By the time Meng Xiuyuan returned to the foot of Wudang Mountain, it was already very late.
On the way up the mountain, Meng Xiuyuan did not walk very fast, and even swayed a little.
Because before leaving, he drank a lot of wine with Zhao Min and talked a lot.
Putting aside the burden of hostile identities and talking about what happened to each other in the past ten years, Meng Xiuyuan and Zhao Min actually got along quite well.
Together they lamented the suffering in the world, scolded the corrupt officials in the court, and talked about their speculations about the future. Zhao Min, who was extremely smart, could always quickly understand some of Meng Xiuyuan's novel statements and discuss them with him.
As he spoke, Meng Xiuyuan could clearly feel an inexplicable relaxation, as if he was getting along with a friend who had been with him for many years.
But that was all. After drinking a few more bottles, Meng Xiuyuan took the initiative to stand up and say goodbye to Zhao Min.
Although Zhao Min tried to persuade him to stay, Meng Xiuyuan didn't stay long. He just said "take care" and then simply turned around and left.
At this time, Meng Xiuyuan was climbing up the mountain step by step. When he reached the halfway point of the mountain, his drunken eyes suddenly saw two people walking down the mountain carrying lanterns.
"Master?!" "Master..."
There were dark clouds tonight, there were few moonlights, and the mountain road was pitch black. But the two girls walking down the mountain in front of them recognized Meng Xiuyuan only by their vague shadows.
"What are you doing in the middle of the night?" Meng Xiuyuan looked at the two girls and asked in confusion.
"Oh, you know it's midnight.
When we saw you not coming back for a long time, we thought you were kidnapped by the Mongolian princess to be her consort and wanted to save you."
Zhou Zhiruo walked towards Meng Xiuyuan while holding a lantern, and said in a slightly sinister tone.
"Sir, we just saw that you would never come back, so we were a little anxious and wanted to go down the mountain and wait for you."
Xiao Zhao seemed much better behaved and whispered to Meng Xiuyuan.
Meng Xiuyuan was happy when he heard this, and he didn't say much to them and just continued walking up the mountain.
Unexpectedly, as soon as he walked up to the two girls, he immediately caused them to nag again.
"The smell of alcohol is so strong, Master, how much alcohol did you drink?
No wonder he staggers when he walks..."
Zhou Zhiruo did seem a little angry when she spoke, but she still subconsciously reached out to help Meng Xiuyuan.
Meng Xiuyuan flicked his sleeves, brushed her away, and said in a dumbfounded voice:
"I just drank a little, no need to make a fuss."
Xiao Zhao on the side did not speak immediately, but stretched out his nose and sniffed beside Meng Xiuyuan for a while, and then suddenly spoke with some worry:
"Sir, why do you still have a faint fragrance on your body?
What does this smell like? Is it poison from the enemy? Does it matter?"
When Zhou Zhiruo heard what Xiao Zhao said, she couldn't help but clenched the lantern in her hand and sniffed carefully at Meng Xiuyuan's side.
After a moment, she frowned and said:
"Where is the poison? It's clearly the scent of powder on the woman's body.
Huh, no wonder you don't even drink when you are a teetotaler. Even when the Grand Master and his uncles hosted a banquet, you didn't want to drink.
As soon as I met the little princess today, she changed her rules and was willing to drink.
So that’s what happened…”
After saying that, Zhou Zhiruo turned around angrily and walked away, holding a lantern.
Meng Xiuyuan was helpless at the situation. He glanced at Xiao Zhao, who looked innocent next to him, and felt very emotional.
This girl is obviously young, and she usually looks well-behaved and clever, but she is always very thoughtful.
Even though I know everything clearly, I don't say anything directly, and I have to beat around the bush.
However, Xiao Zhao's character has always been like this, and it's just a little dark, and it doesn't hurt.
On the contrary, looking at Zhou Zhiruo, who was walking angrily in front, Meng Xiuyuan frowned slightly. He suddenly and inexplicably felt that something was wrong with this girl, that she was different from the past.
However, Meng Xiuyuan was drunk at this time and his mind was in a mess. He couldn't figure it out for a while, so he simply didn't speak.
The three of them walked up the mountain in silence, and no one said a word for a long time.
It wasn't until they were approaching the mountain gate that a cool mountain breeze blew through Meng Xiuyuan's broad green robe. It caused a sudden chill, which dissipated Meng Xiuyuan's drunkenness and allowed him to wake up.
At this moment, he felt excited in his heart. He looked at Zhou Zhiruo who was walking in front, and couldn't help but think of Zhao Min, who had just been drinking with him.
After comparing the two, Meng Xiuyuan suddenly understood that there was something wrong with this girl.
"Zhiruo."
Meng Xiuyuan suddenly called out from behind, calling Zhou Zhiruo in a cold voice.
"What's the matter, Master? You haven't finished drinking yet. Do you want me to go down the mountain and buy some more wine?"
It’s a pity that Xiao Zhao and I are not as good at drinking as that little Mongolian princess, so we can drink to your heart’s content with you..."
