Coincidentally, this unlucky fellow is also named Brian Clark, exactly the same as his own original name, so at least he doesn’t have to give up the name he’s used for over twenty years. Of course, maybe it was precisely because of this coincidence that the King of Hell made a mistake and took the wrong name.

“Young master, young master!”

“Hmm?” After hearing this form of address so many times over the past few days, Brian Clark had gradually gotten used to it. At this moment, he responded absentmindedly, not even lifting his head, and asked, “What is it?”

“Young master, the old master has come to see you.”

Hearing this loud announcement, Brian Clark hadn’t fully reacted yet when, turning his head, he saw the servant had already entered the room, repeatedly winking at him without saying more. Looking toward the doorway, a middle-aged man strode in, followed by a man who looked like a servant. The middle-aged man wore a bright, deep-purple long robe, had a few neatly combed long whiskers on his chin, and his eyes were full of gloom. With that appearance and the title he’d just heard, in an instant, Brian Clark remembered this man’s identity—it was the family’s Elder Clark.

He vaguely recalled that this uncle had always looked down on him, so Brian Clark didn’t expect today’s meeting to go any better. He immediately put on a look of someone still weak from serious injury, and with a voice softer than a mosquito’s, he murmured, “Uncle…”

The visitor glanced at the stool by the bed, frowned, but didn’t sit down. Instead, he stood there looking down, and said coldly, “You’ve always been reckless and undisciplined, and this time you’ve gone even further, causing such a big mess! Associating with ruffians and getting into fights—our Xu family has always been a reputable and upright clan, and you’ve completely disgraced us!”

With the situation still unclear, Brian Clark couldn’t be bothered to explain, so he simply lowered his head and stayed silent. At this point, the visitor paused, then sneered, “Since you’re still injured, I can’t be bothered to question you now. I’ll settle accounts with you later!”

After saying this, the visitor didn’t say another word, gave a heavy cold snort, and swept out of the room. The servant behind him gave Brian Clark a sly grin, then quickly followed his master out. Brian Clark’s own servant stole a glance at him, then hurried after the others, disappearing beyond the curtain. Brian Clark frowned, rubbed his chin, and let out a weary sigh.

According to the memories he’d digested earlier, it was now the Hongzhi era of the Ming dynasty. Except for some unrest in the north, overall it was a good time. The Xu family he was in had been rooted in Nanjing for over a hundred years, with dozens of direct and collateral male descendants. Tracing back, the family had produced five or six xiucai and two or three juren, and one elder had even served as a county magistrate during the Xuande reign. Currently, an elder he should call Sixth Uncle held a minor official post in the Yingtian Prefecture office, so the Xu family was fairly well-known in Taiping.

He, “Brian Clark,” was the only son of the Xu family’s second branch. However, he was not the legitimate son of his father Derek Clark’s official wife, but rather a son whom Derek Clark, who was often away, had suddenly brought home over a decade ago. Since the main wife had died early and left no sons, he naturally became the only son of this branch and was entered into the family register. Soon after, Derek Clark left again and hadn’t been heard from in years—no one knew if he was dead or alive. The household had a few old servants in earlier years, but they either grew too old or couldn’t stand his mischief and resigned, so he was left almost entirely on his own.

With no one to restrain him, and the other elders in the clan deliberately neglecting him, while his peers kept their distance and mocked him, he became even more unruly. He paid no attention to household affairs or making a living, spending his days idling about with others—a complete wastrel who had given up on himself.

“Young master, the old master has left! Are you all right?”

As Brian Clark was thinking, someone came in from outside, hurried over, and nervously placed both hands on the edge of the bed. He stared for a long time at the face that still bore a fading handprint, then suddenly frowned tightly: “Ryan Clark, what happened to your face?”

“Ah!” Ryan Clark instinctively reached up to cover his face, then forced a smile and said, “Young master, it’s nothing…”

“Don’t try to fool me!” Brian Clark cut him off and asked directly, “What did they ask you? And who slapped you?”

Ryan Clark hesitated for quite a while before stammering, “It was the old master—he asked who you usually hang out with, and I just said I didn’t know. Then Uncle Lian, who was with him, slapped me… Young master, I really didn’t tell him anything, but he’s so strong, I couldn’t fight back, there was no way to return the favor!”

Not taught to adapt to circumstances, not taught that a gentleman’s revenge is never too late, not taught to strike at the snake’s seven inches, but taught to return an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth… No wonder this kid ended up in such a miserable state!

This time, after narrowing his eyes slightly, Brian Clark’s expression shifted from mockery to helplessness, and finally softened. He looked at the dust on Ryan Clark’s knees, then glanced around the simply furnished room, and asked, as if casually, “Ryan Clark, you’ve been here almost a month now, right?”

“Young master, you remember?” Ryan Clark saw that Brian Clark was not only not angry, but even speaking kindly, and couldn’t help but hesitate. He counted on his fingers and stammered, “I’ve only been here a month and three days… But don’t worry, young master, I’ll work hard to learn everything I don’t know, and I’ll serve you well in the future. My mother always said I belong to the young master, and I must listen to you, even when I get married in the future…”