Chapter 504: Courteous as Guests

“Finished?”

Amid the pavilions and terraces, Wen Xinzhao sat upright and stared coldly at Chen Tingxiu, who had been standing there rattling on at length.

Someone had suddenly come to her saying he had information about Hongniang of the Qi capital. Wen Xinzhao simply could not ignore anything concerning Hongniang, and curiosity got the better of her, so she agreed to see him. Only then did she discover that the visitor was an enemy of Hongniang’s side who had supposedly come out of pure goodwill to help.

After some questions and answers, Chen Tingxiu had eventually begun doing most of the talking himself, trying endlessly to persuade her. Her interruption made him pause. “Madam, what do you think?”

Wen Xinzhao gave him a single word.

“Get out.”

“...” Chen Tingxiu stared in disbelief. What was going on? He tried again. “Hongniang is only this arrogant because Niu Youdao is her greatest support. Once Niu Youdao is removed, within Nanzhou, Tianyu Sect can make Hongniang wish she were dead. We can certainly vent this anger for Madam...”

“Get out!”

Wen Xinzhao cut him off with another shout.

If not for the fact that this man also hated Hongniang and wanted her dead, giving them at least some sense of sharing the same enemy, Wen Xinzhao could have killed him on the spot.

“Please.” The wooden-faced old man beside her stepped forward and gestured bluntly for Chen Tingxiu to leave.

Realizing he had angered her, Chen Tingxiu had no choice but to make an awkward farewell and depart with his head full of confusion.

Before coming, he had already had his disciples verify the matter through Myriad Beasts Sect disciples they knew. Chao Shenghuai had told the truth: Wen Xinzhao really had slapped Hongniang out of jealousy.

This was no small matter. Naturally, Chen Tingxiu had needed confirmation. Without confidence in the information, he would never have barged in recklessly.

The Myriad Beasts Sect disciples his people had contacted earlier had never mentioned the incident. Only after Chen Tingxiu’s side raised it for verification did those disciples react with surprise, even asking how Tianyu Sect had learned about it and who had told them. Chao Shenghuai had already warned that the sect had forbidden anyone from discussing the matter, so Chen Tingxiu naturally did not dare betray him.

Selling out Chao Shenghuai himself might be a small thing. Offending Chao Jing, Elder of Myriad Beasts Sect and Chao Shenghuai’s grandfather, was another matter entirely. Tianyu Sect could not afford it.

A jealous woman could be terrifying. Chen Tingxiu had come confident that he could exploit that jealousy and sow discord. He had never expected this result. Wen Xinzhao’s reaction left him baffled.

Left alone amid the pavilions, Wen Xinzhao was furious after being deliberately provoked. Chen Tingxiu had said nothing pleasant. Of course she wanted nothing more than to torment that slut viciously and make her life worse than death.

But if Wen Xinzhao had been free to move against her, she would have done it long ago. Why would she need trash like Chen Tingxiu to help? What a joke.

...

“You?”

Inside the reception hall, Du Yunsang was somewhat surprised when he saw that the visitor was Uncle Chen.

His people had reported that someone sent by Zhao Xiongge wished to see him. Inside Myriad Beasts Sect, under ordinary circumstances, no one would dare casually impersonate another person and run around swindling. So Du Yunsang had agreed to the meeting.

He had been wondering why Zhao Xiongge would send someone to see him. He had never expected the visitor to be Uncle Chen.

The two naturally knew each other. They had met long ago and had even spent a period of time around one another. They could be counted as fairly familiar old acquaintances.

“It’s me.” Uncle Chen’s face was taut.

Du Yunsang narrowed his eyes slightly. “You have another identity? You’re one of Zhao Xiongge’s people?”

“I only borrowed his name. Otherwise, with you sitting so high above everyone, how could a little nobody like me ever get to see such an important man?”

At those words, the Protectors inside the hall immediately became highly alert. So this really was someone who had come under false pretenses. They were about to act.

“The past is already past. This is not a place you should have come. Go. See the guest out.” Du Yunsang turned his back. He had not ordered anyone to punish the man directly, which was already considerable leniency.

