Chapter One: Perplexity

  The old man looked at Gao Hua Yuan, smiled slightly and said: "There is no banquet in the world that does not disperse. I did not expect to meet you in Shaoxing. Although you never say anything, I can see that there are many secrets buried within you. Everyone has their own secrets that they do not want others to know about. As your master, I will not force you to reveal them."

  Actually, I'm not a local here, just passing by. It's because of you that I've stayed for so long. Although you're not considered to have graduated yet, with your talent and diligent practice in both internal and external skills, as long as you continue to cultivate the things I've taught you, you'll definitely achieve great success!

  I've told you long ago, practicing martial arts should not be limited to techniques. As long as you grasp the key to using force, all variations will follow naturally, and other types of weapons will come easily to hand. This is also why I haven't taught you any other skills until now - I was afraid you'd get bogged down in techniques and forget the essence of martial arts. That's why I'm only teaching you swordplay today, hoping that you'll be able to figure out even more on your own!

  After such a long time of contact, although I still can't see through you, but I can tell that you are not an ordinary person. From some small things, it can be seen that you are not a tyrannical person, and despite being in a position of power, you still have good intentions, which is what I value about you; your vision and insight, as well as your analysis of the overall situation, make even teachers feel inferior, let alone trying to teach you. Therefore, for me to continue staying here as your teacher has no meaning anymore!

  Before I leave, I want to tell you something. If the trend of the world is indeed as you expected, I hope that one day you can do something for the Han people of our great Song Dynasty. You cannot just stand by and watch with cold eyes, doing nothing! As a Song person, you have a responsibility to do what you can for the people of the Song Dynasty, otherwise, even if I become a ghost, I will not forgive you!

  I'm familiar with the Gao family's affairs, and I advise you that staying here will bring no benefits to you. An eagle can only know the vastness of the sky by spreading its wings and flying. After your master leaves, you should leave too! The Gao family is just a cage for you!

  Although I can see that you are not pleased with the current imperial court's actions, if you want to achieve something, it would be a good idea to hone your martial skills and then gain experience in the military. One cannot become a great talent without having been on the battlefield! As your teacher, this is all I can say to you; I hope you will take care of yourself from now on!"

  Gao Hua Yuan's eyes suddenly became moist, since he came here, except for Liu Er, only this old man was the closest to him. To say that, in fact, during this period of time, he had already regarded this old man as his father in this life. Only when he was with him could he relax and speak freely. But now, this lovely old man was going to leave him, how could he not feel sad?

  "The Master's words, the disciple remembers in his heart. The disciple can take an oath that if he does anything against the Great Han nation, he is willing to have his head taken by the Master! Only until now, the disciple still doesn't know the Master's great name, and hopes the Master will not hesitate to inform him. Gao Huairen will remember it for a lifetime!" Gao Huairen said with tears in his eyes, but his words were actually playing a trick, intentionally emphasizing the two characters "Great Han" without mentioning "Great Song".

  "My master is just a carefree wanderer, not many people know me in this world, and I don't have any title. If you want to know, I'll tell you, my surname is Yao, my name is Zhong, and my alias is San Shan San Ren. Just remember it, but don't mention it to others. If we are destined to meet again, we will. Take care of yourself!" As soon as the old man finished speaking, his long shirt fluttered up, and he drifted away, disappearing into the forest in an instant.

  Gao Huaiyuan silently recited his master's name, Yao Zhong, San Shan Scattered Person. This title was truly unheard of. Watching his master's back fade into the distance, Gao Huaiyuan respectfully kowtowed three times to him. Only when he could no longer see his master's back did he slowly stand up, filled with a sense of desolation.

  "Older brother! Where's Master?" A voice came from behind, it was Huang Yan that kid, he was still holding his beloved nine-dragon hard bow.

  Zhou Hao also quietly walked over and stood beside Gao Huaiyuan.

  "He's gone!" Gao Huaiyuan replied slowly, still looking in the direction the old man had left.

  "Are they gone? Then we should head back too, I'm starving to death! My arm hurts to death!" Huang Yan yelled out heartlessly.

  "Is big brother saying Master won't be coming back again?" Zhou Huan suddenly asked, who usually didn't like to speak.

  Gao Huaiyuan turned his head to look at the two, his eyes still a little red, and nodded slightly: "Maybe, Master said he had something important to do and has already left Shaoxing City!"

  "What?......" Huang Yan was slightly stunned.

  But after all, they were still young at heart, and soon Huang Yan and Zhou Huan's line of sight was attracted to the two knives beside them.

