Of course, with the son of the city lord and First Miss Chu watching, he was sure to offend one of the parties involved no matter what he decided. Dealing with this situation was making his head ache.

He was granted a reprieve by the sound of galloping hooves coming from outside. A glint flashed across both Sang Qian’s and Mei Chaofeng’s eyes. 

In the entire Brightmoon City, the only power that controlled an army of cavalry was the Chu clan.

The sound of hooves died as the horses were reined in. A tall figure built like a metal tower marched into the casino, followed closely by a group of soldiers, resplendent in their golden armor and red cloaks. There was a sharpness in their eyes that kept others away. As soon as they entered the casino, they split into two rows, taking up positions along the sides and surrounding everyone.

Their sharp and organized footsteps turned the atmosphere grim and heavy.

“This is the Chu clan’s Red Cloak Army. They do look much more formidable than those from the River Patrol Team.”

“Shhh, quiet down! Are you truly tired of living?”

… 

Sang Qian’s cheeks twitched as the whispers of the crowd reached his ears. He stepped forward and demanded in a loud voice, “Yue Shan, what are you doing? How dare the Chu clan mobilize its private army without any legitimate justification? Are you plotting a rebellion?”

Even though Sang Qian had only been appointed recently, he was still able to recognize the leader of the Chu clan’s Red Cloak Army.

“We received word that our First Miss had been bullied, so we came to protect her. Surely our Chu clan is justified in ensuring the safety of its own clan members?” Yue Shan replied coldly.

He walked up to Chu Chuyan and bowed respectfully. “Paying respects to the First Miss.”

This turn of events further hyped Zu An up. How cool would it be if he calls me ‘young master’ in such a situation? 

He eagerly awaited Yue Shan to greet him too, but the latter merely looked at him hesitantly before turning away without a word. It seemed Yue Shan was disregarding his presence. 

Chu Chuyan smiled in response to the commander’s greeting, and she reached out to help Yue Shan up. 

After the exchange of formalities, Yue Shan quickly got straight to the point. “First Miss, the Master has said that no matter how weakened our Chu clan has become, we will not allow a mere underworld organization to threaten us with impunity. As long as you give the word, we’ll obliterate the Plum Blossom Sect today!”

His declaration immediately provoked a huge reaction from the crowd. 

Even Mei Chaofeng shuddered in shock at his words. The Plum Blossom Sect had fared well in recent years not because they were powerful, but because the powers in Brightmoon City had implicitly recognized their existence and turned a blind eye to their activities.

However, if they were to fall out with one another, the head of an underworld organization like him, even with the backing of some higher-ups, couldn’t possibly be a match for a ducal clan!

Putting aside the fact that the Brightmoon Duke was an eighth rank cultivator, just the Chu clan’s Red Cloak Army was more than enough to obliterate the entire Plum Blossom Sect!

He had no choice but to turn to Sang Qian for help. 

Sang Qian was also taken aback by how decisive the Chu clan was regarding this matter, and was unsure what stance to take.

Seeing his adversaries’ reactions, Zu An felt exhilarated. He had indeed made the right choice to cling onto the thighs of the Chu clan. It sure felt good to oppress others with his connections!

He even forgot his earlier thoughts to abandon this ‘sinking ship’.

In the end, Pang Chun was the first to speak. He coughed slightly and remarked, “It doesn’t seem appropriate for the Chu clan to get involved with the administration’s affairs here.”

Those words jolted Sang Qian out of his daze, and he hurriedly added, “Indeed! Is the Chu clan intending to stage a rebellion?”

Chu Chuyan stepped forward with a sneer. “Is clearing an underworld organization considered a rebellion? I must ask you to watch your words. If not, I have no choice but to consider you to be intentionally defaming the Chu clan.”

With the First Miss of the Chu clan making her stance known, the soldiers of the Chu clan placed their hands on the handles of their swords, ready to draw their blades and clear the field as soon as the command was issued.

Sang Qian swallowed in fear. “Whether the Plum Blossom Sect is an underworld organization or not, and the manner of its punishment, should be a matter for the city lord to decide. It’s against the rules for the Chu clan to overstep its jurisdiction.”

