Chapter 14: Bloodied Forehead
1588 Words
Chen Mo felt a flicker of familiarity upon seeing the man, yet couldn’t place him.
“Do I look injured to you?” Chen Mo suppressed his confusion, countering with a faint smile.
The middle-aged man in the scholarly robe visibly relaxed, murmuring, “Good… good that you’re unharmed.”
But when he turned to the others, all warmth vanished from his refined features, replaced by icy authority.
“Zhao Haifeng! How dare you!” His voice thundered, shaking the room.
Zhao Haifeng had paled the moment the scholar appeared. Now, under that scathing rebuke, he stiffened, lurching to his feet.
“Brother Fu? What brings you here?” he stammered, disbelief warring with dread.
“C-City Lord?” Zhao Tianhua scrambled up, bewildered. Since when did this good-for-nothing Chen Mo have the City Lord’s backing?!
The green-robed man reacted fastest, sheathing his dagger in a flash and bowing low. “Your Honor Fu!”
Jiang Beishan, the City Guard Captain, mirrored the gesture. “Captain Jiang Beishan reporting, Your Honor!”
Every eye locked onto the scholar.
Fu Shan!
Lord of Linfeng City. Qi Gathering Realm Great Martial Master. A man whose authority eclipsed the heavens!
So it’s him.Chen Mo finally recognized him, yet a puzzle remained: We share no ties. Why intervene? Unless…A sudden possibility surfaced. He remained silent, observing the unfolding drama.
“Had I not come,” Fu Shan’s voice cut like winter frost, “I’d have missed the full spectacle of Zhao Haifeng’s ‘majesty’.”
A vein pulsed on Zhao Haifeng’s temple. He could disregard Jiang Beishan, but Fu Shan? The City Lord’s wrath was not to be trifled with.
“Brother Fu, I investigated this Chen Mo,” Zhao Haifeng chose his words carefully. “His peak was merely Outer Academy Chief at Bishui Sword Academy. Now? He’s a worthless nobody—an unloved son-in-law of the Li Family. I… I fail to understand why a man of your stature would shield him?”
The question hung heavy—Zhao Tianhua, the green-robed man, Jiang Beishan—all shared his confusion.
“Worthless?” Fu Shan’s lips curled in icy mockery. “For the sake of past acquaintance, I’ll enlighten you. Before coming to the Immortal Guest Tower, Princess Yunzhu made her decree clear: Should a single hair on Young Master Chen’s head be harmed, my head would answer for it!”
CRACK!
The words struck like lightning. Every face blanched. Every spine locked rigid.
“You mean he… he is Princess Yunzhu’s friend?” Zhao Haifeng’s voice trembled as he stared at Chen Mo.
Princess Yunzhu!
True imperial royalty! Though born into the Jinling Xiao Clan, she bore the title personally bestowed by the Great Xia Emperorhimself!
Her status was stratospheric!
How could Chen Mo—a Li Family dogsbody—befriend such a figure?
Jiang Beishan and the green-robed man looked as if they’d seen a ghost. They understood the terrifying implication: In Princess Yunzhu’s eyes, the City Lord’s life paled beside Chen Mo’s safety!
“Zhao Haifeng,” Fu Shan’s tone was arctic, “your actions today nearly cost me my head!”
“I…” Cold sweat drenched Zhao Haifeng’s back. Gone was his composure.
As Clan Leader of the Zhao Family, he commanded respect in Linfeng City. Yet even he dared only tread carefully around Fu Shan. And Princess Yunzhu? She was a storm capable of obliterating his entire Clan!
“Father,” Zhao Tianhua’s voice wavered, naive fear overriding sense, “who is this Princess? Is… is she greater than Uncle?”
SMACK!
The blow sent Zhao Tianhua crashing to the floor. Blood trickled from his split lip. He stared, dumbfounded, at the one who struck him—his own father.
“Silence!” Zhao Haifeng roared, face twisted with fury. The sheer terror in that gaze froze Zhao Tianhua’s blood.
“Should your uncle learn of this,” Fu Shan stated coldly, “he would discard your aunt instantly. Cast her out. Sever all ties with your Zhao Clan.”
Zhao Tianhua’s aunt—Zhao Haifeng’s sister—was the favorite concubine of Qin Wenyan, the County Governorof Qinghe County. Qin Wenyan stood above the lords of Qinghe County’s nineteen cities!
This connection had shielded the Zhao Clan, making even Fu Shan hesitate to cross them.
Until now.
The true gravity crashed onto Zhao Tianhua. He sat paralyzed, shattered. He tried to rise, but his limbs refused.
Zhao Haifeng ignored his son. Drawing a ragged breath, he bent at the waist in a deep, trembling bow to Chen Mo.
“This blind fool,” his voice thick with humiliation, “knew not Young Master Chen was Princess Yunzhu’s honored friend. My folly is profound. I beg your forgiveness!”
