Cold Violence

Chapter 15: Cold Violence

Zheng Fa rarely felt even a hint of sympathy for a guy like Wang Gui.

The Seventh Young Master, who had looked like an enthusiastic youth just now, was truly hard to bear once he stopped treating people like people.

He tossed Gao Yuan's book chest onto the ground. The corners of his lips curled slightly as though he were smiling, yet there was not the slightest trace of amusement in his eyes.

Clearly, what he had said earlier about making Zheng Fa and the other man get lost had been sincere.

"Not talking?" Seeing that Zheng Fa and Gao Yuan did not answer, the Seventh Young Master seemed to have read their minds. "Did someone tell you that following me would mean eating well, drinking well, and enjoying glory and riches?"

"Bullshit! Am I supposed to be someone easy to serve?"

Well, his understanding of himself was quite accurate.

The Seventh Young Master glanced at them, turned around, and slumped into a chair. He crossed one leg over the other, looking utterly frivolous.

"Were you hoping that once I became the family head, you could become my lackeys and go out throwing your weight around?" He curled his lip. "I'm not afraid to tell you outright. I'm only young right now. Once I grow up, this damn Zhao Family headship can go to whoever wants it—I won't take it! You can wake up from your daydream too!"

Gao Yuan's face went pale beside him.

He knew the Seventh Young Master had a reputation for being unruly within the residence.

But even he had not expected it to be this bad.

Zheng Fa, on the other hand, did not feel disappointed. His purpose in coming to the Zhao Residence was clear: to see the martial arts of this world for himself and, incidentally, improve his family's circumstances.

As for what sort of person the Seventh Young Master was, it mattered, but not that much.

As for leaving just because he had heard those words?

Zheng Fa was not that naive. The Zhao Residence had summoned him here for an assessment; he had no choice. Whether he became a pageboy was not really his choice either.

The Seventh Young Master's reaction to the two of them, however, seemed rather excessive.

This round of cold mockery and hot sarcasm did not even seem to be directed at Zheng Fa and Gao Yuan.

Seeing that they still said nothing, the Seventh Young Master seemed to find it boring. He waved them away. "Not willing to leave, are you? Go stand outside. Don't obstruct my view."

Zheng Fa and Gao Yuan stood at the doorway. Through the translucent glass in the window, they watched the Seventh Young Master pace around the room once, apparently angry, before sitting down and picking up that book again.

Then, as he read, he seemed to get angry again, rose to his feet, and began pacing in circles.

The way he studied was earnest, helpless, and strangely familiar.

The kind of person whom, with one glance in an examination hall, you knew was trying hard but completely lost.

In short: a poor student.

Zheng Fa became a little curious. Setting aside everything else, the posture of someone gritting his teeth and studying despite being unable to learn did not resemble the foolishness the Seventh Young Master usually displayed.

He just did not know what book the boy was reading.

Time trickled by, and no one paid Zheng Fa and Gao Yuan any attention as they stood at the door.

The sun in the sky slowly climbed higher. As noon approached, the sunlight became scorching.

Zheng Fa and Gao Yuan had both set out early in the morning and had barely had a drop of water. Standing beneath such a blazing sun, they naturally became hot, thirsty, and thoroughly miserable.

Gao Yuan kept licking his dry lower lip, but perhaps the more he licked, the drier it became. Even the skin on his lips cracked.

The two of them were nearly faint from the heat when soft footsteps suddenly sounded behind them. A maid approached, carrying a pale green porcelain platter.

On the platter was a huge bunch of grapes, washed spotlessly clean.

Crystal-clear droplets still clung to the grapes, glittering in the sunlight.

Zheng Fa clearly heard Gao Yuan swallow hard beside him.

The maid seemed to have deliberately walked right up to them. She even circled the grapes beneath their noses before lifting the curtain to the study and entering.

As the curtain rose, Zheng Fa clearly felt a cool breeze blow out from inside.

Unable to help himself, he peered curiously into the room.

There was no ice basin, and it certainly could not be modern air conditioning.

Where was this cold air coming from?

Then he spotted an inconspicuous blue pattern on the floor inside the room, glowing faintly.

The cool breeze seemed to be blowing from that corner.

A formation? Zheng Fa thought. And a simple household formation like this?

What surprised Zheng Fa more than the Seventh Young Master being able to enjoy such a formation was that this world actually had formations created specifically for comfort and pleasure—

To Zheng Fa, that better demonstrated both the influence of the immortal sects upon this world and the level to which its cultivation civilization had developed.

The maid placed the porcelain platter before the Seventh Young Master. He pinched a grape between his fingers and walked to the window.

As though deliberately making sure Zheng Fa and Gao Yuan could see clearly.

Zheng Fa and Gao Yuan stood beneath the scorching sun, their mouths so dry they were nearly out of saliva.

Inside the window, the Seventh Young Master slowly ate the entire large platter of grapes, one by one.

After finishing, he gave the two of them a smug smile, then returned to his original seat and resumed reading that book.

Seeing his furrowed, miserable expression now, Zheng Fa could not help cursing inwardly—Serves you right!

By afternoon, perhaps having decided it was no longer interesting, the Seventh Young Master finally drove the two of them away.

Zheng Fa and Gao Yuan followed the maid out of the Seventh Young Master's courtyard and headed toward their lodgings.

The farther they walked, the more dejected Gao Yuan looked.

Zheng Fa understood what he was thinking. The Seventh Young Master's courtyard was large enough, yet he refused to let them live inside it. His rejection of them could not have been more obvious.

When they reached their lodgings, they found a single-story house without even a courtyard wall.

The first room contained a table and several chairs.

The room farther in held two beds, with a cabinet at the head of each bed.

There was no other furniture.

After leading them there, the maid said nothing and turned to leave, with no intention whatsoever of speaking further to them.

Watching her hurriedly depart, clearly eager to avoid them.

Gao Yuan let out a long sigh and gave Zheng Fa a bitter smile. "I heard my father mention long ago that the Seventh Young Master... sigh."

Perhaps out of respect for the noble, he did not continue. He merely muttered miserably, "It's like this on the first day already. How are we supposed to get through the days ahead?"

Zheng Fa took the clothes from his bundle and placed them in the cabinet without saying anything.

Gao Yuan rolled over on the bed. "Don't you have any thoughts about this?"

"What thoughts could I have?" Zheng Fa finished arranging the cabinet and shrugged. "The Seventh Young Master isn't actually that bad."

"Huh?"

"He doesn't like us, right?"

"That's obvious."

"But what has he done to us?"

"Seems like..." Gao Yuan frowned and thought for a while. The Seventh Young Master certainly had a knack for irritating people, but he truly did not cause much harm.

"So, he doesn't like us, and I don't like him. But whether we are his pageboys is probably not something he gets to decide either... We'll just make do."

"But if he doesn't like us, we won't be able to stay here for long, will we?"

Zheng Fa nodded.

The Seventh Young Master was, after all, a young master.

"I can't be sent back, or my father will beat me to death!"

Zheng Fa fell silent. Compared with Gao Yuan, the price he would pay if he were sent back might be even steeper. Steward Wang at the farmstead might well be waiting for just such a day.

As the two sat in speechless silence, a man came to the door and said to them, "Instructor Xu is looking for you."

Gao Yuan sprang up, his expression excited. "He's going to teach us martial arts!"

Zheng Fa was a little puzzled that he had instantly forgotten his earlier worries. "Haven't you practiced martial arts before?"

"What do you know? What I practiced was just rustic farmhand fighting. My father didn't dare teach me the martial arts of the residence at all!"

(End of Chapter)