Mo Xi’s head was splitting with pain, yet he still gritted his teeth and shook him off, saying in a low voice, “None of your business. Sit down.”
“Why bring up his father during a festival?” Gu Mang refused to listen. Perhaps it was only Mo Xi’s illusion, but in those usually hazy blue eyes, there was actually a fury he had never seen before. Gu Mang tightly gripped Mo Xi’s wrist, as though he was guilty, or as though he wanted to atone for his sins. No matter what, he refused to let go.
“Don’t you know his father died a long time ago? Why—why make someone sad?”
The old men could no longer save face, and they began hurling vicious insults.
“You disgusting wretch! You still dare to cause a disturbance in the palace and offend the nobles?!”
“Your brain is broken, so you’ve come here to run wild? Get lost! There’s no place for you to speak!”
Gu Mang did not leave. He stared at them, then suddenly raised his hand and fiercely pulled open his collar, revealing the Slave Lock Ring fastened around his pale neck. He wore such a humiliating mark, yet he stood before Mo Xi with such a forceful bearing.
Seeing him like this, the surrounding spectators were even dazed for a moment.
It was as though the ferocious beast that had once swallowed mountains and rivers, pointed out the course of the world, deceived both men and ghosts, and sought to devour the entire realm had returned to this broken shell.
Gu Mang said, “I am a servant of the Xi He Residence. He is my master.”
Mo Xi’s vision was so dizzy that he was almost about to collapse. He could barely remain standing through sheer willpower. He closed his eyes briefly and said heavily, “Gu Mang, you—”
Before he could say “get lost,” Gu Mang interrupted him.
“I’ll drink this jar of wine for him.”
As he spoke, he imitated Mo Xi’s earlier action and, with a solemn expression, knocked open the seal. But before he could start drinking, the furious old nobleman kicked him squarely in the chest.
“Have you not learned any manners?!”
The wine jar smashed onto the ground, breaking into pieces.
That old nobleman’s son had died in a previous confrontation with Gu Mang. Therefore, he was so enraged that his entire face flushed red, and his trembling finger pointed at Gu Mang.
“You—you traitor to the country! A thousand deaths would not atone for your crimes!! What right do you have to stand here and speak!!!”
By this point, the situation had already completely spiraled out of control, but for a moment, no one knew how to intervene.
As for His Majesty, that perverse man who was afraid the world would not be chaotic enough, he probably thought that New Year’s Eve was boring if it was nothing more than eating and drinking. Upon seeing people arguing, he became even more interested. He actually did not immediately stop them, instead propping his chin on his hand and watching this scene with great interest.
Gu Mang was indeed a ruthless one.
When he had no awareness, he could still ignore things.
But now that he had recovered some memories and also learned about some of the debts he owed Mo Xi in the past, his consciousness mixed with instinct actually made him refuse to yield in terms of bearing, despite how utterly rebellious such an attitude was.
Gu Mang pointed at Mo Xi and said, “I was wrong. But he wasn’t.”
“……”
“You bunch of people bullying him—you have no shame.”
Mo Xi’s vision was becoming increasingly dizzy. He stopped him softly. “Gu Mang, don’t…”
Gu Mang turned his head. His clear blue eyes looked at him.
“I’m sorry. I know why you said I was dirty before. You’re a good person. I won’t let them bully you.”
Having said that, he turned around and glared fiercely at those old men.
“Come on, you bunch of…” He thought carefully for a moment, but could not think of a suitable word, so he casually pulled one out. “Flower-picking bandits!”
“………………”
His Majesty: “Pfft—!”
The atmosphere had originally been tense and ready to explode, but when the people around heard Gu Mang actually use such a word, they could not help laughing one after another. Yue Chenqing directly sprayed the wine in his mouth and slapped the table, laughing loudly.
“Hahahahahaha!!!”
But the faces of those old men became even more unbearable to look at. They raised their hands and moved to strike him. These people were truly enraged, and with their emotions and alcohol boiling over, they no longer held back.
Mo Xi struggled to blink his eyes and shook his head.
His mind was a complete mess. There was only one instinct, one thread of clarity.
He remembered the Red Lotus Blood Curse around Gu Mang’s neck. Then he saw Gu Mang being beaten by these people, and suddenly an intense sense of unwillingness and pain welled up inside him.
Why?
Why did every person he loved ultimately end up broken like this?
