Heroes of the Same Generation

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Everyone who dabbles in the martial world knows that Old Master Liu of Wangxian County is a ruthless man.

His natural talent was slow; what others achieved at seven, he wouldn't grasp until ten. The skills others mastered at ten, he'd only get a handle on by twelve or thirteen. He rarely won fights, but he was never beaten when it came to escaping.

By the time he was seventy, most of his peers had faded away. When he reached eighty, his martial arts had reached the level of someone who had diligently trained for over seventy years. Young disciples grow old in the martial world; how many wandering martial artists are seventy years old in terms of skill? Finally, after years of hardship, Old Master Liu could finally be called a senior.

Full of pride, he built Willow Catkin Villa, throwing in an unknown amount of silver to secure the rights to host the Phoenix Banquet. For the past five years, Willow Catkin Villa has been undergoing extensive construction. Not to mention the precious trees at the foot of the mountain, everywhere on the mountain and within the villa, one could see the effort and money spent. Piles of expensive materials were crammed before people's eyes.

"Brother Wang, what do you think of Willow Catkin Villa?"

Xiahou Xuan stood on the bluestone-paved floor, gazing at the clusters of beautiful scenery around him. He turned his head to casually converse with Wang Anfeng, who, dressed in a tattered blue tunic, showed no timidity walking on this path paved with money. After a moment's thought, Wang Anfeng shook his head.

"I don't like it. This villa feels too... too rushed."

"Rushed? A good description."

Xiahou Xuan smiled slightly, closing his fan and using it to gently touch a cluster of blooming flowers. These flowers were originally delicate and elegant, but now they seemed quite repulsive to him. Even the yet-unseen Old Master Liu struck him as inherently unpleasant, far less agreeable than the young man who had bested him earlier. He closed his eyes, lightly inhaled the floral scent, and said with a carefree laugh:

"Writing, while it expresses strokes, carvings, pauses, and turns, its true marvel often lies in the empty spaces. Painting, while it depicts mountains, water, trees, and rocks, its spirit often resides in its ethereal quality. Landscaping is the same principle. He is indeed too rushed."

"The more people lack something, the more they want to express it. It seems even an elder who has lived seventy or eighty years cannot see through this."

After saying all that, he suddenly shook his head, tapping his forehead with his fan. A insincere apology flickered across his handsome face.

"Alas, alas, it's not good to speak ill of the host in their own home. It wouldn't be good to be beaten out with sticks. Brother Wang, Xuan is going to find a friend. If you have nothing else to do, why not come along? I think he will quite like your personality."

"A friend?"

Wang Anfeng was slightly taken aback. Xiahou Xuan saw what he wanted to know from his reaction and smiled, gesturing as if to lead the way.

"Yes, a friend. Xuan came to Wangxian County specifically to catch up with him. I heard he went to Tianjing City before, but I missed him. After finally learning he was here for the Phoenix Banquet, I wrote to Old Master Liu to inform him and rushed over, so he wouldn't run off again."

Wang Anfeng felt a sense of inexplicable familiarity upon hearing this, but he didn't have time to ponder it. He simply replied:

"Your friend sounds very interesting."

Xiahou Xuan nodded noncommittally. "Naturally, he is very interesting. Although that fellow has a somewhat handsome appearance, his personality is bold and unrestrained. His family passes down swordsmanship, yet he prefers fist techniques. He's especially fond of wine. Once, he chased a respectable young lady all the way down the road, only to smell her wine. It's truly headache-inducing."

Wang Anfeng was slightly stunned, the feeling of familiarity growing stronger and more distinct in his heart.

Bold personality, skilled in fist techniques.

Likes to travel around, just passed through Tianjing City.

Extremely fond of wine...

A handsome young man suddenly popped into his mind, who had smiled and told him, 'We will definitely meet again someday.' His heart instantly cleared like a mirror, and a strong joy of reuniting with an old acquaintance surged within him. He thought to himself:

"So that's how it is... He guessed on our first meeting that I was going to attend this Phoenix Banquet, which is why he said we'd meet again..."

Amidst his joy, he couldn't help but chuckle. At the time, he thought the young man's approach to ask for wine was a bit too forward. But if he could chase a young lady just to smell wine, then asking a grown man for a drink was perfectly normal.

"Brother Wang, why are you laughing? Do you also find Xuan's friend truly amusing?"

