Chapter 143
Chapter 143
The next person whose body went ice-cold and whose head went numb was Zhang Chong. Of course, the three people most invested in the outcome of the Gold Mountain Island dispute were the parties involved: the Count of Xuanwu, the Count of Jinhai, and Zhang Chong. The result would determine all three of their fates.
In truth, Zhang Chong had felt that something was amiss from the very beginning, a dark, ominous premonition lurking in the back of his mind. He had first sensed a crack in Shen Lang's facade during the banquet welcoming the Fourth Prince, Ning Zheng, four days ago. And today, as he watched Shen Lang and his daughter, Zhang Chunhua, exchange glances, he saw no trace of pessimism or despair in the man. The ominous feeling in Zhang Chong’s heart grew stronger. And now, reality had proven his premonition correct.
Zhang Jin’s voice trembled.
“H-how is this possible? Jin Mulan’s swordsmanship was inferior to Su Jianting’s, so how did she win? How did she break the Meteor Sword from Beyond the Heavens? She should never have been able to win.”
Beside him, Zhang Chunhua was so shocked that for a moment, she forgot to even exchange glances with Shen Lang, her expression turning somber as she stared at Jin Mulan. This duel determined her father’s fate and the fate of the Zhang Clan. What was a little romance between a man and a woman compared to her father and her family? After a long moment, Zhang Chong spoke.
“This is bad. No, this is going to be very bad.”
There was another person in the crowd who was utterly astonished: Su Jianting, the son of the Marquis of Zhenyuan. He was the only one present who had fought both Tang Yan and Jin Mulan. Frankly, his inner energy and martial skill were superior to Tang Yan’s, yet he had lost to him. In his duel with Mulan, however, he had won with ease. He simply could not accept the result before him now.
Although he was Jin Mulan’s cousin and an in-law of the Count of Xuanwu’s Estate, he was, deep down, the one who least wanted her to win. Even though his engagement to Mulan had been called off, he was the kind of man who believed that any beautiful woman connected to him should only love him.
*How could you, Jin Mulan, marry someone else? And a lowly commoner like Shen Lang, no less?*
Don’t blame Su Jianting for thinking this way. Because… Shen Lang had the exact same thought. It seemed all the womanizers in the world thought alike. Su Jianting mused to himself.
*Jin Mulan, if you don’t fall into the mud, how can I save you? If the Count of Xuanwu’s Estate isn’t destroyed, how can I appear before you like a savior? But you won! How could you? The Count of Xuanwu’s Estate absolutely cannot win the next matches!*
The person most deliriously happy with the outcome was the Count of Xuanwu. He was overjoyed, but he showed no particular signs of being moved or excited. Thanks to his son-in-law’s prolonged brainwashing, everything felt like a matter of course.
That son-in-law of his, a man who had never known the meaning of humility, had declared at least five hundred times that they would win the Gold Mountain Island dispute. He must have said that he would defeat Tang Yan in a single blow about three hundred times. So, when what Shen Lang had said actually happened, the Count of Xuanwu simply reacted with, “Ah, so it turned out just as he said!”
And what about Jin Mucong? Apologies, but he hadn’t seen a thing. He had even closed his eyes, constantly reciting policy essays and current affairs. No matter how many times Shen Lang told him he had no expectations for him, Jin Mucong couldn’t shake the thought that he might just be able to pull it off.
*What if, by some stroke of luck, the topic for the literary competition comes from the practice questions Shen Lang gave me? Then couldn’t I win? Couldn’t I be the one to create a grand reversal?*
So, Jin Mucong spent every moment memorizing the answers to the practice questions, not letting his attention wander. He was just worried he would forget what he’d memorized if he opened his eyes. Since he couldn’t bring paper and a brush, his only regret was not being able to copy the answers down right away. They say a good memory is no match for a written record. *I, Jin Mucong, have a natural talent for copying texts, so I must put this talent to use!*
***
It was a long time before Tang Yan came to his senses. He looked at Jin Mulan and asked.
