Who Asked You?

With a single palm, Qin Zheng brought Mu Wanqing's house crashing down, and the people of Mantuo Manor were shocked into standing frozen where they were. The plump woman swallowed, her body trembling of its own accord. If that palm had landed on her, she feared she would have been smashed to pieces on the spot! She exchanged a glance with the old woman beside her, then braced herself and cupped her fist toward Qin Zheng. "Hero Qin, we will go back and report this matter to Madam. The green hills do not change, and the clear waters flow on. We shall meet again!" With that, she dared not linger in the courtyard, and led the people of Mantuo Manor away in a hurry. Once they had run until even their backs were gone from sight, Zhong Ling immediately let out a cheer. "Hero Qin is amazing! One palm, and you scared them all off!" Qin Zheng said with a perfectly calm face, "Don't mind it. I take pay to do a job. All of this is what I ought to do." Mu Wanqing drew her gaze back from his face and looked, with complicated feelings, at the ruins behind her. Years of her master's teaching had left her loathing every man in the world, but Qin Zheng had after all gotten her out of trouble, and it was hard to answer him with harsh words now. So she said, "You helped me out of a tight spot, but you also destroyed my house. The two of us are even." Qin Zheng paid no mind to her somewhat awkward manner. He hummed in acknowledgment and said, "Let's go. The next stop is Wanjie Valley. Someone else I mean to invite with a gilded invitation is there as well." Zhong Ling asked in puzzlement, "Is there a heroine in our Wanjie Valley too? Wait—don't tell me you're going to send the gilded invitation to my mother?!" At the thought, she covered her mouth in disbelief, eyes wide, her face a picture of panic. Qin Zheng's eyes lit up, and he looked Zhong Ling over anew. "I didn't see it before. Zhong Ling, the way you think is very much in the style of our sect! Do you want to take me as your master and come with me to do great things?" Feeling that scorching gaze, Zhong Ling was so frightened she shot behind Mu Wanqing in a flash. Cold sweat poured off her. "I wouldn't dare take you as my master. If I did, I'm afraid I wouldn't even know how I died someday!" Hearing this, Qin Zheng sighed, his face full of regret. "Alas, that really is too bad. Don't worry. I'm not going there to give your mother a gilded invitation. Wuyazi may be crippled now, but back in the day he was the most beautiful man in the world. With an eye like his, he surely wouldn't take a fancy to your mother." Zhong Ling said indignantly, "When my mother was young, she was as beautiful as a celestial immortal. Even if she's a little older now, my father still dotes on her like a treasure. Matching her with a crippled old man would be far more than enough!" "Is that so? Then I'll reluctantly send your mother a gilded invitation as well?" "Hmph. Who are you looking down on? What do you mean, reluctantly send one? You must send my mother one!" Listening to the two of them grow more and more outrageous, Mu Wanqing couldn't help but feel her head ache. She hurriedly cut in. "Zhong Ling, stop talking nonsense. If someone hears you, they'll laugh at you." Only then did Zhong Ling realize Qin Zheng had led her astray. She puffed out her cheeks, shot him a fierce glare, and asked again, "Besides my mother, who else in our Wanjie Valley is qualified to receive a gilded invitation?" Qin Zheng explained, "Your father has joined with the Four Great Evils, meaning to deal with the Seed-Slinging Madman, Duan Zhengchun. My gilded invitation is prepared for the master of the Four Great Evils." "Ah!" Duan Yu and Zhong Ling cried out in shock at the same time. Zhong Ling looked at Duan Yu in puzzlement. "Big Brother Duan, what's wrong?" Hearing that the Four Great Evils meant to deal with his father, Duan Yu couldn't help worrying. But then he remembered that Zhong Ling's father was involved as well, and he didn't know how to explain it to her. Full of mixed feelings, he said, "It's nothing. I just heard the name of the Four Great Evils, and felt they must be very formidable villains..." Qin Zheng shot him a meaningful glance and said, "This time you've really hit the mark. The Four Great Evils are experts recruited by the Western Xia First Rank Hall. The first, Evil Beyond Redemption Duan Yanqing, is the son of Dali's Emperor Shangde, Duan Lianyi. After he drifted into the jianghu, he grew bitter and cynical, became bloodthirsty by nature, and killed without number. The second, Stops at No Evil Ye Erniang, likes to steal other people's children, and kills them once she's tired of playing with them. The third, Ferocious Fiend Yue Lao San, has something wrong with his head. At one disagreeable word, he wants to twist a person's neck. The fourth, Utterly Vicious Yun Zhonghe, is a flower thief who specializes in ruining women's virtue. Even Duan Zhengchun holds him in the deepest contempt." Duan Yu: "..." No—had his father's reputation in the jianghu already sunk so low that he was being discussed in the same breath as the Four Great Evils?! After hearing all this, Duan Yu couldn't help feeling deeply struck. Full of astonishment, he followed along behind Qin Zheng and the others. By the time he came back to himself, he found he had actually followed everyone into Wanjie