“Very well, let’s follow the rules then.” Chu Chuyan’s eyes turned utterly cold. “Someone plotted to electrocute my h… husband in the suburbs of the city. Right after that, there was an attempt to assassinate him outside the city. And, just recently, someone tried to make use of his debt to sever his limbs… All these are related to the Plum Blossom Sect. May I ask Lord Pang to arrest Mei Chaofeng and his thirteen godsons, as well as all of the ranking members of the Plum Blossom Sect? They must be thoroughly interrogated to ascertain their involvement in this matter.”

“Ah, that…” Pang Chun was put in a tight spot. He turned a pleading gaze toward Xie Xiu.

Xie Xiu himself was unsure how to manipulate the situation. He had heard rumors that Zu An was barely tolerated in the Chu clan, but the current situation appeared to disprove them. In fact, Chu Chuyan appeared to be ready to go all out for Zu An.

This left him feeling deeply envious. While he maintained a cordial friendship with Zu An, he was still a man after all. No man could remain unmoved after seeing a woman as beautiful as Chu Chuyan standing up for another man.

However, Xie Xiu quickly centered himself. His end goal wasn’t to snare a perfect woman like First Miss Chu. After all, no matter how perfect a woman was, the happiness she offered could never be a match for a harem of women.

At the very least, that was his life’s philosophy. He knew better than to become involved with extraordinary women, as they would only hinder his philandering. He liked how things currently were—flirting around with lesser-known beautiful women and doing as he liked in a carefree way; this was what life should be like! 

Pang Chun, waiting for Xie Xiu to give him a directive, couldn’t fathom the bizarre expressions he was making. This left him at a loss as to what to do.

Noticing his silence, Chu Chuyan spoke up once more. “If Lord Pang is worried about offending others, why don’t I have my men personally capture them and deliver them to the magistrate’s court?”

“Miss Chu, please calm down.” Pang Chun took out a handkerchief and wiped his brow. “Let’s talk things over first.”

Sang Hong’s eyes had turned grim at Chu Chuyan’s testimony. Attempted assassination of a member of a ducal clan was a serious crime. Sensing the killing intent of the Chu First Miss and the members of the Red Cloak Army surrounding them, he dared not speak up for the Plum Blossom Sect recklessly anymore. Doing so could put his father in hot water.

Mei Chaofeng’s heart pounded out a frenzied beat. Am I going to meet my end here? 

A vicious glint flashed across his eyes as he made up his mind. At the very least, I’ll take some of them down with me!

A voice came to him. “Write out a promissory note for seven-and-a-half million silver taels and put an end to the matter here.”

Mei Chaofeng could tell that it was Snow secretly transmitting her voice to him. Somehow, he’d lost track of the original reason behind this whole exchange. The Chu clan was going hard on him because he owed seven-and-a-half million silver taels. Was it really safe for him to write out such a note, though?

Sensing Mei Chaofeng’s hesitation, Snow continued in a rush, “Are you a fool? If you write a promissory note, you can buy yourself time to think of ways to delay the payment, or even nullify it all together later on! If the Chu clan were to eradicate your Plum Blossom Sect today, the years of effort that the young master put in would go down the drain!”

A tight furrow formed on Mei Chaofeng’s forehead as he replied, “The Chu clan doesn’t have the authority to pass judgment on us. If they dare to make a move here, the governor would surely clamp down hard on them afterwards.”

Snow was frustrated by Mei Chaofeng’s inability to understand the gravity of the situation. “It’s not so simple. The city lord of Brightmoon City is someone from King Qi’s faction. Besides, once you're locked up in prison, there will be no shortage of people stepping forward to testify against you. You know full well how many evil deeds the Plum Blossom Sect has committed over the years. Once the authorities start looking into it more seriously, you’ll be done for!”

Mei Chaofeng was conflicted, but he knew that there was no other option. He turned to Chu Chuyan and bowed. “Our Plum Blossom Sect has acted inappropriately today and offended Miss Chu. Please accept my humblest apologies. I hope that you’ll be magnanimous and forgive us for our mistakes today.”

