I Only Stomp on Weaklings

"What did you call me?"

Chen Ming looked at Jiang Yingxue with a blank expression, making her feel dispirited. She pouted, "There’s no one else here..."

"You can leave; I need to heal."

He withdrew his hand.

"Sister Yuan. I know I was wrong."

Jiang Yingxue grabbed his hand, looking at him pitifully.

Chen Ming transmitted his voice, "Don’t forget, I’m a woman now. Don’t slip up in front of others, especially those around you. Whoever finds out this secret, I’ll silence them."

"Mm-hmm."

Jiang Yingxue appeared touched, "Sister, you’re really thinking of me, worrying about my reputation being damaged... Don’t worry, I won’t let anyone find out."

I just don’t want social death.

Chen Ming’s eye twitched slightly, and he changed the topic, "Do you have a relationship with Yu Haitang?"

Jiang Yingxue’s eyes immediately turned red, and she lowered her head, somewhat dejectedly saying, "As soon as you arrive in Jiangzhou City, you think of seeing that vixen..."

Don’t forget, she’s the main wife, and you’re the vixen.

Chen Ming thought to himself, then said, "I just thought if there’s a chance in the future, I’d visit my family. If you don’t want to help, I’ll find her myself."

"I’ll help."

Hearing that he wanted to find Yu Haitang himself, Jiang Yingxue panicked and grabbed his arm, "Our Jiang Family has a good relationship with the Cangyue Sect. I can visit her in my father’s name and bring you to her husband’s house as a guest."

Yu Haitang’s "husband’s house" is naturally the Chen Family in Qingfeng City.

Chen Ming was about to speak when he suddenly stopped.

Then, a maid’s voice came from outside, "Miss, Miss Zhao from the Governor’s Mansion is here to see you."

Jiang Yingxue responded, "I know, I’ll be right there."

Then she looked at Chen Ming with a mischievous expression and deliberately asked, "Sister, do you want to meet Miss Zhao? I can introduce you."

It’s Zhao Xiyan.

Chen Ming did not expect that the first acquaintance he would meet after returning to Jiangzhou City would be Zhao Xiyan.

In fact, his fall into the lava sea in the Fire Element Secret Realm happened only three months ago. Yet it felt like a long time.

The last time he saw Zhao Xiyan was at the Cyan Cloud Ranking meeting.

Now, in just a few short months, so much has changed.

He is already Second Grade.

...

"Xiyan!"

Jiang Yingxue went outside to greet Zhao Xiyan. Seeing her, she felt quite emotional, going up to hold her hand; she almost wanted to cry.

She wasn’t very familiar with Zhao Xiyan before. Only after the rumors of Chen Ming’s accident spread did they become friends, getting closer and becoming intimate sisters.

"Xiaoxue, I heard you had an accident this time. I was worried sick." Zhao Xiyan looked anxious, holding her hand, "Let me see, are you hurt?"

"I thought I might not see you again." Jiang Yingxue’s lips quivered, and tears came at once.

"It’s good you’re okay."

Zhao Xiyan looked pained, holding her in her arms, her heart like being pricked by needles.

A beautiful young girl, falling into the hands of villains, God knows what she went through...

Not wanting to evoke bad memories for her friend, she asked, "I heard someone rescued you?"

"Mm, thanks to Sister Yuan, who, like me, was captured by those villains. If it weren’t for her, I wouldn’t have come back this time..."

Jiang Yingxue wiped her tears and pulled her hand, saying, "Come, I’ll take you to meet Sister Yuan."

...

"This is Zhao Xiyan, my good sister. This is Yuan Ziyi, Sister Yuan, my savior."

Jiang Yingxue brought the two into the courtyard where Chen Ming was staying and introduced them.

Not having seen her for months, Zhao Xiyan looked much more mature. She was no longer the somewhat willful and proud girl from a few years ago.

Zhao Xiyan gave a formal bow, "Thank you, Miss Yuan, for saving Xiaoxue."

"You’re welcome, Miss Zhao. I was saving myself too." Chen Ming bowed back politely.

The three of them sat in the courtyard, drinking tea, eating snacks, and chatting.

