For the time being, a wet nurse would take care of all the child’s affairs. Wei Wuwei’s wife would naturally be examined by a doctor, and attentively be taken care of by the servants.

By the time the sky had turned bright, the Wei Mansion, which had been in a state of panic and chaos, was now enveloped in a festive atmosphere. Firecrackers were even set off in the Wei family’s ancestral home.

The birth of a son by the head of the family was a very important event in this era, where the idea of a ​​patriarchy was still going strong. This was particularly important especially for some trusted senior members of the family, who knew that there was a deep meaning behind this event.

Early that morning, Wei Wuwei went to the Wei family’s ancestral home to see an elder.

The ancestral home was much smaller than Wei Wuwei’s current mansion. The elder enjoyed the quiet, so he had a garden with a lot of flowers, trees, flowing water, and fish.

The doors and windows of the elder’s room were wide open at the moment. He sat on a reclining chair, with a heater under his feet and a tiger skin wrapped around his body, listening to the crackling sound of the firecrackers outside.

The servants beside him were busy making him morning tea, and had also prepared various cakes and snacks.

After a while, the sound of hurried footsteps came from outside. Based on the volume and weight, he could tell that it was Wei Wuwei.

“Grandpa! Grandpa! I have arrived!”

Wei Wuwei’s excited voice came through the door, and he soon stepped into the elder’s room.

“Haha, you finally have a son?”

“Hey, you already know all about it!”

After Wei Wuwei entered the room, his footsteps became much lighter. He waved away the servants and personally served his old man tea.

“Oh, you’re the head of such a large family, but you still personally serve me, this old man. I’m not worthy!”

The old man joked, but Wei Wuwei was thick-skinned and pretended he didn’t hear it. He had come here because he had something to do, and he wouldn’t come for no reason either way.

“Grandpa, not to criticize you, but you’ve made this ancestral house look like a wild forest. There are too many mosquitoes.”

“Silly child, you had a lot of fun playing here when you were little, but now you’re annoyed by the mosquitoes?”

Wei Wuwei grinned foolishly and carefully handed the tea cup to the old man, who took it with one hand without making a single ripple in the water.

The old man had practiced martial arts for decades without illness or pain. Even though he was old now, his skills were still strong.

The elder took a sip of the tea, and his wrinkled face smiled like a blooming chrysanthemum.

“You’re not seriously thinking of going to the immortal sect just because your child isn’t doing well, are you?”

“You put words in my mouth, how could that be? If you truly cannot be patient, then my daughters can accompany me. I’m here to ask you to give this child a name!”

Wei Wuwei smiled, picked up a pastry on the table, and stuffed it into his mouth.

Normally, a child would still have a nickname until they could walk, but the Wei family always named their children at birth.

This was a serious matter. The old man thought carefully as he drank his tea.

“What a pity! If Mr. Ji from Ning’an County were still here, it would be a great idea to ask him to name the child.”

The elder of the Wei family naturally knew about Ji Yuan, but such a divine character was not something that mortals could causally speculate about.

“How about this? Since the emergence of this son is related to the future of our Wei family, why don’t we call him Wei Yuansheng?”¹

Wei Wuwei repeated the name twice, and concluded that it was an excellent name, so he hurriedly flattered the old man.

“Grandpa, you are amazing. The name you gave me is quite appropriate. I’ve never been afraid of anything since I was a child,² and my son’s name is even better. He must be destined for an immortal fate!”

The old man was so angry that he laughed at Wei Wuwei.

“You are the most cowardly of us all,³ and yet you are still named Fearless… I have regretted giving you this name countless times!”

…

The Wei family was wealthy, with business dealings all over the country. Few families in Desheng Prefecture could compete with them in terms of finances. In addition, they deliberately made friends with some underground sources and with court officials. When their child was ready for their full-month banquet,⁴ servants spread out in droves to deliver invitations during the preparation.

Powerful families and martial arts experts who were on good terms with the Wei family all received invitations inlaid in gold. In order to avoid the most important Spring Festival of the year, the Wei family deliberately moved the young master’s full-month banquet forward to the 26th day of the twelfth lunar month.

Even so, the timing coincided right with New Year’s Eve. Aside from those in Desheng Prefecture or nearby, other attendees would probably just send two representatives to attend.

