* Last Floor, Fragrant Moon Brothel *
In a dimly lit room, a man was sitting across a wooden table with a brush in his hand. The faint glow of a lamp illuminated his surrounding. He seemed to be drawing a portrait of a young woman as he occasionally dipped his brush in the inkstone on the table as he continued to draw.
Soon, his face finally came into view. This was the leader of the Mask Pavilion: Wang Xiaoyu! The unmatched young genius who was thought to be dead fifteen years ago.
Wang Xiaoyu had been hiding in Fragrant Moon Brothel after he managed to survive from the evil schemes of Zhu Wancheng fifteen years ago. Everyone believed he was dead, but they never knew he survived and had been hiding here in Fragrant Moon Brothel.
"Crack." The door cracked open, and Su Yuling walked in accompanied by Xu Min and Xu Feng.
Wang Xiaoyu calmly covered the drawing with a piece of paper over it.
"Boss, they are here"... Su Yuling said with a slight bow as her eyes narrowed at the covered drawing on the table.
Wang Xiaoyu calmly kept his brush as he raised his head....."Xu Min, you go first," Wang Xiaoyu said as his gaze shifted to Xu Min.
"Boss, just as you have anticipated, Baishu Sect has been under pressure recently and they have sent their investigation department to investigate. Today at the gambling house, Zhu Ying and two other disciples came to investigate, and ended up cornering a masked man in a black robe in the gambling house."
"Oh." Wang Xiaoyu's eyebrows rose in surprise.
"Yes, but I later heard that he was just one of those illegal drug dealers"...Xu Min concluded his report.
"Hmm"...Wang Xiaoyu shook his head with a smile on his face.
"Xu Feng, what about your side?" Wang Xiaoyu turned his attention to Xu Feng.
"Boss, everything is working just as you have planned. The Royal Court has finally interfered, demanding a clear answer from Baishu Sect over the death of the Chief Magistrate."
"What about Zhu Wancheng?" Wang Xiaoyu asked.
"Him?" Xu Feng said as he giggled. "Boss, he was almost pulling his hair out of his head in frustration, and he has pasted our portraits on the city notice board saying that anyone who was able to catch us or expose our whereabouts will be rewarded handsomely." Xu Feng concluded his report.
"Good, let us lay low for the time being, and keep an eye on them"....Wang Xiaoyu said.
"Yes, boss," they responded in unison.
"Boss, what are you drawing?" Xu Min asked excitedly as he rushed towards the table.
"Yes"...Xu Feng followed suit as they moved towards the table. "He seems to be drawing a woman."
Xu Min quickly removed the paper that was covering the half-drawn portrait.... "Boss, are you finally tired of being a bachelor?"....Xu Min said with a teasing smile on his face.
"Tch!" Xu Feng rolled his eyes at him. "With his attitude and poor martial art skills, I doubt if he will be able to get any girl."
"Hahaha... hahaha!"
They burst into laughter, and Su Yuling giggled at their comment as she brought her hand forward and covered her mouth.
"You!" Wang Xiaoyu said as he pointed at them..... "Get out!" he said as he covered the portrait back.
"Look at you, you always try to appear cool whenever we go on a mission. But you can't even hold a sword, unlike our Wang Xiaoyu who could shake Mountains with his sword and destroy a city with a single strike!" Xu Min said as he slashed his hand forward as if he was holding a sword..... "It's a pity we were just kids back then and we couldn't see what he looks like....Xu Min said with a sigh.
"And I also heard that fifteen years ago he got the most beautiful woman in Dongling, 'Mo Qinglan.' After seeing his elegant and swift moves, she couldn't help but to fall in love with him"...Xu Min said as he clasped his hands and shook his head with his eyes closed and a wide grin on his face.
The two twin brothers never saw Wang Xiaoyu before, they were just little kids back then when the whole tragedy unfolded, so they never knew Wang Xiaoyu or seen him.
But they would never imagined in their lives that their current powerless Boss who they usually make fun of is actually Wang Xiaoyu, whom they have turned into their idol.
"Boss, why don't you tell us more about Wang Xiaoyu? You must have met him back then, right?"
"Wang Xiaoyu!?"....Wang Xiaoyu's face twitched. "Hmm, he is just an arrogant fool," Wang Xiaoyu said with a bitter smile and regret written all over his face.
"Th-this..." Xu Min stuttered. "Look, I told you he will be running with his tail between his legs whenever he saw Wang Xiaoyu back then".... Xu Min said, pretending to be angry.
Xu Feng burst into laughter. Su Yuling, who was now pouring tea in a cup giggled as she tried to suppress her laughter.
