Fierce, but not reckless. Contending, but not chaotic.

Night had deepened.

Wei Nisheng pushed open the door to the Side Courtyard. Everything inside was just as before.

He went in and first arranged the spirit tablets side by side.

Then he turned and looked outside.

Torches blazed beyond the door.

More than a dozen servants had surrounded the Side Courtyard at some point.

They did not come in. They simply stood guard at the entrance, blocking every way in and out.

"Young master, they..."

Wei Nisheng shook his head, turned back into the room, and sat down at the desk.

"Pay them no mind. Light the lamp for me, Uncle Wei!"

Hearing Wei Nisheng's words, Wei An merely lit the oil lamp, but he still went to the doorway and stood motionless, guarding the entrance.

Wei Nisheng picked up a book, opened it, and began to read.

Candles burned brightly in the main hall.

Wei Mingde sat in the seat of honor. The tea before him had long since gone cold.

He had not taken a single sip. He only stared blankly at the cup.

Wei He sat beside him, his expression complicated.

The other Clan Elders had already dispersed, and the servants had all been dismissed. The main hall was empty...

The two of them remained like that, silent for a long time.

Finally, Wei He spoke first, letting out an admiring sigh. "He's a Fiery Child."

"A Fiery Child?! He's clearly a Sinful Son!"

"Enough, Mingde." Wei He did not look at Wei Mingde after speaking. He simply rose with the support of his cane and said slowly,

"That child really is very much like your father. Like Wenyue..."

"Uncle, what are you saying?" Hearing this, Wei Mingde abruptly raised his head and looked at Wei He in bewilderment.

"That Sinful Son resembles Father? He doesn't even respect his eld-" He was interrupted before he could finish.

"Mingde, give it back to him."

Wei Mingde froze. "Uncle! You..."

Wei He waved a hand to cut him off. His gaze grew distant, and he began speaking as though to himself.

"Mingde, do you know how I lost my chance to study back then?"

Wei Mingde shook his head.

"Heh. The clan was very poor then. We could only afford to support one student," Wei He said slowly, his voice low.

"I had already attended school for a year, while your father had only read a few books at home.

"So naturally, the clan elders chose me. There was nothing wrong with that."

Wei Mingde nodded. He would have made the same choice.

"But your father didn't see it that way!" Wei He suddenly turned, staring hard at Wei Mingde, a bitter smile rising at the corners of his mouth.

"Your father had a fiery nature. When he heard the news, he charged straight into the clan gathering and debated me in front of everyone."

"Father... he..." Wei Mingde's eyes widened.

He had never heard about this.

In his memory, his father, Wei Zheng, had been stern and unsmiling-the lofty Minister of Revenue, the man he had looked up to all his life.

He had never imagined that his father could have been like that in his youth.

That he, too, would contend, would fight, would snatch an opportunity from someone else's hands.

"Ha! Wenyue cited the classics, and every word he spoke held reason.

"I couldn't win the debate. I could only watch him take the opportunity away." Wei He looked at Wei Mingde, his gaze deep.

"I hated him then! I thought he showed no consideration, that he cared nothing for our bond as brothers.

"But later, the facts proved he was better than me... far better...

"He placed second in the imperial examination, entered the Hanlin Academy, became a minister, and joined the Grand Secretariat.

"And I only passed the first hurdle, the Autumn Provincial Examination..." Wei He let out a long, self-mocking sigh. "Heh, and even then, I barely scraped in at the bottom.

"After that, I failed again and again and could only return home to teach. Later, I began managing the clan's affairs, and I've muddled through an unremarkable life ever since."

Wei Mingde remained silent, while Wei He continued.

"When that child debated me in the Ancestral Hall today, the look in his eyes, his bearing-they were exactly like your father's back then."

"Fierce, but not reckless. Contending, but not chaotic."

He paused, his voice sinking lower. "Mingde, you loathe him because Wenyue and Lu Shi both passed away on the day that child was born.

"But looking at it now..." Wei He paused again, as though weighing his words. "Could it not also be that they gave up their lives so this child could be born?"

Wei Mingde opened his mouth, wanting to speak, but no words came.

"So..." Wei He rose, walked over to him, and patted his shoulder. "Give it back to him, Mingde! At the end of the day, that child is Wenyue's grandson and your own son, not an outsider."

With that, Wei He slowly made his way toward the door, leaning on his cane.

At the doorway, he stopped again and glanced back at Wei Mingde.

"I'll prepare the property deeds for the Eldest Branch. Tomorrow, you and I will discuss the matter in the Central Hall."

Then he disappeared into the night.

Wei Mingde was left alone in the main hall.

He sat there, his expression utterly grim.

He had not taken in a single word Wei He had said.

He remembered only one thing... that Sinful Son was going to win.

Bang! Wei Mingde suddenly slammed his hand on the table.

"An utterly disloyal wretch, threatening his father with a sword, showing no respect for his elders—a Sinful Son born against nature, trading lives for his own, a harbinger of disaster..."

Wei Mingde gritted his teeth, his voice so low it seemed to squeeze out through the gaps between them.

"Someone like him can only bring ruin-a scourge who will leave disaster upon this family!"

"Husband."

Just then, the door curtain lifted, and Cui Shi entered.

She had been eavesdropping outside all along and had only dared enter after Wei He left.

Seeing Wei Mingde like this, she secretly rejoiced, though she showed nothing on her face.

She knew this man all too well. The more he behaved like this, the easier he was to sway.

So Cui Shi gently sat down beside Wei Mingde and said softly, "Husband, there is something I wish to say, but I don't know whether I should."

Wei Mingde gave her an irritated glance. "Speak."

Cui Shi leaned closer and lowered her voice until it was almost a whisper. "Since your uncle has already decided to return it to him, we cannot stop it."

"Not stop it? Have you gone mad?!"

"I haven't gone mad. Rest assured, husband. Even if the property reaches his hands, will it really belong to him?"

Wei Mingde faltered. "What do you mean?"

"He is only ten this year. Once the deeds have been transferred into his name, the rules require them to be taken back into the clan's custody for management."

A calculating gleam shone in Cui Shi's eyes. "When the time comes, we can pull a few strings, get those deeds out, and transfer them to another name without anyone being the wiser. What could he do then?"

At these words, Wei Mingde's eyes lit up, then dimmed again. "But wouldn't transferring them into my name be too obvious? That Sinful Son won't let the matter rest."

"Oh, husband, you're being foolish!" Cui Shi smiled. "Of course we can't put them in your name, but we can put them in someone else's."

She paused, her voice carrying the certainty of someone who already had victory in her grasp.

"For instance, we could transfer them to Wei Shoucheng first. Then we can tell everyone this was what your father left to Wei Shoucheng. What could that Sinful Son say?"

Wei Mingde froze.

Of course he knew Cui Shi was scheming for her own son's benefit.

But what of it? That was better than giving it to that Sinful Son!

So he gritted his teeth and slowly nodded. "We'll do that."

Seeing Wei Mingde nod, Cui Shi was overjoyed and hurriedly said, "A wise decision, husband!"

"We'll wait until the deeds reach his hands, then look for an opportunity once the clan takes custody of them."