“Nonsense! My brother-in-law is a true man; why would he do something like that?!” a young and clear voice exclaimed critically.
Gu Xing turned around. He saw a young man with pretty features staring angrily at him. Next to the man was a tan-skinned young lady. He said, “So it was young master Chu and Miss Murong.”
The Gu clan brothers naturally recognized these two after staying in the capital for so many years. One was the heir of the Brightmoon Duke, while the other was the beloved pearl of the Murong clan.
But Chu Youzhao didn’t plan to let him go at all and asked, “Mister Gu, why were you shooting your mouth off here randomly?”
Murong Qinghe couldn’t help but say, “Talking behind another person’s back really isn’t what a nobleman should be doing!”
It was only natural that she wanted to help her big brother Chu. While she had been hanging out with Zu An recently, he had saved her clan brother, so she had already developed a good impression of him.
Gu Xing said, “I would say the same thing even in front of Zu An’s face. Everything I said is the truth, so what’s there to be ashamed of?”
Gu Heng stood up and said, “Young master Chu, if I recall correctly, the Chu clan seems to have already banished Zu An from the family, no? Calling him brother-in-law will be damaging to your dear sister’s reputation.”
“Our clan’s matters are none of your business!” Chu Youzhao exclaimed furiously. “I don’t want to see you all talking badly behind my brother-in-law’s back. Believe me when I say I’ll rip your tongues out!”
Gu Heng’s expression sank. “Young master Chu, we respect your opinion, but that is out of courtesy for the Qin clan. Do you think that the two of us are afraid of you? This is the crown prince’s territory. It is not a place where the two of you can start trouble.” The Bi clan’s warriors stepped forward as soon as he finished speaking.
Bi Linglong frowned. She felt quite troubled. According to normal reason, whether it was the Qin clan or the Murong clan, both were central forces of King Qi’s faction. Meanwhile, she herself would definitely help the Gu clan brothers who were part of the crown prince’s faction. However, they were speaking out for Zu An here. That left her embarrassed and troubled.
“What happened?” A group of young men walked in just then. The crown prince and princess were the ones under the spotlight today, so everyone was paying attention to the activity on their side. They came over to see what was happening when they saw the disturbance.
Bi Linglong could no longer remain indifferent. She showed them a formal smile and said, “Greetings, young masters.”
These people were precisely the disciples from King Liang Manor, the Liu clan, the Meng clan, and the Peng clan, as well as the disciples of the other clans. They were the ones who were joining the crown prince on his mission this time.
Those people all cried out with a bow, “We greet the crown prince and crown princess!”
King Liang’s son Zhao Xi was a fatty as well, but unlike the crown prince’s fat that jiggled whenever he walked, he was more firm and robust with thick eyebrows and big eyes. His arms were big and his waist round, making him resemble a fierce general from the battlefield.
He had always had a rather boorish nature. Together with the fact that he was also part of the royal family, he didn’t feel as many misgivings as the others. He asked, “Crown princess, have you only just arrived? We have already been waiting for a long time.”
Before Bi Linglong had time to even reply, Gu Xing immediately said, “The crown princess was waiting for Sir Zu An. She even specially paid a visit to his home, but we still didn’t see him.”
“Zu An?” Zhao Xi roared with laughter. “That fella who beat Zhao Zhi, that little brat, up to the point that he could only lie in bed all this time? Haha, where is he? I’ve only heard about that person, but was never able to meet him.”
King Liang’s faction had always been close to the emperor’s side and didn’t get along with King Qi. Furthermore, Zhao Xi relied on his own talent, and he was quite arrogant, so he had already been fed up with Zhao Zhi for a while; and yet he just couldn’t beat him. When he heard that Zhao Zhi had been beaten up miserably by Zu An, he roared with laughter and held a huge celebration that night.
Gu Xing didn’t dare to speak rashly when he sensed the other person’s good intentions toward Zu An to prevent drawing unnecessary enmity. It was instead Gu Heng who said, “We have been looking for Sir Zu for the past few hours, yet we still haven’t seen him anywhere.”
“Could it be that something happened?” Zhao Xi frowned. “But that shouldn’t be. With his cultivation, who could take him down that easily?”
A feminine voice sneered, “Your head really is all muscle instead of brains after all. Do you really think someone as young as Zu An could really defeat the eighth ranked Zhao Zhi, and furthermore, even fight on par with Han Fengqiu, who’s at the peak of the ninth rank? Our manor’s intelligence already discovered that there was a mysterious expert at the scene of the battle, so Zhao Zhi’s defeat was purely a coincidence.”