As the time drew nearer, the atmosphere of the New Year grew stronger. Two consecutive heavy snowfalls in Desheng Prefecture had coated everything in a layer of silver, making the Wei Mansion, which was decorated in every corner with lanterns and other colorful decorations, even more festive.

Luoxia Pavilion was well-known in the martial arts world as one of the most important martial arts forces of Desheng Prefecuture. It naturally had a good relationship with the Wei family, and it is relatively close, so there was no need for them to set out too far in advance. Therefore, they entered the city early in the morning on the 26th day of the twelfth lunar month.

This visitor was of high status. He was the third master of the sect, known in the martial arts world as the ‘Handsome Gentleman.’ He had brought two of his juniors along with him: the nineteen-year-olds Luo Tiancheng and Luo Ningshuang,⁵ who had both already become engaged to their respective partners the previous year.

Two horse-drawn carriages entered the city. The third master sat alone in the front carriage, while Luo Ningshuang and Luo Tiancheng sat in the back carriage.

Lifting the curtain on the side of the carriage, Luo Ningshuang looked at the snow-covered eaves around her and smiled.

“Second sister, of those guys who went with you to fight the tiger back then, several of them have become famous in the martial arts world now. The swordsman Yan Fei is said to be quite powerful, and that Lu Chengfeng has obtained the title of Little Gentleman of Cloud Pavilion. They are both from Desheng Prefecture, will we meet them at this time? The Wei family must have sent invitations to their families, no?”

Some of the nine warriors were not from Desheng Prefecture, and as such were not likely to come. However, as long as they came from Desheng Prefecture, there was no force in the world that the Wei family was either not on good terms or did not have at least some kind of personal connection with.

Luo Tiancheng asked his sister with curiosity, but when it came to Luo Ningshuang to reply, she just shook her head and smiled.

“I am not sure, but the New Year will be upon us in two days. At most, they would send an insignificant disciple or servant to congratulate the family. The ones you want to see may not come.”

The two chatted, as the carriage gradually approached the Wei family’s mansion. It was still early in the day at present, and there weren’t too many carriages and horses outside the residence. The third sect master exchanged greetings with the Wei family head servant who had come over, and the Luo family siblings jumped down from the carriage themselves.

“Presenting, the Du family of Tianyue Prefecture, here to congratulate the young master of the Wei family on his full-month!”

A voice that Luo Ningshuang found slightly familiar sounded from the other side of the yard, and another Wei family servant came forward to greet them.

Luo Ningshuang stepped forward to take a look. She could hardly recognize the man. However, the broken arm and empty sleeve made her remember exactly who it was that was currently handing his invitation over to the Wei family servant.

“Du Heng? What happened to your arm?”

Although Du Heng’s right hand had been seriously injured that time long ago, his arm was still intact. Now, however, his sleeve was empty.

Swordsman Du Heng had a beard covering half his face, a longsword slung across his back, and was wearing a blue shirt. He turned around when he heard Luo Ningshuang’s voice.

“You are… Junior Sister Luo?”

Du Heng forced a smile on his face, but he had no intention of exchanging further pleasantries. He nodded to her, and followed the Wei family servants along with the other two people in his party.

“That boy from the Du family still hasn’t given up on martial arts yet!”

The third sect master, Luo Feng, had been standing beside Luo Ningshuang for some time, watching Du Heng walk into the Wei family mansion. The old head servant to of the Wei residence beside him answered with a slight sigh and some emotion.

“This Du Heng is just wasting his life. He didn’t have any vigor or sharpness just now.”

Luo Feng looked at Luo Ningshuang next to him and smiled.

“Will you go over and reminisce with him?”

Luo Ningshuang hesitated for a moment, then shook her head.

“Forget it, he doesn’t want to talk to me.”

Gradually, more and more horse-drawn carriages gathered outside. The Luo family entered the mansion, and their carriages were taken away by the Wei family servants.

Near noon, nearly a hundred banquet tables in the inner and outer courtyards of the Wei Mansion were filled with guests. Chefs from several famous restaurants in the city were invited to prepare the dishes, and the aroma of the food wafted over from afar.

Wei Wuwei was very good at socializing, and took excellent care in handling each wave of guests. Du Heng went to greet him personally.

