Pingshou Mountain is a not-too-high mountain beside Mount Wudang's Luoshan. Later, the Wudang Sect built many buildings and transformed it into a place for devout Daoists to cultivate diligently.
You can also consider it a retirement home, as most people who come to live on Pingshou Mountain are once formidable figures from the outside world. After growing old and weak, they chose to find a place to cultivate diligently and enjoy their twilight years without burdening their children.
After all, the elder patriarch of the Kong family, one of the five great families of the capital, Kong Liancheng, was like this. He personally funded the construction of a small villa on Pingshou Mountain, with two rooms and a kitchen. To the left of the small courtyard, a garden was created for growing vegetables. However, it was winter, and the vegetables had already been harvested, with the garden covered in snow.
To the right of the courtyard was a frame for a gourd vine. The gourds had long since withered, leaving a few gourds that had been dried and hung on the vine, also covered in snow.
The weather was nice today. A flock of sparrows was chirping on the gourd vine. The natural sounds can heal one's soul. No matter how dry and chaotic your heart is, at this moment, it will calm down and listen to the sounds of nature.
Beneath the gourd vine frame, an almost bald old man with long, white hair tied into a Daoist bun sat cross-legged on a prayer mat. His face was ruddy and glowing, covered in wrinkles and age spots. He had a long white beard on his chin. A small table beside him had charcoal fire boiling water. A pot and a cup sat there. As the old man meditated, the sparrows chirped incessantly overhead, as if the old man were in deep concentration, having returned to peace…
"Just ahead."
At this moment, a group of people appeared, startling the sparrows on the gourd vine and waking the meditating elder. It was Xiao Chuanzi, accompanied by Wan Yunting and Ouyang Shenhe, standing at the entrance. Looking at the elder beneath the vine frame, Ouyang Shenhe smiled and called out, "Brother Kong, it's Shenhe. I've come to visit you."
The old man sitting under the gourd vine was none other than the previous patriarch of the Kong family, Kong Liancheng, who was now a hundred years old. He slowly opened his old eyes and looked over. He smiled slightly at Ouyang Shenhe and said, "Shenhe, come in."
Ouyang Shenhe nodded with a smile. Wan Yunting then stepped forward and opened the wooden gate of the courtyard. The housekeeper following behind was carrying many items. Ouyang Shenhe approached Kong Liancheng with Wan Yunting and said with a smile, "Brother Kong, I brought the tea you mentioned last time. Would you like to try it now?"
Kong Liancheng, still seated cross-legged, nodded with a smile without looking at Wan Yunting. Ouyang Shenhe immediately asked the housekeeper, Zhang Heng, to brew the tea. This wasn't some precious tea valued at a fortune on the market, but a very ordinary white tea. However, Kong Liancheng simply enjoyed this kind of ordinary white tea.
After all, at his level, he had always drunk those exorbitantly priced teas. He had long grown tired of them, so after coming to Mount Wudang, he drank very ordinary and inexpensive tea.
Just as Ouyang Shenhe was about to introduce Wan Yunting, a young man wearing a down jacket emerged from another room. It was Kong Xuefeng, whom they had met in the United States some time ago. Upon seeing Wan Yunting, he asked in surprise, "Mr. Wan, what are you doing here?"
Wan Yunting turned to look at him but wasn't overly surprised, as the person sitting before him was the elder patriarch of the Kong family, Kong Liancheng's grandfather. He said with a smile, "So it's President Kong."
Kong Xuefeng looked astonished. He then noticed Ouyang Shenhe and quickly greeted him respectfully, "Patriarch Shenhe, you are here too."
"Is that Xuefeng?"
Ouyang Shenhe looked at Kong Xuefeng and smiled, "I heard you play very well with my Li Qun!"
Kong Xuefeng's expression faltered. He glanced at Wan Yunting. Kong Xuefeng had heard about Wan Yunting being Ouyang Zhixin's lost son when he visited his grandfather on Mount Wudang after returning to the capital. He smiled somewhat unnaturally and said, "Everyone is abroad, so we look out for each other."
Wan Yunting, standing beside them, narrowed his eyes, understanding why Kong Xuefeng's expression was so unnatural!
When he went to the United States to rescue Jiang Wenhao and investigate Ouyang Liqun, he had approached Kong Xuefeng for information. Although Wan Yunting hadn't said much at the time, Kong Xuefeng knew why Wan Yunting was investigating Ouyang Liqun!
The drug cartels in Mexico had erupted in power. The leader of the Dragon Drug Cartel, Caro Quijin, was killed, and the entire cartel was annihilated, igniting a wave of opposition to drug cartels throughout Mexico. Although the catalyst had not been publicly announced, Kong Xuefeng had guessed that the catalyst that ignited the war between the Mexican government and the drug cartels was Wan Yunting!
"Brother Kong, let me introduce you."
Ouyang Shenhe patted Wan Yunting's arm and smiled at Kong Liancheng, "This is the grandson I lost, and he has been found now."
It was then that Kong Liancheng formally sized up Wan Yunting. He narrowed his old eyes for a moment before nodding with a smile and saying, "Shenhe, congratulations. Your grandson is extraordinary and has boundless prospects for the future."
