Help is Always Good!

The rain ceased its punishment as it gave way to the beautiful spring dawn. With birds chirping, the village showed its splendor as the morning sun beamed down on the people below, starting to do their morning chores.

Fang Yuan rested calmly in his room as he lost himself in the land of dreams. He was finally woken up by Nexus to prepare for his big day.

[Sir, it's time to wake up. It's already 6 am!]

Fang Yuan immediately woke up under Nexus' warning. He slowly got up from his bed, threw back the blanket that had protected him from the cold all night, and then diligently made his own bed.

Fang Yuan wiped the last traces of sleep from his face and slowly moved towards the window to open it and let some fresh air into the room.

As soon as the window was opened, the sunlight could finally enter the small room illuminating everything it touched. Fang Yuan looked out the window and enjoyed the scenery as he felt the light spring breeze on his face.

Even in last night's heavy rain, the village still looked as beautiful as a landscape painted in a painting. But now that the sun was shining over this land, all Fang Yuan saw was a magical wonder.

Unique and strange birds flew over the rooftops while singing a beautiful melody, and the houses and the environment blended together in a way that seemed like a kind of perfect symbiosis between civilization and forest, with magical plants and trees in every corner of the village adorning the landscape. The beauty of peaceful human civilization.

Some animals are so different that they seem to have come out of fiction and walked from one side to the other alongside people in the streets. The people walking the streets were interesting in their own way, too; some used Gu worms to do mundane actions while others used the nature around them to influence their surroundings.

Even mortals did things interesting enough to surprise people not of this world. Gu World is much bigger and more magical than it lets on to outsiders.

"The author has really not been fair in describing the beauty of this world. This far surpasses any landscape I've seen in my past life, and if Gu Yue Village already has this level of beauty, imagine the locations where the author described it as beautiful?!" Fang Yuan thought as he reaffirmed his determination to enjoy every moment of this incredible magical world.

"What do you think, Nexus? Isn't this landscape beautiful?" Fang Yuan spoke to Nexus as she opened her arms wide with a warm smile of pure ecstasy and joy.

[It really is a beautiful place, Sir!]

"It sure is a beautiful place to live!" Fang Yuan lowered her hands but still kept her smile as she turned around and prepared to wash her face, but out of nowhere, a petite young girl called her name from downstairs.

"Young Master Fang Yuan, you are finally awake. I will go upstairs immediately to help you get ready." A petite maiden with long brown hair and smooth skin had a small basin of clothes on her lap as she looked at the window where Fang Yuan was standing.

"Oh! That must be little Shen Cui. She is quite cute." Fang Yuan thought as she looked at the girl below him and sized her up.

Shen Cui wore a long green dress with small embroidered details on the sides and a mantle with long sleeves overlapping the dress; she had beautiful embroidered shoes on her feet, while her long brown hair was held back by a white clip of some kind of jewelry.

Fang Yuan hadn't wiped his smile in no time, not even when he was sizing up Shen Cui's appearance. That's why she noticed the broad smile Fang Yuan displayed to the world.

"Young Master Fang Yuan seems much more approachable today! It's... resplendent. Yes, he is much more resplendent." Shen Cui thought as she looked at the warm smile that Fang Yuan was spreading on her face; it was such a legitimate smile that it even warmed the heart of those who looked at it.

"It must be because today is finally the awakening ceremony!" Shen Cui thought as he indulged in thoughts of her possible future as a master instead of a servant.

"If the young master accepts me, I can break out of this life of servitude and become a master!" Shen Cui was already lost in his wet dreams as he headed upstairs after putting away the laundry basket he was carrying.

Fang Yuan thought for a while as he looked at his newest servant, "Shen Cui. The little girl who wants to get out of slavery by any means possible, I honestly don't blame her."

Fang Yuan sighed as he remembered the stories of slavery from his past life, only here it was ten times worse – "Being treated at least like a human being here is already profitable. But some places and people treat mortals like nothing more than grass in the pasture, ready to be cut without a care."

"And the fact that a small, impressionable young woman, afraid of the future, tries everything to escape this cruel fate is not at all strange; in fact, it is very human of her to do her best while trying to break her own chains that imprison her. " Fang Yuan turned his gaze towards the sky.

That's how this world works; on the outside, it looks like a magical world of extreme beauty, but on the inside, it's as rotten and ugly as the deepest sewer. Fang Yuan could instantly see both sides of the same coin, both the beauty of the world and the rottenness of the human heart.

