VOLUME I: Fleeting September Breeze (Without A Trace)
In a daze, Feng Wuhen seemed to see the town in his memories.
Thin fog filled his line of sight. Vaguely, outlines of familiar houses, nostalgic sceneries, and intimate people gradually emerged.
At that time, there was a famous beauty[1] in town. Her skin was as smooth as jade, and her demeanor was like a flower in the quiet night, similar to a lotus emerging from the water. One of the things he often did back then was to stammer in front of her, offering to help or secretly giving her a wilted wildflower picked from the roadside.
Fortunately, the beautiful girl was both gentle and kind. At that time, he was just a little kid; no matter how annoying he usually was, he always spoke to her gently and patiently, though he may now have realized it must have been quite unpleasant for her.
Back then, Shen Molan was also just a little rascal— always sporting a serious expression — as he competed with him for a chance to speak with the beauty. He once vowed with great certainty that he would marry her one day. Without a word, Feng Wuhen immediately pounced on him. The beauty, however, was quite amused and would smile at the two tussling, occasionally intervening only when things got out of hand. Despite all this, Feng Wuhen never really understood what they were fighting about.
Later, the beauty married and moved to the capital city. Neither of them was able to marry her. The capital, under the emperor’s feet, was such a mystical place. Anyone from the town who managed to visit the capital, even if just briefly, would immediately gain respect and admiration. It was believed that such a person who was able to go to such a place must have gained great insight and experience. For the two little rascals, the capital was like a bright and majestic place.
On the day the beauty left, both Feng Wuhen and Shen Molan experienced their hearts broken for the first time. The two of them went out to the outskirts and had a fight, with no clear victory nor defeat. In the end, exhausted and covered in bruises, they collapsed on the soft grass, blankly gazing up together at the endless sky.
“Feng Wuhen, you always like to compete with me over the same things.” It was a long time before one of the black-clothed teenagers gasped for air and coldly said.
Feng Wuhen responded with a smile, “It’s clearly you who likes to compete with me.”
“You…” Shen Molan turned to glare at him coldly, then quickly turned away. “You’re really a scoundrel.”
“Well, if calling me a scoundrel makes you happy, then so be it,” Feng Wuhen continued to laugh. “I just enjoy teasing you, you cold and hard stone.”
Shen Molan couldn’t be bothered to respond.
“Alas,” Feng Wuhen sighed dramatically, “the beautiful girl is gone.”
“…You don’t seem to be sad at all,” Shen Molan said, still indifferent.
Feng Wuhen suddenly asked with curiosity, “Molan, isn’t it tiring to keep that serious face all the time?”
“It’s none of your business,” Shen Molan replied, maintaining his stern expression.
Another silence followed.
“Molan, I’ll stay at your place tonight,” Feng Wuhen said suddenly.
“…Why?”
“After our fight, my newly changed clothes are all dirty. If I go back and my mother sees, she’ll scold me again.” Feng Wuhen sighed in a pretense of sophistication, but his eyes began to surreptitiously glance at the teenager beside him.
The youth, still with a cold expression, considered for a moment before agreeing, “Alright. But remember to have Uncle Fang send a message to your mother when you go back.”
Feng Wuhen’s eyes curved with a smile, “Molan, you really do care about me.”
The black-clothed teenager shut his eyes, “Give me a break, please.”
“Isn’t it true, Molan…?” Feng Wuhen suddenly sat up and eagerly pounced on the boy with closed eyes.
“Hey, Feng Wuhen, what are you doing? That hurts!”
“Master.”
Feng Wuhen’s smile froze at the corners of his mouth upon hearing the respectful call.
If Ying Zuo[2] hadn’t called him, he might have forgotten that all of that was in the past.
When he was young, he and Shen Molan lived close to each other and spent their most innocent and carefree days together. Before the age of sixteen was the time he cherished most in his memories because, during that time, he often felt Molan’s gentleness and silent care for him.
