EMHTC -Chapter 103 None Survives

【The ancestor of this family started out as a reckless and spoiled third-generation heir. Only after a profound and indescribable catastrophe did he resolve to reform himself and eventually become a renowned literary scholar?】

【What kind of catastrophe could be so effective? Surely, it couldn’t be some tragic extermination of the entire family… Oh no! It really was that tragic!】

The Peng family official froze.

Extermination?

When did the Peng family ever…

【It’s karma! Of all things, why dabble in Wushi San! Look what it led to!】

【After taking Wushi San, the body heats up, so he stripped naked. Initially, he’d sent away the household servants, but who could’ve guessed that a guest would arrive? With his mind muddled from the Wushi San, he wandered over and opened the door… well, you can imagine the rest.】

The other officials: “…”

Oh. So that’s the “tragic” part?

Yeah, that does sound pretty tragic.

【What an ultimate social death.】

【The guests were all family members—uncles, aunts, distant relatives. So many cousins and kin came by… Oh! They were there to celebrate his inheritance, no less.】

【Hahahahaha!】

【So that’s what happened! Hahahaha! Fortunately, it was only family who witnessed it. Otherwise, it would’ve spread throughout the entire province, ending up recorded in both official and unofficial histories! Hahahaha!】

The laughter was loud and completely merciless.

The Peng family official gritted his teeth, his upper teeth grinding against the lower ones. Yet, he couldn’t openly vent his frustration and could only suffer silently, grinding his teeth in indignation.

—Xu Yanmiao! Be a decent person for once!

Xu Yanmiao? Be decent? No way.

He continued reading:

【No wonder the histories note that he didn’t leave the house for three years. The official record says he suddenly became enlightened. Hilarious—who would’ve thought it was because he was trying to quit Wushi San! That makes sense. The painful lesson and the memory of wandering around naked must’ve still been vivid in his mind.】

【—Although, with something like Wushi San, it’s unlikely he completely gave it up.】

【He was so regretful that he mentioned several times to his family: ‘I should’ve never touched that stuff in the first place.’】

【Afterward, he packed his things and traveled to other provinces to study. After completing his studies, he began a period of academic wandering. Once that was done, he locked himself away, gritting his teeth and claiming he was writing a great literary work, refusing all visitors…】

One of the editors suddenly let out a blood-curdling scream, startling Xu Yanmiao enough to glance over. “What happened?” he asked.

The editor, wearing a pained expression, continued without pause, “I just remembered I forgot to water the vegetable garden at home before leaving. I wonder if my wife will check on it.”

Xu Yanmiao, trying to offer advice, said, “Maybe take a short leave? Or borrow a coachman from a colleague and send him to your house with a message?”

The editor seemed genuinely delighted. “Brilliant idea, Sir Xu!”

He then grabbed a trusted colleague’s arm and dragged him aside, apparently to arrange for the coachman.

But in reality…

The colleague whispered, “Did you really forget to water the garden?”

The editor let out a dry chuckle. “Not exactly…” He then donned an expression of anguish. “Do you not remember Peng Wenzong’s first book? The first one! That one!”

The colleague suddenly realized what he meant, his face also contorting with pain. “The one that caused such a sensation, making paper in Luoyang scarce…”

The editor covered his mouth, letting out a muffled, trembling cry. “My eternal muse… sob…”

—He had even started using phrases from Xu Yanmiao’s thoughts.

Many others present pieced it together, their eyes widening as the realization hit. Some were so overwhelmed they seemed ready to faint.

That book was their eternal muse too!

“The Five Verses of Huai Chi” captured the romantic ideals of countless scholars.

It embodied the wisdom of Confucius and Mencius, structured with the elegance of Yuefu poetry. It was imitated fervently by aspiring literati, its influence unmatched, shaping literary trends for a century.

Of course, the book remained their muse, but the breaking point was… learning that the famed “moment of enlightenment” stemmed from being seen naked!

Sobbing uncontrollably.

They had once admired the phrase, “Peng Qingyue, the young prodigy of Gaoyang, achieved sudden enlightenment and entered the literary world with unparalleled skill, producing a masterpiece after decades of dedication.”

Now they were being told that “sudden enlightenment” meant being caught stark naked.

Sobbing uncontrollably again.

They had admired those words—“the young prodigy of Gaoyang”—with such heartfelt longing!

Choking back tears.

【Hiss—】

【But, to be fair, he was incredibly talented. Spending ten years studying and wandering, then another twenty in seclusion, he truly produced a monumental work that profoundly influenced the literary world.】

“It’s okay… it’s okay… the masterpiece is real! We admire his writing, not whether he was a stunning youth,” the officials reassured each other.

“And besides! There was the phrase ‘one essay and one poem: Nan Guo Bei Peng.’ Beyond Peng Wenzong, there was also the ‘Poetry Sage!’ That luminary, too, achieved greatness late in life. Before fifty, they amounted to nothing; after fifty, they stunned the world! Their works are the most intricate, their emotions the most poignant, and their style the most magnificent—they are undeniably our true ‘red mole.’”

Yes, they had also learned the phrase “red mole” from Xu Yanmiao.

【Wow! This Peng person was celebrated alongside another figure as ‘Guo and Peng of their era’… Peng refers to Peng Wenzong, but who is Guo?】

The group of officials: “!!!”

Hurry!!!

Someone knock Xu Yanmiao out already!

Too late.

【Wow! The ‘Poetry Sage!’ ‘A century of literary classics, a millennium of Guo’s legacy!’ So impressive! Let me see…】

Xu Yanmiao blinked, even his inner thoughts slowing and stretching out.

