Chapter 30: A Dragon Has Its Reverse Scales; Touch Them, and Death Is Certain!

Between the various bandit factions in Bandit Ridge, there exists a web of mutual informants. Simply put, even the bandits play the game of internal espionage.

At Flowing Peak Stronghold, there was an infiltrator from Golden Peak Stronghold—a man planted there by Sima Xiba. Consequently, whatever transpired at Flowing Peak Stronghold today was documented in a secret message sent via carrier pigeon directly to Sima Xiba.

Staring at the letter, Sima Xiba was struck by a mixture of shock and rage. Regarding the destruction of Golden Peak Stronghold, he had considered many possibilities: perhaps his rivals had struck at him, wiping out his men to ensure he had no one to handle his illicit dealings; or perhaps Golden Peak had offended another major faction in Bandit Ridge, leading to their annihilation at any cost. He had even contemplated the possibility of internal strife, where the two sides had destroyed each other in a fire, leaving only a few survivors.

He had pondered every scenario, yet never had he imagined that the destruction of Golden Peak Stronghold was the work of Chen Xuan!

Although he claimed the contents of the letter were false, he knew the truth in his heart: the informant planted at Flowing Peak Stronghold had personally witnessed Chen Xuan storming the stronghold alone, single-handedly defeating their leader. How could such a thing be a lie?

"Prepare the carriage immediately. I am going to see Chen Tian!" Sima Xiba’s expression was dark and grim.

His servants had no idea why he was so distressed; they only knew that their usually suave Master Sima must have suffered some great humiliation, or he wouldn't be this furious. Not daring to ask, they scrambled to prepare the carriage.

***

Inside the inn.

"Are you saying that you went to Flowing Peak Stronghold all by yourself, beat their leader, and walked away completely unscathed?" Chen Xuan was explaining the reason for his disappearance to the women.

He had no choice; if he didn't explain himself clearly, these women would surely convince themselves that he had been off visiting a brothel. If that happened, there was no telling how much his favorability rating with them would plummet.

"Yes! That is the truth of what happened," Chen Xuan nodded earnestly.

Hearing this, the women looked at him with skepticism.

Yang Ying'er said with a face full of doubt, "A man's mouth is a deceiver's tool. Why should we believe whatever you say? What if you're lying to us?"

"I’m really not lying to you," Chen Xuan said, feeling somewhat helpless. "Didn't I tell you? I already questioned the people at Flowing Peak Stronghold and found out that behind Golden Peak Stronghold is a man named Sima Xiba."

"This Sima Xiba is the youngest son of the Vice Minister of Personnel in the imperial court. He holds immense power. The reason Golden Peak Stronghold ambushed us was precisely under his orders."

Every time he mentioned the name Sima Xiba, Chen Xuan felt a sense of absurdity. Of all the names he could have, he had to have one that sounded like an insult.

"You've offended the son of the Vice Minister of Personnel?" Li Xiuning frowned as she looked at him.

As a princess, Li Xiuning was well aware of the power held by the Vice Minister of Personnel. Within the Ministry, he was second only to the Minister himself—a true second-in-command. Even if Sima Xiba was only the son, he could use his father’s reputation to commit countless misdeeds.

"I have no grievances with him. I don't even know him. How could I have offended him?" Chen Xuan shook his head.

"If you haven't offended him, why would he want to kill you?" Li Xiuning asked, her brow furrowed.

"Because of Chen Tian!" Chen Xuan’s eyes narrowed, and he let out a cold laugh. "I don't know exactly what kind of relationship Chen Tian has with Sima Xiba, but the ambush definitely has something to do with him!"

"At the end of the day, I am still a member of the Chen family. Even if Chen Tian hates me to the bone, he wouldn't dare kill me openly. He needs to use someone else's hands, and this Sima Xiba is the hand he chose to use!"

"They never dreamed that a whole stronghold of bandits wouldn't be enough to stop me—in fact, I destroyed them!"

As he spoke, Chen Xuan’s expression grew increasingly cold. A dragon has its reverse scales, and those who touch them must die. Chen Tian had relied on his parents to bully him since he was a child. Chen Xuan kept a meticulous tally of every single grudge. Once he developed his own power and influence from the frontier, he would return to settle the score once and for all.

Seeing Chen Xuan's icy demeanor upon mentioning Chen Tian, the women realized he harbored a deep, burning hatred. They ceased their questions.

However, Xu Ruolan’s eyes darted around, and she suddenly asked with a playful smile, "Husband, is this Chen Tian you're talking about the one you beat up the day before yesterday?"

Back then, when Chen Xuan chose all of them as his concubines, Chen Tian had been incredibly unwilling to accept it. After the clan elder left, he had tried to teach Chen Xuan a lesson, only to be beaten half to death, losing all his dignity and becoming a laughingstock. The women had witnessed it all.

"That's him," Chen Xuan nodded.

"Oh, I knew it was that bastard," Xu Ruolan said with a look of realization, followed by a curse. "Husband, if you ask me, you were too soft on him yesterday. You should have just beaten that bastard to death!"

"You wouldn't know, but that bastard is a lecher. When we sisters were still locked in the cell, he would look at us with such filthy eyes. Especially An Ruxue and Qingcheng—that bastard even wanted to defile them in the cell. If the jailer hadn't arrived in time, they might have been ruined!"

Chen Xuan’s expression darkened: "That happened?"

Xu Ruolan nodded quickly: "It is absolutely true. Would I lie about something like this? If you don't believe me, ask the others. They all saw it with their own eyes."

Chen Xuan looked at the others. Their faces showed a mix of anger, shame, and coldness. The answer was clear.

"What she said is true," Li Xiuning spoke, her expression devoid of emotion. "This man named Chen Tian was driven by lust. He even tried to lay a hand on me, but he feared my status as a princess of the Great Tang. He had the heart of a thief but not the courage."

As she spoke, a trace of mockery crossed her stoic face—a look of disdain for a man like Chen Tian.

"That cur... I will kill him one day!" Chen Xuan snorted, a murderous glint flashing in his eyes.

"He is your clansman. Do you dare kill him? Are you not afraid of the clan’s punishment?" Li Xiuning asked, clearly surprised.

In a clan, even if there were conflicts, the worst that usually happened was a severe beating; one could never take a life. To do so was defined as fratricide and would lead to grave consequences.