Chapter 256: Beating Li Wei Twice a Month

Although Meng Xuechen had lost his memories, his muscle memory remained.

When he opened the official documents, he naturally knew how to handle them.

The faint traces of familiarity in everything he did further convinced him that they weren’t lying.

But in this unfamiliar world, Meng Xuechen was deeply unsettled. He would always seek out Xiao Yang, and she never turned him away, not even late into the night.

Xiao Yang glanced at the time. "Aren’t you sleepy?"

Meng Xuechen couldn’t help but yawn. "A little."

Xiao Yang asked, "Do you want to go back to your room, or... would you rather sleep here?"

Meng Xuechen’s face flushed red. He didn’t want to leave, but he didn’t dare answer.

He hadn’t even confessed his feelings to her, yet they had apparently done everything a couple could do. The problem was, he couldn’t remember any of it.

Meng Xuechen’s mind was a tangled mess, and a frustrating tightness gripped his chest. He had no idea what he was supposed to do.

Xiao Yang took his hand, her low voice carrying a bewitching tone. "Senior, look up."

Meng Xuechen subconsciously lifted his head. Xiao Yang’s face drew close, their breaths mingling, until an unusually soft sensation on his lips made him realize she was kissing him.

’She’s kissing me!!!!’

Xiao Yang, afraid of overwhelming him, pulled away after a brief kiss. But Meng Xuechen suddenly reached out, cupped her face in his hands, and stared at her with a burning gaze. He paused, struggling to control his breathing and emotions, before slowly and very deliberately kissing her back.

"Ah Yang..."

’This newly bashful version of my senior is unexpectedly delectable,’ Xiao Yang thought. ’But... my delectable treat just ran off...’

Startled by his own body’s reaction and afraid of offending Xiao Yang, Meng Xuechen made a somewhat flustered escape, leaving Xiao Yang leaning there with a burgeoning heat that had nowhere to go.

"..."

"Ha!" Xiao Yang couldn’t help but laugh. This version of Meng Xuechen was fun to tease, but he wasn’t doing her physical or mental well-being any favors.

Xiao Yang was exceptionally patient and attentive with Meng Xuechen, but that didn’t stop her from handling her own affairs. After managing court business and arranging other matters, there was still the regularly scheduled group beatdown of Li Wei.

Beating up Li Wei twice a month had become a regular event.

"THUD!"

Xiao Hong went flying, landing at Xiao Yang’s feet.

"THUMP!"

Xiao Qing came flying over and crashed into Xiao Hong, who had just managed to get up, knocking him flat again.

All right, so it was more like *getting* beaten up by Li Wei twice a month.

Xiao Yang calmly sipped her tea, slowly voicing her contempt for the pair. "How long has it been? You two are always the first ones down."

’So weak. Unbelievably weak!’

Xiao Hong’s cheeks puffed out in anger, but he didn’t dare talk back.

For one, she was the Emperor. For another, he couldn’t beat her in a fight.

Xiao Qing dared to talk back even less; the lives of his entire family were still in the Emperor’s hands.

Xiao Hong took a deep breath to suppress his anger. "Your Majesty, why aren’t you fighting today?"

Xiao Yang held her teacup, an air of profound mystery on her face. "You wouldn’t understand. The true masters... always make their entrance last."

Xiao Hong was utterly speechless and barely stopped himself from rolling his eyes.

’A true master? Right.’

’She talks the biggest game, runs the fastest, and does nothing but slack off and watch the show every day.’

’Li Wei can’t bring himself to hit the Emperor, so he takes it all out on us.’

’This is getting so damn annoying, day after day.’

Xiao Yang exclaimed, "Oh dear, Ziling..."

Xiao Hong scrambled to his feet, saw Xiao Ziling being beaten back, and immediately charged at Li Wei.

Xiao Yang sneered. ’He’s so easy to rile up.’

Her gaze fell to Xiao Qing. "What? Do you need me to give you a little... motivation, too?"

