Alex was the King of Estoria and the richest man in Prussia.
He owned five storage rings, each one crammed full of gold, jewels, rare herbs, and treasures worth more than entire cities.
And yet, in love and friendship, he was bankrupt.
The climb to the top was always lonely. Brutal. Silent.
He had be so poor that money was the only thing he had left.
Taking out a box of gold ingots—the kind Xia people adored-was nothing to him. A scratch.
A barely noticeable dent in his coffers.
"Young Master Bai!" the old man who had been the loudest to use Alex earlier suddenly shouted, his voice trembling with theatrical emotion.
“I told them before they even came here! It is impossible! Absolutely impossible for Young Master Bai Xiaochun—the purest man in this city, no, in this entire world—to ever rape a poor and ugly woman like this!"
Every pair of eyes turned toward the old man.
Because everyone knew the truth.
Bai Xiaochun was notorious. Insane. Wild.
ilf he were in the mood, even a skinny grandmother with one foot already in the grave would not be safe from him-let alone a young, beautiful woman like the one standing there now.
"But s, they refuse to believe me!" the old man cried, thumping his chest as if his heart were breaking.
"Look at Young Master Bai! Handsome, pure, a true gentleman! How could he possibly do such a thing? Even if a woman were raped by a young master this handsome, she should consider herself lucky to be touched by the City Lord''s heir!"
Alex stared at the old man-the same man who had been shouting the loudest usations minutes ago.
He pped his hands once, delighted.
"Good. Very, very good speech. You deserve ten gold ingots."
The crowd gasped. Eyes widened. Mouths hung open.
"Thank you, Young Master!" the old man squealed. He rushed forward, grabbed the ten heavy ingots, stuffed them under his tattered clothes, and ran off as if the crowd might rob him at any second.
A strange understanding settled over the people.
A few ttering words were worth two gold ingots.
If someone raised their praise a little higher-made it sound like poetry-it could earn even more.
In Xia, two things mattered above all else: cultivation... and culture.
And when it came to poetry and song, they were unmatched.
If twisting words out of thin air could turn into gold, they would squeeze their long- unused brains dry to find better phrases.
"Young Master Bai Xiaochun," arge man stepped forward, cracking his knuckles.
"I''m not good with words. But I''m good with my fists. I, Kang Wi, have lived in this city my whole life. From this moment on, if I hear anyone dare call Young Master Bai Xiaochun impure, trash or a criminal, I swear on my ancestors—I will break their noses."
The city was small. Everyone knew everyone. Through marriages and bloodlines, half the city was rted.
And Kang Wi was well known.
He was the local brute. A man who made his living by hitting people. A small-time street bandit that nobody wanted to provoke.
Alex looked at Kang Wi and returned a respectful palm-and-fist salute.
"I honor the great hero Kang Wi for defending the justice of my pure name. Take ten gold ingots."
Kang Wi''s face split into a grin so wide it looked painful.
"Thank you, Young Master Bai!"
The crowd gasped again.
Ten gold ingots was no small amount. Nearly a hundred thousand dors For vigers in this small
city, that kind of money could feed. family for five years without lifting finger.
"Young Master Bai!" an elder shouted emotionally. "The heavens themselves know your innocence!"
Alex looked up. “Did the heavens speak to you?”
The elder hesitated. "Well... no."
Alex nodded. "Then who did?"
The elder nced at the gold box. "The heavens... spoke through that."
Alex smiled. “Ah. Divine revtion. Very reliable these days. Take two gold ingots then."
The woman who had been staring nervously at the wooden box of gold suddenly panicked. She was afraid it would run out before her turn.
She rushed forward.
"Young Master Bai, I am Meng Hua... the woman you raped," she said quickly.
Then she pped her own mouth.
"I''m sorry. You are pure. Innocent. I don''t know what I was saying." Another p.
"I am a woman who was raped by
some man. But because I admire you so much, Young Master
Bai,
nappent-
noble,
imagined that man was you. That is clearly my mistake."
Her voice trembled as she bowed again and again, struggling to twist her tongue
carefully so she wouldn''t say the wrong thing and lose her gold ingots.
"You are the man every woman dreams of. I came here without realizing that you have always been innocent."
She wiped her eyes dramatically.
"But I truly cannot control my feelings. came here, dreamed of being married to you, the City Lord''s
young master, the pure and honorable one. Please forgive me for loving you too much."
Alex nodded with solemn grace.
"It is my sin to be handsome and make women dream of me. But since you admit your mistake, I cannot hold any grudge. Please take twenty gold ingots for clearing my name."
The woman burst into tears.
"Young Master Bai, you are truly heaven-sent. I truly love you. I am so happy to be touched by you... I mean by the thought of you."
She hurriedly scooped the gold into her arms. Before leaving, she stepped close and wrapped her arms around Alex, leaning in to whisper seductively into his ear. "Young Master Bai... whenever you wish toe, juste. I won''t lock my door at night—you won''t have to struggle with it anymore. I''ll be waiting for you.” Cold sweat prickled across Alex''s back. He leaned in and whispered urgently,
"Please lock your door-and add more locks. It''s safer that way."
She giggled, ran a finger lightly across his chest, and winked.
"Don''t be shy, Young Master Bai."
She blew him a kiss and walked away.
"This time it''s me!"
"No, it''s me next!" others shouted.