Chapter 97: Mr. Jiang’s Funeral Pyre

Chapter 97: Mr. Jiang's Funeral Pyre

At this moment, Jiang Huizhou was unaware that in the eyes of the military academy's faculty and students, he had already become a saintly figure whose remains could yield three sacred relics.

When Ji Yuan came to report, Jiang Huizhou was sitting at a sleek bar counter. A glass of ruby-red wine, crystal-clear and untouched, had been sitting in front of him for a long time, refracting a gem-like glow under the warm yellow light.

Jiang Huizhou squinted, his fingers dancing swiftly across the holographic display before him.

"Mr. Jiang," Ji Yuan spoke up, "Madam has left the premises."

Jiang Huizhou nodded, "Where to?"

"From what I know, it should be Sishui Jiang Pavilion," Ji Yuan paused, then added, "I had the reservation list checked for Sishui Jiang Pavilion and found that Jiang Shuiling booked a private room last night, scheduled for today."

Jiang Huizhou suddenly looked up from the vast sea of data, "Is he meeting with Jiang Shuiling?"

Ji Yuan nodded, "Judging from the timeline, it seems so."

Jiang Huizhou didn't ponder for long and quickly stood up, "I'll go there."

Ji Yuan tried to stop him, "Mr. Jiang, with your current status, it's really not convenient for you to show up! Moreover, the situation is unclear. Perhaps Madam has his own plans. It's too dangerous for you to go out now. If Jiang Shuiling discovers you, you won't be able to leave!"

"Under imperial law, a disgraced omega forfeits child custody," Jiang Huizhou said calmly, "I can guess Jiang Shuiling's game with my eyes closed!"

"Don't you think, since Jiang Shuiling's intentions are so obvious, why would Madam still go? You know Madam is far from foolish, he must have his own purpose!" Ji Yuan was almost driven mad by this love-struck brain, "Besides, with the Wan family's backing, Madam is in safe hands."

"He won't be fine," Jiang Huizhou picked up his coat from the chair, "It's a matter of grave importance."

Ji Yuan: "..."

Jiang Huizhou glanced at Ji Yuan's look of utter exasperation, suddenly pursed his lips and chuckled lightly, patting his shoulder, his tone even carrying a hint of joy, "Of course, I know Zhi Zhi isn't unaware of Jiang Shuiling's intentions. My Zhi Zhi is the smartest person in the world. By doing this, rather than keeping Jiang Shuiling's appointment, it's more like he's inviting me to join him."

Ji Yuan rolled his eyes.

If you know, why are you still going!

Being love-struck is the most incurable ailment of all.

"I once used his sincerity to scheme against him," Jiang Huizhou's tone grew even more cheerful, "So now, he's giving me a taste of my own medicine."

Ji Yuan hissed, "Why are you sounding more and more pleased? Is this something to be happy about?"

"Of course," Jiang Huizhou's eyes hid madness, "He can use this to scheme against me, which means in his heart, there might be a tiny bit of willingness to believe in me. So, how can I disappoint my dear Zhi Zhi?"

Ji Yuan didn't understand, "But... this is dangerous. Not to mention if Jiang Shuiling has arranged people, you've never been skilled in martial arts. If something really happens, you might actually die this time. There's no backup clone this time!"

"So what?"

Ji Yuan was silent for two minutes before speaking, "So, when you went to see Madam before, you intentionally left traces of deleting the surveillance footage, waiting for this moment, right? Isn't your approach to romance just bizarre?"

Bizarre and crazy.

Indeed, birds of a feather flock together, their Mr. Jiang is crazy, and their Madam isn't much better!

Jiang Huizhou laughed heartily, patting Ji Yuan's shoulder, "Wait for me to come back."

After saying that, he donned a disguise, complete with sunglasses and a mask, and walked out.

Faced with such a boss, Ji Yuan had no option but to comply, anxiously rallying the troops. If Madam shows no mercy, Mr. Jiang could truly be facing death, at least they could step in to mediate...

Shen Zhixue arrived at the Sishui Jiang Pavilion at 7:40 PM, twenty minutes before the scheduled time of 8:00 PM.

Shen Zhixue glanced at the time on his smartwatch, and Jiang Shuiling appeared at the entrance of the Sishui Jiang Pavilion.

This was a high-end restaurant, priced exorbitantly, out of reach for the average citizen of the empire, so the place was nearly empty, making it a convenient and discreet spot for any activities.

The moment Jiang Shuiling saw him, a glint of satisfaction and malice flickered in her eyes.

Shen Zhixue gave a faint smile, "Miss Jiang, you're here early."

"You're not late either. What, so eager to learn about your own past?" Jiang Shuiling sneered.

Shen Zhixue chuckled, politely pulling out a chair for Jiang Shuiling, and said, "Let’s sit down and talk this through."

Jiang Shuiling couldn’t quite figure out Shen Zhixue’s intentions. He seemed eager, yet oddly calm.

However, no matter what he was scheming, tonight, Shen Zhixue would definitely lose guardianship of Jiang Xingliu!

Shortly after they sat down, a waiter arrived with a bottle of red wine.

Jiang Shuiling stood up, poured Shen Zhixue a glass of wine, and said, "Since we're here, let's take our time. Try the wine I've stored here. This glass is worth a fortune."

Shen Zhixue leaned back in his chair, took the wine glass, swirled it, and directly said, "Indeed, it's quite valuable. The inheritance Jiang Huizhou left behind could probably buy half the empire, don’t you think?"

Jiang Shuiling faked a smile, "What do you mean by that?"

"What’s in this wine, I don’t need to spell it out," Shen Zhixue chuckled lightly. "And you, Jiang Shuiling, if you truly knew where my parents were, you wouldn’t have dragged me here for such a dirty trick."