Xiao Qing’s expression froze. "Thank you, Your Majesty. That won’t be necessary."

Xiao Hong’s motivation was a beautiful woman; at least he threw himself into it willingly.

But his motivation was his family, and their lives were still dangling at the gates of Yama Hall. He couldn’t afford that kind of "motivation."

With that, he got up and rejoined the fray to take another beating.

In Xiao Yang’s colorful team, the top tier of fighters consisted of Xiao Lan and Xiao Ziling. The second tier was Xiao Cheng and Xiao Lv. And bringing up the rear were Xiao Hong and Xiao Qing.

But don’t assume Xiao Hong and Xiao Qing were weaklings just because they were at the bottom. They only seemed like weaklings in front of Li Wei.

After being thrashed by the number one master so many times, they had been forced to develop their reflexes and power. They had grown stronger against their will. Now, even the weakest of them, Xiao Hong, was not to be underestimated. The average person would be no match for him.

After they had taken a beating for two rounds, Xiao Yang finally rose. She kicked a staff up from the ground, caught it, and rushed forward using her movement technique.

"CRACK!"

The staff came down, and the impact nearly numbed her hand. ’Can you believe this thing just hit a human body?’

"All of you, fall back!"

At Xiao Yang’s command, the six retreated in an instant, finally able to catch their breath.

Li Wei’s sharp brows lifted. The battle lust in his dark eyes hadn’t faded, yet a hint of a smile touched his lips. "Does Your Majesty intend to challenge me to a duel today?"

Xiao Yang smiled back. "It’s getting cold. Just wanted to stretch my limbs. Be careful, General Li."

The moment she finished speaking, Xiao Yang attacked. Li Wei, familiar with her style, was already prepared and blocked her move with ease.

However, while Xiao Yang lacked raw power, her footwork was incredible. Though she had learned the same style as Xiao Ziling, her steps were far more unpredictable. Each time, she managed to strike precisely where Li Wei’s guard was weakest.

’No one is invincible.’

’No matter how strong Li Wei’s skills are, he still has weaknesses.’

’When I slacked off and watched from the sidelines, I wasn’t just enjoying the show.’

’I have disassembled and reconstructed Li Wei’s movements in my mind time and time again, running simulations to calculate the optimal strategy.’

’Fighting requires brains.’

Xiao Yang’s strength was no match for Li Wei’s, so she relied on technique and her movement technique. Every move was perfectly calculated, executed with the grace of flowing water.

Xiao Qing was momentarily stunned. "Her Majesty... her fighting style is so beautiful, isn’t it?"

He suspected Li Wei was holding back, but the sound of their blows cutting through the air was too real to be faked.

Xiao Qing looked at Xiao Lan. "Between you and Her Majesty, who’s stronger?"

Xiao Lan didn’t deign to answer such a stupid question.

Xiao Lv slowly wrapped a bandage around his arm. The skin wasn’t broken, but it ached. He needed the support if he was going to use his full strength later.

"No one knows the true extent of Her Majesty’s strength," Xiao Lv said. "The only one here who has ever fought her is Li Wei. Everyone else who has ever traded blows with her is dead."

"But it’s not an impossible question to answer. If you watch her techniques and power, you can guess she’s a fusion of Xiao Lan’s and Xiao Ziling’s styles. You can’t judge Her Majesty by normal standards, though. Her mind is full of tricks. And if you really push her..." Xiao Lv chuckled wryly. "She goes berserk."

Like right now.

Normally, Xiao Yang didn’t go looking for a fight.

She preferred to be the master of the board, using her pieces to play the game. When she was forced to make a move herself, it was always a killing blow.

She didn’t like gambling with her life; she preferred absolute control.

But her mood had been foul for the past few days. Ever since she found out what those two from the Southern Domain had done to Mu Yunlian, she had been suppressing a simmering rage.

With Mu Yunlian in a coma, all she could do was endure it. And now, for their safety, she’d had to send them away.

It was all taking too long. She needed to vent the frustration in her chest, and Li Wei was the perfect sparring partner.