Starting as pearl divers, they have endless jobs.

Chapter 193 The Playboy, Striving for Excellence

The door slammed shut.

Xie Weining stood there, stunned, unable to come to her senses for a moment.

Did I just... see things wrong?
Or is he up to some new trick today?
"Miss, we should go now."

Xie Weining was startled awake when a trusted maidservant dressed in green with her hair in double buns whispered to her.

She withdrew her gaze, her expression returning to its usual coolness, but a ripple of emotion stirred within her that she herself was unaware of. Then she turned and left.

At the same time, Chen Ye, back in his room, also breathed a long sigh of relief.

He walked up to the bronze mirror and carefully examined his face.

A young face was reflected in the mirror.

It has to be said that this body has a really good foundation.

With his sword-like eyebrows, bright eyes, high nose bridge, and well-defined facial features, he could be considered a standard handsome man.

The only drawback is that his predecessor was too reckless, which led to his infamous reputation as a notorious playboy in the entire Yunzhou City.

"What a waste of such a beautiful appearance."

Chen Ye touched his face, muttered something to himself, then sat down at the table and began to seriously consider his current situation and what he should do.

The first step is to integrate one's own strengths.

Having already reached the Sea Condensation Realm, the next step is to adapt as quickly as possible, which shouldn't be too difficult.

Secondly, and most importantly, is to manage your interpersonal relationships well.

This time is different from the previous times. Although the starting point of identity is very high, the interpersonal relationships are also the most complicated. I have to deal with them carefully.

After all, there are truly skilled people in this world, so I must always be vigilant and not give myself away.

There's not much to worry about with Chen Fangshi. Although he was disappointed in his predecessor, he only had this one son, so he still loved him very much.

And then there's his cheap wife, Xie Weining.

A woman who can support such a large family business is definitely not a simple character.

Although she loathed him, they were still husband and wife in name, so if he could improve their relationship, the enormous wealth and connections she represented would be an undeniable asset.

Finally, there's the older sister, Chen Wan'er, who lives far away in the palace.

Judging from his memories, the original owner's mother died young, and he was raised by his older sister, so the original owner had a very good relationship with his sister.

His older sister also doted on him, almost to the point of granting his every wish.

But this also means she is the most troublesome one, because she knows her younger brother too well, and he can easily see through any clues.

The fact that Chen Wan'er was able to accompany the Empress and even obtain a high position speaks volumes about her intelligence and shrewdness.

Therefore, we must be very careful.

However, the most urgent task now is to find a way to slightly reverse the damage to their reputation. It's not good to remain a complete failure, because being too useless makes them easy targets for others.

Therefore, we must make some changes gradually without arousing suspicion.

Just as Chen Ye was planning for the future, a gurgling sound came from his stomach.

He then realized that he was so hungry that his stomach was practically sticking to his back.

Last night, I was so focused on acting on the pleasure boat that I barely ate anything.

So Chen Ye went outside and casually called over a maid, "Go and get me something to eat."

The maid was taken aback, seemingly not expecting the young master to want to eat so early. After all, if he had been drinking all night, the first thing he would do when he came back was to go to sleep, and no one could disturb him. This was why the maids dared not enter the room and could only wait outside.

However, since the young master had given the order, the maid dared not neglect it. She quickly responded and went to prepare.

Before long, a steaming bowl of meat porridge and several delicate side dishes were brought over.

Chen Ye devoured all the food in a whirlwind.

After eating and drinking his fill, Chen Ye felt a warm current flowing through his body, and his spirits improved considerably. He then pushed open the door and headed straight for his study.

When Chen Ye pushed open the door, the room was filled with a long-standing, musty smell, indicating that no one had been here for a long time, and even the table was covered with a thick layer of dust.

Chen Ye frowned and immediately ordered, "Clean the study thoroughly!"

The maid behind him was somewhat taken aback, and even doubted whether she had heard correctly.

You know, the young master has never been inside this study since it was built. Why is he suddenly going to clean it today?
However, they didn't dare to ask any more questions and immediately started cleaning.

Chen Ye ignored them, walked to a bookshelf, casually pulled out a copy of the Great Chen Geography, dusted off the cover, and then sat down on a chair outside the window, turning the pages one by one.

This scene left the maids who were cleaning completely dumbfounded.

Is the sun coming out in the west?

Otherwise, why would this young master Chen be reading so intently?
Chen Ye paid no attention to their reactions; at this moment, he was completely immersed in the world of books.

