Chapter 3 : Chapter 3
Chapter 3: You Gave Me No Grace in Birth, Nor Did You Raise Me. Without Grace or Affection, How Could There Be Any Talk of Me Letting You Down?
Seeing how sensible Cheng Feng was, Cheng Zhenjiang’s anger toward Cheng Yu flared up all over again.
“How did I end up with a son like you, one who disgraces me completely! Why don’t you look at your younger brother? Such bearing, such strength. He would never dare speak back to his parents, because he understands chivalry!”
He could not understand why the difference between his two sons could be so vast.
One was righteous beyond compare, while the other was rotten to the core!
“Hahaha!”
Cheng Yu burst into laughter. “Of course he is your good son. A ruthless Imperial Hound like me could never compare to him!”
“But if he is that outstanding and the two of you are living so well, then why come ruin my life?”
Cheng Zhenjiang and Zhao Xichun both froze.
Cheng Yu had actually said they had come to ruin his life!
After finally resolving the heartache that had tormented them for more than ten years, their own son was calling them a blight upon him!
Cheng Zhenjiang did not even have time to get angry before Cheng Feng—pampered since childhood and accustomed to pride—could no longer endure hearing such words.
“You! How dare you speak to—”
“And you!”
Before he could finish, Cheng Yu cut him off at once.
“Outsiders may not know I am your elder brother, but you do, do you not? After coming in, why did you not bow to me?”
“Where is that righteousness you are so proud of? A thing without manners or loyalty, and someone like you still has the nerve to call yourself a young hero.”
Ordinarily, everyone Cheng Feng met only praised him for his chivalry.
He had never imagined that today Cheng Yu would turn it around and call him ill-mannered and unrighteous.
This was utterly upside down!
His rage surged at once.
A useless piece of trash from the court actually dared speak so insolently!
The more he thought about it, the angrier he became, and killing intent gradually rose in his heart. He said sharply, “Father, Mother! Second Brother has fallen into demonic delusion. There is no point in saying anything more to him!”
Anyone who damaged his reputation was a mortal enemy!
Cheng Zhenjiang nodded at those words. This rebellious son had a venomous tongue. Words alone were useless now.
Cheng Feng was overjoyed and said coldly, “Then I shall teach Second Brother a lesson on Father’s behalf!”
With that, he struck at Cheng Yu with a palm.
“Feng’er, don’t!”
Cheng Zhenjiang and Zhao Xichun both knew the level of their two sons, so they hurriedly tried to stop him.
But for reasons neither wished to admit, they only stopped him with words.
This boy was far too wild and defiant. It would be best if he suffered a little!
Cheng Yu had not expected Cheng Feng to attack him directly. He hurriedly drew the Xiuchun Saber at his waist and raised it in defense.
The clash of metal rang out.
After all, Cheng Feng had grown up with the very best resources and training from childhood. The gap between them was simply too great.
Even after receiving two Internal Energy rewards, Cheng Yu still had to use all his strength just to barely block that casual palm with his Xiuchun Saber.
Cracks appeared across the blade, which had already dispersed seventy to eighty percent of the force. Yet the remaining twenty to thirty percent still struck him so hard that blood sprayed from the corner of his mouth.
【The host has faced the strong while weak, withstood a powerful foe by force, and did not tarnish the prestige of the Jinyiwei. Reward: Internal Energy!】
Feeling the Internal Energy flowing into his body and repairing his injuries, Cheng Yu slowly raised his head, a hard glint flashing in his eyes.
“You are courting death!”
He seized the shattered Xiuchun Saber once more and lunged straight for Cheng Feng’s vital points.
Cheng Feng had not expected Cheng Yu to retaliate, and for a moment he was startled.
But before he could dodge, a burst of force struck the Xiuchun Saber from Cheng Yu’s hand, sending it clattering to the ground while Cheng Yu himself was shoved backward by the force.
Cheng Zhenjiang had made his move!
Seeing the blood at the corner of Cheng Yu’s mouth, Zhao Xichun’s heart tightened in pain.
“Yu’er, are you all right?”
“As expected of a great hero’s son—striking at his elder brother. So this is the Cheng Family’s chivalry?”
“When he attacked me, no one cared. The moment I fought back, you stopped me at once. Truly worthy of the fairest great hero under heaven!”
Zhao Xichun shuddered violently at those words. “Yu’er, do not say such foolish things.”
Cheng Zhenjiang, meanwhile, stared wide-eyed as his attention caught on another crucial point.
“You insolent wretch! What did you just call me?”
His own son had just addressed him as though he were some outsider—Sect Master Cheng rather than father. Was that not openly acknowledging the utter failure of their father-son relationship?
If word got out, it would be far too humiliating. He absolutely would not allow it!
