Since the day they met Wang Lianhua, Lu Xiaofeng and the others have never seen him again.
At the same time, a beautiful young woman entered the courtyard where they were trapped. She had bright eyes and a childlike smile, completely unlike the impression that Wuyan Pavilion had given Lu Xiaofeng and the others.
The servants in the original Mu residence were all from the Wuyan Pavilion. They were all quiet and reserved, and ignored Lu Xiaofeng and his companions' attempts to talk to them. However, the girl was quite happy to talk to them.
Zhan Zhao and Hua Manlou are gentle, upright, and self-disciplined, true gentlemen. But Lu Xiaofeng is different; he is a playboy.
If he wanted to win a girl's heart, it would be the easiest thing for him. Lu Xiaofeng wanted to get information out of the girl, but whether the girl was too innocent and naive or too shrewd, Lu Xiaofeng couldn't get anything out of her after trying to get her to talk. Instead, he chatted and laughed with the girl.
"Her surname is Hua, the same as yours, Hua Manlou."
Lu Xiaofeng faced the corridor filled with flowers.
Hua Manlou often heard the girl's clear laughter. Even though his current situation wasn't good, he still felt happy when he heard others happy.
"This is probably fate."
He was gentle and kind.
Hua said she was a maid chosen by Wang Lianhua, but she entered the Wuyan Pavilion willingly because she was waiting for someone, a heartless man who abandoned her.
Her lover abandoned her and never returned. The young woman needs to use the connections of the Wuyan Pavilion to find that heartless man.
This is truly a heartbreaking and tragic love story.
Zhan Zhao sat to the side listening to Lu Xiaofeng and Hua Manlou's conversation, but his mind was on Bai Yutang, whose whereabouts were unknown. He knew Bai Yutang well and knew that he would try to find them after he woke up, but he couldn't guess what way he would do it.
While worrying about Bai Yutang, Zhan Zhao was also very concerned about what Wang Lianhua had said that day—if one thought about it deeply, one could always come up with unbelievable things.
It's not impossible that he and Brother Bai were able to get here, and that Yan Liang was also here... However, Yan Liang's remains were collected by Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang themselves, so that person was indeed dead.
Hua Manlou turned his face towards Zhan Zhao with a hint of worry. He knew that Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang had a secret, but he rarely showed such emotion. This was inseparable from Wang Lianhua and what Wang Lianhua said.
Now all three of them have been affected by Wang Lianhua's muscle-softening powder. Although their bodies are unharmed, they cannot use their internal energy, which means they are trapped in the Mu residence.
——
Since traveling from Suzhou to Gusu, it had been raining continuously all the way. Even when the rain stopped, the sky remained gloomy and chilly. Now that we have arrived in Gusu, the sky has cleared up, the sun is shining, and a warm breeze is blowing.
Yan Liang and Bai Yutang bought steamed buns by the roadside and headed straight for the Mu residence. When the people from Wuyan Pavilion in Gusu saw Bai Yutang, they hurriedly went back to report to Mu Rufeng. When Mu Rufeng learned that Bai Yutang was accompanied by a young man in gray, he couldn't help but get excited.
Although he already knew that Bai Yutang was with a stranger, the fact that the two were now in Suzhou and that he would be able to see Yan Liang today made Mu Rufeng impatient.
Back then, Yan Liang impersonated Mu Jiangchuan, bullied and humiliated him, and even caused him to lose all his martial arts skills and become crippled. Mu Rufeng's hatred for Yan Liang grew day by day after Wang Lianhua said those words. Whether it was true or false, he had endured it for many years. Even if it was false, he stubbornly believed it without a doubt.
Wang Lianhua watched coldly as Mu Rufeng, upon hearing the news, immediately deployed men in the Mu residence, striving to capture Yan Liang as soon as he arrived.
The dejected and depressed young man was swept away by this good news—which was indeed good news for him—and his face was filled with extreme excitement.
Wang Lianhua's words were baseless; he merely gave some examples in a serious but casual manner. Tang Yang didn't believe him, but Mu Rufeng was convinced—he concluded, based solely on his conjecture and Wang Lianhua's lies, that Yan Liang and the Mu Jiangchuan of yesteryear were still alive.
