When Ming Zhu entered the Great Hall, Guining Zhenren was leaning against a soft couch, rubbing his temples. His face was slightly pale, and he clearly looked to be in a foul mood.
Ming Zhu’s footsteps faltered for a moment before he steeled himself and walked forward.
Hearing the footsteps, Guining Zhenren looked up and swept a cold, indifferent gaze over him.
After a year apart, Guining Zhenren had not changed in the slightest. His face still bore that familiar look of impatience that screamed, *“If you have something to say, say it; otherwise, get lost.”*
Ming Zhu knelt down with proper decorum and performed his salutations. "Disciple greets Master."
Guining Zhenren let out an impatient "Mm?" from the back of his throat.
Ming Zhu did not rise. After a moment of deliberation, he went straight to the point. "I beg Master to expel Zhou Fuxue from Rizhao."
Before the words had even fully left his mouth, Guining Zhenren hurled a teacup directly at him. It struck Ming Zhu heavily on the shoulder, causing him to stagger and nearly fall over.
The porcelain cup shattered across the floor.
Fortunately, Ming Zhu was someone who did not feel pain; otherwise, that blow would have surely sent him wailing in agony.
Guining Zhenren looked at him coldly and said, "Get out."
Instead of leaving, Ming Zhu pressed his forehead to the ground and repeated, "I ask Master to grant this request."
Guining Zhenren snapped in anger, "Ming Zhu! I told you to get out!"
Ming Zhu remained motionless on the floor, his voice still calm. "I am willing to swear an oath never to leave the sect for the rest of my life, if only Master will expel Zhou Fuxue from Rizhao Mountain."
Guining Zhenren was so angry he laughed. "Give me a reason."
Ming Zhu thought for a moment before straightening his back. "He offended me."
Guining Zhenren: "..."
Ming Zhu continued to add fuel to the fire. "Last night, he committed an act of insubordination, attempting to lay hands on me and profane your disciple. I cannot stomach this insult. On this Rizhao Mountain, it is either him or me. We cannot coexist."
Guining Zhenren looked at him in astonishment. After a long silence, he finally spoke. "He..."
Ming Zhu didn't even blink as he lied through his teeth. "Your disciple possesses national grace and divine fragrance, a beauty as lovely as a flower. It is only natural that anyone would want to taste my sweetness and tumble in the sheets with me. I believe Master is well aware of this."
Guining Zhenren: "..." *No, I am not aware.*
"Thirteenth Junior Brother is young and impetuous. Living with me day and night, it is only human nature that he couldn't control himself for a moment. However, I truly cannot swallow this grievance. I hope Master will grant my wish."
Guining Zhenren: "..."
Faced with such a shameless person, Guining Zhenren found that even his immense rage had nowhere to go. After a moment, he rubbed his temples and said weakly, "Nonsense. Get out. This matter is not up for discussion. If you do not wish to see him, I will have him move to Luohua Residence. I will also tell him to stay out of your sight."
Ming Zhu shuffled forward a few steps on his knees, his voice urgent. "Master! Previously, when Twelfth Junior Brother harbored other intentions toward me, you expelled him from the sect without a second thought. Why is Zhou Fuxue any different?"
Guining Zhenren stared at him fixedly, as if trying to discern something from his eyes. After a long while, he waved his hand feebly. "Go, go, go."
Ming Zhu: "Master!"
Guining Zhenren said coldly, "I said no, and I mean no! Even if Zhou Fuxue is to die, he must die here on Rizhao Mountain."
Ming Zhu stared at him blankly. After a long pause, he asked in a hoarse voice, "Is it because he is my sword sheath?"
Guining Zhenren was taken aback, and his expression instantly darkened.
"Because he is a sword sheath, he must live for my sake?" Ming Zhu asked. "Can he not even be his own person?"
Guining Zhenren took a deep breath and, surprisingly, did not deny it. "Yes."
"He was originally the Red Lotus Sword Sheath your father traveled across the five continents to find for you. I saved his life; I may use him however I see fit. He has no right to choose his own destiny."
Guining Zhenren spoke these cruel words airily, as if he were merely discussing the ownership of an object.
Ming Zhu watched him quietly for a long time before saying, "But, I don't want him."
Guining Zhenren replied coldly, "You don't have a choice either."
Ming Zhu was speechless.
Guining Zhenren did not wish to discuss the matter further. He waved his hand. "Go back. I won't hold this against you this time. But if you mention expelling Zhou Fuxue from Rizhao Mountain again, I will not show you any mercy."