As they chatted, Jiang Yingxue suddenly asked, "Xiyan, I heard you went back to Qingfeng City. Did you visit Brother Chen’s family?"

Zhao Xiyan nodded. In front of her, there was no need to deny, "I went."

Jiang Yingxue eagerly asked, "How is the Chen Family now? Are Brother Chen’s elder brother and sister-in-law well?"

"If you’re so curious, why don’t you go yourself?"

"I haven’t had the time yet, have I? Come on, tell me."

Zhao Xiyan then said, "They’re all fine, just worried about his safety and hoping he’ll return soon."

Jiang Yingxue glanced at the nearby "Yuan Ziyi" and asked again, "How about his nephew and niece? I heard his sister-in-law gave birth to another son. Unfortunately, Brother Chen missed the celebration of his little nephew’s first month."

Zhao Xiyan said, "They’re all doing well, Little Lide has already started learning martial arts, Yu... found him an enlightenment teacher. The little guy has good roots and is quite perceptive; everyone says he looks like his uncle when he was little..."

"Little Lirong has been clamoring all day to practice martial arts, saying she wants to go out and find her uncle. She knows I’m her uncle’s friend and secretly asked me if her uncle is hiding because bad people want to harm him..."

"Apologies, I lost my composure a bit."

As she spoke, she felt sorrow in her heart and unwittingly shed tears. Turning around, she wiped the tears away, "Let Miss Yuan make light of me, it’s just that I was reminded of an old friend whose fate is unknown, and my heart was moved."

Chen Ming finally heard about his family’s situation, feeling somewhat complicated. He looked at Zhao Xiyan, whose eyes were still slightly red, and said, "Miss is someone who cherishes old relationships. If that old friend knew, he would certainly appreciate your friendship towards him."

Jiang Yingxue lightly coughed and changed the topic, "Speaking of it, it’s also thanks to that person named Yu, who protected the Chen Family a lot. Otherwise, I’m afraid many people would have caused trouble for Brother Chen’s family."

Zhao Xiyan was indeed distracted, hesitantly saying, "I heard she has some trouble recently."

"Who’s troubling her?"

"It’s said that Lord Pan once warned her not to break through to Third Grade. But last time in the Fire Element Secret Realm, some said she had already stepped into Third Grade. However, at that time Jiangzhou had too many matters and Lord Pan couldn’t spare any attention on her. Now he’s freed up and plans to deal with her. If she cannot establish herself in Jiangzhou, she naturally won’t be able to protect the Chen Family anymore."

At this point, Zhao Xiyan couldn’t help but be somewhat worried.

Yu Haitang could put everything aside, claiming to be Chen Ming’s wife, openly protecting the Chen Family.

However, she couldn’t do the same. Whether it was her father or her master, they certainly wouldn’t allow her to provoke many enemies for an irrelevant Chen Family for no reason.

Jiang Yingxue exclaimed in surprise, "Is there really such a thing? Won’t Ling Qiyang do anything about it?"

Zhao Xiyan said, "After the Fire Element Secret Realm incident, Cangyue Sect suffered heavy casualties. They’re currently pulling back their forces, and he couldn’t possibly go against Lord Pan for a niece-in-law."

In the end, Yu Haitang isn’t someone from Cangyue Sect. Plus, there were already negative rumors; when Ling Qiyang wanted to marry her aunt, many voices within the sect opposed it. It was him who forcibly suppressed them, claiming it was his personal affair.

This time, it’s different from marrying a wife; it’s a public matter, naturally he can’t act willfully.

Jiang Yingxue said, "Lord Pan is at the peak of First Grade, only seeking completion to take another step. His strength, I fear, has few rivals even within First Grade. This time, that person named Yu—seems she’s really in trouble."

Her tone carried some schadenfreude.

She always felt that this shameless person named Yu was shameless, daring to openly declare herself as Brother Chen’s wife, truly brazen!

Upon hearing this unexpected news, Chen Ming couldn’t help but frown. This could be a bit troublesome; his family still relied on Yu Haitang’s protection and couldn’t let Pan Zhiyuan drive her away.

