Chapter 309: The Vicious Guest in the House Urges Impatiently

Shen Sijing and Xu Ying were at their wits' end when a report came from outside the door! Zhou You had arrived, and he had brought a group of good friends with him; judging by their appearance, they had just come from a drinking party.

"Junior Brother Zhou, my apologies. There is truly something going on at home, and I cannot get away. I will come to apologize another day."

Zhou You was hosting a banquet today, and how could Shen Sijing not have wanted to go? His relationship with Zhou You was closer than with other fellow disciples, and there had even once been a chance for them to become family through marriage.

Alas, due to Zhang Hongmao's relentless pressure, the Shen family was already in a precarious position.

Shen Sijing feared that his own mood would affect the joyous occasion, so he did not go.

He had not expected that Zhou You would take the initiative to seek him out, and even bring a group of good friends along.

"Meet my newly accepted disciple. Qi Qingdi, come over and pay your respects to Senior Uncle Shen."

Shen Sijing hurriedly said, "No need for such formalities, get up quickly."

He rummaged through his person, truly unable to find a suitable gift, and sighed heavily, "Junior Brother Zhou, you shouldn't have come today, to see me in my current state of distress."

Shen Sijing and Xu Ying were holding down the fort at Shangshang Hang, guarding against Zhang Hongmao sending people to forcibly seize the accounts and the warehouse.

Bad news had come from the family residence: Zhang Hongmao had brought men to block the door, loudly and repeatedly declaring that he wanted to take Shen Siying as his replacement wife—that is, as the new wife of an old widower.

Who didn't know that Zhang Hongmao's household was filthy? Dozens of concubines had been toyed with by him until they were no longer human; for a decent daughter to be married off to him, it would be a miracle if she lived past twenty.

Shen Sijing was worried about his family and the firm, but he still spoke up to offer a warning, "Junior Brother Zhou, the recent War Order has been causing quite a stir. You must also be extra careful. Although you have Senior Brother Qi covering for you, there is no guarantee that someone won't use this to make things difficult for you."

Zhou You nodded upon hearing this, then asked, "I haven't seen your father in a long time. Since it's a coincidence today, how about you take me to the manor for a visit?"

"I'm afraid that wouldn't be a coincidence."

How could Shen Sijing let Zhou You run into the scene of Zhang Hongmao blocking the door? He tactfully expressed his refusal.

The words had barely left his lips when he was grabbed by the shoulders by Jiang Hua and Shi Gaofei, who led him straight toward the door, "Just come along, don't talk, there's a surprise."

What surprise? The group left the firm in a throng. The entrance was quiet; those blatant eyes watching them had all disappeared.

Shen Sijing's body trembled slightly. Zhou You had made a move, but the enemy's forces were great; killing a few lackeys wouldn't be effective!

His heart was in a state of chaos. Surrounded by Zhou You and the others, he entered the Inner City and soon arrived at the entrance of his family home.

At the door, 4 or 5 Blood-Qi warriors stood guard, arms crossed with unfriendly expressions, having completely blocked the Shen family gate.

"All of you, get lost. The young master of the Shen family has returned home."

Seeing the large number of people, and that the leader was none other than the Winged Tiger Zhou You, these Blood-Qi warriors figured they couldn't stop them and obediently moved to the side.

The Shen family...

Master Shen stood there glaring, and opposite him was Zhang Hongmao, leaning back in his chair with a leisurely expression.

The old bastard took a sip of tea, then spat it out, frowning in disgust, "Old Shen, your tea leaves are no good."

"You didn't come here to drink tea. Zhang Hongmao, if you want to ransack the house, then ransack it. Don't insult people by letting your vicious dogs in. If I, surnamed Shen, beg for mercy even once, you can consider yourself the winner."

Once Master Shen had let go of his inhibitions, he figured he was dead either way, so he might as well die with some backbone.

"Old Shen, look at you, why are you getting so worked up? I'm here to propose marriage, to give you a chance to be a generation above me. After all, a father-in-law is still a father; I'm even willing to humble myself and call you 'Dad', what else are you dissatisfied with?"

"Zhang the Extinguisher, that nickname of yours is truly accurate. Sooner or later, you'll end up without descendants."

