Болезненный юноша, путешествующий во времена династии Сун

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I was so excited to find out today that my story was featured on the homepage! It's the first time my story has been featured, haha. Thank you Qidian Female Channel, thank you editors, and thank you to all the readers. I will work hard to update, and I welcome any criticism or suggestions.

Volume One: Ten Years in the Jianghu, Chapter Twenty-Three

Naturally, after Alliance Leader Murong finished explaining the important matters, many people, still dazzled by the Alliance Leader's throne, hurriedly asked, "Then what should be done about Miss Murong's marriage?"

Mo Xibei didn't recognize the person asking the question. In fact, she could only name a handful of people present. However, her tablemates whispered among themselves that the middle-aged man was none other than Liu Ruchen, the leader of the Qingcheng Sect. More than a year ago, this Sect Leader Liu had come specifically to propose marriage for his prized disciple, Jiang Jie. It was said that Jiang Jie was a rising star in the Qingcheng Sect in recent years, with a face as handsome as Pan An. However, his good looks made him somewhat arrogant and frivolous. Coupled with his considerable martial arts skills, he had captivated many young women in the martial arts world, resulting in a string of romantic affairs over the past few years.

Rumors spread as fast in the martial arts world as they do in the marketplace, so Mo Xibei, sitting there, soon heard someone say, "I heard that Jiang Jie once boasted that he would marry no one but Miss Murong."

"Then he probably won't be able to get married in his lifetime." Someone immediately lowered their voice, their tone full of sarcasm.

"Don't look so gloating. He can't marry her, and you won't stand a chance either," someone else chimed in.

"So what? What kind of person is Miss Murong? We mere mortals can only look up to her," the person who spoke earlier said, unfazed. "Do you know, that time the Alliance Leader said his daughter was too young and it wasn't time to talk about marriage yet, and just casually dropped the matter. The Qingcheng delegation that came to propose marriage was huge! The gifts they brought stretched for half a mile. Jiang Jie was too confident in himself, thinking that Miss Murong was like those ordinary women who would be indifferent once they saw him. And what happened? He stayed there shamelessly for so many days, but he didn't even get to see Miss Murong. The matter was dropped. No wonder Liu Ruchen has been holding a grudge about it ever since."

"In the end, it's like a toad trying to eat swan meat—it's impossible." Someone at a nearby table couldn't help but chime in, summarizing the conversation. Meanwhile, on the arena, Murong Songtao, upon hearing Liu Ruchen mention this, knew he remembered their past grievances, and remained impassive.

"Haha, thank you for your concern, Brother Liu," Murong Songtao cupped his hands and then addressed the crowd below, "I didn't expect that my daughter's selection of a husband would have already caused such a stir in the martial arts world. It's my fault for not making it clear on the invitation. However, there must be a reason for everything. I do indeed want to use this martial arts gathering to find a suitable family for my daughter, so this matter will naturally not be left unresolved. I'll take advantage of my seniority and put family matters first. Today, we'll start with a martial arts competition to select a husband. However, to avoid any suspicion, I'll add a condition to the final choice of my son-in-law: even if he dominates the competition today, he cannot participate in the martial arts alliance leader competition starting tomorrow. Therefore, all you young heroes who have come from afar and are still unmarried are welcome to voluntarily step onto the stage to compete. Losing is fine; you can still participate in the martial arts alliance leader competition tomorrow. As for the conditions, they are those who are of upright character and under the age of 25. Without further ado, let the competition begin."

So it turns out you can't have both power and beauty. Mo Xibei couldn't help but admire her. Old ginger is indeed spicier. The Murong family relinquished the throne of the martial arts alliance leader. Many people who came to compete for Murong Lianyun's position were wasting their efforts. For Murong Lianyun, this was indeed a great thing. At least, her chances of finding a true love had increased considerably. Thinking of this, Mo Xibei straightened up and looked around. At this moment, she really wanted to see Chu Junfeng's expression.

Chu Junfeng had actually spotted Mo Xibei as soon as he sat down, and seeing her looking around, he guessed she was looking for him. However, he deliberately concealed himself in the crowd. Indeed, before that old fox on stage spoke, he had hoped to have both the empire and the beauty in his hands, but now it seemed that he couldn't have both. He felt incredibly relieved, as if all his previous worries had disappeared and all his problems had been solved.

