Shadow Heir II: Dark Glory - Chapter 6

With a glare full of irritation, Su Wuji shot Xiao Pang a dirty look before turning back to Mu Qianyu, face switching in a heartbeat into a cheeky grin.

“Hehe, Qianyu, now that everything’s settled, I’ll be off. If anyone dares bully you again, just tell me—I’ll mince them into meat paste.”

Mu Qianyu let out a soft laugh. “Go on, don’t scare them too much. Keep this up and I’ll never be able to invite you over again.”

As she spoke, she gently tugged on Su Wuji’s arm.

The words, the motion—undeniably the kind of thing only old friends would do.

Su Wuji chuckled like a fool, grinning ear to ear.

At the hospital entrance, Mu Qianyu stopped and looked him square in the eyes. “Why did you suddenly decide to help me?”

After all, just last night at Queen’s Bar, he had made it clear he wanted nothing to do with the Mu family drama.

Su Wuji looked at the beauty in front of him, his eyes crinkling as he smiled. “Obviously because the Fifth Branch of the Mu Family is a bunch of villains, and this young master has a noble heart—stepping in to uphold justice and deliver divine retribution!”

Xiao Pang interjected in his low, muffled voice, “Boss, that’s not what you said on the way here…”

Mu Qianyu bit back a smile, eyes narrowing with interest. “Oh? Xiao Pang, what did your boss say?”

Ignoring the death glare boring into him, Xiao Pang answered with all sincerity:
“Miss Mu, my boss said the main reason he came to save the damsel in distress… was because he’s got the hots for your body.”

Craving your body!

That blunt, bald statement made Mu Qianyu’s cheeks flush scarlet in an instant.

Su Wuji exploded, “Xiao Pang! What the hell are you saying? You’re ruining my heroic image!”

He leapt up in frustration, swatting at the back of Xiao Pang’s head—barely reaching.

And yet, despite the brazenness of that line, Mu Qianyu didn’t feel offended. On the contrary, she burst into laughter, her eyes glittering with tears.

That smile—bright as stars, soft as moonlight—outshone even the blazing sun. Su Wuji’s heart gave an unexpected jolt, and for a moment, he couldn’t look away.

It was a long while before Mu Qianyu composed herself. Then she extended her hand seriously.

“Whatever your reason, I still owe you thanks for today.”

Su Wuji stared at that delicate, fair hand. Instead of leering or reaching for it, he just waved her off with a grin.
“For a righteous, big-hearted man like me, this was nothing. Not even worth mentioning. No need to remember it.”

Mu Qianyu watched him put on that overly casual, too-cool act—and, strangely, felt more at ease with him than with any of her so-called family.

She reminded him softly, “Watch out for my Fifth Uncle.”

Su Wuji had stormed in and thrashed Mu Xudong’s wife and son. There was no way the man would take that lying down.

Su Wuji bared his teeth in a grin. “If Mu Lao Wu dares mess with me, I’ll chop his son into pieces.”

The words matched his infamous reputation as a ruthless, violent playboy—but to Mu Qianyu, they didn’t inspire fear.

Xiao Pang, however, asked seriously, “Boss, chopped into eight pieces this time too?”

“…Shut up!” Su Wuji snapped.

Watching the young man’s face darken with exasperation, Mu Qianyu couldn’t help the small smile tugging at her lips.

That smile—its shape, its spark—transformed her entire face into something heartbreakingly beautiful, more vivid than any ink-and-wash painting. Even she hadn’t realized how rarely she’d truly smiled since her father fell ill.

And now, in just two days, she’d laughed more than she had in the past year.

As Su Wuji’s car disappeared down the road, Mu Qianyu waved, and a sleek Mercedes sedan pulled up.

She climbed inside and addressed the man in the driver’s seat.
“Uncle Chen, any updates on my Fifth Uncle?”

The man wore a baseball cap pulled low, sunglasses, and a black mask—his features completely obscured.