"Two extremes living in the same place, it's really worthy of the irony the author tried to convey in the original book." Fang Yuan saw the clouds dance in the sky as he listened to his heart beating in a calm and serene rhythm.

"I, more than anyone, know what it's like to be trapped by a cruel fate. And with my power now, I could help her out of that life." Fang Yuan raised her right hand to the sky as she thought.

"But what if I do this anyway? Even if I helped her, what would I do next? I couldn't help everyone I saw along the way. Would I have to choose those who can or cannot be free?" Fang Yuan saw the contradiction of his ideas.

Even if he chooses to help some, there will always be those left over. Fang Yuan knows he can't help everyone he sees, so wouldn't he be hypocritical to help some and leave others to die? That was the irony of helping others; it will never be enough; you could always have done more.

[If you allow me, Sir. I have a counterpoint to your argument.]

"Oh? Then say." Fang Yuan raised an eyebrow as he lowered his raised right hand.

[You are right about the fact that you can never please everyone, and there will always be someone or something missing that you could have saved or helped]

[But you have to remember that you are still human, and humans are prone to mistakes. You can never please everyone; there will always be a side that feels wronged or excluded.]

[So, just the fact that the Sir is doing his part to be his best to help those in need is a considerable feat in itself.]

[You don't owe them anything, but the fact that the Sir thinks to help them makes you much better than many other people claiming to be good.]

"You make it sound like I'm a good Nexus person." Fang Yuan smiled as he listened to Nexus' reply.

"I will never consider myself a really good person, but I prefer to believe that I only do what is necessary." Fang Yuan doesn't want to be considered a good person but doesn't want to be labeled a complete villain. He wants to be considered only as a human being, a human being who sometimes does good things out of empathy and sometimes does terrible things out of anger.

After being trapped in 'that' place for so long, Fang Yuan learned to cling to 'Human'; clinging to being human is the best thing to do in these situations. Fang Yuan has an entirely different philosophy than the old Fang Yuan.

For the ancient Fang Yuan, everything is fleeting and will always turn to dust and disappear into the river of time; nothing matters to him other than his ambition to be 'Eternal.' But for the current Fang Yuan, this is different; the fact that he is flesh and blood connects him to others in this world in a way that makes him see the bigger picture.

Fang Yuan admires the former Fang Yuan for his determination and willingness to never give up on his goal and keep moving forward despite the setbacks. But simultaneously, he despises your shallow view of the world.

The world and people are much more than he cares to know. The fact that a mother does everything to protect her own child, a father who risks everything to give the best he can for his family, and a son who dedicates himself to honoring the name of his parents. All of these form what it is to be human, despite the exceptions.

Fang Yuan resolved in his heart as he resolved to move forward as his heart said.

"A man without love is but an empty shell." Fang Yuan recited a short poem as she began to wash with the water that the servant Shen Cui had brought and cleaned her teeth with a willow branch.

Shen Cui stood to the side, patiently waiting with a ruddy smile. She was still fantasizing about her possible future with her young master.

As soon as Fang Yuan finished it, he started to dress but was stopped by the actions of the servant Shen Cui as she took the initiative to dress him. She did this while using all her cards to seduce Fang Yuan, from lightly caressing him to rubbing her breasts against his body.

Fang Yuan managed a few smiles as he found this girl's attempts at seduction amusing.

"It is enough. Thank you for your help." Fang Yuan slightly brushed Shen Cui's hands away as he showed her a calm smile.

"Apparently, it wasn't enough yet. But luckily, I still have time; as long as he notices me, it will be half a step." Shen Cui thought about how she still couldn't wholly seduce Fang Yuan.

"But the young master looks prettier when he smiles like that. He should smile more often!" Shen Cui blushed slightly as he thought of Fang Yuan's calm smile.

Soon Fang Zheng reached the room to call his brother for breakfast, only to notice Shen Cui beside Fang Yuan. And with a red face, he lowered his head as usual.

"Shen Cui is much prettier this morning with her new hairstyle." Fang Zheng thought, still with his head down, avoiding looking into Shen Cui's eyes out of embarrassment.

Soon Fang Yuan saw the small and huddled Fang Zheng on the edge of the door and greeted him with the same smile as last night; "Fang Zheng, my little brother, how are you today? Come and come in; no need to huddle outside."

Fang Zheng raised his head in surprise as he looked at his older brother and his big smile; "I thought it had been a nightmare..."

"What?" Fang Yuan asked, in doubt about what Fang Zheng was muttering about.