He had an agreement with Wen Xinzhao that he would have no further dealings with Hongniang. Naturally, that also included meeting people from Hongniang’s side.

“Please.” One of the Protectors immediately gestured toward the exit.

Uncle Chen erupted. “We also hoped the past was already past! Then why do you keep pressing us and refuse to leave our employer a road to live? Your wife slapped Hongniang twice yesterday, and now you’re even colluding with Tianyu Sect to put our employer to death...”

At this sort of accusation, the Protectors no longer showed him any courtesy. They struck immediately, restraining him and sealing his voice before dragging him toward the exit.

Uncle Chen did not resist. Niu Youdao had instructed him beforehand: he was here only to speak, not to fight.

Du Yunsang had his back turned, but he was not deaf. His expression suddenly changed. He spun around. “Stop!”

The two Protectors had only just dragged Uncle Chen to the doorway when they froze. One looked back. “Sect Leader, this man is talking nonsense. There is no need to listen to him.”

In some matters, the people involved are often the last to know.

And there were some things the people below did not dare let Du Yunsang know.

They did not recognize Uncle Chen. Otherwise, they would never have allowed him to meet Du Yunsang in the first place. In truth, there were hardly any people in all of Tianxing Sect who had ever seen Uncle Chen.

Back when Du Yunsang’s affair erupted, Tianxing Sect had deliberately restrained the people below. Family disgrace was not something to spread outside. Few outsiders knew the details, but the sect still took precautions.

After all, if a woman who had once been involved with the Sect Leader also became ambiguous with ordinary disciples beneath him, the whole matter would become even more sordid. Tianxing Sect had no wish to see any more of its people entangled with Hongniang.

Relatively speaking, very few people in Tianxing Sect had ever met Hongniang, and naturally even fewer had seen Uncle Chen.

Even now, the two Protectors did not actually understand what relationship Uncle Chen had with Hongniang. They had only guessed that he was probably one of her people.

Du Yunsang ordered, “Release him.”

The two Protectors exchanged a look, clearly hesitant. Former Sect Leader Wen Hua still wielded considerable influence within Tianxing Sect.

Du Yunsang’s voice cooled. “I said release him. Didn’t you hear me?”

With no other choice, the two slowly let Uncle Chen go.

Uncle Chen shook himself free of their hands, lifted his head, straightened his chest, and strode back as though he had no fear of death. He stopped directly in front of Du Yunsang.

Du Yunsang reached out and tapped several points on his body, undoing the restraints. “What did you just say?”

Mockery appeared on Uncle Chen’s face. “Why ask when you already know?” He turned and glanced behind him. “Looks to me like they all know. Don’t tell me the great Sect Leader himself knows nothing.”

Du Yunsang swept a cold glance toward the two Protectors. Both avoided his eyes with traces of guilt.

Seeing that, Du Yunsang’s heart sank. He understood. Uncle Chen was probably telling the truth.

Du Yunsang did not say whether he had known or not. He simply continued asking, “My wife slapped Hongniang yesterday? When?”

Uncle Chen said, “Right after we came out of Tiannü Sect’s guest courtyard. How could you not know? Did we provoke you somehow? Did we offend you? We didn’t even know you were there. It was nothing more than an accidental encounter, yet your wife called Hongniang aside and slapped her hard twice. Hongniang stood there and took both blows without resisting at all! She can’t afford to offend Tianxing Sect. All she can do is hate herself for being blind enough to meet a faithless man like you and accept that her life turned out this unlucky. She went back alone and shut herself inside her room. What more do you want from her?”

Du Yunsang’s fists tightened slightly inside his sleeves. The muscles along his cheeks drew taut. The old scenes rose vivid and unforgettable before him.

He remembered now. After running into Hongniang the day before, Wen Xinzhao had made an excuse to leave for a while. He had not imagined she had gone to settle accounts with Hongniang.

Uncle Chen did not stop. His indignation only grew. “Two slaps in public—do you know what kind of humiliation that is? She said nothing. She hid herself away and bore it alone. She has already suffered that much, yet you still refuse to let her go. If you want someone dead, then kill them openly. Why twist around and collude with Tianyu Sect to strike from the shadows? What is it? You want to kill someone without getting blood on your own hands? Truly the style of a famous and prestigious sect—so careful to keep your feathers clean!”

