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"Let's get down to business, Jayce. People have their eyes on you now, and we have our own matters to attend to in Twilight City. Are you confident in your safety?" Beiyue said.
Jayce asked, "If I'm not confident, would you become my temporary bodyguard?" He addressed Beiyue directly.
Beiyue, who understood Jayce's character little, replied straightforwardly, "No."
Jayce pointed at Cui Ming and asked again, "What if he is in danger?"
"We're friends, of course I would," Beiyue responded.
"We're friends too," Jayce said.
Beiyue replied, "No, we are your lifesavers."
Cui Ming clapped his hands. "Well said."
Jayce sighed, "It's fine. I'll stay with the Ye Family for a while."
"The Ye Family." Cui Ming and Beiyue exchanged glances. Beiyue subtly gestured, and Cui Ming understood that it was Beiyue's way of prompting him. Cui Ming turned to Jayce and asked, "What's the moral level of the Ye Family like?"
Jayce's smile faded as he spoke seriously. "The Ye Family are the true heroes of Twilight City. Although people don't know they come from a family of cultivators, for thousands of years, the Ye Family has sacrificed countless lives to protect Twilight City without ever asking for anything in return. They see protecting Twilight City as their responsibility. The Ye Family only formed a group of cultivators three hundred years ago; before that, they were a prominent family. Whenever Twilight City faced foreign invasions, they would spend all their wealth to form teams and send their children to the front lines. During the imperial era, the Ye Family received a title: Generations of Loyalty and Valor."
"Oh?" Cui Ming pondered for a moment. "The stories I've heard seem different; I've heard that the Ye Family can be quite ruthless."
Jayce frowned and said, "Cui Ming, you should speak based on facts."
Cui Ming said, "I heard that the Ye Family once married a daughter into the Ding Family, and she had a child, but it was later discovered that the child was not her husband's. It's hard to judge such matters; love is complicated. However, the old man of the Ye Family actually refused to acknowledge this daughter, allowing his own granddaughter to be exiled to the Eastern Continent."
"This matter," Jayce seemed to know more, pondering for a moment before continuing, "is quite complex. The Ding Family was aware of this situation before the marriage took place. They communicated with the Ye Family, and at that time, things were complicated due to conflicts between the Ye Family's lineage and its collateral branches. Despite these issues, the marriage alliance continued as planned. Everything seemed normal until, for reasons unknown, the Cao Family learned about it and spread the news within the alliance. This caused trouble for the Ding Family, which could not withstand the pressure. Thus, they exiled the child as victims of circumstance. The child's mother, facing public shame, ultimately took her own life."
"What?" Cui Ming asked in surprise. "So this woman didn't die of illness but committed suicide?"
"Yes," Jayce replied. "The version stating she died of illness was agreed upon by both the Ye Family and Ding Family. Furthermore, she was not the biological daughter of the family head but rather an adopted daughter. The Ye Family discovered her existence by chance and allowed her to be adopted. Even so, the Ye Family did not disclose this information publicly, and the family head felt great guilt about it. He mentioned it to me several times and asked me to contact the Dawn Empire officially to protect his adopted daughter's grave."
"Not a biological daughter?" This information contradicted what Ding Ze had received.
"Of course not. The child was initially intended to marry into the Ye Family again; if she were a biological daughter, that would constitute incest. Before her marriage, both the Ye Family and Ding Family had calculated everything carefully. If her child were a male cultivator, he would marry a direct descendant of the Ye Family."
Cui Ming thought about this overwhelming information: Ding Ze was essentially nothing—neither part of the Ye Family nor the Ding Family; he was merely one in five hundred thousand—a child of someone else. Beiyue remarked, "I noticed a detail: it was said that their marriage was for necessity and there were no other options at that time. This means that this woman had feelings for someone else but was forced to marry into the Ding Family due to family obligations, right?"
"Correct," Jayce confirmed. "She was in love with a cultivator from Nordo City and had informed the family head, who initially agreed. However, complications arose within the Ding Family itself; to prevent internal strife, she married into them instead. With assistance from the Ye Family, the Ding Family managed to overcome their crisis. I’m not clear on all specifics, but it was said that there were issues that could have led to the disintegration of the Ding Family. After all, with so many members in the Ding Family and their collateral branches being distant relatives focused solely on lineage, many were dissatisfied with this custom."
Cui Ming said, "That woman was quite unfortunate."
Beiyue nodded in agreement.
Cui Ming asked, "So what about this child's connection to the Ye Family?"
Jayce replied, "This child is set to return to the Ye Family soon. The family head plans two possibilities: one is to adopt him into the Ye Family; another is for him to marry a girl from the Ye Family as an outsider. This child is named Ding Ze and grew up alongside this girl as childhood friends. However, I’ve received news that the Ding Family is currently in contact with the Ye Family; their prospective family head is unmarried at present. If they can arrange a marriage with a direct descendant of the Ye Family's head, it would be an unprecedented alliance in centuries—at least for fifty years—strengthening ties between both families."
Cui Ming questioned, "You seem to know quite a lot about this."
Jayce lightly brushed his hair back and replied nonchalantly, "A house full of loyalty and honor; it's royal knowledge."
Oh, the transcendent status. Although it is a constitutional monarchy and the royal family has no power, as the Ding Family, they remain loyal to the royal family. Cui Ming clapped his hands and said, "I've got it! I know how you can repay our life-saving grace."
Jayce calmly looked at Cui Ming and replied, "Go ahead. Coming from Dawn City, I should have known you were in cahoots with Ding Ze; otherwise, I wouldn't have gone into such detail."
"Don't rush me. I can't make decisions on my own; I need to ask about your capabilities first. If Ding Ze insists on being with that person, can you handle it?" Cui Ming asked.
Jayce replied, "I can only tell you that I can persuade the head of the Ye Family. However, if it's up to me to convince him, I won't insist that his daughter must marry Ding Ze. I can only say that I am confident she will decide according to her own preferences. But from what I know, she is quite disappointed in Ding Ze. That Chuxiao is a playboy, living it up every night. On the other hand, Cui Ming, would you marry a woman who changes partners every night?"
Cui Ming laughed. Can men and women really be compared? What difference does it make? If we look at it through the lens of gender equality, what’s the distinction? When a woman can't control herself, it's called decadence; when a man can't control himself, it's called being romantic. This question is unanswerable. Cui Ming said, "Beiyue, what's your take on this?"
"A prodigal son returning is worth more than gold," Beiyue answered.
Jayce looked at Cui Ming, who pointed at Jayce and said, "Shut up."
Mi Xiaonan was puzzled and asked, "Why?"
Jayce laughed heartily and said, "He knows what I'm going to ask."
Cui Ming continued, "Everyone has their own perspective. My background isn't great either; many kind people have been deceived by me. Are you saying it was forced? Not entirely; during those years of my life, I also fell into the pursuit of deceiving and fooling others for my own satisfaction."
Mi Xiaonan sighed. Wasn't that right? These people would stray off-topic after just a few sentences. Shouldn't they be discussing the details regarding Ding Ze and the Ye Family now?
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