Zhenbian King’s Residence
Jing Si Courtyard
The Zhenbian King’s consort, Zhu Yao, was having her breakfast when the steward of the royal residence, Zhao Ran, walked in from outside.
“Greetings, Your Grace.”
“Mm.”
The consort nodded slightly, dabbed her lips with a handkerchief, and finally looked at Zhao Ran.
“Coming to me this early—what’s the matter?”
“Your Grace, the five noble ladies you invited yesterday have just arrived at the residence with a group of people. They demand an explanation from us.”
“Oh?”
Zhu Yao didn’t seem surprised. She had already anticipated this situation.
“Who did they bring with them? Guards? Their brothers?”
“Reporting to Your Grace, they did not bring any guards. Aside from their coachmen, it’s just the five noble ladies and their brothers—fourteen people in total.”
Zhao Ran bowed in reply. As the steward of the residence, he had a good eye for assessing people.
“Mm. They’re all of the younger generation. It wouldn’t be appropriate for me to step in—would seem like bullying the young. I won’t show myself.”
The consort nodded and then continued,
“Invite them into the residence and let them wait in the main hall. Then go to Qingfeng Courtyard and find An’er.
Since he caused this, he should handle it himself. Just keep an eye on things. As long as they don’t go too far, don’t intervene.”
“After all, this whole thing was An’er’s fault. Letting him suffer a little might be a good lesson.”
“Yes, Your Grace. I’ll find the young master immediately.”
Zhao Ran gave her a respectful bow and left.
After he left, Granny Rong looked worriedly at Zhu Yao.
“Your Grace, aren’t you afraid that the young master might get the worst of it dealing with them?”
“No matter. With Zhao Ran watching, how bad could it get? At most, he’ll take a beating per custom—just some physical pain.”
“Would they dare seriously injure him in the Zhenbian King’s residence?”
As she said this, a cold glint flashed in Zhu Yao’s eyes.
“If they dare lay a deadly hand on him, I’ll make sure they never leave this residence alive. Even if it goes up to the Emperor himself, I’m not afraid.”
Despite her strong words, Granny Rong’s concern got to her. If Qiu An were seriously hurt, it would be meaningless even if they killed the culprits afterward. So she looked to Granny Rong.
“You go too. Keep an eye on things. Let them vent a little, but don’t let them humiliate An’er too much.”
“Yes, Your Grace. I’ll go at once.”
Granny Rong bowed and left for the main hall.
Main Hall
“Brother Chen, are we really going to challenge the young master to a fight?”
“Won’t it be inappropriate to injure the Zhenbian King’s heir inside his own residence?”
Li Guang looked anxiously at Chen Peng.
He wasn’t particularly eager to join the commotion today, but he knew if he didn’t, he’d be ostracized later, so he reluctantly tagged along.
“Don’t worry. We’re not necessarily here to fight. As long as Qiu An admits his mistake and apologizes to our sisters, we’ll leave.”
Chen Peng patted Li Guang’s shoulder and looked around at the others in the hall.
“It’s their Zhenbian King Residence that’s at fault. Our five families’ daughters were invited by the consort herself for a potential marriage,
but Qiu An didn’t even look at them. That alone is fine…”
“But the shame is that he proposed—right in front of them—to a scarred maid. Where does that leave the dignity of our five families?”
“If he truly liked that maid, he could’ve chosen another time to propose. But no—he had to pick that moment.
Clearly, he’s using the Zhenbian King’s power to humiliate us.”
“You’re right, Brother Chen. This was entirely Qiu An’s fault. We’re not here to stir up trouble—we just want a proper explanation.
The Sun family may not be as powerful as the Zhenbian King, but we won’t tolerate being humiliated like this.”
Zhao Yi added his voice.
“Yes, the Qian family won’t be insulted either.”
“Nor will the Sun family.”
Looking around at the indignant crowd, Chen Peng couldn’t help but smile. He had been the one to organize this gathering at the Zhenbian King Residence.
In the past, before Qiu An was crippled, he had a strong sense of justice and had beaten up quite a few noble sons in the capital, earning himself plenty of enemies.
Back then, as a genius backed by the Zhenbian King, no one dared touch him. Now that he was crippled and reclusive, many wanted revenge—Chen Peng certainly wasn’t about to let the chance slip by.
Li Guang, seeing the others so fired up, knew exactly what was going on in their minds. Regret filled his heart. He already wanted to leave.
Just then, looking toward the entrance, he spotted Qiu An approaching with two others and quickly shouted,
“Everyone quiet—the heir is here!”
At his shout, the hall fell silent as everyone turned to the entrance.
Though they hadn’t seen Qiu An in three years, and though he was now crippled, many of them had been beaten by him before.
They instinctively tensed up at the mention of his name.
Qiu An entered dressed in white, followed by a scarred woman in a yellow dress—Guo Xue—and a man in green, Qiu Jian.
As if he hadn’t even noticed Chen Peng’s group, Qiu An walked straight into the hall with his head held high, heading toward the main seat.
As he passed, everyone instinctively stepped aside, giving him a clear path.
Reaching the main seat, Qiu An and Guo Xue sat down calmly, while Qiu Jian stood beside him.
Looking around at the familiar faces, Qiu An smiled.
“Long time no see, gentlemen. What brings you to the Zhenbian King’s residence this early? Missed me already?”
He raised his clenched left fist.
Seeing the gesture, Chen Peng and the others reflexively took a step back—then remembered Qiu An was no longer the martial genius he once was.
Embarrassed, Chen Peng stepped forward again.
“Young Master Qiu, stop playing dumb. Don’t pretend you don’t know why we’re here.”
“Do you not remember what you did yesterday?”
“What unspeakable act did I commit yesterday that drove you lot to barge into my home at the crack of dawn?”
Qiu An feigned innocence as he looked at Chen Peng.
“Yesterday, the consort invited five noble daughters to your residence for potential marriage.
Not only did you reject all five, but you publicly proposed to this lowly wench right in front of them.”
Though Guo Xue was now dressed in elegant clothing, the scars on her face made it clear to Chen Peng that she was the very maid the girls had described.
“Watch your mouth!”
Qiu An roared in anger, his voice infused with a trace of inner force from the Martial King realm.
The forceful yell startled everyone in the hall into retreating three steps.
At that moment, a system prompt echoed in Qiu An’s ears:
“Mission Activated: Your wife has been insulted. Where is the dignity of the heir? Fight back and make them apologize. Reward: A Universal Mask.”
Even without the system, Qiu An wouldn’t have let this slide. Now, with a reward on the line, he looked coldly at Chen Peng.
Still shaken, Chen Peng pointed at Qiu An in shock.
“You… y-you still have inner force? I thought your cultivation was crippled!”
Qiu An realized what had happened—but he remained composed, his face dark.
“Idiot. My dantian and meridians were pronounced broken by the famed physician Shangguan. Are you saying he was wrong?”
Chen Peng hesitated. That explanation sounded reasonable. Just as he was about to speak again, Qiu An cut him off.
“Chen Peng, you dared insult the Princess Consort of the Zhenbian King’s residence. What punishment do you think you deserve?”
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