Yan Liang's memories of the Mu family mansion were already hazy. He had been to many places and met many people, but his memories of the Mu family mansion were not as vivid as those of the Hundred Flowers Pavilion.
Although they knew the way, the two asked passersby about the current situation of the Mu family. Yan Liang learned where Jiang Qing had gone and felt a pang of sadness, but he cleverly hid his feelings. When he first arrived here, he was somewhat lost and unwilling to live under someone else's identity, nor did he want to be confined to a corner because of his identity. Therefore, he ran away after things settled down.
Jiang Qing was a smart girl. Even though she didn't say it, Yan Liang knew that she had actually guessed some of it.
After thanking the passersby, they set off again. The Mu residence was located on the east side of the city. After crossing two streets and turning several corners, the outline of the Mu residence came into view.
Memories of the Mu family gradually returned, and Yan Liang recalled the scene he saw when the vermilion gate opened, when he, as Mu Jiangchuan, stood outside the gate with Mu Rufeng.
Of course, this time there probably won't be any maids or servants standing on either side, nor will there be any young men in black robes or beautiful women.
Bai Yutang reached for the hilt of his sword, the giant sword on his back swaying slightly with his movement. Yan Liang glanced at him, then smiled and knocked on the door under Bai Yutang's strange gaze.
"My name is Yan Liang. I have come from afar to pay my respects. I hope that Master Mu will open the door and grant me an audience."
He originally wanted to call him the head of the Mu family, but now the Mu family only has Mu Rufeng left, and the other party is not even a son of the Mu family. It would be ridiculous to call him the head of the Mu family.
Upon hearing this, Mu Rufeng, sitting under the eaves, gripped the armrests of his wheelchair tightly, his anger blazing. To him, already a cripple, the title "Pavilion Master Mu" was even more ironic.
To Mu Rufeng, Yan Liang's greeting was an acknowledgment of his identity. The anger and hatred in his heart burned fiercely, and he seemed to already see Yan Liang begging for mercy.
After Yan Liang finished speaking, the back door was quiet. He and Bai Yutang exchanged a knowing glance and each drew their weapons. Bai Yutang caught a glimpse of Yan Liang taking out the weapon called "the charlatan" from his sleeve, and his lips twitched involuntarily. He realized that he was still curious about what was going on with this man's sleeve.
The vermilion gate slowly opened after the two men gripped their weapons. Behind the gate, Mu Rufeng sat under the eaves facing them. The young man had a gloomy expression, filled with uncontrollable joy at the imminent avenging of his great grudge, and was full of malice.
Yan Liang smiled at him—just like he had smiled back then in the carriage before he severed his tendons.
"You're still alive."
Yan Liang said to him.
“That’s what I should say.” Mu Rufeng laughed, his laughter filled with malice. “You… monster—”
Yan Liang remained calm and smiled, saying, "Calling me a monster is going too far... little brother."
A simple form of address only fueled Mu Rufeng's anger. He couldn't believe it—this monster, this person of unknown origin, the monster who had taken over Mu Jiangchuan's body and turned him into a cripple, dared to call him "brother"—?
Mu Rufeng laughed in exasperation, raised his hand, and a group of people holding bows and arrows emerged from all around the wall, the arrowheads gleaming coldly in the sunlight.
His tendons were severed, making even a simple gesture like waving his hand extremely difficult. When he did wave, his hand trembled. Mu Rufeng was sensitive, and the emotions hidden in Yan Liang and Bai Yutang's gazes seemed to him like nothing but irony.
Yan Liang stared at him for a while, then silently took out a bow and arrows from the horse beside him.
Bai Yutang: ...When was it put in there?
Mu Rufeng: "..."
"You have arrows, and I have arrows too."
Yan Liang drew his bow, smiled at Mu Rufeng, and released the arrow. The arrow flew straight towards Mu Rufeng like a shooting star, but was cut in two steps in front of Mu Rufeng by a sharp sword.
