Chapter 122: Fury of Thunder

Zhang Bin was the eldest son of Zhang Fei. Though not the legitimate heir, his mother’s cunning and charm won her great favor, and his younger brother was still a newborn. Thus, from a young age, he had grown spoiled by his father’s favoritism and dared to disregard even his legitimate mother. After suffering two major setbacks in front of Princess Chenliu, he naturally couldn’t bear it; being threatened by Zhang Yue and unable to act only made things worse. Yet at this moment, he, who usually sought revenge for every slight, had no choice but to swallow his anger.

His father, Zhang Fei, was angry that he had offended Princess Chenliu and strictly ordered him not to go outside. After being caught touching Amber earlier, he, filled with shame and anger, pretended to be sick and stayed in his room, having meals delivered to him.

In Nanjing, he had always spent his days hanging out with bad company. A day of restraint wasn’t a big deal, but after two or three days, he was almost ready to tear the house down. Moreover, although it was already autumn, the days were still unbearably hot. So whenever the maids failed to meet his expectations, he would beat and scold them instantly.

“Young master, this is freshly brewed chrysanthemum tea.”

Zhang Bin, who was furiously scribbling on a piece of paper, immediately raised his head. Seeing the maid Liu Huan standing cautiously beside him, he angrily swept the teacup away with one hand and sneered, “What kind of shoddy stuff is this to fool me… Ouch!”

Too busy venting his anger, he didn’t realize the tea was still scalding hot. His slap burned his hand, and he cried out in pain. Liu Huan, seeing the teacup crash to the ground, tea splashing everywhere, and her young master losing his temper, was terrified and didn’t know what to do. Eventually, she knelt down and begged for mercy.

Though only fourteen, Zhang Bin had a violent temper. Seeing Liu Huan kowtowing frantically and his own hand covered in blisters, he almost wanted to kick her to death—blaming his mother for choosing such a clumsy and incompetent maid. What good was a pretty face… Wait, a pretty face!

Upon closer inspection, he suddenly smiled and then snapped, “Stop kowtowing! I don’t blame you! Go to the room and get some white ointment to apply to my hand!”

Liu Huan had no idea what her master was thinking; she simply thought she had escaped disaster and hurriedly rushed into the inner room. Unfortunately, she wasn’t usually assigned to serve him closely, and the other three maids had all been sent out by Zhang Bin. It was only now that it was her turn to bring him tea and water, yet such a mistake occurred. After much searching, she finally found the white medicine and rushed back in a panic. As she stepped forward ready to apply it to Zhang Bin, someone grabbed her wrist before she could even reach out.

“Young… young master…”

Seeing the blush on Liu Huan’s cheeks and the sweat on her forehead, Zhang Bin found her even more charming than the three maids he had been with before. He thought to himself that his taste was truly excellent—giving her to him instead of keeping her by his side. Perhaps he was worried that his father might steal her? Over the past few days, he had been locked in his room and had slept with many maids, but they were all familiar to him. Now that he remembered there was one he hadn’t touched yet, he couldn’t resist his desires any longer and tightened his grip.

Liu Huan was a household maid, originally just a lowly servant. She had only been chosen by Zhang Bin’s mother, Lady Li, about half a year ago. She had never encountered such behavior before and was instantly stunned. Feeling severe pain in her wrist, she couldn’t help but cry out. If she hadn’t screamed, it might have been fine, but her cry only intensified Zhang Bin’s lust. After struggling uselessly for a while, she realized in horror that half of her outer robe had been torn off. Frightened, she tried to shout, but stopped immediately upon hearing Zhang Bin’s threat.

“If you want your parents to die, then keep screaming!”

The threat worked, and Zhang Bin became even more unrestrained. Liu Huan’s resistance seemed insignificant to him and only added to the fun. While playing with her like a cat playing with a mouse, he joked, “Liu Huan is indeed a nice name. Now, am I not keeping you here for pleasure? Learn well from your three sisters how to serve people. Once I give you my approval, a good life awaits you… Come on, don’t let your young age fool you—your breasts are quite nice. I’ll take good care of you in the future…”

By now, he had torn off Liu Huan’s upper robe and thrown it on the ground. One hand was already squeezing her breast. Suddenly, he heard hurried footsteps outside, followed by someone entering the outer room. Realizing his plans were about to be disrupted, he angrily raised his head and shouted, “Get out! I didn’t call you in! All of you, go away…”

Not a word of protest came from his lips as he finally saw clearly the person who had pushed aside the curtain and entered—his mind went blank instantly. Princess Zhang of the palace was his own great-aunt. As a child, he often went to the palace to play with his father, so he naturally recognized her. Yet it was precisely because he recognized her that he stood there frozen like a statue, his movements completely paralyzed.

“Auntie…”

Startled, he snapped back to his senses. He quickly pulled his hand away, shoving aside the girl who had once captivated his heart, then stepped forward and knelt on the ground, repeatedly bowing his head and saying, “Your servant did not know… no, your servant did not know the emperor had arrived, that’s why…”

Before he could finish speaking, Zhang Bin felt a fierce force on his chest, and he was thrown into the air involuntarily. Landing with a thud, he vaguely felt something hard hit his back, and the unbearable pain made him almost cry out.

