He Is Unworthy

"Interesting." Jiang Wang smiled.

"Are you going?" Ling He asked.

"Why wouldn't I?" Jiang Wang turned to An'an. "Brother's taking you to eat and drink like royalty. How about that?"

Jiang An'an nodded her little head very seriously.

Ling He then straightened his clothes and, on a whim, grabbed his sword.

"Hey!" Jiang Wang stopped him. "You don't need to follow. It's not like we're going to a fight."

Meeting Ling He's gaze, Jiang Wang added, "Don't worry. The Fang Family isn't that stupid."

Ling He thought it over and found it reasonable, so he put the sword down and sat cross-legged again. For him, if there was nothing else to do, he could spend entire days cultivating.

Cultivation held its own hidden wonders. Cultivation was a joy in itself.

Walking along the road to the Moon-Gazing Pavilion, An'an suddenly looked up and asked, "Is the Fang Family bad people?"

"Oh?" Jiang Wang looked at her with interest. "Why do you say that?"

"Because even Brother Ling He wanted to fight them," Jiang An'an said.

Jiang Wang laughed.

A personality like Ling He's rarely showed hostility toward anyone.

"Then let's not go eat," Jiang An'an added.

"No way, we have to go eat. And we have to eat with style, eat with class." Jiang Wang said deliberately. "If we eat the bad guys broke, that's us doing a good deed, understand?"

Jiang An'an bit her thumb, looked thoughtful, and nodded once.

"Smack!"

"No biting your fingers!"

Wangjiang City had a Wangjiang Pavilion, lofty in stature and famous far and wide. Maple Forest City's similarly named Moon-Gazing Pavilion paled in comparison.

This pavilion was not tall, only three stories. Yet it bore the name "Moon-Gazing," inevitably mismatched with reality, inviting ridicule.

But the dishes in this pavilion were rarely seen good. Thus, in Maple Forest City, business had always been thriving.

Jiang Wang carried Jiang An'an into the Moon-Gazing Pavilion and was directly led by the Fang Family's servants to a private room.

A middle-aged man with a composed demeanor and a face that could be called refined rose to greet him: "Worthy nephew!"

His gaze fell on An'an, and his smile grew even warmer: "Is this your little sister? How adorable."

Jiang Wang had met Fang Zehou before. Back when he and Fang Pengju were close, Fang Zehou had treated them to meals more than once. At that time, Fang Zehou had seemed protective of his nephew, holding high hopes for him. After Fang Pengju died—and died disgracefully—no one in the Fang Family was willing to come forward to bury him.

His "worthy nephew"—Jiang Wang had no desire to be that. He greeted, "Greetings, Clan Head Fang."

"Not yet, not yet." Fang Zehou smiled, then waved his hand, taking a string of gold beads from a servant and offering it to Jiang An'an. "First meeting, Uncle gives you a gift!"

Jiang An'an turned her head away, burying her little face in Jiang Wang's chest. In her small mind, she had already decided this was a bad person, and she wouldn't even speak to him.

Jiang Wang set Jiang An'an down in her seat while saying, "The little girl's shy. Don't mind her. Forget the gift. Squire Fang, why not speak directly? What business do you have inviting me here?"

Fang Zehou had purchased the title of Squire, a proper official rank. The address "Squire" was not out of place.

"No rush, no rush." Fang Zehou's face showed no trace of awkwardness. He waved for the servant to put away the gold beads, then said, "First, try the signature dish here—Lotus Leaf Chicken."

Jiang An'an had long decided to eat the bad guy broke, and she was about to dig in, but Jiang Wang pressed her down. He reached out with his chopsticks, tasted each dish on the table one by one, savored them for a moment, then picked a few plates and set them before An'an.

"Brother tasted them for you. These dishes are the best."

Jiang An'an wanted to complain a little, but the aroma of the Lotus Leaf Chicken drilled straight into her nose. She had no time to complain now; she reached out, tore off a drumstick, and started gnawing.

Fang Zehou's smile remained warm and kind, as if he didn't notice Jiang Wang's wariness at all.

"You two have such a good bond as siblings," he praised.

"Just muddling through raising her," Jiang Wang replied casually.

Jiang An'an shot him an angry glare, but her mouth was busy, so she could only spitefully take another bite of the chicken wing.

Jiang Wang paid it no mind and continued, "I wonder, Squire, this time you called me here to..."

Fang Zehou suddenly let out a long sigh, his expression turning heavy. "Regarding Pengju's matter, our Fang Family owes you an apology."

When it came to Fang Pengju, Jiang Wang had to be serious. No matter how things had unfolded, Fang Pengju was dead. Grievances and debts were settled. He didn't want to, and had no need to, hound Fang Pengju's spirit beyond the grave.

"It's all in the past," Jiang Wang said.

"Though Worthy Nephew says that, our Fang Family cannot fail to show our intent." Fang Zehou pushed a small box across the table. "Here are a hundred taels of Red Gold, as a token of apology."

