Chapter 1136 - 1138: Pitiful or Despicable_1
More than twenty years ago, the most favored disciple under the Huashan Sect leader was Deng De, known as Xuan Jizi. Back then, he was young and promising, full of vigor and ambition. He was considered the prime candidate to succeed as the sect leader, and he himself was striving for this very goal.
Later on, he married the junior sister he had set his heart on, Lin Lan, and soon they had a son, who they named Deng Yanbin. He had established a family and his career; his temperament had become much more stable.
Two years passed, and Xuan Jizi, under his master’s orders, descended the mountain to take care of some affairs. During his travels, he befriended another Jianghu ally, Jin Han. The two found they had much in common and became fast friends.
Yet, as fate would have it, they offended someone they shouldn’t have: a mysterious swordsman whose identity remained unknown. Together, they were no match for the swordsman. Xuan Jizi almost lost his life to the swordsman’s blade, but in a critical moment, Jin Han took a deadly arrow for him and, using a hidden weapon in a surprise attack, ultimately killed the swordsman.
However, due to severe injuries, Jin Han died. With his dying breath, he implored Xuan Jizi to take care of his son, Chang Feng.
Following the information provided by Jin Han, Xuan Jizi found Chang Feng, who was six years old at the time, four years older than Xuan Jizi’s own son, Deng Yanbin. Chang Feng’s mother was frail and sickly. Upon hearing of Jin Han’s death, she succumbed to her illness, leaving Chang Feng to become Xuan Jizi’s disciple.
Everything seemed fine initially. Although Chang Feng was more mature and melancholic than other children his age, he was even more diligent in practicing martial arts, eventually becoming the most outstanding disciple of his generation within the Huashan Sect.
In what felt like a mere moment, six years had passed; Xuan Jizi’s son, Deng Yanbin, was now eight years old. His wife Lin Lian focused on teaching Chang Feng, while Xuan Jizi, who also taught his son, seemed to be vying with her. Although Deng Yanbin was exceptionally talented, he did not possess Chang Feng’s dedication and hard work. And being four years younger, his martial skills were inferior to Chang Feng’s.
That year, Huashan Sect hosted a competition for the younger disciples of various Wulin sects. Many people gathered at the Huashan Sect, the atmosphere buzzing with excitement. Unfortunately, someone took advantage of the situation to infiltrate the sect and kidnapped both Deng Yanbin and Chang Feng.
Xuan Jizi felt he had failed his friend’s trust and set out to find Chang Feng first. Lin Lian, weeping, urged him to save their own child first. Xuan Jizi could only arrange another group of horsemen to search for Deng Yanbin, thinking his son, being clever, might have already hidden himself well, unlike Chang Feng who tended to be stubborn and might confront the kidnappers directly.
Lin Lian argued that Chang Feng, with his superior martial arts skills, could defend himself, while Deng Yanbin was merely an eight-year-old child. She accused Xuan Jizi of caring only for another’s son and neglecting his own, harboring resentment in her heart.
In the end, Xuan Jizi rescued Chang Feng, only to realize he had fallen for a diversion. By the time he arrived, his son was already lying in a pool of blood.
The mastermind behind all this was the brother of the swordsman who died years before. With Jin Han dead, he sought to kill Xuan Jizi for revenge but fearing he might not defeat Xuan Jizi, he schemed to kill his son as a way to strike him down.
The loss of her son devastated Lin Lian, who, through the use of a secret method, greatly enhanced her inner strength and furiously attacked the murderer. The killer had not anticipated Lin Lian’s intervention. Eventually, Xuan Jizi and Lin Lian managed to kill him, but not before the murderer exposed Lin Lian to the Ghost Face Poison.
The death of her son was too great a blow for Lin Lian. Even with revenge taken, she became deranged, even attempting to strangle Xuan Jizi several times in the night. She also despised Chang Feng, feeling that Xuan Jizi had sacrificed their own son in favor of his disciple. She nearly killed Chang Feng several times.