Having to say such subservient words before such a huge crowd left him with a burning heat on his cheeks. There was no doubt that he would become the laughingstock of the crowd after tonight. Just like that, the reputation that he had built up painstakingly over many years would be left in ruins.

It was the only thing that he could do. He dared not test the Chu clan’s determination to pull him down. If the Chu clan ordered its army to apprehend everyone from the Plum Blossom Sect, it would spell the end of the sect for sure.

If the decision only affected him, he might have considered throwing all caution to the wind to uphold his dignity. However, the Plum Blossom Sect didn’t just belong to him.

There was someone else behind him, and that someone had devoted great effort and resources towards supporting him over the years. If the Plum Blossom Sect were to be destroyed in a single night, and he somehow managed to save his own life, there was no doubt that his backer would subject him to a cruel death. 

In the end, he could only set aside his pride and apologize to this lady who was much younger than him. Every single stare directed at him from the crowd weighed on him like a huge burden of shame.

Despite his apology, Chu Chuyan appeared unmoved. He knew very well that it was impossible to settle the matter with just a few words, so he shouted, “Men, bring me paper and a brush!”

A subordinate rushed over with the writing materials he’d requested. He quickly wrote out a promissory note and handed it over to Chu Chuyan. “Miss Chu, here is a promissory note for seven-and-a-half million silver taels. We’re willing to admit our loss and pay what is owed to you. However, we can’t afford to fork out such a huge sum of money at a moment’s notice—there’s probably no power in the world who has the ability to pull that off. So, I beg Miss Chu for her patience. We’ll make sure to pay interest on this debt every year. As for the main sum, we’ll find a way to raise the money. May I know your thoughts on this arrangement?”

Mei Chaofeng had played a little trick here. The note stated that the money was owed to Zu An, and not the Chu clan. While there was no good way for him to default on a debt to the Chu clan, there was still room to maneuver if the promissory note was made out just to Zu An.

Chu Chuyan noticed this detail, but let it pass. Since the money had been won by Zu An, she didn’t think it appropriate for her to claim his earnings as property of the Chu clan. So, she turned to Zu An and asked, “What do you think?”

Zu An was pleased that Chu Chuyan sought his opinion. He examined the note, then remarked pretentiously, “Aiyo. If only Sect Master Mei did this earlier, this matter could be resolved easily. But you just had to try your luck. Looks like you’re the kind of person who needs a spanking before you’ll learn!”

You have successfully trolled Mei Chaofeng for 888 Rage points!

Mei Chaofeng nearly spurted out blood on the spot. If not for the Chu clan, I would never allow a wastrel like you to talk shit to me!

He nearly gave in to his urge to pummel Zu An into dust, but one glance at Chu Chuyan and the Red Cloak Army that Yue Shan had brought was enough for him to choke down his grievance.

Examining the note further, Zu An questioned, “Hm? You’re only going to pay the interests? Well, I shall be magnanimous and go easy on you. I shall charge only ten percent per annum. I trust that it’s acceptable to you?”

“Yes, it is,” Mei Chaofeng replied through gritted teeth.

To be fair, a rate of ten percent per annum was not at all exorbitant. Compared to the high interests charged by the Plum Blossom Sect for their loans, an interest rate of ten percent was almost nothing.

Yet, why did these words coming out of Zu An’s mouth sound so jarring? Furthermore, the merciful look on his face made it seem as if he was showing pity to a beggar… 

You have successfully trolled Mei Chaofeng for 345 Rage points!

Zu An waved a hand and accepted his agreement. “Since you’ve agreed to it, let’s tally the interest payments right now, shall we? Ten percent of seven-and-a-half million silver taels is seven-hundred-and-fifty thousand silver taels. Are you going to pay with silver ingots or banknotes?”

Sang Qian, Xie Xiu and Pang Chun all turned blank stares at him.

Mei Chaofeng’s mouth opened and closed, but no words came out.