Chapter 24: Despicable Bastard

The next day, before dawn arrived, with a thin mist swirling through Willow Lake City, the stone streets were cool and slightly damp.

Shen Shiming leaned on his servant’s support to climb onto his horse. The moment his bottom touched the saddle, he gasped and cursed angrily, then kicked the servant irritably. After shifting for a while, he finally found a posture that didn’t hurt so much. Urging the horse forward slowly, he grumbled bitterly in his heart, “Damned Fang Lao’er! It was I who noticed that delicate street performer girl first, yet you snatched her away! Taking her was one thing, but you also beat me—and then, not content with that, you called her ugly the very next moment and threw her out…”

“Now, after all these years, times have changed. The Fang Family is teetering on the brink. You fell right into my hands, a perfect chance for me to settle that old score! But who knew you’d fight so dirty?” Shen wondered. “It makes no sense! I’m the stronger one, so how was I the one who ended up getting beaten?”

“It must have been a sneak attack! Just you wait. Once I’ve healed properly, I’ll make you pay!”

Still ruminating in anger, he arrived at the street corner. There, he met three classmates already waiting. Together, they rode slowly toward the Academy. Along the way, all remained silent by unspoken agreement. They avoided looking at the dark bruises staining each other’s faces, though inwardly, their frustration bubbled to the brim.

The plan had been simple: confront the Fang Family’s Second Young Master Fang together. A chance to gain prestige among the other Academy Disciples and dent the Fang Family’s standing within Willow Lake City. And above all, to win favor with Instructor Yuanzhi. His mentorship could promise a bright future at the end of their three-year term.

Yet, this was what had resulted…

When they neared the city gate, Shen Shiming finally broke the silence gloomily. “Once we’re back at the Academy,” he ground out sternly, “none of us mentions what happened yesterday.”

The others nodded grimly. Shen Shiming’s reminder was hardly needed. Should news spread about their humiliation—a band of Minor Qi Practitioners, some in their second year, thoroughly beaten by Second Young Master Fang of the Fang Family, who’d just enrolled—they’d become laughingstocks. Every Academy Disciple cherished honor and face. This shame must never see the light of day.

Just as they’d finalized how they would explain their bruised condition to those inquiring at the Academy, a voice unexpectedly floated up ahead: “Ah, greeting my esteemed elder brothers! Especially you, Senior Brother Shen Shiming!”

Startled, Shen Shiming and his three companions looked up. There, blocking the road outside the city gate, sat an elegant black carriage. Its curtain had been pulled aside, revealing Fang Cun, Second Young Master Fang. He smiled brightly at them.

“Y-you…! What are you up to?!” Shen Shiming spat, his face reddening with fury even as the motion tugged on his wounds and made him wince.

Fang Cun stepped out of the carriage. “Our friendly duel yesterday proved quite enlightening,” he said cheerfully. “But it lacked satisfaction. That’s why I’ve been eagerly waiting here for you all this morning.” He grinned. “Care for another round?”

Shen Shiming froze on his saddle, eyes wide within their bruised sockets. “Y-you…you…!”

“F-Fang…!” The other young men on their horses were similarly petrified, stammering and barely able to form words.

They’d already taken a severe beating yesterday! How could he be back for more?

Fang Cun’s smile widened. “As I understand it,” he said smoothly, “when someone issues a challenge within the Academy, it cannot be refused, correct?”

Sham Shiming and his companions were rendered speechless. Sham Shiming, the furnace of his rage already blazing, felt his head grow hot as he ached to charge at Fang Cun. But the slightest movement sent waves of agony through him. Despite Fang Cun showing some restraint and avoiding causing life-threatening injuries yesterday, one night was far too little for him to heal.

Yet, before Shen Shiming could marshal a thought or a word, Fang Cun’s smile vanished as he shouted sharply, “Let’s begin!”

His figure shot forward, a blur past Shen Shiming’s horse. Fang Cun grabbed Shen Shiming’s belt and hauled him roughly off the saddle.

“Fu—!” Shen Shiming’s shocked curse caught in his throat as he was already sailing through the air. He landed with a heavy thud. Before he could react, Fang Cun was on him, unleashing a rapid, brutal flurry of blows. Shen Shiming soon felt dizzy and disoriented. He instinctively curled on the ground, clutching himself tightly.

“Well, you’ve learned that much,” Fang Cun sighed theatrically, shaking his head with feigned disappointment as he saw his target guarded so effectively. Then, his gaze swept to the others.

The young men exchanged terrified glances. Slowly, they dismounted from their horses. Almost instinctively, their hands flew up to shield their heads.

Slap! Pow! Smash!

A short while later, Fang Cun strode back towards his carriage, refreshed and invigorated. With a focused thought, he accessed the Celestial Merit Record. Seeing the number “100” glowing clearly upon it heightened his satisfaction. While he wasn’t about to chase the elusive 3000 Merit points through mundane “education,” there was absolutely no harm in repeating some minor encounters to grind out a steady flow of rewards! He resolved to accumulate this wealth step by step, bit by bit.

Shen Shiming and his companions, meanwhile, simply stared into the empty sky, utterly baffled and unaware that their run of misfortune had only just begun.

