That Year, That Incident

Mu Hongli and Mu Zhiyun. Quite unexpected. When he had first noticed the clan insignia embroidered on their chests, Xu Yuan had paid it little mind. The history of Marquis Wucheng's Manor spanned several centuries, and its collateral descendants were as numerous as hairs on an ox. All of them could wear an embroidered clan crest to display their lineage. Yet he had never expected to encounter the two siblings of the Mu clan's direct line here. In truth, however, Xu Yuan had simply failed to look closely. Although the clan insignia of prestigious families adhered to set patterns, the carved patterns and embroidery on a noble scion's robes held subtle variations depending on branch faction and generational standing. Discerning identity from these minute differences was practically mandatory coursework for aristocrats, but such a skill held little value for Xu Yuan. Simply recognizing which clan they belonged to was enough. After all, for someone who had dared to point right at an imperial prince's nose and say he wanted to tumble in the sheets with his royal mother, whether someone belonged to a collateral branch or the direct line of another noble clan made virtually no difference to him. As their eyes met, a wave of ferocious hostility surged toward Xu Yuan in an instant. Sensing this unkind glare, Xu Yuan remained unbothered, feeling a ripple of amusement instead. *Well, haven't seen him in years, and Mu Hongli is still the same.* Like the chest-binding princess, this Young Marquis had grown up in the Beifeng Army before being sent to Di'an as a hostage. Life in the military meant he bore little resemblance to typical pampered noble dandies; between his brows and in his gaze lay a swift, resolute ferocity. The look was not meant as an offense—in fact, quite the opposite. It was a glare Mu Hongli only unconsciously revealed when taking someone seriously. Unfortunately, who would know such a quirk upon meeting him for the first time? Most people would take it as a blatant provocation. Shifting his gaze slightly, he looked toward Mu Zhiyun. The young woman's appearance and demeanor were the polar opposite of her brother's fierce warrior persona. Mu Zhiyun was an exceedingly gentle girl, though not with an intellectual or magnanimous gentleness. Her demeanor was painfully timid—the kind of frail maiden who would blush and bow her head if she so much as made eye contact with a stranger. It was difficult to imagine that two people with such vastly contrasting temperaments were full siblings. No, that was not right—they were half-siblings sharing the same father. At this thought, amusement welled up in Xu Yuan once again. Although the outside world claimed Mu Zhiyun was Marquis Wucheng's legitimately born daughter who had ended up stranded outside the manor, she was actually his illegitimate child. Years ago, when Xu Yuan had been manipulated into trying to force himself on her, the Black Scale Guards had conducted a thorough investigation into this illegitimate daughter of Marquis Wucheng's Manor, unearthing virtually everything about her origins. As a result, Xu Yuan was exceptionally well-informed about the romantic scandals of Marquis Wucheng's Manor. Marquis Wucheng's Manor concealing Mu Zhiyun's true background was, in truth, the Marquis's way of making it up to her. The world knew Marquis Wucheng had commanded massive armies throughout his life, yet remained unwaveringly devoted and single-mindedly in love, having eyes only for his first wife, Lady Fuguo. This was both true and untrue. Marquis Wucheng, Great Yan's God of War, indeed had never taken a concubine in his entire life, doting solely on Lady Fuguo. Yet capable men often had their romantic follies. A time wounded and stranded, months of meticulous care, feelings running deep without knowing where they began. Given Marquis Wucheng's character, there was no way he would shirk responsibility. The problem, however, was that Lady Fuguo was an outright jealous woman who could not tolerate her husband having another woman. While Marquis Wucheng loved his wife, he was not henpecked. Expecting a God of Slaughter to fear his wife was, after all, rather disrespectful to him. Marquis Wucheng had forcefully brought Mu Zhiyun's mother back to the marquisate, where she gave birth to Mu Zhiyun. Lady Fuguo, however, was no pushover either. Taking advantage of the Marquis's absence on campaign, she directly drove Mu Zhiyun—still an infant in swaddling clothes—and her mother out of the manor. When Marquis Wucheng quelled the war and returned to the capital upon imperial summons, only to learn of what had