The Lesser One Dares Not

The afternoon sun blazed down, and the bluestone path was scorching.

Li Tui followed behind Zhao Yuanchong. Last night's injury felt like fine needles pricking deep into his dantian; every breath tugged at the pain. His face showed nothing, though there was more sweat at his temples than usual.

Zhao Yuanchong was in a foul mood. Zhao Hao's words in the academy had left him caught between a rock and a hard place. He'd felt humiliated on the way back, and the more he thought about it, the angrier he got. Just past noon, he called Li Tui and several lackeys out and headed straight for the depths of the market district.

"Young master, where are we going?" one of the lackeys asked cautiously.

"Looking for fun." Zhao Yuanchong spat the three words through clenched teeth.

Li Tui knew exactly what he meant. This "fun" was almost certainly Zhao Hao.

They reached the entrance to a half-dilapidated courtyard at the end of an alley, and Zhao Yuanchong stopped. He didn't knock. He kicked the door open.

The wooden door slammed against the wall, sending up a cloud of dust.

Inside the courtyard, Zhao Hao was bare-chested, pounding a wooden post. Sweat ran down his lean back, shining in the sunlight. At the noise, he stopped and turned around.

When he saw Zhao Yuanchong, his expression didn't change. Only his eyes darkened.

"Well, look at you, working so hard." Zhao Yuanchong folded his arms and tilted his head, sizing him up. "Too bad a dog can work itself to the bone and still never become a wolf."

Zhao Hao picked up a sweat towel and wiped his face. "Still better than being worse than a dog."

The words drove into Zhao Yuanchong's lungs like a knife. His face turned livid in an instant, and one of the lackeys behind him, Zhao Qi, had already rushed forward.

"You're asking to die!"

Zhao Qi had practiced fighting for years. He lunged swiftly and viciously, his fist aimed straight at Zhao Hao's face.

Li Tui watched from behind. He could see the flaw in Zhao Qi's punch. If it were him, he could take Zhao Qi down in one move in at least three different ways.

But Zhao Hao's response was even cleaner.

Just as the fist was about to smash into his face, Zhao Hao shifted half a step to the right, letting the rush of air skim past his ear.

Zhao Qi's punch struck empty space. Unable to rein in his force, he pitched forward. Zhao Hao's left hand flashed out, caught his wrist, and wrenched it down.

Crack.

The sound of bone popping out of place was sharp and loud.

Zhao Qi's scream caught in his throat. Zhao Hao's knee had already driven into his stomach, and then he planted a foot on his back.

Zhao Qi lay sprawled on the ground, motionless, blood frothing at his mouth.

The courtyard fell deathly silent.

The remaining lackeys exchanged glances, none of them daring to move. Zhao Qi was the best fighter among them, and he'd been taken out in a single exchange?

Zhao Yuanchong narrowed his eyes at Zhao Hao. That sequence of movements had been so fast it was almost as if... he'd known in advance how Zhao Qi would attack.

"Everyone, get him." His voice turned cold.

The lackeys steeled themselves, spreading out to surround Zhao Hao.

Zhao Hao stayed where he was and took two breaths. Sweat dripped from his chin, spattering on the bluestone before quickly drying in the heat.

All four rushed him at once.

Zhao Hao moved.

He didn't meet them head-on. He ducked and slipped through the gap between two of them, then whipped around and punched the other two in the ribs.

Two dull thuds rang out. Their faces turned pale, and they clutched their sides before dropping to their knees.

The last two panicked, their moves falling into disarray. Zhao Hao gave them no chance: he kicked one down and smashed his elbow into the neck of the last.

The man crumpled without a sound.

When it was over, Zhao Hao straightened, his chest heaving. He wiped the sweat from his face and looked at Zhao Yuanchong.

His gaze was utterly calm, so calm it sent a chill down the spine.

Zhao Yuanchong burned with anger under that stare and glanced sideways at Li Tui.

"You," he said in a low voice. "Go. Kill him."

Li Tui didn't move.

"Did you hear me?" Zhao Yuanchong's voice turned even colder. "I'll give you spirit pills and cultivation techniques. Get it done, and I'll ask Father to grant you the Zhao surname."

The Zhao surname.