Naturally, as soon as the competition began, chaos erupted. The servants of the Murong family brought out wine and food one after another. Apart from the eager young people and their parents and teachers who were still staring intently at the arena, the older people who had married and had no interest in participating in the competition began to eat and drink heartily, toasting and drinking at each table. The shouts of drinking games grew louder and louder, making the competition on the stage seem like a child's play.

After the first dish was served, Mo Xibei focused his attention on the food. The meal at the Murong family seemed ordinary, but to an expert, it was anything but. Mo Xibei noticed that even the scallions used to color the dish were carefully selected, with only a two-inch section of the tender, fragrant scallion from the heart of the plant. Not to mention the selection and pairing of the dishes, the level of sophistication was only slightly less than that of his own Xieyilou restaurant. The difference lay in the serving dishes; good food needs to be paired with fine plates and bowls to complement each other. However, looking around, there were many people engrossed in eating, and many people smashing their glasses and bowls while drinking. Those expensive porcelain, glass, and even jade pieces could not withstand such waste. So Mo Xibei felt relieved and quickly began to savor the food.

Finally, the dried vegetable duck was served. Mo Xibei was quick and agile, and reached out with his chopsticks. But before he knew it, the servant serving the dish trembled and the plate tilted slightly, changing direction. Mo Xibei tried again, but missed. Once again, he missed. The plate seemed to have eyes, bouncing back and forth on the table, but each time it landed in Mo Xibei's blind spot.

Finally, after much anticipation, the servant's hand finally left. Mo Xibei reached out, but her chopsticks caught a golden object flying towards her. It was quite heavy. Upon closer inspection, it was a large, glittering golden earring with kingfisher feather patterns. The design was familiar; it seemed to be a gift she had given to someone two years ago. That person liked its excellent quality and had been wearing it ever since.

Volume One: Ten Years in the Jianghu, Chapter Twenty-Four

Finally, the dried vegetable duck was served. Mo Xibei was quick and agile, and reached out with his chopsticks. But before he knew it, the servant serving the dish trembled, and the plate tilted slightly and changed direction. Mo Xibei tried again, but missed. Once again, he missed. It seemed as if the plate had eyes, darting back and forth on the table, but each time it landed in Mo Xibei's blind spot.

Finally, after much anticipation, the servant's hand finally left. Mo Xibei reached out, but her chopsticks caught a golden object flying towards her. It was quite heavy. Upon closer inspection, it was a large, glittering golden earring with kingfisher feather patterns. The design was familiar; it seemed to be a gift she had given to someone two years ago. That person liked its excellent quality and had been wearing it ever since.

"The arena," the servant delivering the food whispered hurriedly to Mo Xibei, "Someone told me to tell you that if you go up to the arena, the person will be sent back. If you still don't go up, they'll send an ear over to you to have with your drinks."

Mo Xibei smiled bitterly. She had only ever heard of "a second-rank official before the prime minister's gate," and she didn't know that even the servants of the martial arts alliance leader were so formidable. Fortunately, the servants only said to go to the arena, not that she had to win. In any case, the name Mo Xibei was worthless in the martial arts world, so losing was no big deal. She thought to herself, "I'll just go to the arena and embarrass myself."

Having decided to humiliate herself in the arena, Mo Xibei felt relieved and began to feast on the dried vegetable duck that had brought her from Jiangnan to Henan. Of course, before eating, she had also carefully observed the situation in the arena. The fight was fierce, between two people she didn't even know, but their skills seemed quite good. There were also many people on the ground eager to try their hand at it. "Once they've decided on a winner, I'll go and finish this quickly," Mo Xibei thought. However, after a few more dishes were served, she briefly forgot about what she had to do. When a thunderous applause rang out, she looked up abruptly and saw a sullen figure leaving the arena, while a splendid person stood on it. After a while, no one in the audience showed any intention of going up to the arena.

"Haha, as expected, heroes emerge from among the young! Is there any other hero who would like to come up and challenge?" A moment later, Murong Songtao also stood on the stage. It seemed that the choice of son-in-law was about to be announced.

"Me!" Mo Xibei heard his own voice echoing overwhelmingly in the arena. Then, under the watchful eyes of everyone, he dropped his chopsticks and shuffled towards the arena.

