They all became female demons after being reborn.

Chapter 97 No Regrets for Killing My Father

Yuan Congwen!

Wu Cheng was quite interested in this person.

He stood up with a smile and said to Shen Yeshu and Fei Yuan, "It's a good opportunity to see if this person is as I think. Please don't rush to make a move later."

Shen Yeshu smiled and nodded, while Fei Yuan remained expressionless and showed no reaction.

Shortly after, footsteps could be heard on the stairs.

The footsteps sounded steady, but the underlying tension was impossible to conceal.

Then the footsteps stopped at the door, and there were three knocks on the door, neither too loud nor too soft.

Wu Cheng went over and opened the door, where he saw a fair-skinned young man in his early twenties dressed in fine clothes.

This temperament is different from the Yuan Congwen that Wu Cheng remembered, but after all, Yuan Congwen was wearing the outer disciple's clothes of the Wentian Sect back then, and he was already dead.

A dead person naturally has no charisma, but Wu Cheng wouldn't mistake this face.

That's right, it's Yuan Congwen.

He stood outside the door, his folding fan already closed.

Seeing the door open, he cupped his hands in greeting to Wu Cheng, revealing a standard playboy smile. "This young master looks unfamiliar. You're not a local of Luoyang, are you? I am Yuan Congwen, and my father is the magistrate of Luoyang! Someone saw that your entourage had an extraordinary bearing, so they came to pay their respects."

Wu Cheng smiled and stepped aside to let people in, gesturing for them to enter. "Young Master Yuan, please come in."

Yuan Congwen stepped across the threshold, his gaze lingering briefly on the faces of Fei Yuan, Shen Yeshu, and Qing Que. Their appearances and demeanor made him freeze in place.

But he quickly looked away and sat down at the table, staring straight at Wu Cheng. "May I ask your surname, young master?"

"My surname is Wu."

"Young Master Wu." Yuan Congwen nodded, snapping open his folding fan. "May I ask where Young Master Wu and his party have come from?"

"What brings you to Luoyang? If you need any help, just ask. There's nothing in Luoyang that I, Yuan Congwen, cannot handle."

Wu Cheng didn't answer his question, but poured him a cup of tea, then poured one for himself and took a sip.

Yuan Congwen didn't take the teacup; he kept staring at Wu Cheng.

Wu Cheng suddenly laughed, "Young Master Yuan, this isn't how you pretend to be a playboy."

Yuan Congwen's face paled, and his eyes showed some panic. "I don't understand what Young Master Wu is talking about."

Wu Cheng slowly twirled the teacup in his hand. "A true playboy wouldn't kick people out and offer to pay for everyone's meals, nor would he need to personally go upstairs and knock on doors; he could simply send a servant."

"Besides, if the target is my companions, they wouldn't be afraid to look at them when they enter. But if the target isn't them, there's no need for them to deliberately try to get close to me."

"Besides, the first thing a spoiled brat does after sitting down is cross his legs; he wouldn't be so nervous as to forget to pick up his teacup."

Yuan Congwen fell silent. Then he sat up straight, his hands folded on his knees, looking as upright as a well-behaved student being called upon by the teacher to recite his lessons. "Young Master Wu has a good eye."

Wu Cheng, unhurried and direct, took the initiative, asking, "So, what brings Young Master Yuan to see me?"

Yuan Congwen didn't speak, but just sighed.

Wu Cheng raised an eyebrow slightly. "Does Young Master Yuan know me?"

"I didn't know you before, but I left my eyes and ears here. The person said that you are all quite extraordinary, so I came here to meet you."

"And upon seeing them, it was indeed so. With such beauty, these young ladies were able to travel unscathed, they must be extremely capable, and moreover..."

Yuan Congwen suddenly gave a bitter smile, "Now I also know the young master's identity."

3

"Because my surname is Wu?"

"It's also because I saw your portrait not long ago."

Wu Cheng stroked the teacup in his hand and said slowly, "So, Young Master Yuan, as an outer disciple of the Wentian Sect, rushed back to Luoyang because you learned that I was to be plotted against with your life, and you hesitated because you were unwilling to accept it, right?"

Yuan Congwen's pupils contracted sharply, and he even subconsciously moved his stool, making a sound. "I don't understand what you mean, young master."

Seeing his distracted look, Wu Cheng felt a surge of satisfaction.

Is this what is meant by the "wise man's" "divine foresight"?

Before he transmigrated, he had heard people complain about puppet shows and similar works, saying that all this talk about wisdom was just a matter of reading the script beforehand! When asked, he said he had expected it all along.

For him now, it's just like reading a script!

