Pain

Gu Jinning guessed correctly; Xiao Lan had indeed experienced unrequited love.

Xiao Lan and Da Hua Lingchen were more than two years apart, but they had never crossed paths before.

However, Hua Lingchen became famous at a young age, and her reputation was too great. In addition, she was unparalleled in beauty, and all the young girls in the city were infatuated with her. Xiao Liang, who considered himself extremely noble, believed that he should be matched with the best things in the world, so he naturally took notice of Hua Lingchen.

She commissioned someone to create a portrait of Hua Lingchen and send it to the palace, where she fell in love at first sight. After that, she acquired a large number of Hua Lingchen's paintings and calligraphy, admiring them every day, and increasingly felt that only Hua Lingchen was worthy of her.

At that time, the one who was even more popular than Hua Lingchen was the arrogant little tyrant Gu Jinning.

Consort Xian was worried that the Gu family's power was too great and would overshadow Xiao Liao, so she arranged for Xiao Liao to be betrothed to the Xu family, thus forming an alliance with Consort De to jointly check and balance the Empress.

Xiao Ling cried and made a scene, but ultimately succumbed to the lure of profit and married Xu Shouyan, becoming Hua's cousin-in-law.

Soon after, the Huajiabao Incident occurred, and Hua Lingchen suffered misfortune, trapped in the tea garden, and disappeared without a trace.

Xiao Ling's innocent feelings seemed to have vanished with Hua Lingchen's death.

Seeing Hua Lingchen today was an unexpected surprise. He was as charming as ever, no, even more captivating than in the paintings. How could she not be moved?

"Can you live at home from now on?" Xiao Liang tried to start a conversation.

Hua Lingchen replied, "I came today to celebrate my nephew's 100-day celebration. I will return to the tea garden after the banquet."

Gu Jinning said, "Does the princess not know that the head of the Hua family has already severed ties with Brother Hua, and the tea garden is Brother Hua's home?"

Xiao Lei retorted, "I didn't ask you anything, why are you interrupting?"

Gu Jinning pouted, got up and went outside, "Okay, I'm going out to enjoy the scenery, I won't disturb your enjoyment."

Under the eaves, Prince Wei, Xiao Jun, walked up to her, greeted Gu Jinning, and then hesitantly inquired, "Princess, how has Danniang been these days?"

Gu Jinning replied, "I took a real slap and coughed up blood for days. How could I possibly recover?"

Xiao Jun asked urgently, "Then what about him now...?"

"He went outside the city to recuperate from his injuries, and it's uncertain when he'll be able to return."

Xiao Jun wanted to ask something more, but when he saw Hua Lingchen come out, he bowed and greeted him, "Greetings, Young Master Hua." He didn't ask any more questions.

Hua Lingchen returned the greeting and said to Gu Jinning, "There are many artificial mountains and strange rocks in the fortress, which can make it difficult to see. Those who are not familiar with the area may easily lose their way. Let me show you around."

Gu Jinning readily accepted.

Xiao Liang followed and said, "Young Master, I would also like to take a walk around. May I come with you?"

Hua Lingchen gestured for him to proceed. Xiao Ling walked past Gu Jinning and swaggered to the head seat.

Inside the hall, Xiao Liao gave Sun Xianzhu a look, and Sun Xianzhu immediately chased after him, pulling Xiao Jun along with him.

Unlike other mansions with their small bridges and flowing water, Huajiabao is built with high stones, arranged in various shapes and sizes, scattered throughout. The most distinctive feature of the mansion is the artificial rock garden made of twelve artificial stones.

Sun Xianzhu suggested, "Cousin, the artificial rock garden looks fun, let's go there. What do you think, young master?"

Gu Jinning scolded, "Sun Xianzhu, if you don't speak, no one will think you're mute."

Sun Xianzhu walked close to Xiao Liu and said, "Gu Jinning, what business is it of yours what I say? This isn't your home."

Gu Jinning said, "Go by yourself if you want to."

Sun Xianzhu said, "I don't remember the way. Does the eldest son intend to show favoritism and only lead the way for you, ignoring us?"

Gu Jinning rolled up her sleeves and went around to beat him up, but Hua Lingchen stopped her and said, "Let's go together. The fake stone garden is definitely worth a visit."

