Volume One: Emerging Glory Chapter 124: Worlds Apart

Wang Jianbin finally arrived at the home of his good friend, Zhou Weida, accompanied by Wang Jue.

"Haha, old Wang! Come in, come in, please!"

Zhou Weida, wearing glasses and exuding a warm, welcoming demeanor, looked a few years younger than Wang Jianbin. "Is this little Jue? It’s been nearly ten years; the young man has grown more and more handsome."

Wang Jue bowed 'obediently' and greeted them, "Hello, Uncle! Hello, Auntie!"

"Come on in," Zhou Weida’s wife added with a smile.

Standing to the side was a tall girl with a faint, polite smile; she was undoubtedly Zhou Weida's daughter. She greeted Wang Jianbin with similar courtesy: "Hello, Uncle."

"Hello, hello!" Wang Jianbin was grinning from ear to ear.

Wang Jue observed this scene with clear eyes, his mouth twitching instinctively. He had a sudden, desperate urge to grab his father and walk straight out the door. Managing to suppress the impulse to run away with his own father, he happened to lock eyes with the girl. He nodded politely, but the girl looked slightly awkward and quickly looked away. Wang Jue didn't take it to heart.

The father and son followed the Zhou family inside. Led by Zhong Liming, they entered the living room. Wang Jue placed the gifts he had brought on the floor, while his father sat on the sofa with Zhou Weida, engaging in lively conversation.

...

Soon, it was lunchtime. Zhou Weida’s wife finished preparing the meal, and the two families ate together. Wang Jue remained neither particularly active nor silent, projecting an image of honest, steady reliability.

After lunch, Zhou Weida waved his hand and told his daughter, "Ting, why don't you take little Jue out for a stroll?"

"Sure." Zhou Ting, who never cared for such social occasions, agreed quickly.

Wang Jue fought back a yawn. Compared to this, he would have preferred to spend a thousand rounds battling it out with Brother Shan in the Blood Wolf Valley—it would sharpen his combat experience and earn him money at the same time!

Zhou Ting stood up and headed for the door, with Wang Jue following silently behind. Once they were out of the house, the smile vanished from Zhou Ting’s face. Ever since she heard about the arranged marriage at home, she had felt incredibly irritable.

"I don't really know where to go," Zhou Ting said after a moment of thought. "How about we find a place to get a drink?"

"Whatever," Wang Jue nodded indifferently. "I’m not familiar with this area; you decide."

Zhou Ting said nothing more. After walking for ten minutes, she led Wang Jue to a delicately decorated shop outside the residential complex that served various drinks and desserts. They sat across from each other, and silence descended once more. The atmosphere became awkward.

*Ring, ring, ring...*

Just then, Zhou Ting’s phone rang. Her eyes lit up, and she answered immediately. "Where are you guys?"

Whatever the person on the other end said, she glanced at Wang Jue hesitantly and whispered, "I—I’m not in a very convenient spot right now."

"Fine, wait for me a bit."

Holding the phone, Zhou Ting composed her thoughts and said to Wang Jue, who seemed to be daydreaming: "Uh, my friends want to go hang out. Do you want to..."

"You go ahead," Wang Jue blurted out without a second thought.

"Huh?" Zhou Ting was stunned. Out of politeness, she had intended to invite him along, fearing she wouldn't know how to explain it to her parents otherwise. She hadn't expected this guy to be so eager to get rid of her!

"Hmph!" With a cold face and a soft huff, Zhou Ting rose to leave.

Just then, she saw a familiar figure approaching. The frost on her face melted instantly, and she waved excitedly. "Sister..."

A girl with her hair in a bun looked over at the sound.

...

As if they had planned it, Wang Jue happened to turn around at the same moment.

...

The girl with the hair bun and Wang Jue sat across from each other. Three minutes earlier, that seat had been occupied by Zhou Ting. They sat in silence for a moment before speaking in perfect unison.

"Are you on a date with Tingting?"

"Are you Zhou Ting’s sister?"

Wang Jue was thoroughly confused. He knew of the Zhou family, but he hadn't seen them much over the years, and he had never heard of any arranged marriage. Perhaps his own family had been too embarrassed to bring it up, so he genuinely didn't know if Zhou Ting had a sister.

Compared to Wang Jue’s bewilderment, the girl with the bun looked at him with a meaningful gaze and extended her hand magnanimously. "Let's formally introduce ourselves. My name is Zhou Lin, Tingting’s cousin."

"Wang Jue." He shook her hand briefly, releasing it the moment they touched.

Zhou Lin seemed to have a powerful thirst for gossip. "So, are you on a date with Tingting?"

"No," Wang Jue replied with a calm expression.

"Oh..." Zhou Lin dragged out the word, clearly unconvinced. She had never once seen Zhou Ting out with a boy, let alone sitting face-to-face.

"Believe what you want." Wang Jue glanced at her and took a sip of his milk tea.

Zhou Lin suddenly leaned in. "Oh, come on. Even if you were on a date, I wouldn't tell anyone."

"..." Wang Jue’s mouth twitched. He stared at her expressionlessly and bit down on the ice in his drink with a loud *crunch*.

Just as Wang Jue was considering whether to teach this woman a lesson, Zhou Lin, showing a complete lack of tact, spoke again. "By the way, did that guy end up chasing you?"