The one who spoke was a man with shiny hair and a powdered face. His features were feminine, his triangular eyes treacherous like those of a viper. His lips were colored even redder than those of a woman.
“Meng Pan, you’re always going against me. Don’t tell me you like me?” Zhao Xi roared with laughter.
The feminine man was precisely the Meng clan’s candidate this time, Meng Pan. He immediately clutched his mouth and looked as if he wanted to throw up when he heard what Zhao Xi said. “Blargh! Take a look in the mirror first before you speak! Even if I liked men, would I like you? Even if I did like someone, it would be someone like the Chu clan’s young master with soft skin and red lips.”
“Ah…” Chu Youzhao felt goosebumps cover her entire body when she was examined by Meng Pan. Murong Qinghe pulled Chu Youzhao behind her. Both of them had looks of contempt in their eyes.
“Let’s go back for now, big brother Chu.” Murong Qinghe really was scared that Meng Pan might go after her sweetheart. After all, there were rumors of Meng Pan liking men going around. She definitely didn’t dare to get involved with someone like him.
Chu Youzhao had originally wanted to speak out against the injustice done toward her brother-in-law, but Meng Pan’s gaze really was uncomfortable. Furthermore, these were all the crown prince’s trusted aides, so they didn’t get along. She decided to follow Murong Qinghe.
Meng Pan licked his lips as he watched Chu Youzhao leave. “That fella is as lovely as a young lady. It really is quite the stirring sight.”
Someone nearby said with a chuckle, “He’s Brightmoon Duke’s sole successor. Be careful, or the Brightmoon Duke might come after you.”
The one who spoke was a man in his thirties. He had rather decent facial features, but the beard he had grown and the smirk on his face just made him seem a bit slimy. He was Liu Yao’s son, Liu Xian, whom Bi Linglong had told Zu An was the spoiled good-for-nothing.
Next to him was someone who seemed to be about the same age. He had thin lips and narrow eyes. His beard was shaved in a nice and orderly manner, while his hair was combed meticulously. In contrast to Liu Xian’s frivolousness, his expression was serious, making him look like a responsible person. He was Liu Yao’s nephew Gao Ying.
Meng Pan couldn’t help but sneer when he heard what Liu Xian said. “Brightmoon Duke? Isn’t he just another setting sun? Why would I be scared of him?”
His grandfather was the Minister of Works, while his father was the head of the Central Secretariat. In terms of status, his family was above the Chu clan, so there was no need for him to fear them.
“Even if you aren’t scared of the Chu clan, you should be scared of the Qin clan, right?” Bi Linglong cleared her throat. After all, Chu Youzhao was Zu An’s little brother-in-law, so she didn’t want something to happen to him. Otherwise, Zu An might go completely mad. Even though she was upset that Zu An hadn’t appeared yet and had gone back on his word, she didn’t lose her reason and still took care of his family.
Meng Pan chuckled when he heard the words ‘Qin clan’, but he didn’t say anything. He might be able to overlook the Chu clan, but the Qin clan was definitely not someone they dared to offend for no good reason.
Liu Xian roared with laughter and said, “Let’s talk about something else! Weren’t we chatting about that Zu An just now?”
Gu Xing said with a laugh, “We were talking about how it was impossible for Zu An to defeat the eighth ranked King Qi’s heir, let alone fight on par with the ninth ranked Han Fengqiu.”
“Wasn’t the truth already discovered a while ago? There was a mysterious expert at the scene of the battle.” Another youngster who had remained silent all this time spoke up. He had a gloomy expression, and he was definitely shrewd. That person was the Pei clan’s Pei You.
These youngsters all had their own pride. They refused to believe that that person could defeat someone who was so many ranks higher.
“Haha, well, we can at least say that Sir Zu’s luck is good. It’s not surprising for the crown princess to care that much about him. With him in the party, our group’s luck will surely improve,” Gu Heng said. His words sounded fair, but he was actually pouring all of his hatred out onto Zu An.
The others learned that the reason the crown princess was late was because she had been waiting for Zu An, and became dissatisfied.
“There are so many of us here. Is there a need for us to depend on that Zu An?”
“Exactly! Crown princess, please don’t worry. We’re more than enough for this exam.”
“What’s so special about that Zu An that the crown princess needs to personally wait for him? Having him won’t make a difference.”
Bi Linglong had already been annoyed. When she heard all the chattering, she finally couldn’t take it anymore and cried, “Enough!”