This book provides a detailed record of the geography, customs, and power distribution of the various prefectures and counties of the Great Chen Dynasty.

Through this book, Chen Ye gained a clearer understanding of the macro-structure of the world.

The Great Chen Dynasty had a vast territory, divided into thirty-six prefectures, with its capital, Yunzhou, located in the center of the country.

Besides Confucian practitioners led by academies, there were also Taoist sects in the south that revered Taoist teachings, and mysterious Buddhist temples in the Western Regions.

In addition, there are other niche schools of thought such as Legalism and the School of Diplomacy. The contention of these schools of thought together constitutes the diverse and extraordinary system of this world.

Just as Chen Ye was engrossed in watching, footsteps sounded outside the courtyard.

A middle-aged man who looked like a steward led in a eunuch dressed in the robes of an imperial attendant, who looked very shrewd and capable.

"Young master," the butler bowed at the door and reported, "this is Eunuch Liu from the palace. He says that the eldest young lady has something for you."

Chen Ye was slightly taken aback, realizing that the butler was referring to his predecessor's older sister, Chen Wan'er.

But what does she want to give me?
Despite his hesitation, Chen Ye stood up and said, "Please come in, sir!"

After inviting Eunuch Liu into the study, his gaze swept around the room, and when he saw Chen Ye holding a book and the maids cleaning the room, a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes.

However, he quickly composed himself, put on a professional smile, and bowed to Chen Ye.

"This servant greets Young Master Chen."

"No need for such formalities, sir," Chen Ye replied politely. "What are my sister's instructions?"

"Chen Sheren sent me to deliver some things to the young master."

As he spoke, Eunuch Liu took out an exquisite wooden box from his pocket and handed it over with both hands.

"Chen Sheren said that the weather is getting colder day by day. Young Master has a history of coughing when it gets cold, so he brought you some medicine to clear your lungs and regulate your qi. He also asked me to tell you that she is doing well in the palace, so please don't worry about her."

"It's just that His Majesty has been busy with official duties lately, and she needs to be by his side, so she can't leave the palace for the time being. She will return to the mansion to visit you and Master in a few days."

Chen Ye took the wooden box and felt its weight.

"Thank you for making this trip, sir." Chen Ye took out a silver ingot from his waist and discreetly slipped it into the hand of Eunuch Liu. "Please have some tea, sir."

The eunuch Liu squeezed the silver coins, and his smile became even more genuine.

"Young master, you are too kind. Now that the goods have been delivered, this servant should return to report. I will not disturb you any longer."

Chen Ye escorted him to the courtyard gate before turning back to his study and opening the wooden box in his hand.

Inside the box lay a letter and a small porcelain bottle.

He picked up the letter first, opened it, and read it.

The letter was written by her elder sister, Chen Wan'er, with delicate handwriting and a spirited air.

The letter was filled with concern and earnest expectations for him. First, she nagged him to remember to wear more clothes when it was cold. Then she scolded him for fooling around all day and not doing anything productive even after getting married. Then she earnestly advised him to settle down, live a good life, not to let the girl down, and not to worry his father anymore.

At the end of the letter, she also specifically mentioned that the Empress would hold an autumn hunt at the royal hunting grounds a month later, at which time all the sons of nobles in the capital would participate.

She hoped that Chen Ye could prepare well and strive to perform well in the autumn hunt, so as to restore some face for the Chen family.

After reading the letter, Chen Ye felt a warm feeling well up inside him.

Putting everything else aside, this older sister truly loves the original owner of this body.

Chen Ye then put the things away, having made up his mind.

The autumn hunt that Chen Wan'er mentioned at the end of her letter was a good opportunity. If she could make a name for herself then, she could at least lessen her current bad reputation.

So, for the next few days, Chen Ye completely entered seclusion.

He asked his father, Chen Shifang, for leave, saying that he wanted to study in peace and prepare for the autumn hunt a month later. This surprised and delighted Chen Shifang. Although he didn't say anything, he secretly instructed the servants not to disturb him unless it was something important.

And so, Chen Ye spent his days in the study browsing through the books collected by the Chen family, frantically absorbing the knowledge of this world.

In the evening, he would close the door and either meditate to consolidate his Sea Condensation Realm cultivation or practice martial arts to integrate his martial arts experience as a Grandmaster with this new body.

These days of staying at home and ignoring everything else fly by.

Ten days passed in the blink of an eye. By the time night fell, the Xie family's shop had already closed, but the accounting room in the backyard was still brightly lit.

Xie Weining sat behind her desk, holding an account book in her hand. Her delicate brows were slightly furrowed as she clicked the beads on the abacus in front of her.