Zhou Zhiruo hadn't calmed down yet, so she didn't hear anything wrong with Meng Xiuyuan's voice. She turned her back to Meng Xiuyuan, and her words could not help but contain some strange aura.
It wasn't until she really turned around and saw Meng Xiuyuan's calm and serious gaze that she couldn't help but be startled and quickly swallowed back the words that followed.
Seeing the situation, Meng Xiu didn't say anything to teach her a lesson, he just said softly:
"After dinner tomorrow morning, come to my room. I have something to tell you."
After saying this, Meng Xiuyuan started his Qinggong and flew towards the mountain on tiptoe, leaving the two girls where they were.
Zhou Zhiruo was stunned when she heard this. She didn't know why her master was acting like this suddenly. She subconsciously turned her head to look at Xiao Zhao.
But Xiao Zhao, who had always been good at guessing Meng Xiuyuan's thoughts, looked confused at this time and didn't know what was going on.
The two girls pondered for a long time in the night breeze, neither of them had a clue.
…
Early the next morning, Zhou Zhiruo arrived at the gate of Meng Xiuyuan's courtyard.
The slightly haggard look on her face showed that she really didn't sleep well last night.
Standing in front of Meng Xiuyuan's courtyard at this moment, she felt even more nervous.
Although she didn't know what the master was going to say to her, thinking about Meng Xiuyuan's expression last night, she couldn't help but feel that something was wrong.
After thinking about it, maybe his attitude was too arrogant last night, which made Meng Xiuyuan unhappy.
At this time, Zhou Zhiruo still felt a little resentful that the Mongolian princess had no shame and dared to seduce her master.
But she also understood that the most urgent thing at this time was to consider how to apologize and explain to Meng Xiuyuan to make up for the mistake she made in this moment of excitement.
But before she could think of what to say, she suddenly heard a loud bang of gold and iron coming from Meng Xiuyuan's room, which startled her.
"Master, what's wrong?!"
Zhou Zhiruo didn't have time to hesitate, she immediately opened the door and rushed into Meng Xiuyuan's room. The first thing she saw was a pair of swords lying on the ground.
"It's okay, it's just an experiment. You can talk about it after you come in."
Meng Xiuyuan rubbed his hands that were numb from the shock, and then greeted Zhou Zhiruo.
Zhou Zhiruo nodded quickly when she heard the sound, carefully closed the door, and then habitually sat in front of Meng Xiuyuan's desk. This was the usual seat when she came to Meng Xiuyuan to be taught.
"Do you recognize this pair of swords?"
Meng Xiuyuan bent down to pick up the things and asked Zhou Zhiruo casually.
"Isn't this sword the Yitian Sword you just got, Master... As for this sword, could it be the Dragon Slaying Sword?"
Zhou Zhiruo looked at the dark and strange knife and asked in surprise.
"Well, it is indeed a dragon-slaying knife.
When I went to drink with Zhao Min yesterday, she gave it to me."
Meng Xiuyuan nodded and said to Zhou Zhiruo.
Zhou Zhiruo couldn't help but feel unhappy when she heard that Meng Xiuyuan suddenly mentioned the Mongolian princess again and called her by her Han name affectionately. Regardless of the fact that she came to the master to apologize, she pursed her lips and said:
"Master called me here just to explain this to me?
Humph, what's going on between you and the princess, and why do you need to tell me?
Anyway, your little disciple is weak and weak. Even if he wanted to, he would not be able to find such a magical weapon to make you happy..."
Meng Xiuyuan shook his head when he heard the sound. He did not joke with Zhou Zhiruo, but said to her seriously:
"No, it has nothing to do with that.
There are just some things that you, as my only direct disciple, should be present to witness."
After that, Meng Xiuyuan ignored Zhou Zhiruo in front of him, lowered his head and began to play with the Yitian Sword and Dragon Slaying Knife.
Seeing Meng Xiuyuan's serious expression, Zhou Zhiruo understood that things were serious at this time, so she quickly restrained her little thoughts and carefully watched Meng Xiuyuan's every move.
Then, Meng Xiuyuan was seen stacking the swords together and rubbing them tentatively.
The whole body of the dragon-slaying sword is made of black iron, so it is difficult to damage. However, when the back of the sword is exactly seven inches away from the hilt, the edge of the Yitian Sword, which is seven inches away from the hilt, is slowly cut into it, and serrations appear on the sword.
Meng Xiu saw this situation and knew that he had found the right method. He immediately continued to sharpen the saw slowly, and sure enough, he saw that the gaps in each sword were being sharpened deeper and deeper.
After a long while, there were two "snaps" without warning, and one sword and the other suddenly broke at the same time, and each fell to the ground.
"Master, what are you doing?!"
Seeing such a situation, Zhou Zhiruo felt very confused.
She didn't understand why Meng Xiuyuan destroyed these two magical weapons together. She also didn't understand how Meng Xiuyuan could break these two extremely strong weapons without using much force.
Meng Xiuyuan did not explain to her, but directly picked up the two broken blades. Sure enough, he saw that the broken edges were hollow, and there was a black iron piece hidden in each sword.