Valley. Zhong Ling suddenly thought of Duan Yu and hurriedly said, "Big Brother Duan, remember—you must never say your surname is Duan, or my father will kill you!" Duan Yu knew his own father and Zhong Ling's father must share some deep blood feud. He had no wish to expose his identity and stir up more trouble, so he nodded helplessly and said, "In Wanjie Valley, I'll just call myself Qin Yu." Qin Zheng shook his head and instructed him earnestly, "One look, and I can tell you have no experience walking the jianghu. If you're going to change your name, change it thoroughly, so no one connects it back to you. From now on, your name is Murong Fu. Whenever I used to go out and forget to bring money, I often used this name to buy on credit." "Ah?" Zhong Ling's eyes went wide at once. "Wouldn't that be impersonating him?" Qin Zheng waved a hand, not caring in the least. "Don't you worry about that. Just tell me—does it intimidate people or not?" Zhong Ling let out a laugh, a sly smile on her face. "It really is intimidating. Who in the jianghu doesn't know the great names of Qiao Feng of the North and Murong of the South? With Big Brother Duan bearing the name Murong Fu, even if my father wanted to make a move, I'm afraid he'd have to weigh it first!" As they spoke, a sharp-eyed maidservant spotted Zhong Ling and hurried up to them, saying excitedly, "Miss, you're finally back! These past few days you've been gone, the master and madam have missed you day and night. They've been worried sick. Wherever did you run off to play?" Zhong Ling curled her lip. "So worried about me, and they still have time to contact the Four Great Evils and go seeking revenge. I don't believe it!" The maidservant carefully glanced all around and said in a low voice, "Miss, you must be careful what you say. Just earlier, Jin Xi'er said one wrong sentence, and that lord called the Southern Sea Crocodile God twisted her neck! Madam instructed us to speak cautiously these few days." Zhong Ling said angrily, "Do I have to mind someone else's mood even when I speak in my own home? He dares to kill people at random in my Wanjie Valley, and my father won't even do anything about it?" The maidservant gave a bitter smile. "That, this servant wouldn't know. Miss, right now that lord the Southern Sea Crocodile God, and Lord Yun Zhonghe, are both in the main hall discussing proper business with the master. Why don't I take you to Madam's place to keep out of the way for now?" Zhong Ling snorted. "No need. Hero Qin happens to have business with them. Go and tell my mother I've come back, so she won't keep worrying." The maidservant nodded at that, hurried around the main hall, and went to the rear courtyard to report. Qin Zheng and the others continued on and went straight into the main hall. There they saw Zhong Wanchou, master of Wanjie Valley, in the midst of discussing matters, along with Yue Lao San and Yun Zhonghe of the Four Great Evils. The moment Zhong Ling and Mu Wanqing entered the hall, Yun Zhonghe's eyes lit up. Zhong Ling's skin was fair and tender, her features lovely, her large eyes lively and bright, and a faint fragrance clung to her. She was a rare little beauty. Though Mu Wanqing's face was veiled in black gauze, a peerless beauty could still faintly be seen about her brows and eyes, and her figure was all the more graceful. Yun Zhonghe needed only one look before wicked thoughts toward the two girls arose in his heart. Just as he meant to step forward and tease them, he suddenly felt an exceedingly strange gaze fall upon his face and lock onto him tightly. He turned his head and saw a youth with bright, piercing eyes staring at him, looking him over at random. The gaze fixed on him was full of appraisal, just like a butcher sizing up livestock for the slaughter, and it made him pause. Qin Zheng's gaze was full of pressure. It made the fine hairs on Yun Zhonghe's body rise, and he asked cautiously, "Does Your Excellency know me?" Qin Zheng seemed to come back to himself and asked, "You're Yun Zhonghe of the Four Great Evils, aren't you?" Yun Zhonghe nodded. "That is I. May I ask Your Excellency's honored name?" Qin Zheng smiled faintly. "I am Qin Zheng. What I cultivate is the Castration Blade Art passed down from the imperial palace. At present I am still one person short of bringing it to perfection. I wonder if Your Excellency would be willing to offer up your body to aid my cultivation?" "Ha??" Yun Zhonghe was instantly struck dumb. The Castration Blade Art—and one passed down from the imperial palace? Damn it, why don't you just say outright that you want to castrate me and be done with it!! Yun Zhonghe quickly caught on. Killing intent showed openly in his eyes as he glared at Qin Zheng. "You little brat. You came specially to set yourself against us Four Great Evils, didn't you?" Qin Zheng let out a yelp, his face full of shock. "How did you tell? Was I being that obvious?" Yun Zhonghe was so angry the veins on his forehead bulged. Through gritted teeth he said, "Anyone but a fool could tell..." Beside them, Yue Lao San suddenly shouted, "Ah, so he came looking for trouble! I actually didn't see it just now!" "@#￥%￥#@……" Yun Zhonghe glared at Yue Lao San, choked so thoroughly that for a long while he could not get a word out. No—who asked you? And isn't it perfectly normal that you couldn't tell? You're a damn fool to begin with!