Not long after, Lin Lian succumbed to the poison and transformed into the ghastly figure she is today, fitting the poison’s name: Ghost Face. Her mind descended further into madness as she declared she could never reconcile with Xuan Jizi in this lifetime and left the Huashan Sect.
Xuan Jizi searched fruitlessly for her for several years, finding not a trace. The ordeal had left him a broken man, no longer concerning himself with the sect’s mundane affairs, forgoing the chance to become the sect leader.
Years went by without word from Lin Lian; Xuan Jizi even thought she might have passed away. Perhaps due to his age, or the loneliness he felt, he took Xiaosi as a disciple when he met him, reminiscing about his own son. But little did he expect this would lead to the reappearance of Lin Lian, who had vanished all those years ago...
Bai Ruozhu, after hearing the story, didn’t know whether to pity Lin Lian or to hate her. She too was a pitiful woman, but she shouldn’t have tried to kill Xiaosi, an innocent child, in such a pathological way.
Xiaosi’s eyes were red after hearing the story, and he looked at Bai Ruozhu and said, "Sister, Master’s wife is indeed full of hatred in her heart, but she does not really want to kill me, otherwise she would have had plenty of chances to do so. Can you please help her?"
"I can try to cure the poison, but heart illness needs heart medicine to heal, I’m powerless in this respect," Bai Ruozhu said, casting a glance at Xuan Jizi. As a mother, she also had some complaints against Xuan Jizi.
"What about Chang Feng from those years?" Jiang Yichun suddenly asked.
Xuan Jizi’s expression changed, "That child also suffered a great shock and has been living with self-reproach. He left the mountain early to gain experience and has never returned since."
Bai Ruozhu recalled what Xiaosi had just said; if Lin Lian has truly been ruthless enough to poison someone, it was likely she would have already killed Chang Feng by now. The Chang Feng she hated the most she couldn’t bring herself to harm; the same probably applied to Xiaosi, she was just putting on an act perhaps.
Or maybe she wanted to kill deep down, but her conscience wouldn’t allow her to go through with it.
"The truth is, the events of those years were my negligence and carelessness, I owe Lin Lian an apology. No matter what, I implore you, Ruozhu, to help her with the poison," Xuan Jizi said before kneeling before Bai Ruozhu with a thump.
Bai Ruozhu was startled; Xuan Jizi was older than her father and was also Xiaosi’s master. How could he kneel before her?
Jiang Yichun quickly went forward to help Xuan Jizi up, saying, "Ruozhu is not unable to detoxify her, but you must take responsibility for her condition. What if she hurts someone in the Bai Residence, or tries to kill Xiaosi again?"
Xuan Jizi clenched his teeth and said, "I will seal her acupoints so she cannot employ her inner strength. Perhaps once the poison is resolved, her demons could be exorcised as well."
Seeing the pleading look in Xiaosi’s eyes directed at her, Bai Ruozhu could only nod and agree.
From that day on, there was a mysterious woman in the Bai Residence. The other members of the family had never seen her face. She was arranged to stay in the secluded yard that the old lady had once lived in. From time to time, she would scream as if mad, frightening the servants of the Bai Residence so much that they didn’t dare approach. Only Bai Ruolan would naïvely get close to her. Yet, she didn’t dare to come too near, only sneaking peeks from a distance as if she had seen something interesting.
In that yard, there was also Jiao Bingqin, although they were kept apart. Lin Lian had no interest in dealing with Jiao Bingqin, while Jiao Bingqin would just sit idly and dumbly in her room, seemingly unaware of Lin Lian’s screams.
The servants of the Bai Residence would say that there were two odd people living in the northwest corner and didn’t dare to approach casually. Fortunately, due to its remote location, it didn’t affect the lives of others.
Later, when Bai Lu and his son left the capital, the Bai Ruozhu family saw them off outside the City Gate. Bo Qun also came personally to bid them farewell, showing much better treatment compared to how he had treated Bao Fu.
After their horse carriage had disappeared into the distance, Bai Ruozhu turned to return to the City, only to be startled by something she suddenly saw...