A Show of Force

The maid noticed Chen Cheng's gaze and suddenly felt a chill run through her heart, as though some terrifying person had fixed his eyes on her.

Yet no matter how she looked at him, Chen Cheng seemed like someone without the slightest hint of danger.

"As a servant, if you forget your manners, then you ought to be disciplined. If the princess does not know how to discipline her servants, I can only do it for her." Chen Cheng's tone was light, as though he were speaking of something insignificant.

Then Chen Cheng beckoned to one of the Guards behind him. Understanding Chen Cheng's intent, the Guard walked over to the princess's maid. Under the maid's disbelieving gaze, he rolled up his sleeves and delivered two sharp slaps. "Slap! Slap!"

The Guards assigned to Chen Cheng were all family elites, each with at least the cultivation of a One Star Dou Shi. Although this Guard had not used Dou Qi, his strength was still considerable.

With Chen Cheng's order, the Guard did not dare hold back out of pity for a beautiful woman. Those two slaps sent the young maid sprawling to the ground.

Lying on the floor, the burning pain in the maid's cheeks nearly brought her to tears. At the same time, though, she was certain now—someone truly dared to hit her.

As the saying went, even when beating a dog, one had to consider its owner. As the princess's maid, hers might have been a lowly profession, but most people would still show her some respect for the princess's sake.

Yet today, right in front of the princess, she had been struck.

This was not merely slapping her—it was trampling upon the princess's dignity as well.

"Hong Luan!" Seeing her maid knocked to the ground, the princess cried out anxiously. She hurried to her maid's side and shoved away the Guard who had struck her.

There was a handprint on each of the maid's cheeks, and blood hung at the corner of her lips.

"Hong Luan, how are you?" Feng Ruoxue asked with concern.

The anxiety on Feng Ruoxue's face was genuine.

This maid named Hong Luan had been by Feng Ruoxue's side since she was very young. After so many years together, they had naturally developed a deep bond.

"Princess, I'm fine." The maid's voice was soft, but speaking tugged at the wounds on her face, twisting her features in pain.

Seeing the maid's pained expression, the princess touched the Storage Ring on her finger and took out a jade bottle. She poured out a green medicinal pill and fed it into the maid's mouth.

It was a second-grade healing pill. It was not worth much, but it was highly effective for external injuries. With Feng Ruoxue's status, obtaining such pills was effortless, and she carried quite a few of the medicinal pills essential for martial artists.

After taking the pill, the maid's complexion improved slightly. However, the two handprints on her face would not be so easily erased.

Feng Ruoxue helped the maid to her feet. By now, there was a trace of fear in the maid's eyes when she looked at Chen Cheng.

When Feng Ruoxue had rushed to her maid's side, Chen Cheng had not stopped her. He merely leisurely sipped the fragrant tea specially supplied by Jade Boat House, calmly observing Feng Ruoxue's actions.

She's quite a compassionate girl. Chen Cheng gave the princess that assessment in his heart.

The fact that she cared so much for her maid was enough to show that Feng Ruoxue was not some spoiled, willful young lady.

"Princess, it would be best not to keep such an insolent person here, lest she spoil our mood." Chen Cheng spoke calmly, his gaze flicking toward Hong Luan.

The insolent person he spoke of was naturally Feng Ruoxue's maid.

"Princess." Upon hearing Chen Cheng's words, Hong Luan avoided his gaze, not daring to meet his eyes as she softly called out to Feng Ruoxue.

"It's all right. Go outside first." Feng Ruoxue patted Hong Luan's hand and spoke softly.

"Then this servant will wait outside. Please be careful." After saying that, the maid obediently headed out of the room.

"Liu Tong, you should leave as well," Chen Cheng called out again.

Liu Tong was the name of the girl playing the guqin in the room. She was skilled with the guqin and made a living performing at Jade Boat House. Guests could pay some money to have her come and play for them.

Chen Cheng had heard that Liu Tong was fairly well-known at Jade Boat House, so he spent a thousand Gold Coins to invite her to perform for an entire day.

Though Chen Cheng did not understand music, Liu Tong's performance made him feel quite at ease. He rather liked the sound of the guqin.

Hearing Chen Cheng's words, the woman playing the guqin stopped her performance. She rose, cradled the instrument in her arms, and gave a slight bow. Her etiquette was impeccable; girls who played the guqin always seemed to possess an air of classical elegance.

Holding the guqin, Liu Tong took small, measured steps as she slowly withdrew from the room.

When Chen Cheng's Guard had beaten someone earlier, Liu Tong had been startled as well and played a passage incorrectly. She did not know whether her guest had noticed, but she still felt rather apologetic.

Put nicely, her profession was called performing for a living. But before the powerful and wealthy, she still appeared exceedingly lowly.

"Princess, please have a seat. Having you stand there like this makes me feel quite bad," Chen Cheng said with a smile after everyone unrelated had left.

Though Chen Cheng said so, he did not feel the slightest bit bad inside.

The empire had many powerful factions, while the imperial family was weak and powerless, so its control over those below was not particularly strict.

Most of those below had established their own power bases and merely paid lip service to the imperial family's orders. If the imperial family did not still possess an army, those people beneath them would pay even less attention to the imperial family.

In a nation where martial strength was revered, the imperial system was of little use. Only the strong deserved respect.

Feng Ruoxue was the Izumo Emperor's daughter, a princess of noble status.

But Chen Cheng was the son of Chen Yuan, a Five Star Dou Huang, and the grandson of Chen Ye, a Nine Star Dou Huang.

With two great Dou Huangs backing him, Chen Cheng's status was even above that of the empire's princes and princesses.

After hearing Chen Cheng's words, Feng Ruoxue found a soft chair not far from him and sat down, studying Chen Cheng.

Faced with someone so unpredictable in mood, Feng Ruoxue could not fathom Chen Cheng's thoughts. Yet she was certain that he was an extremely dangerous person.

Seeing Feng Ruoxue sit down, Chen Cheng called over a Guard and said, "Go urge them along. Why haven't the dishes I ordered been served yet?"

"Yes." After receiving Chen Cheng's order, the Guard immediately left the room.

"Princess, you have endured the hardships of travel. I specially prepared some food to welcome you and wash away the dust of your journey," Chen Cheng said.

"Thank you for your kindness, Young Family Head. Ruoxue is deeply grateful."

Given Chen Cheng's status, Jade Boat House did not dare neglect the menu he had ordered. They had prepared everything he required long ago and only waited for Chen Cheng's command to serve the dishes.

Jade Boat House was, after all, a high-end restaurant, and it had special equipment. Even if the dishes had been prepared beforehand, they could still ensure they were served as though they had just come out of the kitchen.