Do you really think you can get me with just a banana?

Pedestrians hurried along, unnoticed by the small incident on the street corner. Guan Shanyu hurriedly squeezed through the crowd and saw Yan Ruchen had been pushed to the ground, his package scattered. Fortunately, the package was sturdy, and the contents were not spilled; it was only slightly torn. The girl across from him was not so lucky.

The package must have contained food, and the yellow liquid that leaked out had completely stained her pristine white coat and delicate shoes. Even the golden phoenix embroidered on her lapel had turned an unsightly khaki. The little girl burst into tears, and the scene was in chaos.

"You little beggar, you're courting death! Do you know who you hit?"

A fierce man took the lead in cursing at Yan Ruchen, then raised his hand and punched him hard. Yan Ruchen's face twisted in pain, and he quickly clasped his hands together and apologized repeatedly: "I'm sorry, I'm really sorry!"

The street was bustling with people, and collisions were common, so despite the commotion, passersby simply glanced and continued on their way. The little girl continued to cry loudly, and the nurse beside her tried to comfort her to no avail, glaring angrily at Yan Ruchen instead.

Yan Ruchen was a little frightened and didn't dare to talk about compensation. He knew how expensive the clothes on the young lady were. Even if he sold himself, he couldn't afford the compensation. But he was too young to know what to do, so he could only sit on the ground and keep apologizing.

Seeing this, several tall servants joined in the persuasion, but to no avail. Finally, one of the servants lost his patience and kicked Yan Ruchen into the corner, spitting, "Whose kid are you? Take me to find your parents!"

Yan Ruchen was so dizzy from being kicked that he saw stars. He struggled to get up from the ground and whispered, "I have no parents. I'm an orphan."

Upon hearing this, the attendants were enraged. They spat at Yan Ruchen several times and hurled insults at him, "I knew it! Look at you, running around the streets in rags. You've got no parents, and you're so bold as to bump into us! Do you know who you bumped into? Even if I skin you alive, you can't afford to pay for it!"

Guan Shanyu witnessed everything with a frown on his face. Although this group of people were rich, their quality was too poor. The young lady's clothes were just dirty, but Yan Ruchen was kicked several times and fell to the ground with blood on his hands and feet. It was time to stop.

Yan Ruchen knelt beside him, his head lowered even lower, and kept whispering apologies, fearing that raising his head would anger the other party again. The servants had scolded him enough and finally ordered, "Get over here and clean our lady's shoes. Don't even think about leaving if you don't clean them!"

Upon hearing this, Yan Ruchen quickly stood up, trembling, and gently wiped the young lady's shoes with his relatively clean sleeve. However, when the young lady saw Yan Ruchen's appearance, she became even more terrified and cried even harder: "Let him go! He's too dirty, don't let him touch me!"

Yan Ruchen's hand had just stopped, and before he could react, he was kicked to the ground by the servant, accompanied by an angry shout: "Get out!" Then, the other servants came forward and punched and kicked him, like driving a helpless puppy, until he curled up on the side, unable to move.

At this time, the young lady's crying became softer, and the servants surrounded her, comforting and coaxing her. Finally, the young lady stopped crying and left the scene surrounded by everyone.

The street corner returned to its previous tranquility, leaving Yan Ruchen lying alone on the ground. If one didn't look closely, one would hardly have noticed the violent conflict that had taken place there. After a long while, Yan Ruchen finally recovered, slowly crawling to the side, picking up the scattered oil-paper packages, carefully rewrapping the contents, then staggering to his feet and staggering out.

Guan Shanyu watched from the sidelines for a long time, feeling a mixture of indignation and sympathy for the injustice suffered by the weak. He sighed softly, watching Yan Ruchen's thin figure gradually walk away, and wondered to himself: Could this be Yan Ruchen's most painful memory?

He thought about it and felt that it was not right, because in the original book, this kind of humiliation had happened at least two hundred times, so why was this time so unforgettable?

