"Uncle, you wanted to see us?" Xiang Yu wiped the sweat from his forehead with his palm one last time, slicking his bangs back along with it and making himself look exceptionally spirited.
Xiang Liang sat in the seat of honor, looking at the brothers standing by the door with an unreadable expression.
Zishu sat nearby, terror written across his face, too restless to sit still.
"You two, sit down first. I have something to ask you." Xiang Liang coughed twice and pointed to the lower seats on his left.
The brothers took their seats, and Xiang Liang stroked his beard.
"You made Wu Ju cry again?" Xiang Liang looked utterly heartbroken.
Xiang Yu and Xiang An both flinched, neither saying a word.
"You two—ugh." Xiang Liang slapped his thigh. "What am I supposed to say about you?"
"Wu Ju is my retainer, no matter what else. Yet you actually managed to make him cry. This is already the third time in a month. Just look at yourselves."
The brothers' gazes drifted about. Even Xiang Yu, usually the more serious one, was looking around as though lost in thought.
"Look at me!" Xiang Liang roared. The brothers hurriedly looked at him, sitting ramrod straight.
"Disrespecting your teacher—is that what your elder brother taught you?"
Bang!
Fury covered Xiang Liang's face as he slammed his palm down on the table.
"To disrespect one's teacher is to lack virtue! Do you want to become men without virtue?!"
"Wu Ju was assigned by me to teach you. If you disrespect him, doesn't that mean you disrespect me as well?"
The brothers lowered their heads, silent as cicadas in winter. Zishu, sitting beside them, was frightened out of his wits too.
He might know magic, but he truly could not beat Xiang Liang. Those