Indeed, why was this Zheng Fan being dangled from the eaves?
Only when Yizixie walked closer did he notice that behind Zheng Fan, through the door, stood a group of people, each trembling, heads bowed, and utterly silent.
Presumably, they were all terrified by Zheng Wei.
Zheng Wei had somehow procured a wooden stool and was sitting in the courtyard, facing Zheng Fan.
"Do you intend to speak, or not?"
Suddenly hearing Zheng Wei's voice, both Yizixie and Sima Han turned to look at him. Seeing Zheng Wei's expressionless face fixed on Zheng Fan, they then looked back at Zheng Fan.
Zheng Fan's arms were bound and he was suspended, so a slight movement would cause him to sway uncontrollably back and forth.
Upon seeing this, Yizixie felt a strange sensation.
The reason was simple: not long ago, he himself had been hung up like this by Zheng Wei.
Back then, Zheng Wei had held him in his hands, and no one had seen.
But now, Zheng Fan did not have such good fortune.
Yizixie couldn't help but sigh as he glanced at the people in the house, wondering what would become of them after witnessing such an embarrassing spectacle.
Zheng Fan struggled a few times and realized that it only caused his body to swing uncontrollably without any other effect, so he stopped.
Seeing Zheng Wei still staring at him, waiting for an answer, Zheng Fan felt a strange excitement surge within him.
So what if he was more powerful?
So what if he was hung up like this?
In the end, wasn't he still begging for an answer?
He refused to believe that Zheng Wei would actually dare to do anything to him.
With this thought, Zheng Fan remained silent, merely looking calmly at Zheng Wei.
Seeing this, Zheng Wei smiled.
However, the smile was tinged with a hint of bloodlust.
"It seems you've chosen your principles and are determined not to speak?"
Zheng Wei's voice sounded like a sigh, floating gently. When it reached Zheng Fan's ears, it made his skin crawl.
How could this Zheng Wei seem so sinister?
Involuntarily, Zheng Fan's gaze towards Zheng Wei became laced with apprehension.
His previous arrogance and principles had been cast aside. "What is it you want to know?"
Hearing this, the fierceness in Zheng Wei's eyes lessened. He said, "Where is that old man?"
Zheng Fan was momentarily stunned. "Which old man?"
Zheng Wei suppressed the irritation in his heart and said calmly, "The old man who stole your wine~"
Zheng Fan was taken aback. He stared at Zheng Wei for a long time, then suddenly burst into laughter. "Did something happen to your wife, Shen Xiaoyan? Is that why you're in such a hurry to find that old man? Hahaha, serves you right. Remember how you beat me up over that old man back then? Regretting it now? Hahaha!"
Watching Zheng Fan laugh so wildly, his schadenfreude evident, Yizixie and Sima Han exchanged glances, seeing a mixture of pity and disgust in each other's eyes.
This Zheng Fan was truly courting death.
As the old saying goes, "If you don't court death, you won't die." He deserved to die a hundred times over.
Zheng Wei stared at Zheng Fan for a long moment, then suddenly burst into laughter. After laughing, he said, "It seems you're unwilling to talk?"
Zheng Fan sneered, "I don't know where he is, so what is there to say?"
Hearing this, Zheng Wei smiled again. "If you're not going to say it, then so be it. Conveniently, I'm not interested in knowing anymore."
This time, it was Zheng Fan's turn to be surprised. He had been so desperate to know earlier, so much so that he had hung himself. Now, he said he wasn't interested. Was this person mentally ill?
With this thought, Zheng Fan gritted his teeth and said, "If you don't want to know, then why did you hang me up? Let me down quickly, you lunatic."
Listening to Zheng Fan's incessant shouting, Yizixie and Sima Han both cupped their foreheads.
They didn't know whether they should feel sorry for Zheng Fan or for Zheng Xiang.
His intelligence had already sunk to the lowest possible level.
How had such a person managed to live this long?
Or perhaps, his life had been too smooth sailing all these years.
Therefore, he had forgotten even the most basic skill of reading people's faces?
Regardless of Zheng Fan's continued outbursts, Zheng Wei remained unmoved, showing no reaction at all.
Eventually, Zheng Fan grew tired of shouting, but he did manage to call his sister, Zheng Caiying.
Before Zheng Caiying even entered the courtyard, her voice could be heard, "Brother, what are you howling about so early in the morning? I just heard that the Grand Tutor, the Fifth Prince, and that bastard are here? Didn't you invite them in? Will Father Emperor be angry when he returns if you've done this..."
Zheng Caiying's barrage of words was like a machine gun firing non-stop.
