Chapter 53: Worthless dog!

"No wonder this guy dares to be so arrogant."

An Ruxue muttered to herself, and as she looked at Chen Xuan again, a trace of admiration flickered in her eyes.

Because he had been grabbed by the neck and suspended in mid-air all this time, Zhang Tianci's entire face had transitioned from an initial flushed red to a bluish-purple, and was rapidly turning a deep, dark purple.

The intensity of his struggling grew weaker and weaker, and his breathing gradually grew faint.

"Don't do anything reckless!"

Seeing that the situation was turning unfavorable, Chen Qing, standing behind Zhang Tianci, quickly spoke up.

If he didn't speak up now, Zhang Tianci was truly going to die.

Zhang Tianci could die, but he absolutely could not die right in front of Chen Qing.

Otherwise, the governor of Man City would definitely hold him accountable.

That governor was notoriously protective of his subordinates, and if things went wrong, he, Chen Qing, might even be dragged down to be buried along with him.

"Someone from the Chen family?"

Chen Xuan had already noticed him; embroidered on his chest was a small character representing the Chen family.

"That's right, I am from the Chen family. I am Chen Qing, the son of the head of the Man City Chen family!"

Chen Qing hurriedly reported his name and continued, "Let go of him right now, or his life will be forfeit!"

However, Chen Xuan only offered a disdainful smile.

"If the one called Wang Fen doesn't kneel and kowtow, I won't let him go. As for this Zhang Tianci, if he dies, he dies—it simply means one more life added to my hands."

Hearing this, Chen Qing's expression changed drastically. He finally realized that Chen Xuan was truly a ruthless character; regardless of your background, he genuinely dared to finish off Zhang Tianci!

Immediately, Chen Qing shouted to Wang Fen, "Wang Fen, hurry up and kneel down and kowtow!"

Wang Fen's expression turned utterly sour and unsightly. He glared fiercely at Chen Qing, his gaze seeming to say: *What kind of thing are you? By what right do you order me around?*

Seeing this, Chen Qing inwardly cursed him as an idiot. *Couldn't he see that Zhang Tianci was on the verge of death?*

Yet he also knew in his heart that Wang Fen was the governor's man, not his own, so it was completely normal for him not to listen to his orders.

Without hesitation, Chen Qing immediately turned to Zhang Tianci and said, "Young Master Zhang, make Wang Fen kneel and kowtow right now!"

Zhang Tianci's entire face had already turned the color of a pig's liver. At this moment, his throat produced a sound like someone drowning, and he was completely unable to speak.

Chen Qing anxiously urged, "Put him down first so he can talk!"

Chen Xuan felt it was almost enough; if he kept choking him, this fellow really would die.

With a casual flick of his hand, he tossed Zhang Tianci to the ground, where the young man heavily hit the earth like a piece of trash.

"Cough, cough, cough..."

Clutching his neck, he coughed violently while greedily gasping for air in large gulps.

The suffocating sensation from just moments ago had simply made him feel that death would be preferable to life!

"Young Master Zhang, are you alright?"

Chen Qing hurried forward to support him.

Zhang Tianci showed no appreciation, casting a venomous glance at him and violently pushing away the hand that had come to his aid.

If not for Chen Qing, why would he have come into conflict with Chen Xuan in the first place?

He was now starting to regret it; had he known better, he wouldn't have bothered helping the Chen family out.

If he hadn't tried to block Chen Xuan outside the city and simply let him enter, none of this would have happened.

Now look at things—not only had he lost a centurion and a chief centurion, but he had also completely disgraced himself.

It was all Chen Qing's fault!

Naturally, while blaming Chen Qing, the person Zhang Tianci resented the most was undoubtedly Chen Xuan.

This damned Chen Xuan, instead of obediently playing the turtle in the face of his authority, actually dared to resist and caused him to lose all his face!

Seeming to sense his resentment, Chen Xuan gave him a flat, expressionless glance.

That single glance alone made Zhang Tianci's heart palpitate with fear, instantly plunging him into a feeling of a shadow of death looming over him once again.

