“No… no… Cui-Cui, what are you saying? Didn’t you say that you loved me and willingly wanted to give yourself to me? Didn’t you-“

Fang Zheng got no further as Uncle slapped him again. Even if Fang Zheng had gu worms on him he would not have dared to use them at that moment. That was how deeply he had been indoctrinated to fear the two of them.

“Silence! Insolent brat- to think that not only did your aunt and I take you in, feed and shelter you, and even adopt you as our own son- only for you to do this kind of crime!? From now on, we are disowning you! Consider our relationship to be finished!”

“Indeed, husband, we don’t need this kind of son! I had always regretted that we had no one to carry on our bloodline- but it’s better that we had no children than to have a child like Fang Zheng!”

Fang Zheng protested. “Mother! Father! It’s not true! She has no evidence-“

“Her tears are all the evidence one needs! Fang Zheng, if you dare even show your face here again, I’ll chop your head off myself!” Uncle said.

Fang Zheng was roughly thrown out onto the street, his few belongings following him. “And don’t come back!”

The door to their house was shut as he slowly got up.

“Is that Fang Yuan?”

“Heh- no way; that loser’s Fang Zheng.”

“Just take a look at him, if I were him I’d have ran into the woods out of shame.”

“And did you hear what he did to that poor servant girl?”

“Oh? He’s that kind of monster? Good riddance then!”

“Indeed, heaven is fair and balanced, punishing someone with a wicked heart like that!”

As if to add insult to injury, it began to rain.

Fang Zheng was at a loss of what to do. His primeval stones wouldn’t be replenished until a few days, and he had nowhere to go. He could stay in the dorm, but then what would he do about food? It was only free for mealtimes during the academy hours. He also had no gu worms, only a C-grade talent, and no friends to rely on. He had asked for the academy to replace even one of his gu worms, but the academy elder had rejected him. If he had still been A-grade, he was sure that they would make an exception for him, but who would for a mere C-grade talent?

Despite all of these setbacks, he had thought that he could carry on so long as he had Shen Cui’s support, but she had turned into a viper and bit him when he had been at his weakest.

If anything, he was sure that a good majority of the class were rejoicing at his failure- Mo Bei, Chi Chen, and Fang Yuan most of all.

As he sulked beneath a tree, wondering what his next step was going to be, the rain only seemed to intensify much like the storm within his heart.

In the story he had been writing, the main character also was going to suffer a setback like this, but an obese merchant by the name of Wang would come to help the main character when he was at his lowest. However, reality was cruel and he was not that main character. His girl had given up on him, and no Fatty Wang would come to his aid.

He was now even lower than what he had been previously- the whole village would not hesitate to spit on him. He would never amount to anything more than a Rank 2 Gu Master now, if even that, with his 46% primeval essence.

His stomach growled yet he barely felt it as he heard footsteps approach. He looked up to see his face reflected at him- a calm, cold face. A face that was not at all bothered by the whimsies of fate.

No, that wasn’t his face- that was Fang Yuan!

“So you’ve found me, huh?” Fang Zheng asked, tears now streaming down his face and melding with the rainwater. “Here to have a good laugh at me? Well then, laugh! Go on!”

But there was no laughter. Instead, Fang Yuan said, “I heard of what happened. You didn’t have anything to eat since this morning, did you?” He handed Fang Zheng a parcel of rice and warm chicken- he must’ve bought it from the nearby inn then. “Here.”

Fang Zheng had a dozen questions, but right now, his stomach was growling louder and louder, and he wolfed what was handed to him without even wondering whether or not Fang Yuan would’ve mixed something into it.

“Feeling better?” Fang Yuan asked.

“…yes…” Fang Zheng said. “Brother… I… was wrong… Aunt and Uncle… and even Shen Cui… they aren’t who I thought they were. They were just using me… I really was dumb…”

Fang Zheng did not even have the confidence to face his brother after what he’d done. How could he? How could he look his older brother in the face after breaking ties with him and going against him so often?

“It’s good you finally realized that,” Fang Yuan said, placing a hand on his shoulder. “Listen, Fang Zheng, this is not the end for you. Nor the end of your journey. With setbacks, we only get the chance to prove ourselves, don’t we?”

“But… but… I’m only a C-grade talent now…”

“Talent isn’t all there is in this world,” Fang Yuan said. “You don’t have any gu worms, do you? Even your vital gu was destroyed in battle- you’re lucky to be alive right now. However, you are alive- and that is no small things. But, like I was saying, talent isn’t everything. There are things which can trump talent. Such as this.”

Fang Yuan took out a gu worm that looked like a tiny silkworm- Fang Zheng, though he had never seen it before, could instantly guess what it was. “The Liquor Worm!?”

“Indeed,” Fang Yuan said, handing it to Fang Zheng. “Take it. I’m going to give it to you- use it, and you’ll soon end up catching back up to where you were before.”

“Brother… what… how could you… forgive me this easily? I thought you would be furious at me?”

Fang Yuan embraced him. The warmth felt odd against the cold of the wind and rain. His face did not carry the slightest bit of anger- as if he held no grudges against Fang Zheng for what he had done. “I was never angry with you. I was sad because I was afraid you’d lost your way. Ah, for that incident in the inn; I let my frustration get the best of me. I think you can understand and let bygones be bygones.”

Fang Yuan wiped away Fang Zheng’s tears.

Seeing this, a nearby beggar almost began sobbing himself. He had gotten alms from Fang Yuan many times in the past, and somewhat knew of the strained relationship between the twins. However, seeing this display of brotherly love and forgiveness, he couldn’t help but be moved. Truly, there was no one with a heart of gold like Fang Yuan in all of Gu Yue village- that is what he felt!

“But, won’t helping me hurt your reputation?” Fang Zheng asked. Most people thought that he had actually done something to Shen Cui, it seemed. Why would someone with his brother’s reputation want to be associated with that?

“What is reputation? Something society hands us? And what of it- I know that you’re innocent. Don’t worry, Aunt and Uncle will soon get what’s coming to them,” Fang Yuan reassured him.

“But… don’t you need it for yourself?” Fang Zheng asked. The Liquor Worm was very helpful to him, but it would be even more helpful for Fang Yuan.

Fang Yuan shook his head. “You need it more than I do. And it’s no problem, I’ll make do somehow.”

“Is that so… are you sure?”

“Of course I’m sure!”

Fang Zheng took the Liquor Worm, and having been refined by Fang Yuan, it easily entered his aperture. Quickly, it bonded to him and became his vital gu.

“I think you need some primeval stones, right?” Fang Yuan asked, handing him three.

“I’ll pay you back once I get the next payout from the academy…”

“No need to bother, consider it a reconciliation gift,” Fang Yuan said, waving his hand. “I want you to remember- not everything is over, alright? Your journey has just started, and the future may soon bring suprises that you wouldn’t imagine. Ren Zu did not give up so long as he had Hope in his heart, and you shouldn’t either. Alright, if you need anything else, just let me know, alright? Now that we two brothers are together again, who can possibly stop us?”

“Oh… okay…” Fang Zheng said.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep