"I learned something a few months ago, I received a letter from my family back in the city, they said I should leave the sect and return to living normally, they didn't tell me anything else, but I didn't want that, so I obviously refused" Wei Yu began to narrate his story, his face filled with a mix of annoyance and upset.
'Oh, I heard about this didn't it?' Shu He listened silently as he sipped on his tea, he had encountered Wei Yu's older brother and father, the city lord, before he set out on his mission and got a small dosage of this situation.
"Then, they kept sending me more and more letters, my father kept saying that I should just settle down and my brother tried to convince me that I was wasting my life, that I wouldn't get anywhere as a cultivator" Shu He could hear Wei Yu's teeth grinding against each other as the young man recalled the mocking letters he had received.
"I became a cultivator to escape that life… to become something more! So there was no way I'd go back, so I started ignoring the letters altogether, and soon they stopped… that is until a few weeks after, I received a letter that I needed to leave the sect or my older sister would be in danger…" Wei Yu looked like he had swallowed a fly, his worries had begun to stem from this point.
Shu He's golden eyes gleamed with a hollow light 'It seems my little warning did nothing… well, not that I really expected it to, a disciple of the Titanic Steel Sect vs an emissary from the Huo clan, when weighed on a scale they probably thought the latter was more important' Shu He sighed quietly 'His sister… if I remember they said Fang'er so…'.
"Wei Fang?" Shu He asked.
"What? You know my older sister?!" Wei Yu almost dropped his cup as he struggled to catch it before it spilled over.
Shu He shook his head "No, I visited the City Lords mansion before I set out and I overheard a little".
"Oh… It was just after you left that I received that letter so that makes sense… after I received that letter I met with them and they told me once again that she'd be in danger if I didn't quit, it made no sense to me, so I thought it was just another excuse… but then they told me about our families past."
"I was told that our family had been part of the 'Wei Clan' and that said clan used to be a branch clan underneath the Huo Family, one of the largest cultivation families in the country… I was shocked, filled with disbelief that I hadn't heard of such a thing before" he gripped his fists tightly, he felt like he had been lied to, that a great secret had been kept from him and only him.
"But… apparently we were exiled, never to become cultivators ever again".
"Did you ask why?" Shu He questioned, he had heard a little from Mei Ling before, but there were no details.
"They said that our family had committed a great sin towards the Huo family".
"A great… sin?" Shu He frowned slightly. 'A sin? What on earth could they have done to be accused of such a thing?'
"Shu He you… don't seem too surprised about all of this" Wei Yu caught on to his lack of reaction causing Shu He to sign in return, "I heard a little from Mei Ling back when we first entered the sect".
Wei Yu's expression turned slightly sour "So she told you but not me?.."
"Wei Yu" Shu He spoke with a clear voice, Wei Yu looked him in his eyes as he spoke "I don't know what you're thinking, but she probably thought it was better for you to not to know".
"But why? If I had known earlier maybe-" Wei Yu spoke, but Shu He cut him off "-Maybe what? You wouldn't have tried becoming a cultivator in the first place?".
"I-…" Wei Yu paused; he was conflicted inside, the budding emotions of wanting to walk his own path against the feeling of guilt towards those he was leaving behind.
"You are Wei Yu, and only Wei Yu, you are not a member of the Wei Clan, you are your own person, you should decide only what you want" Shu He spoke with a hint of vigour, he didn't like seeing someone put themselves down like this.
"That's why it didn't make a difference if you knew, that past isn't your responsibility, nor is the lives of your family".
"…" The young man gripped his robes.
Shu He took a sip of his tea "Are you close with your sister?" he asked suddenly, however Wei Yu shook his head "Not particularly… she moved across the country to the fire region nearly a decade back now to get married off and I was fairly young back then…" Wei Yu said unenthusiastically "But even so, if she gets harmed because of me I just…".
"Either way, you shouldn't back out now, maybe you should try asking the Sect Elders about this?" Shu He suggested.
"The elders?" Wei Yu looked at Shu He oddly "Why them?".
"Maybe you can have something done about your sister, the sect seems to take good care of its disciples after all, we can even ask the Sect Master if needed" Shu He shrugged.
"The Sect Master?!" Wei Yu's face turned a bit pale.
"What's wrong?" Shu He tilted his head in confusion.
"S-Shu He, why are you talking like it's easy to meet with the Sect Master?! It's already hard enough to meet one of the higher Elders let alone her! Most disciples have never even seen the Sect Master's face!".
Shu He paused and stared at Wei Yu for a few moments.
'Right, I am an exception here…' he thought before he shrugged slightly "We can make it work somehow, the main point is that you're not alone nor out of options here, don't give up".
Wei Yu visible deflated on the wooden chair as he looked down, his expression gloomy "Sorry Shu He… all this time I've just been treading around in my own shadow, scared to make a choice or look for another path, yet you have shown me another one already… I'm a fool, aren't I?".
"Yep" Shu He responded immediately, but he wasn't done talking "But what's wrong with that, everyone makes a fool of themselves at many times in their life, those are the moments we should remember and grow from".
Wei Yu sat up slightly as he stared as Shu He before he laughed slightly "You sound like someone who has lived a lot longer than 13 years".
In turn Shu He laughed back "No way, I've got a lot of growing to do myself".
'Yes, I've basically been catching up this entire life… even though I 'lived' for nearly three decades before I never truly 'lived'… 13 years… it wouldn't be wrong to say that is my true age'.
"Besides, I really think you should be having this conversation with someone else, right?" Shu He smiled as he hinted.
To which Wei Yu replied with a conflicted smile "I… I should, shouldn't I? But she has her worries as well, she told me that the Huo clan had been trying to pressure her as well and that the Sect is struggling to keep them at bay… I don't want to worry her even more".
"I take what I said back, you're not a fool" Shu He cut in, his voice filled with annoyance.
"Huh?" Wei Yu stared at him like a deer would headlights.
"You're an idiot, an almighty idiot."
"What? Why?!"
"She told you that because she wants someone share her struggles, bear the pain!".
"But that's-".
"I can't believe you spend so much time womanising in the entertainment district yet couldn't pick up on that!"
"I do not such thing! Not anymore-"
"I don't care! Get going, now!" Shu He yelled.
"Y-yes!" Wei Yu stood up from the table with his back straight like he was taking orders from a superior before running off.
Shu He watched him go as he sipped on his tea, sighing once more.
"So much for a peaceful conversation…"
'So Mei Ling is being pressured as well… she is from the Huo Clan but it seems it was true, she had entered the sect irregularly, the Huo clan will let male members of branch clans enter sects, but the females will be married in to the main family to serve as child bearing concubines… so she entered without the clan's permission, so they want her back'.
He looked outside at the pure white sky while thinking about how much of a pain a clan sounds to live in, despite the benefits he'd rather live the life he already had, freedom was better than shackles that came with benefits.
He wasn't surprised nor did he blame her for taking the chance to escape… but it was highly likely that she left behind things that she cherished.
"It must be hard…" He murmured, before finishing off his tea".
In his mind, a list appeared, he had too much he wanted to do, so the question was-
"What do I do next?".