  "Wow! What a great sword! Oh my god! How much would these two swords be worth?! Is it something Master left for you?! Eldest brother is really lucky! I wonder why I didn't choose to practice with swords back then? Otherwise, who knows, maybe Master would have left me a divine spear too! This sword is so heavy!" Huang Yan was like a sly merchant, holding the strange sword and drooling all over the floor.

  Zhou Hao also picked up the Longlin treasure knife and drew it out to take a look, his eyes filled with eagerness. However, he quickly sheathed the knife and returned it to Gao Huaiyuan, smiling slightly as he said: "Our master should be considered Big Brother Gao's master, Master is Big Brother Gao's master!"

  Huang Yan reluctantly handed the Weisheng back to Gao Huaiyuan, shaking his head and saying: "Zhou Hao was right, this old man only taught us some gunplay and archery skills, everything else was taught by our boss. He never acknowledged that he was our master, no wonder he didn't leave us any good stuff! Until now, I still don't even know the old man's name! Haha!"

  Hao Hua yuan composed himself, put the two treasured swords into a cloth bag, wrapped them up and handed them to Huang Yan: "No need for idle chatter! First, hide these two swords in your family's house outside the city, as well as the bow and arrows. Don't let the government officials see them, or they'll be confiscated and that will be troublesome!"

  Huang Yan hastily took over, humming and eating, carrying it on his shoulder. Zhou Huan also took a sack to collect several bows, carried them on his back, and walked out of the forest, temporarily hiding these things in a house outside the city where Huang Yan's family lived, before returning to the city.

  Looking at the small courtyard where he had lived for so long, Gao Huaiyuan called Liu'er into the house and asked her: "Liu'er, I plan to leave Shaoxing City soon and return to my old mansion in Daye. Do you want to leave with me?"

  Liu'er immediately replied, "Of course, no matter where Young Master goes, I am Young Master's maid and will naturally follow by his side! Why did Young Master suddenly think of leaving here? Don't you need to continue practicing martial arts with your master?" Only Liu'er knew about Gao Hua Yuan sneaking out every morning to practice martial arts in the Gao estate.

  Gao Huaiyan walked to the window, his expression somewhat despondent, and sighed: "Master has already left Shaoxing Prefecture, there's nothing here that I can be nostalgic about anymore, what else is worth my nostalgia?"

  Liu'er quietly walked to the back of Gao Huaiyuan and replied softly: "No matter where Young Master goes, Liu'er will follow Young Master! Since Young Master doesn't want to stay here anymore, then Liu'er, a humble servant, naturally won't be reluctant to leave this place either!"

  Since Gao Jian found out about the affair between his son Gao Huai Liang and Li Shi, he has been in a terrible mood. These days have made him look much older, and he is extremely disappointed in his eldest son. His temper has also become more violent, and he doesn't even have the heart to care about his second son Gao Huai Yuan, who has never been valued by him anyway.

  When Gao Huaiyuan suddenly came to find him, telling him that he wanted to leave Shaoxing and return to his hometown of Daye, Gao Jian felt a little surprised. This son was becoming more and more incomprehensible to him. In his opinion, although he hadn't taken much care of him during this period, at least his treatment had improved a lot. How could he suddenly think of leaving Shaoxing Prefecture, a bustling place, and returning to Daye, an old home with few people?

  Then he thought for a moment and asked Gao Huaiyuan, "Third brother, why do you suddenly want to return to your hometown in Daye? Is someone bullying you again in the mansion?"

  Gao Huaiyuan made a respectful gesture and bowed his head, saying: "Father may have misunderstood. During this time, no one in the mansion has bullied me again. I just wanted to go back myself. I've been idle for a while, although I also learned to read books. However, my natural talent is really dull, and I'm not suitable for reading books. Staying here won't help Father with anything, but instead will cause trouble every day. That's why I want to go back home and take a look!"

  The child has also thought about it, since the child cannot eat knowledge, they can only rely on their physical strength. Rather than just staying here and waiting for death, it's better to do something within their capabilities. I heard that Father still has some land in our hometown, and the child still has some physical energy left. Although they are not as foolish as before, why not go back and help Father manage those fields? At least this way, they can help Father a bit and won't disappoint his kindness towards them!

  Also, the child has heard some people's gossip behind their back, saying that the child had been struck by lightning before and is an unlucky person. If things go wrong, it may bring bad luck to the Gao family. Although the child does not want to believe it, after all, there are still some unpleasant things happening at home. The child feels guilty about this and only hopes to leave here, no longer bringing trouble to Father and other family members, which is also a filial piety of the child to Father! I hope Father can agree with the child!"

  Gao Huaiyuan had made up his mind to leave this place, even if it meant taking the blame for all the misfortunes that had befallen the Gao family. In short, he was determined to get away from this detestable place as soon as possible and make a fresh start elsewhere.