Chapter 59

However, Huang Huang Yaoshi was considerably older than Mei Mei Chaofeng, and the latter was his disciple; by the public order and good customs of that time, a master falling in love with his disciple was absolutely an act of monstrous rebellion.

Although Huang Huang Yaoshi was a man who scorned feudal rites and ignored Jianghu rules, he always cared deeply about the great barriers of human relationships, so in the end, he chose to suppress his own thoughts.

However, although he never spoke it aloud, a poem he routinely copied in secret concealed his true feelings.

That poem was Ouyang Xiu's "Gazing at Jiangnan"!

Within that lyric, there is such a line: "Shaking dice in the hall above, walking below the hall; it was then, upon first sight, that my heart was already captured. How much more so until now."

This very line recounts this great poet's illicit love for his own niece!

Huang Huang Yaoshi's fondness for this poem likely stemmed from a resonance of shared misfortune with Ouyang Xiu.

Slap!

The copy of the diary in Huang Rong's hand fell to the ground; her gaze went blank, and her pretty face turned deathly pale.

As pale as those trembling, slender hands.

"Shaking dice in the hall above, walking below the hall; it was then, upon first sight, that my heart was already captured. How much more so until now. Gazing at Jiangnan... Gazing at Jiangnan..."

Huang Rong murmured the words several times, suddenly feeling an indescribable bitterness.

For she had indeed witnessed Huang Huang Yaoshi copying this very poem!

Then what Jiang Sishui said, could it not be... could it not be...

Suddenly, Huang Rong recalled that Feng Heng was a young lady from a noble family, well-read since childhood and brilliant in literature; did she know about this matter?

If she did know, and yet never complained a single word all these years, was it truly because she was broad-minded and indifferent, or was she silently swallowing the bitter fruit?

If she did not know, then being kept in the dark for so many years, was she not equally aggrieved?

Thinking of this, Huang Rong could not help but clench her fists.

By chance, this handwritten copy of "Gazing at Jiangnan" by Huang Huang Yaoshi was seen by his eldest disciple, Qu Qu Lingfeng.

Qu Qu Lingfeng, who was always sharp-witted, understood his master's thoughts in an instant.

After pondering for a long time, he beat around the bush to test Mei Mei Chaofeng, subtly conveying Huang Huang Yaoshi's intentions to her.

At that time, Mei Mei Chaofeng was still at an innocent age; although she held considerable affection for the master she had always revered, she had no deeper thoughts.

Therefore, faced with Qu Qu Lingfeng's hints, she ultimately chose to feign ignorance.

Thus, a romance between master and disciple fell into the awkward situation of "the king has feelings, but the goddess has no dream."

After confirming that Mei Mei Chaofeng had no thoughts regarding his master, Qu Qu Lingfeng was overjoyed.

It turned out that the reason he conducted this test was not merely for his master, but also for himself.

During their daily interactions, he too had fallen in love with this junior sister.

Unfortunately, Qu Qu Lingfeng rejoiced too soon.

His true rival was never Master Huang Huang Yaoshi, who was bound by the great barriers of human relationships, but rather his junior brother, Chen Chen Xuanfeng.

Chen Chen Xuanfeng was the destined lover of Mei Mei Chaofeng!

"It matches again..." Huang Rong sighed softly.

Her Senior Sister Mei had indeed ended up with Chen Chen Xuanfeng, and moreover, they had eloped.

When Huang Rong first heard of this past event, she had wondered why the two did not ask Huang Huang Yaoshi to officiate their wedding back then, choosing instead to flee Taohuadao; now she understood.

Yet, a sense of powerlessness spontaneously arose within her.

In fact, gentlemen like Huang Huang Yaoshi and Qu Qu Lingfeng, who express affection but stop at propriety, are liked by many women; moreover, their immense learning is a significant added advantage.

But alas, these very things hold truly limited appeal for a young maiden in her budding years.

Chen Chen Xuanfeng was completely different from them; he was a man of great action.

Once he confirmed his heart fluttered for his junior sister Mei Mei Chaofeng, he immediately launched an intense pursuit.

Every day, he used frivolous language to tease Mei Mei Chaofeng and chased the young girl with ardent gazes, behaving exactly like a seasoned veteran of love.

How could a young girl just awakening to love have ever witnessed such a fierce offensive?

Thus, she was soon moved by Chen Chen Xuanfeng.

After realizing that the other party had also developed feelings for him, Chen Chen Xuanfeng grew bolder, even using the excuse of delivering peaches to forcibly embrace Mei Mei Chaofeng.

In my previous life, Chen Chen Xuanfeng's tactics were not sophisticated at all, but in that era which emphasized strict separation between men and women, such a direct and straightforward pursuit was quite deadly.

Most importantly, Mei Mei Chaofeng came from a miserable background and lacked a sense of security, so she had little resistance against Chen Chen Xuanfeng's sweet talk.

Therefore, after a period of intense pursuit, the shamelessly persistent Chen Chen Xuanfeng finally completely opened Mei Mei Chaofeng's heart.

The two, behind their master's back, privately pledged their lives to each other.

However, paper cannot wrap up fire.

