Chapter 11

On the flower boat, Huang Rong suddenly realized she had been taken advantage of while vulnerable.

At her loneliest and most helpless moment, that silly boy appeared, and in just one meal, he had tricked away her, the "Number One Beauty of The Legend of the Condor Heroes"!

This is far too lacking in prestige!

Huang Rong felt both ashamed and annoyed in her heart.

Especially thinking that right now, who knows how many diary copy owners were laughing at her, Huang Rong's cheeks burned hot.

South of Nanzhou, Yan Yan Lingji let out a scoff.

Indeed, little girls are so easily deceived; even the cleverest have their moments of foolishness.

And she actually lost to such a yellow-haired girl!

This made Yan Yan Lingji want to bite Jiang Sishui immediately, forcing him to rephrase his words.

【After Guo Jing received Huang Rong's help, he advanced as if he had a cheat code.】

【In just a few short years, he transformed from a non-elite martial artist into one of the top experts in The Legend of the Condor Heroes, standing shoulder to shoulder with the old masters.】

【Unfortunately, after Rong'er married him, she did not live a peaceful life.】

Seeing this, the women were all stunned.

Not living a peaceful life? What happened?

Did Guo Jing divorce her? Or did he change his heart, marry another woman, and neglect her?

But that shouldn't be right!

Huang Rong is the Number One Beauty of The Legend of the Condor Heroes, and also the Number One Extraordinary Woman in Wu Xia in Jiang Sishui's heart; such a jade-like person, marrying Guo Jing is a fortune he earned over eight lifetimes.

If it were any other man, I'm afraid he wouldn't bear to betray her, right?

On the flower boat, Huang Rong's gaze also sharpened, and her expression grew tense.

Although she currently has no connection with Guo Jing, Huang Rong's fate in The Legend of the Condor Heroes also tugged at her heartstrings.

【Because compared to love, Guo Jing valued state affairs more heavily.】

【Seeing the Great Song in danger like an egg balanced on a stack of eggs under the Mongol iron hooves, he, filled with enthusiasm, voluntarily helped the court defend Xiangyang.】

【As his wife, Rong'er naturally followed her husband's lead.】

【And from then on, they never lived a single peaceful day again.】

【At the same time, Rong'er, having become a wife, was long influenced by the Neo-Confucianism of the Song Dynasty—a set of doctrines specifically used to brainwash the lower classes—and through constant exposure, she transformed from an innocent and lively little demon girl into Lady Guo, who strictly observed ritual propriety.】

【Rong'er ultimately lived to become the very thing she hated most.】

"I go to guard a city? I go to help that dog Emperor of the Great Song guard a city?!"

"I marry a man, and then he makes me toil and busy myself for a lifetime?"

"I strictly observe ritual propriety? And ultimately live to become the very thing I hated most?"

Reading this, Huang Rong could no longer sit still.

Who doesn't know that her father, Huang Yaoshi, is the most rebellious against orthodoxy and despises the Neo-Confucian righteousness of those rotten scholars the most?

As Huang Yaoshi's daughter, she was naturally influenced as well, with likes and dislikes similar to her old father.

And hearing what Jiang Sishui said, she finally actually... actually...

Huang Rong was so angry she couldn't speak.

However, what broke her defenses was yet to come...

【At the end of the story, Rong'er, along with Guo Jing, defended Xiangyang for thirty or forty years, and finally died in battle when the city fell; even the entire Guo family was wiped out in that battle.】

【Only a young daughter happened to be away from home, thus escaping disaster.】

"I died? And the entire family survived with only one person left?"

Huang Rong was stunned for a moment, not expecting her in the book to end her life in this way.

"Damn Guo Jing! Rong'er doesn't want to fight to the death for anyone! He even dragged my whole family into it! Damn, damn, damn!"

Huang Rong clenched her small fists, wishing she could punch Guo Jing straight to the earth's core.

This fool, if you want to be a hero or a great knight, you go do it; Rong'er wants to live happily every single day!