“Stop spouting nonsense!” one Protector rebuked him. “Which eye of yours saw anyone colluding with Tianyu Sect?”

Uncle Chen thrust a hand toward the outside and shouted back, “Both my eyes saw it! Just earlier, I personally saw Chen Tingxiu, Elder of Tianyu Sect, come in here. For all I know, he’s still plotting with Madam Du right now!”

Du Yunsang frowned.

Uncle Chen turned back and pointed a finger directly at him. “Hongniang never wronged you back then, did she? She never forced you either! You were the one who wanted to be with her. You were the one who said you would treat her well. And you were the one who suddenly threw her aside! Then people from your side came and nearly beat her to death. How much suffering has she endured because of you? Her life was already one she barely managed to pick back up. She owes you nothing anymore! What else do you want? You people have gone too far. I came here today with no intention of leaving alive. Kill me or carve me up as you please. Even if I die, I’ll curse you, you faithless cur, and vent this anger!”

Du Yunsang’s chest rose and fell with a faintly abnormal rhythm.

“How dare you!” the two Protectors shouted when they heard him curse their Sect Leader as a cur.

Du Yunsang remained calm. His eyes lowered, his expression unmoved. Two words came from his mouth.

“See him out.”

The two Protectors had been waiting impatiently. They flashed forward, restrained Uncle Chen, and quickly dragged him away.

The hall fell silent for a while.

Du Yunsang eventually walked outside as well. With a wave of his hand, he summoned a disciple. “Find out whether Madam met anyone just now.”

“Yes.” The disciple accepted the order and departed.

Before long, the disciple hurried back. “Sect Leader, the disciples at the gate say an Elder from Tianyu Sect came to see Madam not long ago. He has already left.”

A trace of severity flashed through Du Yunsang’s eyes. He swept his sleeve and dismissed the disciple, then walked away at an unhurried pace beneath the gazes of the two Protectors who had returned.

Wen Xinzhao was still among the pavilions and terraces, sitting quietly and lost in thought.

Du Yunsang’s arrival broke the silence. “The guest left?”

Wen Xinzhao turned her head and forced a smile. “He left.”

Du Yunsang came to stand beside her. The two leaned on the railing shoulder to shoulder, looking out over the garden. His tone was calm. “Why did you hit her?”

Wen Xinzhao lowered her head slightly. She knew exactly whom he meant. Softly, she asked, “Your heart aches for her?”

Du Yunsang said, “I already severed my relationship with her. Didn’t you and I agree on that?”

“I had an agreement with her too. She promised never to see you again. If she did, I could deal with her as I pleased. I didn’t truly do anything to her. I only saw her meet you again and suddenly couldn’t bear it. I lost control of myself, so I went to find her and slapped her twice.” Wen Xinzhao paused. “Senior Brother, are you angry with me? If you truly are, I’ll admit I was wrong.”

“There’s no need to admit fault. What did that Tianyu Sect Elder want from you?”

“He probably came because he heard I had slapped Hongniang...” Wen Xinzhao recounted everything Chen Tingxiu had said, leaving out nothing. Finally she added, “I didn’t agree. I drove him away.”

Du Yunsang said, “Just now, that old man Chen from Hongniang’s side came to see me and cursed me to my face...” He likewise concealed nothing, recounting the entire encounter before asking, “What do you think?”

Wen Xinzhao lowered her head and remained silent.

“Junior Sister, I owe her.”

“Don’t you owe me as well?”

“I will keep what I promised you. I’ll say it again: I will never have anything to do with her again. I only hope you won’t do something like this again in the future. All right?”

Wen Xinzhao gave a faint nod. “Mm.”

Du Yunsang asked, “As for the man who came trying to make use of this affair, will you deal with him, or shall I?”

Wen Xinzhao replied softly, “There’s no need for you to appear in something like this. Leave it to me.”

Once matters had been made clear, there was nothing more to say. Du Yunsang turned and left.

This was how the two of them had always been as husband and wife: courteous to each other as guests.

[End of Chapter 504]