There were countless high-ranking officials and nobles in the capital, so Brian Clark and his party did not attract much attention. Brian Clark withdrew his thoughts and continued walking forward, but just as he took two steps, a snowflake suddenly drifted down in front of his eyes.

"Ah! Daddy, it's snowing!"

"It's snowing!"

Children's joyful shouts rang out one after another around them. Brian Clark shook his head with a smile, and Samuel Grant hurriedly draped a fox-fur cloak over him. "Master, shall we get in the carriage?"

"Let's walk a bit longer," Brian Clark said. "It's been a long time since I last saw the snow in the capital."

The February snow in the capital fluttered down like goose feathers. The chief guard held up an umbrella for His Majesty, and the pure white snowflakes slid off the edge of the umbrella, with some blown by the wind onto the emperor's long black hair that hung to his waist.

They passed by restaurants and teahouses. Upstairs at the Zhuangyuan Restaurant, Owen Reed lounged by the window, swinging a wine bottle. When he looked down, he saw the group passing by.

The emperor's face was hidden under the umbrella, but Samuel Grant and the chief guard's faces were all too familiar. Owen Reed swirled his wine, stretched his hand out the window, and as the group passed beneath, he loosened his fingers one by one.

"Crash—"

The wine bottle shattered not far behind Brian Clark. The guards immediately tensed, glaring fiercely up at the restaurant.

Brian Clark pushed aside the umbrella, his view unobstructed. Looking up, he saw a hand casually draped out the second-floor window. There was no need to guess; Brian Clark knew it was the owner of that hand who had thrown the bottle that nearly hit him.

A faint smile curled at Brian Clark's lips, but his voice was as cold as the falling snow. "Bring him down."

Moments later, the guards brought down Owen Reed, reeking of alcohol, from the Zhuangyuan Restaurant. The snow was swirling even harder now, and the umbrella was of little use. Brian Clark had already told the chief guard to put it away, and stood alone in the cold wind for a while, his shoulders soon covered in white snow.

Owen Reed was brought to Brian Clark's side. Seeing who it was, Brian Clark kept smiling. "So it's the young master of General Xue's family."

Samuel Grant said, "Master, shall we send Young Master Xue back to General Xue's residence?"

While they were speaking, Owen Reed hiccuped, leaned in to look at Brian Clark for a moment, and then said, "Your Majesty?!"

Brian Clark gazed at him quietly. Snowflakes clung to his hair, his fox-fur cloak, even his eyelashes, and none of them melted right away upon landing. In contrast, Owen Reed was perfectly clean; the snowflakes evaporated into water from the heat of his body before they could even settle.

Seeing this, Brian Clark's mood worsened.

No emperor could remain in a good mood in front of someone who would one day seize his throne and was a hundred times healthier than himself.

Owen Reed was like a dog that bit everyone it met—usually silent, but vicious and ruthless, with little sense of morality, seeing only desire and power. He was a master at leading troops, but such a subordinate was like a blade without a handle: anyone who tried to use him had to be prepared to lose a hand.

Brian Clark dared to fool Adam Brooks, but not Owen Reed.

Brian Clark looked at the shattered wine bottle on the ground. "What happened here?"

Owen Reed grinned, the smell of alcohol wafting off him. He looked at the shards on the ground, feigning confusion. "How did my wine end up here?"

Samuel Grant pinched his nose and said in a nasal voice, "Master, Young Master Xue must be drunk."

Suddenly, Brian Clark smiled. He walked over to the shards and stood still. The guards escorting Owen Reed brought him over as well. Owen Reed looked relaxed, walking slowly, so much so that the guards seemed to be serving him rather than restraining him.

A snowflake landed on his nose, making him itch. Brian Clark coughed softly a few times and said hoarsely, "Kneel."

The guards pressed down hard on Owen Reed's arms, forcing his knees onto the sharp shards scattered all over the ground.

Large pieces of broken porcelain pierced his flesh, and blood instantly soaked through his trousers and onto the ground. Snowflakes fell onto the blood, quickly melting into water and causing the blood to spread even faster.

The perfunctory look on Owen Reed's face vanished. He looked up at Brian Clark with a sullen, uncertain expression.

Brian Clark gave him a gentle smile, then suddenly grabbed his hair, lowered his head, and whispered in Owen Reed's ear, word by word, "I'm in a very bad mood today, Young Master Xue. Don't give me a reason to make your mother grieve to the point of heartbreak. Do you understand?"

Forced to lift his chin, Owen Reed's jaw tightened into a line, ready to snap at any moment. When the words "your mother" reached his ears, he let out a sinister, cold laugh. "Yuan understands."

Brian Clark: "Very good."

He let go. Owen Reed tilted his head slightly, watching the young emperor, lips pale but smiling, withdraw from his ear. The pain in his knees gradually faded, but Owen Reed's whole body was already burning.

He looked down at the wounds on his knees and grinned darkly. Only after the emperor and his entourage had left did Owen Reed push himself up, limping back toward the Xue residence.

*

The first thing Brian Clark did after entering the palace was to instruct the people from the Inspection Office to take advantage of the Xue residence's recruitment to send more agents inside.