standoff

Upon entering the main hall, the tripod incense altar was spotless, with half a stick of incense burning in the center, its smoke rising slowly.

Lin Jianye frowned, his face showing displeasure, and turned to ask the abbot, "Has someone been here?"

Abbot: "Yes."

"who?"

Every year on this day, it is his big day to worship his ancestors. He must be the one to offer the first incense to his master. This has become an established rule over the years. The villagers down the mountain wish they could elevate him to the heavens, and no one dares to offend him.

The five families of Beicheng didn't care about his attitude, but those five families didn't have much contact with their master during his lifetime, so they wouldn't travel thousands of miles to offer the first incense stick for him.

She couldn't guess who else it could be, and then she thought about how things had been going wrong lately. Her son and Miss Shen were about to get married, but they kept arguing about what happened back then.

Eighteen years have passed since her master's death, and the eldest daughter of the Shen family is only 24 years old. Even if she did have memories of that time, why bring it up now? Could it be related to the Shen family...?

The thought flashed through his mind for a moment, then he squinted and decisively banished it from his thoughts.

impossible.

Thinking about it more deeply, if no one had gossiped behind Miss Shen's back, how could the events of 18 years ago have driven two young people in love apart?

Lin Jianye's gaze suddenly sharpened, and cold sweat beaded on his forehead.

He wondered to himself, "Could it be that my master still has relatives or friends alive?"

The abbot took in the man's flushed and pale face, stroked the prayer beads with one hand, lowered his eyes and silently recited scriptures. He did not answer the man's questions, but turned his head to look outside the door. He nodded to the bell-ringing boy and left the main hall first.

The young apprentice didn't wait long before he saw Lin Jianye walk out with a furrowed brow, looking troubled by some trivial matter. He bit his lip and took half a step forward, wanting to remind Lin Jianye to be careful, but before he could speak, Lin Jianye ignored him and strode forward without even glancing at him.

"Distinguished Guest Lin."

Lin Jianye stopped in his tracks upon hearing the sound. In previous years, quite a few young monks would come up the mountain to talk to him. Inside Xingyin Temple, he had only exchanged a few words with the abbot and never spoke much with the young monks.

He nodded slightly as a greeting, then quickly walked out of the courtyard gate, waiting for the bodyguard beside him to understand and come forward, then crouched down to receive instructions.

"Go and find out who came to offer incense this morning."

The bodyguard responded and turned to leave.

The threshold of the middle gate was extremely high, so I took a step halfway and then turned back.

A group of people blocked the way. The leader had broad shoulders and a narrow waist, and a tall and slender figure. His hands hung at his sides, and he exuded an imposing aura. He was surrounded by the chill of the morning air, and even before he started walking, the oppressive feeling was already palpable.

The bodyguard lowered his head, stepped aside, and greeted them: "Young Master Lu, Young Master Qiu."

Before he could finish speaking, Lin Jianye's voice came from behind him, growing louder as he approached, his tone filled with joy: "Young Master Lu."

Teacher Yan Yi had jokingly said that the Shen family had sent him a congratulatory gift, so he figured the Lu family wouldn't be far behind. Sure enough, less than three months later, he invited Lu Yushi to attend the Lin family's ancestral worship ceremony.

"Master Wan said a few days ago that you would do me the honor of coming. I was so excited that I didn't know what to do with my hands and feet. I didn't expect you to come so early in the morning. Thank you for your hard work. I am extremely grateful," Lin Jianye said as he led the man toward the main hall, subtly signaling his bodyguards to go and do their business.

Lu Yushi stepped aside, subtly giving Sun Qian a look, and strode into the main hall.

The three-faced Buddha statue is solemn and dignified, with upright posture and incense smoke swirling around it from all sides.

The incense ash fell into the bronze vessel, ethereal and silent.

"Young Master Lu, this way please." Lin Jianye greeted him with a smile, every wrinkle on his face revealing his smugness. He thought to himself that the marriage alliance with the Shen family was indeed a brilliant move. It was a pity he didn't have a daughter, otherwise he might have been able to climb up to the man in front of him.

At that time, what will Master Wan be? The Five Families of Beicheng will all have to do things according to his wishes.

He raised his hand to cover the smile that he couldn't stop, and patiently explained the origin of the Buddha statue and the details of offering incense.

Lu Yushi looked up in the direction Lin Jianye pointed. The portrait in the niche was serene, sitting cross-legged with eyes downcast, watching the world. Sandalwood incense surrounded him.

"Just take three sticks of incense," Lin Jianye said, seeing that Lu Yushi had casually taken six sticks. After reminding him, he was afraid of displeasing Lu Yushi, so he added with a smile, "Young Master Lu never goes into temples, so it's normal that he doesn't know. I just grabbed a handful of incense the first time I offered incense, hahaha."