"Fang Pengju already bore responsibility for his own actions." Jiang Wang had no mood for more sparring. He didn't even glance at the box of gold. "If you have something to say, say it directly."

Fang Zehou nodded. "Pengju was once the hope of our Fang Family, with limitless prospects. He was killed by you in a deathmatch. Though he brought it on himself, our Fang Family has never caused you any trouble over it, correct?"

"Correct." This was fact; Jiang Wang had no need to deny it.

"Now, Uncle has a favor to ask of you."

Jiang Wang looked at him, signaling him to continue.

Fang Zehou said, "After Pengju died, the only young one of the next generation in our Fang Family with any promise was Heling. I had no choice but to set aside my grief and pour all the care I had for Pengju onto Heling. He's lived up to expectations too—trains hard, and his cultivation has even surpassed yours. But..."

Jiang Wang raised an eyebrow, knowing the real meat was coming.

"After that fight with you, his confidence was shattered. He's completely collapsed. He locks himself in his room, drowning his sorrows in drink day after day. If this keeps up, I'm afraid he'll... become a waste." Even a wily old fox like Fang Zehou's voice trembled a little as he said this.

After all, that was his only legitimate son.

"So?" Jiang Wang asked.

"This is hard to say." Fang Zehou said, "But as your uncle, I still have the nerve to hope that you could go admit your fault to Heling—say you used... underhanded means in the duel—to help him regain his confidence."

Jiang Wang almost wanted to laugh. "How can I admit to something I never did?"

"It won't be for nothing, it won't be for nothing!" Fang Zehou said quickly. "After it's done, besides this chest of Red Gold, I'll give you another hundred taels of Red Gold! You just have to... pretend to bow your head once..."

Jiang Wang tapped a finger on the chest of gold and did indeed laugh out loud. "The Fang Family has produced cultivators before. I recall your father, Old Master Fang, was an eighth-rank Circulation realm cultivator? What meaning do these so-called gold and silver have for a cultivator?"

He pressed his finger down on the small chest and gently pushed it back.

Fang Zehou immediately pulled another small brocade box from his bosom, carefully opened it, and placed it before Jiang Wang.

The Dao Essence fluctuations in the brocade box almost instantly drew Jiang Wang's gaze.

"This is a Dao Essence Stone. For a cultivator, I think it has meaning." Fang Zehou put on a very sincere expression. "Just bow your head a little, and it's yours."

This Dao Essence Stone certainly had meaning! Compared to mundane gold, silver, and jewels, Dao Essence Stones were the real currency for cultivators—they could aid in cultivation and be used at any time to replenish consumption. Moreover, this Dao Essence Stone before him had never been used, its full weight intact, containing a full one hundred Dao Essences.

For Jiang Wang, as long as he absorbed this Dao Essence Stone, he would almost immediately reach the Foundation Establishment standard!

He also finally understood how Fang Heling had Foundation Established so quickly, and even nearly completed the minor Circulation cycle.

But Jiang Wang only gently closed the lid. "Maybe what you said is true—my bowing my head isn't worth a single coin."

He pushed the brocade box back too. "But Fang Heling... doesn't deserve it."

He was the one who had been provoked all along, the one forced to accept the fight. Where was the logic in him apologizing? He lost, he collapsed—who was there to blame? Did being weak make you naturally righteous? Were you right just because you were weak?

The Dao Essence Stone was important, but principle was more important.

"Think not just for yourself, but for your little sister too." Fang Zehou said slowly. "She's still studying at the private school, isn't she?"

At this moment, Jiang An'an was still attacking the food from both sides, head buried in her meal, chewing with grease dripping from her mouth. She had no idea what the adults were talking about.

Jiang Wang's gaze instantly sharpened. For the first time, his killing intent was so clear and utterly unrestrained.

Fang Zehou barely managed to meet his eyes, feeling an impulse to jump out the window and flee. Only then did he realize that the youth before him was completely different from his son—no fragile seedling raised in a greenhouse. He was a young beast that had weathered storms and struggled to survive!

"Ha ha ha ha." Jiang Wang suddenly burst into loud laughter, stood up, and scooped Jiang An'an into his arms. "We're done eating. Let's go home."

No matter what he thought inside, he wouldn't show aggression or fight in front of Jiang An'an. He wouldn't put Jiang An'an in danger.

"Mmph... mmph..." Jiang An'an struggled to swallow the meat in her mouth. She was already in Jiang Wang's arms, but her eyes were still fixed on the dishes on the table.

"Consider it... my begging you!" Behind him, Fang Zehou said this.

But Jiang Wang had already pushed open the door with his sister in his arms, not stopping for a moment.

[Thanks to reader 20170527084735469 (seriously, give yourself a nickname!), thanks to reader Shen Ayao, reader Little Friend Loves Eating Melons, reader Seven Knives, and reader Sad Rain Sighing Wind for their tips!]