【Woooow… Ohhhh…】

The officials collectively began to panic.

Every time Little Baize used this tone, it was never a good sign!

Stop it! At least leave us one of the two legends intact!

【Wait, is that really a thing? While still young, they prepared over a thousand poems—some average, some occasionally brilliant—and then sought out accomplished, elderly literary masters, pestering them to revise and provide guidance…】

The officials were puzzled.

What’s wrong with that? Isn’t consulting mentors normal? Sure, a thousand poems is excessive, but perhaps that persistence was what made them a great Poetry Sage.

【Then, after all the masters who revised the poems had passed away, they brought out the polished, refined masterpieces!!!】

“???”

“!!!”

【So the ‘Sage’ part of ‘Poetry Sage’ was actually about sagely borrowing from others?!】

No!!!

That’s not true! It’s the sage of profound wisdom!

The fans of Guo the Great screamed internally, but their minds couldn’t stop replaying it:

“Polished masterpieces.”

“Guided by famous masters.”

“After all the elders had passed away.”

Damn it!

Centuries later, they were somehow still “fortunate” enough to learn the truth?!

—A historical figure from hundreds of years ago, and yet they still managed to “fall from grace” in their eyes???

The fans of Guo the Great felt as though the sky was collapsing, the earth was spinning, and tears were threatening to fall.

Meanwhile, the officials who only admired Peng Wenzong and didn’t care much for Guo the Great suddenly felt like they had narrowly escaped disaster.

So what if he was young and reckless, indulging in Five-Stone Powder? At least he felt ashamed afterward and worked hard to redeem himself! And he wrote his own books, crafted his own essays! Doesn’t that make him better than Guo Whats-his-name?

The elderly emperor had been reviewing memorials all day.

As the sun set and the palace gates were about to be locked, he estimated that the people in Wenhua Hall should also be finishing up. Summoning the commander of the Jinyiwei, he asked, “How’s the situation over there?”

After a brief but peculiar silence, the commander’s expression turned subtle. “No survivors.”

The emperor’s eyes widened slightly. “…What?”

That night, across the capital, faint, sorrowful sobbing echoed from numerous households.

This left their relatives and friends utterly baffled.

“Husband, what’s going on?”

“It’s nothing, let me be alone for a while. Guo the Great… why… woo woo woo—”

“Dad? What’s wrong? Why are you locking yourself in the study as soon as you come back?”

“I’ve thought it through. Tomorrow, I’ll send you to Baima Academy, which is a thousand miles away to study!”

“Huh?”

“Son, I’m doing this for your own good! If you ever hear about anything like the ‘Eagle Family,’ just ignore it and focus on your studies. Don’t think too much about it!”

“What’s wrong with the name ‘Eagle Family’? It sounds nice…”

His father gave him a deep look and sighed softly, “You don’t understand.”

Crying, lamenting, preemptively worrying, drowning in alcohol, hoping the misfortune would spread to other families… Tonight was destined to be a sleepless night, but Xu Yanmiao slept soundly until dawn.

That’s right! Today! He had a day off!

The cook knocked on the door: “My lord, today’s small meals are noodle cakes, ring cakes, and milk tofu.”

Noodle cakes are made from noodles. Ring cakes are fried twists. Milk tofu is a type of dairy tofu.

Xu Yanmiao got up cheerfully, washed up, and had breakfast.

The noodles were particularly chewy, thin, round, and long, dipped in soy sauce. The toppings were fresh cucumber slices and blanched mung bean sprouts, both fresh and crispy. The ring cakes were golden, fried to a crisp, and had a sweet flavor.

After finishing, Xu Yanmiao happily continued to eat the milk tofu. It was hard to bite, so it was either dipped in milk tea or sucked on like candy.

The lion cat sat nearby, looking up and seriously watching the dining table. It didn’t touch the noodles, nor the ring cakes, until the milk tofu was served. Then it “pounced” onto Xu Yanmiao’s lap, sitting properly, its tail tapping gently on the young man’s abdomen.

“Meow~”

Xu Yanmiao glanced at the milk tofu and then at the lion cat, swirling the dairy block in his mouth, speaking in a mumbled tone, “I’ll let you have some… but can you even eat this?”

Before the lion cat could continue to act spoiled, Xu Yanmiao quickly grabbed a bowl of cat food made from chicken breast and said, “Eat this!”

The lion cat immediately became satisfied, licking, biting, and gnawing on the chicken breast, battling it fiercely.

Xu Yanmiao then noticed the cook, who usually left by now, was still standing in place, unmoving. “Huh? What’s going on? Is there something wrong?”

The cook hesitantly said, “My lord, my family has come to the capital to find me. May I take the day off from cooking today?”

Xu Yanmiao glanced at him and generously said, “Sure! I was planning to eat out today anyway.”

Just then, there was a knock at the door.

The lion cat was startled, leaping to the wall and staring with wide eyes.

Xu Yanmiao quickly wiped his mouth and said to the cook, “I’ll be leaving now. Please lock the door after me.”

He then stood up and quickly walked to the door, opening it. “Lian Hang, let’s go! We should still make it in time for the performance by the Tanjiku Hu people.”

“It’s not too late. If we head to the East Market now, we’ll be just in time for their performance. Let’s go!”

The cook gratefully glanced toward the door.

When he was first sent here, he thought he would be serving a particularly picky and difficult master, but he never expected to meet Xu Yanmiao, who was so easygoing and pleasant to work with.

“Need to quickly sort out all the matters regarding my third uncle, and then hurry back to cook—ah, the master likes to watch plays. It seems my third uncle can control snakes, so I’ll ask him if he’s willing to perform for the master.”