"Brother Hua!"

Everyone knows that the artificial rock garden has another name – Huajia Martial Arts Arena.

That place was the site of the martial arts competition three years ago, a place where Hua Lingchen could never erase the pain for the rest of his life.

Hua Lingchen smiled and said, "It's been a long time since I've been back, and I've almost forgotten what that place looks like. It would be good to go and take a look."

Sun Xianzhu winked at Gu Jinning, his face a picture of smugness.

At midday, as the sun shifted southward, the artificial rock garden, situated in the south, was completely bathed in sunlight. The 112 giant rocks, arranged in a pleasing, staggered pattern, cast shadows on the ground that resembled birds, beasts, and paintings, each with its own unique and lifelike form, creating a distinctive light and shadow mural.

At the very center of the group of giant rocks is the arena, with viewing areas on all four sides that can accommodate a thousand people.

"Look, Young Master Hua is coming on stage."

"The eldest son has won the championship for three consecutive years, and he will surely win again this year."

"The Hua family has produced a fine son, skilled in both literature and martial arts; he is truly the envy of all."

"Look! The eldest young master has lost, and the second young master has gained the upper hand. This is unacceptable!"

"What happened? The eldest young master has fallen! He actually fell? How is that possible? He's an invincible warrior, how could he possibly fall?"

“I bet a lot of money on him winning. If he loses, I will be bankrupt.”

"He got up, he stood up."

"Falling down again, what a waste, a piece of trash who can't even protect himself with a sword."

"Blood, lots of blood. His hand is bleeding."

"Get up! Get up now! Pick up your sword and fight! If you don't win, we'll all lose!"

"Get up quickly, stand up now."

...

Blame, resentment, and curses surged in like a tide, tightly enveloping him, squeezing him, pouring into his entire body, and pressing him heavily to the ground, rendering him unable to move.

It hurts so much! Where exactly does it hurt?

Blood stained the scene, and the hand lying in the pool of blood was numb. Yet the pain persisted, an untouchable, oppressive pain that suffocated him.

He felt dizzy and saw the Black and White Impermanence summoned by resentment.

"Young Master!"

Xiao Ling called out, and Hua Lingchen was pulled out of her memories, smiling with relief, though her face was visibly pale.

The arena was now filled with banquets, and maids and servants were coming and going, creating a lively scene.

Hua Lingchen said with a hint of bitterness, "This is indeed a good place to hold a banquet."

Gu Jinning said, "What's so good about it? The ground is all dirt, don't you mind the dust?"

“I told you this place wasn’t nice. Let them stay if they want. Take me somewhere else to play.”

She pulled Hua Lingchen outside, where they bumped into Hua Lingteng, who had brought Li Ranyi.

"It seems the princess is not very satisfied with Hua Family Fortress." Hua Lingteng said sarcastically. "Indeed, how could the princess look down on such a small place as Hua Family Fortress? And now that Young Master Hua has climbed up to a powerful figure, he naturally looks down on it too."

Gu Jinning smiled insincerely and said, "How dare I? The Hua family is a family of martial arts masters. If the head of the Hua family were to stretch out a finger, he could ruin my reputation and kill me on the spot."

Li Ranyi approached, nudged Gu Jinning's arm, and invited, "Today is the young master's 100-day celebration. Princess, how about coming with me to meet the young master?"

Gu Jinning refused, "I won't go. I look fierce, and I don't want to scare the young master."

Li Ranyi didn't insist. She pointed to the gifts held by the maid behind her and said she was going to give them to the young master and her cousin and sister-in-law. Then she took her leave from everyone, asked Old Man Hua to lead the way, and went to the backyard.

Gu Jinning insisted on going somewhere else to play and forcibly took Hua Lingchen away.

Along the way, fake stones constantly guarded them, each one watching them intently, omnipresent.

Gu Jinning whispered to Hua Lingchen, "Look, everyone's staring at us."

He then gave Qinglian a look. Qinglian understood and turned to leave alone.

Two guards immediately followed from a short distance away.

Gu Jinning explored most of Huajiabao and found that the ancestral hall was guarded the most, both openly and secretly, as if afraid that others would not know that something was hidden there.

Gu Jinning concluded that this was the place where they had trapped them like turtles in a jar.

