The reporters were quite unhappy when they set out, feeling their work would be in vain.
Since Boss Huang became wealthy, countless people had emerged claiming a connection to him. Some didn't even share his surname but adamantly asserted they were from the same ancestral lineage, attributing the discrepancy to a mistake in the old household registration.
Initially, many media outlets showed interest in investigating these claims, but they soon found them to be baseless. However, CCTV, perhaps desperate for content, sent a crew to investigate this time.
Their investigation led them from the capital all the way to Yizhou Province, as one family claiming to be close relatives of Boss Huang resided in a place called Yingxiong Town in Yizhou.
Yingxiong Town, under Wenhe County in Yizhou Province, held virtually no fame across China, with no documented historical records mentioning it.
The only book associated with the town was an online novel titled "Ten Years of Heroic Deeds," written by someone named Mao Ni.
No one could have imagined that such an ordinary town would be Boss Huang's ancestral home.
When the film crew first arrived, they were skeptical. However, after locating the person who had made the call and being led by a local villager to Huangjia Village, they found the village chief.
Subsequently, upon uncovering a dust-covered genealogy book in the chief's home, the crew was somewhat surprised. The aged book indeed contained a name at the very end: Huang Tianshan.
This was naturally the name of Huang He's father, listed in an inconspicuous position on the last page of the genealogy, with no further details.
However, tracing this name online revealed Huang Tianshan's father, grandfather, great-grandfather, and ancestors stretching back through generations.
Interestingly, for over a dozen generations, Huang Tianshan's name, when traced upwards, was listed with only a given name and his wife's name, with no additional information.
This was a common practice in genealogy books, primarily to conserve space. Most clan members were only recorded with a name and their lineage – who gave birth to whom.
But if a clan member achieved significant accomplishments or gained fame during their lifetime, they would receive a detailed account of their contributions, thus enhancing the family's honor. This practice, known as writing a biography within the genealogy, was a coveted honor for all clan members.
For instance, the first person recorded with a biography that the reporters saw was a great hero who had blocked a machine gun with his body. This hero was also listed in the genealogy.
The reporters quickly read the hero's brief biography and then contacted their colleagues in the city to verify his details on Jiangnan Baike. The information matched perfectly with the genealogy's records. The hero was indeed from Zhongjiang County in Yizhou Province, and the genealogy clearly stated that this branch of the family had moved to Zhongjiang County during their great-grandfather's generation. All subsequent relative information also matched, and the investigation team even contacted one of the hero's descendants.
Although the descendant didn't know if their ancestor had moved from Yingxiong Town, the various family details recorded in the genealogy were accurate, suggesting it was not fabricated.
Following this, several other historically renowned names were discovered in the genealogy.
The investigation team traced the genealogy back over 70 generations, finally finding a name on the second page. This name was the pivotal figure leading to all subsequent descendants, the origin of this branch of the Huang surname: Huang Zhong.
"Old village chief, is your ancestor truly that Huang Zhong, the Five Tiger Generals?" a CCTV reporter asked, visibly shocked.
"He is the founding ancestor, the Great Han General and Marquis of Gang, Duke Zhong!" the old village chief corrected the reporter's address with solemnity.
"Yes! Yes! I just want to know if this is true!" the reporter quickly replied. Regardless of the genealogy's authenticity, the fact that Huang He's ancestor was Huang Zhong was an incredibly sensational news story.
"Absolutely true! The genealogy bears witness to it!" the old village chief nodded firmly.
"But, old village chief, I'm not doubting you, but according to our country's historical records, Huang Zhong, the Great Han General, had only one son who died young, and this son left no descendants. So, did something happen that we don't know about?" The reporter was quite skilled with his words. Otherwise, a direct question like, "Didn't all of Huang Zhong's descendants die out?" might have resulted in him being kicked out by the old village chief.
"Indeed, Commander Xu passed away at a young age!" the old village chief sighed, pointing to the position of the second generation ancestor. Huang Xu's name was indeed there, recorded as Huang Zhong's only son in historical accounts, but he died prematurely.
Later, many online novel writers felt it was unjust that such a valiant figure as Huang Zhong left no descendants. They consequently had their protagonists transmigrate into Huang Xu's body, lead their father to rebel, and dominate the Three Kingdoms, which was considered quite plausible and provided a sense of vicarious satisfaction for the elder Huang Zhong.
