Chapter 57: Putting on Airs

Chu Zhongtian also rose to his feet. “Zu An, I understand your desire to stand up for the Chu clan. You have good intentions in mind, but… Aah, you shouldn’t think too much about this matter. Don’t worry, we’ll settle the Clans Tournament.”

With that, he too turned and left. Judging by his hurried footsteps, he seemed to be chasing after his wife. 

My father-in-law is really the typical example of a henpecked husband, but he’s indeed a good person at heart. He does treat me well even though I’m a wastrel. I just wonder if he’s actually a sly, old fox who puts on a kind face… 

Chu Huanzhao skipped over to Zu An’s side to talk to him, but was interrupted by Chu Zhongtian’s voice, echoing from outside the hall. “Zhao’er, your mother is looking for you!”

“Oh~” the excitement in Chu Huanzhao’s face collapsed like a house of cards. She waved Zu An a helpless goodbye before dragging her feet out reluctantly.

“You’re on good terms with Huanzhao?” Chu Chuyan’s voice contained a hint of surprise.

Zu An smiled cockily. “I’m quite a likable person after all.”

Chu Chuyan’s mouth worked silently, but she could find no suitable response. 

She stared at him for a moment longer, then turned to take her leave. “Right, I should give you a reminder. A man shouldn’t make promises that he isn’t able to fulfill.”

Zu An felt disconsolate. There was not a single person here who was willing to trust him. He sure led quite the tragic life.

He suddenly remembered an important matter and rushed out to catch up to Chu Chuyan. “Honey, honey~”

Chu Chuyan whipped around and yelled, “Shut up! I told you not to call me that!”

“You only told me not to call me your wife.” Chu Chuyan’s eyebrows had climbed almost to her hairline, and she looked on the verge of exploding at any moment.Seeing this, Zu An quickly changed what he was about to say. “Then, should I call you Yan’er instead?”

Chu Chuyan was caught off-guard by that, and fell silent.

It sounds weird hearing him call me the same way my father and mother call me. But if I don’t allow him to call me that, he might just keep calling me honey or darling!

“If you still have any sense of shame, you should stop buzzing around the young miss’ side like a fly!” Snow leaped forward and interposed herself between the two of them. Her disdainful gaze slowly lowered toward his crotch.

“Why do you interfere when I speak to my wife?” Zu An rolled her eyes. “You have already displayed your bare self to me, yet you still prance around me all day long. Just which of us is the shameless one here?”

“You!” Snow’s face immediately turned as red as an apple. That incident was the greatest blemish in her life, yet this fellow still dared to raise it! Her anger flew through the roof in an instant, and she was a second away from drawing her sword and decapitating the hateful man standing before her.

You have successfully trolled Qiao Xueying for 999 Rage points!

“Enough, the two of you should stop messing around.” Chu Chuyan worried that Zu An would be sliced to pieces if she didn’t intervene. “So, what did you call me for?”

Zu An shot a glance at Snow and swiftly estimated the length of her sword. He took a few steps back to keep himself out of her range, then turned to Chu Chuyan and said, “There’s someone who’s out for your hubby’s life. Are you going to get involved?”

Snow’s heart skipped a beat, and her trepidation significantly lessened her rage. She stared at Zu An uncertainly, her mind racing.

Chu Chuyan noticed that Zu An had stopped calling her ‘honey’, but had chosen to address himself as her hubby instead. “Who’s out for your life?”

Zu An snuck a glance at Snow and took in her worried expression before unveiling the mystery. “The Plum Blossom Sect.”

“The Plum Blossom Sect?” Chu Chuyan was surprised. “How did you get involved with them?”

Zu An shrugged helplessly. “I don’t know either. Someone who’s as handsome and charming as me usually avoids having any enemies, but those from the Plum Blossom Sect keep making attempts on my life. Remember that time I was struck by lightning? That was the handiwork of Plum Blossom Twelve.”

“Are you certain about it?” Chu Chuyan’s usual composure was clouded over with astonishment.

