Chapter 53: You’re Already Dead

A few soft hisses were heard as Yue Jiefei’s pants were cut into a few strips. He had a drastic change of expression at the thought of Chu Yu being nearby. He connected that event to an unpleasant future in his mind instantaneously.

It felt as if he could see two large words ‘Male Consort’ glimmering with golden radiance indistinctly in front of him. These words were floating in front of him and practically waving at him.

He truly refused to sell his body like a whore!

When he was caught up in his thoughts, Hua Cuo sliced twice and removed two pieces of fabric from both sides of Yue Jiefei’s thighs once again. Yue Jiefei could only feel a chill assault his thighs while the haunting words of ‘Male Consort’ seemed to have floated closer to him once again.

Yue Jiefei was absolutely terrified that he was trembling with fear, so he made the decision to risk his life and resist his opponent desperately. His sword glowed brightly in an instant. His body burst forth with explosive potential in that hopeless situation. He managed to break even with Hua Cuo at that moment, so the fabric on his body could not be stripped away anymore for the time being.

However, the people surrounding them let out a regretful sigh upon witnessing the scene because it was an exciting fight. Then only did Chu Yu discover that there were maidservants that came into the scene secretly other than the usual bodyguards and attendants. They had their hands covering their eyes, but the gaps between their opened fingers did not manage to conceal anything. Their exposed charming eyes were watching the scene with admiration and affection.

Yue Jiefei and Hua Cuo were moving so swiftly that it was already completely indiscernible to the eye. In the midst of the reflecting radiance of the blades and the shadows of the swords, Chu Yu felt rather worried, so she could not refrain herself from turning her head to the side and asking Rong Zhi, “Can you do something to make them stop fighting?” It was not a good idea for them to continue fighting as such because the swords had no eyes. What would happen if they accidentally hurt one another?

She realized that she was asking the wrong person as soon as the words left her mouth. Rong Zhi was not skilled in martial arts. Otherwise, he would not have been so severely injured by Yue Jiefei the other day. What else could he do when there were two expert masters engaged in a fight at that very second?

Rong Zhi raised his hand to rub his eyebrows. His eyes were filled with composure and humor. “There’s no need to worry, Princess. Hua Cuo won’t hurt Yue Jiefei. His madness will subside as long as he can strip Yue Jiefei’s clothing completely. He’ll be fine after a while.”

Chu Yu fixed her gaze on the duo engaged in the fight from afar for a while. She suddenly took Rong Zhi by surprise by asking, “Is Hua Cuo really drunk or is he just pretending?”

Rong Zhi did not expect her to ask such a question so abruptly. Words almost escaped his mouth, but he stopped himself instinctively before he replied. A cheeky expression emerged on his face as he took a glance at her with a spurious smile. Then, he slowly unleashed the words that got caught in his throat earlier by saying, “He really is drunk.”

Hua Cuo was genuinely drunk. If he were sober now, he would not only be able to completely strip Yue Jiefei now with his skillful swordsmanship, but he would also be able to shave a layer of Yue Jiefei’s skin off conveniently.

These two people could not see eye to eye with each other three years ago. Had it not been for Rong Zhi’s efforts to mediate between two parties occasionally, perhaps he would have lost count of how many battles of life and death that had happened.

Hua Cuo was skilled in the Three Thousand Flourishing Blossoms Sword Style. The particular sword style was known for its delicate and magnificent-looking moves, but it was not a style that prioritized killing the opponent. However, Hua Cuo carried the burden of deadly hatred and a tyrannical state of mind since he was young. He relied on his talent in swordsmanship to simplify the gentle and graceful Three Thousand Flourishing Blossoms Sword Style and extract its ruthless killing moves. In fact, he also used a thin and narrow sword and became who he was today. Even though his lethality was enhanced, the consciousness level of his sword was reduced on the contrary.

Although his hatred had already been resolved, Hua Cuo found that he could no longer wield the Flourishing Blossoms Sword anymore as he had done in the past.

It was only after he was drunk that he could cast aside all his worries and burdens to relive the glory Flourishing Blossoms Sword. Naturally, Hua Cuo cast away his heavy burdens and troubles, but his drunken behavior was awful. He had a bad habit of stripping people’s clothing when he was drunk. In fact, even Rong Zhi had no idea how he cultivated this bad habit either.

Chu Yu shot Rong Zhi a look and said with a smirk, “What if I insist on breaking up the fight?”