“D-did I lose?”
The crowd was aghast.
*He doesn’t even know he lost? I thought he was a martial arts idiot, not just a plain idiot.*
With a single defeat, the awe they once held for Tang Yan vanished in an instant. They now thought this was his true level all along, and his past reputation for invincibility had been exaggerated. Mulan, not looking down on him, nodded seriously and replied.
“Yes, you lost.”
“I really lost?”
Tang Yan lifted his hand, looked at it, then at his black iron sword. Fourteen years. It had been fourteen years since he had begun training in nothing but the Meteor Sword from Beyond the Heavens. In all that time, he had never lost to anyone, always defeating his opponents in a single strike. To lose so anticlimactically… it didn’t feel real. No, perhaps this was reality. Perhaps his past victories had been the illusion.
Tang Yan had once asked his master when he could learn another sword style, having practiced the Meteor Sword from Beyond the Heavens for fourteen years. His master, Li Qianqiu, had told him they would discuss learning other sword styles after he had been defeated.
Ah, so he had finally lost.
“Hahaha. I lost. I actually lost. A good loss, a very good loss…!”
Tang Yan suddenly burst into loud laughter, picked up his black iron sword, and started walking away.
“Master, I lost. I lost… Haha, Master, I told you, I lost!”
He walked faster and faster. At first, his voice had a hint of desolation, but it grew more cheerful as he went on. And just like that, Tang Yan left everyone behind. Perhaps, from start to finish, this duel had never truly been in his sights. He had always lived in his own world, barely even seeing his opponents. Why would he have paid any mind to the audience? The remaining crowd shared a single opinion.
“He really was just an idiot.”
“Doesn’t he look like a madman? Wasn’t his invincible reputation just an exaggeration? It must have been a rumor started by his family.”
“Or maybe it was a rumor created by the people he defeated to protect their own reputations and pride? How could a man like that have been invincible?”
Despite the crowd’s jeers, Shen Lang watched Tang Yan’s departing figure with a serious expression. Tang Yan would return as a grandmaster of his generation. After today’s defeat, he would become truly strong. Before, it was the Meteor Sword from Beyond the Heavens that was strong, not him who was invincible. But from this day forward, he would become truly invincible.
Mulan watched Tang Yan disappear, a hint of envy in her heart. People like him were the true geniuses of martial arts. For example, Tang Yan and Big Dummy. Tang Yan had eyes only for martial arts, while Big Dummy had nothing in his eyes at all. Big Dummy, in particular, didn’t even know he was a genius. People like them were the ones who would become true, invincible masters. Jin Mulan knew she wasn't a genius like them, but she felt she could one day become a top-tier master. Because she was standing on the shoulders of a giant… ptooey! No, that’s not right. Because she was standing on the shoulders of a scumbag.
***
Next came a perfunctory exchange from the three supreme judges.
Prince Ying Kai spoke.
“That was a truly admirable duel. Lord Su, what are your thoughts?”
“I know nothing of martial arts. I will offer my opinion during the poetry competition.”
“Your Grace, the Duke of Wei, you are a grandmaster and a supreme martial artist. Please, share your thoughts. How did you see this duel?”
“May I speak frankly?”
Bian Wu asked him.
“Of course. In this world, who would dare make the Duke of Wei lie?”
“I never thought much of the Meteor Sword from Beyond the Heavens. It is a flashy but insubstantial sword style, all for show.”
The Duke of Wei was truly arrogant. It was said that the Marquis of Zhenbei, Nangong Ao, had his eyes on the top of his head, always looking down on people. The Duke of Wei’s eyes seemed to be set even higher, in the heavens themselves.
“However! If several grandmasters of martial arts emerge in the future, Tang Yan will certainly be among them.”
Prince Ying Kai nodded in agreement. He then continued solemnly.