Zu An nodded. “Would I lie to my own wife?”

Snow was quick to retort, “Go to the streets and ask around; the lies you have spouted are more than enough to be made into a whole novel. Lying to your own wife…” A glare from Chu Chuyan prompted Snow to quickly correct herself. “… Lying to the young miss doesn’t pose any challenge to you at all!”

Zu An stared at Snow intently. “Say, why do you keep trying to get in my way every single time? Are you trying to use this sort of lowly method to attract my attention?”

“I…” Snow choked and nearly fainted on the spot. “Young miss, don’t stop me. I must slaughter this darned scoundrel today!”

You have successfully trolled Qiao Xueying for 725 Rage points!

Zu An immediately bolted behind Chu Chuyan, seeking cover from Snow, who relentlessly pursued him with her sword in hand. The two of them ran circles around Chu Chuyan, Snow unable to catch up, Zu An failing to shake his dogged pursuer.

“Yan’er, aren’t you going to stop her? She’s trying to kill your hubby!” Zu An cried out in desperation as he dodged Snow’s attacks.

Chu Chuyan shot a cold look at Zu An. “If you dare touch my body with those hands of yours once more, I’ll be the one to slaughter you instead.”

Zu An sheepishly released his hold on her. While he was dodging Snow’s attacks, he had taken the opportunity to feel out Chu Chuyan physically. He hadn’t expected Chu Chuyan to see through his intentions so quickly.

From his brief encounter, though, his wife’s body felt surprisingly cold. It was almost like holding on to an ice sculpture.

“You said that Plum Blossom Twelve was the one who caused you to get struck by lightning, but do you have any evidence?” Chu Chuyan asked.

“He confessed to it himself.” Chu Chuyan seemed to have no intention of stopping Snow. Zu An began to worry that she was using Snow to get rid of him permanently this time around.

“Where’s he?”

“He’s dead. He got eaten by wolves.”

Chu Chuyan was speechless.

Snow snorted. “You don’t even have any evidence on hand. How can you expect the young miss to believe your words?”

Chu Chuyan finally stopped Snow from pursuing Zu An, then said, “Snow is right. Even though the Plum Blossom Sect has done many vile deeds over the years, they are well-connected, making them hard to deal with. Without concrete evidence, there’s nothing much we can do to them.”

“Young miss, I think that fellow is just spouting nonsense! Why would the Plum Blossom Sect target him, and risk offending our Chu clan?” Snow’s chest rose and fell rhythmically as she panted for air. Surprisingly, Zu An’s stamina was much better than she had imagined.

Chu Chuyan nodded slightly in agreement with Snow. If they were to confront the Plum Blossom Sect right now, the sect would claim that there was no evidence to incriminate them, and that would be the end of it.

Zu An regretted having killed Plum Blossom Twelve so quickly. He should have gotten the latter to write a statement or something. Of course, the circumstances back then were dire, and he hadn’t had the luxury of thinking so far ahead.

“Even if I don’t have any evidence on Plum Blossom Twelve, I had a run in with Plum Blossom Thirteen earlier in the day at the gates of the academy. He threatened to sever my limbs and slice me up piece by piece until I was finally dead. There were plenty of witnesses, so I couldn’t possibly have falsified that, right?”

A moocher should solve problems through his mooching ways. 

Zu An looked down on those who could have easily resolved their problems through their connections, but insisted on solving them with their own strength instead, as if that made them superior. Weren’t connections part of a person’s strength as well?

“Why would Plum Blossom Thirteen suddenly threaten you at the academy? It seems to me they must be holding some kind of leverage over you!” Snow grabbed Chu Chuyan’s arm as she sneered at Zu An.

Zu An looked at Snow with an unreadable smile. “I just realized that you have been speaking up for the Plum Blossom Sect for quite a while now. It can’t be that you have some ties with them, do you?”