That evening, hearts still smoldering with resentment, they departed the Academy, deciding to drown their sorrows and vent their fury at a tavern. However, the moment they turned onto the little path edged with green willows—right outside the Academy—the identical black carriage blocked their way. Second Young Master Fang leaned leisurely against its side, saluting them mockingly. “Senior Brother Shen… I’ve come seeking instruction again.”

Desperate to avoid another unpleasant surprise, they dutifully rose early the very next morning, hoping to slip into the Academy under the cover of lingering darkness. Their strategy proved futile. As they reached the main city gate, an unwelcome silhouette blocked the open road: the black carriage. It seemed to have been waiting a long time. A familiar laugh rang out from within. “Senior Brother Shen! I’ve come for my lesson!”

The following afternoon, attempting a cunning ruse, they deliberately lingered long past dismissal time within the Academy. Believing the coast was finally clear, they stepped out triumphantly… only to freeze at the entrance. Parked conspicuously just beyond the gate was, yet again, the black carriage. The cheerful voice cut through the air: “Senior Brother Shen! More lessons?”

Shen Shiming was genuinely on the verge of tears.

He had absolutely no idea why he’d become the target of such an unshakable menace!

It had all seemed straightforward at the beginning. The Fang Family was collapsing, Fang Cun had entered the Academy under a cloud of the instructor’s disfavor, so teaching him a lesson was the perfect solution. Venting old grievances while currying favor with the Instructor—what could possibly go wrong?

Then, he experienced the cruelest twist of fate!

All he had done was challenge the guy once! Since that single encounter, the wretch had clung to him like sticky plaster.

Leaving the Academy? He’d be waiting.

Exiting the city? He’d be waiting.

In a desperate bid, Shen Shiming had even taken a personal day from the Academy, deliberately arriving a good half-day late. Even that failed. Midday saw him lounging near the very gates of the Shen family home.

As the esteemed Young Master of the affluent Shen Family, how could he tolerate such indignity? Failing to restrain himself, he sought out his father’s aid. Yet, the elder Shen’s counsel was clear: Do not provoke the Fang Family. Even now, amid rumors of their decline, the Shen Family must not be the first to strike. The first bite may taste sweet, but the first fish on the hook risks paying dearly for it!

“Have you forgotten Lao Chao of the Devouring Sea Gang? A fierce man whose reputation shakes Willow Lake City? The one who set his sights on seizing the Fang Family’s Twelve Continuous Docks interests? How miserably he failed? How he vanished for days before daring to re-emerge?”

No one knew just how the Fang Family managed it, but those Twelve Continuous Docks remained firmly beyond anyone’s reach, even Lao Chao’s! That very precedent hung heavy over Willow Lake City. Businesses tied to the Fang Family remained strangely, stubbornly intact. The very factions who once rubbed their hands greedily at the prospect of carving up the Fang pie now exhibited unnerving timidity.

Was it worth gambling the very existence of the Shen Family merely because his son had gotten into a childish schoolyard brawl?

Absolutely not.

“Just steer clear of him,” his father had concluded firmly.

Shen Shiming felt sick with regret. It wasn’t that he hadn’t tried to avoid him! At first, desperately clinging to the tattered remains of his dignity, he’d wanted to bury the whole affair. His previous words to Fang Cun held a kernel of truth: Academy Disciples did have a tradition of sparring. The rules emphasized restraint and mutual improvement, sure, but everyone knew such challenges were also tools exploited by bullies to push others around. The notion that refusing a challenge meant losing face? That insidious custom had been seeded by people precisely like Shen Shiming and his peers.

But even then! When people abused the challenge system, it was usually just a brutal lesson—once, maybe twice—not a relentless campaign! Who ever heard of targeting just one person over and over and over?!

Initially fearful of public ridicule, Shen Shiming had refused to speak of it openly. But Fang Cun’s constant ambushes did his boasting for him. The story spread like wildfire through the Academy. Shen Shiming became the butt of countless jokes. Even friends who once flocked to his side now eyed him with pity or thinly veiled scorn. He tried to recruit capable allies for revenge, only to be consistently met with polite, nervous declines:

“Personal duels of skill require mutual consent. How could an outsider possibly interfere?”

Shen Shiming wasn’t that foolish. The real reason was clear: they didn’t want even the slightest association with trouble aimed at Second Young Master Fang.

The Fang Family of Willow Lake City had always been an enigma, an entity standing apart. Their sudden fall from grace had merely felt like an invitation—a chance for others to finally carve lucrative pieces from their holdings. Yet, Lao Chao’s humiliating failure at the Twelve Continuous Docks had acted like cold water thrown on everyone’s ambitions. Now, added to that, came the spectacle of Young Master Fang Cun—audaciously challenging the Rear Mountain and then relentlessly, publicly hounding Shen Shiming. Rumors started swirling again. The Fang Family must still possess powerful backing! How else could a prize as rich as the Twelve Continuous Docks remain impervious even to Lao Chao’s grasp?

With each passing day, contemplating these thoughts, Shen Shiming was consumed with such regret and misery that he felt like battering his head against a stone wall. How? How did it all spiral so utterly out of control for him?

He ground his teeth. There was only one glimmer of hope left. He would have to swallow his massive ego and beg help from her. If she refused, then truly, no one would dare help him.