Lu Yushi ignored him, lowered his eyelashes, and his firm gaze loosened slightly. From the low pavilion on the mountainside to the sunlit flower sea at the foot of the mountain, all of this belonged to Xingyin Temple. So, it wasn't that he had never set foot in the temple.

The memory is so distant that such trivial matters are not worth his time. He put the incense sticks into the burner as a way of paying respects to the legendary Mr. Xue.

Lin Jianye, feeling rebuffed, touched his nose, somewhat unable to continue. He continued talking to himself, but Lu Yushi didn't pay him a single word from beginning to end.

He silently cursed in his heart, "What are you pretending for?"

-

Suddenly hearing a commotion outside the door, Lin Jianye felt as if he had found a savior and hurriedly looked up: "It must be Master Wan who has arrived. I'll go and see."

Lu Yushi nodded, paused for a moment, and followed him out at a leisurely pace.

A large group of people, not just Master Wan, were leading the way, followed by Shen Ming, Shen Manman, and others.

Lin Jianye looked up, about to step forward, when Shen Mingxian's face turned cold. He looked behind Lin Jianye and coldly cursed, "Lu Yushi, what do you mean?"

Lu Yushi stepped over the steps unhurriedly, walking with his head held high and leisurely, as if he had not heard Shen Ming's question.

Lin Jianye was puzzled: "Where did this come from?"

He couldn't afford to offend either of them, but fortunately, his son was dating Shen Manman, so Shen Ming wouldn't completely disregard him.

As she spoke, she winked at Lin Haoyu, but Lin Haoyu pretended not to see her and turned away to be all lovey-dovey with Shen Manman.

Lin Jianye gritted his teeth, but still had to keep a smile on his face, so he could only ask Master Wan for help.

He didn't care whether the young masters of the Lu and Chen families would fight, but they couldn't make a move on his turf.

Master Wan snorted coldly, his words less direct than Shen Ming's, but also carrying a hint of reproach.

"Yu Shi, this is where you're wrong. Xiao Shen did make a mistake back then, but the fact that he was willing to give you a closed beta version shows his sincerity. What kind of logic is it to cooperate with Xingzi Tower behind all of us's back?"

After he finished speaking, Qiu Jingxun paused for a moment, and when he turned his head to look at Lu Yu, he saw the same fleeting understanding in Lu Yu's eyes as he did.

The Lu family did not publicize their cooperation with Xingzilou. The only reason these people knew about their cooperation in advance was because Xingzilou released the information.

Shen Manman nudged Lin Haoyu with her elbow. Lin Haoyu understood and was about to speak when he caught a glimpse of Lin Jianye's glare. He silently lowered his head, then quickly looked up again and muttered, "They told us that the Lu family would never cooperate with Xingzilou, but they secretly signed an agreement to get Xingzilou to take their side. No wonder everyone says that Young Master Lu is the best at manipulating people's hearts."

The group chatted amongst themselves, each sentence filled with resentment towards Lu Yushi. Lu Yushi merely lifted his eyelids, glancing at everyone with a casual gesture, as if the person they were criticizing was someone else entirely.

His indifferent expression made everyone's indignation seem like a joke.

"What's the reasoning? Why don't you ask Young Master Shen?"

Shen Ming spoke coldly, his eyes flashing with icy intent, wishing he could settle accounts with him.

"Ask me? Young Master Lu slandered me for cooperating with Xingzi Tower. Although I have no way to defend myself, I will admit my bad luck and apologize to you for the sake of Master Wan. I originally wanted to find out who dared to mess with me, but now it seems that Young Master Lu may have orchestrated this himself, framing me with his help from both sides."

Sun Qian stepped forward and retorted, "Is Young Master Shen delusional? He's making baseless accusations that we're colluding with Xingzi Building from within. Speaking of the beta version, I'd like to ask Young Master Lu, with its high-intensity computing power and almost non-existent heat dissipation, what are Young Master Shen's intentions?"

Master Wan was taken aback, unaware that the beta version had a problem. His initial confidence in confronting Shen Ming instantly waned somewhat. He turned to look at Shen Ming, his eyes questioning.

Sun Qian continued, "Young Master Shen, if you're angry, you can just say so. If it's our fault, we won't make excuses or try to cover it up. Besides, Master Wan is here, so why don't you trust us, Young Master Shen?"

Knowing that Master Wan didn't understand the difference between new and old versions, Sun Qian deliberately exaggerated, "If we use the beta version in the server room without checking it, it's not a big deal if it damages our development progress. What wrong have all the staff in the server room done? Should they lose their lives because of Young Master Shen's selfish desires?"

