Echoes of My Heart Throughout the Court

Chapter 208: None Survives (1 / 2)

[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?

[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!