transpired, Lady Fuguo gave him an ultimatum: Either divorce her, or tell that mother and daughter to get lost! Marquis Wucheng flew into a towering rage, yet in the end, he compromised. When Xu Yuan had first read the dossier, his blood pressure had spiked slightly. Only after reading the annotations and analysis below did he understand and let it go. There were many reasons Marquis Wucheng had compromised. In a position like his, he could no longer act purely on impulse. It was because of his only legitimate son, because of the faction backing Lady Fuguo, because of Lady Fuguo's capabilities, and because he truly did love his first wife. Jealousy aside, Lady Fuguo was in every other respect an exemplary helmswoman of the household. The properties of Marquis Wucheng's Manor and the logistical supply lines for the three hundred thousand troops of the Beifeng Army were managed impeccably by her. And of course, beyond that, Lady Fuguo had left a sliver of leeway: She had not caused mother and daughter to vanish from the face of the earth, as was often done within the vermilion palace walls. Still, Mu Zhiyun growing up into such a timid little coward was owed in no small part to Lady Fuguo. Perhaps because of this, as an elder brother, Mu Hongli felt guilty over his mother's actions and was fiercely protective of this half-sister. Back then, shortly after Mu Zhiyun arrived in the capital, Xu Yuan had abducted her to Juke Pavilion beside the Chancellor's Manor. Upon finding out, Mu Hongli had flown into a rampage, forsaking any carriage to tear through the air in person, hurtling straight to the scene. If not for the two Grandmasters guarding Xu Yuan putting their lives on the line to shield him, and Mu Hongli holding back for fear that the shockwaves would kill the mortal Mu Zhiyun along with him, Xu Yuan likely would have died on the spot under Mu Hongli's fury. Of course, those were secondary factors; the main reason was that Xu Changge had arrived to save the day in the nick of time. His eldest brother had been handling official business in the inner courtyard study back then, rushing to the scene the moment he received a voice transmission from the bodyguard Grandmasters. Even with such speed, Xu Yuan had still been battered half to death by Mu Hongli's subtle qi bursts. In fact, had Xu Changge not intercepted one blast aimed straight at his groin, Xu Yuan would have already been fit to enter the palace as a eunuch. Hazy memories drifted across his mind. Looking back now, the two siblings were actually quite pitiable. Because back then, Xu Changge seemed to have gotten angry as well. Squinting slightly, a flicker of reminiscence appeared in Xu Yuan's eyes. Of the two bodyguard Grandmasters sent flying, one had smashed through several blocks, kicking up a cloud of dust inside a tavern, while the other had crashed directly against the Chancellor's Manor's protective array, raising a ripple across its barrier. Inside Juke Pavilion, now reduced to ruins, wood splinters littered the ground amid churning smoke. The sudden collapse of Juke Pavilion beside the Chancellor's Manor instantly threw the bustling yet orderly street into pandemonium. The neighs of demonic mounts mingled with frightened screams. Some fled in terror; others watched out of curious amusement. Clamoring noise flooded his ears as the half-naked Xu Yuan struggled to stand. He had no idea what was happening. The bustling, chaotic din made his already groggy mind even more disoriented. Everything around him seemed to sway, and the agony of his displaced organs was unbearable. *Blegh—* Managing to sit up with great difficulty, a mouthful of surging blood sprayed across the ruined ground. Looking at the viscous crimson beneath him, Xu Yuan's body began to tremble uncontrollably as terror crept up his heart inch by inch. *Die...* *Am I... going to die?* His lips trembled. He cast panicked glances around, but saw nothing except billowing smoke and dust. In the next moment, however, he caught sight of a figure stepping through the swirling haze. *Run...