Chapter 119

'Huu~'

On the street, Lu Tang took a deep breath, steadied his emotions, and looked at Du Gongxian, still furious, and Wang Zhongyi, smugly triumphant; he said sternly, 'I've said it before: if you two want to fight, take it outside the city! As for justice, I'm not the magistrate—I can't mediate.'

'Also, don't forget to compensate for the broken doors, windows, and buildings, and for the injured pedestrians!'

'Compensation? A trivial matter.' Wang Zhongyi lifted his chin. 'Du Laogui, though you're jealous of me, I understand. For the sake of our past friendship, I'll cover your share of the compensation too.'

'Pah~'

Du Gongxian spat. 'Who's jealous of you? You shameless old bastard, the height of disgrace!'

'Hm?' Wang Zhongyi raised an eyebrow. 'Du Laogui, you're不服? 不服? Then let's take it outside the city and keep fighting!'

'Fine, fight then!'

Du Gongxian turned and flew toward the city outskirts.

'Lu Sīwèi, please come to my residence to collect the compensation. Today, I'll make Du Laogui submit!'

Wang Zhongyi tossed out those words and chased after Du Gongxian, flying swiftly toward the city outskirts.

'...' Lu Tang clenched his teeth, waved to the martial artists gathered around watching, and shouted, 'Break it up! Everyone, disperse!'

He gave Chen Mu a barely perceptible nod when he saw him.

Chen Mu likewise made no move to greet him, and turned away to leave.

In the days that followed, every speck of dust in Tai'an Fucheng seemed steeped in the agitation brought by the three characters 'Qi Mengjun.'

After that day, when Du Gongxian and Wang Zhongyi—the two 'still vigorous' Xiantian experts—fought in the street over a vague, fleeting 'favor,' smashing windows and tearing down walls, Chen Mu later 'accidentally' encountered two more conflicts sparked by Qi Mengjun.

Once, two young heirs from minor families clashed in a teahouse over which type of poetry Qi Mengjun would likely prefer, wrecking half the teahouse and injuring several innocent patrons.

The second time, a traveling guard, drunk, boasted he didn't believe Qi Mengjun was truly beautiful—that it was just Tai'an Fucheng people bragging—and was surrounded and brutally beaten by several local young martial artists, nearly left crippled.

Chen Mu watched it all, his sense of absurdity and curiosity growing heavier.

Qi Mengjun seemed to possess a magic that made men of all ages and statuses lose their reason for her.

That morning.

As Chen Mu stepped out of the alley where his courtyard lay, he heard deafening gongs and drums from afar, mixed with blaring suona horns and the clamor of crowds.

'Again?'

Chen Mu frowned slightly and walked toward the noise.

There, on the main street, was an unprecedented scene of bustle.

A massive procession moved slowly forward: eight brilliantly colored, lifelike lion dancers leapt and tumbled ahead to clear the way; behind them, two golden dragons shimmered and writhed in time with the drumbeats; further back, dozens of sturdy men carried various chests and crates tied with red silk—like wedding gifts, yet far more extravagant.

On both sides of the procession, music troupes played fiercely, the sound thunderous.

At the very front, a young man in brocade robes, his face still handsome but with heavy bags under his eyes from excessive indulgence, rode a tall steed, beaming with pride as if he were a victorious general returning to court.

Along the streets, crowds of civilians stood packed, pointing and whispering.

'It's Zhou Shaoyou of the Zhou family!'

'What a grand display! What's he doing?'

'What else? A toad trying to eat swan meat! He's declaring his love to the Qi family's Young Lady!'

'Want to marry Qi Mengjun? Him? Not in a thousand lifetimes!'

'My heavens, how much silver must this cost? The Zhou family has spoiled him rotten...'

'...'

Chen Mu listened for a moment, his eyes flickering with oddness.

The man on horseback was the eldest son of the Zhou family, one of Tai'an Fucheng's four great clans—a notorious playboy named Zhou Shaoyou.

Was this whole spectacle just to see Qi Mengjun once?

The procession, grand and sprawling, circled nearly half the city before finally arriving at the imposing yet elegant gates of the Qi residence.

The lion and dragon dances redoubled their efforts; the music reached its crescendo.

Zhou Shaoyou dismounted, straightened his robes, bowed deeply toward the Qi family's main gate, and, summoning his modest internal energy, shouted loudly, 'Young Lady Mengjun! This humble one, Zhou Shaoyou, has long admired you. Today, I bring modest gifts—I beg you to appear, just once, to ease this torment of longing!'

His voice carried through the clamor, drawing cheers, jeers, and laughter from the crowd.

Chen Mu, who had followed along, watched with keen interest.

Would Qi Mengjun show herself to such a spectacle?

He wanted to see for himself just how beautiful Tai'an Fucheng's number one beauty truly was...

'Wuu~'

Under the gaze of thousands, the main gate of the Qi residence did not open—but a side door did, and two figures stepped out.

One was a handsome youth of seventeen or eighteen, his face tinged with impatience: Qi Yunpan, Qi Mengjun's younger brother.

The other was a middle-aged man in brocade robes, composed and dignified, with sharp eyes: Qi Jingxiao, head of the Qi family's external affairs.

Qi Jingxiao stepped forward, his voice calm yet carrying undeniable authority: 'Young Master Zhou, your feelings are understood by Mengjun. But such a spectacle disturbs the neighbors—it is not refined. Please take your people and gifts, and return home.'

Qi Yunpan was less courteous: he snorted coldly, 'Zhou Shaoyou, what are you playing at? Do you think my sister is someone you can just demand to see? Get out now!'

But Zhou Shaoyou, as if injected with stimulant, ignored all counsel—his excitement surged, and he shouted louder, describing how he'd been unable to forget Qi Mengjun since first seeing her, how he couldn't sleep, how today he must see her again—his words growing ever more cloying and vulgar.

Qi Jingxiao's brow furrowed; Qi Yunpan's temper was about to snap—the conflict was about to escalate.

Suddenly, a thunderous shout rang out from beyond the crowd.

'You disobedient brat! Shut up!'

Zhou Bowen, patriarch of the Zhou family, face dark with rage, arrived in haste with several family guards.

He first bowed apologetically to Qi Jingxiao and Qi Yunpan, then, before Zhou Shaoyou could speak, delivered a hard slap across his face, knocking him unconscious, and tossed him like a sack of grain to the guards.

"Shameful wretch! Take him away!"

Zhou Bowen once again apologized to Qi Jingxiao and Qi Yunpan, then, his face dark, amid a buzz of whispers and laughter, led that enormous, now utterly ridiculous procession away at a brisk pace.

The farce ended there and then.

Still, in every alley and main street of Tai'an Wulong Fucheng, people between meals and over tea kept chattering with great relish about Zhou Shaoyou's "heroic feat" and his wretched exit at the end.

"This Qi Mengjun…"

"I'm afraid she's more than just a pretty face."

Night fell. Chen Mu, who had eaten supper at a tavern and just come out, walked down the street, lost in thought.

Suddenly…

"Ah—!"

A terrified scream tore through the night sky.