Chapter 181: A Roar at the Sight of Injustice

For the ice of the south, a reward of a Spirit Beast Egg as an extra update (4.30)

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"Miss Jun."

The voice of Manager Liu rang in her ear, trembling.

This voice snapped Lu Yunqi back to reality. His gaze fell on the face of the hands' owner.

An unfamiliar face.

Not a trace of similarity.

He would not bother to give such a person a second glance, yet now, it made him think of her soul.

It was a defilement.

All because of this name.

He would never allow Jiuling Hall to exist.

Seeing the look in the man's eyes before him, Manager Liu felt a chill down his spine.

This isn't good.

He shouted in his mind, about to leap forward, but it was already too late. Lu Yunqi's hand had moved.

The arm that Miss Jun had been holding had somehow broken free, and at the same time, his hand aimed toward Miss Jun's neck.

If Miss Jun's fragile neck were to be grabbed, it could be snapped instantly.

By then, even holding an imperial decree would be useless.

Who would have thought that Lu Yunqi would do such a thing, no, Lu Yunqi of course would do such a thing.

Manager Liu, who was over fifty and had been through all sorts of storms, found his mind going blank for a moment.

A swoosh accompanied by a sharp sound passed by his ear, and the hand that had been holding Miss Jun's neck was suddenly flung to the side.

Lu Yunqi stepped back two steps, with blood dripping from his lowered hand.

The scene fell silent, then immediately erupted into commotion.

Who?

Everyone present looked around in confusion.

Manager Liu was the first to snap back to his senses and immediately rushed to shield Miss Jun, while at the same moment, a man's voice resounded.

"Lord Lu, you sure are imposing, bullying a young girl in public."

Lu Yunqi's gaze did not turn to the direction of the voice, but instead, he looked at a pebble on the ground that was stained with his blood.

The others had already seen the speaker. The Jinyiwei agents also quickly advanced to surround Lu Yunqi.

A path opened up, and several young men emerged in front of the crowd.

Seeing these men, the crowd promptly scattered back like a receding tide.

A large space cleared in front of Jiuling Hall.

"Miss Jun, are you alright?" Zhang Baotang hurried over, asking with concern.

Miss Jun shook her head and smiled at him.

"Lu Yunqi, have you no shame?" Zhang Baotang turned to Lu Yunqi and said angrily.

"Indeed, Lord Lu, how could you bully a young girl like this?" Sifeng also walked over, shaking his head in apparent dismay.

Lu Yunqi looked at him.

"Li Sanbing, is it strange for me to bully a young girl?" he said.

The one called by the full name, Li Sanbing, who was Sifeng, was taken aback for a moment, then burst into laughter.

"That's right, in Lord Lu's eyes, there are only people and criminals, no distinction of gender or age," he said, nodding, "That's not strange at all."

The joke wasn't funny, and no one at the scene laughed.

Zhang Baotang took another step forward.

"Lord Lu, Miss Jun runs a medical clinic. Did she kill somebody, or what? Why would you smash her clinic's sign?" he said.

Lu Yunqi looked at him without saying a word, while a Jinyiwei agent by his side spoke coldly.

"Do we need to give you a reason for our actions?" he said.

Zhang Baotang's expression darkened, while Sifeng sighed.

"Lord Lu, we're doing this for your own good. Although you've long discarded your reputation, we still feel for you," he said with a sadly earnest expression.

A tone of apparent concern delivered nothing but humiliating words, making the atmosphere even more stagnant.

"Quit the nonsense," Zhu Zan said as he strode over.

The Jinyiwei surrounding Lu Yunqi tensed up, gripping their knives more tightly.

Zhu Zan didn't approach Lu Yunqi; everyone's gaze followed him, puzzled.

He walked to the steps, took down the Jiuling Hall signboard, propped it upright on the ground, and then turned to look at Lu Yunqi.

"When taking action, no reason is needed," he said, gesturing with his hand, "Come on, you want to smash, I won't let you, whoever is stronger gets their way, it's that simple."

Were they going to fight?

The surrounding crowd buzzed once more, retreating backward.

The Jinyiwei drew their knives, while Zhang Baotang and the four Sifeng stood still, exchanging looks, each eyeing two directions. The two tall, robust youths who had stood with Zhu Zan earlier were already eyeing the Jinyiwei on the outskirts with sharp gazes.

Although they weren't armed, their bodies were tensed, their bulging muscles nearly bursting through their clothes, showing that they were ready to fight to the death at a moment's notice.

In front of Jiuling Hall, the situation was tense, a hair-trigger away from explosion.

Lu Yunqi glanced at Zhu Zan, the corner of his mouth twitched, and without uttering a word, he turned and mounted his horse.

Seeing his actions, the Jinyiwei also lowered their guard and mounted their horses. The tension from the standoff quickly dissipated, and the crowd on the street parted to watch as Lu Yunqi and his men galloped away.

Someone among the crowd was the first to cheer, though quietly. It was a rare sound, but more scattered cheers followed, and though quiet, these collectively made the street come alive again.

"Coward," Sifeng said shaking his head as he watched Lu Yunqi and his men ride off, "Getting more and more cowardly, not like when we were kids."

Whoever cowards out, it's good that the matter is temporarily resolved.

Manager Liu watched Zhu Zan, still holding the Jiuling Hall signboard, filled with both gratitude and excitement.

In the capital, perhaps only he could so brazenly confront Thousand-Man Commander Lu without falling short.

Miss Jun had already approached Zhu Zan.

"Thank you for that," she said.

Zhu Zan glanced at her, his disdain undisguised.

"Don't flatter yourself, we weren't doing it for you," he said.

Zhang Baotang also walked over.

"I was, I definitely was," he quickly chimed in, "Miss Jun cured my illness, and being such a good doctor, we couldn't just stand by and watch her get bullied."

Zhu Zan glared at him.

"That's you, not me," he said, pushing the signboard in his hands.

Miss Jun caught it nimbly and securely.

"I just like to see Lu Xiaozao uncomfortable," Zhu Zan continued, glancing at Miss Jun again, "Don't think it's just because of you, I'd do the same for anyone else, don't read too much into it."

Miss Jun smiled and nodded.

"I'm not overthinking it. I'm just thankful for the Princely Heir's willingness to lend a hand to anyone in need," she said, "Whether the help was for me or someone else, I'm grateful."

Zhang Baotang, the four Sifeng, and the two young men who had come over laughed at her words.

"That's well said," Sifeng praised.

What nonsense, clearly just sweet-talking.

Zhu Zan raised an eyebrow.

"You really think you've become quite close to me, talking more and more," he said.

Back in Runan, her attitude was also strange, but one could understand given the entanglement with the lanterns, Immortal Ziying's Plant, and her over-familiarity which seemed to carry a hint of caution and probing.

But ever since entering the capital and their encounter, this girl's attitude towards him had completely changed, as if anything said didn't matter, terrifyingly candid.

They weren't that close!

That's how women are, give them a smile and they'll concoct an earth-shattering, ghost-afflicting drama.

Just can't show them a nice face.

Zhu Zan stepped past Miss Jun without waiting for her to speak further and walked away.

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