Passing the Test

The doors opened, and a man dressed in regal attire stepped into the room. He was dressed like a high-ranking noble, and his confident stride made it clear he owned the mansion. The man had dark brown hair, a very pale complexion, and eyes so squinted they almost looked closed.

This was Chen Xiaosheng, the head of the Chen Family.

"Hello there," Chen Xiaosheng greeted in a calm and soft voice, almost feminine in tone.

Behind him were two more muscular beauties dressed in their black and white maid uniforms.

With another uncomfortable chuckle, Liu Ming rose from the sofa and approached Chen Xiaosheng, hands clasped behind his back. "It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Liu Ming," he said, extending a hand for a handshake.

Instead of accepting the handshake, Chen Xiaosheng shook his head.

"When men of the Chen family greet, we intimately touch tips with our manhoods."

The room fell silent.

Liu Ming and his female disciples were shocked.

"Eh?"

They all said together.

Liu Ming couldn't believe what he'd just heard. He stepped a little closer and asked, "In-, intimately touching the tips of our what?"

Chen Xiaosheng then laughed and waved a slender hand dismissively.

Hahaha~

"I apologize. It's an old family joke."

The relief on Liu Ming's face was like he'd just dodged a fatal blow. It would have been a laughing shame if the Liu family had to end its alliance with the Chen family just because one family head refused to "touch tips" with the other.

Urrgh...

He couldn't shake the image of his old man touching tips with Chen Xiaosheng──the thought didn't agree with his stomach.

As he he looked over his shoulder, Liu Ming saw Maomao laughing uncontrollably like a wild hyena.

It made sense.

The cat must have been here with his grandfather before, so it was likely not the first time he had heard the joke.

Looking back at Chen Xiaosheng, Liu Ming asked, "So, about the tip-touching... It's just a family joke, right? You don't actually do that as a greeting?"

He was hoping to hear the answer everyone wanted to hear.

Chen Xiaosheng thought for a moment, then waved his hand dismissively. "Of course, we don't touch tips with fellow men."

Phew~

Liu Ming sighed with relief.

But his relief was short-lived as soon as Chen Xiaosheng casually added, "Well... we don't do it with outsiders. In Golden Eclipse City, it's actually a mandatory greeting between high-ranking noblemen. It's the only way for men from gentry families to show full respect to each other."

The more Chen Xiaosheng spoke, the more unbelievable it sounded. It almost seemed like part of the joke, but even Maomao was nodding in approval──this was apparently an official greeting in Golden Eclipse City!

Xiu Meixiang's pink eyebrows shot up, and her small mouth dropped open. "Th-, they really do that in Golden Eclipse City?!"

"I, uh... don't really know how I should feel about that."

Yu Lan forced a smile.

The only unreactive one was Su Yan. She simply said, "Well, Sect Father did mention something about people from the Great World State being very strange."

Gesturing gracefully to the nearby sofa, Chen Xiaosheng kindly offered, "Please, sit."

Liu Ming took a seat on the sofa──it was as soft as the one he had been sitting on before.

Chen Xiaosheng also sat down, and two muscular maidens came to his side.

One of them poured him a cup of red tea, while the other gently massaged his shoulders in a very intimate manner. She even used her sizable breasts as a cushion for the nobleman to rest his head on.

"Alright, let's get to business."

He spoke with ease, as if this was just a normal part of his life. As the head of one of the Nine Great Families, Chen Xiaosheng had the luxury of enjoying such privileges, whether or not he had a wife.

At the very least, this confirmed Liu Ming's suspicion that Chen Xiaosheng had a thing for muscular women. Knowing he was right made Liu Ming chuckled to himself.

Su Yan watched the two of them talk and started feeling uneasy about how uneven the situation was.

Hrmm...

To her, the young lord had just as much authority as Chen Xiaosheng, so it didn't seem fair that Liu Ming wasn't getting a massage while Chen Xiaosheng was surrounded by so many women.

'Chen Xiaosheng... this man is shameless. Is he really trying to prove his superiority by using the Presence Custom?'

The Presence Custom.

It was set up during the Era of Hearts, a time when noble families were fiercely competing for power. The ruling class wanted to make sure their dominance was clear, and they did this through various social practices and laws.

One key rule was about meetings between noblemen: the social dynamics were delineated by whether women were present or not.

According to this custom, the Senior Noble had to be accompanied by women (such as attendants, courtiers, or advisors) during these meetings. Their presence wasn't just about having company; it was a way to visually and psychologically emphasize the Senior Noble's higher status and influence.

On the other hand, the Lesser Noble, whether they were hosting or visiting, was not allowed to have women with them during the meeting. This lack of women symbolized their lower status and made their subservience in the social hierarchy even more apparent.

'Even if that's what this despicable man is trying to do, I'm not sure what to do. Should I go over there and give him a massage, or just stay here? Would interrupting their meeting be considered disrespectful?'

Su Yan glanced at her own hands, then shook her head, deciding to stay quiet and not do anything stupid.

Hnnn...

Still, the sight of Chen Xiaosheng enjoying himself with women while Liu Ming sat alone made her feel very uncomfortable.

Taking a deep breath, Su Yan stood up from the sofa and walked across the large room, with everyone watching her. Suddenly, she was seated on Liu Ming's left lap and wrapped her arms around him.

"Would it be fine if I sat here, Young Master?"

She intentionally asked in a weak and soft voice which further enhanced her natural beauty.

Both Chen Xiaosheng and Liu Ming were shocked by Su Yan's unexpected action.

"Yan Mei... are you o-, okay?" Liu Ming stammered.

If anyone else had done this, he wouldn't have been as surprised, but Su Yan's professionalism made this moment even more startling.

There weren't many chances for Liu Ming to have such close contact with Su Yan, so feeling the softness of her body against his made him instinctively wrap his arms around her waist and pull her closer.

"It's fine if you want to stay here."

He was a bit confused, but having a woman so close had never been a hard decision for any man.

Before Chen Xiaosheng could recover from his shock, Xiu Meixiang appeared and sat on Liu Ming's right lap, snuggling close to him like a little doll.

"Is it okay if Meixiang sits here?" she asked innocently.

Her voice was naturally sweet and pure. Anyone who heard it and saw her innocent baby-like face with big, sparkling green eyes would be instantly charmed!

"H-, huh?" said a baffled Chen Xiaosheng.

To give it the final polish, Yu Lan appeared from behind.

"Hohho~♡ Surely, my lord hasn't forgotten about me~"

She placed her hands on Liu Ming's shoulders and slowly slid them down his chest, caressing him. She felt every detail of his chest until her large, plushy breasts pressed against the back of his head.

"I hope the young lord is comfortable~"

Mwah~♡

The fat-chested, blonde-haired beauty kissed his neck and firmly wrapped her arms around his chest.

Chen Xiaosheng realized that the three beautiful women surrounding Liu Ming were sending a clear message: their young lord was not inferior to him.

While Chen Xiaosheng had two women tending to him, Liu Ming had three top beauties practically wrapped around him like blankets!

Of course, Chen Xiaosheng could have had more women if he wanted, but they wouldn't compare to Liu Ming's women who cuddled him willingly to protect his image──that was true loyalty.

The love they had for their patriarch... it was worth envy.

However, Chen Xiaosheng was never interested in proving his superiority.

The nobleman clapped with a warm smile on his face.

"Congratulations, you pass."

Liu Ming's brows went up, "Eh?"