Saving the Heartthrob Frenemy-Chapter 517: Mad man’s chorus
Lee Ya staggered from the push but quickly regained her composure, her lips curling into a sneer. He accused him of coveting his things but wasn’t he the one who showed up out of nowhere and took her position as heir? She smirked as the gears of vengeance began to turn behind her smouldering gaze. This was not the end, merely an overture to the reckoning that Luo Muchen had now set in motion. This competition was her chance to eliminate him and with the Zhang family as her backing, it would be easy.
He turned back to guide the disciples, his focus unbroken, as if Lee Ya wasn’t standing there. Her presence was no more than the rustling of leaves beneath their feet.
As she shook her wrist which was screaming in pain, someone suddenly showed up and when she recognised the man Lee Ya laughed as she sat down on a boulder.
"Brother... your future wife is summoning you. Why not run there like a little dog? We wouldn’t want your future master to be displeased," she said taunting him Luo Muchen turned around only to find a servant of the Zi family standing there with his eyes wide in shock. This young miss of the Lee family was something else indeed.
He knew that the family relation was strained but he didn’t think she would openly mock the future clan leader. He pretended like he hadn’t heard anything and bowed his head, "Young Master Luo, the master summons you. The young miss is ill and requests your presence," he said and Luo Muchen clenched his jaw. He had been waiting for Master Zi to return so he could personally tell him that he didn’t want to marry his daughter. He knew the price was high and was ready to pay it.
He called Bo Ailun and said, "Keep helping them train. I will be right back."
Bo Ailun kind of knew that this wasn’t going to be good. The wound on Luo Muchen’s forehead hadn’t completely healed yet and he couldn’t imagine what they would do to him when he told them that he wouldn’t marry their daughter.
He grasped Luo Muchen’s arm and shook his head. Luo Muchen tried to reassure him. There was no way he was going to give up his feelings for Qie Xieling just to appease someone he had no interest in.
He walked down the mountain following behind the Zi family servant. While going down the man turned back to look at him and said, "Young master, it wouldn’t be good to meet the young miss empty-handed. How about we pass by the pharmacy and buy her some ginseng?"
Luo Muchen wanted to tell him that there was no need but he decided against it. He might be ending their partnership but he should at least bring something for her as she was ill again.
***
The morning sun cast a gentle glow on the dew-speckled camellias lining the path to the inner courtyard of the Zi family’s temporary residence. Luo Muchen stood there with a box of precious ginseng clutched in his hands his mind wandering. Despite the servant’s urgings, he had resolutely refused to ascend the jade steps to Young Miss Zi’s chambers. He wanted to speak to Master Zi, not her.
Suddenly he heard the sound of women chattering across the courtyard so he looked back to greet them politely when one of them caught his attention. Those eyes, he had looked deeply into those before so much so that he could easily recognise the resemblance. He knew of Qie Xieling’s story but he didn’t think there it had something to do with the Zi family. The woman greeted him back but the one he was looking at snorted before fanning herself and walking away. Luo Muchen’s mind started racing with all kinds of possibilities when the door was opened.
Master Zi nonchalantly gestured beckoning him to come in. Luo Muchen entered the room and performed the customary greeting, his hands forming a respectful cup before him, though he was met with nothing more than a cursory nod.
The air was thick with the scent of ink and aged parchment, a stark contrast to the crisp freshness outside. Master Zi, his face an unreadable mask, gestured to the chair across from him. Luo Muchen sat, the box of ginseng resting ominously on the table between them.
Master Zi’s disdain for Luo Muchen was a poorly kept secret but most interpreted it as the conflict between future father-in-law and son-in-law. His daughter’s affection for Luo Muchen was the only thread binding Luo Muchen to any semblance of tolerance by Master Zi.
"Why did you insist on seeing me?" he asked as he lifted the porcelain cup to his lips.
Luo Muchen steeled himself before saying, "I am fully aware of how precious your daughter is to you and... she equally deserves a husband who would treat her as well as you do. I am also aware that I am not deserving of her due to my lacking status and wealth."
Master Zi snorted. This boy was truly self-aware. "Isn’t that obvious? Why mention it?" he said as he leaned back in his chair.
"It is because of that that I came to speak to you. I came here to break off the promise of marriage."
The room fell into an eerie silence for a long time. Luo Muchen was ready to be hit with the ink grind stone just like his father hit him before but it didn’t happen.
Instead, Master Zi let out a manic laughter that echoed off the walls of the study like a madman’s chorus. It was a laugh devoid of joy, one that sent a shiver down Luo Muchen’s spine. After what felt like an eternity in the unsettling atmosphere he suddenly stopped laughing and glared at Luo Muchen.
Without a word, he signalled, and his men stepped forward from the shadows, their presence suddenly ominous. They approached Luo Muchen, their intentions clear. Yet Luo Muchen did not flinch nor attempt to flee. As he said before, he was willing to pay the price whatever it was.
