Chapter 79: Past Events
Wherever there are people, there is a world of martial arts; wherever there is fighting, there is also a world of martial arts. Therefore, the world of martial arts is always bustling with people, and it is also a place where chaos arises one after another, and where gratitude, hatred, honor, and disgrace can be decided in an instant.
The saying "A tall building rises in one day, and collapses in another" is not uncommon in the martial arts world. Even a great hero, who is unparalleled in fame and fortune, may be ruined in an instant. It can only be blamed on the indiscriminate nature of swords and the unexpected disasters. No matter how glorious he was in the past, he can only become a topic of conversation for passersby. How many people among the countless generations of passersby can truly reach the pinnacle?
Unfortunately, Ye Shuzhen was not that kind of person.
So her life was neatly cut in two, divided into two completely different segments. This was the first old story Xie Huailing discovered.
More than a decade ago, Ye Shuzhen wasn't called Ye Shuzhen. She had a more famous name, a name known to everyone in the martial arts world. Those who admired and pursued her were as numerous as autumn petals falling. They wrote poems for her, were infatuated with her, left behind countless stories for her, and gave her their all. In the end, all of this truly became like autumn petals falling, gone forever.
At that time, her name was Qiu Lingsu. In her early twenties, Qiu Lingsu practically ruled half of the martial arts world, all because of one thing: she was one of the two most beautiful women in the land.
"The Twin Spirits of Heaven and Earth" refers to her and Shui Lingguang. With unparalleled beauty and delicate hands, the two of them were the most outstanding in the entire martial arts world. Countless beauties of their generation paled in comparison to their glances. Since Shui Lingguang rarely appeared after marrying the great hero Tie Zhongtang, Qiu Lingsu was simply hailed as the number one beauty and was known as "the most beautiful woman in the martial arts world".
With such a resounding reputation, wealth, love, status, and power were all things that Qiu Lingsu could obtain with a simple smile. How many women in the world could be luckier than her?
Therefore, Qiu Lingsu was unrestrained. She was skilled in poison and acted without restraint, earning her the nickname "witch" behind her back. But she didn't care. When a person has too much, she no longer cares about how others perceive her.
However, fate is often unpredictable, and even good fortune eventually comes to an end.
Fifteen years ago, Qiu Lingsu, the most beautiful woman in the martial arts world, went to Bianjing City and suddenly disappeared without a trace, becoming a beautiful mystery that left countless heroes with lifelong regrets. It was precisely because of Qiu Lingsu's disappearance that the martial arts world began to discuss beauties again.
That same year, Ren Ci met a woman named Ye Shuzhen. It is unknown what she had gone through, but according to her own account, she was covered in black gauze, extremely haggard, and seemed to be insane. It was Ren Ci who put aside his official duties and took good care of her for several months before she slowly recovered.
The rest of the story is as people in the martial arts world know: the leader of the Beggars' Clan married a woman of little renown, and they remained together for over ten years.
As for why Qiu Lingsu chose to marry Ren Ci under an assumed name, and what she experienced fifteen years ago, these are not things that can be investigated in a short period of one or two months, just like her background. Xie Huailing has a deduction.
Yang Wuxie learned that some time before Qiu Lingsu's disappearance, a painter was supposed to paint her portrait, but the next day, Qiu Lingsu gouged out his eyes, and then she vanished completely. What kind of devastating blow could drive the former most beautiful woman to such a state, driving her to madness? And why would she gouge out the painter's eyes? Considering the veil on her face now—is it possible that Qiu Lingsu was disfigured?
This is the most likely guess Xie Huailing can think of right now. Only disfigurement can break Qiu Lingsu. All her pride is tied to her appearance. If her appearance is ruined, she will have nothing. In such a situation, no amount of madness is too much.
But why she was disfigured and who was the mastermind behind it all are things that only Ye Shuzhen knows now, and frankly, Xie Huailing doesn't care.
She investigated Qiu Lingsu—no, Ye Shuzhen—so thoroughly because of Ye Shuzhen's sworn sister. A woman who had no reputation in the martial arts world before, who suddenly appeared by Ye Shuzhen's side fifteen years ago, and was found to be seriously injured.
Xie Huailing had an idea in his mind, an idea that the chances of winning were less than 30%, or even 10%.
Even if it's just this one percent, it's worth it for her to come to the Beggars' Sect.
However, it seems her plan has to be put on hold for now. The collusion between the Prince of Nan's Mansion and Nangong Ling is a sword hanging in the air, which may soon pierce the Beggars' Sect and then harm the Golden Wind and Fine Rain Pavilion. Neither of them will run away, so she should turn her attention to finding a way to investigate this matter thoroughly.
As for a starting point, the Southern Prince's Mansion is too far away, and Cha Ye Gucheng still needs an opportunity. Only Nangong Ling is completely within reach. Ren Ci and Ye Shuzhen love him, but he may not love them back. Considering his status as an adopted son, why would he secretly associate with the Southern Prince's Mansion behind Ren Ci's back? Perhaps this is where we can begin to explore our options.
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"Nangong Ling's background?"
Lu Xiaofeng lay back in the rocking chair, and with a slight exertion of his inner strength, the chair began to sway gently, like a small boat floating on a river. He looked into the distance, and although he was well-traveled and knowledgeable, he couldn't figure it out for the moment. Even someone with friends all over the world would have things he hadn't heard of, which was inevitable. After all, "four eyebrows" didn't mean four ears.
After thinking it over, Lu Xiaofeng couldn't come up with anything, and said, "I know that most people in the martial arts world know this, but I once heard someone say something different when we were drinking together. It was something like Nangong Ling was adopted by Ren Ci in the Beggars' Sect headquarters area, and her origins are unknown. Her biological parents are also untraceable. That's all I know. Why are you looking into this?"