Ming Zhu struck his head against the ground. His forehead hit the hard bluestone floor with a loud thud, and a bloody bruise quickly formed between his brows. He said softly, "No. If Master does not agree, I will kneel here until I die."
Seeing that this little brat actually dared to threaten him, Guining Zhenren let out a cold laugh. "If you love kneeling so much, then get out and kneel outside. Don't come back until you've knelt yourself to death."
Ming Zhu pursed his lips and actually stood up, intending to go kneel outside. Guining Zhenren was stunned. Before he could speak, he heard the brat suddenly cry out "Ah!" Ming Zhu’s back was turned to him as his hands moved frantically, and then, a faint scent of blood began to permeate the Great Hall.
Guining Zhenren had a bad premonition.
In the next moment, Ming Zhu turned around and threw a broken porcelain shard onto the floor, revealing half of his face drenched in blood. He curled his lips into a smile and said, "I will kneel outside and let the other disciples know that Master is unreasonable and intentionally slashed his disciple's face. I believe Yanfeng will be the first one to come and condemn you."
With that, he didn't wait for Guining Zhenren to respond. He strode out, gathered his robes, and knelt straight-backed outside the Great Hall.
Guining Zhenren: "..."
Ming Zhu had disfigured himself without the slightest concern. Instead, he knelt there leisurely, the finger-long, hideous wound on his cheek bleeding profusely, looking truly shocking to the eye.
After the morning lessons ended, the disciples passed by the Great Hall. At first glance, they saw Ming Zhu’s pale face and his bleeding wound.
It was common for Ming Zhu to be punished with kneeling outside the hall, so no one thought much of it at first. However, this time, everyone stopped in their tracks because of Ming Zhu’s face, which had clearly been slashed by a sharp object. Within moments, a crowd had gathered, everyone talking at once, asking what had happened.
Ming Zhu started spouting nonsense. "Your Eldest Senior Brother is so pitiful. I just came out of seclusion and went to pay my respects to Master, but Master was in a bad mood today. He scolded me harshly and even threw a teacup at me. My shoulder is probably all swollen..."
The disciples cried out, "Uwah, Eldest Senior Brother is so miserable! Master has gone too far!"
Ming Zhu added, "I am so wretched!"
Guining Zhenren, who could hear everything clearly from inside the hall: "..."
"I am so pitiful... a beauty's life is truly ill-fated..."
"Eldest Senior Brother, waaaaah..."
The outside was a chorus of weeping.
Guining Zhenren: "..."
A moment later, Shang Yanfeng’s voice drifted in from outside. The noisy crowd quickly dispersed, likely sent away by the Fifth Senior Brother.
Before Guining Zhenren could breathe a sigh of relief, the doors to the Great Hall were pushed open. Shang Yanfeng walked in with a face full of cold indifference. He cupped his hands in greeting. "Disciple greets Master."
Guining Zhenren asked, "What are you doing here?"
Shang Yanfeng’s face was filled with dissatisfaction and condemnation. "Even if Eldest Senior Brother committed a great error, Master should not have slashed his face. If it leaves a scar, how is he supposed to face anyone in the future?"
Guining Zhenren: "..."
Just as Ming Zhu had predicted, the first person to come and demand justice was indeed Shang Yanfeng, who was particularly fond of Ming Zhu’s face.
Guining Zhenren was nearly driven to death by anger. He roared, "Get out! If he wants to kneel, let him kneel! It would be best if he knelt to death right there! No one is allowed to plead for him!"
Shang Yanfeng left reluctantly. As soon as he looked up, he saw Ming Zhu, who was at the bottom of the stone steps, smiling at him. The wound on his cheek was glaringly bright.
Even with a slashed face, Ming Zhu was still handsome and elegant. He smiled and said, "Master is probably still in a fit of rage. You shouldn't go and provoke him further."
Shang Yanfeng walked forward and knelt on one knee before him. He reached out and gently touched the side of Ming Zhu's face, his heart aching. "Why didn't you know to dodge?"
Ming Zhu blinked, about to say something, when a series of footsteps approached from the side. He tilted his head and saw that his other junior brothers had all arrived, having somehow received the news.
Ming Zhu raised an eyebrow. Before they could speak, he said, "Why are you all here? By the way, who was the last person to leave my room? Step forward and confess—did you actually clean up my room or not? If I go back and see a mess, I definitely won't let you off easy."
Shen Di'an walked over, nudging Shang Yanfeng aside. He carefully examined the wound on Ming Zhu's face, his brows knitting into a tight knot. "You just can't go a day without making Master angry, can you? This wound is too deep; it doesn't look like it was caused by a thrown cup."