“The first duel of the Gold Mountain Island dispute has concluded, and the Count of Xuanwu’s Estate is victorious! The Count of Xuanwu’s Estate and the Count of Jinhai’s Estate, you may return and prepare for the next rounds. The second and third competitions will be held tomorrow.”
***
“My lady, I was wrong, I was really wrong! Please don’t twist my hand, I have to write later. Can’t you wait until we get home to hit me?”
After returning to their quarters, Shen Lang was the first to beg for forgiveness. His transgression today had been too great. While his wife was fighting a life-or-death battle with Tang Yan, he had been exchanging glances with another woman. Mulan glared at Shen Lang for a long time.
“I won’t hit you. The Jin family precepts state that a woman should not strike her husband.”
Shen Lang breathed a sigh of relief. He had survived again. But Mulan then opened her fragrant mouth and, with her snow-white teeth, bit down hard on Shen Lang’s cheek.
“Ow!”
Shen Lang yelped in pain. Mulan had bitten with perfect precision, leaving a clear set of teeth marks without drawing blood or causing a deep wound. It was like stamping a seal on him. It was a message to all women: this man is taken, and his wife is extremely fierce, so you vixens had better not think of seducing him. It was also a declaration: today I bit my philandering husband, tomorrow I might just beat you shameless hussies to death.
“Ow… ow… ow…!”
Shen Lang was in so much pain that tears welled up in his eyes. Mulan then kissed his lips, her tongue immediately darting into his mouth. She kissed him so intensely that she drew a bit of blood from the corner of his lips.
“My philandering husband, you’ll be good now, won’t you?”
Shen Lang nodded his head frantically.
Next, the philandering husband wrote down on a piece of paper a policy essay based on the competition topic he had foreseen with his X-ray vision. It was written so brilliantly that even a fool could be enlightened by reading it, a work so outstanding it would be hard to find its equal. He also copied down a poem, a masterpiece that would be remembered for ages and passed down through generations. Shen Lang quickly took the paper to give to Jin Mucong, intending to have him copy and memorize it overnight.
As Shen Lang passed through the main hall, the Count of Xuanwu was giving instructions for the military competition the next afternoon. The estate’s top master, Jin Shiying, was kneeling on one knee before him, vowing to give his all in tomorrow’s duel. Just then, Shen Lang walked past, drawing their attention. Jin Hui, his father-in-law, and Jin Shiying all saw the red teeth marks on Shen Lang’s face. They were so clear, a woman had obviously bitten him.
*What are you looking at? Nothing to see here.*
Shen Lang, acting unconcerned, even turned his face to give the three a better look. The Count had wanted to ask what happened but wisely said nothing. It was best not to meddle in a couple’s affairs. *But you, Shen Lang, you seem proud of being bitten by a woman, don’t you? You’re not even trying to hide it, parading around so smugly.*
***
When Shen Lang reached Jin Mucong’s room, the fatty was still scribbling away, copying the answers to the practice questions. In front of him lay a worn-out brush that had shed much of its hair. At that moment, Shen Lang genuinely thought that perhaps this foolish, fat brother-in-law of his had the potential to become a renowned literary master of his generation. Jin Mucong copied over ten thousand characters a day.
“Fatty, stop copying that. You need to copy this new essay and poem. These will be on tomorrow’s test.”
Shen Lang placed the freshly written essay and poem in front of Jin Mucong.
“Really?”
Jin Mucong stared at Shen Lang in astonishment, then noticed the teeth marks on his face. He pointed in shock.
“Brother-in-law, your face…”
Shen Lang replied as if it were an honor.
“Your sister bit me. Why?”
“Are you proud of being bitten?”
“Of course. Why would a woman bite you? Because she loves you. The more she loves you, the harder she bites. But she can’t bite the one she loves too hard and hurt him, nor does she want to leave a scar, so the teeth marks on my face right now are the most perfect form. This represents the highest realm of love, the pinnacle of your sister’s affection for me.”