His father had died young. Meng Ze was seriously ill. Gu Mang would never again be as he once was…
Was he the bearer of a solitary, baleful fate?
“Don’t hit him…”
Blood vessels crawled across Mo Xi’s eyes as a vague murmur escaped his throat. Fortunately, his murmur was so soft that no one heard it.
Just like the everlasting love he had once begged for, it could reach neither Heaven above nor Earth below.
His sincerity was believed by no one, and known by no one.
“You… don’t hit… him.”
Almost choking on his words, he suddenly protected Gu Mang, who was clutching his head and had been forced into an almost pitiful, cowering retreat.
His hands were trembling. His voice was trembling. The world in his eyes was wet, everything trembling.
He was too drunk to remain fully conscious, and even the intent behind his movements was unclear. Although he was instinctively protecting Gu Mang, the others did not notice anything unusual. They merely saw that a fight had broken out here and that Xi He Jun had been dragged into it as well. Their expressions changed one after another.
Yet when they looked up at His Majesty, His Majesty still did not stop them. He held a berry in his hand and narrowed his eyes at the chaos, seemingly deep in thought.
The first ones unable to sit still were several high-ranking officers of the Northern Frontier Army.
Come on, a stepfather was still a father. They had gone through life and death together. How could they let someone make things difficult for him like this?
They could not be bothered to gamble anymore, so they hurried over and pulled the fighters apart with smiling faces.
“Aiya, Yongle Jun, calm down.”
“Xinghe Jun, don’t get angry. It’s New Year’s.”
While persuading them, they gave several old nobles a hearty black eye.
How could those old nobles possibly be a match for these military ruffians? In only a few moves, they were beaten into complete submission.
But the remaining few, who had blood feuds with Gu Mang, had completely lost their reason. They no longer cared about status or occasion. They grabbed Gu Mang and beat him, angrily shouting,
“You deserve to die! Why don’t you just die!”
Princess Meng Ze could not bear to watch anymore either. Worried that Mo Xi would be injured amid the chaos, she ignored Yan Ping’s attempts to stop her and went over to break up the fight.
But how could those old men listen?
The pain of losing their sons, their blood-deep hatred…
When they were sober, they had always desperately suppressed it. At this moment, however, it had been ignited without warning. How could they still have any princess in their eyes?
“You, bastard with the surname Gu! Listen to me! Nobody cares what the hell is wrong with your brain. Forgetting won’t help you! You’re a murderer! A traitor to the country!! You’re going to Hell and never reincarnate again!! Every dead person is watching you!! They’re all watching you—!!!”
Gu Mang’s heart suddenly trembled.
All the dead were watching him…
Just like at the Soul-Calling Abyss.
Was it?
They were all watching him, demanding his life.
“Why aren’t you dead yet!!! I’ve prayed day and night for you to die early!!!”
“You bastard stray dog with no father or mother!”
Everyone had completely lost control.
Stripped of status, splendid clothing, honor and disgrace—
The instinct of a parent protecting their child, as well as love and hatred, was the same in humans as it was in beasts.
Gu Mang was suddenly shoved hard. He failed to keep his balance and abruptly fell to the ground, knocking over the tables, cups, and tea tables behind him. Wine splashed across the floor, and fragments pierced into the flesh of his back.
Blood seeped out, but Gu Mang did not feel much pain.
He stared at the hideous, blazing hatred in those old men’s faces, unable to utter a single word.
Seeing a wine jar being lifted, about to be smashed down upon his head, a heavy object suddenly flew over and struck it, shattering the wine jar in midair!
Fragments fell all over the ground, wine splashing everywhere.
Gu Mang raised a hand to shield his face, squinting to avoid the fierce wine pouring down like a torrential rain.
When he opened his eyes, he saw a tobacco pipe lying beside him.
It was precisely this tobacco pipe that had just been thrown over and smashed the jar.
He froze for a moment and turned his head.
The person who had blocked the blow for him was actually Murong Lian?
Murong Lian had left his seat and was gripping the wrist of the old nobleman who had lost control.
He was quite drunk. He reached out and flicked the man on the forehead, smiling lazily.
“What’s wrong, little darling? You want to take advantage of the chaos to settle a personal grudge? Who the hell do you think you are? This Prince hasn’t even gotten revenge for his own grudge yet. Fuck off and line up at the back.”
