Chapter 691

Jiang Cheng's steps suddenly halted there, and he instinctively took a few steps back.

Throughout Southern Qi, everyone knows Gu Shangshu of Southern Qi; his methods are ruthless.

Especially the half‑mask he wears on his face, as cold and hard as his heart, showing no warmth at all.

"Aunt," Jiang Cheng said as rain fell, his face beaming with smiles, bowing to Gu Kang.

"Commoner pays respects to Lord Gu; I wonder what important business Lord Gu has here?"

This pier is not large among the imperial river docks of Shang Jing.

Because the pier is small, its throughput is low; only a few ferries carrying individual passengers come and go, unlike the bustling larger docks.

If he were to meet Gu Shangshu here by chance, it would be inexplicable.

Now Gu Kang is directly blocking him here.

The sky had just begun to darken; the setting sun in the west painted the evening clouds a deep crimson, the afterglow shrouding the earth, the weather gray and the atmosphere somewhat oppressive.

Jiang Cheng did not know why Gu Kang blocked his path; he considered himself to have no connection with Gu Kang at all.

He is a pitiful dependent; even when he took the imperial examinations, he didn't even pass the Mingjing section.

Now he has even severed ties with the Li family; as for Gu Kang's involvement, why does he block him here?

"Men!" Gu Kang slowly raised his hand, gesturing, as if he had no interest in speaking to Jiang Cheng.

What should be done and what should not, all were his own determinations.

From the grass sprang several youths in dark brocade garments, each with their faces covered, their status indiscernible.

Their group surged forward, pinning Jiang Cheng—who sensed something was wrong and tried to flee—hard to the ground.

"Lord Gu! Lord Gu! Why are you doing this? Help! Help…"

Jiang Cheng's cries for help were abruptly cut off; his mouth was stuffed with a hemp gag, so he could not make any sound.

At the same time his two hands were tightly bound together, and a burly man lifted a club and struck his kneecap with force.

Jiang Cheng instantly blacked out from the pain, a metallic, bloody taste flooding his throat.

He wanted to ask why he was being treated so unjustly, but those words were choked by the intense pain in his throat; he didn't know when it would end. Jiang Cheng realized his two legs had already been smashed, fearing he would never stand again and become a cripple. Then his hand joints were brutally broken, and immediately, someone gripped his chin, lifted his mouth, and forced a bowl of pungent, bitter medicinal broth down his lips.

The tearing pain in his throat surged, and Jiang Cheng instantly lost consciousness completely.

At this point Jiang Cheng was beyond rescue; the scholar's glory was like a rag trampled and used, collapsed on the grass, surrounded by a strong scent of blood. Gu Kang looked lightly at the heap of ruined bodies on the ground before him; they were no different from waste, only a breath left.

"The Li family will not let him go. Throw him at the Li family's doorstep, and the Li family will find a way to deal with him."

"Escaping is not that easy; whatever seed you sow, you reap. Wanting to get away unscathed, my elder sister really is easy to bully."

Wukong let out a low, suppressed snarl, then turned, slowly walked toward a pair of newcomers he had encountered, stopped his steps, shifted a little, and whispered orders.

"Send a physician over to treat him properly; he must not die, he must live well. Death would be meaningless."

Jia Kang arrived at the riverside pier, where a servant had already come out to greet him. At that moment a black‑awning boat was moored at the bank; someone from the river had boarded, and carefully helped Gu Kang onto the boat. Then the boat was gently nudged away from the shore, heading toward the center of the river.

Gu Kang lifted the cabin curtain. In the middle of the cabin, at a table, sat a woman of delicate, beautiful features. When she slightly lowered her head, a fragile beauty evoked an endless protective instinct.

The woman was none other than the current Father Princess. When Father Princess saw Gu Kang enter, he quickly rose to greet him. Gu Kang hurriedly placed his hand on him, then slowly said: "Your Highness, you're too kind, sorry to keep you waiting; I just dealt with a nuisance, which should have given you a breath of relief."

"He envies your young master; Li Zhao, it doesn't matter, it has nothing to do with you and me, yet he shouldn't have done that here, tarnishing Sister Zhang's reputation and leaving Princess His Highness with no face. Since he has such audacity, he must bear the consequences he deserves."

The deeds Gu Kang just did to Jiang Cheng had already been reported by the sick woman by his side. At this moment Father Princess looked at the man before her, feeling a slight chill for the first time. This man's methods were also severe; he had maimed Jiang Cheng, his hands and feet shattered, leaving him a mere waste. Throwing such waste back to the Li family, with whom he holds a mortal enmity, would bring predictable setbacks. Yet Jiang Cheng's master should not be pitied; after all, he once followed the foolish Li Chao, ran to the East Sima Gate and…

At that moment there was no one else nearby; Gu Kang was not so restrained and sat down slowly. He then looked across at Father Princess, who personally helped fill the tea before Princess Fuqing, then raised the tea in his hand, offering it in place of wine, and smiled lightly: "Your Highness, a touch of transparent adornment for the facial features, is George satisfied?"

"Where is any dissatisfaction? Gu Kang traced the root cause, venting his anger, which earned Father Princess a bit more praise and favor for Gu Kang. Yet Father Princess always felt that this person, thread by thread, possessed a characteristic that…"

Father Princess also raised a wine cup, lightly clinking it with Gu Kang's, then carefully took a sip before looking at Gu Cheng and saying, "I still don't quite understand. Why does Shangshu request and also become my son‑in‑law?"

"I am already in the palace, without power or influence; why endure such favor from Shangshu? I only serve as my guard, and must continue rural righteousness, which is not worth the loss."

Jia Kang smiled lightly; the other half of his face, unmasked, showed clear angles, his brows and eyes tinged with spring as he looked at Princess Fuqing. "If you like where, why must…"

As soon as Jia Kang uttered those words, Father Princess was speechless, yet her heart raced wildly, having liked him since an unknown time. Once again…

But this moment of affection, though it made his heart quite happy, always felt that some masters always hide feelings he cannot see…

At this time, at your family's doorway, in the night, they were preparing to throw in a blood‑sucking figure; soon after repeated warnings were issued that it was… Jiang Cheng was hit by a dead pistol and thrown outside his home, encountering the frozen Li Yandi beyond a dark patch. "Truly heaven's blessing, they carried me back again; this time let's see how the young master goes out."

"That person threw him into a heap of beggars; not because he likes taking others' things, but he would just go practice qi, steal…"