Later, he gradually realized that his feelings for Molan were different. To his surprise, he did not expect to be not disliked by Molan after confessing his love. Before he could make any significant gesture in his long pursuit of love, he was summoned back to the Feng Manor by his biological father. Meanwhile, Shen Molan, following his own path, became a renowned hero in the martial world, known for punishing evil and promoting good. He could only occasionally hear about Molan’s deeds from others. And then…
Then so much more happened, things he wasn’t eager to revisit.
And now, he was nearing death.
And that time… had finally come.
He wasn’t young anymore; he had just turned 30 years old a few days ago. He still secretly kept track of his age, even though the people in the manor didn’t know.
It wasn’t surprising that the people in the manor didn’t know; there were too many people coming and going in the manor that only a few old servants and hidden guards who had been with the Feng Manor for a long time remained. Later, after Feng Wuhen took over, he returned the servitude contracts to them, therefore, a few more old servants left. Now, only those who had some attachment to the Feng Manor remained, such as the old steward and Ying Zuo and Ying You.[3]
However, he was too lazy to announce his birthday to everyone as it was quite embarrassing. As a man in his thirties and the master of the manor, he didn’t want to remind others of his birthday. It was too humiliating — something he didn’t really want to do.
Except for Shen Molan.
He genuinely wanted to spend his birthday with Shen Molan. After all, they would soon never see each other again. He felt it would be a regret—his own regret, not Shen Molan’s.
Before responding, he had to pull himself together. Because Shen Molan now had Chen Shaoqing by his side, he felt that he was losing a bit of face, especially if his rival overheard him, he might end up being mocked.
He could be laughed at by anyone but Chen Shaoqing. After all, he had saved Chen Shaoqing’s life. Chen Shaoqing was more or less grateful to him; Feng Wuhen didn’t want him to know anything beyond that.
Moreover, he didn’t want Chen Shaoqing to know that he had saved him at such a terrible personal cost, which might make him appear excessively kind. He truly didn’t care about Chen Shaoqing’s life or death; if Shen Molan hadn’t pleaded with him so earnestly, he wouldn’t have bothered to save him.
Moreover, he hadn’t truly anticipated such a high price for saving Chen Shaoqing—exchanging one life for another. If he could relive his life, he still wasn’t sure if he would do the same thing again.
After all, seeing Molan’s distressed state had pained him deeply.
And his life really felt like a withered well. If he agreed that he would save Chen Shaoqing, Molan promised to pretend to be his lover until Chen Shaoqing recovered. He found it hard to refuse such an enticing offer.
Initially, he thought that Molan would grow more fond of him, and after Chen Shaoqing’s recovery, their relationship would naturally progress to something more official. However, fate played a cruel joke on him. While Chen Shaoqing was recovering, he suddenly realized he was turning gravely ill, with poison invading his bones. It was even more difficult for a miracle doctor to save him, which was much worse than Chen Shaoqing was at that time.
The worst part was that by then, Molan still did not like him.
“Master?”
Feng Wuhen then realized someone was actually calling him and couldn’t help but sit up slightly straighter.
“What is it?”
Ying Zuo’s voice remained respectful and cautious. “Young Master Shen Molan and Young Master Chen Shaoqing have arrived and have been waiting in the main hall for some time. They said… they plan to leave Feng Manor tonight.”
Feng Wuhen murmured an acknowledgment, his gaze drifting once more.
Are they going now…?
Although his organs were gradually withering due to the poison penetrating his every blood vessel, he still felt an indescribable, gripping pang in his heart.
Feng Wuhen’s reactions had slowed significantly compared to before. Ying Zuo sighed inwardly and couldn’t help but remind him once more, “Master?”
Feng Wuhen snapped back to reality. He habitually forced out his signature dashing smile. “I understand. I’ll be there in a moment. Please have Xiao Lian come and attend to me.”
“…Understood.” Ying Zuo responded and left.
It was a poison called Wang Hun Yin.
He didn’t know where Chen Shaoqing had contracted this malevolent poison, but it was the reason he was now facing imminent death.