As he spoke, he gave Ming Zhu a meaningful look, as if he had seen through the ruse.
Ming Zhu lunged forward and buried his face in Shen Di'an's chest, looking as though he were acting spoiled. However, his hand gave Shen Di'an's waist a sharp pinch as he whispered a warning: "Shut up."
Shen Di'an hissed in pain and pulled Ming Zhu's "paws" away. "Fine. Come back with me. I'll apply some medicine for you. If we delay, it might leave a scar."
Although Ming Zhu had just claimed he would kneel there until he died, as soon as Shen Di'an spoke, he went back on his word. He stood up smoothly, not even glancing at the pale-faced Zhou Fuxue nearby, and followed Shen Di'an away.
From Guining Zhenren's reaction earlier, Ming Zhu already knew that forcing Master to expel Zhou Fuxue was a dead end. He had given up on that path the moment he left the hall. As for slashing his own face, it was merely an attempt to make Zhou Fuxue stay further away from him.
In Ming Zhu’s view, the reason Zhou Fuxue was obsessed with him was simply because of this face. As long as he was disfigured, no matter how much of a crush Zhou Fuxue had, it ought to dissipate.
Shen Di'an frowned as he used a hot, damp cloth to wipe the dried blood from Ming Zhu's wound. "So you really slashed your own face?"
Ming Zhu sighed. "I can only blame my natural beauty. I am truly a trouble-causing beauty."
Shen Di'an rolled his eyes. He picked up some high-quality golden sore ointment and was about to apply it when Ming Zhu stopped him.
"Better not," Ming Zhu said seriously. "They say scars are a symbol of a man's bravery. I've decided to keep it."
Shen Di'an looked at him expressionlessly, gave an "Oh," and then pulled aside the beaded curtain of the outer room, calling out, "Fifth Senior Brother, Eldest Senior Brother says he doesn't want the medicine. He wants to keep the scar."
Ming Zhu: "..."
In the next instant, he was forcibly pinned down onto the couch by a rushing Shang Yanfeng.
Ming Zhu struggled wildly. "Hey! Hey! You two! This is my own face, I can do what I want with it! Hey... Heavens, Old Tenth, don't put the medicine on, don't... *hiss hiss ahhh* it hurts, it hurts! You're killing me!"
Shen Di'an's hand paused, but Shang Yanfeng said coldly, "Don't listen to his nonsense. Continue."
Only then did Shen Di'an say "Oh" and continue applying the ointment.
Ming Zhu screamed as if he were being forced into a life of shame. After a while, he stopped struggling and lay weakly on the couch, looking listless.
Shang Yanfeng looked at his pale face and only then realized that the body beneath his hands seemed somewhat burning.
Shen Di'an checked his pulse and said decisively, "He's developed a fever. Go get some water."
Ming Zhu lay listlessly on the couch, his whole body limp and weak, still whimpering and moaning under his breath.
His physical constitution was normally quite good, but whenever he was exposed to the cold wind, he tended to develop a fever. Perhaps due to the Red Lotus Spiritual Vein, his fevers always came on extremely fast, sweeping through his entire body with a vengeance in less than fifteen minutes.
Soon, Ming Zhu was so delirious from the fever that he couldn't recognize anyone even with his eyes open.
Someone dressed in white moved back and forth in front of him. Ming Zhu forced his eyes open but couldn't see clearly who it was. He reached out blindly, trying to grab the person, but his hand fell back down weakly.
"Master," he called out softly.
The person froze for a moment, then walked to his side and gently touched his burning forehead.
"Senior Brother?"
Ming Zhu looked at him dizzily, his mind a chaotic mess. He could only follow his instincts and whisper, "Master... please expel Fuxue from the sect..."
The white-clad figure stiffened completely.
Unaware, Ming Zhu’s eyes curved slightly as he mumbled, "Disciple... will surely be filial to Master... In the future, I won't run away anymore."
"Master, please promise me..."
"Grant your disciple's wish."
This was followed by a string of incoherent mumbling.
Shen Di'an returned with a bowl of brewed medicine. As he lifted the beaded curtain, he saw Zhou Fuxue standing by the couch, his body rigid and his face as white as paper.
Shen Di'an asked in confusion, "Fuxue? What's wrong? Is Eldest Senior Brother feeling any better?"
Zhou Fuxue started. Without saying a word, he turned and fled in a state of utter distress.
***
**Glossary**
Enjoying the story? Rate this novel:
Is Everyone Else's Eldest Disciple Like This? | Chapter 54 | A Troubling Beauty | Novela.app | Novela.app