"That dinner party that night, Engineer Jin personally reviewed the version and guaranteed that there were no problems. Young Master Lu was also present at the time. What? Young Master Lu invited him back, and now, not long after, he's changed his tune and says there's a problem. Young Master Lu's ability to distort the truth is getting more and more impressive!"

Master Wan's eyes flickered. He wasn't sure if the version was even usable, but he didn't want to miss the opportunity to put Lu Yu in his place. He continued, "Xiao Shen not only provided the beta version, but also introduced you to Engineer Jin. If he deliberately tampered with the beta version, why would he introduce you to an engineer to help you find the problem? There must be some misunderstanding. But shouldn't you explain your cooperation with Xingzilou?"

Lu Yushi slowly raised his eyes and asked, "A misunderstanding?"

As if he had heard a joke, he scoffed, his eyes turning cold and indifferent, his aura suddenly becoming fully unleashed.

Feeling intimidated and wanting to step in and smooth things over, Lin Jianye was taken aback.

Master Wan coughed, secretly regretting that he shouldn't have been so hasty in questioning Lu Yushi, since he hadn't fully grasped Lu Yushi's situation yet.

Everyone knew that Lu Yushi was not someone to be trifled with, and seeing his completely cold face, they were speechless for a moment.

Above the temple, birdsong filled the air.

The sky grew even darker.

This heavy rain might not last until the afternoon.

The tense standoff in front of the palace resembled the impending storm, a prelude to the predicted downpour.

Helpless, Lin Jianye turned back to look up at the majestic main hall and silently prayed, "Master, don't just say you love me. If you truly have a spirit in heaven, please protect me from misfortune and prevent me from becoming a victim of the conflict between the Shen and Lu families."

“We see each other every day, so I believe Young Master Shen is unaware of the issues with the beta version. Young Master Lu isn’t one to hold a grudge either. Let’s solve our problems. If we talk things out, we’re all family.” He glanced at Master Wan as if giving him a message, knowing what the old man was planning.

Master Wan adjusted his expression and laughed heartily: "What's going on? We've only just met and we're already arguing. Am I going through menopause? Hahaha, Yu Shi, don't take it to heart. I heard Xiao Shen mention it earlier, but I didn't think it through and just blurted it out in my anger. Alright, alright, I apologize to you. We're all here to pay our respects to Mr. Xue. What's the point of blocking the middle gate? Come on, let me go see my old brother. If I cause this scene in front of his spirit tablet, he might be secretly laughing at me from above."

Lu Yushi stood still with his hands at his sides. The breeze from the hallway ruffled a corner of his suit jacket, making it flutter, but he didn't move an inch.

"I had no idea that I, Lu Yushi, would need to report to others when I cooperate with someone."

Just then, Shen Ming, who had been holding back his anger since the negative trending topic, finally vented, "Is Young Master Lu declaring war on my Shen family?"

Master Wan turned his head in displeasure and warned in a low voice, "Little Shen."

When she looked at Lu Yu again, her words of advice also contained a subtle reminder: "We are all in Beicheng, and our companies cooperate with each other. It's a complicated situation, and if we make a scene, no one will benefit. Today is the anniversary of Mr. Xue's death. We should respect the dead and, for Mr. Xue's sake, turn hostility into friendship."

Lin Jianye quickly chimed in, "Yes, yes, please, both of you."

Before Shen Ming could say anything more, Master Wan whispered in his ear, "Don't cause trouble for your father."

He then smiled and said to Lu Yushi, "We are all one family in Beicheng. Yushi, you are a few years older, so please be more magnanimous as the older brother. Xiao Shen is a year younger than you, so please be understanding."

Having said that, Master Wan gave up on pressing the issue of the cooperation between the Lu family and Xingzi Tower, and Lu Yushi stepped aside to make way.

After everyone entered, Qiu Jingxun frowned: "Why would Xingzilou release the news of cooperating with you? They have always maintained neutrality. Releasing the news suddenly is not good for either you or them."

Lu Yushi gazed into the distance, at the void.

The sky pressed down with a dark, oppressive darkness, and the mountains and rivers were dyed a thick, dark green, as if they were drowning in a lake and entangled by countless seaweeds, unable to escape.

“I’m increasingly unable to understand Xingzilou’s methods. It’s hard to say who’s fallen into whose trap you’re cooperating with.” Qiu Jingxun turned to look at the backs of the group, hissed softly, and said in surprise, “Why do I feel like Xingzilou is trying to scheme against you and make you distance yourself from them? To disrupt the situation in Beicheng?”

Lu Yushi turned his head and instructed Sun Qian: "Terminate all cooperation with the Shen family before the end of the year."

Outside the middle gate, a woman's voice asked for directions.

"Excuse me, is the Lin family head inside?"