After two incense sticks' worth of time had passed, Jiang Shuo jumped down from the Plum Blossom Stakes, sat on the stone steps, and slapped his aching thighs.
As the Hundred Flowers Sect's Eldest Senior Brother, Feng En was busy with all sorts of affairs. He showed Li Zicheng and the others a few basic stances, then left on his own.
Seeing this, Sun Man signaled for the disciples to take a break and walked out of the side courtyard. Before leaving, he gave Jiang Shuo a meaningful look.
A bad feeling rose in Jiang Shuo's heart. Sure enough, the moment Sun Man left, Sun Daoming came over with several friends and surrounded him. These so-called friends were all Sun Daoming's senior brothers, but they only deigned to associate with him because they knew who he was.
Jiang Shuo stopped pounding his muscles and looked up at the unfriendly crowd. "What do you want?"
"Simple. I just want you to stay away from Miss Yu from now on." Sun Daoming stood in front of Jiang Shuo, chin raised as he looked down at him.
His friends frowned slightly. This behavior was rather childish; it seemed Sun Daoming truly had no experience out in the Jianghu. They had far more self-control than Sun Daoming. Though they admired Yu Yuhan as well, a person in the Jianghu naturally had to put Martial Arts first.
His guess had come true. Jiang Shuo's lips curled slightly as he held out one hand and said disdainfully, "What I do is none of your business."
Sun Daoming's expression changed in an instant. He glared at Jiang Shuo and said viciously, "You only made a bit of a name for yourself because you happened to assist Miss Yu. You'd do well to know your place. A toad will never get to eat swan meat."
"If I remember correctly, the last person who said I didn't know my place was called Chen Zhiqing." Jiang Shuo met Sun Daoming's gaze without the slightest fear.
I don't object to you pursuing Yu Yuhan, but interfering with my everyday life because of it is absolutely unacceptable.
Sun Daoming had been there when Jiang Shuo clashed with Chen Zhiqing during the selection. As far as he knew, Chen Zhiqing had caught the pox and spent a whole night in Yu Yuhan's courtyard, screaming and wailing. He had probably wished he were dead.
Sun Daoming's face grew darker. He hadn't expected Jiang Shuo to be so stubborn, but no matter how hard a bone was, he'd have to gnaw through it for Yu Yuhan. "If not for Elder Bian and Martial Uncle Feng, you'd have been beaten to death by Chen Zhiqing long ago. You didn't do a thing, yet now you're basking in someone else's glory. That alone shows what kind of person you are."
"What a joke! When I held Chen Zhiqing hostage and broke into the County Office to report the epidemic, where were you? When I lived alongside the disaster victims in their cave dwellings and contained the disease, where were you? When I charged through the city gates alone to save people and fought my way into the Hundred Flowers Sect, where were you?" Jiang Shuo spoke faster and faster, his tone growing heavier. At the end, he abruptly stood up and brought his face right up to Sun Daoming's. "You keep accusing me of having a bad character, but to me, you're clearly jealous of the capable and eager to belittle other people's achievements to nothing, just to puff up your own vanity. Someone as narrow-minded as you could be the last man left in Yulin, and Miss Yu still wouldn't give you a second glance."
Since the other side had openly insulted Jiang Shuo, he naturally wasn't going to hold back. If Sun Daoming was so fond of Yu Yuhan, then he'd use her to insult him.
Sure enough, after Jiang Shuo finished speaking, Sun Daoming's face flushed purple, the veins bulging at both his temples. "You, you..."
After stammering for a long while, he couldn't come up with a rebuttal. Enraged, he swung a heavy punch at Jiang Shuo's chin.
Smack! Jiang Shuo had expected him to attack. He raised a hand and caught Sun Daoming's fist firmly in his palm.
Sun Daoming put all his strength into it, but his fist was clamped in place like it was caught in iron pincers. His friends frowned and stepped forward together, angrily shouting, "Let go!" and "Release him!"
Jiang Shuo gave a cold snort and let go without warning. Sun Daoming had been straining to wrench his fist back, so he stumbled and fell straight backward. If his friends hadn't caught him in time, he would have landed hard on his rear.
"Jiang Shuo, I'll kill you!" Humiliated and furious, Sun Daoming got up and went to fight Jiang Shuo. Just then, Li Zicheng came running over with a sword in hand. "What are you doing?"
Li Zicheng's shout cooled Sun Daoming's anger, restoring some of his reason.
No matter how much he disliked Jiang Shuo, they were fellow disciples. Beating him in front of everyone would likely earn him punishment from the sect.
"This isn't over!" Sun Daoming glared viciously at Jiang Shuo, then led his friends off to the side.
Jiang Shuo shrugged, unconcerned. Turning his head the other way, he asked Li Zicheng, "Didn't you say there were one or two moves you didn't understand and go ask Master about them? How'd you get back so quickly?"
Li Zicheng gave a sly little chuckle and pulled Jiang Shuo along at a run.
Jiang Shuo was completely baffled and kept asking what they were doing. Li Zicheng only said mysteriously, "You'll know when we get there."
Li Zicheng dragged Jiang Shuo through the corridors until they reached the entrance to the main hall.
"Isn't this where they hold meetings? What's there to see?" Jiang Shuo asked curiously. Li Zicheng abruptly turned around, raised a finger to his lips, and gestured for silence. Then he pressed himself against the wall and tiptoed toward the doorway. When he reached it, he crouched and cautiously poked his head out to look inside. After watching for a while, he finally remembered to turn and beckon Jiang Shuo over. His little face was flushed, and he looked thoroughly satisfied.
Before you continue