If an ordinary person had dared to appear at the Yue Family's old residence, let alone swagger in uninvited, Mother Le would have already started cursing.
But looking at the lively, adorable little girl before her, she softened her tone.
"Little girl, who are you? Why are you here?"
"This is the Yue Family's old residence. You shouldn't be here. Have your mother or father take you home."
Mother Le's voice was gentle.
She looked at the little girl and assumed she was the child of one of the servants, so she didn't pay her much attention.
Meeting Mother Le's gaze, Na'er blinked and stared back at her in confusion.
She was her brother's younger sister, and her brother was the young master of this family. So this was her home.
Na'er couldn't understand why she should leave her own home.
"But this is my brother's home. Why should I leave?"
"This is my home. Shouldn't you be the ones leaving?"
Na'er looked at them, her big eyes filled with confusion.
At her words, the warmth vanished from Mother Le's face.
She studied the little girl, then turned to the middle-aged man beside her.
"Is she your illegitimate daughter?"
Mother Le asked bluntly.
The middle-aged man shook his head.
"I'm at the military camp every day. When would I have time to have a child with someone?"
"Could she be the old man's child? If so, that would make her my younger sister."
As he spoke, the middle-aged man looked at his wife with a mocking smile.
The two of them were clearly at each other's throats.
Only when Yue Zhengyu looked at his parents helplessly did they fall silent.
"Mom, Dad, it doesn't matter who this little girl is. What matters is, do you remember what I told you?"
"Le Zhengyue hit me, and I didn't even do anything."
"I was just chatting with his maid. Le Zhengyue beat up his own older brother over a woman. Does that make any sense?"
There was anger in Yue Zhengyu's voice.
He glanced at Na'er, then continued to complain to his parents.
Hearing this, Mother Le's face also filled with anger.
"That child was spoiled rotten by his grandfather. He's been out of control his whole life, and now he's even hitting his own brother."
"Yue Zhengyu's injuries are so severe that he'll need at least half a month to recover. That little brat treated his own brother like this..."
Mother Le's voice was cold, but the middle-aged man beside her fell silent.
As the Yue Family's publicly acknowledged heir, he knew that the old master intended to bypass him and pass the position of family head directly to one of his two sons. He also knew which son the old master planned to choose.
That was why he had made the unprecedented decision to come home and dine with Le Zhengyue that day.
He had already received definite confirmation from the old man: he planned to make Le Zhengyue the head of the Yue Family.
He also knew that Le Zhengyue had been born with a rank-twenty cultivation base.
He understood the reason for Le Zhengyue's strength, too: a naturally divine Martial Soul, a terrifying Martial Soul that stood far beyond the limits of this world.
Combined with Le Zhengyue's character and talent, his abilities far surpassed those of the eldest son.
Knowing all this, he said nothing, sitting in silence as he ate.
But when Na'er heard him daring to curse Le Zhengyue, she wouldn't stand for it.
"Why are you scolding my brother? He didn't do anything to you. You must have bullied him first, or bullied Sister Jiang Nannan. Otherwise, my brother wouldn't have beaten you."
Na'er glared at Yue Zhengyu as she spoke.
Though she was still very young and looked adorably innocent, she had plenty of fire in her.
At Na'er's words, all three of them froze.
Yue Zhengyu studied Na'er in confusion, unable to understand when he had somehow acquired another younger sister.
Then he looked toward his mother, who simply rolled her eyes at him.
But before Mother Le could ask anything, footsteps sounded from the stairwell.
The three of them turned and saw Le Zhengyue calmly coming downstairs.
They stared at Le Zhengyue, and he stared back at them.
There was no trace of familial affection in anyone's eyes, only calm indifference.
"Le Zhengyue, is this your younger sister? Since when did I give birth to another daughter?"
"Or has my son found himself another mother?"
Mother Le's voice was cold, her tone accusatory.
Le Zhengyue couldn't be bothered to look at her.
He had no affection whatsoever for the woman who was his mother in name alone.
He had been reborn in the womb and had witnessed everything from an infant's perspective, retaining all his memories the whole time.
So he knew very well that his mother had never cared about him.
After all, Yue Zhengyu was already grown, had awakened an Angel Martial Soul, and was the pride of the entire Yue Family—the future head of the family.
Le Zhengyue's arrival would only interfere with Yue Zhengyu inheriting that position, and could even lead to trouble.
It was only because of some special circumstances that he hadn't been aborted.
Under those conditions, Mother Le had naturally resented him in every way.
Of course, he had no affection for her either.
Taking Na'er by the hand, he couldn't be bothered to acknowledge her and simply turned to leave.
Behind him, Mother Le continued to roar, but Le Zhengyue didn't care.
Back in his room, he saw Na'er looking utterly bewildered and smiled as he gently pinched her cheek.
"They have their own home. They don't usually come to the old residence."
"Next time you run into them, just ignore them and come upstairs to play with your brother, okay?"
Le Zhengyue's voice was gentle.
Na'er nodded, then raised her lotus-root-like little arm and gently touched his face.
"Don't be sad, okay, Big Brother? You don't have a mom or dad, and neither do I. From now on, I'll be your family."
The little girl spoke with great earnestness, stumbling over her words.
Meeting her gaze, Le Zhengyue fell silent for a moment, then nodded gently.
"I brought you here, so of course I already consider you my family."
"All right, go play. Remember, don't go downstairs for now. Wait until they've left before going to the first floor."
As he spoke, Le Zhengyue looked toward Jiang Nannan.
Jiang Nannan froze, then picked up the porridge that had gone cold and set it in front of Na'er with a helpless look.
As the little girl drank her porridge, Jiang Nannan sighed.
"That's not nearly enough. Na'er can eat a lot. This food would barely be enough for the two of us, let alone Na'er by herself."
"We'll get some more after they leave."
Le Zhengyue's voice was helpless.
Just as he was about to continue cultivating, someone knocked at the door.
Hearing the knock, Le Zhengyue paused, then said, "Come in."
The door opened, but it wasn't the family of three who entered this time. It was a kind-looking old man.
"Grandpa Fu, what brings you here in person?"
Le Zhengyue sounded surprised.
The old man was the Yue Family's chief steward and the person his grandfather trusted most.
Meeting Le Zhengyue's surprised gaze, the old man merely smiled.
"Young master, there's no need to be so formal. I came to deliver something to you."
As he spoke, the old man raised his hand. A completely black card appeared in his palm.
It was the Spirit Pagoda's black card, a mark of high standing within the Spirit Pagoda and exactly what Le Zhengyue needed at the moment.
With this card, Le Zhengyue could enter the Spirit Pagoda to study and use the Spirit Ascension Platform to improve himself, without being subjected to any monitoring.
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