Master Shen became even more furious, but Zhang Hongmao remained calm and composed, showing no signs of anger.

The gap was too great. Zhang Hongmao held the War Order; he could crush the Shen family just by extending a single finger.

Both sides understood this reality! "Old Shen, when a storm breaks, the branches and leaves all wither. There are many people in the market who have gone bankrupt; you aren't the only one."

Zhang Hongmao said indifferently, "If you want to blame someone, blame yourself for not seizing the opportunity. If you had married your daughter to my son back then, we would be family now, and I could even be shielding you from the wind and rain today!" "That son of yours needs help even to take a piss; what is he going to do with a wife? Do you really think outsiders don't know about the dirty business in your house?"

Zhang Hongmao's penchant for 'incest' was no secret; no decent family would ever marry their daughter to him.

Master Shen was a man of some means, and it was impossible for him to push his daughter into a pit of fire for the sake of wealth.

"Old Shen, it's not up to you whether you agree or not. I have the War Order in hand; refusing the conscription is defying the greater cause."

Zhang Hongmao sneered as he spoke, "I truly don't have the heart to issue the order to send you, my old friend, into the grave."

"You dare?"

"Of course I dare. You, and your son, I will bury you all alive, and that very night I will consummate the marriage with your precious daughter. White mixed with red—it will add a bit more flavor."

Zhang Hongmao laughed heartily, his smile filled with cruelty, lewdness, and wantonness.

Master Shen quieted down, "It may not go as you wish!"

In the back courtyard, Lady Shen held the softly sobbing Shen Siying. A cup of poisoned wine was placed in front of them; if anyone dared to break in, they would drink the poison and commit suicide on the spot, never choosing to live in disgrace.

Although the Shen family came from a merchant background, when things came to a head, their style of action was extremely resolute.

The Blood-Qi warriors guarding outside the door, all lackeys brought by Zhang Hongmao, suddenly became restless.

Zhang Hongmao was in the middle of savoring Master Shen's despair and indignation when he frowned and asked, "What is it?"

"Of course, it's that someone has arrived."

Zhou You walked in front, extending his arm to casually push aside the Blood-Qi warriors blocking his path.

Regardless of whether they were at the early or middle stages of Blood-Qi, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, or 5th stage, they were like withered grass being pulled from the ground, falling one after another under his light push.

In the time it took to catch one's breath, the warriors blocking the hall were sprawled in all directions, allowing Zhou You and his group to storm into the living room.

"Winged Tiger Zhou You!"

Zhang Hongmao, who had been sitting comfortably, could no longer stay seated and immediately stood up, "Are you the Shen family's backer?"

"Your old man is nothing but a manager. Jump ship to my side, and I'll give him ten times the income. Stay out of this business!"

The old bastard started off with a heavy bribe; it was clear he was very practiced at this, having bought off quite a few people with this routine.

Zhou You, however, ignored him and cupped his hands toward Master Shen, "Uncle Shen, are you in trouble?"

It was indeed trouble, and trouble of the highest order.

Master Shen waved his hand, not wanting to say more. He felt bad for this child who had come to offer help in his time of need, bringing people over to bolster his position.

This loyal and righteous nature was more precious than gold or silver jewelry.

However, in the face of the War Order, this effort was ultimately just a drop in the bucket.

"You few look somewhat familiar. You are Wang Laohu's disciples. Could it be that you also intend to intervene?"

Jiang Hua, Shi Gaofei, and the others smiled without speaking; they were just here to watch the spectacle.

Zhang Hongmao breathed a sigh of relief; it seemed that the only one stepping forward today was the Winged Tiger Zhou You, which made things much easier to handle.

Although the outside world was spreading rumors that Zhou You had latched onto the Third Young Master of the Qi Family and was highly valued, in his view, the rumors were all empty.

The Third Young Master of the Qi Family was not what he used to be and had far too many people he could use; he hadn't even promoted a single fellow disciple from the martial arts hall, so how could he possibly value the Winged Tiger, who was a discarded disciple! It was most likely Zhou You gilding his own lily, exaggerating for publicity, and using a tiger's skin to make a banner!

(End of this chapter)