Additionally, another group of authors had their protagonists bring modern medical knowledge, or directly invite Hua Tuo or Zhang Zhongjing, or even modern medicine, to save Huang Xu's life. This would lead Huang Zhong to kowtow in gratitude and serve as a divine general under the protagonist, a plotline that was highly exciting.
"As you just said, those are historical records. But do you know that in those orthodox historical books, the description of our founding ancestor, across all documents combined, is less than 300 characters?" the old village chief retorted with a snort. "Furthermore, these history books never stated that our Huang family had no heirs; they only briefly mentioned Commander Xu's early demise. Otherwise, how could our Huang family have been passed down through generations?"
"Our genealogy clearly states that before the founding ancestor joined the service of Emperor Zhaolie, he was alone. However, after entering Yizhou and being enfeoffed by Emperor Zhaolie as General of the Rear and Marquis of Guannei, he married a daughter of the Cui clan from Wenhe County. In his seventies, he had the second generation ancestor, Duke Shu."
"Duke Shu then had Duke Ping, Duke Chao, and Duke He."
"Later, during the fall of Shu Han, Duke Ping and Duke Chao's entire families perished. Duke He returned to Wenhe County, his grandmother's hometown, and with the help of the Cui clan, lived in obscurity, prospering and multiplying."
"After the fall of the Jin Dynasty, our Huang family reclaimed our surname and gradually prospered until today. Furthermore, our ancestors have not only spread throughout Wenhe County but also across various regions of the country... Do you see the character '别' (bie - separate/farewell) added after these names?"
"This doesn't mean that this branch was permanently severed. Rather, when they reached a new locality, they initiated the prosperity of the local Huang clan, established a new genealogy, and diverged from our Wenhe Huang clan genealogy."
Although the old village chief was over 80 years old, he spoke with great enthusiasm about his ancestors for over two hours, leaving the reporters somewhat overwhelmed. Finally, someone couldn't contain their impatience and asked:
"Old village chief, what evidence do you have to prove that Mr. Huang He is indeed your clansman?"
"Doesn't his father's name written here count?" the old village chief scoffed. "I watched Tianshan grow up. His family was unfortunate; his grandfather was conscripted, and no one knows where he died."
"When his father was carrying grain, he unfortunately encountered a landslide. By the time they dug him out of the mud, he was almost flattened into a piece of paper. His mother managed to raise him until he was 13, and then she also passed away."
"Although he was allocated land, how could a 13-year-old child do farm work? Later, other villagers kindly helped him farm, giving him a share of work points and grain each month so he could survive in the village."
"However, not only was he idle, but he also stole from the village. People thought they should teach him a lesson... or rather, educate him, and that would be enough. But in a fit of anger, he ran away with a traveling leather craftsman and never returned. Unexpectedly, his son became successful and even a billionaire... By the way, I wanted to ask, how much money does this billionaire actually have? Is it possible to find some money to help the village repair the road? This is, after all, his ancestral land!" the old village chief rambled on.
"Quickly write this down!" The reporters frantically scribbled down Huang Tianshan's past stories and then said, "Old village chief, this Huang He is indeed very wealthy now, and I believe he would be very willing to help you repair a road. As you said, his father left the village when he was young, so he certainly has no impression of our Huangjia Village. And his father has already passed away, so no one knows if what you are saying is true!"
"Therefore, you need to produce something to prove that what you are saying is true, otherwise, we cannot help you!" the reporter said.
"This... let me think..." the old village chief began to recall diligently. "Would his father's old photograph count as evidence?"
"Yes, of course, it counts!" The reporter became excited. With a photograph, the evidence would be very solid.
"Ah, his mother insisted on sending this child to school. After elementary school, she even wanted him to attend junior high. If his mother hadn't died early, he might have even finished high school!"
"I remember they took graduation photos when he finished elementary school. My son and he were in the same class. Can my son find the graduation photo from back then?" the old village chief said. He then made a phone call to find his son.
This son clearly knew about Boss Huang. So, upon learning that Boss Huang's father was his elementary school classmate, he became extremely excited. He ransacked half of his house and finally unearthed a yellowed black-and-white photograph from a dusty corner. Pointing to a skinny little kid in the photo, he declared, "This child is Huang Tianshan."