【Come to think of it, Rong'er should exist in this world, right?】

【After all, Wu Xia cannot be without Huang Rong, just as the West cannot be without Jerusalem.】

【It's just unknown what her current situation is.】

【If she is still that innocent and lively little demon girl Rong'er, I must snatch her before Guo Jing does!】

【If she has become Lady Guo, then I...】

【Must snatch her too!】

【Re-educate her, and I'm sure I can make her return to her original mischievous and naughty self.】

【I, Jiang Sishui, will take Huang Rong as my wife!!】

Seeing the content in the diary, the women seemed to hear Jiang Sishui's cry from the bottom of his heart, and immediately fell silent together.

011 Kunji Seal, Master of the Harem

It could be seen that the diary owner truly loved this Huang Rong very much.

From between the lines, they discerned one meaning:

I want Miss Huang! I also want Lady Guo!

Unavoidably, some among the women felt an emotion named jealousy.

At Mantuo Shanzhuang, Wang Yuyan murmured, "He treats Miss Huang so well; if my cousin were even half like him, I wouldn't be so miserable."

At the Ancient Tomb on Mount Zhongnan, seeing Jiang Sishui's declaration to marry Huang Rong, for some reason, Xiao Longnu suddenly felt a tightness in her chest and shortness of breath, taking a long while to recover.

South of Nanzhou, Yan Yan Lingji's lips curled slightly, revealing a smile: "An interesting little man."

The women reacted differently, but as the one being confessed to, Huang Rong felt a tangle of emotions.

There was shy delight, and also helplessness.

"If you're going to steal me away even after I'm married, does that mean I'm stuck with you for life?"

Huang Rong rolled her eyes in exasperation, yet inside she felt little annoyance or anger.

"Hmph, no matter what, I'll only decide after I've seen you in person. If I'm not satisfied, I'd rather die than follow you!"

Saying this, Huang Rong looked up toward the distant horizon: "Suzhou—we're heading there too. I'll see just what kind of man you are."

Suddenly, a heavenly voice sounded at her ear—

【Detected Jiang Sishui has completed today's diary entry. Congratulations, you've earned one month of True Qi.】

【Selecting today's winner…】

【Congratulations, Huang Rong, you've won the Kunji Seal.】

"It's her!" The women's hearts stirred.

Upon hearing Huang Rong had won, they could now be certain the odds of winning were neither equal nor fixed.

Perhaps it was tied to how often the diary's owner mentioned someone.

This set many women's minds turning, their gazes drifting toward Suzhou.

But… what exactly was the Kunji Seal? What did it do?

This thing wasn't like Wang Yuyan's "Truth Water," where the name gave it away.

Of course, among the women, some were well-informed and instantly paled.

Jingzhou, Hulong Shanzhuang.

Shangguan Haitang's True Qi surged erratically, crushing the teacup in her hand into shards.

"Kunji… Kunji… Isn't that another name for the Empress? The Kunji Seal—did it just grant Huang Rong the position of Empress?"

"Then who is the Emperor? Is it him?"

Shangguan Haitang's expression shifted, darkening and brightening unpredictably: "The Empress is mistress of the harem. If Huang Rong holds the Seal, she's taken the rightful place—then who does she rule over?"

Naturally, Shangguan Haitang thought of all the other possessors of the diary copies.

"So you've already marked us all as yours? How utterly domineering!"

Shangguan Haitang let out a soft sigh.

Yet faced with this miraculous diary, she seemed to have no power to resist.

"Jiang Sishui… I truly want to see you. Can you truly make Shangguan Haitang willingly follow you? Otherwise, you'll get only a corpse."

…

On a flower boat in the Eastern Sea, Huang Rong opened her right palm—and a white jade seal appeared in her hand.

The seal was no more than an inch square, small and exquisitely crafted, its entire surface glowing with a soft luster; carved upon it was a phoenix, wings spread wide, head slightly bowed, eyes stern, gazing down upon all under heaven.