Chapter Thirty-Eight: The Young Master Fails

Outskirts of the city.

The Yu Hu Courtyard.

Dawn had only just broken, and the morning mist still lingered. A sliver of sunlight pierced through the thatched roof, falling across Su Qingmeng’s eyes.

She opened them slowly, feeling an all-encompassing weariness. What was this?

As a fourth-rank master, Su Qingmeng’s vigilance flared instantly—she sensed a foreign warmth both at her chest and behind her, a sensation that did not belong to her own body!

Lowering her gaze, she saw—astonishingly—a pair of slender masculine hands!

With a sudden start, Su Qingmeng sat bolt upright and flung her arm out.

A crisp slap rang through the hut, sending the spring swallows on the roof scattering in alarm.

“What the hell!”

Li Yunjie, who had been soundly asleep, was roused by the blow, dazed and disoriented.

“Li Yunjie!” Su Qingmeng bellowed, her voice nearly breaking with rage. “You shameless scoundrel!”

“Today, I’ll kill you!”

With that, she snatched up her sword and pressed it against Li Yunjie’s throat.

This is an outrage!

“You—”

Li Yunjie was about to curse her for repaying kindness with hostility, but then he felt the lingering warmth in his hands and the faint, half-curved sensation that had yet to dissipate.

He was struck momentarily speechless, stifling his words to the point of internal injury.

How on earth did it come to this…

It must have been a reflex left over from the body’s previous owner!

At least, that’s what Li Yunjie told himself. After all, as someone who’d never known a woman since birth, there was no way he’d be that skilled.

Seeing Su Qingmeng’s face flushed with fury, her hair practically bristling, Li Yunjie took a deep breath.

Let me explain myself.

“Last night, we were both minding our own business,” Li Yunjie protested, his face full of grievance. “But you kept saying you were cold in your sleep.”

“You were shivering so hard I felt sorry for you, so I took off my only long robe and covered you with it.”

“But still, you kept muttering, ‘cold, cold, cold.’”

“And by then, I had no clothes left!”

“What else could I do?”

“You know I’m not the type to ignore someone in distress!”

“I had no choice but to warm you with my own body!”

“And that’s how we ended up like this.”

“Do you understand?!”

Li Yunjie’s words were passionate, vivid, earnest—an attempt to move Su Qingmeng with sincerity.

But it was all in vain.

Would a young woman, furious and convinced she’d been violated, really listen?

Su Qingmeng’s cheeks were crimson, tears brimming in her eyes. She raised her hand and delivered another slap.

Fortunately, Li Yunjie dodged in time. Otherwise, he’d have matching handprints on both cheeks.

If word of this got out, how could he ever show his face in the capital again?

“Cough, cough…”

Su Qingmeng, overwhelmed by anger and already weak, suddenly lost all strength and collapsed onto the hay pile behind her.

“Don’t get worked up,” Li Yunjie sighed. “I swear to the heavens, I never touched you last night!”

Su Qingmeng shot him a frosty glare, clutching her thin robe tightly and turning away in silence.

“I can vouch for him!”

At that moment, Shi Yi appeared with impeccable timing, dangling a freshly bought roast goose from the city.

“The young master was perfectly well-behaved last night!”

“There, you see? I have a witness!” Li Yunjie looked up at Shi Yi.

Su Qingmeng gave Shi Yi a withering look and said coldly, “Birds of a feather—you expect me to believe you?”

“Besides,” Shi Yi continued, walking into the hut and setting down the roast goose, muttering, “my young master isn’t capable.”

His expression was laced with subtle meaning.

“Yes, I’m not capable,” Li Yunjie nodded, then suddenly realized something was off. “Wait a minute! Who are you calling incapable?!”

For a man—especially a young one—those two words were intolerable.

Shi Yi’s comment struck straight at Li Yunjie’s pride.

His tone grew agitated, his face flushing with embarrassment.

Su Qingmeng, watching this scene, couldn’t help but smirk, a hint of mischief in her eyes.

Shi Yi sighed deeply. “I only discovered it last night—the young master is under a Chastity Seal.”

“A Chastity Seal?” Su Qingmeng’s brows arched, her smile tinged with irony. “Who would curse you with something so vicious?”

Li Yunjie’s face turned ashen.

Suddenly, the reason why the body’s previous owner never spent the night at the brothel became clear—it was this!

“It must have been the Prince,” Shi Yi said quietly. “I remember him mentioning it back then.”

“If the young master lost his virginity too soon, his cultivation would suffer.”

“So he planted the Chastity Seal early on.”

A chill ran through Li Yunjie’s heart.

He slumped to the ground, his balance lost.

You can guard against a thousand enemies, but never the traitor in your own home!

Who would have thought his own father would leave him with such a curse?

Shi Yi sighed again. “If the young master hadn’t felt lust last night, the Chastity Seal wouldn’t have revealed itself. Even I wouldn’t have known.”

“Wait a minute!” Su Qingmeng, ever sharp, caught the key detail. “Felt lust?”

But by now, Li Yunjie had no energy left for explanations.

He sat on the ground, bereft, shaking his head in despair. “Li Jia, you old scoundrel, you’ve ruined me!”

“You don’t have to be so discouraged, young master,” Shi Yi said, handing them each a goose leg.

He took the rest of the roast goose for himself, biting in contentedly.

“The curse isn’t unbreakable.”

Li Yunjie’s eyes lit up. Grabbing Shi Yi’s shoulders as if clutching the last hope, he demanded, “How can it be broken?!”

“The curse only works on those below fourth rank,” Shi Yi replied, swallowing his mouthful. “Once you reach fourth rank, it will dissolve on its own.”

“Fourth rank?!” Li Yunjie’s heart sank.

For someone of average talent, even reaching ninth rank was a struggle.

He himself had barely scraped into eighth rank with the help of medicinal herbs.

Moreover, even among the gifted, many spent their whole lives unable to advance beyond eighth rank.

Fourth rank—how could that be possible?

“How long does it take for an ordinary person to reach fourth rank?”

Though he knew the answer would be cruel, Li Yunjie couldn’t help but ask.

“For an ordinary person, it’s almost impossible,” Shi Yi said, utterly blunt. “Making it to sixth rank is already extraordinary.”

“Even someone as talented as Miss Qingmeng would need at least fifteen years.”

Su Qingmeng had started her cultivation at age four. With guidance from a renowned master, she’d managed to force her way into fourth rank at nineteen.

As for himself—before taking all those medicines, he’d been a sickly wretch, as thin as a lamppost.

Though he’d gained some strength from eating and resting these past days, fourth rank was still impossibly far away.

Reflecting on this, Li Yunjie couldn’t help but sigh.

“But you’re different, young master,” Shi Yi said with confidence. “Your breakthrough to fourth rank is just around the corner.”

Li Yunjie snorted. “What makes you so sure?”

He handed his goose leg to Su Qingmeng and turned away, curling up in the hay, wallowing in gloom.

Su Qingmeng stared at the dejected Li Yunjie, dumbfounded.

Hadn’t she just been the one trembling with anger over being taken advantage of?

How had it turned into Li Yunjie being the wounded party?

The sudden shift in roles left her utterly at a loss.

“Actually, it’s not all bad,” Su Qingmeng managed, forcing a note of concern as she patted Li Yunjie’s shoulder.

“At least it proves your virtue remains intact.”

Li Yunjie snorted in response, ignoring her.

This wasn’t about keeping his virtue now.

At this rate, he’d probably remain pure for the rest of his life!