Yet at that moment, he dared not even cry out in pain, fearing the emperor’s wrath might lead to his immediate execution. He endured the agony, got up, and crawled forward a few steps before kowtowing heavily several times, crying out, “Your Majesty, your servant was momentarily bewitched by this wretched woman. I beg you, out of respect for my great-aunt and great-uncle, spare my life this time…”

This time, he was grabbed by force, slapped repeatedly, and then thrown to the ground again. The intense force made stars appear before his eyes, his teeth loosened, and his face burned with pain. Even so, unable to speak clearly, he could no longer plead for mercy. He managed to get up using both hands and feet, then knelt on the ground in terror.

“You heartless brat! Your great-aunt is sick in the palace, and your great-uncle’s condition is still critical. And yet you… you engage in debauchery in broad daylight!” Zhu Di was filled with rage. If not for a sliver of clarity left in his mind, he would have drawn his sword and killed this once likable boy. Glancing at Liu Huan, who was trembling in a corner, he felt an indescribable disgust and shouted, “Someone!”

Four burly guards entered at his call, bowing in unison. Only then did Zhu Di snort at Zhang Bin, “Considering you are Zhang Yu’s direct grandson, I will spare your life!”

Yet before Zhang Bin could breathe a sigh of relief, he sternly ordered the four guards, “Drag this heartless brat outside and beat him twenty times with a stick… no, forty times!” Seeing Zhang Bin still begging for mercy, a fierce look appeared on his face, and he added, “Don’t let such a scum disturb the Duke of Yingguo while he’s recovering. Plug his mouth, spare his life, but beat him mercilessly!”

As the two guards stepped forward and skillfully stuffed a piece of rag into Zhang Bin’s mouth, then lifted him between them, Zhu Di cast a cold glance at the corner. Just as he was about to order the remaining two to deal with the girl, he remembered that the Duke of Yingguo, Zhang Fu, was currently ill and it was inauspicious to kill anyone. Frowning, he instructed, “Hand her over to Rong Shan to deal with. Such a person doesn’t belong in the noble household of the Duke of Yingguo!”

At that moment, Zhang Yue was outside in the corridor with Zhu Zhanji, along with dozens of imperial guards standing like pillars in the sunlight. He had heard the chaotic noises at first, then Zhu Di’s outburst and Zhang Bin’s pleas for mercy, and finally the emperor’s decisive orders. He couldn’t help but sneer inwardly. No matter how arrogant Zhang Bin was, as long as he behaved improperly, there was always a way to catch him red-handed. It was a pity that this beast brought disaster upon himself and also implicated an innocent girl!

Before long, Zhang Bin was dragged into the courtyard like a dead dog. The two guards swiftly tied his hands and feet tightly with hemp ropes. Then four soldiers in brocade uniforms, carrying red-painted wooden sticks, stepped forward. Two stood to the sides while the other two flanked him. Without a word, they began beating him with the sticks. After five blows, they were replaced by others.

The emperor had ordered forty blows—severe punishment but not to the point of killing him. These soldiers, accustomed to using corporal punishment, knew exactly what to do and controlled their force perfectly. Although Zhang Bin’s mouth was covered, even the toughest man would groan and beg for mercy under such brutal blows. Let alone him, who had never suffered hardship in his life, he could hardly endure it. With his hands and feet tied and his back and legs pressed down, he couldn’t struggle at all. After just a few blows, tears and snot streamed down his face. If not for the rag in his mouth, his screams would likely be heard several blocks away. Even so, his muffled cries were still loud and extremely pitiful.

Zhu Zhanji glanced at Zhang Yue, noticing his pale expression, and whispered, “Grandfather, out of respect for the Prince of Hejian and the Duke of Yingguo, this is merely a lesson. Forty blows are just a minor pain; he’ll recover in a few months.”

Hearing that it would take a few months to recover, Zhang Yue sneered inwardly. To be honest, he wished that person would die. Yet, despite that, the cruelty and indifference shown by the Jinyiwei during this execution shocked him greatly. Soon after, he saw two guards dragging a girl out of the room, which made him frown again.

After meeting Zhu Di in the study earlier, he carefully chatted with him for a while. Then the emperor said he wanted to check on the “ill” Zhang Bin. Delighted that the emperor had exposed someone’s pretense of illness, he followed behind. As expected, Zhang Bin got what he deserved, proving the saying that evil begets evil. As he was thinking, another voice came from beside him.

“After today’s incident, Zhang Bin is definitely doomed to never inherit the title of Duke of Yingguo. Zhang Yue, the emperor has a high opinion of you. Have you considered taking over that ducal position?”

Knowing that none of the imperial family were easy to deal with, Zhang Yue quickly shook his head. “Although the Duke of Yingguo is ill now, the imperial physician said he will recover by next spring. I believe heaven surely won’t allow a great general to have no successor. By then, the Duke of Yingguo will definitely have someone to carry on his legacy.”

“If only everyone had your foresight.”

Hearing this, Zhang Yue glanced at Zhu Zhanji. Seeing his dazed expression, he wasn’t sure—whether he was thinking of the internal strife within the Zhu family or something else. Since he couldn’t guess his thoughts, he turned his attention back to the scene. He saw that Zhang Bin had already passed out at some point, but the executioners didn’t stop. Someone even poured a basin of cold water over his head.