"Brother Mo, greetings." On the arena, before Mo Xibei could even stand still, Chu Junfeng had already crossed his arms and bowed.

"Polite, polite." Mo Xibei followed suit, but inwardly she was thinking painfully that she really shouldn't have brought Honglu this time. Otherwise, she wouldn't have had to go through all this trouble and embarrass herself in front of so many people. The problem wasn't just the embarrassment, but also the fact that she had revealed her martial arts skills, which would likely cause more trouble in the future. But she couldn't think about that now. With that thought, she secretly winked at Chu Junfeng, conveying the main idea that, "In a little while, we'll just exchange a few moves, I'll lose and you'll win, the outcome will remain the same."

Chu Junfeng seemed unsurprised by everything before him. When he saw Mo Xibei blink, he blinked back. Mo Xibei analyzed for a long time. If he had received or understood the meaning, why was his smile so sly? If he didn't understand what he was saying, his eyes should be dull instead of so lively.

Of course, she had no time to verify anything; as soon as the gong sounded, the competition began.

Both of them were planning to make the first move, but after the gong sounded, they both said "please" in unison, and neither of them moved, just staring at each other.

Very few people in the audience knew who Mo Xibei was, but most recognized Chu Junfeng, knowing him as a rising star among the younger generation in the martial arts world in recent years, whose skills had reached their peak and were absolutely no less than Murong Songtao's in his prime. Therefore, most people were certain that Chu Junfeng would win the current battle. The only remaining possibility was that Mo Xibei might be able to withstand a few moves from Chu Junfeng.

For the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, unexpectedly, the two people on the stage did not move and remained standing opposite each other in the same posture. The drinking games from the audience gradually subsided and were replaced by endless speculation.

"It seems that the kid who dared to go up to the ring last is quite skilled. Chu Junfeng hasn't made a move for so long, he must not have found his weakness. He's not simple." Someone said.

"I think he's just bluffing. If he were a real expert, he wouldn't be able to stand still for so long. He's just talking nonsense," someone said.

Of course, most people remained silent. They unconsciously put down their wine glasses, plates, bowls, and chopsticks, staring intently at the arena with gleaming eyes. For a martial artist, what they dream of most in their life, besides the throne of the supreme martial arts master, is a showdown between the pinnacle masters of the martial world. They preferred to believe that the confrontation before them was to determine the life or death of the opponent in a move that could happen at any moment.

Mo Xibei sighed. Her greatest weakness in martial arts lay in her ability to adapt to changing circumstances and become even stronger when facing a stronger opponent. However, she was utterly inept at attacking someone or something that might not even move. Her master had said that the best defensive posture was stillness, responding to all changes with immutability; defense was also a form of offense, and the most effective one at that. But because of her laziness and limited combat experience, she hadn't yet figured out how to handle the first move when facing a master with the same mindset.

"Cough!" After another cup of tea, Murong Songtao was also confused. He didn't know what these two young men were up to. They were locked in a stalemate, neither of them moving. He could only cough softly as a reminder and urging.

Chu Junfeng didn't really understand why Mo Xibei was delaying his move. His original intention in going up to the arena was simply to lose a match. Because of Honglu's disappearance, he was certain that Mo Xibei would go up to the arena, and he had to go through the motions.

He no longer had a choice between the positions of the most beautiful woman in the martial arts world and the leader of the martial arts alliance; there was no need to choose at all. However, after hearing Murong Lianyun's words on the canal boat, Chu Junfeng guessed that Murong Songtao was quite fond of him. Therefore, he still had to go through the motions of the arena; it was a matter of appearances to appease Murong Songtao. Of course, although losing to anyone in this formality was the same, he still had to participate in the martial arts alliance leader competition the next day, so he couldn't afford to lose too badly. Naturally, in this light, Mo Xibei was indeed the best opponent. After all, Mo Xibei's martial arts were indeed quite good, and in a real fight, he might not have any advantage. At the same time, Mo Xibei had basically never appeared in the martial arts world, and almost no one knew the depth of his martial arts skills. Even if he lost, it wouldn't be too embarrassing. No matter how you looked at it, this was the best choice.