"Ah! N-nothing, big brother. I just came to tell you that the uncles are waiting for breakfast." Fang Zheng let his nervousness overwhelm him again as he spoke almost incongruously.

"Shen Cui, could you leave and leave us alone?" Fang Yuan asked with a calm and composed smile on his face.

Shen Cui wanted to pout and respond in a spoiled way, but after seeing his smile, she lowered her head with flushed cheeks as she quickly left the room.

"Are you ready for the big day Fang Zheng?" Fang Yuan lightly approached Fang Zheng as he tried to converse with him.

Fang Zheng kept his head down as he muttered a simple 'yes.' Fang Yuan sighed as he looked at Fang Zheng; it was too pitiful how far the human mind can influence a person.

Fang Zheng ended up alone in this state because of his insecurity and lack of self-esteem. Fang Yuan's memoirs show that the two never lacked food or clothing. All their uncles did was psychologically abuse them, but they never raised a hand against them.

Even the food or clothes Fang Zheng got were the same as Fang Yuan's. But his uncles always mentally juggled Fang Zheng to make him think he was inferior to his brother, slowly breaking his trust.

To the point where Fang Zheng would be utterly dependent on them, thus being able to use it against Fang Yuan himself. His uncles knew that Fang Yuan cherished and protected his own brother, so they did this to Fang Zheng; they created a collar to keep Fang Yuan under control of theirs.

The fact that Fang Zheng's body is so malnourished and poorly developed is not because of lack of food or care but rather because of his own depression that eats away at him from the inside out, leaving him in this deplorable state.

"Don't worry, Fang Zheng. Starting today, everything will change. Don't let the demons in your mind overcome you." Fang Yuan knew what it was like to go through severe depression, so he empathized with Fang Zheng's case and decided to help him while he could.

What if Fang Zheng ignores him or even turns against him afterward? It doesn't matter to Fang Yuan, as Nexus said - what really matters is that he did his part, which already makes him better than many people out there.

It doesn't matter if the help Fang Yuan is giving him now is useless later; what matters is that he is doing what he wants and doesn't care about others' opinions.

"Don't worry about other people's opinions of you, because they are mere opinions. You haven't experienced anything yet, and you think the world is all you've seen, but the world is much more vast and beautiful than you think." Fang Yuan started to give Fang Zheng some tips.

"Stop letting your emotions control you and take control of yourself for yourself, live for yourself and your ideals." Fang Zheng was surprised and sharply raised his head to listen to his brother. Fang Yuan rarely spoke to him; when they did, it was just a word or two.

But now his brother was somehow trying to motivate him; Fang Zheng didn't understand half of what his brother was trying to say to him. But he knew he was trying to help him; after falling into the abyss of depression, all a person wants is someone to help him, and having someone on his side wanting to motivate him is like a breath of fresh air.

"Keep that in mind as you move forward." Fang Yuan knows that half of what he just said to Fang Zheng will go right over his head, and maybe he won't even understand something right now.

But Fang Yuan was not discouraged; he knows that depression is not so simple that it goes away with just a few words of motivation. But if you have the right guide and good friends, you can overcome this obstacle in your life.

Seeing that Fang Zheng was standing still and unresponsive, Fang Yuan resolved to go down first as he patted his youngest Little Brother lightly on the shoulder.

"I'll go down first. Come when you're ready."

Fang Yuan slowly descended as he made his way toward meeting his uncles. As he approached, he saw his uncles sitting at the table with fake smiles waiting for their meal.

"Fang Yuan. You've finally decided to come down. Come sit down and have your coffee before you leave." Dong Tu spoke eloquently as he offered a seat beside him for Fang Yuan to sit.

"Today is going to be a big day for you. I wish you all the good luck on your ceremony." The aunt said as she smiled from ear to ear.

"Thank you, aunt." Fang Yuan replied with his characteristic calm smile.

Soon Fang Zheng came down and was invited to participate in the small theatre that is this breakfast.

"Fang Zheng, come and sit here." Dong Tu offered an accent on the opposite side of Fang Yuan as he smiled with his eyes.

"Regardless of what happens at the awakening ceremony, I want you to know that we consider you our children." The aunt spoke as she grabbed Dong Tu's arm in an act of closeness.

Fang Yuan and Fang Zheng simply nodded as they continued eating their breakfast.

Anyone looking in from the outside would think that this was a tight-knit, harmonious family, but if they took the time to pay attention, they would see that it looked more like a nest of snakes where one tries to eat the other.