Cheng Yu wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, his expression as calm as ever.
“You all keep saying I am ruthless. But if I had not been ruthless, I would have been beaten to death by a local tyrant who plagued the countryside back when I was nine years old!”
“When I had no choice but to hide a dagger and kill a strong man who meant to harm me, where were all of you?”
“What right do flowers raised in a greenhouse have to call me ruthless?”
Blood still stained the corner of his lips, yet his tone remained cold and level.
His eyes were frosty, as though he were not even speaking about himself.
Cheng Zhenjiang’s heart jolted, and then his anger rose even higher.
This was utterly without chivalry!
No reason at all could justify ruthlessness!
The chivalry he believed in told him he could not allow Cheng Yu to defend his own cruelty.
Tears burst from Zhao Xichun’s eyes. “Stop talking, stop talking, child!”
Supporting his injured arm, Cheng Yu slowly and indifferently shook his head.
“All your talk of chivalry is nothing but dogshit in my eyes!”
“If you find someone as vicious and brutal as me an eyesore, then kill me!”
“If you will not kill me, and since we disgust each other so much, then let us part here. From this day on, I and your Cheng Family will have nothing more to do with each other until death!”
His words landed like a thunderbolt.
Cheng Zhenjiang, who had been silent just a moment earlier, was instantly struck dumb, his expression changing drastically. “What? Say that again if you dare!”
“To do something so unfilial and unrighteous—how can you possibly face your parents?!”
Zhao Xichun stood there with her mouth open and her eyes wide.
How had it come to this?
Cheng Yu took a step back and adjusted the Xiuchun Saber at his waist into place.
“Sect Master Cheng and Madam, please conduct yourselves properly. I am a Banner Captain of the Great Qian Jinyiwei. You people of the Jianghu have no authority to command me!”
【The host has displayed the bearing of the Jinyiwei without servility or arrogance. Reward: Blade Technique Comprehension!】
“You gave birth to me without ever asking me whether I wished it. That was your own choice. There was no grace in that. And you never raised me either. Without grace or affection, what is this talk of me letting you down?”
Cheng Yu’s tone was incomparably cold as he turned to look at Cheng Feng.
“As for that palm just now, I will remember it. I am a vicious sort, petty and vindictive. In the future, I will repay it in full.”
With that, he turned and left.
Zhao Xichun hurriedly rose, just about to go after him and stop him, only to be halted by Cheng Zhenjiang’s furious shout.
“He has truly gone too far! Do not stop him—let him go!”
Those words—without grace or affection—had stabbed straight into his heart. What heroic martial artist in the world could bear hearing something like that?
Especially a man like him, who was so used to being praised for his chivalry.
“Just a trivial matter, and he wants to sever ties? I see it clearly now! He is rotten to the marrow. If he insists on becoming that worthless Imperial Hound and staining his hands with blood, then let him get out!”
“I would like to see just how a vicious and weak little thing like him survives without my Cheng Family and the River-Severing Sect as his backing!”
Cheng Yu never once looked back. Laughing loudly, he strode away.
Like a bird escaping from its cage, he went farther and farther, without the slightest hesitation.
Zhao Xichun stared blankly at her son’s retreating back as boundless sorrow welled up in her heart.
“My son... why did you turn out like this?”
His wife was crying, and Cheng Zhenjiang—already furious beyond measure—grew even more agitated and enraged.
His aura erupted wildly, smashing many of the objects in the room to pieces.
“Bastard! Bastard! I do not have such a son!”
Seeing this, Cheng Feng was overjoyed.
That fellow was finally gone!
He could not even be bothered to care what kind of waves that piece of trash might stir up. No matter what he did, how could he ever compare to a genius like him?
The atmosphere seemed frozen solid. Not long afterward, two young and beautiful women came in, looking around in confusion at the shattered room.
“Father, Mother, what is wrong? How did this place end up like this?”
The one who spoke was a beautiful young woman slightly older than Cheng Yu. She was none other than his biological elder sister, Cheng Yue, the famous Senior Sister among the disciples of the River-Severing Sect, and a genius in her own right.
Beside her stood a sweet-looking young girl with a slightly delicate air—Cheng Yu’s youngest sister, Cheng Si. She was frowning, and there was an unreadable emotion in her eyes.
With his three children all standing at his side, Cheng Zhenjiang felt even more strongly that Cheng Yu truly was an ungrateful wretch.
It was one thing for him to have such a vile temperament and fail to care for his parents the way his siblings did.
But to actually dare sever ties?
The more Cheng Zhenjiang thought about it, the angrier he became. He shouted, “Men! Since that rebellious brat wants to sever ties, throw all his things out as well! That way they will not be left here offending the eye!”
A servant hurried over and, with lowered head, stammered, “Second Young Master... has nothing.”