Wang Jue looked at her with a strange expression, unsure what she was getting at.

"Hehe, I heard the commotion at the time, so I’m just curious," Zhou Lin grinned. "By the way, how exactly did you survive against a martial artist at the ninth level of Spirit Refinement?"

As she spoke, she scrutinized Wang Jue with profound intrigue. Wang Jue remained calm, saying nothing. After a moment, he offered a brief word of thanks: "Thanks."

"Actually, you don't need to thank me," Zhou Lin waved her hand dismissively. "If you hadn't been the one to step on the landmine first that time, I wouldn't have escaped either. Saving you was the same as saving myself."

"You seem to know quite a lot," Wang Jue couldn't help but observe. Including this time, he had seen her three times in total. He didn't know her well, but he could sense that this woman was mysterious.

Zhou Lin’s eyes lit up. "So, do you want to know more?"

"Of course." Wang Jue raised an eyebrow, looking as if he were willing to hear her out.

Zhou Lin suddenly held up a finger, her eyes gleaming. "No problem. For Tingting’s sake, ten thousand dollars per question."

"..." Wang Jue’s face darkened, and he stood up to leave.

"Hey, don't go!" Zhou Lin cried out, realizing he was leaving. "Okay, five thousand dollars per question! Hey, really? You’re so rich, do you really care about five or ten thousand?"

Just as she finished speaking, Wang Jue stopped and turned back.

*There's a chance!* Zhou Lin felt a surge of joy, thinking the situation had turned around.

Unexpectedly, Wang Jue simply picked up the unfinished milk tea from the table and walked away with decisive strides.

Zhou Lin: "..."

*My sanity is shattering!*

"Cheapskate! May you only drink cold water!" Zhou Lin sat back down, fuming, and took a sharp sip of her milk tea. Just as she was about to leave, a waiter blocked her path. "Excuse me, miss, could you please settle the bill?"

"Settle what bill?" Zhou Lin blinked. "No, I already paid for my drink."

"I know," the waiter smiled. "But the gentleman who just left hasn't paid for his yet."

"I..." Zhou Lin’s eyes widened. She whipped her head around to look at the figure walking away rapidly outside the window. Then, with a face like thunder, she turned back and hissed through her teeth, "I. Do. Not. Know. Him!"

*You just chatted for ages, and now you tell me you don't know him?*

The waiter maintained a polite smile. *Do you think I'm an idiot?*

"Fine, fine, how much is it? I'll pay..." Defeated by the waiter’s smile, Zhou Lin raised her hands in surrender. After paying for Wang Jue’s bill, she chased after him, furious.

The search was fruitless. She clenched her fists in rage.

"You jerk! Don't let me run into you again!!!"

...

At five in the afternoon, Wang Jianbin and Wang Jue took a taxi home. As soon as they got in, Wang Jianbin asked impatiently, "So, how did it go?"

"How did what go?" Wang Jue looked puzzled.

Wang Jianbin gave him a 'you blockhead' look. "I mean, what did you think of the girl?"

"Oh, she’s fine, but she’s not really my type," Wang Jue said, half-truthfully.

Wang Jianbin had hoped for a positive answer, but he was baffled by the second half. "Not your type?"

"Yeah, I don't like the frail, delicate kind." Wang Jue tilted his head to look out the window. "Don't worry about it, Dad. Nothing’s going to happen between us."

Wang Jianbin looked at him with frustration. "Frail? She’s a student at a top-hundred martial arts academy! Her father told me so. You haven't even gotten into one yourself. Why don't you think it over again?"

"Forget it. She and I are simply from different worlds."

"What does that mean?"

"It means," Wang Jue said concisely, "I'm not interested!"

"Fine." Wang Jianbin gave up, his tone turning worried. "I see you only ever care about martial arts. I’m really worried you’ll never find a wife."

Wang Jue: "..."

*Truly a biological father, his words are as blunt as ever.*

Wang Jianbin seemed oblivious to Wang Jue’s expression, rubbing his chin and muttering to himself, "I remember your Uncle Lin’s daughter is three years older than you. I heard she’s been at a top-hundred martial arts academy for three years already. She’d definitely fit your standards."

"As the saying goes, 'a wife three years older is a treasure chest of gold!' Little Jue, how about we go visit your Uncle Lin’s house tomorrow?"

Hearing this, Wang Jue immediately turned his head and pretended to be asleep, ignoring every word his father threw at him.

...

Soon, the father and son arrived home. As soon as they walked in, Wang's mother asked curiously, "Tell me, how did it go?"

"Mom, Dad spent the whole ride telling me about how he chased girls when he was young. It sounds so sleazy," Wang Jue decided to take a little 'revenge' on his father. He said to his mother, who was wearing a look of pure gossip: "He even said things like 'a wife three years older is a treasure' and 'a wife thirty years older brings a whole empire.' Mom, you really should think about it—if it were me, I wouldn't be able to stand it!"

"..."

Wang Jianbin stared blankly. *When on earth did I ever say that?*

Falsely accused by his own brat, Wang Jianbin was so angry he took off his shoe and roared, "You little rascal! Stop talking nonsense! Your mother is a woman of great wisdom; she won't fall for your lies!"

"Hehe, who knows?" Wang Jue grinned, gave his father a 'good luck' look, and bolted toward his room.

After a moment of shock, Wang's mother slowly turned her head, her eyes sharp...