"Brother Hua, since we're already here, why don't we go in and pay our respects to our ancestors?"

Gu Jinning raised an eyebrow and took the lead to enter the courtyard.

The guards stopped them, saying, "Only members of the Hua family can enter the Hua family ancestral hall."

Gu Jinning explained, "I accompanied your young master Hua to pay respects to our ancestors. He injured his hand and can't light a fire, so I have to help him offer incense."

"this……"

The guard hesitated, but then he saw someone nodding at him from the fake rock in front of him, so he reluctantly agreed.

He invited the two men into the courtyard, unlocked the ancestral hall door, and let them in. Another guard took the opportunity to go and deliver a message.

The ancestral hall is also constructed of heavy stone, with thick and high walls. Rows of holes have been carved into the wall facing the entrance to house the ancestral tablets of the Hua family.

The altar was filled with offerings, with an incense burner placed in the center.

Gu Jinning strolled over, looked around, and reached the bottom of the stage. She took out three long incense sticks, lit them slowly, handed them to Hua Lingchen, and whispered, "They're here."

Hua Lingchen held the incense sticks and bowed three times, then handed them to Gu Jinning to place. He then went to a table on the side, sat down on the floor, and laid out paper to grind ink.

Gu Jinning pretended to bow to the memorial tablet, wandered around the hall, and then helped Hua Lingchen grind ink.

Not far from the courtyard, behind the artificial stone directly opposite the ancestral hall gate, Xiao Liao noticed that Gu Jinning was hesitant to make a move and asked, "What are they doing?"

Hua Lingteng was also completely bewildered. After watching for a while, he saw Hua Lingchen pick up a pen and write. Suddenly, he remembered, "I remember now. In the past, when he worshipped his ancestors, he would always attach a sacrificial text. He must be writing a sacrificial text."

"Write it now?" Xiao Liao said impatiently. "How long will this take?"

Hua Lingteng said helplessly, "I don't know either. Normally, a sacrificial text can be completed in half an hour or more, but now that his hand is useless, who knows..."

The mine map they had prepared was in a square box next to the incense burner. As long as Gu Jinning opened it and took it, they could capture her.

But Gu Jinning was focused on grinding ink.

Hua Lingchen picked up his pen and wrote the title, then put it down and rubbed his wrist. He wrote a few more words, then put the pen down to rest.

Gu Jinning went to see the murals and asked Hua Lingchen about the origin of the patterns on the stone wall. Hua Lingchen gave her a long explanation.

Time flew by, and it was almost noon. The sun was blazing, and Hua Lingteng was getting hot and impatient, so he decided to show up and urge them on.

Gu Jinning caught a glimpse of Hua Lingteng approaching out of the corner of her eye. She touched the stone wall with her hand, then sauntered back to the table and quietly released the item she was holding.

A black spider crawled up the countertop and onto the desk. Gu Jinning screamed, "Ah~"

"There's a spider!"

Gu Jinning frantically slapped and hit the spider. Startled, the spider scurried away and climbed onto the inkstone. Gu Jinning picked up the inkstone and threw it away.

The inkstone traced an arc in the air before striking Hua Lingteng, who was about to step over the threshold, and landing with a "bang."

The ink that splashed out of the inkstone was all over him, instantly turning him into a watercolor painting.

"Oh dear!" Gu Jinning exclaimed as she ran over, circling around Hua Lingteng. "Oh dear, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to. There was a spider on that inkstone, I was really scared."

She kicked the inkstone, and a spider crawled out from under it, swaying and escaping, leaving eight winding ink streaks.

"Gu Jinning!" Hua Lingteng pointed at her and said, "You've gone too far!"

"Let me wipe it for you, but oh dear, I can't wipe it off. You'd better go change quickly, so as not to delay the start of the banquet."

Gu Jinning pulled out a handkerchief to clean him up, but Hua Lingteng shook off her feigned hand, glared at Hua Lingchen, and left in a huff.

"I really didn't mean it. I'll make you two more drinks later."

After calling out to the door, Gu Jinning quickly turned around, her smile widening as she tried to suppress it, her body trembling.

Great, one's done.

Gu Jinning's gaze fell on the square box next to the incense burner, and she moved closer step by step.