Sword drawn from the constellations, poison as its edge.

Chapter 102 Full Firepower
"Azi!"

Jiang Mingzhe, with a stern face and a serious tone, gently pushed Azi away.

"Hmm?" Even though Azi was still immersed in joy, she sensed something was wrong. Her smile vanished instantly as she suddenly remembered something: Big Ginger was an overly kind person!
A sense of panic began to rise within him: "Hey, are you going to say I'm repaying kindness with enmity? That's not how it works! I didn't ask Old Man Duan to release my acupoints. If he couldn't release them, he could have stopped! It's like... like... that's right! It's like he invited me to dinner, and I ate a lot because I have a big appetite. Is that my fault? I just ate a lot..."

Azi hurriedly tried to explain, but Jiang Mingzhe stared at her without blinking.

Finally, Ah Zi was out of breath and pouted, saying, "Then I'll just not do it next time, okay? The acupoints are already open, I can't close them anymore, it's like eating food, you can't just throw it up..."

She tentatively poked Jiang Mingzhe's hand, and when he didn't react, she immediately grabbed it and shook it, saying, "You're not allowed to scold me! If you scold me, I'll cry, and when I cry, I'll keep crying and crying!"

Duan Zhengchun had just thrust out his last finger, and was so exhausted he almost fainted. His four guards immediately rushed forward to support him. He sat down on the spot, meditated for a while, and barely managed to regulate his breathing. He opened his eyes and said weakly, "Boy, if you dare to curse her, I... I..."

Azi immediately turned around and said fiercely, "Hmph, who are you to call me father? I'm happy if he insults me, but what business is it of yours, old man? Don't think that just because you're Young Master Duan's father or some kind of prince, I'm not afraid of you. I even dare to beat up a princess. The affairs of the White and Green Twin Demons of the Great Kunlun Mountains are none of your concern!"

After unleashing her barrage of words, Azi didn't even glance at Duan Zhengchun. Instead, she turned back with a playful and coquettish smile, saying, "Hehe, Big Ginger, I've already taught this old man a lesson for you. Please, for the sake of your sworn brother and the fact that he helped me unblock my acupoints, don't hold it against him. Okay, don't keep a straight face. I really won't do it again next time. It's rare to encounter such a big fool."

Jiang Mingzhe took a deep breath and sighed, "Azi, I didn't mean to teach you a lesson. You grew up in the Xingxiu Sect. If you hadn't been cunning and always thinking of yourself, you probably would have been dead long ago. I just want to tell you that there are actually many fools like this, not as rare as you say."

Azi apologized earlier only because she was afraid Jiang Mingzhe would be angry, but she didn't really think she was wrong. If she doesn't even understand the principle that it's a fool not to take advantage of a good deal, how can she be worthy of being a disciple of the Xingxiu Sect?
Hearing Jiang Mingzhe say that there are many fools, she was immediately delighted, thinking that Jiang Mingzhe had finally come to his senses—

Just as he went on a killing spree in the stone cave, slaughtering the Shennong gang and changing his bad habit of being too kind-hearted, he understood the survival principle that one should not be a pushover.

He immediately exclaimed excitedly, "Really? You're so smart! Even Master said it's hard to find a fool like that."

Jiang Mingzhe smiled and said, "It's true, most parents in the world are this kind of fool. They would give anything for their children."

"..." Azi was stunned, looked at Jiang Mingzhe blankly, blinked, and then laughed awkwardly: "Big Jiang, you wouldn't ask me to recognize him as your father just because he helped me open dozens of acupoints, would you?"

Jiang Mingzhe reached out and ruffled Azi's hair, saying softly, "Silly senior sister, besides your own father, who would be willing to expend so much energy to save you like this?"

“You!” Azi said decisively.

Jiang Mingzhe couldn't help but laugh and nodded, saying, "That's not bad. Besides me and your own father, who else would be willing to save you like this?"

Azi frowned and subconsciously looked at Duan Zhengchun. Duan Zhengchun stared at her expectantly, and when he saw Azi looking at him, he immediately put on a flattering smile.

Azi darted behind Jiang Mingzhe and tugged at his clothes. Jiang Mingzhe turned around, and Azi, her face serious, whispered, "Is this Prince Duan really my father?"

Jiang Mingzhe nodded and said, "When Boss Duan took you away, he knocked off your gold locket. There were two gold lockets in total. They were the betrothal tokens your father gave to your mother. You also have an older sister named Azhu. You each had one."