During this period, it had been his duty to look after Cheng Yu, though Cheng Zhenjiang had restricted him at every turn.
In the end, he had served as little more than a watchman.
The moment those words came out, everyone present froze.
Cheng Yu had lived in the Sect Master’s Residence for nearly a month since arriving at the River-Severing Sect. How could he possibly have nothing?
“What nonsense are you talking about? How could he possibly have nothing?”
“Second Young Master does not have a room of his own. He usually stays in the disciple quarters and only comes here in the morning and evening, so naturally he has nothing,” the servant said, trembling violently.
The moment those words came out, the atmosphere fell silent.
Everyone thought they had misheard.
How could that be possible?
Cheng Yu had actually not even had a room of his own here!
Even the servants in the Sect Master’s Residence had their own rooms, yet he, as a young master, did not?
Cheng Zhenjiang’s eyes widened. “How is that possible?! If he had no room, did none of you think to arrange one for him? Is this place missing just one room? Useless trash!”
“It was the Sect Master’s own order... You said the Second Young Master’s temperament was deeply flawed and that he needed to be properly tempered, so you arranged for him to stay in the disciple quarters. And that arrangement remained in place until now...”
The room fell silent once again.
Zhao Xichun turned toward her husband in disbelief. He had not even been willing to give their son a room of his own.
“When I saw him wearing that filthy court-hound uniform, covered in blood and grime, I was so angry that I arranged for him to stay in the disciple quarters for a few nights. Later, I simply forgot... But does he not bear responsibility too? If he was not staying at home, could he not at least have opened his mouth and said something?”
Cheng Zhenjiang muttered out his explanation to himself, not daring to meet the eyes of his wife or children.
If you did not even have a room of your own, could a place like that truly be called home?
“Then did he really have absolutely nothing?”
Zhao Xichun pressed the servant for an answer. Now that her son had gone, if not even a single keepsake of his remained, then as his mother she felt a desolation beyond words.
“If I had to name something, then there is this.” The servant thought for a moment and produced a broken, misshapen iron hammer.
Zhao Xichun hurriedly snatched it away, only to find that it was no more than the most ordinary long-handled iron hammer.
“What is this?”
“It is a relic left behind by the blacksmith couple who raised Second Young Master.”
A relic from his foster parents!
Those few words shook everyone present.
That was right.
They had all only looked at Cheng Yu’s temperament and strength as they saw them now. None of them had considered the matter from another angle—Cheng Yu was also someone who had only just lost his parents.
His foster parents, whose kindness toward him had been as heavy as a mountain, had died. After coming here, he had not even been given a room of his own, while everyone around him had only judged him by a completely different set of standards.
How bleak must that have been?
Thinking of how much sorrow their son had carried inside, Zhao Xichun’s lips trembled. “A relic... Then why has it ended up like this?”
It was a relic from his foster parents, so how had it become this battered and twisted, and why had the servant kept it?
Cheng Zhenjiang gave a cold snort, masking a trace of panic.
“If he could carelessly damage it and throw it away, then clearly it was not that important to him. It seems the same goes for his foster parents. He was always a ruthless and heartless person to begin with. He cannot even properly honor his biological parents, so how much could he possibly care about people like that?”
He was still angry with Cheng Yu.
That unfilial wretch had stained his hands with blood and shown no repentance. He did not deserve sympathy!
But then the servant answered quietly, “It was because Sect Master was the one who broke it and threw it away. Second Young Master thought it was gone, but I secretly kept it.”
Several pairs of eyes instantly turned toward Cheng Zhenjiang.
No one said a word, but the meaning in their gazes was plain enough.
He had destroyed the relic left behind by the people who raised his son. What kind of biological father did something like that?
His two daughters took half a step backward.
Zhao Xichun’s face flushed red on the spot as she scolded him, “No wonder Yu’er wanted to leave! What son could possibly live with a father like you!”
“Impossible! Why would I destroy his things?”
Cheng Zhenjiang panicked for half a second and turned toward the servant with a stern face. “What nonsense are you spouting? Did that rebellious brat tell you to say this? What benefits did he give you?”
“I am innocent!” The servant hurriedly dropped to his knees and shook his head. “That morning, Second Young Master was looking at this item and muttering something to himself. Sect Master went over and said a person ought to be serious, and that he was being idle instead of cultivating properly, so you smashed it on the spot...”
Cheng Zhenjiang froze. It seemed there really had been such an incident.
“Even then, it is still not my fault. Who told him to slack off instead of cultivating? What kind of martial artist fears pain and hardship? No wonder his strength is so pitifully low!”
“But Second Young Master had just finished cultivating through the entire night. He had barely stopped when he ran into Sect Master. You moved too quickly and snatched the item away before he had any chance to explain...”