Chapter 242: Chapter 160: Distortion and Black Hole
Sipping his tea, Zheng Xiu listened to the story with great interest. As the sun began to set, the tale enriched his otherwise dull afternoon. Hearing this part of the story, he couldn’t help but complain inwardly. He saw Chu Chengfeng’s nostalgic expression, how he held his wine cup with eyes closed and brows furrowed, the very picture of a broken, world-weary man. ’This is so cliché,’ Zheng Xiu thought.
But what came out of his mouth was: "Oh, what is this thing called love, that it drives men to such heartbreak? I wonder, Brother Chu, were you and Miss Wen ever able to resolve your differences?"
"Resolve our differences?" Chu Chengfeng scoffed. In the blink of an eye, he drained a second jar. "For years," he said coldly, "I was a hopeless drunk. I had no heart for practicing the sword and let my skills fall to ruin. Until the fifth spring... something happened."
As the Third Young Master of Meihua Manor, Chu Chengfeng naturally had two older brothers. However, his eldest brother had a weak Constitution from Birth and was unfit for martial arts, making him unable to inherit the family estate. His second brother’s Talent was far inferior to his own. Thus, Chu Chengfeng had always been groomed to be the next Patriarch of Meihua Manor. This was why, when Pear Blossom Manor proposed that Chu Chengfeng marry into their family, Father Chu had stormed away in a fury and forced Chu Chengfeng to break off his relationship with Wen Shishan.
Unwilling to see Chu Chengfeng waste away in despair, Second Brother Chu decided to take matters into his own hands. He went to Pear Blossom Manor alone, sword in hand, and announced a challenge to the current Pear Blossom Manor Master. He declared that if he won, Wen Shishan must be allowed to marry into the Chu Family with full honors. At the time, Second Brother Chu had no idea that Chu Chengfeng’s parting words had transformed Wen Shishan over the past five years. She had not only changed her name to Wen Shishan, but had also started acting and dressing as a man. Wen Shishan’s actions had broken Father Wen’s heart, and he blamed Meihua Manor for everything. So, on the day Second Brother Chu came to issue his challenge, Father Wen thought it a fine coincidence and accepted on the spot. During their duel, he severed Second Brother Chu’s tendons, broke his sword, and sent him back to Meihua Manor to vent his anger.
Though his life was spared, his second brother had been turned into a cripple. Father Chu was incandescent with rage. The very next day, after bathing and burning incense, he donned a white robe, took up his sword, and stormed Pear Blossom Manor. He was determined to fight the Pear Blossom Manor Master to the death and settle the centuries-old feud between their two families.
In the end, the Manor Master of Meihua Manor was victorious. Consumed by fury, he ran his sword through the chest of the Pear Blossom Manor Master.
This battle sent shockwaves through the Martial World.
As a result, Pear Blossom Manor fell into decline, becoming a minor family that no one paid any mind.
The Manor Master of Meihua Manor left victorious. He had proven his superiority, decided life and death, and vented his bitter anger. The Pear Blossom Manor Master was on the verge of death. Before he died, he made Wen Shishan swear a blood oath: that within her generation, she would utterly crush Chu Chengfeng, wash away the stain on Pear Blossom Manor’s name, and restore the manor to its former glory. Otherwise, he would not be able to rest in peace.
Wine and stories are a perfect match.
Even if the wine isn’t mellow and the story’s ending isn’t beautiful, it’s still enough to move a person.
Zheng Xiu sighed. "What a heart-wrenching tale."
Chu Chengfeng drunkenly pointed at Zheng Xiu’s nose. "What the hell do you know?"
Zheng Xiu chuckled. "This little brother may not understand, but I don’t think it had to be this way."
Chu Chengfeng slumped onto the table, slurring his words. "This is the Jianghu... We are not... our own masters."
Zheng Xiu said, his heart aching for them, "Tragic. Just too tragic."
"HUFF... HUFF... HUFF..."
Chu Chengfeng was drunk.
Drunk, he fell asleep.
Asleep, he began to cry.
And finally, he started to snore, loudly.
Zheng Xiu sat there, waiting quietly.
People came and went in the teahouse. Before he knew it, it was late at night.
Zheng Xiu poured himself a cup of yellow wine and downed it in one gulp.
Cloudy, bitter, harsh, and biting—a hundred flavors that could do little to wash away sorrow.
"Disgusting,"
said Gongsun Mo.
Dark clouds hid the moon; it was a moonless, windy night.
Outside, figures could be faintly seen moving across the rooftops.
"Young Master, we’re closing up. You see, it’s not good for Hero Chu to be lying here like this. How about... would you mind helping him back to his room?"
When the teahouse was otherwise empty, the waiter approached with a troubled look to make his request.
Zheng Xiu spread his hands. "Why don’t you take him?"
The waiter’s face went pale with fright. He waved his hands frantically. "I wouldn’t dare, I wouldn’t dare!"
Zheng Xiu held back a laugh. Although Chu Chengfeng had made it clear this time that he wasn’t gay, Zheng Xiu figured some very strange rumors were still bound to circulate in the Jianghu in the future.
Sigh. What a mess.
Just as Zheng Xiu was gloating over Chu Chengfeng’s misfortune...
Suddenly.
「The midnight hour.」
A white-clad figure performed a sparrowhawk flip from the roof, landing on the second floor. When Zheng Xiu saw the newcomer’s face, he was stunned for a moment before blurting out, "You’re that adulterer with the Iron Fan!"
The newcomer froze for a second, then a vein bulged on his forehead in anger. He cursed, half in anger and half in exasperation, "That Chu bastard, slandering my name again! Damn him! If he’s going to drink that much, why doesn’t he just drink himself to death!"
The man who had vaulted the railing was none other than the "adulterer" who had fought a bitter battle of several hundred rounds in the teahouse a few days prior.
"Get up! Get up! Something big has happened!"
The Iron Fan Scholar shook Chu Chengfeng’s body with all his might, but couldn’t wake him.
"Damn it."
The Iron Fan Scholar’s expression darkened. He jabbed the base of his fan against a point on Chu Chengfeng’s neck.
"BLECH~"
Chu Chengfeng, still slumped over the table, opened his mouth and retched up a mouthful of sour, wine-tinged bile. He looked up dazedly. "Was I drunk?" Seeing the Iron Fan Scholar beside him, he exclaimed, "Old Ping, what are you doing here!"
The Iron Fan Scholar hauled Chu Chengfeng up and pointed outside. "Look what time it is! How could you get this wasted?"
"I ran into her," Chu Chengfeng said honestly.
The Iron Fan Scholar had been about to scold him, but fell silent at those words.
"Something’s happened." After a few moments of silence, the Iron Fan Scholar didn’t mention it again. His expression changed, and he subtly jutted his chin toward Gongsun Mo, whispering, "Ten li south of the city. We’ll talk on the way. The killing has already started."
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