Guan Shanyu thought for a moment and decided to continue following Yan Ruchen. He quietly followed him, only to see Yan Ruchen, one hand protecting his injured arm, the other clutching an oil-paper bag, stumbling towards a magnificent back door. Yan Ruchen fished out a hemp rope with a key hanging from it from his collar, stood on tiptoe, and with difficulty, aligned the key with the keyhole and turned it a few times. The door hinge creaked, and the door slowly opened. He then slowly stepped in.

Guan Shanyu did not follow immediately. He looked at the unusual-looking house with some confusion, thinking that this was a wealthy family's home, with flying eaves and carved beams and painted rafters. Was Yan Ruchen working as a servant here?

wrong!

Guan Shanyu suddenly realized that at Yan Ruchen's age, he was probably still with his group of foster mothers, so this place should be a brothel.

He looked around at the towering walls and felt a sense of foreboding.

In the original novel, Yan Ruchen is indeed a young man who suffered a lot in his youth, but his specific experiences are often vague, and most of the details are left blank. In the original novel, when Yan Ruchen experienced the "Wangshuiling Illusion", he experienced the illusion of a brothel being burned down, his adoptive mother dying, and he wandering outside and being bullied, but the current illusion is completely different.

Guan Shanyu was really confused. He didn't know what plot was added to this world.

He passed through the wall and into the courtyard, finding Yan Ruchen hastily retreating into a cluttered little room, cluttered with junk that barely served as a storage space. Yan Ruchen rummaged through a cabinet in the corner and pulled out a set of clean clothes to replace his old, muddy, and footprint-stained ones. He then found a small basin, drew water from the well, and washed briefly. Once he was done, he carried the oil-paper bag and headed to the courtyard's front hall.

Although the brothel was small, it was exquisitely laid out, with pavilions, terraces, waterside pavilions, and flower halls, all displaying elegance. Yan Ruchen quickly ascended the main building and pushed open the door, a strong scent of powdered cosmetics hitting him. As it was not yet night, the courtesans were resting there, and upon seeing him enter, they all responded with indifference. One of the courtesans, half leaning against the windowsill, savored a piece of fruit, waved at him, and said with a smile, "I haven't seen you all morning. Where have you been? Come and give me a leg rub."

Yan Ruchen gently placed the oil-paper bag on the table, walked over meekly to massage the prostitute's legs, and asked in a low voice: "Sanniang, where did the lady go?"

Sanniang rested her head on her hand, squinting her eyes as she enjoyed Yan Ruchen's leg massage. She was so comfortable that she kept praising him, "I'm just feeding the fish in the backyard. What else can I do? Hey, what's that treasure on the table? Did you buy it?"

Yan Ruchen smiled like a flower and said sweetly, "I didn't buy it. I was at the vegetable market this morning and there was a ring tossing competition. The first prize was a roast chicken, and I won it back." As he said that, he ran to the table excitedly, brought back the oil-paper package carefully, and opened it for Sanniang to see as if he were presenting a treasure.

When the waitresses in the room heard this, they gathered around curiously. When they saw the plump roast chicken wrapped in oil paper, they all exclaimed, "Wow, he can even win like this? He's really capable!"

Sanniang couldn't help but praise him, "You won by tossing? You've beaten so many masters! That's truly amazing!"

Yan Ruchen smiled proudly and nodded: "Yes, even several adults were defeated, and they still wanted to cheat. Thanks to the kind aunts who spoke up for me, they didn't dare to deny their debt."

At this time, a waitress came forward, sniffed the roast chicken, and exclaimed in admiration: "Let Wu Niang smell it too, it's so fragrant and still hot! You child, why didn't you tell me about this good news earlier? Why are you pounding your legs? Eat it while it's hot. How can your San Niang's feet smell as good as roast chicken!"

After hearing this, Sanniang pretended to be angry and laughed, "Go away, you little girl, you only know how to joke around."

A group of people in the room were praising the food, but no one touched it. They all urged him to eat it quickly. Yan Ruchen shook his head and said with a smile, "This roast chicken is too big. I can't finish it by myself. Aunts, please come and eat it. I'll just nibble on the chicken butt."