* He wanted to run. Sharp tinnitus rang endlessly in his ears, and his groggy thoughts ground almost to a halt, yet Xu Yuan suppressed the instinct welling from deep within. Though he had never seen high-ranking cultivators fight, this man was clearly no low-level practitioner. If this person wanted to kill him, he wouldn't be able to resist in the slightest. So he spoke on reflex. He chose the option with the highest chance of survival: Talk. His battered body left his voice weak and feeble: "If you... dare kill me, my father won't..." "Shut your mouth, you brute." A voice thick with killing intent rang from the dark shadow. His steps were steady, each one seemingly treading right on Xu Yuan's heartbeat: "I've long heard rumors of you tyrannizing the markets and forcing yourself on innocent women, but to think you'd dare lay your eyes on my, Mu Hongli's, own sister?!" As those words fell, Xu Yuan opened his mouth to speak, but a burst of force arrived before him in an instant. Xu Yuan collapsed onto the ground like a broken kite, the bones across his half-naked, slender upper body caving in section by section. The piercing agony made him want to scream, yet under the crushing pressure, he could not make a sound. Seeing Xu Yuan's agonized expression, the shadowy figure in the dust gave a low sneer, his voice chill with icy rage: "Since you're so fond of women, I'll let you enjoy it properly!" With that, a stream of qi struck out like lightning, aimed straight between his thighs! Xu Yuan could not even feel this qi. For a mortal like him, the shattered bones were already fatal. Naturally, he could feel nothing else. It seemed like a split second, yet also an eternity. *Hum—* A blast of qi erupted before Xu Yuan without warning, and the resulting shockwave cleared all the smoke and dust within a thousand feet. Then, a familiar figure clad in green robes settled into Xu Yuan's blurring vision. Staring down at his younger brother, whose bones were entirely caved in on the ground, Xu Changge's thin lips trembled slightly, but he held back. He calmly shifted his gaze to the burly youth thirty feet away, who was dressed in purple-black martial attire. Looking at the Young Marquis of Marquis Wucheng's Manor, Xu Changge's voice was very soft, his question brief, consisting of merely three words: "You did this?" "..." Mu Hongli forced down the anger in his chest. Looking at the calm-eyed eldest son of the Xu family before him, he gave a furious laugh in reply. "He kidnapped a daughter of the Mu clan's main line. Since your family has no manners, I disciplined him on your behalf. Is there a problem?" With that, Mu Hongli glanced at the Chancellor's Manor's retained elders lurking in the surroundings, knowing it would be unwise to press further, and snorted softly. "Consider yourselves lucky. Zhiyun, come home with your brother." Having said this, Mu Hongli untied his outer robe. Turning around to walk toward Mu Zhiyun, he called coldly to Xu Changge: "Also, Xu Changge, take Xu Yuan back and teach him some propriety and shame. I wouldn't want to have to discipline your—" "I don't believe I asked you those questions, nor do I recall allowing you to leave." Staring at Mu Hongli, not a trace of emotion showed in Xu Changge's narrow phoenix eyes. His voice remained exceptionally calm: "As long as you admit it was you, that is enough." "..." Hearing this, Mu Hongli froze for a moment, turning his gaze back with mild surprise. For as soon as the words left the other's mouth, he felt his qi dynamic get locked. Xu Changge, a mere Grandmaster, dared to lock onto him, an Origin Realm expert, with his qi dynamic? Finding it slightly amusing, Mu Hongli let out a soft exhale. A grin spread across his rugged face as he bared his teeth. "It seems your Xu family truly has no upbringing. Eldest Young Master, do you, a Grandmaster, want to be disciplined by me as well?" "Perhaps." The ground gave way. Xu Changge's figure vanished from where he stood, reappearing right before Mu Hongli in an instant, a knife-hand chop slicing toward his left shoulder. In that flash of lightning, a trace of amusement lingered in Mu Hongli's eyes. He took a slight side step, dodging to the left while circulating his cultivation technique to gather power in his left arm. Against a Grandmaster, a single full-power punch ought to be enough. *Boom!* A visible shockwave rippled out from the collapsed Juke Pavilion, grinding the surrounding ruins once more. The commotion came fast and ended just as quickly. Threads of blood burst forth beneath the waterfall of brilliant sunlight, spattering and falling to the earth. Half-kneeling in the sunken crater, Mu Hongli frowned as he stared at the hand wedged into his left shoulder, bewilderment in his eyes. *That knife-hand chop just now... I clearly dodged it.* *Why...* Just as the thought crossed his mind, the eldest son of the Xu family's indifferent voice reached him once more. Leisurely withdrawing his knife-hand, Xu Changge flicked his wrist to cast off the blood staining his knuckles. Looking down with narrow eyes, he spoke word by word: "Mu Hongli. "In this matter, Changtian was in the wrong first, after all. So if you do not flee... I will not draw my sword."