Snow jerked in shock. She glanced at Chu Chuyan subconsciously, and denied his accusation vehemently. “How could I possibly be related to the Plum Blossom Sect? I just can’t stand people like you spreading lies and falsehoods everywhere!”

“Many people witnessed the incident today. If you don’t believe me, you can call the Second Miss over to verify the matter. She witnessed the matter with her own eyes. Is the Chu clan really going to take this insult lying down?” Zu An exclaimed indignantly.

Chu Chuyan was really impressed by how Zu An had readily included himself as a family member of the Chu clan. He’d invoked the clan name without the slightest awkwardness. 

She pondered for a moment before responding to his challenge. “Dealing with the Plum Blossom Sect isn’t that simple. So far, we still haven’t managed to find out which power is backing them. Besides, even though my father is a duke, he isn’t an official of the royal court. He would be overstretching his boundaries if he attempts to take things into his own hands. So, there’s very little we can do against a threat from them.”

Zu An clicked his tongue in annoyance. “You can’t deal with a mere underworld organization despite being a ducal clan. Even I feel ashamed for you!”

Chu Chuyan stared at him, speechless.

Snow put her hands on her hip and berated him loudly. “Aren’t you getting ahead of yourself? Do you even know anything about court politics at all? Don’t you know that those who are in high positions are often treading on thin ice? Stop spouting all of this nonsense if you don’t know anything at all!”

Zu An shot her a condescending glance. “Yes yes, you know everything. But what a pity it is that you’re just a maid.”

A vein popped out from Snow’s temple. She turned big, needy eyes toward Chu Chuyan. “Young miss, please, I really want to beat him up!”

You have successfully trolled Qiao Xueying for 367 Rage points!

Chu Chuyan chuckled softly. “I understand how you feel, but you have to show some respect to him. He’s the son-in-law of the Chu clan after all. The way you two keep bickering with one another, you look almost like an old couple.”

Snow jolted in horror, and she cried out indignantly, “What do you mean, an old couple! Young miss, you shouldn’t crack such jokes!”

Ignoring Snow, Zu An turned to Chu Chuyan and said, “Forget it, I knew that the Chu clan can’t be relied on. I have my own way of dealing with this matter, but I need you to back me up.”

The Plum Blossom Sect had already sent Plum Blossom Twelve and Plum Blossom Thirteen after his life. There was no way Zu An would swallow his grudge and forgive them. Besides, they would never let him off the hook just because he was willing to forgive them. Since it had already come down to this, the best thing to do was to seize the initiative and destroy the Plum Blossom Sect first.

Chu Chuyan frowned. “Back you up?” 

“I’m asking you to support me,” Zu An explained. “I’ll be making a trip to the Plum Blossom Sect later on. I don’t need you to do anything; you just have to ensure my safety.”

Snow sniffed coldly. “Aren’t you just using our young miss’ name to do as you please?”

Zu An paid no heed to Snow’s mockery. “I could possibly do it on my own. I’m just worried that I’d screw with the Plum Blossom Sect too hard that they’d end up resorting to desperate measures.”

“You, screw the Plum Blossom Sect too hard? What a joke!” Snow laughed derisively, not bothering to hide her contempt..

Chu Chuyan, however, nodded in agreement. “Very well, I shall accompany you. However, I’ll first make things clear that I’m following you in my capacity as an individual. You won’t have the backing of the Chu clan for this matter.”

“I don’t need it.” 

The boulder weighing down Zu An’s heart was finally released. With Chu Chuyan around, he wouldn’t have to worry for his own life anymore.

“What are you up to?” Snow asked with a deep frown. 

Zu An’s confident look had sparked her curiosity.

“It won’t be fun if I tell you beforehand.” Zu An wagged her finger at her before turning toward Chu Chuyan with an inviting gesture. “Yan’er, this way.” 

A slight knit formed between Chu Chuyan’s brows. She was clearly uncomfortable with the way he was addressing her. However, considering how the shameless Zu An might come up with even worse ways to address her, she decided to let it slide.

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