Chapter 42 - 43: I Was Harmed by Wine and Women

Chapter 42: Chapter 43: I Was Harmed by Wine and Women

For five consecutive days, Su Chen did not make a move. Instead, he hid in the shadows, observing Zhu Ming.

Zhu Ming truly lived up to his reputation for paranoia; he did everything with extreme caution. His daily activities were essentially limited to two locations: his home and the Flower Fragrance Building. On the rare occasions he went out, he was always accompanied by guards who flanked him on all sides, even though the Chu family’s residence and the Flower Fragrance Building were only a street apart.

Su Chen accidentally discovered that two of these guards possessed formidable strength; they were highly likely Martial Artists at Perfect Power Cultivation.

Furthermore, Zhu Ming rarely ate out. He would either dine at home or at the Flower Fragrance Building. When eating at the Flower Fragrance Building, he would test the food for poison with a silver needle. Only after confirming it was safe would he take a few tentative bites.

Su Chen had seen all sorts of people in his life, but this was the first time he had encountered someone as overly cautious as Zhu Ming. As a result, his five days of observation yielded little reward, nor did he find a suitable opportunity to strike.

However, his surveillance over these past few days wasn’t entirely in vain. Although Zhu Ming’s daily routine was absurdly regular, he suffered from an unavoidable masculine flaw: lust. Every night, he would come to the Flower Fragrance Building to indulge himself, only returning home the next morning. There were very few exceptions.

Today, as the sun set, the evening glow bathed the world, washing away the restless heat of the day. Situated in the bustling district of the town, the Flower Fragrance Building gradually grew lively as the residual heat in the air dissipated.

Su Chen had entered the Flower Fragrance Building early. Doing as the locals did, he requested the company of three girls and sat in a corner, enjoying their services. Yet his eyes kept glancing toward the entrance from time to time, as if he were waiting for someone.

After an unknown amount of time, a familiar figure came into view. Zhu Ming walked in with brisk steps, followed by several guards. As if he were returning home, a group of girls immediately swarmed around him the moment they saw him. He expertly picked out two girls, then headed upstairs with one in each arm.

Su Chen waited until all the dishes were served in Zhu Ming’s room. Only then did he wrap his arm around one of the girls, enter the room next door, close the door, and knock her unconscious.

The soundproofing of the rooms was actually quite poor. Even though they were just eating next door, intermittent, arousing sounds still drifted over.

"Mr. Chu, why aren’t you drinking today?"

"Your Mr. Chu has recently overindulged in wine and women, so I must abstain."

"Ah? Then what about us!"

"Hahaha, don’t worry, I’m only quitting the wine. Mr. Chu couldn’t bear to let you sleep in an empty bed."

"Hehe, Mr. Chu, you’re so bad. Let Cui feed you."

"Alright, chew it up and feed it to me."

"..."

Su Chen couldn’t listen anymore; his body gave a sudden, involuntary shudder. He didn’t know if Zhu Ming had developed this fetish out of a fear of being poisoned, but he had to admit—it thoroughly disgusted him.

The meal lasted only the time it took to drink a cup of tea. After that, sounds of rhythmic, tossing waves began echoing through the entire room.

Deciding to ignore the noise to keep his peace of mind, Su Chen knocked out the girl who had just woken up once again. He then sat at the table, pulled out a medical book, and read quietly.

As the night deepened, a symphony of similar noises rang out across the entire Flower Fragrance Building. Su Chen set down his book and listened closely. There were no strange sounds coming from next door anymore; he didn’t know if Zhu Ming had fallen asleep.

This Zhu Ming had a wife and concubines at home, yet he insisted on fooling around outside. If you called him a debauchee, he was actually quite attached to his home, waking up before dawn every day to rush back. But if you called him a family man, he spent every single night at the Flower Fragrance Building, partying until dawn.

Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, Su Chen moved the unconscious girl from the bed to a chair. This time, he didn’t strike her. Instead, he fed her some Mind Confusing Powder, then lay down on the bed to rest.

Time slipped away amidst the clamor, and then flowed on in the ensuing silence.

Suddenly, Su Chen opened his eyes. He glanced out the window; the sky was just beginning to turn a pale white.

He thought, "It’s about time."

Standing behind his door, he slightly opened his window and peeked outside. The two guards stationed at Zhu Ming’s door were sleeping like dead pigs, snoring like thunder. To be safe, he used the Mind Confusing Powder to fully knock them out. He then released some Mind-Confusing Medicine into Zhu Ming’s room. After waiting a few minutes, he finally slipped inside.

As soon as he entered, Su Chen frowned slightly. A foul, decadent stench assaulted his face, and clothes were scattered all over the floor.

Su Chen quietly closed the door. Before he could even turn around to look for Zhu Ming, he suddenly felt a fierce gust of wind attacking him from behind. He abruptly dodged to the side. Catching a glimpse from the corner of his eye, his pupils shrank slightly—Zhu Ming was staring at him with a cold sneer, thrusting a palm strike right at him.

"Hm?" Zhu Ming let out a surprised grunt, looking slightly astonished. It seemed he hadn’t expected Su Chen to dodge his sneak attack.

"No wonder you dared to make a move on me. You actually have some skills!" Zhu Ming said coldly, seeing Su Chen distance himself.

Su Chen didn’t speak, merely looking at Zhu Ming with a hint of confusion. Zhu Ming seemed to guess what Su Chen was thinking and said, "There are many people who want to kill me, and you’re not the first to try doing it with poison. But you are the first to use such a despicable drug in a vain attempt to knock me out. Did you really think I, Zhu Ming, have survived this long just by thinking with my lower half?"

Su Chen was speechless.

It was bad enough that Zhu Ming had discovered the poison, but to have his painstakingly concocted Mind Confusing Powder degraded as entirely worthless... While Su Chen was left speechless, he also felt a faint pang of indignation.

However, he didn’t say a word. Instead, he expressed this displeasure through his martial arts. Seeing Su Chen charge at him, Zhu Ming scoffed coldly, took a step forward, and struck out with his palm.

BANG!

A muffled sound rippled outward like a water wave the instant they clashed. ℯℯ𝑙.

THUD THUD THUD.

Su Chen stood rooted to the spot, completely unmoving. In contrast, Zhu Ming was forced several steps back, his arm trembling slightly as he stared at Su Chen in absolute horror.

"Who exactly are you, sir? Why are you trying to kill me? If there is some grudge between us, feel free to speak your mind. I am willing to compensate you."

Zhu Ming glanced toward the window. The commotion from their clash should have been enough to alert his guards, yet no sound came from outside the door. This caused his expression to darken.

Faced with Zhu Ming’s stalling tactics, Su Chen still didn’t waste any words, preparing to strike again.

Just then, a faint sound of footsteps suddenly echoed from outside the door. Upon hearing this, Zhu Ming immediately declared, "My men are here. You’d better surrender without a fight! Otherwise, once they arrive, you won’t be able to escape even if you had wings!"

If Su Chen hadn’t known about Zhu Ming’s cunning nature, he might have actually been fooled. Unfortunately for Zhu Ming, Su Chen didn’t believe a single word he said.

Seeing Su Chen launch another attack, Zhu Ming’s expression changed slightly. He frantically retreated, swiftly widening the gap between them.

His eyes were fixed tightly on Su Chen. Seeing the incoming strike, his arm hidden behind his back gave a slight tremble before abruptly whipping out, tossing a handful of quicklime from his palm.

In an instant, everything went a blinding white. The quicklime powder bloomed like a firework, blurring the entire room.

"Go to hell!"

The moment Zhu Ming scattered the quicklime, he shifted sideways and struck out with lightning speed. The sharp, sudden sound of something tearing through the air instantly rang out.