The state of passionate love between the man and woman was soon discovered by Qu Qu Lingfeng; the latter felt both anger and jealousy, determined to obstruct them.

In the midst of their argument, Qu Qu Lingfeng accidentally blurted out the matter of Huang Huang Yaoshi's affection for Mei Mei Chaofeng.

This action caused the proud and arrogant Huang Huang Yaoshi to lose all face; in a rage, he abandoned his disciples and left Taohuadao alone.

Meanwhile, Chen Chen Xuanfeng, brave but lacking strategy, began a life filled with fear and anxiety, simultaneously conceiving the idea of fleeing Taohuadao.

This also laid the foreshadowing for the tragedy that would follow.

"Tragedy?"

Seeing these two sensitive words, Huang Rong's attention immediately sharpened.

She had a premonition that this "tragedy" must be related to her mother.

After leaving Taohuadao, Huang Huang Yaoshi quickly developed the idea of taking a wife.

He felt that doing so would stop the endless gossip of the crowds, preventing them from discussing his illicit feelings for his disciple Mei Mei Chaofeng.

When a man of such personal charm, proficient in both civil and martial arts as Huang Huang Yaoshi, wished to take a wife, it was naturally not difficult.

Before long, he successfully sought the hand of Feng Heng, a talented woman from Qingyuan Prefecture.

Feng Heng was knowledgeable and reasonable, understanding and considerate, capable in the reception hall and skilled in the kitchen, truly a model wife for any man.

As for why Huang Huang Yaoshi took a fancy to Feng Heng, the book provides no detailed description.

However, Mei Mei Chaofeng once said this: "Master's wife is very young, the same age as me; we were both born in the Year of the Monkey. Master's wife is exceedingly beautiful, her skin so white and tender it resembles milk; no wonder Master loves her so deeply."

From these words, one can see that Feng Heng was a woman of an age comparable to Mei Mei Chaofeng.

Such conduct makes it difficult to believe that Huang Huang Yaoshi did not harbor thoughts of treating Feng Heng as a substitute for another, suggesting there was little genuine affection in his heart.

Furthermore, Feng Heng's death serves as even stronger corroborating evidence!

Reading this, no further proof was needed; the women had essentially concluded that the one Huang Huang Yaoshi loved was Mei Mei Chaofeng.

Though Feng Heng was admirable, she seemed more like a substitute Huang Huang Yaoshi had sought out.

Zhao Zhao Zhao Qiying could not help but recall the heartwarming scene of Huang Huang Yaoshi driving the carriage for his wife, and she sighed with emotion.

Who would have thought that a couple who appeared so devoted might actually share a bed but dream different dreams.

Thinking about it, one truly feels sorrow for Feng Heng.

One need not fear Huang Huang Yaoshi being fickle and loving two people at once; what is terrifying is if he were single-minded, thinking of Mei Mei Chaofeng while lying beside Feng Heng.

Speaking of Feng Heng's death, one must mention a martial art—the Nine Yin Manual.

The Nine Yin Manual was created over several decades by the extraordinary figure Huang Shang; after its completion, it was hidden in a mysterious location, only to accidentally leak out later.

Since the manual contained methods to counter the martial arts of various major sects, it was hailed as the "General Outline of All Martial Arts Under Heaven," sparking a fierce struggle among the heroes of the Wu Lin and unleashing a storm of bloodshed.

"The General Outline of All Martial Arts Under Heaven? What an audacious claim!"

The Nine Yin Manual also existed in reality; several women who had heard of it clicked their tongues, feeling the claim was far too exaggerated!

For as far as they knew, the Nine Yin Manual was merely a divine skill, not even a sacred canon.

The title of "General Outline of All Martial Arts Under Heaven" was likely something even a Heavenly Art could not bear!

To prevent endless feuds and killings in the Wu Lin, Wang Wang Chongyang, the sect leader of the Quanzhen Sect, proposed the "Huashan Sword Debate," wherein the victor would be crowned the "Number One Expert Under Heaven" and gain possession of the Nine Yin Manual.

Once the challenge was issued, the Wu Lin fell silent, daring not to invite humiliation upon themselves; ultimately, only Huang Huang Yaoshi, Ouyang Feng, Duan Duan Zhixing, and Hong Extraordinary Art ascended Mount Huashan.

After seven days and seven nights of debating swords, Wang Wang Chongyang emerged victorious and obtained the Nine Yin Manual.

Shanzhou, Mount Huashan.

Yue Yue Lingshan let out a soft "Eh" and smiled: "Mother, who would have thought that our Mount Huashan would be involved in this as well."

Ning Zhongze: "..."

Their own sect's mountain gate had been treated by others as an arena for fighting and rivalry; what was there to be happy about?

If there had been a Huashan Sect at that time, the sect leader would likely have been angered to the point of near death.

Although the four were defeated, Huang Huang Yaoshi and Ouyang Feng did not give up.

Before his death, Wang Wang Chongyang discovered Ouyang Feng lurking around Mount Zhongnan with the intent to steal the manual, so he feigned his own demise.

Ouyang Feng indeed launched an attack, only to be severely injured by Wang Wang Chongyang taking advantage of the situation; it took over ten years for him to recover from his grave wounds.