A tomb-like silence engulfed the room. Minds reeled.
Zhao Haifeng—Zhao Clan Leader! A titan of Linfeng City! Moments ago, he’d defied Jiang Beishan, the City Guard Captain. Even faced Fu Shan with only wary caution.
Now? For the name ‘Princess Yunzhu’, he bowed low to a Li Familycastoff!
“Father…” Zhao Tianhua whispered. A crushing helplessness swamped him. His father—the unshakeable mountain—was bowing to Chen Mo? It felt like the world itself was collapsing.
The green-robed man tensed further, face shadowed.
Jiang Beishan watched, bitter self-mockery rising. What need has such a man for my help?
Chen Mo merely raised an eyebrow. The arrogance is gone. This groveling isn’t for me. It’s for the shadow of Princess Yunzhu.
“Young Master Chen,” Fu Shan’s voice was suddenly deferential, almost awed, “how shall we resolve this?”
Chen Mo’s gaze shifted to Zhao Tianhua. “Recall my words here yesterday?”
Zhao Tianhua froze, then blanched paper-white. “I…” he stammered.
Chen Mo cut him off. “I offered you a chance for revenge. But I warned you: Choose this path, and bear its consequences.”
Zhao Tianhua remembered. He’d dismissed it then. Now? Each word was an icy blade twisting in his gut. Terror choked him. He looked desperately at his father.
Zhao Haifeng, still bowed, flinched. Teeth gritted, he forced out, “Young Master Chen! Let this humble one bear the consequences alone!”
Chen Mo shook his head. His eyes returned to Fu Shan. “Your earlier words, Lord Fu—revealing Princess Yunzhu’s decree—were calculated. A warning to the Zhao father and son. To prevent them from escalating… and causing greater ruin.”
Fu Shan stiffened. He saw right through me.Exposing the Princess hadbeen a ploy. An explosion involving a Clan Leader like Zhao Haifeng would ripple back onto him, the City Lord.
Steeling himself, Fu Shan bowed deeper. “Young Master Chen sees all. This humble one’s small thoughts couldn’t escape your notice. But I swear! The matter rests entirely in your hands. My loyalty is absolute!”
His iron-clad vow drained the last color from Zhao Haifeng, Zhao Tianhua, and the green-robed man. Despair settled like a stone.
“Unnecessary,” Chen Mo stated flatly. “I dislike leaning on others’ power. And your timely arrival aided me. I won’t make your position difficult.”
Relief washed over Fu Shan.
But Chen Mo’s focus had already shifted. His gaze landed on the green-robed man, a cold smile touching his lips. “You enjoy playing with that dagger?”
The man—Zhao Yin, Zhao Clan’s Head Guard, a Blood Moving Realm Great Perfection expert—flinched as if struck.
“Draw it,” Chen Mo commanded, his voice deceptively soft. “Cut off your own hand.”
From the moment Chen Mo entered, this man had toyed with his blade—mocking, insolent. He’d been poised to strike before Jiang Beishan arrived.
Chen Mo hadn’t forgotten.
A collective chill swept the room.
Losing a hand would cripple Zhao Yin’s martial path—a devastating blow for a peak fighter in Linfeng City.
“C-Can I… atone another way?” Zhao Yin’s voice shook.
Chen Mo said nothing. Only watched. Smiling.
Fu Shan’s icy glare locked onto Zhao Haifeng.
The crushing pressure squeezed Zhao Haifeng’s chest. Finally, his voice strangled, he ordered, “Zhao Yin. Do it.”
Zhao Yin’s face went ashen. Eyes vacant. With trembling hands, he drew the hidden dagger.
Holding his gaze on Chen Mo’s impassive face, he raised the blade.
THWACK!
A bloodied right hand thudded to the floor. Blood fountained.
Zhao Yin choked back a scream, face contorted, sweat drenching him.
Only then did Chen Mo give a slight nod. His eyes slid back to Zhao Haifeng. “Earlier, you demanded I crawl on my knees, kowtowing step by step from here to the Immortal Guest Tower’s gates.”
Zhao Haifeng’s pupils shrank to pinpoints.
Zhao Tianhua looked ready to faint.
Fu Shan and Jiang Beishan exchanged a glance—pure pity. The trap you set now snaps shut on your own foot.
For Zhao Haifeng to kowtow publicly? His reputation would shatter. He’d never hold his head high again.
“Father! Let me kowtow! I’LL DO IT!”
Zhao Tianhua’s agonized cry shattered the silence. He flung himself flat on the wooden floor.
THUD!
The impact reverberated through the room.
He smashed his forehead against the unyielding planks.
THUD! THUD! THUD!
Blood bloomed crimson, streaking down his face—a stark, brutal testament to shattered arrogance.
- Writer
