Chapter 364: The "Secret Talks" at the Banquet Table
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"Holy shit, Shen Rui! You actually remembered to visit your old man?"
Ku Mu hastily withdrew his hand from beneath the maid's skirt, set her aside, and rose to greet his guest.
"Fuck you, Ku Mu! You looking for a beating?"
Ku Mu grinned broadly, slapping Shen Rui on the shoulder like a scheming courtier.
"Shen Rui, heard you went to see Su Cheng?"
"Yeah, almost."
"Cut the bullshit. That bastard Su Cheng is a cripple now. Almost?"
"Yeah, I got careless. He got away."
Ku Mu chuckled, his tone dripping with sarcasm. Careless?
You're telling me a superhero tried to kill an elementary school kid, got careless, and let the kid get away?
That's some serious carelessness, huh?
"Yeah~ Right, right~ You got careless~"
"The situation in the inner city is complicated now. The Burning Heart Hall and the Morning Glow Hall are under immense pressure and are calling for you to return."
Ku Mu: ?????
Kumu was dumbfounded: "Do you even realize what you're saying? What the hell do the Dawn Palace and the Burning Heart Palace have to do with me? They're under pressure? Should I go sing them a song to relieve their stress?"
"The young master has been practically sidelined. Both internal and external factions are eyeing him greedily. His authority has been split between the Attached Yue Hall (the Blade of Execution) and the Dawn Hall, turning him into little more than a puppet. This is not what I want to see."
Ku Mu was even more confused. What the hell does this have to do with you, Shen Rui?
You say you're going to kill Su Cheng—that much Ku Mu could understand. Everyone in that Su Cheng ditch deserves to be executed.
But…
"Forgive me for saying this, but the Young Master is Su Cheng's blood relative. Both the Dawn Hall and the Fu Yue Hall are tied to Su Cheng. How could they harm the Young Master?"
The Fuyue Hall is the Blade of Execution—a unit directly under Xiao Ai, essentially the royal court's assassin division. They're the absolute equivalent of the Jinyiwei!
The Dawn Hall is even more formidable—compared to Xiao Ai, it's Su Cheng's aunt, the Queen's own sister!
They're all family, for crying out loud! What business is it of yours, Shen Rui, to meddle in this?
"As long as Su Cheng lives, the Young Master remains the Young Master. Do you really think either of them would fancy him?"
"…But I won't help. Su Cheng and I are brothers!"
"I know. I just came to drink with you."
Ku Mu smiled bitterly. Truth be told, this sort of thing usually only concerned his other half—the big fox.
Him? He couldn't care less about who was the Honorable Master.
"Didn't bring two women for your brother?"
Shen Rui curled his lip, draping his deep blue military overcoat over the chair back before pouring himself a glass.
"You know I don't have any women around me."
"No? Shen Rui, you're not exactly young anymore. It's about time you found someone."
"You've got nothing better to talk about, huh?"
"No, Shen Rui, is something wrong? Big bro can help you out! Heard the other day that the big bearded guy in charge of logistics—you know him—apparently his daughter's a real looker. Big bust, you know what I mean! If you're interested…"
Shen Rui was speechless…
"Ku Mu, you know what? When I first joined the army, it was to wipe out scum like you—men who bully others and prey on women…"
"Hey hey hey, don't slander me! I don't bully men!"
Shen Rui didn't care. Though the old lecher was always slouching around, his influence was no joke.
Besides, the old lecher wasn't exactly bullying men or women. At least he didn't pick on girls from ordinary families, and most of those girls were just cheap sluts who stuck to him like glue.
"I have a wife."
"What are you bragging about? I have one too!" Ku Mu rolled his eyes. His wife was universally acknowledged as the most beautiful woman in the world!
"…Damn it, I'm getting more and more tempted to punch you!"
"Heh, alright, enough bullshit. The stuff's ready. Just don't let Xiao Ai see it, or that guy will come bother me again."
"Then this little brother thanks you, Brother Ku Mu."
Shen Rui waved his hand dismissively. Immediately, two men clad in black armor entered the room, taking the massive crate carried in by the battle maids.
"So you're really going after Su Cheng? This thing might not suppress Zero Two."
"Honestly, Su Cheng isn't the problem. But Xiao Ai's been watching. I need a weapon that can handle Zero Two's suppression."
"You're forgetting that Xun Ye's spatial authority is also in his hands."
Truthfully, whether this thing could suppress Zero Two remained an unknown.
As everyone knows, Authority cannot be suppressed by any special ability—it's a rule, a unique rule belonging to Authority itself.
The only way to counter a Sovereignty is with another Sovereignty.
Shen Rui could handle Guardian's Authority, but Zero Two—the Apocalypse Authority that originally belonged to Su Cheng—was a thorny problem. And that's not even counting Xiao Ai wielding Xun Ye's Spatial Authority.
"I haven't forgotten. But in many matters, someone must take the first step. With Su Cheng gone, someone must fill that seat, right?"
Ku Mu paused before speaking.
"Who do you want to take that seat?"
"Su Lin."
"You really have the nerve to say that. You killed her brother just so she could secure her position?"
"As long as Su Cheng lives, she'll never hold that seat securely."
"With Su Cheng dead, she probably won't care about any seat. Besides, more people will likely covet it then."
The conversation didn't end there, but neither of them revisited the topic. What followed were mostly amusing anecdotes from the past and updates on recent work.
Meanwhile, at Lingxian Hall.
"Jue'er, go settle the new disciples. Shiyao, instruct everyone—Master's affairs must never leave Lingxian Hall!"
Ye Qinghan didn't force Chu Youwei out of the Master's chambers. She was always an outsider, and Ye Qinghan didn't believe Chu Youwei would do anything foolish.
But beyond Chu Youwei, even Yu Lan was barred from entering by Ye Qinghan.
If the Master was safe and sound, then all would be well.
Yet in these extraordinary times, only Chu Youwei, Ye Qinghan, and Li Shiyu were permitted within the Master's chambers. Everyone else must wait for news.
This wasn't a matter of distrust, but rather Ye Qinghan had to be cautious about many things.
Nevertheless, Ye Qinghan assigned tasks to everyone. With new disciples arriving, there was much to be done. Even if the Master… was injured, Lingxian Hall must maintain its basic operations.
This was precisely how Ye Qinghan briefed everyone: the Master was unharmed, merely sustaining some injuries requiring rest. She would convey the Master's instructions on her behalf.
"Get lost!"
Despite Ye Qinghan granting Chu Youwei special consideration, the girl showed no gratitude. She didn't trust this fox spirit!
"Keep your voice down. The Master needs to rest."
But Ye Qinghan didn't mind. In a way, she didn't dislike her, especially after learning about her past.
She had shared both joy and hardship with the Master for thousands of years. While Ye Qinghan didn't feel indebted, she did extend this elder sister a measure of patience and tolerance.
"I won't give you the chance! You'd better give up that idea!"
"I'm not looking for any chance. If I wanted to harm Master, do you really think you could stop me?"
"I don't know what you're scheming, but whatever it is, I won't let you succeed!"
Ever since Ye Qinghan brought Su Cheng back, Chu Youwei had remained here, using immortal arts to treat his injuries.
But these wounds were inflicted by the Sovereign's power. Recovery proved exceedingly difficult, and the efficacy of immortal arts was severely limited.
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