Wasn't he supposed to be beaten to death? Why did this powerful cousin love him so much?

The servant was stunned for a moment, but quickly realized that the Third Young Master did not know about the cousin. When she came, the Third Young Master had just left home and was not in the manor.

The servant carefully chose his words and said vaguely, "She is the niece of the second wife's concubine, Sun. She came to stay with us a few days ago, and the second madam let her stay in the mansion."

"Aunt Sun's niece?" Xie Yao raised an eyebrow, his tone carrying undisguised astonishment and a hint of disdain.

"She's just a relative of an aunt, and you're behaving so improperly."

He thought it was some respectable cousin.

I thought it was...

Xie Yao paused for a moment, then continued walking forward. After a couple of steps, he casually asked, "What does that young lady look like?"

The servant thought to himself, "You dare ask me? I dare not answer."

To say it's not good-looking would be a lie.

Saying it looks good would be disrespectful to Miss Biao.

The servant chuckled twice and stammered, "This...this servant dares not say."

"You dare not say?" Xie Yao didn't stop walking. He glanced at the servant and saw him shrinking his neck, looking like he was avoiding the situation at all costs. He immediately understood.

Such "unable to speak" must mean she is so ugly that she is ashamed to admit it, an ugly monster, a woman without salt.

Xie Yao thought to himself conceitedly, what kind of good looks could someone be that even the servants dared not comment on?

"Alright, you can go now." Xie Yao waved his hand, dismissing the servant, and then strolled leisurely through the alley towards his own courtyard.

Just as they reached the corner of the alley, they bumped into Xie Ping, Xie Jue's bodyguard.

Upon seeing Xie Yao, Xie Ping immediately bowed respectfully and said, "Third Young Master, the Eldest Young Master is waiting for you in the study."

Xie Yao's lazy smile froze for a moment.

Is his older brother waiting for him in the study?

This is not a good sign.

The eldest brother's study is usually only used for serious business, or... to reprimand people.

He quickly went through all the messes he'd recently made in his mind.

This time it's because he won a small amount of money at the casino last night?

Or was it because he had a few words with that boy from the Li family the day before yesterday over a song girl?

It doesn't seem like it would warrant his elder brother waiting for him in the study.

Could it be... about the Jin Guan Lou incident?

But it's impossible for the news to reach the eldest brother's ears so quickly, right?

He just got home!

Xie Yao was nervous, but he had to maintain a nonchalant demeanor on the surface.

Xie Yao cleared his throat and waved to Xie Ping, "Understood."

But his feet involuntarily changed direction, and he walked towards the study, which he had always been afraid of since childhood.

The closer Xie Yao got to the study, the more nervous he became, and even the slight smell of alcohol on his body seemed to subside a bit.

He stopped outside the study door, breathed on it a few times, and smelled it. It didn't seem to smell like alcohol.

Xie Yao took a deep breath before gently knocking twice on the door and calmly saying, "Big Brother."

"Come in." A voice from inside, devoid of any discernible emotion, came from Xie Jue.

Xie Yao pushed open the door and entered.

The study was filled with the scent of fine pine resin, and a jade lamp on the desk emitted a soft glow.

Xie Jue sat behind his desk, pen in hand, reviewing some official document, without looking up.

He was dressed in casual clothes, but his straight back and the calm aura around him made him appear even more profound and imposing than when he was wearing riding gear during the day.

"Big Brother." Xie Yao greeted him respectfully, like a student meeting a teacher, standing a few steps away from the desk.

It's like waiting to be tested on your homework when you were a child.

Xie Jue then slowly put down his pen, raised his head, and asked, "Was the wine at Jin Guan Lou enjoyable?"

Xie Yao's heart skipped a beat.

really!

That's it!

Wow, bro, your news comes so fast!

Xie Yao's mind raced, his face beaming as he tried to gloss over the situation with his usual witty remarks: "Big brother's got a great head start. It was just a small gathering with some friends, we had a couple of drinks, nothing else..."

"A small gathering?" Xie Jue's tone was indifferent, yet carried an invisible pressure. "Having reached the point where it would cost three thousand taels of silver to redeem someone from prostitution?"

Xie Yao's smile froze, and a thin layer of sweat instantly seeped out from his back.

My dear brother, I'm truly impressed by you. How do you know the exact number so clearly?!

Xie Yaoqian chuckled twice and said, "Big brother, well... I just felt sorry for her."

Xie Jue looked at him but didn't speak immediately.

The study was eerily quiet.

After a long pause, Xie Jue slowly asked, "What are the rules of the Xie family?"

Xie Yao's heart skipped a beat, and he replied, "Members of the Xie family are forbidden from visiting prostitutes or taking concubines."

This is also why Xie Jue allowed Xie Yao to go to those places to have fun.

Xie Yao was clear about what he could and couldn't do.

Although they were brothers, their personalities were completely different. One was quiet and the other was lively. One achieved the highest rank in the imperial examinations, while the other failed to even become a scholar.

People of noble birth like them could enter officialdom through hereditary privilege without having to take the imperial examinations.

However, one's career path may be limited by not having a formal academic background.

That's why Xie Jue personally took part in the event.

As for his two brothers, Xie Jue originally intended to make arrangements for Xie Yao and Xie Huaizhang, but one of them was unwilling to become an official, while the other wanted to follow Xie Jue's example and take the imperial examination to obtain a proper official position.

Xie Jue glanced at him and said, "It's good that you remember, but frequenting brothels, indulging in sensual pleasures, and drinking excessively—is that how you should behave?"

Xie Yao lowered his head after being scolded, not daring to argue: "Big brother is right, I will pay attention in the future."

Xie Jue didn't speak. Xie Yao had already said "be careful in the future" countless times.