But when she saw the scene in the courtyard, her machine gun seemed to jam, and she could no longer utter a single word.
Zheng Caiying glanced at Zheng Fan, who was suspended in mid-air, then at Zheng Wei, who was sitting with his back to her, and at Yizixie and Sima Han, who were standing with their arms crossed. Her brain seemed to seize up.
Didn't she say her brother hadn't invited them in?
But what was happening now?
"Caiying, Caiying, you're here. Hurry and go tell Consort Mother, and tell someone to enter the palace and call Father Emperor back."
As Zheng Fan spoke, he continued to kick his legs.
He had been trying to maintain his composure, telling himself that everything was fine.
But this little bit of strength vanished the moment he saw Zheng Caiying.
Suspended in mid-air, he felt no sense of security.
Zheng Caiying listened to Zheng Fan's shouts, stunned and unsure of how to respond.
After a moment, she finally reacted and understood what Zheng Fan had said.
Without giving Zheng Fan a reply, she turned and ran away quickly.
This was simply too terrifying.
Watching Zheng Caiying run away, Zheng Fan felt both happy and worried. He managed to steady his mind and said proudly, "My Royal Father and Consort Mother will be back soon. I'm telling you, Zheng Wei, you'd better put me down quickly, or you'll be sorry later."
Hearing this, Yizixie could no longer hold back and laughed. "Sima Han, did I hear correctly? He's implying that his parents are coming soon and telling us to be careful?"
Sima Han nodded, acknowledging Yizixie's words.
Yizixie didn't care and continued, "How old is this person? He's still relying on his parents for everything? Hahaha, I'm going to die laughing."
"You old monster, do you think everyone is like you!"
Perhaps embarrassed by Yizixie's laughter, Zheng Fan retorted without thinking, shouting at Yizixie.
The smile on Yizixie's face vanished instantly. He looked at Zheng Fan coldly and said, "I think you're tired of living. Do you know the consequence of offending an old monster?"
As Yizixie spoke, his hand flickered, and a shiny short dagger appeared.
Zheng Fan's face changed, and he looked at Yizixie in terror.
His voice trembled with fear as he spoke, "You, you, you, what do you want? I'm telling you, my, my Father Emperor will be here soon, and you'll be in trouble then."
In his agitation, or perhaps fear, Zheng Fan even forgot to mention his Consort Mother, and blurted out "Father Emperor."
This was a term he had disdained before.
In his understanding, only those without status or position would address their parents this way.
Yizixie let out a mocking laugh. "Since I'm an old monster, naturally, I do things that old monsters do."
As Yizixie spoke, he reached out and threw the short dagger he was holding towards Zheng Fan.
Seeing Yizixie's action, Zheng Fan was so terrified that he forgot to scream and squeezed his eyes shut tightly.
After a moment, feeling nothing, Zheng Fan found it strange.
Could it be that Yizixie was just trying to scare him?
With this thought, Zheng Fan stealthily opened one eye.
Even with just a slit, Zheng Fan saw Yizixie looking at him with a mocking expression.
"Scared?" Yizixie raised his eyebrows.
Zheng Fan's eyes widened. Since he felt no pain, he was even more convinced that Yizixie had merely been trying to scare him.
So, Zheng Fan said, "Who's scared? I think you're the one who's scared, aren't you? You call yourself the Grand Tutor, I..."
Before he could finish speaking, Zheng Fan choked.
His entire body stiffened.
Because he felt a chilling coolness on his legs.
Earlier, because he had been suspended and the sun had been shining on him, Zheng Fan's body had broken out in a light sweat.
But now, he felt a chilling coolness on his legs.
A faint breeze blew, and he shivered uncontrollably from the cold.
What was happening?
Zheng Fan mustered all his strength to look down, and at the same time, tried to pull his legs up. Only then did he see that his outer garment and trousers had been neatly severed from his thighs.
The shirt had already fluttered to the ground, but his trousers were now dangling at his ankles.
Seeing this, Zheng Fan's eyes widened in terror.
What was happening?
Why had his pants fallen?
He looked back at Yizixie and saw him looking at him leisurely, still fiddling with the gleaming short dagger in his hand.
"It was you?" Zheng Fan asked through gritted teeth.
"It was me," Yizixie nodded.
"Why did you take off my pants?" Zheng Fan demanded loudly.
The servants in the house, hearing Zheng Fan's roar, found it somewhat amusing.
If a woman had asked this, it would have been one thing, and even a titillating affair.
But for a grown man to shout it out so loudly in front of everyone, it sounded utterly ridiculous.
However, at this moment, Zheng Fan was both terrified and shocked, and felt nothing else.