Xiahou Xuan asked with a hint of self-satisfaction, seeing the faint smile on Wang Anfeng's face. The latter shook his head and chuckled, "He is indeed amusing. I seem to have met him several times... He once approached me at a herbal tea stall, wanting to buy the wine flask at my waist."

"Buying wine at a herbal tea stall?"

Xiahou Xuan was speechless, but then helplessly shook his head.

"He could certainly do that."

Despite his helplessness, his gaze towards Wang Anfeng softened.

For a scion of a noble family, friends were a luxury. His friends were fewer than those of ordinary noble families, so he cherished them even more. Since that drunkard had sought him out several times, it proved the young man was not bad. He was considered his friend, and the drunkard's friend was naturally his friend.

When others did the same thing, it was provocation. But when a friend did it, what was it? Provocation?

No, no, no. That was called a shared amusing anecdote, a jest between them.

Back then, the governor's son had merely disrespected him with words, and he had tricked him, stripped him naked, and hung him on a brothel for three days and nights. Anyone who dared to plead for him was beaten to a pulp. But that drunkard got him so drunk that he fell under a woman's skirt. The next day, with a face full of rouge, they were arm in arm, drinking wine and listening to music, and he would generously spend thousands of taels of silver.

As they walked together, Xiahou Xuan, intelligent and astute, intended to deepen their relationship. They naturally hit it off very well. As they passed a small pavilion, Xiahou Xuan's eyes lit up, and he burst into laughter, shouting:

"Drunkard, drunkard! Hahaha, I've finally found you!"

Wang Anfeng was slightly taken aback. He looked up and saw an unfamiliar face turn towards them. The person appeared to be fifteen or sixteen years old, with sword-like eyebrows, bright eyes, a nose like a hanging gallbladder, and a strand of hair falling over his forehead, adding a touch of unrestrained swagger. He seemed to have been drinking, his eyes a little hazy. However, within three steps of Xiahou Xuan approaching him, he shivered all over, covered his face, and cried out:

"Pretty boy?! Wh-why are you here! I promise, I absolutely will not marry your sister. If you force me again, I'll drown myself in wine!"

"Hahaha, it's alright, it's alright. Look who I brought for you?"

Xiahou Xuan laughed heartily, throwing an arm around the young man's neck. He didn't answer, but merely pointed at Wang Anfeng with two fingers. The young man, however, shook his head like a rattle drum, exclaiming, "It's bad enough you saw me in this state, you brought an acquaintance too?!"

"Bad state?"

Xiahou Xuan blinked in surprise. "You lost again?"

The young man rolled his eyes upon hearing this.

"Can we not mention 'again'?"

Xiahou Xuan chuckled, looking at his friend with a touch of mischievousness. "You've already sparred with him in fist techniques. What did you compete in this time?" The young man sighed again, his face a picture of misery.

"Wine."

"I thought my alcohol tolerance was like an ox, and my fists couldn't beat him. I never expected to lose to him in drinking too."

"I really can't compete with this Thirteen..."

Wang Anfeng, who had walked over, was slightly surprised upon hearing this. He asked, "Thirteen?" The young man glanced at him, assuming he was a friend of Xiahou Xuan's. Friends of friends were his friends, so he replied without hesitation:

"Yeah, the famous Thirteenth Lord, you don't know him?"

Wang Anfeng's face flushed slightly, and he scratched his head. "I've never been out before... I really don't know."

The young man was stunned. He raised his hand and messed up his hair, clearly a bit annoyed, but he still patiently said:

"His original name wasn't this. What normal family would name their child Thirteen?"

"It's because he's proficient in everything – music, chess, calligraphy, painting, mechanisms, hidden weapons, lightness skills, internal energy, fist techniques, palm strikes, sabers, swords, and soft weapons. He's the best among his peers. Plus, he's a heavy drinker, which is why they call him Thirteenth Young Master. We privately call him Thirteenth Lord."

Wang Anfeng's eyes widened slightly, unable to believe such a person existed. He carefully counted in his mind: the four arts of music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, mechanisms, hidden weapons, lightness skills, internal energy, fists, palms, sabers, swords, soft weapons, and drinking capacity. He couldn't help but ask:

"But that's fourteen things in total. Why do they call him Thirteenth Young Master?"

Xiahou Xuan sighed. "Because compared to the rest of us in our generation, he's still missing one thing, hence the reduction by one."

"Missing what?"

"Invincibility."

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