The swordswoman was a girl in yellow, with a smile on her face, as vibrant as a daisy in spring.
She said softly, "You're here."
Yan Liang's eyelids twitched. He stared at that familiar face and fell into a brief silence.
“…Miss Flower.” Yan Liang gave her a slightly bitter smile. “Long time no see.”
The two gazed at each other from afar, and an odd atmosphere permeated the air.
Bai Yutang: "...?"
Mu Rufeng was very satisfied with the scene: "Your sweetheart is now mine. If you don't want her to get hurt, put down your weapon and come here."
Yan Liang: ...What the hell??
He glanced at Mu Rufeng and then at the young woman, his surprise clearly visible. Mu Rufeng was even more pleased, feeling more confident now that he had a hostage in his hands, and urged, "If you don't want her to die, put down your weapon and come over here."
Mu Rufeng thought Yan Liang was surprised because [his beloved, whom he hadn't seen for a long time, had become a hostage of Wuyan Pavilion], but in fact Yan Liang was surprised because—since Wang Lianhua had told Bai Yutang his real name and it had spread throughout the martial arts world, Mu Rufeng should know that Wang Lianhua was a pure man, so why did he still say that this flower girl was his beloved?
Yan Liang remained silent for a long time, and Mu Rufeng grew suspicious. But then he heard the flower girl say again, "It seems that you, Young Master Yan, no longer have me in your heart."
His tone was low, barely concealing the sorrow within.
"I've been waiting for you." The young woman looked at the gray-clad young man at the door, her eyes brimming with tears, as if she were about to sob.
The sight of a beautiful woman shedding tears is most heartbreaking.
Yan Liang lowered his eyes slightly and said, "I... didn't want to either."
The girl became even more upset upon hearing this.
"You keep saying you don't want to, but why haven't you even written me a single letter?... How can I trust you like this?"
Yan Liang: ...Write a header.
He said, "I don't want to bother you."
The young man in gray raised his head and said with a wry smile, "...because you and Dongfang are a match made in heaven."
"Dongfang and I are just friends!" The young woman exclaimed, seemingly unable to believe that Yan Liang would say such a thing. "I've been waiting for you all this time. Even when Dongfang wanted to take me away, I never agreed! But you, but you—!"
Yan Liang was slightly taken aback, remained silent for a moment, and then said, "...Then, why are you here?"
"...I traveled the world, hoping to find you, but I never met you." The flower girl paused, then said casually, "But I met Pavilion Master Mu."
“The Smokeless Pavilion is a powerful force; finding someone would be a piece of cake,” the girl in yellow said calmly. “I don’t expect you to be unharmed… I just hope you’re still alive after this is all over.”
"...So, you betrayed me?"
The young man in gray asked with a hint of doubt.
"You were the one who abandoned and betrayed me first, and you dare to say that I betrayed you?" she said coldly. Her emotions, which had briefly surfaced before, now seemed to have closed off her heart as well.
"You're really arrogant."
She said sarcastically.
Meanwhile, the three who had secretly escaped while everyone else was being sent to besiege Yan Liang and Bai Yutang were hiding under the tablecloth in the back hall. They had all overheard the incredibly informative conversation outside.
The flower girl only came for Yan Liang, so she secretly gave them the antidote to the muscle-relaxing powder today. They could have left directly, but all three of them were very curious about Yan Liang, whom "Wang Lianhua" mentioned, so they hid under the table to eavesdrop.
Love arises from the heart, and hate arises from love.
—The young lady must hate Yan Liang to the core.
Lu Xiaofeng thought to himself.
Author's Note: Dongfang: ...Why me again? ? ?
Also, Yi Yaoqing and the others won't be coming; it's too close to write about them.
Wang Lianhua's script this time is probably about turning from love to hate and becoming evil, hahaha.
I don't know how things will develop from here (doge). Thanks to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants between 2020-05-07 22:04:58 and 2020-05-09 21:48:14!
Thank you to the little angels who watered the nutrient solution: Shen Sheng (10 bottles); Yan Luo and Bi Yu Zhuang (1 bottle each);
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
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