"Heh, you, the only son of the magistrate of Luoyang, why would you willingly become an outer disciple of the Wentian Sect? Because you were forced into it." Wu Cheng's tone quickened and became aggressive. "Why? Because the Fourth Prince of the current dynasty is to be sent to the Wentian Sect, and your father received orders from someone else to kill that Fourth Prince. If your father wants to get away with it, he needs to kill his only son as well, so that he can clear his name."

"And you were unwilling to accept this, which is why you came to me."

"No! That's not it!" Yuan Congwen suddenly looked up. "I know I was born into such a family, and everything we need depends on my father. That's why he wants me to die to save the Yuan family. I... this is the responsibility I should bear..."

"Then why doesn't your father take responsibility?" Wu Cheng began to whisper. "Think about it, the assassination of the prince was the karma your father created, why should you bear the consequences? Did you also want to kill the prince?"

Yuan Congwen quickly shook his head, "Of course I cannot kill the prince! But the father's fault lies with the son's filial impiety, I..."

'

"Since ancient times, loyalty and filial piety have been difficult to reconcile, and this is the true embodiment of loyalty and filial piety." Wu Cheng continued to entice, "Young Master Yuan, think about it. If your father is allowed to act willfully, will he have a good ending in the future? Let alone whether they can kill the Fourth Prince, even if they do succeed, won't your family end up like a cunning rabbit being killed and its hunting dog being cooked?"

"But if we can resolve your father's problem, as an outer disciple of the Wentian Sect, you will have the ability to set things right. In the future, your Yuan family will be able to grow and prosper without being implicated by your father. Isn't that killing two birds with one stone?"

Yuan Congwen was quite interested.

He never wanted to die, nor did he want to use Xue Jianren. Besides, this was for the Yuan family, and most importantly... he had now personally witnessed the supposedly pure-hearted fourth prince.

But the other party was logical and clear, and even made a lot of sense.

How terrifying must a prince be to feign ignorance and hide for sixteen years?

Since there are so many benefits, why not just invest!

Upon having this thought, Yuan Congwen suddenly felt the vastness of the world.

He let out a long breath, his shoulders slumped, and he looked as if he had taken off a suit of armor that he had been carrying for too long.

"Your Highness," Yuan Congwen said, dropping all pretense, "I am good friends with Xue Jianren, the son of Xue Baichuan, the garrison commander of Hulao Pass. Although he and I were both outer disciples, he has now joined the Sword Pavilion."

He suddenly lowered his voice, "Although Junior Brother Xue is not very bright, he is a good person. It's just that he probably doesn't know that my father sent me up the mountain so that he could use him one day."

"It's not too late to realize your mistake now."

Wu Cheng glanced at Yuan Congwen's hand holding the fan.

Those hands were very fair and clean, with no calluses on the fingertips from martial arts training, but there was a very thin and shallow callus on the base of the thumb.

This person was essentially a scholar, but he was forced into a role that he shouldn't have played.

Wu Cheng asked, "Young Master Yuan, how much do you know about what your father and the Prince of Yu are planning?"

Yuan Congwen hesitated for a moment, then lowered his voice, "They want to get rid of you, and after it's done, they'll frame the Xue family of Hulao Pass for forcing Xue Baichuan to rebel, and then they can use that as a pretext to get rid of Xue Baichuan."

"My father said that as soon as Xue Baichuan dies, the military forces at Hulao Pass will be reshuffled, and then the Prince of Yu's men will be able to take over Hulao Pass."

Wu Cheng asked, "Where will your father and Prince Yu be tonight?"

Yuan Congwen hesitated.

Wu Cheng said in a low voice, "Young Master Yuan, your father's affairs have nothing to do with you. Your father is the magistrate of Luoyang, and you are Yuan Congwen, an outer disciple of the Wentian Sect."

"People can't choose their birth, but they can choose what kind of person they become. The fact that you don't want to harm Xue Jianren or do those despicable things for your father shows that your moral compass is still intact."

"Your father's ambition is his own, not your responsibility. You can't possibly be buried with him, can you?"

Yuan Congwen's expression shifted between light and dark. Suddenly, he gritted his teeth, looked up, and said, "They will be having a banquet at the Prince Yu's residence tonight, but I don't know what they'll be saying."

After saying that, he stood up and turned to leave, but when he reached the door, he suddenly turned back. "Your Highness, please give my father... a dignified end."

Wu Cheng nodded, "Of course."

"...Thank you!"

After Yuan Congwen walked away, Shen Yeshu pondered, "In the end, he's just a spoiled brat who can be turned by a few words."

"He wasn't turned," Wu Cheng shook his head. "He was never on his father's side to begin with. He just needed a reason, a reason to feel that he wasn't betraying his father but doing the right thing."

He paused, then said, "Tonight, we'll take care of my cheap third brother and our Lord Magistrate of Luoyang together!"