Golden Skin Late Stage, Chen Manqing's Hidden Reason for Drowsiness (Seeking Follow-up Reads)

Luo Bin strode into the courtyard with steady, powerful steps. Many women and children were airing out bedding, and smoke curled from the kitchen chimney.

Although the Black Sheath Hall had split from the Green Bamboo Gang, Xu Ping, Zhang Xin, and the others still answered to Luo Wendi.

Luo Bin's standing in the Chen family had risen like the tide. As Chen Tianren's trusted man, Hall Master Luo—no, Gang Leader Luo—naturally took good care of his old colleague's people.

Under Luo Wendi's maneuvering, the Black Sheath Hall had become the Black Sheath Gang.

Zhang Xin's wife, Li Wan, saw a man in a white shirt standing at the door. His face was sharp as a knife-cut, his frame imposing. She didn't recognize him at first and asked, "Young man, who are you looking for?"

Luo Bin turned around and, seeing it was Li Wan, broke into a smile. "Auntie Li, it's me, Luo Bin. It's only been a few days, and you don't recognize me?"

Li Wan's eyes went wide. She couldn't quite believe it and checked again and again. "Really? Little Luo? Good heavens, it's only been a few days—how did you change so much? This big, sturdy frame—you look strong!"

Li Wan's exclamation drew a crowd.

Wen Li ran out in a plain white long gown, exceptionally clean and graceful. The fabric was coarse, but it couldn't hide the subtle allure beneath. The curves of her chest and hips rose and fell, startlingly alluring at first glance. Luo Bin's heart jolted—he nearly showed his true colors.

But that was fine.

Luo Bin wasn't as rigid as his predecessor. Wen Li had no blood relation to him. Even calling her "Auntie" was his predecessor's choice. If he wanted, he could change it to "Sister" anytime.

There was one thing Luo Bin had been wondering about for a while: whether Wen Xue was really Wen Li's biological daughter. That matter needed verification.

Still, there was a saying from his past life:

A widow in her prime, sighing at the barrier of rank, yet unreachable; An aunt and nephew in full bloom, rank aside, what harm is there?

Luo Bin wasn't the type to suppress his desires. If there was a possibility, when the opportunity came, he'd take it.

With that thought, Luo Bin smiled faintly and looked at Wen Li. "Auntie Wen, has anyone caused trouble these past few days?"

Wen Li caught his direct gaze, and her heart trembled slightly. "No. But you've made quite a name for yourself these days—you were even in the papers."

"Not at all..."

Luo Bin gave an embarrassed laugh. They chatted as they walked. After a meal at the Pei Family Manor, Luo Bin didn't linger. He quickly returned to the Chen Family Mansion to go into seclusion.

Time flew like a galloping horse; days passed like falling petals.

In the blink of an eye, the entire month of May had slipped away.

The first day of June.

Luo Bin sat cross-legged on the bed, pushing aside the scattered, delicate boxes in front of him. He picked up an unopened wooden case, revealing a ginseng with a faint blue, flowing light.

All these boxes contained precious medicines that Chen Tianren had recently spent a fortune to acquire for Luo Bin. A few rare ones had even been purchased from abroad through foreign merchants.

The most valuable was undoubtedly this "Blue Tear Mysterious Ginseng."

Luo Bin's method: no boiling, no steaming. He shoved it straight into his mouth, activated Crimson, and refined it in an instant.

As time passed, Luo Bin's eyes half-closed, like an old monk in meditation. His whole body radiated a quiet stillness—as the saying goes, stillness breeds wisdom.

In his mind, scenes of sweat-drenched training surged forth. He thought of rising at cockcrow with self-discipline, of studying with relentless hardship.

For a moment, in Luo Bin's consciousness, a palm-sized figure trained diligently without a moment's slack. As time flowed, that figure imparted all its realm insights, technique mastery, and even a sliver of combat experience.

Everything was passed on to Luo Bin.

At the final moment of the vision, the figure melted away like spring snow, merging with Luo Bin.

"If anyone says my realm is hollow, I'll have words with them."

"Everything I, Luo Bin, have achieved today comes from hard work and bitter training..."

At that thought, Luo Bin couldn't help but chuckle softly. He called up Crimson to check.

[Luo Bin]
[Realm: Golden Skin Pass (Late Stage)]
[Techniques: White Ape Through-Arm Fist (Layer 2, 1/6), Primordial Stance (Layer 3, 5/20)]
[Essence Soul: Water Ghoul · Phantom]
[Modification Points: 12]
[Spirit Charm: 3]

The [White Ape Through-Arm Fist] had originally been at 0/6, and the [Primordial Stance] at only 3/20. Through Luo Bin's recent hard training, not only had his martial arts naturally advanced, but his techniques had also climbed higher.

Most importantly, with the boost from a large amount of Spirit Charm, the Primordial Stance had risen again.