Xie Huailing was leaning on the table beside her, the sunlight streaming in from the window, so warm that she didn't want to straighten up. She replied, "As for official business, I'll tell you why once you come to work at Jinfeng Xiyu Tower."
Lu Xiaofeng chuckled and said, "Dream on. You have good taste, but you should find someone else."
A wine glass rested on his chest, and although he swayed back and forth in the recliner, the glass remained steady and wouldn't fall. Having finished speaking, he seemed satisfied and gave Hua Manlou a playful wink.
Hua Manlou immediately knew what Lu Xiaofeng was thinking. He took the wine pot that Xie Huailing had just filled, and with a flick of his arm, he filled the wine cup on Lu Xiaofeng's chest with wine.
It was a tricky position, and not an easy one to drink in, but if Lu Xiaofeng were to be stumped, he wouldn't be Lu Xiaofeng. He didn't get up to drink because he was too lazy to get up; he drank like this because he was confident. Watch as this dashing young man took a deep breath, and in an instant, the wine glass was sucked in, and the wine was all swallowed. He exhaled, and the wine glass returned to his chest.
Xie Huailing exclaimed, "This diligence is something I could try to match with his."
"What if you were more diligent, Huailing?" Hua Manlou teased his friend in the gentlest tone, saying, "Lu Xiaofeng also often sleeps until the afternoon or evening before getting up."
“Then we should definitely come to the Golden Wind and Fine Rain Pavilion,” Xie Huailing sighed.
She leaned close to Hua Manlou's ear, and the two whispered among themselves, but their voices were not quiet at all: "To be honest, Jin Feng Xi Yu Lou is short of this kind of talent. If I arrange for him to work for my cousin, he probably won't ask me for any more jobs. Hua Manlou, if you don't help me, I'll give you this amount as a referral fee."
Xie Huailing held up a number: five taels of silver.
Hua Manlou couldn't help but laugh, his shoulders twitching, before he pretended to be serious and genuinely interested: "Sure, sure, but isn't what you're offering a little too little?"
Xie Huailing explained in a serious tone, "It's already a good thing if we don't lose money after introducing Lu Xiaofeng to us. Five taels is a lot."
"That's true, but I still feel it's a bit lacking, perhaps..."
"How about we just deduct it directly from Lu Xiaofeng's wages? Let me calculate, if we pay him fifty coins a month, then we'll deduct forty coins every month. How many months should we deduct that for?"
Lu Xiaofeng could no longer hold back. He put down his wine glass and slammed it on the table, shouting, "I can hear you!"
Xie Huailing, showing remorse, stepped back and said, "Then I'll keep my voice down. Where were we in the calculation again?"
Lu Xiaofeng slammed his hand on the table again, glaring indignantly at Xie Huailing.
Hua Manlou finally broke down and laughed heartily. The handsome young man looked especially good when he laughed, making it seem as if Lu Xiaofeng was being unreasonable: "Alright, alright, just kidding. Where were we? Let's continue. The background of Young Master Nangong."
He was also helping Xie Huailing recall, but Xie Huailing didn't have much hope when he asked them. He just mentioned it casually and didn't care whether they could answer or not: "If Chief Ren really adopted Young Chief Nangong here at the headquarters, checking the orphanage here might give us some clues. Young Chief Nangong was probably five years old back then."
Xie Huailing turned to look at Lu Xiaofeng and asked, "Who told you this news back then?"
Lu Xiaofeng remembered it clearly and replied, "Grandpa Turtle Sun. It's not that I don't want to tell you his name, it's just that it really is. Coincidentally, he should be here now. Do you want to go look for him?"
"Why not look for it?" Xie Huailing was desperate and wouldn't mind putting in the effort.
She asked again, "Where should I look for it?"
Lu Xiaofeng didn't answer. He first picked up the wine and held it up to Xie Huailing's face. Xie Huailing understood his meaning and poured him a drink. Only then did Lu Xiaofeng feel that he had won the round. He laughed and said, "Since you have this name, you can only go to some low-class places. Brothels and flower houses are nothing more than these two places. But I'm afraid it's inconvenient for Miss Xie, isn't it?"
He continued, "Let me tell you everything first. This man's greatest love in life is womanizing and frequenting brothels. He's drowning in debt to the madams, and it's only because he did some favors for Dazhi Datong in his younger days that he occasionally gets help paying off his debts. His character is truly worthy of his name. If you send people to arrest him, he'll probably hide somewhere, and things will likely escalate, requiring a lot of effort. So, what does Miss Xie think?"
Lu Xiaofeng clearly wanted Xie Huailing to say something nice, just a word or two would suffice. It wouldn't be convenient for an unmarried young woman to make this trip, but it was much easier for him.
Unexpectedly, Xie Huailing's thought process was far beyond that of ordinary people. When she heard the name "Great Wisdom and Great Understanding," she thought about it a step further. These two were once prominent figures in the martial arts world more than ten years ago. It was said that they could answer all the questions in the world. However, the martial arts world was treacherous, and possessing a treasure was a crime. After appearing for a period of time, they retired, fearing that if they stayed too long, they would die at someone's hands.
Seeing her deep in thought for a long time, Lu Xiaofeng had a bad feeling. Before he could speak, Xie Huailing suddenly made the final decision.
"No need, I'll go myself."
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The next day at Jinfeng Xiyu Restaurant, Chef Su, who had been busy all day, was about to start his lunch when he received an urgent message from Shaman via carrier pigeon.
He opened the letter, and then his silence was deafening.
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This book doesn't incorporate any Jin Yong elements. The nickname "Ye Erniang" was chosen because I couldn't think of any other name for her at the moment (feeling guilty, whistling).
Ms. Xie is going to do something that the original poster would never do in his entire life.
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