“Murong Lian! You—you actually dare to address this old man like that! You—you…”
“Oh? You’re not satisfied with being called little darling?” Murong Lian licked his lips and smiled. “Such a spoiled little thing. Fine, fine. How about little sweetheart?”
“You—!!”
Now that Xi He, Wang Shu, and Meng Ze had all become involved, even His Majesty could no longer continue watching the show.
His Majesty finally cleared his throat from his throne, as though he had only just noticed this earth-shaking commotion.
“What are you doing? It’s New Year’s Eve. Even if you don’t give this lonely one something auspicious to celebrate, you’re still making a scene here? Guards!”
“Here!”
“Separate them!”
“Yes!”
Gu Mang finally escaped the tangled chaos. The guards dragged him away and separated him from the old nobles.
He took a deep breath and instinctively looked toward Mo Xi, only to see that Mo Xi had already been supported by Meng Ze to a seat nearby.
Mo Xi had been injured earlier. He did not know who had cut him, but there was a deep gash on his shoulder, blood steadily flowing from it.
Now that the fight had ended, he no longer needed to force himself to remain standing. Once he stopped being so stubborn, the effects of the strong liquor made him look extremely exhausted.
Meng Ze said, “Lean back. Let me look at your injury.”
Mo Xi closed his eyes and slowly leaned against the stone pillar. Meng Ze’s soft palm, like a delicate hand, touched his shoulder with concern.
“Why didn’t you dodge just now?”
“I’m fine.” Mo Xi’s long lashes lowered. “I couldn’t dodge.”
“How could you not dodge…” Meng Ze was not stupid. “You saw him blocking the wine for you, so you acted on impulse again… He’s a traitor! Why do you keep failing to distinguish it, time and time again? Why can’t you remember!”
Mo Xi’s lashes trembled slightly.
In a low voice, he said, “I wasn’t doing it for him.”
Meng Ze no longer argued with him.
She knew his personality. Once he became stubborn, even ten oxen could not pull him back.
So she simply covered his wound with her hand.
“I’ll stop the bleeding for you.”
Gu Mang watched all of this from not too far away.
Throughout the entire process, Meng Ze had not looked at anyone else, and neither had Mo Xi…
He suddenly understood a little why Mo Xi treated her so well.
Everyone longed for warmth and was grateful for tenderness.
He had given Mo Xi wounds and pain.
And Meng Ze gave him care and protection.
He had originally wanted to atone for his sins. He had originally wanted to say “I’m sorry” to Mo Xi for all the things he could not remember.
But now his throat was choked, and he could not say anything.
The so-called traitor.
Everyone turning against you, leaving you abandoned by those closest to you, and bringing nothing but harm to others—
That was what it meant, wasn’t it?
Gu Mang stopped looking at Mo Xi and Meng Ze.
He turned his face away, raised his hand, pulled out a sharp piece of broken porcelain deeply embedded in his arm, and threw it onto the ground.
Earlier, he had pulled open his collar and declared that he belonged to Mo Xi, saying that he could drink the wine for Mo Xi and share his troubles.
It was simply an enormous irony.
Even remembering it made his face burn with embarrassment.
He slowly, almost pitifully, crouched down in the corner. He curled himself into a ball and hugged his knees, hoping to avoid the curious and judgmental gazes filling the hall.
But he could not hide.
Just moments ago, he had acted on impulse and stood before Mo Xi, loudly and foolishly declaring his position.
Everyone had heard him.
Now, instead, he had caused trouble for Mo Xi.
He did not dare go near Mo Xi, and Mo Xi did not want him either.
No one had forgiven him.
No one paid him any attention anymore.
He could only force himself to curl up alone, lower his head, and endure those piercing gazes by himself.
“He even said Xi He Jun was his master…”
“Heh. Hasn’t he always been so conceited? I think that’s exactly why he was once so capable of fighting yet was still destined to fail. A person with no self-awareness, no brains, poor bloodline, and great ambitions—he’s completely useless. Back then, he became a general only because his spiritual core talent was strong enough to prop him up. Now that his spiritual core is ruined, it makes it even clearer how ridiculous he is.”
“He really doesn’t know his own limits. What a troublemaker. He even got Xi He Jun injured.”
“This is completely outrageous…”
Amid those quiet, fragmented discussions that gradually filled the air, Gu Mang lost that small fragment of his former powerful presence that he had just picked up again.
He hunched over once more.