"You!" Wang Xiaoyu picked up his drawing brush in anger as he stood up, and the two twin brothers quickly ran out of the room with the sound of their laughter trailing behind them.
He shook his head with a smile on his face. And all of a sudden he began to cough vigorously, and the brush he picked up earlier fell from his hand.
Cough!
Cough!!!
He brought his hand close to his mouth. As he took a step forward, his steps faltered, and he lost his balance, but before he could fall, Su Yuling appeared by his side and supported him.
"Xiaoyu!" Su Yuling said in panic as she rushed forward.
He brought down his hand from his mouth, and there was blood in his hand, His face looks slightly pale.
"You! What is wrong, Xiaoyu? Are you okay?" Su Yuling asked with tears brewing in her eyes as her voice trembled with fear.
"I am fine"...Wang Xiaoyu said.
"If you are feeling any discomfort, tell me. Let me get a doctor"...Su Yuling said as she tried to move but a hand grabbed her arms stopping her in her tracks.
"I said I am fine"...Wang Xiaoyu suddenly said with a calm and sound voice as if he was not the one feeling weak earlier. Su Yuling turned and stared at him with a hint of doubt in her eyes.
"I thought you said you have extracted the poison out of your body, what is going on?" Su Yuling asked with a concerned look on her face.
"Yuling....I said I am fine"...Wang Xiaoyu said as he held her cheeks and wiped the tears streaming down from her eyes with his thumb. Her body trembled with his touch, and she brought her gaze down.
Wang Xiaoyu smiled at her behavior and withdrew his hand from her and began to walk towards the balcony.
Su Yuling's eyes soon fell on the portrait on the table. She reached out her hand and picked it up as she gave it a proper look... and not long after, her brow furrowed... and then a smile tugged the corner of her lips.
"You still can't let go of her, right?" Su Yuling asked as she continued to stare at the portrait in her hand, her voice was calm but filled with sadness.
Wang Xiaoyu, who was standing at the edge of the balcony and gazing down the bustling street, tilted his head over his shoulder and saw Su Yuling holding the half-drawn portrait. He glanced at her with a slight smile, but he didn't say anything and turned back and continued to gaze down at the bustling street.
Su Yuling kept the portrait back on the table and walked towards him at the balcony.
"Xiaoyu....why! Why! After what she did to you, she almost killed you, Xiaoyu, yet you still can't let go....you still love her, don't you?" Her voice was filled with emotions, a mix of hurt and understanding.
Wang Xiaoyu looked at her but didn't say anything. Su Yuling nodded her head in understanding with a painful smile on her face as a tear escaped her eye. "I understand, you don't need to say anything, but Xiaoyu...what about ....?" she paused, and tears streamed down her cheeks as she sobbed. She seemed to have lost her composure there for a second.
She suddenly wiped her tears and got back into her usual demeanor. "I am sorry, boss, for overstepping my boundaries....I will go and prepare the medicine now"... she said with a slight bow before walking away.
"Yuling!" Wang Xiaoyu said as he instinctively reached out to hold her. But halfway through, he stopped himself, and his fingers slowly curled back, and he balled it into a fist.
Su Yuling, Wang Xiaoyu, and Mo Qinglan were childhood friends, but Wang Xiaoyu and Mo Qinglan fell in love with each other and later got engaged, leaving Su Yuling heartbroken.
She has always loved Wang Xiaoyu from childhood. She would always fight and get into trouble for his sake. She had once been punished to kneel down at the courtyard for the whole day by her father after she almost got a boy killed back then after the boy hit Wang Xiaoyu.
When she heard of Wang Xiaoyu's death, she almost lost her sanity. She once charged into Baishu Sect with her sword in search of Mo Qinglan, almost slaughtering every single person who blocked her path, but she was later subdued by the senior members of the sect. She really felt like tearing Mo Qinglan into pieces. She was broken and cried all day.
But she never gave up on Wang Xiaoyu. She searched every single corner of the City all by herself, and as fate may have it, she finally saw his body at the foot of a cliff by the riverside and brought him back.
"I'm sorry, Ling'er...Wang Xiaoyu continued...I am not worthy of your affection, and moreover, I have a lot to do, and I don't have much time to live".. Wang Xiaoyu thought to himself as he brought two of his hands onto the wooden railing of the balcony. His grip tightened slightly as he gazed over the city...
"Qinglan.... hope you are doing fine," he finally said as he closed his eyes, the cold breeze blew gently across his face and his long robes fluttering elegantly behind him.