"So... you are Su Jinyu's master..."

After a long while, Shen Han finally spoke.

In his words, there seemed to be quite a bit of regret.

To be honest, Shen Han preferred if there were no such connections between him and Shi Yuezhu.

This relationship, instead, became an obstacle.

He didn't care about other people's gossip, but could Shi Yuezhu also ignore it?

Hearing this, Shi Yuezhu's eyes slightly lowered.

"Before coming here, I should have guessed...

The same name, the same betrothal, wanting to break the engagement...

Only after hearing others' evaluations of you did I think it wasn't you, just someone with the same name."

Hearing this, Shen Han was a bit curious.

"Their evaluations of me must be quite poor..."

Shi Yuezhu hesitated for a moment, then nodded.

"Ill-natured, profit-driven, vulgar in speech, ungrateful..."

Hearing these evaluations, Shen Han couldn't help but smile.

They certainly had the audacity to make such appraisals of him.

"But upon meeting you, I did not believe any of these evaluations."

Shi Yuezhu looked at Shen Han, her face as gentle as always.

"Being willing to share Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures hardly links to being purely profit-driven."

"Perhaps, I just wanted to flatter you in this way... After all, you already had Fourth Grade strength back then..."

Not knowing what he was thinking, Shen Han instead smeared himself.

"Then why didn't you ask for my help back then...

You were clearly caught in a vortex, yet you grit your teeth, unwilling to speak out..."

Hearing this, Shen Han didn't know how to answer either.

At that time, he did think about asking Shi Yuezhu for help, to be his support.

Having a Fourth Grade expert would probably make things much easier.

But after much thought, Shen Han didn't want to drag her into this trouble.

Seeing Shen Han's silence, Shi Yuezhu had some guesses in her heart, but she didn't voice them out.

She shifted the topic to another matter.

"Additionally, the scandal between Madam Xie of the Shen Family and a servant, they say you spread it.

This is why they call you vulgar in speech, lustful in heart. I think that must be false too."

To say Shen Han was lustful, Shi Yuezhu found this the least believable.

Back in that dense forest, if Shen Han truly had that kind of character, she would have been subjected to who knows what...

Shi Yuezhu had confidence in her appearance; it was unlikely Shen Han had no attraction to her.

She was completely incapable of resisting then.

Yet, his ability to control himself already testified to his character.

This compliment made Shen Han a bit embarrassed.

"Actually, the scandal between Madam Xie and the servant was indeed fabricated by me..."

"Hmm?"

Shi Yuezhu was taken aback, this indeed surprised her.

"Surely, there was a reason, you must have been forced into it..."

Hearing this, Shen Han couldn't help but smile.

He hadn't even explained, and she had already provided him with a reason.

"At that time, I was still living in a remote courtyard of the Shen Mansion, Madam He accused me of stealing valuable jewelry.

She insisted on taking me to court.

In the courtroom, Madam Xie stood up, claiming to be a witness who saw me steal Madam He's jewelry..."

Hearing this, Shi Yuezhu understood.

In the face of slander, explanations seemed powerless. Fighting back by smearing the opponent was a good tactic.

"No wonder Miss Yun said the Shen and Su families' methods are dirty, turns out it's true."

Listening to this, Shi Yuezhu was subtly angry.

Being so harsh to their own descendants, the Shen Family was indeed ruthless.

After a round of conversation, neither of them seemed to know what to say next.

After a while, Shi Yuezhu asked, "Are you doing well here at the Yun Mansion?"

"Madam Yun has always treated me as her own, and the Yun Family has been very kind to me.

At least here in the Yun Mansion, it feels more like home than the Shen Mansion did."

After pausing for a moment, Shen Han continued:

"Leaving the Shen Family means I no longer worry about my safety.

Unlike in the Shen Mansion, where I constantly needed to be wary of what tricks they might use against me...

Also, the living conditions are much better.

Back in the Shen Mansion, the Old Dowager said I had to earn my keep, and it took half a day to earn a meal, leaving no time for practicing the Martial Path.

It's much better in the Yun Mansion, where I can seclude myself for months if needed."

Shi Yuezhu finally understood why, despite being a descendant of a great family, Shen Han was dressed in burlap during his trials in Qianyang Country.

The unequal treatment was evident.

"Speaking of which, the thing I hate most about the Shen Family is their use of those around me to threaten me.

Fortunately, Madam Yun and Cailing have already left the Shen Mansion.

Otherwise, even if I had won over the Su Family's pride in the Thousand-Autumn Grand Gathering, I likely would have fallen victim to the Shen Family's hands."

This all lined up.

Why Shen Han ventured alone into Qianyang Country to seek treasure despite the dangers.

It turned out it was for self-preservation.

The critical thing is, even after winning against Su Jinyu in the Thousand-Autumn Grand Gathering, the Shen Family didn't keep their promise, still demanding that Shen Han end up crippled.

What ungrateful, what not getting along with the family elders...

The Shen Family never showed concern or support for Shen Han, so why should he sacrifice himself?

"Why didn't you tell me these things back then? I could have helped you..."

"I didn't want to involve you..."

Shi Yuezhu slightly furrowed her brows, not quite understanding: "Why?"

"No reason, I just didn't want to... Besides, I had no way to contact you..."

Hearing this, Shi Yuezhu furrowed her brows tighter: "There should be a Sound Transmission Magical Artifact left in your Storage Ring."

"No, there wasn't. I checked many times."

Shi Yuezhu didn't believe it; she distinctly remembered leaving a Sound Transmission Magical Artifact.

She took out the Storage Ring and emptied its contents.

On the stone table, there were still plenty of pills and gold and silver.

Besides, some personal clothing Shi Yuezhu forgot to take out of the Storage Ring dropped out as well.

Both Shen Han and Shi Yuezhu were momentarily stunned, but it was Shen Han who reacted quickly, hastily stuffing the personal clothing back into the Storage Ring.

They then tacitly pretended as if nothing had happened...

Amidst the gold and silver, a palm-sized wooden token was mixed in.

It was only then Shen Han realized that it was actually a Sound Transmission Magical Artifact...

When he examined it before, the entry read [Excellent Magical Artifact], leading him to believe it merely served as proof of identity.

He hadn't expected it could transmit messages too.

Shen Han indeed lacked knowledge of such things.

"In the future, you can transmit messages to me...

Jinyu is my disciple, but that doesn't mean I can't protect you."

Hesitating for a moment, Shi Yuezhu looked at Shen Han: "Thanks to half of the Heart-Breaking Vine fruit, I have already advanced to the Third Grade Immortal Realm.

The Third Grade strength should make the Shen and Su families wary of me."

Third Grade... this distance seemed even greater now...

"Had I known, I should have given you the whole Heart-Breaking Vine fruit. Consuming half of it, the enhancement I received seemed a bit wasteful."

At these words, Shi Yuezhu shook her head.

"Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures have the effect of Strengthening the Foundation and Nourishing the Essence. The increase in strength and realm is merely the most superficial manifestation.

The numerous benefits subtly influence your cultivation."

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