Chapter 13 He slapped her across the face.

A gust of wind swept over them, and the first thing they heard was a few crisp cracking sounds, followed by the man's deafening, piercing scream, "Ah!"

A few red and white things sprayed out of his mouth. Ji Chengnin, annoyed by the noise, shoved the gun barrel into his mouth.

The man suddenly opened his eyes wide.

The still-warm gun barrel pressed firmly against his throat, causing a spasm in his stomach. He felt nauseous, but when he met Ji Chengnin's cold eyes, he dared not move.

He looked at Ji Chengnin in horror, and made a muffled sound from his throat, "Mud tonic..." It was already difficult to speak with something hard pressed against his throat, and on top of that, the young master Ji had just knocked out two of his front teeth, so his speech was even more slurred. He thought he was being incredibly ruthless as he said, "I'm dead!"

Ji Chengning smiled.

He was drenched in blood, with bloodstains all over his face. Half of his face was white, and the other half was crimson. Although he was raising his lips, his eyes were full of murderous intent, making him look just like a peach blossom demon who had just devoured a human heart and taken human form.

He slapped her across the face with his backhand.

"Smack—"

The man's face was already swollen from the beating, and blood was still flowing from his mouth. His face was contorted in pain. Now, he was slapped again without holding back. His cheek twitched, and a warm red stream flowed down the tip of his nose.

The audience found it quite satisfying, and their gazes toward Ji Chengnin held a newfound respect.

This young man looks so frail, how did he develop such great strength in his hands!

The man felt pain in his face, his teeth, and his entire head felt as if it had been pierced with steel needles; every part of his head ached.

He glared at Ji Chengnin with hatred, but his fear was even greater, and he dared not utter another sound.

He looked disheveled, his face swollen, his body covered in a mixture of dust and blood, a far cry from his earlier arrogant and domineering self.

Yet no one felt sorry for them.

A young woman spat out, "Beast!"

She was holding the child in her arms when she turned around after scolding him, gently coaxing him, "Don't cry, your older sister will take you to buy candy later." At the same time, she shook the lotus bracelet on her wrist to attract the child's attention.

Such a small child, with delicate skin and fragile bones, how could he possibly survive if he were trampled by a horse's hoof?

Judging from his fine clothes, he must have come from a wealthy family, but unexpectedly he turned out to be a beast in human form.

Ji Chengning gently patted his swollen face twice, and then heard a few more slapping sounds, mixed with the affectionate voice of the young Manli, praising, "Good boy."

Cui Yao stared at him without blinking.

His gaze swept over the young marquis's blood-stained fingers, down to the bulging veins on the back of his hand, the bright red blood rolling down his wrist bone, leaving only a patch of skin as white as snow. But below that, nothing could be seen clearly.

He stared at Ji Chengnin's raised hand, watching the blood splatter and shoot into the eyes of the ignorant man. His lips curled up, but then, as if suddenly remembering something, his thin lips instantly pressed into a thin line.

Ji Chengnin seemed to sense something and suddenly looked up.

Hearing the noise, the guests upstairs crowded to the windows to watch the commotion. Just now, Ji Chengning had slapped that man a few times, and they heard cheers from upstairs, "Well done!"

There was nothing there.

Am I overthinking it?

He thought to himself.

Ji Chengnin lowered his head and said to the crowd, "I would be very grateful if you could make way for me. If anyone is willing to call the patrolling guards, I will be extremely grateful."

No sooner had he finished speaking than he was slapped hard on the shoulder.

Ji Chengnin turned around and saw that the person who patted him was a refined middle-aged man dressed as a scholar. He looked anxious and said, "Young master, hurry up and leave before the Imperial Guards arrive."

Ji Chengnin raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Why?"

The man deliberately lowered his voice, but because he was in such a hurry, his already loud voice became even louder, "Do you know who he is? He is the commander of the Qinglu Guard!"

One person exclaimed in surprise, "It's actually Lord Xu!"

In the officialdom of Luoyang, few knew that Qing Lüwei was a branch of the Imperial Guard. This Xu Jing'en was not a high-ranking official, but his father was in charge of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, a trusted confidant of the Emperor, and held a position of great importance in the Emperor's heart.

Upon hearing this, the crowd that had just been cheering for Ji Chengnin fell silent for a few seconds.

Some people looked at Ji Chengnin with concern.

idiot!

Hearing someone call out an official's name in front of everyone, Xu Jing'en cursed inwardly.

He originally intended to use this identity to threaten the audacious thief who dared to attack him. Judging from the man's reckless behavior, he knew he must be a spoiled brat from a small family who didn't know his place. However, that would only work if there were only two or three people present.

Having been recognized in public, Xu Jing'en could already imagine that impeachment memorials would flood His Majesty's desk like snowflakes the next day!

But now that things had come to this, a fierce glint flashed in Xu Jing'en's eyes.

He raised his head, but his face turned ashen with pain.