Rong Zhi replied with a smile, “If you insist upon that, Princess, then I shall give it a try.” He nudged his arm that was tied to the splint to ensure that the support was firm and stable before he walked forward slowly. The people parted to make way for him in succession. However, word in the residence was that Rong Zhi had already fallen from the princess’s grace. The princess’s newfound pet was the two people that had newly joined the residence recently and also Huan Yuan. Nevertheless, no one had the boldness to disrespect Rong Zhi due to his powerful overbearingness.

As Rong Zhi approached Hua Cuo and Yue Jiefei, he could instantly feel the forceful wind that resulted from the battle blowing against his face despite standing a foot away. He stood firmly on the ground and observed them for a moment. Then, he bent over and picked up a half tree branch someone had cut off. He tossed it toward the fight in a very casual manner.

The tree branch sank into the intertwined radiance stemming from the reflection of the swords. It was churned into scraps instantaneously and turned into chippings that landed on the ground. However, their fight was broken up by the unexpected addition of this tree branch.

There was a faint wound on Hua Cuo’s shoulder. Even though he was not severely injured, the pain jolted him back to consciousness and his drunken gaze slowly turned back to sober. He looked at Yue Jiefei standing not far away in front of him in a daze. Then, he suddenly leaped up and called aloud, “Yue Jiefei, why are you standing in front of me naked?” All of a sudden, he noticed that his own clothing was badly torn as well. His expression turned even more disgusted. “What kind of filthy indecency are you trying to show?! I’m warning you not to get within three feet from me from now on. Otherwise, my sword won’t show you mercy!”

Yue Jiefei was infuriated upon listening to his words. “So, you’ve sobered up now? You just ripped my clothes up. How dare you accuse me of your own crime? You can ask everyone if you don’t believe me. Who was the one that stripped the other person’s clothes?!”

Hua Cuo had a look of disbelief on his face. “Nonsense! I’d rather take anybody else’s clothes off than yours! Do you think the look of your flesh is pleasing to the eyes? Do you think that you’re that handsome a man?”

Yue Jiefei roared in rage as well, “Are you a handsome man then? Do you think that I’d want a man like you?”

Both of them engaged in a raging quarrel. One of them criticized the other’s imperfect muscle contours while the other nitpicked on the other person’s shoulders for being too wide and rigid. A moment later, the argument turned into personal abuse. They bickered about each other’s flabby skin, moles, and all sorts of unwarranted accusations. The argument became so heated gradually that both of them did not even bother to get dressed before they engaged in a full-blown fight once again.

Rong Zhi shrugged helplessly. He turned around and shook his head at Chu Yu as if he was saying, “I tried. What should I do now?”

Chu Yu rolled his eyes. She could not be bothered anymore, so she just allowed them to fight as they wished.

She turned around and was about to order the bodyguards to send her back, yet she noticed someone standing a distance away from the barricade her bodyguards created. The person did not appear prominent because he was dressed in a gray robe while he looked at Chu Yu with a slightly timid gaze.

The person appeared rather unfamiliar. Chu Yu’s thoughts wandered back for a moment, only to remember that it was Chen Shenzhi that she had saved from Liu Ziye’s guillotine half a month ago in the name of her male consort. A few days ago, he was already behaving obediently, so he was granted the right to move freely in the West Court due to his good behavior.

Chu Yu nodded to Chen Shenzhi and stated, “Follow me.” Then, she ordered her bodyguards not to stop him.

Chu Yu walked in front while he followed behind her to return to the courtyard of the East Court where her bedroom was. The bodyguards stopped in front of the door while she led him all the way until her room door.

She opened the door before turning around to the anxious Chen Shenzhi. She said with a smile, “Why? Are you scared? If you are, you can leave now.” She was well aware of how the others would misunderstand when they realized she had brought him back to her room. However, the current misunderstanding was the best protection for her.

Upon saying that, Chu Yu entered the room. A moment later, Chen Shenzhi followed suit as well.

Chu Yu sized up the puzzled Chen Shenji and heaved a sigh to herself in her heart. Had it not been for the pressing situation, she would never have taken such a risk. She spoke coldly without waiting for Chen Shenzhi to calm down, “Are you aware that you’re already dead?”

Chen Shenzhi was stunned for a moment. Chu Yu retrieved a scroll of embroidered silk from the console table by the side and tossed it to him. “Take a look.”

…

The next day, a roll of silk, a sackful of coins, a carriage, and a person went missing from the Princess’s Imperial Residence without the slightest hint.