Luo Bin had initially thought about suppressing the Primordial Stance's growth to avoid raising Jiang Ling's suspicion. But on second thought, if he wanted his realm to advance boldly, the Primordial Stance's breakthrough was unavoidable.

"Hah... Golden Skin Pass late stage. If I ran into a Water Mountain Ghoul at the River God Festival now, I wouldn't even need a firearm. One punch would be enough to smash it to pieces."

Luo Bin had spent nearly half a month recuperating at Jiang Ling's Qufang Garden. During that time, Chen Tianren would send people to deliver precious medicines, and Chen Jing would also come to visit frequently...

What puzzled Luo Bin was that, aside from Aunt Wen occasionally bringing food, Chen Mansheng would sometimes brew soup and send it over as well.

Now, with his marriage to Chen Manqing being discussed noisily throughout the Chen household, Luo Bin almost felt like he truly was the young master...

He didn't want to dwell on the marriage matter—if it worked out, fine; if not, so be it. As for the lack of an emotional foundation between them?

He could only say: feelings would naturally grow with time.

But Chen Manqing seemed so furious she couldn't bear to face anyone, and a few days ago she moved out to stay elsewhere...

Luo Bin cleared the clutter from his mind, stepped out, and called to Hu Junzhi, who was dozing off. "Junzhi, where's A Jing?"

Imperceptibly, Luo Bin's way of addressing Chen Jing and the Chen family members was also shifting.

"Brother Luo, the second young master went to Qunyu Garden to watch a show. He said there's a famous Kunqu opera star performing tonight, with a figure as sinuous as a snake, like a seductress.

He knew you'd be coming out of seclusion today, so he went ahead to scout the place.

He told me to tell you to find him once you're done..." Hu Junzhi found Luo Bin increasingly hard to read, especially in terms of martial realm.

Just standing there, he exuded an invisible aura of towering stability...

"Let's go. You drive. We'll find A Jing and listen to some tunes."

Hu Junzhi beamed. "Sure thing! I'll go grab the car from the back."

The car rolled over the stone-paved road with hardly any bumps.

Luo Bin leaned back in the rear seat, his fingertips idly rubbing the fabric of his suit pants.

A few days ago, Chen Tianren had sent a tailor to his place to measure him for several outfits. He wore a thin, dark gray suit, paired with a crisp white shirt, the collar unbuttoned two buttons down, no tie—lacking the stiffness of a typical scion of a wealthy family, but carrying more of a sharp, unrestrained youthful edge.

"Brother Luo, this Qunyu Garden is nothing like those flashy Western places like Moon Veil or Red Night," Hu Junzhi said, gripping the steering wheel and glancing at Luo Bin through the rearview mirror with a smile.

"It's the oldest opera house in Ping City, been open for almost thirty years.

They don't just do Kunqu opera—they also have pingtan and bangzi opera. Most of the crowd are local literati, old-money gentlemen, and some politicians from the south. A real mixed bag."

Luo Bin raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Do the Jiang and Sun families go there often?"

"You bet." Hu Junzhi let out a scornful laugh. "The Sun family loves crawling into these pretentious, cultured places, pretending to be a scholarly household, but behind the scenes, they've done plenty of shady, immoral things.

The Jiang family rarely goes, since they're close with the foreigners and prefer hanging out in nightclubs.

But over the past half month, some junior members of the Jiang family's branch have been frequenting Qunyu Garden, saying they've fallen for a new qingguan girl."

Luo Bin's fingertips paused, a faint glint flickering in his eyes.

The car came to a smooth stop, and the gate tower of Qunyu Garden was right before them.

Unlike the Western extravagance of Moon Veil Nightclub, Qunyu Garden was a solidly traditional Chinese-style building—upturned eaves, pointed corners, vermillion lacquered doors, and a black-and-gold plaque hanging above the lintel. The three characters "Qunyu Garden" were written in vigorous strokes, the work of a Hanlin scholar from the previous dynasty.

Two stone lions flanked the entrance. A greeter in a clean blue cloth gown spotted the arriving car and immediately trotted over, his face plastered with an eager smile.

Luo Bin straightened his clothes and stepped out of the car. When he looked at the greeter, the latter's heart skipped a beat.

Wasn't this the gentleman who had been in the newspapers a few days ago?

"Young Master Luo? Please, come in! The second young master is already waiting in the private room upstairs!"

Just then, a clear, melodious voice rang out, making Luo Bin pause mid-step. He turned to look—a woman with a rather seductive air stood by the main entrance.

"Young Master Luo? Last time, you saved our young lady. She knew you were coming today and specifically asked me to wait here for you..."

Luo Bin frowned. "Your young lady?"

The seductive woman giggled. "Her stage name is Su Yunong."

Luo Bin understood. The woman trotted up to him, leaned close to his ear, and whispered, "The young lady says—aren't you curious why that eldest miss of the Chen family is so prone to drowsiness?"

Luo Bin's heart jolted.