Chapter 7: Your Vicious Heart

"Shut up!" The State Duke pulled his wife behind him, took a deep breath, and looked at Li Zhi'an, saying, "Chief of Tongtian, Cheng Xi is a good child with a kind nature. That she cut off my son's arm is his own fault."

"My Lord State Duke, that is your son! How can you speak for Cheng Xi?" the State Duchess asked angrily.

The State Duke ignored his wife, met Li Zhi'an's murderous gaze, took another deep breath, and said, "Chief of Tongtian, Cheng Xi is just an ordinary woman; how would she know what a Four-Eyed Demon Fox is? This matter has nothing to do with her."

Cheng Xi glanced at the State Duke, a flash of surprise in her eyes.

"You are still speaking for her? She was ungrateful and cut off your son's arm. If the arm cannot be reattached..." The State Duchess paused here, only then remembering that she and her husband had come to Dali Temple to beg Cheng Xi; her face turned deathly pale in an instant.

"Cannot be reattached to what?" Li Zhi'an stared at the two of them and asked.

The State Duke glared fiercely at his wife, closed his eyes slightly, and let out a long sigh.

The corners of Cheng Xi's mouth curled up in a half-smile; it seemed they already knew.

The State Duchess looked up and met this smile from Cheng Xi. She looked at her with suspicion and fear, then suddenly shouted, "You did this on purpose, didn't you? Cheng Xi, did you do this on purpose?"

"I don't know what you are talking about, Madam."

Li Zhi'an stared at the State Duchess, "State Duchess, why can it not be reattached?"

The State Duchess was provoked by the disdain and triumph in Cheng Xi's eyes and blurted out, "The State Duke went to beg Inspector Fan, and Inspector Fan said he could not reattach my son's arm. If Cheng Xi hadn't tampered with it, why would someone with Inspector Fan's skills be unable to reattach it?"

Speaking of this, the State Duchess's eyes flared with rage, her expression turning somewhat ferocious, "Chief of Tongtian, Cheng Xi must be the problem!"

"Cheng Xi, what do you have to say?" Li Zhi'an stared at Cheng Xi, not missing a single expression on her face.

"Chief, this young woman just wanted to vent her anger. The reason Jiang Weiran's severed arm cannot be reattached is simply because I used a medicinal herb that prevents his wound from healing easily. I said I would take his arm, and I never speak empty words."

"Cheng Xi, what a vicious heart you have!"

"You are too kind, I still have much to learn from you, Madam."

Jiang Boyu was struggling hard to hold back his laughter; this Eldest Miss of the Cheng Family truly had a venomous tongue!

The State Duchess was on the verge of fainting, her finger pointing at Cheng Xi trembling incessantly.

Li Zhi'an looked at the State Duchess with a dark face, and she immediately shut her mouth, not daring to meet his gaze.

"What medicine? Where did you get it?"

"Herbs, there are plenty in the countryside. Of course I made it myself; do you think I have the silver to buy it?"

"Do you have any more of the medicine?"

"I do, it's at Cheng Fu. I can go back and get it for you to see, Chief."

Li Zhi'an looked at Cheng Xi with displeasure; this sarcastic tone was truly uncomfortable.

He sheathed his sword and was about to have Jiang Boyu go to Cheng Fu to retrieve the medicine, but in that very instant, Cheng Xi caught them off guard, snatched the sword backhand, kicked the person behind her in the back of the knee, and turned the blade to hold it against Li Zhi'an's neck.

"Chief!"

The Division Guards exclaimed and surrounded Cheng Xi.

Cheng Xi looked at Li Zhi'an and saw his expression remained normal, showing no fear at all.

His refined, cold, and stern face had a pair of eyes that looked affectionate even when looking at a dog. The lingering, tender light in his eyes created a clever contrast with that face that looked ready to kill at any moment.

"You are the first person who has dared to hold a blade to my neck," Li Zhi'an said.

What kind of arrogant, over-the-top line was that? Did he think he was in an idol drama?

Dare or not, she had already done it. She used force in her wrist to slam him hard against the wall, the sharp Dagger pressing against his neck, "Do you want to die or live?"

Li Zhi'an was silent for a moment; no one had ever spoken to him like this before.

"If I die, you likely won't live either."

Li Zhi'an swept a glance at the surrounding Division Guards.

"It wouldn't be bad to have someone to cushion my fall before I die. Besides, you are very much to my liking; it would be perfect to be a pair of doomed lovers."

A gasp went through the crowd. To dare to tease their Chief—she was truly not long for this world!

"Your subordinates don't have much composure."

Jiang Boyu, the leader, was already looking at Cheng Xi as if she were a dead person. This girl looked like a celestial being, so why was her brain so broken that she dared to lay a hand on their Chief?

He watched the Chief, who was making no move, and felt a bit strange. Why wasn't the Chief taking this girl down?

With the Chief's skills, a counter-kill would be a matter of an instant. Did she really think a single blade could suppress the Chief?

The State Duke was trembling all over as he looked at Cheng Xi and said, "Xi-xi, calm down. Let's talk this over. Uncle knows you've been wronged. Today's matter is a misunderstanding. Please, put the blade down, alright?"

If anything happened to Li Zhi'an at Cheng Xi's hands, both the State Duke Mansion and the Cheng Family would be finished!

"Not alright," Cheng Xi said, giving the State Duke a sweet, obedient smile.

The State Duke:...

He realized that Cheng Xi was taking a stand; she was forcing him to make a decision!

He gritted his teeth and backhanded his wife across the face, "It is all because you failed to raise your son properly! Not only did you fail Xi-xi, but you also repaid kindness with enmity and took her to court, letting her suffer in prison. Apologize at once and beg Xi-xi for her forgiveness!"

The State Duchess was stunned by the blow. In all the years she had been married to her husband, this was the first time he had ever laid a hand on her. She trembled with rage, "Jiang Xing, have you lost your mind? How dare you hit me?"

"Apologize!" The State Duke grabbed his wife and pinched her fingertips hard.

The State Duchess felt a sharp pain in her fingertips. She looked at her husband again, her face turning white in an instant. She gritted her teeth, turned to Cheng Xi, and said, "Xi-xi, it is my fault. Auntie apologizes to you. Let's talk this over properly; please release the Chief first."

Cheng Xi ignored the State Duchess and looked at the State Duke, "State Duke, has my grudge with your family ended here? Since your son's arm cannot be reattached, he won't come looking for trouble with me again, will he?"

With so many people from the Tongtian Division staring at him, the State Duke broke out in a cold sweat. He said with a pale face, "Everyone present here is a witness. From this moment on, the State Duke Mansion and you are even."

Cheng Xi turned to look at Li Zhi'an, "Chief, are you willing to be a witness?"

Jiang Boyu:...

He thought it would be faster for Eldest Miss Cheng to just go ahead and reincarnate!

Li Zhi'an met Cheng Xi's sweet smile, his gaze sweeping over the smear of blood about to dry on her mutton-fat jade-like neck, and he suddenly revealed a smile, "I can."

Cheng Xi immediately withdrew the blade, flicked her wrist, and the curved blade returned to its sheath.

Jiang Boyu was shocked. What breed of useless person was this?

Are useless people this powerful now?

One must know that the Chief's blade is different from theirs; it was forged from the bones of a demon dragon, and this single blade is heavier than ten of his own!

However, with just a light twist of Eldest Miss Cheng's fingertips, it slid into the scabbard with ease.