The maid Qing'er poured her some hot tea. "Miss, it's late, you should rest." Qing'er looked at her mistress's tired face and couldn't help but urge her with heartache, "These accounts can be reviewed tomorrow."

Xie Weining didn't look up, her gaze still focused on the ledger, and said in a deep voice, "No, the shipment from the north is about to be dispatched. We need to check the checkpoints, manpower, and cargo damage along the way again. There can't be any mistakes."

Her father, Xie Yi, has been in increasingly poor health in the past two years, and the huge Xie family business, with hundreds of people, has almost all fallen on her shoulders.

The key issue is that Xie Weining has no brothers, so she has to do everything herself and dare not slack off in the slightest.

Qing'er sighed, knowing she couldn't persuade him, so she could only stand silently by his side.

After a while, when Xie Weining finally finished calculating one set of accounts, she seemed to remember something and hesitated before speaking, "Miss, there is something... I don't know if I should say it."

"what's up?"

"It's about...the son-in-law." Qing'er carefully observed Xie Weining's expression.

Upon hearing the words "son-in-law," Xie Weining's fingers, which were flipping through the ledger, visibly paused for a moment. Then she finally raised her head, her cold eyes revealing no emotion.

"What happened to him this time? Did he go out fooling around again, or did he get into another fight?"

For the past six months, all the news she had heard about this man was nothing more than this.

She has gone from initial anger and disappointment to complete numbness.

“No…no.” Qing’er quickly shook her head. “On the contrary, the young master hasn’t stepped out of the Chen residence’s gate in the past ten days.”

"Oh?" Xie Weining's face showed a hint of surprise, but it quickly turned into sarcasm. "What? Was he put in solitary confinement by his father?"

“No, not exactly.” Qing’er’s voice was even lower. “I heard from the servants at the Chen residence that the young master asked Master Chen for leave himself, saying that he wanted to focus on his studies and prepare for the autumn hunt next month.”

"Reading? Autumn hunting?"

Xie Weining was taken aback when she heard those two words, and then a mocking look appeared on her lips.

"Qing'er, you've been with me for so many years, do you believe it?"

Qing'er lowered her head and muttered softly, "Of course I don't believe it... but the maids in the Chen family all say that the young master has been spending all his time in his study for the past ten days or so, never leaving the house, and he has refused invitations from others several times."

Xie Weining remained silent.

She still didn't believe it.

She believed she knew Chen Ye perfectly well.

It was a lump of mud that couldn't be plastered on, a piece of rotten wood rotten to the core.

Cockfighting, dog racing, and womanizing are his skills; as for reading... how many words does he even know?
He's going to participate in the autumn hunt? He probably can't even draw a bow.

So they must be up to some new trick again.

Is he putting on an act for his father to swindle some money? Or has he come up with some new trick to disgust himself?
Thinking of this, Xie Weining felt a surge of irritation and disgust.

If it weren't for Chen Ye's older sister, Chen Wan'er, a powerful official in the palace, personally proposing marriage, and her father not daring to offend this favorite of the Empress, how could she have married such a notorious playboy!

For her, the past six months of marriage had been an endless torment.

"Miss?" Qing'er was a little scared when she saw that she hadn't spoken for a long time and her face was getting colder and colder.

"Alright, stop bringing him up." Xie Weining waved her hand impatiently, shaking off the jumbled thoughts in her mind.

"Let him pretend if he wants to. What does it have to do with me? I'm so busy here that I don't have time to deal with his trivial matters."

She lowered her head again, focusing all her attention on the ledger in front of her.

To her, this so-called husband was nothing more than a stranger living under the same roof, and none of his actions could stir the slightest ripple in her heart.

If he wants to embarrass himself at the autumn hunt, then let him. It's the Chen family that will lose face, what does it have to do with Xie Weining?
Seeing this, Qing'er dared not say anything more and could only shut her mouth.

The accounting room fell silent again, with only the crisp clinking of the abacus beads and the scratching of the pen tip across the paper.

It wasn't until after midnight that Xie Weining finally finished checking the last account. She let out a long breath, rubbed her sore neck, and looked exhausted.

"Let's go, go home."

The carriage traveled along the quiet streets and soon returned to the Chen residence.

Entering through the side gate and passing through the garden, Xie Weining could see the direction of Chen Ye's courtyard in the distance. The bedroom lights were off, but a faint light was still on in the study next door.

The dim yellow light shone through the window paper, standing out starkly in the pitch-black night.

