon, yet it was one of those explanations that left people speechless.

Moreover, it was a reason frequently given by those who were skilled but chose to leave the jianghu.

While Hua Rongyue and Yan Sheng were engaged in their subtle battle of wits, Doctor Qi and Wan Fulián were busy cleaning up the counter that had just been smashed, whispering to each other as they worked.

"What do you think Hua Rongyue's background really is?" Even though Hua Rongyue had been here for two months, the two of them still felt as if they were meeting him for the first time.

"How would I know? I don't even know martial arts."

"But you read those storybooks all the time. Can't you make a guess based on them?"

"Me? I read storybooks; I'm not a real heroine." Wan Fulián looked exasperated.

Still, she turned to sneak a glance at Hua Rongyue before whispering to Doctor Qi, "I think Rongyue might have quite the background. Think about what we thought when he first arrived."

"What did we think?"

Doctor Qi was momentarily puzzled by Wan Fulián's words, but then he suddenly remembered their initial impressions of Hua Rongyue. Back then, Hua Rongyue hadn't yet shown her reliable side.

Doctor Qi and Wan Fulián had privately discussed her, and it was Doctor Qi who first suggested that Hua Rongyue seemed like someone who had escaped from a wealthy family.

As a doctor, he often made house calls to affluent households. The way wealthy families sought medical treatment differed from ordinary ones. Ordinary people came to the clinic, while the wealthy summoned doctors to their homes.

Having encountered various powerful and influential individuals, Doctor Qi's first impression of Hua Rongyue was that she resembled someone from a wealthy family— a gut feeling.

But as Hua Rongyue proved herself to be exceedingly capable, even more reliable than Doctor Qi and Wan Fulián, he had forgotten about this initial impression.

Now that Wan Fulián brought it up, he remembered it again.

"Hey, what do you think?" Doctor Qi suddenly had a bold guess, and his expression turned peculiar.

Wan Fulián, noticing his strange look, felt a bit uneasy and asked, "Master, what are you thinking?"

Doctor Qi hesitated for a moment, seemingly uncertain about his own speculation. But he eventually beckoned Wan Fulián to lean in closer and whispered in her ear, "Do you think... He might be a disciple of some martial arts family?"

Wan Fulián gasped but then showed an expression of sudden realization.

A martial arts family— a rather broad concept. To give a simple and common example: "XX Manor."

Generally, if someone introduced themselves with this format, you could almost assume they were from a martial arts family. The status of the family could then be inferred from what "XX" represented.

If "XX" was something elegant but not particularly distinctive, like "Clear Breeze" or "Willow," it was likely an ordinary family. If it was "Ten Thousand Plum Blossoms," you might want to kneel; if it was "No Strife," you'd better start running.

And if "XX" was "Hidden Sword," you'd better immediately buy a husky for self-defense.

See, the various life-saving tidbits of knowledge about the jianghu were accumulated over time.

However, there was always a divide between ordinary people and jianghu folk. Some things were crystal clear to those in the jianghu, who kept them in mind while navigating its dangers. But for ordinary people, such knowledge was distant and obscure. Doctor Qi thought for a long time but couldn't figure out which manor Hua Rongyue might be from. In fact, he probably didn't even recognize most of the manors in the jianghu.

Wan Fulián knew a bit more, but her understanding came from storybooks. If she were to present these as facts in front of two obvious insiders, she'd probably feel embarrassed.

The refined gentleman, warm and gentle like jade. Just based on Hua Rongyue’s demeanor, he indeed carried that air about him. With this comparison, Wan Fulian and Doctor Qi actually felt that their earlier speculation wasn’t far from the truth. Although he was from the martial world, he must be a genuine young master from an esteemed family.

The way the two of them looked at Hua Rongyue instantly changed.

Doctor Qi and Wan Fulian discussed the matter for quite a while, but in the end, it was all just conjecture. Meanwhile, Hua Rongyue and Yan Sheng continued chatting, and somehow, their conversation naturally drifted to this topic.

“Do you have any friends?”

Hua Rongyue thought about Yi Linglong’s social connections and answered honestly, “I have friends, but not many.”

“What about your family?”