As soon as he finished speaking, Duan Zhengchun said in a trembling voice, "The stars in the sky are bright and shining, forever radiant. Chang'an is peaceful. The bamboo by the lake is lush and green, bringing peace and joy! Azi, Azi, you are my daughter, Duan Zhengchun's daughter. You are the princess of the Zhennan Prince's Mansion in Dali Kingdom. Azi, I am sorry for you and your sister, and I am also sorry for your mother."

Azi's body trembled. She peeked out and saw Duan Zhengchun with tears streaming down his face, holding her gold locket in his hand. The once dashing man now seemed to have aged ten years in an instant.

Azi shrank back, without a trace of a smile, two lines of tears slowly falling down her cheeks. She sniffed and said, "Big Ginger, I... I actually don't like my father!"

Jiang Mingzhe raised an eyebrow but remained silent.

He suddenly remembered that in the original story, A Zi stole the Divine Wood King Cauldron and had nowhere to go, so she ran to the shore of Xiaojing Lake in Xinyang. Obviously, she had memories when she was abandoned, or Ding Chunqiu had told her where her birth mother lived.

At that time, Duan Yanqing confronted Duan Zhengchun, and the two got into a fight. Duan Zhengchun was no match for Duan Yanqing. Azi made sarcastic remarks, mocking Duan Zhengchun for his incompetence and indirectly causing the death of Chu Wanli, and refused to apologize.

As a reader, Jiang Mingzhe felt that A Zi was cold-blooded and ruthless when he read the book, but now that he had a deep affection for A Zi, he couldn't help but think from her perspective.

Abandoned by her parents at a young age, she survived in the Xingxiu Sect with a charming smile on her face. How could she not harbor resentment towards her parents?

If a mother, born in this era, has a child out of wedlock, it's somewhat understandable if she says she has nowhere else to turn. But for her own father, a prince, to turn a blind eye and do nothing is utterly unreasonable.

Ah Zi said she didn't like Duan Zhengchun, and although her voice was soft, most of the people in the room heard it. Duan Zhengchun's already pale face became even more dejected, and he said with a bitter smile, "It's deserved, it's deserved, it's all my own fault for committing too many sins..."

Gan Baobao felt extremely distressed and said angrily, "What nonsense are you talking about, little girl? Your father risked his life to save you. What kind of rubbish are you spouting? How can you be a worthy child when you are so unfilial?" Duan Zhengchun quickly said, "Baobao, she is still a child after all. We can teach her slowly. Don't talk to her like that."

Azi trembled, and her face turned pale.

Jiang Mingzhe put his arm around Azi's shoulder, but he didn't feel very happy either. He thought to himself, "Let's not even talk about Lao Duan, who only cares about shooting but not raising the child. Gan Baobao, what's wrong with you? How dare you even speak?"

He didn't say anything, but winked at Zhong Wanchou.

Zhong Wanchou, suddenly struck by a sudden inspiration, roared, "You surnamed Duan, just because you are a prince, does that give you the right to harass a respectable woman's wife? My wife has already married me, so how dare you call her by her maiden name? Don't tell me that you, the dignified Prince of Zhennan, are ignorant of etiquette and don't know that you should call her Madam Zhong!"

Duan Zhengchun was stunned. He hadn't expected this fool to suddenly become so sharp-tongued. He was speechless and his expression became more and more dejected. He clasped his hands and smiled bitterly, "What Valley Master Zhong said is true. It was I, Duan, who was frivolous and unruly and spoke without restraint. I should have called her Madam Zhong."

He then clasped his hands in a fist and bow to Gan Baobao, saying, "Madam Zhong, Duan Er was rude. Please forgive him."

Gan Baobao swayed, then suddenly turned her head and glared fiercely at Zhong Wanchou, shouting, "Even if he said something wrong for a moment, is it worth being so relentless? Can't you see he's injured?"

Zhong Wanchou panicked, both angry and scared, and looked to Jiang Mingzhe for help.

Jiang Mingzhe, with his arm around Azi, smiled faintly and said, "Why are you looking at me like that? Your wife makes a lot of sense. You're neither Prince Duan's son nor his father, and your wife even has an ambiguous relationship with him. Prince Duan is injured now, so how can you still be so relentless? Sigh, you've made such a mess of things. I think we'll have to skip this drink!"

Duan Zhengchun looked at Jiang Mingzhe with a wry smile, knowing that his son-in-law was speaking up for his daughter. He was both annoyed and comforted at the same time.