Among them, the black iron piece in the Yitian Sword was relatively small. After Meng Xiuyuan took a look at it, he stretched out his hand and handed it to Zhou Zhiruo, leaving only the large black iron piece in the Dragon Slaying Sword in his hand.
Zhou Zhiruo subconsciously took it, and her first impression was that the black iron sheet was made of a special material and was almost five times as heavy as ordinary steel of the same size.
If you look closely, you can see seven small characters "Pudu Shandong Peach Blossom Island" etched on the front of the black iron piece. Turn over and look at the back, there are four rows of sixteen small characters:
Wu Mu's suicide note
Nine Yin Manual
Drive Hu Baomin
It's for orders
Zhou Zhiruo didn't know the reason and wanted to ask again, but Meng Xiuyuan was one step ahead of her and explained:
"'The supreme king of martial arts, he slays the dragon with his precious sword. When he orders the world, no one dares to disobey him. If he cannot rely on the sky, who can compete with him?'
This slogan that has been circulated for many years is actually just a last resort.
What we do is not to fight for hegemony in the rivers and lakes or to dominate the martial arts, but to drive away the Tartars for the people of the world and return our rivers and mountains."
With that said, Meng Xiuyuan began to introduce to Zhou Zhiruo in detail the hidden story behind the Dragon Slaying Sword and the Heavenly Sword.
From the time when Guo Jing and Huang Rong's family worked together to defend Xiangyang for thirty years, until it was difficult to reverse the trend, he and his wife decided to die to serve the country, and finally they put Wu Mu's suicide note and the Nine Yin Scriptures into their swords to help the Han people in the future.
A heroic helping hand.
Meng Xiuyuan eloquently explained the whole process, and Zhou Zhiruo explained it in great detail.
Until the story was finished, Meng Xiuyuan suddenly asked Zhou Zhiruo:
"Do you know why I have to dismantle this sword with you and why I have to talk to you so much?"
Zhou Zhiruo was stunned when he heard this, thought for a long time, and then said with some uncertainty:
"Master, do you want me to go with you to Peach Blossom Island to find these secrets on the art of war?"
Meng Xiuyuan shook his head, looking a little disappointed, looking at Zhou Zhiruo and said:
"No, I can go to Peach Blossom Island alone. It's not difficult to get the secret military manual.
But, I want you to know the meaning behind this sword, this secret book and the art of war.
Let this inspire you and never forget your original intention.
Didn't you once tell me that the knights you admire most are Guo Jing and Huang Rong?
I thought that if I told you this, you would be moved by it.
Why, you don’t even remember?”
"Well..." Zhou Zhiruo wanted to answer something, but she looked too panicked and couldn't say anything.
Looking back now, she did say such words to Meng Xiuyuan, but at that time she only heard that Meng Xiuyuan respected these two heroes the most, so she echoed what her master said.
But he didn't expect that Meng Xiuyuan would think of it again today.
Seeing her like this, Meng Xiu shook his head helplessly and asked softly:
"Zhiruo, do you remember how I tested you before you started?"
Zhou Zhiruo nodded quickly and responded:
"Of course I remember.
Master gave me a diary, which contains stories about Master's heroic deeds, punishing rape and eradicating evil. Let me read the contents and find out where Master is wrong.
I still keep that book carefully and do not dare to lose it or damage it."
Meng Xiuyuan heard the sound and then asked again:
"Then do you remember how you answered me at that time?"
"Answer..." Zhou Zhiruo was suddenly asked by Meng Xiuyuan and couldn't help but feel a little dazed. She thought about it carefully, but because it had been so long, her memory was a little blurry.
Meng Xiu saw the situation, took a deep breath, then looked into Zhou Zhiruo's eyes and said seriously:
"You told me at that time that the evildoers in that book had done many evil things and all of them deserved to die.
If you can learn this lesson in the future, you will be like me, punishing evil and promoting good.
Have you forgotten all of this?"
Zhou Zhiruo heard this and quickly shook his head in defense:
"Where, Master, how could I forget...
I just don’t understand why you suddenly said this, did I do something wrong?”
Speaking of this, Zhou Zhiruo even felt a little aggrieved. She didn't know why Meng Xiuyuan's temperament had changed since he came back from drinking with the Mongolian princess.
The secret secret is that the coquettish foreign girl must have given the master some kind of ecstasy.
Seeing Zhou Zhiruo still looking like this, Meng Xiuyuan sighed and said in a deep voice:
"No, Zhiruo, it's because I've been busy practicing martial arts these years and neglected to teach you.
I only taught you martial arts, but I forgot to teach you more principles, and I forgot to let you go out and see the world more.
Now, compared to you, the Mongolian princess you mentioned is more like my disciple."
While talking, Meng Xiuyuan stood up and took off the Zhenwu sword hanging on the wall, and solemnly placed it in Zhou Zhiruo's hand:
"I took you in and taught you martial arts because I want you to pass on my ideas and skills.
Let you live your life well and achieve your own career.
Instead of letting you hang around me all day long... your heart is focused on me as the master.