He quickly averted his gaze from Chen Xuan, terrified that Chen Xuan might catch sight of the hatred in his eyes.

At the same time, Zhang Tianci turned his head toward Wang Fen, who still looked staunch and unyielding, and began to curse at the top of his lungs:

"You thousand-times-damned bastard, were you really hoping to watch this young master get choked to death?"

Wang Fen immediately dropped to one knee, cupped his fists, and said, "This subordinate wouldn't dare!"

"Wouldn't dare? You dog of a thing, is there anything in this world you *don't* dare to do?"

Zhang Tianci felt like carving his heart out right then and there. Gritting his teeth, he snarled, "Why aren't you kneeling and kowtowing to me right now? You are not allowed to stand up until you've smashed that dog's head of yours to pieces!"

The hatred in his heart toward Wang Fen was not a shred less than what he felt toward Chen Xuan.

After all, when Chen Xuan had just told Wang Fen to kneel, Wang Fen had refused.

It was precisely because of this that he had almost been choked to death by Chen Xuan!

"May the young master forgive me!"

Terrified, Wang Fen immediately dropped to his knees on the ground. He was acutely aware that Zhang Tianci was the kind of person who held grudges and sought immediate vengeance.

If he dared not to kneel right now, there would no longer be any place for him to survive in the entire Man City!

Without a second thought, Wang Fen knelt on the ground, slamming his forehead heavily against the paved bricks with loud *thudding* noises. Soon, his forehead became a bloody mess, and the floor tiles were stained with his blood.

The other centurions nearby found the sight unbearable to watch; sorrow welled up in their hearts, a shared sense of grief akin to foxes mourning the death of a hare.

"Did you not eat today? Knock harder!"

Yet, even with things having reached this point, Zhang Tianci was still not satisfied.

He had a belly full of pent-up rage with nowhere to vent, and he urgently needed someone to take it out on.

Not daring to hesitate, Wang Fen increased the force of his kowtows, making the sounds even louder until the stone bricks beneath him began to crack.

"Young master, that's almost enough."

Unable to watch any longer, one of the centurions stepped forward to plead on Wang Fen's behalf.

"Shut your mouth, you bunch of trash! You can kowtow as well!"

Zhang Tianci's anger had yet to subside, and yet someone actually dared to come forward and plead for mercy?

He shot a vicious glare directly at the centurion who had spoken.

"This..."

The centurion's expression instantly turned utterly wretched.

He had merely tried to put in a good word, yet he had been implicated as well?

"Damn you all, does my word carry no weight anymore? It seems every single one of you wants your entire household to be executed and your properties confiscated!"

Zhang Tianci's face contorted into a hideous grimace.

Having nearly died just moments before, the pent-up grievance inside him made him feel an urge to slaughter everyone present.

Upon hearing the phrase "confiscate your household," the centurion's expression shifted dramatically.

"Young master, punishment should not extend to one's family. I'll kneel right now!"

The centurion immediately dropped to his knees.

"Hold on. You—you are not allowed to kneel."

Just as he was about to hit the ground, Chen Xuan's leisurely, unhurried voice rang out.

"Huh..."

The centurion froze in place.

Zhang Tianci had ordered him to kneel, yet Chen Xuan was actually forbidding him from doing so?

What was the meaning of this?

With a gloomy expression, Zhang Tianci demanded, "What are you trying to do? I'm telling my own men to kneel—shouldn't you be happy about that?"

Chen Xuan waved a hand dismissively and said with indifference, "I won't let him kneel. Got a problem with that?"

A raging fire of fury ignited within Zhang Tianci's heart.

*They are my men, why should they listen to you?*

Seeing right through his thoughts, Chen Xuan wore a half-smile as he said, "Unconvinced, are you? If you're unconvinced, bottle it up."

With that, Chen Xuan looked over at Wang Fen, the centurion whose forehead had already shattered the floor tiles, and calmly instructed:

"Wang Fen, is it? That's enough, stop kowtowing. Get up."