"Haha…"
Ouyang Shenhe was delighted, looking at Wan Yunting with immense pride. He said, "Brother Kong, my grandson doesn't rely on our Ouyang family; he's already a prominent figure outside. Therefore, even without the Ouyang family, his future achievements will definitely surpass ours."
Wan Yunting smiled humbly at this remark, not knowing how to respond.
Kong Xuefeng came forward and said to Kong Liancheng, "Grandpa, his name is Wan Yunting. His medical skills are very impressive, and he has now taken over as the Chairman of the Beijing Traditional Chinese Medicine Association!"
"Oh."
This made Kong Liancheng look at Wan Yunting even more strangely. Kong Xuefeng had come to Mount Wudang the day before yesterday and had told him about the events that had happened in the capital during this period, naturally mentioning his uncle Kong Jingguo taking down the Sima family and letting Wan Yunting take over as the Chairman of the Traditional Chinese Medicine Association.
Speaking of this, Kong Xuefeng couldn't help but tell Kong Liancheng about some of Wan Yunting's deeds, such as being an anti-drug hero honored by the people of Huadu City, founding the Chaoting Group, a financial empire in China, rescuing Jiang Wenhao in the United States, and then initiating the war against drug cartels in Mexico. This piqued Kong Liancheng's curiosity, which was why he looked at Wan Yunting so strangely. He hadn't expected him to be a member of the Ouyang family!
No wonder Ouyang Shenhe was so happy. Having such a grandson with legendary deeds was indeed a great fortune for the Ouyang family; they must have been dreaming with joy.
"Young man, you must have come about the Gongsun Xiuliang incident from back then, haven't you?"
Kong Liancheng's old eyes fixed on Wan Yunting as he asked with a smile.
Wan Yunting's expression flickered, and he felt surprised. It seemed this elder knew the purpose of his visit. He nodded and said, "Yes, Mr. Kong. I have indeed come to visit you regarding my master's matter, and I hope you can enlighten me!"
Kong Liancheng was the person involved. He had fallen seriously ill back then, and all the doctors in the capital, both Western and Chinese, could not cure him. It wasn't until Gongsun Xiuliang returned to the capital from outside that he went to see Kong Liancheng. At that time, Gongsun Xiuliang had clearly stated that his illness could be cured and had written a prescription. Kong Liancheng had followed the prescription and gathered the herbs…
Normally, Kong Liancheng's illness would have been cured within a few days. Unexpectedly, the next day, Gongsun Xiuliang was brought before Kong Liancheng again by members of the Kong family. When they examined him, he was already on the verge of death. Sima Boyong was also present, identifying the prescription that Gongsun Xiuliang had given to Kong Liancheng as problematic. One herb, which was toxic, had not been balanced, causing Kong Liancheng's illness to worsen.
Because of this, no matter how much Gongsun Xiuliang argued, he could not quell the fury of the Kong family at that time. All responsibility was pushed onto Gongsun Xiuliang, thus branding him as a quack doctor and causing him to disappear without a trace overnight.
"Alas, it seems that someone behind the scenes tampered with my illness back then, wrongly accusing your master, Gongsun Xiuliang!"
Although Kong Liancheng had believed it was Gongsun Xiuliang's fault at the time, as the Sima family later took over the Beijing Traditional Chinese Medicine Association, and knowing Sima Boyong's character, Kong Liancheng gradually realized the problem with the incident back then.
In fact, taking down the Sima family was also Kong Liancheng's intention!
Last time Kong Jingguo came to Mount Wudang to visit his daughter, Ziqing went to Huadu City to spar with Wan Yunting. Kong Jingguo visited the elder at that time and told him about the intention of the higher-ups to move against the Sima family. Kong Liancheng had agreed at that time, which is why the decision was made.
Kong Liancheng looked up at the silent Wan Yunting and said, "These are the details of the matter, but I, Kong Liancheng, am also a victim. If you want to seek justice for your master and clear his name, I, Kong Liancheng, can speak out to the outside world!"
These words stirred Wan Yunting's heart. He looked at the elder before him and bowed ninety degrees with his fists clasped, "Thank you, Mr. Kong, for clearing my master's name."
Kong Liancheng smiled and waved his hand. This matter was trivial to him. It was better to let this matter be thoroughly settled.
Afterward, Wan Yunting and Ouyang Shenhe accompanied Kong Liancheng for tea and casual conversation. They also had a simple meal there at noon. They descended the mountain at one in the afternoon. They even specifically looked at the houses under construction next to them, which Ouyang Shenhe was building for himself. Next year, he would come to Mount Wudang to live in retirement with Kong Liancheng.
After escorting the elder back to rest, Wan Yunting happened to meet Ziqing and her disciple. He said, "Master Wan, are you free now? My master wants to take you to Jianya on the back mountain!"
"Alright."
Wan Yunting's eyes lit up, and he smiled, "I was just looking for you. Let's go."
Lan Xin nodded, and Ziqing stepped forward and walked away. Wan Yunting followed behind them. Then, Duan Yingying also ran out and followed. The four of them headed towards the back mountain of the Wudang Sect, which was named Jianfeng Jianya.