Jiang Shuiling jumped up from her chair in alarm.

"So, you must have learned from the Shen elders that I'm not their biological child and decided to test me," Shen Zhixue looked down, calmly inspecting his fingers. "Isn’t that right?"

"If you knew, why did you still come?" Jiang Shuiling clenched her fists. "You came on purpose? What’s your game?"

"You see, this is the difference between you and me," Shen Zhixue spread his hands, speaking calmly. "I can read your simple mind like a book, and yet, even with me standing right in front of you, you still don't know my intentions."

Jiang Shuiling’s face turned pale with rage, "Are you insulting me?"

"Not exactly, just giving you a piece of advice. People should focus on their strengths and steer clear of their weaknesses. If your brain isn't up to it, don't keep scheming. Even if the Jiang family goes bankrupt, you'll still have food to eat. Why bother me for a bit of money?" Shen Zhixue sighed. "Don't mess with a merchant's money, don't take a poor man's food. Miss Jiang, it's a pity you won't have time to deeply understand this saying."

Jiang Shuiling gripped the back of her chair, nervously stepping back, "What do you want to do?"

"Nothing much. I told you long ago, I have no interest in your Jiang family's wealth, just want what's rightfully mine. I never intended to compete with you for any man. Lu Qingyan doesn't like you simply because you're not worthy, it has nothing to do with others. My life principle has always been to not provoke others if unprovoked. Unfortunately, you didn't believe me."

"My life principles are quite flexible. Since you didn't believe me, I'll just adopt a new set of principles."

Shen Zhixue picked up his glass of red wine and swirled it.

"Then, it's either prosperity with me, or perish against me."

Before Jiang Shuiling could recover from her shock, Shen Zhixue grabbed her chin, and with a crisp crack, a sharp pain shot through her jaw!

She felt her jaw dislocate, unable to close her mouth, as Shen Zhixue poured the glass of red wine down her throat!

Jiang Shuiling struggled incessantly, but with her jaw dislocated by Shen Zhixue, she couldn't even beg for mercy!

Not satisfied, Shen Zhixue picked up the wine bottle from the table and poured it into Jiang Shuiling's mouth. Her clothes were soaked, the crimson, gem-like liquid gushing down, choking her with continuous coughs!

After emptying the bottle, Shen Zhixue stood up, took a napkin from the table, and meticulously wiped his fingers clean of the liquid, then opened the door to the private room.

The corridor was strewn with people lying on the ground, each with bloodied heads and constant cries of pain.

Not far away, a tall figure collapsed to his knees, unable to stand, gasping for breath with his head bowed.

He looked completely disheveled, his head apparently bashed in by someone, with bright red blood streaming from his temple down to his jaw and into his snow-white collar.

Jiang Huizhou raised his head, one eye filled with blood. He saw Shen Zhixue and smiled, then slowly stood up, leaning against the wall.

Even in such a wretched state, his posture still carried an air of nobility and grace.

Shen Zhixue stepped up to him.

Jiang Huizhou wiped the blood off his face and croaked out, "Zhi Zhi, I'm back—"

Before he could finish, a sharp slap rang out, turning Jiang Huizhou's face to the side.

Shen Zhixue's slap was brutal. Jiang Huizhou, already unsteady on his feet, staggered a few steps after the slap and half-knelt on the ground.

He laughed carelessly, "So ruthless, Zhi Zhi."

"Sorry," Shen Zhixue said expressionlessly. "Compared to you, I'm not nearly ruthless enough."

Jiang Huizhou, half-kneeling, reached out and grabbed Shen Zhixue's hand, whimpering, "Ouch, it hurts. Help me up, darling."

Shen Zhixue raised his hand and struck Jiang Huizhou again.

Jiang Huizhou let out a soft grunt.

Shen Zhixue walked over, grabbed Jiang Huizhou's collar, and snapped, "It better hurt! When I watched you die in front of me, it hurt a lot more than this! I really thought I had killed you! I really thought I had crushed a sincere heart! I really thought you would give up everything and your life for me!"

Jiang Huizhou, despite being beaten by his wife, seemed to enjoy it. Even with his face swollen to the size of a pig's head, he still smiled, "Even so, you still believed in me. You believed I would come, or else this whole setup wouldn't have happened."

He reached out, grabbed Shen Zhixue's wrist, and smiled with joy, "Zhi Zhi, I came to honor the appointment. I'm sorry."

Shen Zhixue looked at him, the immense anger in his heart had mostly subsided. He pushed Jiang Huizhou away and said with frustration, "You knew I was going to take you down, yet you still came."

"What else could I do?" Jiang Huizhou sighed. "If I didn't come, you wouldn't forgive me."

Shen Zhixue sneered, "And now I can forgive you?"

Jiang Huizhou pointed to his swollen face, "I'm already hurt like this, and you don't even pity me."

"Sorry," Shen Zhixue shook the blood off his hand, "This man, I don't know you. I'm just a widow whose husband died. Why should I feel sorry for you?"

Jiang Huizhou nodded and was about to speak when a woman's sultry moan came from the private room.

The effects of the drug in the red wine must have kicked in.

Jiang Huizhou casually wiped the blood off his face with his sleeve and glanced at the time, "Wan Chenghan is about to arrive. Let's go."

Shen Zhixue snorted coldly and walked past Jiang Huizhou, heading out.

Jiang Huizhou quickly followed, "Zhi Zhi, help me up. It really hurts... I'm a thinker, not a fighter. I really gave it my all just now. Hey, Zhi Zhi, slow down, wait for me."

He didn't even bother to put on his mask and sunglasses again, just followed Shen Zhixue, covered in blood.

In his current state, even if he were brought before Jiang Yingshan, Jiang Yingshan probably wouldn't recognize this swollen pig's head as his own son...