Xie Weining stopped in her tracks instinctively.

Is he really in the study? There's no need to pretend until the wee hours of the morning.

“Miss, look…” Qing’er also saw the light, her voice full of surprise.

"What are you looking at?" Xie Weining snorted coldly, and that inexplicable feeling of irritation welled up in her heart again. "Let's go back and rest."

After saying that, she didn't look at him again and walked straight towards her room.

After washing up, Xie Weining lay in bed but tossed and turned and couldn't fall asleep.

My mind is in turmoil.

One moment it's a route map of the shipment from the north, the next it's the densely packed numbers in the ledger.

But somehow, in the end, all the images froze on that window with the light on.

What on earth is he doing?
Is he really reading a book, or...?

"Hmph, why should I care?"

Xie Weining turned over irritably and covered her head with the blanket.

He's just a piece of trash. Is he worth wasting my energy on?

It's a joke.

Thinking this, she forced herself to close her eyes and stop thinking about those messy things.

Meanwhile, in a secluded courtyard of the Marquis of Anyuan's residence, after several rounds of drinks and five dishes,

Several sons of noble families sat haphazardly, each with a scantily clad dancer in their arms, creating quite a lively scene.

"Come on, let's drink!" The chubby Qian Yi raised his glass, his face flushed, and shouted, "Brother Hou is treating today, let's drink until we drop!"

"Drink!" everyone responded enthusiastically.

"Where's Old Chen? Why didn't that kid Chen Ye come?" A tall, thin young man noticed that a familiar figure was missing from the scene and couldn't help but ask.

"I sent someone to invite him," Hou En said, setting down his wine cup and calling out to a servant standing at the door, "What's going on? Where is Young Master Chen?"

The servant rushed in, bowing and looking troubled, and said, "Reporting to...Young Master, I went there, but the servants at the Chen residence said that Young Master Chen...he doesn't go out."

"Not going out?" Hou En was stunned. "Why? Are you sick?"

In his memory, Chen Ye was a typical scoundrel; as long as there was alcohol and girls to keep him company, he would come running at a moment's notice. Why did he change his ways today?

"No...no illness." The servant lowered his head even further. "The people at the Chen residence said that Young Master Chen is...is studying diligently in his study, saying he's preparing for next month's autumn hunt, and he won't see anyone."

"puff--"

No sooner had the servant finished speaking than Qian Yi spat out a mouthful of wine, spraying it all over the face of the guy opposite him.

"Cough cough cough... What did you say?" Qian Yi laughed while wiping his mouth, his whole body shaking with laughter. "Studying? Old Chen? Did I hear that right?"

"Hahaha!"

"Oh my god, that's hilarious! Chen Ye, that good-for-nothing, actually goes to school?"

"He probably can't even recite the Three Character Classic properly! And he's planning an autumn hunt? Is he going to be someone's target?"

The room was instantly filled with a joyful atmosphere, and everyone laughed so hard they were doubled over. The dancers in their arms giggled along with them, and the scene became quite chaotic.

Hou En laughed until tears streamed down his face. He waved his hand and said to the servant, "Alright, alright, I understand. You may leave."

After the servants left, Hou En picked up his wine cup and laughed at everyone, "What did I tell you? This kid has been acting strangely lately. He's probably gone crazy again. Studying? He's kidding me!"

"Exactly!" Qian Yi finally stopped laughing and said, "I heard a couple of days ago that he had cleaned up his study in the yard and was spending all his time there. I thought it was just a rumor, but it turns out it's true!"

"I think he was just put on an act because his father scolded him terribly and his icy wife angered him. He's just trying to gain sympathy," another young master analyzed.

"That makes sense!" Everyone nodded in agreement.

"I bet he can't keep this up for more than three days!" Qian Yi said confidently, patting his chest.

"I bet five days!" Hou En held up five fingers. "In five days, he'll definitely be coming to us for drinks again, crying and begging!"

This group of people knew Chen Ye's character all too well.

He's the kind of person who only studies sporadically, lacking perseverance and intelligence. Getting him to stick to his studies would be worse than killing him.

The banquet continued, and everyone quickly forgot about Chen Ye's little incident, continuing to toast and drink, indulging in unrestrained behavior.

However, three days passed.

Hou En sent someone to invite Chen Ye, but was refused.

Five days have passed.

Qian Yi went to Chen Ye's house in person, but he didn't even get to see him. The butler politely asked him to go back, and the reason was still the same.

The young master is reading and will not receive guests!
(End of this chapter)