Doctor Qi and Wan Fulian had just been discussing this topic earlier, and now, hearing Yan Sheng ask the same question, their curiosity peaked. They immediately perked up their ears, eager to hear Hua Rongyue’s answer. Would it confirm their guess that he was a young master from a martial family?

— A young master from a martial family! That identity sounded far more intriguing than just an ordinary noble young master.

Hua Rongyue was speechless. Doctor Qi and Wan Fulian had been whispering and muttering to themselves, thinking no one could hear them. But she could guarantee that every single word they said had reached Yan Sheng’s ears, which was why he was now asking her this question.

She saw it clearly. When Doctor Qi mentioned the term “martial family,” Yan Sheng’s eyebrow had twitched slightly, and his gaze toward her had gained a few more layers of scrutiny.

Hua Rongyue looked at Yan Sheng’s expression with a hint of helplessness. Could it be that he actually believed this explanation?

“You’re quite knowledgeable about calligraphy and painting, aren’t you?” Yan Sheng asked.

Hua Rongyue instantly caught onto Yan Sheng’s train of thought. Doctor Qi and Wan Fulian weren’t very familiar with the martial world, but Yan Sheng was different.

He had undoubtedly just searched his mind for all the martial families in the Jianghu, then based on Hua Rongyue’s age, background, appearance, and skills, he had made a judgment about her identity.

— The eldest son of Lingyu Manor, Ji Mingyu.

Ji Mingyu had disappeared about a year ago. Before his disappearance, his knowledge, methods, and looks were among the best of his peers. Lingyu Manor was also a renowned family in the martial world, famous for their expertise in wielding blades. To this day, no one knew why Ji Mingyu had vanished— it was a mystery. People in the martial world were well aware that the members of Lingyu Manor were famously passionate about calligraphy and painting.

However, Hua Rongyue knew the truth: Ji Mingyu was already dead. Someone had paid a high price to Tianyi Tower to secretly purchase Ji Mingyu’s head. By the time Hua Rongyue found out, Ji Mingyu was beyond saving.

Not long after, the person who had killed Ji Mingyu was also killed by Ji Mingyu’s enemies. Such was the way of the martial world— it had always been like this.

Hua Rongyue looked at the cup in her hands, warm against her palms. Ji Mingyu… an excellent identity.

The age matched, the appearance matched, and not many people knew him. Lingyu Manor now only had an old manor lord left, who rarely stepped outside. This place was far from Lingyu Manor, and the assassin who had killed Ji Mingyu was already dead. In other words, there was no one here who could recognize Ji Mingyu.

Yan Sheng observed Hua Rongyue for a while. She exuded a calm and trustworthy aura that was difficult to describe.

Some people, even when dressed in expensive and formal attire, still gave off an air of pretense. But Hua Rongyue was different.

Thanks to Yi Linglong’s extraordinary height and her composed, dignified features, sometimes she only needed to stand there simply to give the impression that she was in control of the situation. This kind of presence was exceedingly rare, which led Yan Sheng to conclude that she must come from a good background.

For someone like her, being a young master from an esteemed family wouldn’t be surprising at all.

But after a moment, Hua Rongyue smiled and said, “I know what you’re thinking, but I’m an orphan. I was abandoned by my parents right after I was born.”

Yan Sheng was slightly stunned upon hearing an answer so completely different from what he had imagined. Even Doctor Qi and Wan Fuli, who had been eavesdropping, were equally taken aback.

Based on Yan Sheng’s personal experience, however, he could sense that Hua Rongyue wasn’t lying. This surprised him greatly, but out of consideration for her feelings, he didn’t let it show.

Hua Rongyue’s attitude was quite straightforward, but Yan Sheng couldn’t help but think more deeply.

What he pondered wasn’t Hua Rongyue’s identity, but something else entirely.

The world was truly peculiar. He had encountered countless offspring of high-ranking officials and wealthy families, yet many of them were like mud that couldn’t stick to the wall. And here was Hua Rongyue, with her calm demeanor and noble air— nothing about her suggested she was an orphan abandoned at birth by her parents.

— This thing called presence, truly, is something rare and unattainable.

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