A Good-for-Nothing

163. Li Zong’s Handling of the Matters (1)

Translator: Dragon Rider

He Changchun’s heavy heart lurched at the last word of Li Zong’s. With a bemused expression, he looked at Li Zong. “What do you mean, Group Leader Li?”

Li Zong lifted his eyes and replied, “It’s about a personal grudge.”

Li Zong was sitting on a sofa, without any arrogance on his face. He just slightly raised his chin and He Changchun sensibly shut his mouth.

Li Zong’s reputation as a cold-faced, emotionless vice-superintendent was by no means unearned. Beneath his gaze which was intimidating even to Yōkai, both He Changchun and Qiao Peiyu didn’t dare utter a word.

“Let me put it in a brief way. Qiao Peiyu used a piece of yin jade (In Chinese philosophy and medicine, yin and yang are the two opposing principles in nature, the former feminine and negative, the latter masculine and positive) as a magic tool and sealed He Zheng’s cultivation endowments, and then put the yin jade in Mrs. Zhu’s cinerary urn to harness her residual Qi as a source of nourishment, keeping Mrs. Zhu from resting in peace. Patriarch He, what kind of punishment do you think I should mete out to the culprit for all this?”

After a moment’s stupefaction, He Changchun recalled that the day before, when he was talking with He Zheng, He Zheng seemed to have mentioned this as well.

He Changchun was astonished. “Wh–What do you mean by ‘sealed his cultivation endowments’?”

But when asking this question, He Changchun subconsciously shifted his gaze to Qiao Peiyu, who had a perplexed look as well and didn’t seem to be faking it.

Li Zong gave a sketchy account of what Qiao Peiyu had done with the piece of yin jade.

Then he added, “I was dismissed from the position as vice-superintendent because of another matter. It had nothing to do with He Zheng’s participation in the examination for the Special Talents Training Program (STTP). He passed the interview and the training session utterly unaided.”

“How’s that impossible!” blurted Qiao Peiyu.

Li Zong said matter-of-factly, “He Zheng is a disciple of the Qingwei Sect, a cultivator of both Fu-craft and swordcraft.”

He fleetingly paused, looked at He Changchun and said, “The Shadow Sword has acknowledged He Zheng as its master.”

He Changchun was thunderstruck. He Zheng, whom he had always thought poorly of, and whom everybody regarded as a good-for-nothing, had not only passed the interview for STTP all by himself, but also taken possession of the Shadow Sword which was one of the top ten most famous swords?

How was that possible?!

“That can’t be true. He Zheng could never have done that! We tested him when he was a boy. He’s not capable of cultivating at all!”

“During He Zheng’s stay in Shen City, he accidentally broke the jade pendant, undoing the magical seal. Afterwards, Xuanqing counteracted the aftermath of the seal and purified his meridians with heavenly lightning. He Zheng is extraordinarily talented. Although he won’t be able to make any great achievements any time soon, passing the interview was no big problem for him.”

He Changchun looked as though he was in a trance, believing that he’d just misheard.

A family of cultivators set great store by its members’ endowment, and a talented heir meant the world to it. This was the very reason why He Changchun had taken Qiao Peiyu into the He family when Zhu Ning had been still alive. Firstly, Qiao Peiyu was pretty and tender; and more importantly, Qiao Peiyu had given birth to He Qin who was quite gifted, before Zhu Ning bore him a child.

In addition, when He Zheng had been old enough to start cultivating, elders of the He family had found that he was innately incapable of cultivating. After Zhu Ning’s death, He Changchun, though somewhat unsatisfied with Qiao Peiyu’s family background, had still chosen to make her his legal wife, and He Qin had been the sole reason for it.

But now, even Li Zong was saying that He Zheng was extraordinarily talented. He Changchun couldn’t even imagine how great He Zheng’s cultivation endowments were. But it was a fact that in such a short time, He Zheng had grown from a common young man who couldn’t cultivate into who he was.

He Changchun felt as though a bucket of ice had just been poured into his stomach. Only the day before, he declared that he disowned this son of his.

Also, he had signed the papers.

He Changchun slumped down onto the sofa as if drained of energy, unable to speak.

Qiao Peiyu looked as though she’d just been struck by lightning. Why? Why that good-for-nothing was getting all this?!

Qiao Peiyu suddenly burst into laughter. “Ha-ha… You think you can pin all these crimes on me as you please? Yin jade? I’ve never even heard of it!”

Qiao Peiyu’s eyes went cold. “Li Zong, stop playing the tough guy. Who are you to wade in our family matters?”

“Shut up!” stormed He Changchun.

Qiao Peiyu’s heart sank. She looked at He Changchun as though he were a stranger. “Did I say it wrong? He Zheng wouldn’t have still been alive were I capable of that!”

“You–!”

Qiao Peiyu had cast aside all consideration of face.

He Changchun sprang to his feet from the sofa. “Take her away!”

“Why?! Why?!” Qiao Peiyu lost control of her emotions and started struggling violently.

Servants were afraid of her and didn’t dare approach her.

“Take her away!”

Qiao Peiyu’s hysteria deepened He Changchun’s disgust for her.

No matter whether Qiao Peiyu was responsible for this matter or not, as things stood, she was the only one who could have done it. And no matter whether she admitted it or not, the die had been cast.

“Li Zong, I’ll give you a reply you deem satisfactory.” He Changchun took a deep breath. He couldn’t afford to offend Li Zong. Li Zong’s visit on this day made He Changchun realize that he couldn’t afford to offend Li Zong at all. He humbled himself, heedless of the fact that he was much older than Li Zong, for he had to ensure the He family’s survival. “I’d like to see He Zheng. I failed that kid.”

“That won’t be necessary. He Zheng is no longer a member of the He family,” commented Li Zong. Qiao Peiyu was a woman with many means and had left no loose ends. Actually they had no proof that Qiao Peiyu was the one who’d done all those things. As a result, letting He Changchun deal with it was their only choice.

“Patriarch He, there’s one particular fact I’d like to remind you of.”

“In the Supernaturalism Management Bureau (SMB), I’m the group leader of the first action group, but outside SMB, I’m He Zheng’s marriage partner, Li Zong of the Li family.”