Perhaps, because Chen Shaoqing was originally from the southern Jiangnan region, he was exceedingly handsome. Unfortunately, his personality was selfish, stubborn, and short-tempered, and he despised evil. Known in the martial world for his nimble and refreshing sword technique, he was called “Autumn Leaf Wanderer” among the people in Jianghu.[4]
After promising Molan to save Chen Shaoqing, he began investigating the poison. He learned that Chen Shaoqing’s poisoning stemmed from offending a poison witch[5] in the Miaojiang. The poison witch had taken a liking to him but was cruelly rejected by the hot-tempered and tactless Autumn Leaf Wanderer. In her hatred, the poison witch poisoned him with the Wang Hun Yin, a chronic poison with no cure.
The Wang Hun Yin originated from Miaojiang. It was a poison that should have vanished from the martial world. It was created by a Miao woman whose beloved had passed away. To join him in death, she created this poison, which causes a slow and painless decline, like a candle gradually burning out.
Few knew about the Wang Hun Yin, and even fewer knew how to counteract it. Now, Feng Wuhen was reaping the consequences. No wonder even those who knew the antidote wouldn’t help—it would cost their own lives.
As for how he knew the antidote, it was purely by coincidence.
His mother was the notorious “Poison Lady” Mu Sanniang. When Feng Manor’s master Feng Shiyi fell in love with her, it was absolutely scandalous. Later, Mu Sanniang disguised herself as an ordinary peasant woman, hiding with her young son in a nearby town. Feng Shiyi visited them regularly until the martial world gradually forgot about the affair. After more than 10 years, Master Feng then brought Mu Sanniang and her son back to the manor under the pretense of adopting a son, and the lady was naturally made the primary wife.
In his parents’ eyes, there was only each other, not him. Strangely, although he was their biological child, he never felt their love. Fortunately, he met Shen Molan, which kept him from going too astray. However, he inherited his parents’ extreme traits; he was indifferent to everything except what mattered to him.
When his parents passed away one after the other, it only meant more funerals to arrange and a possible formal takeover of Feng Manor, which was somewhat troubling.
Shen Molan had once been disgusted by his twisted affection and had never sought him out after he and Mu Sanniang left. Feng Wuhen once thought that Shen Molan would never be interested in men. Yet, more than a decade later, Molan personally came to ask Feng Wuhen for help for another man.
Feng Wuhen did indeed know a method. His mother was the famed Gu expert from the region of Miao, Mu Sanniang, so Shen Molan came to ask him. Shen Molan did not expect that Feng Wuhen to like him until now and thus agreed to his request to be his lover—for Chen Shaoqing’s sake. Feng Wuhen was ecstatic and began working on the antidote. He hadn’t studied his mother’s various Gu poison recipes thoroughly, so initially, he didn’t know the name of the poison and had to work from Chen Shaoqing’s symptoms. Chen Shaoqing’s symptoms were peculiar; after poisoning, he developed pale blue, poison-like marks on the backs of his hands, glaringly prominent against his light skin. Although he felt no pain, his movements became increasingly sluggish and his reactions slower, as if he was a candle before the wind.
Feng Wuhen wracked his brain and worked tirelessly for several days, not even eating nor sleeping, until he eventually found the poison’s name—Wang Hun Yin—in his mother’s old books. The symptoms matched Chen Shaoqing’s exactly. However, he only found the antidote’s method in the worn pages and not the consequences of its backlash.
[1] Translator’s Note: I am not sure if 西施姑娘 means “Miss Xishi” as her name; because based on how I understood it, it means “Miss Beautiful” in English. Therefore, I just let it be vague.
[2] One of Feng Wuhen’s hidden guards. It basically means “Shadow Left.”
[3] It basically means “Shadow Right.”
[4] Martial arts world.
[5] Kris Xian: Excuse my poor attempt to translate a person who makes and uses Gu, ‘having a hard time explaining and simplifying.