"How can that be? You won this with your own ability. Even if you can't finish it, you have to eat the chicken legs. The chicken butt is so unnutritious!" Sanniang said as she started to work, tearing off a large chicken leg and handing it to Yan Ruchen. Yan Ruchen took the chicken leg, but did not rush to eat it. Instead, he ran out of the door holding it, turning back and shouting: "Auntie, remember to leave me a piece of the chicken butt, eat the rest while it's hot, I'll take this chicken leg to Auntie."

"Hey, you little brat." Sanniang scolded with a smile. Watching Yan Ruchen run away, she sighed with helplessness and relief. Then she raised the oil-paper bag and said to the people in the room, "Since Ruchen said so, let's eat it while it's hot, but don't forget to save him a chicken drumstick."

"Come on, are you the only one who feels sorry for him? But seriously, this roast chicken is hard to come by. Aside from the drumsticks, we have to keep them for Ruchen. As for the rest, let's each show off our skills and see who's quicker with their hands and more clever with their mouths."

"Stop arguing, stop arguing. I'll order a chicken neck first!"

Inside the house, there was a commotion. Outside, Yan Ruchen had already rushed out of the main building like a gust of wind, weaving through the corridors. Soon, he arrived at the pool, where a beautiful woman in green clothes stood. He excitedly ran over, waving a chicken drumstick and shouting, "Auntie!"

The woman, called "Auntie," was about twenty-five years old, with a delicate face and a gentle, charming demeanor dressed in a green gown. Seeing Yan Ruchen rushing towards her, she quickly put down the fish food in her hand, caught him steadily, and asked with concern, "What's wrong? Why are you running so fast? Did someone bully you again?"

Yan Ruchen poked his head out from the old lady's arms, shook his head repeatedly, and said with a smile: "No, old lady, this is a chicken leg for you." As he said that, he held up the chicken leg high and handed it to the old lady with a proud look on his face.

The woman then saw that Yan Ruchen was holding a chicken drumstick in his hand, and a hint of surprise flashed in her eyes: "Hey, where did this chicken drumstick come from?"

Yan Ruchen chuckled and eagerly recounted the entire story, from the morning's ring-tossing competition to winning the roast chicken, leaving out every word. The old lady praised him profusely, and the two of them sat down by the pool to share this unexpected delicacy.

As time passed, the sun was high in the sky. The brothel had not yet welcomed the busy guests. There were only a few guests sitting sparsely in the hall, drinking tea and wine. There was no need for performances or companions. This rare tranquility allowed everyone to immerse themselves in this small world, enjoying this simple and pure happiness.

It seemed like an ordinary day, but I don’t know why Yan Ruchen’s illusion turned out like this.

Guan Shanyu quietly observed for a long time, until the mother and son finished sharing the chicken legs and resumed their warm chat by the pool. Suddenly, the woman seemed to remember something and turned to Yan Ruchen and said, "You haven't had lunch yet, right? This alone won't be enough. Here, I made a bowl of steamed lotus root and jade rice in the food box in the pavilion. Isn't it your favorite? Go get it."

When Yan Ruchen heard this, his eyes lit up instantly. He ran to the pavilion and opened the food box. Sure enough, he saw a bowl of delicious glutinous rice lying quietly. Yan Ruchen picked up the spoon and fed himself a mouthful. His satisfied expression was as if he had tasted the most delicious food in the world. Then he squinted his eyes and showed a sweet smile to the woman by the pool.

This scene of loving mother and filial son left Guan Shanyu somewhat bewildered. He stood beside Yan Ruchen and witnessed the entire process, but apart from the happiness brought by the meal, he did not notice anything unusual. Guan Shanyu could not help but secretly speculate, could this scene be a trick of that old bastard to delay his escape?

With this thought in mind, Guan Shanyu decided not to stay any longer and planned to explore around, looking for other possible flaws in this illusion. Just as he turned to leave the pool, the crisp sound of a teacup breaking came from the hall not far away, attracting his attention.

He subconsciously turned around and saw Yan Ruchen and the others also turned to look. Although he couldn't see what was happening in the hall, the sound came over word for word.

"The scoundrel they said is yours! Hand him over to me immediately! He dared to steal my lady's things. I wonder how many lives he has left!"