“Hmph... Coward! When I saw you the other day, I thought you’d changed, but who would have thought...” Little Loli shot me a sideways glance, snorting through her nose.

“...” Ignoring Loli, I kept urging my horse forward, chatting and joking with Handsome Lincoln, which made Little Loli so angry that she kept circling in front of and behind me, tugging at the reins and riding her horse restlessly. I just ignored her—what, you gonna bite me?

Handsome Lincoln seemed to somewhat believe my amnesia. Along the way, I finally learned who William Clark was—he turned out to be the second son of the famous “Three Axe” Cheng Yaojin. Today, we weren’t going to his house to settle the grudge from a few days ago when we almost lost our pants gambling, but because Handsome Lincoln’s emperor father had arranged for his eleventh daughter, Princess Qinghe Li Jing, to marry William Clark. Today, William Clark was throwing a banquet to celebrate, inviting all the young rakes. As the soon-to-be brother-in-law, Handsome Lincoln wouldn’t miss the fun. He even declared that if he didn’t put William Clark in his place today, he’d write his own surname Li backwards.

Seeing the four big characters “Duke of Lu’s Mansion” above the gate, I could already hear wailing, cursing, wild laughter, shouting, and even the clash of weapons from inside, even before entering. Good heavens! What kind of place is this?

Chapter 8: Let’s Have a Battle of Wits, Not a Battle of Force!

“It must be that bunch of old scoundrels having a feast.” Edward Lincoln gritted his teeth. Emily Lincoln and Little Loli also gritted their teeth and nodded in agreement.

“For De, what’s going on with you...” I was confused, coughed twice, and tugged at Edward Lincoln’s sleeve, whispering.

Edward Lincoln glanced at me, making sure I wasn’t pretending to be clueless, then shook his head and sighed, “I’ll explain it to you another day. Be careful here—those old bastards, once drunk, are capable of anything, even murder and arson...”

“Ah?!...” I was bewildered. Is this a bandit’s den or a duke’s mansion?

Edward Lincoln’s horse hadn’t even come to a full stop when a servant, already waiting outside the Cheng residence, came up to take the reins. “Where’s your second young master?”

“My lord is entertaining guests in the front hall, the second young master is entertaining guests in the rear hall. I’m not sure if you...” The servant quickly replied, sneaking a glance inside the mansion.

“The rear hall, with Old General Cheng. We...” Edward Lincoln pointed to Emily Lincoln, who was holding his hand. “Don’t want to disturb.”

“Alright, please follow me...” The servant seemed to share the sentiment, nodding repeatedly, and led us, sneaking and dodging like a commando unit behind enemy lines, weaving through the front garden.

“Want to see if this old man’s sword is still sharp... Waaahhh...”

“Old bastard, I can take a general’s head from an army of a million as easily as taking something from my pocket—take this!”

Two drunken, wild middle-aged men, bare-chested, their bloodshot eyes gleaming fiercely, gritted their teeth, and the long sabers in their hands flashed coldly like a tornado sweeping past us. Edward Lincoln seemed prepared, pulling Emily Lincoln behind him with one hand and yanking the Cheng family servant in front of him with the other. I was glad I kept a low profile and walked at the back, but I was still scared into a cold sweat...

It seemed Edward Lincoln’s worries were well-founded—these really were no ordinary old scoundrels. I realized that my drunken dog-chasing antics in the past were way too outdated and embarrassing—I just couldn’t keep up with the times.

Swish... Thud!!!! A long spear was suddenly thrust into a giant tree beside the rockery, followed by a wild shout from one of the men: “Lü Bu shot the halberd at the gate, but that’s nothing compared to this general striking the spear in the flower hall—wahahaha...” Immediately, a chorus of wailing and howling echoed in response... Buddha, please protect my little life...

Trembling, I finally made it past the front hall, only to find my long robe soaked through. No wonder this was the famous residence of the “Cheng Goblin” in history—damn, it really was extraordinary. I swear, I’ll never set foot in the Cheng mansion again.

...

“So it’s you—turns out it’s my worthy brother, the Prince of Wu, gracing us with your presence.” The burly, rough man sitting at the head of the table was the first to stand and greet Edward Lincoln as he entered the rear hall.

“Brother-in-law... Heh heh, my good brother-in-law...” Edward Lincoln grinned lecherously. Was it really necessary to be so sleazy? Clearly, these two had a deep-seated grudge. As an outsider, I could see that clearly.

The burly man at the head must be the future husband of Princess Qinghe. His bearded face turned from red to black, then to purple, and after a long struggle, he finally squeezed out two words: “Brother-in-law...”

Emily Lincoln also popped out from behind Edward Lincoln: “Greetings, brother-in-law... Hee hee...”

William Clark struggled for a long time: “Greetings, Princess...” It looked like Edward Lincoln had come today just to stir up trouble. Interesting. Nothing to do with me—better keep a low profile... I quietly followed behind these two royal scions, greeting William Clark with a few perfunctory laughs.

Edward Lincoln, as the brother-in-law, naturally took the main seat, and kept going on about how he, the brother-in-law, was this and that, and how the brother-in-law’s so-and-so... It was shameless, leaving the original host William Clark flustered and unable to cope, always at a disadvantage. It seemed that Edward Lincoln, who almost lost his pants the other day, finally had his chance for revenge.

Nothing to do with me—I just ate and drank: grape wine, Sanle brew, Green Ant Drunk, drinking whatever I wanted; roast lamb leg, braised pork knuckle, stewed duck, eating whatever I liked. Meanwhile, I watched this bunch of young rakes drink, recite poetry, flatter each other, joke around, and act drunk. It was just too entertaining.