Xin Jiuwei rushed to the yamen, where a crowd of onlookers had already gathered. Wang Qing and the servants struggled to help her squeeze in.

Wang Qing quickly explained to her, "I found out that our young master started it, but there were more of them, so he didn't get the upper hand. Logically, the fight should have ended there, but one of them was a troublemaker who insisted that even if the young master was from the Xin family, he couldn't hit people without reason. So the group argued and called the authorities."

Xin Jiuwei was really having a headache; the fight between several young masters had escalated to the point of reporting it to the authorities.

Since it was a simple dispute with a clear cause and course of events, the matter was not brought to a head in the yamen. The people involved were also in the wrong, and there was an old man in the yamen mediating the dispute. Xin Yunzhou was ordered to pay some money, and the matter was thus settled.

Xin Jiuwei waited for a while before Xin Yunzhou came out.

She didn't ask Xin Yunzhou why he hit someone, but only asked Wang Qing to bring some ointment for bruises and sprains, and then took Xin Yunzhou to the car to treat his wounds.

Before getting into the carriage, she saw the old man also leave the government office and get into a horse-drawn carriage.

Xin Jiuwei naturally recognized the carriage; it had come from their home.

Her heart sank, and she asked Xin Yunzhou, "Brother, do you recognize the old gentleman who was with you in the hall just now?"

Xin Yunzhou was still angry about the morning, but after the fight and seeing his sister again, he felt he couldn't be angry anymore. Instead, he felt guilty because Mr. Ye had caught them fighting.

"It's Mr. Ye you mentioned. Don't even mention it, he's the one who reported it to the authorities."

Xin Jiuwei was not surprised. She figured that the group was arguing and no one would give in, and since Mr. Ye was there, he probably suggested reporting the matter to the authorities.

But things just don't always go by coincidence. My brother was caught in a fight, which is a rare occurrence for him. Was he really that unlucky?

While she was thinking, her hands didn't stop, applying the ointment to Xin Yunzhou.

He just didn't look too good.

Seeing this, Xin Yunzhou thought that his sister's reputation was no better than his own, and his heart softened.

Just as he was thinking this, a sudden pain shot through the wound on his face, causing him to howl loudly.

"Little sister! Be gentle!"

"You still know pain." Xin Jiuwei stopped exerting her strength. "Next time we fight, it will hurt even more."

Xin Yunzhou covered his wound and remained silent.

Xin Jiuwei sighed and stopped talking to him.

"Don't worry," Xin Yunzhou said after a long while. "Those guys didn't get anything out of me, otherwise why would they have reported me to the authorities? Humph, cowards."

Xin Jiuwei said, "Yes, brother, you are the most amazing. Why don't you become a thug in the future? No, become an executioner and specialize in chopping off other people's heads."

Xin Yunzhou touched his nose and remained silent.

Xin Jiuwei returned home with her brother and, sure enough, heard that Mr. Ye had arrived. Her father was entertaining Mr. Ye with Qi Huaiyu.

The fight will inevitably be found out by the father, but that's not the main issue. The real problem is that it might negatively impact Mr. Ye's impression of his brother.

There was no such thing as fighting in her previous life. Before Mr. Ye arrived in Yingzhou, Xin Jiuwei had already asked her father to arrange for Qi Huaiyu to become his apprentice. Her brother was not even at home and had not even seen Mr. Ye.

So why did Mr. Ye suddenly go to that restaurant halfway through this life?

Xin Jiuwei could easily guess the reason.

Since no one has been decided who will become his apprentice this time, Qi Huaiyu will naturally take action.

There's no such thing as a coincidence in the world; most of it was probably orchestrated by Qi Huaiyu.

Xin Jiuwei said to Xin Yunzhou, "Now that Mr. Ye has arrived, you should at least go and entertain him. Besides, you should also express your opinion to him about today's matter."

Xin Yunzhou was somewhat reluctant, "What am I supposed to do? I'll just get scolded by my father for nothing."

Xin Jiuwei didn't say anything, she just looked at him.

"Alright, alright." Xin Yunzhou gave in, "I'll go, I'll go."

He went to the front hall dejectedly, and Xin Jiuwei sent Wang Qing to follow him. Half a meal later, Wang Qing returned.

"This servant has seen it. Mr. Ye did not mention the eldest young master's fight to the master, but it seems that Mr. Ye prefers Qi Huaiyu. He asked about the books Qi Huaiyu read and even praised him a couple of times."

Xin Jiuwei nodded, got up and went to the garden.

She had a habit of going for a walk outdoors when she was thinking. As she was looking down at her, she suddenly smelled a strange, faint fragrance.

It doesn't smell like flowers; it's more like the scent of sandalwood I smelled at Lingyin Temple that day.

Following the fragrance, she looked into the distance and saw a graceful, white figure by the pond.

Xin Jiuwei paused, then called out softly, "Master, what are you doing here?"

The white-robed monk remained motionless, his gaze fixed on the pond, the prayer beads in his hand slowly turning.

Xin Jiuwei wasn't annoyed by the lack of attention and slowly walked over, lifting her skirt.

"Master, don't you remember me?" She stood next to the monk, turning to look at him. "Master Jueming?"

Jueming then raised his eyelids and glanced at her from the side.

That glance was brief and fleeting, like a feather brushing across Xin Jiuwei's face before disappearing.

He seemed to pause for a moment, wondering who Xin Jiuwei was.

Xin Jiuwei kindly said, "Master, you still owe me an interpretation of that very unlucky fortune slip from last time."

Jueming finally spoke, his voice still clear and cold like a spring, "Benefactor, you come from the Xin family, why bother with a single fortune stick?"

"Why can't I care?" Xin Jiuwei asked, tilting her head. "Is there something special about that fortune stick? Otherwise, why won't the master interpret it for me?"

“No,” Jueming said calmly. “It’s just unnecessary.”

Xin Jiuwei sighed softly, "Alright, I won't force you, Master."

She appeared very understanding, but a hint of sorrow rose between her brows. She suppressed this sorrow with a keen awareness, then asked, forcing a smile:

"What a coincidence, how did the master end up in my house?"