This was Li Qingchen, longtime bodyguard to Mu Yuanming. Now, he was assigned to protect Mu Qianyu.

“Miss,” he replied, “Mu Xudong was in Guang City negotiating a business deal. But after hearing his son got beaten up, he flew back this morning. Just landed.”

Mu Xudong had originally handled the Mu family’s real estate ventures. But ever since Second Brother Mu Yuanming fell ill, he’d been eyeing the international trade business—the branch under the Second House’s control.

Mu Qianyu’s lips curved into a subtle smile. “Now that he’s back, things are going to get even more interesting.”

Li Qingchen added, “Miss, the Master called yesterday and asked me to remind you: even if you don’t want to fight, you absolutely cannot back down.”

In a family empire this massive, no one would believe you were stepping aside out of selflessness.

To retreat was to be crushed underfoot—perhaps even killed.

Mu Qianyu’s gaze narrowed as she studied Li Qingchen’s posture. “Uncle Chen… you’re not quite yourself today.”

His tone had been slower, more cautious than usual.

After a moment’s hesitation, Li Qingchen said,
“Miss, around 2:30 a.m. last night, I found two assassins in your neighborhood garden.”

Mu Qianyu immediately sat upright, eyes sharpening.

“I found them unconscious. Arms and legs completely broken—totally incapacitated,” he said calmly.

Her brows drew together. “If they’re alive, they can still be interrogated.”

“I already did. They used to be top bodyguards for the Myanmar rebel commander. Someone paid a hefty price to bring them here. They crossed the border just yesterday and arrived in Linzhou in the afternoon.”

“But while they were scouting the area, a masked man appeared out of nowhere and crippled them.”

Mu Qianyu’s gaze turned frosty. “Can we find out who that masked man was?”

Li Qingchen replied, “He was slashed on the back by a dagger during the fight. That’s our only lead.”

“What time exactly did it happen?”

“Around 1:30 a.m.”

Mu Qianyu suddenly remembered Su Wuji’s phone call from last night—the one where he’d warned her not to go out alone.

She quickly pulled out her phone and checked the call log.

2:00 a.m.

Just thirty minutes after the attack.

Was it you?

Li Qingchen caught her expression in the rearview mirror. “Miss… do you already know who it might be?”

Mu Qianyu came back to herself and replied softly,
“No.”

Then she made a call.

“Yanxi-jie, are you free right now? I’d like to talk.”

Park Yanxi’s voice came through the line:
“I’m parked right outside Jiangnan Orthopedic Hospital. Took the afternoon off—I’m all yours.”

The Mu family hadn’t alerted the police, but somehow Park Yanxi had learned of the incident and arrived early to wait nearby.

“Perfect. I’m coming to you.”

Mu Qianyu stepped out of the car, waved at a rugged SUV down the street, and turned back to Li Qingchen. “Uncle Chen, just follow me in the car.”

“Understood.”

As soon as she shut the door, Li Qingchen dialed an international number.

“Master, there’s something I need to report.”

Mu Yuanming’s voice answered lazily,
“Go ahead—eh, hey! Su Wuxian, stop peeking at my cards!”

They were clearly playing cards on the other end.

Wasn’t the old man supposed to be resting?

Li Qingchen sighed inwardly and began relaying the details from last night.

Unexpectedly, Mu Yuanming responded offhandedly,
“No big deal. As long as Su Wuji’s around, we’re fine. He’s Su Wuxian’s nephew after all… Ha! Straight flush!”

Someone else cursed in the background.
“Don’t get me started on that punk’s name! My idiot brother named his kid to sound like he’s in my generation—just to mess with me!”

“Straight flush, my ass! Six twos. Boom—I win!”

TRANSLATOR’S NOTES:

[1] Su Wuxian: Su Wuji’s uncle. The comment about their names sounding like they’re from the same generation plays on Chinese naming customs—often, generational markers are embedded in names, and it’s a slight breach of etiquette for a junior’s name to match a senior’s too closely.

This is Ink Hub, your translator speaking. Thanks for reading!