Chapter 59

“Shh! Here they come!”

Liu Xiaochuan quickly pulled Chen Guanlou into the corner of the wall.

Who’s coming?

Chen Guanlou was deeply puzzled.

Ahead at the intersection, a carriage turned in, and suddenly a dozen roughs emerged from both sides of the alley, raising sticks to smash at the carriage.

The horses panicked, neighing loudly; the driver struggled to control them. Someone jumped out of the carriage—a young, handsome young master. This young master knew some martial arts, snatched a stick from one of the roughs, and began fighting them all.

“What’s going on? Did you arrange this?” Chen Guanlou asked Liu Xiaochuan. As expected, these roughs were all under Liu Xiaochuan’s orders, lying in wait in the alley to attack.

“Did this man offend you, so you specifically ambushed him?”

Liu Xiaochuan chuckled scornfully, “Offend me? He offended Second Mistress. I’m just carrying out orders, avenging her. Can you guess who he is?”

“Who?”

“A relative of First Mistress’s family—came to the capital from afar a while back and is staying at Hou Fu. This brat, thinking himself clever, meddled in affairs that weren’t his business and ruined Second Mistress’s plans. She’s got a fiery temper, so she ordered us to teach him a lesson. I figured a good beating would be enough.”

“Be careful you don’t break him.”

“Don’t worry. This brat’s trained in martial arts—he won’t be broken.” Liu Xiaochuan was confident; this job was simple and clean, with a nice reward waiting. He’d already planned to go to Second Mistress right after to claim his payment.

Just then, the young master roared, “The Second Son of the Patrol Inspector is here! Who dares lay a hand?”

The Patrol Inspector held low rank but immense power. Over the past few years, nearly every major case in the capital had been cracked by those Patrol Inspectors—each one ended with heads rolling.

Even the dumbest roughs froze at the mention of the Patrol Inspector’s second son, staring at Liu Xiaochuan, hidden in the corner, waiting for orders.

Liu Xiaochuan’s mind reeled—why was the Second Son of the Patrol Inspector in that carriage? And which Patrol Inspector? Please, not Zhang’s son.

He couldn’t fathom how Ye had ever become close to the Inspector’s son, sharing a carriage. Ye had only arrived in the capital a little over a month ago—how had he already forged such a bond with the Inspector’s second son?

While Liu Xiaochuan stood stunned, another young master emerged from the carriage, clutching his forehead and groaning. Seeing the carriage surrounded by roughs and Ye injured, he roared, “Under the Son of Heaven’s gaze, in broad daylight, you dare ambush a carriage? You seek death!”

“What are you waiting for? Run!” Chen Guanlou punched Liu Xiaochuan on the shoulder, warning him, “Didn’t you plan a retreat signal beforehand? Good luck to you!”

He acted decisively, distancing himself from the scene, escaping this mess. Warning Liu Xiaochuan was already more than enough—he would never help him out of this.

His goal was to become a Martial Dao Master—to survive. Sticking out his head served no purpose.

Besides, he owed Liu the steward nothing, and had no friendship with Liu Xiaochuan.

Retreat decisively!

After the warning, Liu Xiaochuan shouted and bolted. The roughs, seeing him flee, followed suit—within moments, they vanished entirely.

Ye said angrily, “I know who they are. The monks may run, but the temple stays. Brother Zhang, are you hurt?”

“I took a couple of falls—nothing serious. Old Ye, these men clearly targeted you. Looks like your life in Hou Fu isn’t easy. Shall I intervene? With me involved, Hou Fu won’t dare shelter them.”

“Thank you, Brother Zhang! Why not come with me to Hou Fu to treat your wounds? Have a physician examine you.” Ye wasn’t a pushover—Second Mistress started it, so he’d finish it. This was for himself, and for his cousin’s dignity.

His cousin was Hou Fu’s First Mistress, long suppressed by Second Mistress—he couldn’t stand it. As family, he had to stand up for her.

When First Mistress learned her cousin had been ambushed and beaten at the alley entrance outside Hou Fu, she knew instantly: though the roughs were unfamiliar, everyone knew Liu Xiaochuan—he was Liu the steward’s man, and Liu the steward was devoted to the Second Branch. This had to be Second Mistress’s doing. Without her orders, Liu Xiaochuan wouldn’t dare lay a hand on anyone.

First Mistress immediately erupted, rushing to the old matriarch, wailing and sobbing, threatening suicide, claiming Hou Fu was leaving her no life, driving her to death. She’d long been bedridden, relinquished control of the household, yet still they wouldn’t let her be. Now they even refused to tolerate her kin—better to just give her a cup of poison and be done with it.

The old matriarch had wanted to smooth things over, make the big matter small and the small matter vanish—until she learned the Second Son of the Zhang Inspector had also been in the carriage, his forehead badly bruised. She was instantly terrified.

She sent for the eldest master, hoping he’d quiet First Mistress, send gifts to the Zhang family, and settle the matter.

The eldest master feigned illness and hid away. Clearly, he wanted First Mistress to keep causing trouble—the bigger it got, the better.

The Second Branch had gone too far.

Second Mistress had grown ever more arrogant and tyrannical, even refusing to tolerate relatives of her sister-in-law. Fine, if she couldn’t tolerate them, fine—but she sent men to ambush and beat them? Absurd, outrageous, utterly reckless. Was she truly bullying the First Branch, thinking they had no one? Now even their kin suffered.

Most terrifying of all: Ye had become friends with the Zhang Inspector’s second son. This brat had real talent. In barely a month, he’d forged ties with the son of a powerful official. His social skills surpassed those of Hou Fu’s own young masters by more than double.

The old matriarch’s head throbbed from First Mistress’s screaming, compounded by the involvement of the Zhang Inspector’s son. Even if the Zhang Inspector forgave them, Hou Fu had to respond.

In truth, the Zhang Inspector was infamous for his narrow-mindedness, his wild, rabid outbursts—like a mad dog. This forced the old matriarch to make a swift decision.

Thus, every rough involved was arrested and thrown into the Jingzhao Prefecture jail. The ringleader, Liu Xiaochuan, was locked in the Heavenly Prison, confined to a cell in the Yi-class section.

Learning Liu Xiaochuan was imprisoned in the Heavenly Prison, Chen Guanlou came specially to visit him, bringing wine and food.

Seeing Chen Guanlou, Liu Xiaochuan acted as if he’d found family, nearly bursting into tears.

“Little Chen… Brother Chen, you’re the only one who’s loyal—you haven’t forgotten me.”

Chen Guanlou handed him the wine and meat. “Eat. I knew you couldn’t get decent food or sleep in here—I brought it specially. Didn’t expect you’d be the first from Hou Fu to land in the Heavenly Prison.”

Liu Xiaochuan gnawed on a chicken leg as he said, “When Liu the steward first arranged for you to work in the Heavenly Prison, he said, ‘If anyone from Hou Fu ever ends up here, at least we’ll have someone on the inside.’ I never thought his words would come true so soon.”