...

Meanwhile, in Xiazhou City.

At Six Gates, inside Zeshi Hall, Hong Yuze was entertaining a distinguished guest.

"Lord Hong, are you saying my nephew went out on a mission with a First Grade Purple Robe?"

The speaker was a man in his thirties, half-leaning on the chair’s back, cradling a cup of wine, enjoying it leisurely and casually, his demeanor somewhat unruly.

Strictly speaking, drinking is not allowed within Six Gates.

Hong Yuze nonetheless led by example, personally filling the guest’s cup with a wide smile, "Yes, Brother Gu, your nephew is remarkable. Previously, he personally slew two First Grades of Nine Ghosts Sect, earning great merit. It’s only a matter of time before he ascends to Third Grade Golden Robe."

"Is that so?"

The man said with an interest, "My seventh nephew has such capabilities? I’ve been practicing martial arts for over thirty years and haven’t slain a First Grade myself. Yet he’s got the skills to kill two in one go, truly impressive."

This person was the fifth uncle of Gu Xianyu, Gu Haochuan.

He had just arrived in Xiazhou City, and his first stop was Six Gates to find his nephew. Only to learn the nephew had gone out on a mission.

"Since that’s the case, I won’t disturb you any longer. I’ll take my leave."

Gu Haochuan naturally disliked dealing with people from Six Gates, immediately rose and took his leave.

At the entrance stood a dashing young man, bearing some resemblance to Gu Xianyu, his nephew and disciple Gu Zhengshan, the fifth in line alongside Gu Xianyu.

Exiting Six Gates Government Office, Gu Haochuan walked the streets, eyes searching for young women. If he spotted a beautiful one, he’d certainly take an extra glance.

The Gu Zhengshan following him was gazing straight ahead, never leaving his side.

Suddenly, Gu Haochuan asked, "Xiaowu, do you think Xiaoqi is someone with deep schemes?"

Gu Zhengshan replied, "One can know a person’s face but not their heart, hard to say."

"At the Gu Family he stayed low-key, concealing his cultivation. He even refused a royal marriage, eventually requesting to leave the capital of his own accord. Once outside, he soared like a dragon returning to the sea, achieving Third Grade at twenty. On the martial arts contest stage, he defeated many peers and won the girl. At Six Gates, in less than a month, he took down two First Grade devil cultivators, achieving unmatched feats. Tsk tsk tsk..."

Gu Haochuan couldn’t help but marvel at the latter, "Xiaoqi was hesitant at Gu Mansion, but in Xiazhou he revealed amazing brilliance, becoming famous. Do you think our Gu Family is so terrifying that he had to hide his talent to protect himself?"

Gu Zhengshan said, "This disciple doesn’t dare to say."

"Hahaha, what an unwilling to say. It seems that the current atmosphere within the Gu Family is truly terrible. Third Brother practiced the art of raising Gu, having the younger generation compete amongst themselves. He probably didn’t anticipate causing his most outstanding son to have to go out to avoid disaster, right?"

Gu Zhengshan remained silent, he wouldn’t dare to comment on that decisive Third Uncle.

Gu Haochuan spoke up here, suddenly scratching his head as if feeling itchy, "However, I do feel Xiaoqi doesn’t have such deep schemes. Moreover, before he left, I was very sure he was still some distance away from Third Grade. Without two to three years, it’s impossible to breakthrough. I believe he absolutely couldn’t fool my eyes. Furthermore, that ’Heaven and Earth Solitary Hong’ swordsmanship, how could it possibly be mastered in just one month’s time?"

Gu Zhengshan’s expression turned serious, "You mean—"

"Once we meet him, it’ll naturally become clear."

Gu Haochuan paused as he spoke, "If there’s really no issue, given his current strength, who knows, he might secure a spot at this year’s court banquet."

Gu Zhengshan nodded vigorously.

The Gu Family desperately needed this spot; having an extra spot would improve the family’s strength.

Gu Haochuan said, "Let’s go."

"Where to?"

"To find your Seventh Brother."

"Oh."

PS: Second update requesting monthly tickets.