During this period, Lu Chengfeng, who was known as the Little Gentleman of Cloud Pavilion, came over to specially congratulate him, which prompted a new wave of praise from those of the martial arts world. Before the banquet had even started, Lu Chengfeng was already chatting with people in all parts of the residence, and he did not forget to toast to Luo Feng and reminisce about the past with Luo Ningshuang.

After chatting with the Luo family, Lu Chengfeng learned that Du Heng was also present. He searched the crowd, and found Du Heng drinking alone in a garden corridor outside the banquet hall.

Lu Chengfeng was still as familiar as ever. He started by saying, “I finally found you,” and enthusiastically began chatting with the somewhat embarrassed Du Heng.

After the initial awkwardness, the two of them finally found that sense of harmony with one another, and they drank together in the garden corridor, one using a cup, and the other using the lid of the wine jug.

“There’s no need to be so discouraged. Mr. Ji said that if you can make it through these trials, your future will be limitless… Even if there truly is no hope for your martial arts, you can still achieve great things if you find another way. As the saying goes, every profession has its own top scorer!”⁶

Du Heng was just about to say that he was only a third-rate martial artist now, but hearing the second half of Lu Chengfeng’s sentence, he grit his teeth and swallowed his words.

“Thank you, Brother Lu, for your kind words!”

Du Heng pinched his thigh hard with his left hand to prevent himself from losing his composure. In the past couple years, he had experienced both ups and downs, so how could he lose his temper in front of his former partner now?

The first part of their conversation inquired about Du Heng’s situation, while the latter half was Lu Chengfeng describing his own current affairs. He spoke of how he became famous in the martial arts world, and gradually deepened his proficiency in martial arts.

Du Heng forced himself to finish reminiscing about the past with Lu Chengfeng. After he left, the flesh of his left leg beneath his trousers had been pinched into a purple bruise.

“Hahaha… Every profession has its top scorer…”

Du Heng smiled bitterly. He closed his eyes and let the back of his head rest against the handle of the sword sheathed at his back.

“Young Master Du, do you know Mr. Ji?”

A voice suddenly sounded in his ears, stunning Du Heng for a moment. He turned his head and saw smiling, chubby face staring down at him. It was Wei Wuwei.

“Patriarch Wei? You…”

“Hahaha, I was just passing by, just passing by, but I heard something interesting so I couldn’t bear to leave. After all, I didn’t expect that the white tiger skin I bought from Ning’an County was actually hunted by you all. I’m really impressed!”

After saying this, Wei Wuwei moved closer and sat down on the bench in the garden corridor, smiling.

“I just overheard you and Young Master Lu reminiscing about the past, and you mentioned a Mr. Ji. Haha, would it be convenient for you to tell me a bit about him?”

Du Heng’s mood was a little complicated, and he forced a smile.

“Patriarch Wei, this matter is in truth a little inconvenient. At that time, the gentleman asked up not to mention him in front of outsiders…”

“Ah! Young Master Du, there is no trouble. Mr. Ji only mentioned outsiders, which I, Wei Wuwei, am not. I know Mr. Ji. I have sent him cakes and wine, and even eaten the jujubes from his courtyard. How could I be an outsider?”

When heard Du Heng’s sentence, Wei Wuwei almost immediately concluded that this gentleman was indeed Ji Yuan!

T/n: and people start to come together… At this point they’re going to make a Secret “JY Helped Me” Club and it’ll be a ridiculously lucrative networking opportunity

1. 元 (yuán): first/primary/basic/fundamental, 生 (shēng): to be born/life/student. Together that makes his name something like “fundamental life” or “foundation of life”
2. His name is 无畏 (wúwèi): fearless, to lack fear
3. Remember back in chapter 47-ish, Wei Wuwei intentionally hides his skills because he’s afraid of others targeting him
4. A full-month banquet is a celebration to mark the baby’s survival of the first month of life, meaning they are more likely to survive into adulthood. Traditionally, guests are served dyed red eggs and pickled ginger.
5. Ayyy! We have a recurring character! Feel free to check out the glossary page if you forgot who she was.
6. Lit: every profession has its own zhuangyuan (top scorer in the imperial examination).

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by Aunomay Read