What's infuriating is that this kid calls me "uncle" so affectionately, and he was even more attentive when learning my swordsmanship, but now he's helping my rival.

What's comforting is that he didn't even care about offending me, which shows that he truly loves his daughter. He has lived a dissolute life, and he doesn't want his daughter to encounter a prodigal son like him.

Jiang Mingzhe had taught Zhong Wanchou a saying to find an opportunity to say it while drinking. Now that he said there was no need to drink, it meant that now was the time to say it.

After working together with Zhong Wanchou many times, their understanding of each other grew stronger, and they eventually came to understand each other.

He immediately perked up, glared angrily at Duan Zhengchun and Gan Baobao, puffed out his chest and roared, "Lord Duan, and you, Baobao, although I, Zhong Wanchou, am not a high-ranking official, nor am I handsome, I am still a man of integrity. Since I married Gan Baobao, I have cherished and protected her, obeyed her every command, and never been promiscuous or flirtatious outside. I have done nothing wrong to anyone. But you, Gan Baobao, as a married woman, find me displeasing in every way. I used to think it was because I was too ugly and made you unhappy, but now I know that you already have someone else in your heart. Where is there any room for me?"

Although he was taught by Jiang Mingzhe, every word he said was his true feelings. Otherwise, with his brain, how could he remember such a long passage clearly?
The more he spoke, the more sorrowful he became. This burly man, as strong as a horse, was now sobbing uncontrollably: "Fine, fine, since you have no heart for me, I'll let you go! Gan Baobao, it's me, Zhong Wanchou, who's ugly and stupid, unworthy of you. I'll let you go. Ask Prince Duan if he'd be willing to let you be his princess... Hmm, forget about being a princess, but since you love him so much, shouldn't you at least be his concubine? You can be the concubine of the Prince of Zhennan, and I'll write you a letter of divorce right now!"

Zhong Wanchou went all out, and Jiang Mingzhe pursed his lips, barely suppressing a laugh. He thought to himself, "Old Zhong is something else. I didn't even teach him about princesses and concubines, and he's already learned to answer them!"

"No, no, I won't agree!"

Zhong Ling was still enjoying the gossip about A Zi when Jiang Mingzhe hugged A Zi, and she suddenly felt uncomfortable. She was about to go out and avoid the situation, pretending that this part didn't exist, when for some reason, the gossip about her own parents suddenly started to spread rapidly.

Forget everything else for a moment, she jumped out and grabbed Zhong Wanchou's arm, saying anxiously, "Mother, please come and comfort Father! I don't want you to become someone else's concubine. The three of us should stay together happily."

Seeing Zhong Ling crying, A Zi remembered what Zhong Ling had said earlier about how her big ginger brother wouldn't care about her and that she would get her brother to come. She immediately perked up, grabbed Jiang Mingzhe's sleeve and wiped away her tears and snot, then proudly declared, "Don't be afraid, you brat! My father's concubine was reserved for my mother. Your mother can only be... be..."

Poor Princess Azi, she didn't even know the intricacies of the royal palace, or what lay below the concubine.

After thinking for a long time without coming up with anything, he simply said, "Hmm, let your mother be the head maid who washes my mother's feet!"

　Regarding the plot involving Duan Er abandoning his third daughter, the following is an excerpt from the original text:

　　Azhu smiled and said, "Enough, enough. I don't like you being too nice to me. If I become unruly, no one will care. Big brother, I... I hid behind the bamboo house and eavesdropped on Father, Mother, and Sister Azi's conversation. It turns out that my father had another wife. He and Mother weren't officially married. First, they had me, and the following year, they had my sister. Later, my father wanted to return to Dali, but my mother wouldn't let him go. They had a big fight, and later... there was no other way but to separate. My maternal grandfather was very strict, and my mother didn't dare bring my sister and me home. She had to give them away to other families, hoping that they could recognize each other someday. She tattooed the character 'Duan' on the shoulders of my sister and me. The person who adopted me only knew that my mother's surname was Ruan, but actually, actually, my surname is Duan..."

　　Xiao Feng held her in his arms, his heart filled with even more pity, and whispered, "Poor child."

　　Azhu said, “When my mother gave me away, I was only a little over a year old. Of course, I didn’t recognize my father, and I didn’t even recognize my mother when I saw her. Big brother, you are the same. That night in the apricot grove, I heard people telling about your life story. I felt very sad because we are both children with the same tragic fate.”

　　
　
(End of this chapter)