Hearing Murong Songtao cough, Chu Junfeng glanced at him coldly. Seeing Mo Xibei's distressed face, he didn't speculate. He simply said "Be careful," and his left palm was already outstretched. Halfway through, he flipped his palm outward, and at the same time, he drew his sword with his right hand. The sword's edge gleamed coldly in the light, covering all of Mo Xibei's escape routes.

Volume One: Ten Years of Wandering the Jianghu, Chapter Twenty-Five

Finally, her opponent made the first move, and Mo Xibei's mood relaxed instantly. Chu Junfeng was a true master; after several battles side-by-side, she had no doubt about this. Therefore, she didn't rush to draw her weapon. Instead, she turned her feet and spun rapidly. Chu Junfeng's sword was fast, but she spun just as fast. In this way, her flowing robes, like a red plum petal falling in the snow, were caught by the sword's edge at a certain moment of descent. Thus, the petal clung tightly to the cold blade, spinning with it, and in a posture and arc that no one could have imagined, it gently and suddenly flew out from the omnipresent sword shadows.

A hush fell over the audience. Mo Xibei waited a moment, but surprisingly, no one cheered. This gave her a slight disappointment. This was the first time she had used the Plum Blossom Dance since she graduated. She had practiced diligently for years for this fleeting moment on the stage, but although she felt the effect was quite good, the audience's reaction was lukewarm. It seemed her master had exaggerated. He had said that his junior sister, her nominal mother, had incorporated this dance into her performance, captivating the city with a single dance, and winning the heart of the then twenty-something Prince Xing, who had followed her through the mortal world ever since, never to leave her side.

Mo Xibei never asked her master why, if he loved his junior sister so much, he would watch her fall into someone else's arms. Of course, she wouldn't ask that question. Everyone has a different definition of love. This was how her master loved. For over a decade, though he refused to show himself, he secretly protected his lover. He even willingly saved the child his lover had abandoned and was about to kill, then taught him martial arts and raised him. Now, after all the trials and tribulations, he was calm and without regret. Without a great love in his heart, he couldn't have done such a thing. Who could say that such a life wasn't happy?

Chu Junfeng's sword came swiftly and fiercely, wave after wave. This was not the first time Mo Xibei had seen him fight. In private, she thought Chu Junfeng's sword was like the vast ocean, profound and unassuming. But today, his sword seemed to lack its usual style, appearing hasty and aggressive, as fierce as the Qiantang River tide.

Unsure of how to withstand this overwhelming tide with her bare hands, she drew her sword, but only drew it, keeping it still and waiting for the right moment.

The earlier clamor below the stage had long since subsided. No one had deliberately asked these heroes from all corners of the land to shut up, but they truly couldn't utter a sound. The two figures on the stage hadn't moved much, but the omnipresent, snow-like sword shadows and the elusive, unpredictable human figures were enough to dazzle them so much that they couldn't close their mouths, which had been open earlier from talking, drinking, and eating. Naturally, no one thought to shout "Bravo!" for fear that their voices would shatter the surreal scene before them.

It took quite a while before anyone realized that one of the two people who fought on stage would become the son-in-law of the current martial arts alliance leader, thus missing out on tomorrow's battle. A sense of smug satisfaction crept into their hearts.

According to Mo Xibei's plan, she originally intended to finish the battle quickly and be defeated early. However, Chu Junfeng's sword was too powerful, leaving no room for retreat. Any retreat would result in death or serious injury. At first, she thought her hints had been misinterpreted, making Chu Junfeng see her as a rival vying for Murong Lianyun's favor. But after several retreats and several close calls, Mo Xibei suddenly understood Chu Junfeng's intention. The leader of the martial arts alliance and the most beautiful woman in the martial arts world—it turned out that in a man's heart, the status of a beautiful woman was nothing more than that. For a moment, her heart ached slightly, unable to say whether it was for the stunning beauty of Murong Lianyun or for something else. Chu Junfeng's sword, however, had already darted forward like a dragon, swiftly reaching her.

She turned her head and hurriedly dodged, the tip of the sword barely grazing her ear. She even felt a chill for a moment, spreading rapidly along her skin. It was a completely instinctive action of self-preservation. She raised her sword and thrust it towards Chu Junfeng's vulnerable ribs.

Their movements were intertwined, and everything happened in the blink of an eye. Mo Xibei was unharmed, but her sword left a small hole in Chu Junfeng's clothes.