"Now that Mud Chicken knows my true identity, it's time to let go!"

With each word he uttered, it felt as if Ji Chengning had slapped him several more times. He struggled to finish a complete sentence, his back soaked in cold sweat.

"Chief of the Light Guard?" Ji Chengnin narrowed his eyes.

"yes!"

Xu Jingen replied in a defiant manner.

Impeachment, impeachment! With his father's influence in the court, surely he can suppress a few memorials?!

However, the scene he had imagined of him kneeling and begging for mercy did not occur. Upon hearing this, Ji Chengning gave a cold smile.

Normally, Xu Jing'en would definitely try to get his hands on such a beautiful and arrogant woman, to play with her and torture her until she could only beg for mercy. However, the shadow left by Ji Chengning was still deep. When Xu Jing'en saw him smile, it was as if he saw the King of Hell coming to take his life. He wished he could shrink into a crack in the ground.

"Ha," Ji Chengnin sneered, "Who do we have here? Turns out you're just a lowly fourth-rank official. You're worthless. The young marquis could hit a whole bunch of them with a single shot in Luoyang. How dare you act so arrogantly and injure people on horseback?" Ji Chengnin drew his gun. "Besides, how come I didn't know the court had such a dog of an official like you?"

The fourth-rank official had become a minor official in his mouth. Xu Jing'en heard him call himself a young marquis, and after quickly glancing at Ji Chengning's appearance, he became more and more alarmed.

Could it be... that person from the Yongning Marquis's mansion... "Ni, who is Ni?"

"You dare question my identity?" Ji Chengnin raised his chin high and kicked Xu Jingen to the ground. "Since you are the director of Qinglu Guard, where is your official seal? Where is your fish-shaped tally and pendant?" He asked quickly, and without waiting for the other party's reply, his face immediately turned cold and he said sternly, "If you can't produce anything, you are impersonating an official of the imperial court. According to the law, you should be executed!"

...

Tonight, Xianyunfang is crowded with tourists. Zhang Cong, the deputy commander of the Imperial Guards, not only assigned more men, but also, still feeling uneasy, personally went to Xianyunfang.

With everything peaceful and uneventful, he and several colleagues chatted leisurely over tea.

"My lord, my lord, something terrible has happened!"

The bamboo curtain that partially obscured a person's face was suddenly lifted, and a figure darted out and knelt down in front of Zhang Cong.

The group looked at each other, then stood up.

Zhang Cong said, "What's wrong? Tell me quickly."

The man said, "My lord, Lord Xu Chengen went out incognito and was trapped by a lowly commoner who insists that Lord Xu injured his child. Now a group of people have surrounded Lord Xu. Lord Xu said he is looking for you. I barely managed to escape. My lord, please go and save my master!"

Zhang Cong was overjoyed upon hearing this.

Although Xu Sheng was not his direct superior, he held great weight in His Majesty's heart. If he helped Lord Zhang's only son out of a predicament today, how could Xu Sheng treat him poorly?

Zhang Cong's tone softened considerably, "Who are you?"

"I am Master Xu's servant, my name is..."

"Someone come here," Zhang Cong interrupted, "take this young man to have a cup of tea and calm him down."

After speaking, he took a few men and rode off in the direction the servant pointed.

"The Imperial Guards are on their way; all unauthorized personnel must keep clear—" the adjutant shouted.

Fearing that he would be too slow and be overtaken by his colleagues, Zhang Cong rode his horse at breakneck speed and arrived in less than half an hour.

His nostrils flared as he smelled the heavy stench of blood in the air, and his expression changed drastically.

Could it be that Xu Jingen angered the public and was beaten to death?

He felt his dream of promotion and wealth was about to shatter, and shouted, "I am the deputy commander of the Imperial Guards, make way at once!" as he pushed through the crowd and strode forward.

Seeing that Xu Jing'en was still alive, Zhang Cong breathed a sigh of relief, but his heart immediately tightened again, as he couldn't see that Xu Jing'en was doing well.

The boy opposite him couldn't see his face, but judging from the blood on half of his body, he must be a vicious and ruthless character.

When Xu Jing'en, who was kneeling on the ground, saw Zhang Cong approaching, he was as if he had seen a divine warrior descend from the sky, and his eyes immediately showed great fervor.

Zhang Cong placed his hand on the hilt of his sword, swiftly stepped forward, and pinned down the unruly youth.

The boy turned his head.

The lights were dazzling, reflecting on people's faces.

Zhang Cong was horrified, "So tiny, so tiny..."

How could it be this ancestor?!

"What do you mean 'small'?" Ji Chengnin grabbed Zhang Cong's hand and pulled him over. "Lord Zhang, you've come at the right time. Tie up this scoundrel who rode his horse recklessly in the street, injured someone, and even dared to tarnish His Majesty's reputation, and throw him into prison!"

A note from the author:

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Honey, I'd like to leave a comment.

QAQ, it's so quiet and I have no motivation.