The two words hit the water like a stone. Li Tui's fingers, hanging at his side, twitched.

Zhao Yuanchong saw it, and a faint smile curled his lips. He'd known no one could refuse this.

"What is it?" He stepped half a pace closer. "Don't dare?"

Li Tui looked up. His gaze lingered on Zhao Yuanchong's face, then shifted to Zhao Hao in the courtyard.

Zhao Hao was still standing there, his sweat-soaked hair stuck to his forehead and his chest rising and falling with each breath. That flurry of moves had taken a lot out of him.

Li Tui could feel a stabbing pain in his meridians. Whether he could win if he attacked now was beside the point. Zhao Hao clearly had some kind of secret...

Otherwise, how could he have handled these lackeys when he'd been at that level just a few days ago?

"Young master," Li Tui said, his voice a little hoarse. "It wouldn't be appropriate to kill someone here."

"What's inappropriate about it?" Zhao Yuanchong stared at him. "If I say it's appropriate, then it is."

"He's a registered member of the clan," Li Tui said. "If he dies here, the Law Enforcement Hall will investigate."

"I'll take responsibility."

Li Tui fell silent for a moment.

He could feel Zhao Yuanchong's breathing grow rapid. Anger was burning through him. He could also feel Zhao Hao's gaze from the courtyard, pricking his back like a needle.

"Young master," he said at last. "Now isn't the time."

Zhao Yuanchong stared at him for a long while.

So long that even the lackeys still standing began to tremble.

Then Zhao Yuanchong laughed. It was a short, mocking laugh. "Wang Yuan, you're scared."

Li Tui said nothing.

"Fine." Zhao Yuanchong nodded. His smile vanished, leaving only coldness. "You've got guts."

He stopped looking at Li Tui and turned to leave, each step so heavy it seemed he meant to crush the flagstones beneath his feet.

The lackeys scrambled to their feet and followed, dragging the unconscious Zhao Qi along.

Li Tui brought up the rear. Before turning away, he looked at Zhao Hao once more.

Zhao Hao was still standing there, his gaze as deep as a well.

Their eyes met for only an instant before Li Tui looked away and hurried after Zhao Yuanchong.

Outside the alley, the market's clamor flooded back into their ears. Zhao Yuanchong strode quickly, his robe hem fluttering.

Li Tui followed behind him, feeling the stabbing pain in his meridians grow more pronounced. The confrontation had left him tense, aggravating his injuries.

At a corner, Zhao Yuanchong suddenly stopped and turned to stare at Li Tui.

"Why didn't you attack just now?" he asked, his voice very low.

Li Tui lowered his eyes. "This humble one dared not."

Zhao Yuanchong froze for an instant. He stared at Li Tui for a long while, his expression slowly darkening.

"Dared not?" he repeated. His voice wasn't loud, but restrained anger simmered beneath it. "When you were lecturing me earlier, why weren't you afraid then?"

Li Tui lowered his eyes. "Just now, I was advising you, young master. This time, you're telling me to kill someone. They're different."

"Don't give me that!" Zhao Yuanchong suddenly stepped forward, stopping almost nose to nose with Li Tui. "I tell you to attack, you attack. Understand?"

Li Tui didn't retreat. He only lowered his head further. "This humble one understands."

"You don't understand a damn thing!" Zhao Yuanchong glared at Li Tui's bowed head.

He stepped back half a pace, tugged at the corner of his mouth, and gave a cold little smile.

"Fine, Wang Yuan. You've got guts." He turned around, his voice light and airy. "We'll see about that."

His words seemed to come out of nowhere, but Li Tui understood what he meant.

He didn't answer. He simply followed half a step behind Zhao Yuanchong in silence.

They walked back one after the other. This time, Zhao Yuanchong kept an even pace, his back ramrod straight, but Li Tui could feel how tightly his shoulders were tensed. He was choking back his anger with nowhere to vent it.

When they reached the side gate of Zhao Mansion, Zhao Yuanchong paused, but didn't look back.

"Go back and stay there." He tossed out the words and went straight through the gate. His robe hem brushed the threshold, stirring a gust of wind.

Li Tui stood outside for a moment. Only after the gust had passed did he turn and leave.