(Present Day)
Down the single, scenic path, a large, intimidating horse carriage slowly moved, flanked by twenty armed riders and eight muscular guards on foot. Inside, the Chief, Ma Jingguo, leaned his elbows on the window frame, opening the white curtains to gaze upon the early autumn landscape. The leaves were already turning brilliant colors. He inhaled the fresh, crisp air.
Why is autumn always the season of memory? he wondered bitterly. It was in early autumn he first saw, and later lost, his beloved Mu Dishi.
He questioned his cursed fate. Why does everyone I love always to leave me behind? His parents, then Mu Dishi. He was handsome, capable, and charismatic. Why is no one willing to stand by my side, to accompany me during my lonely hours?
Yuan Chaomei approached the open window, snapping him out of his reverie. "Chief, we will be at the Gu Manor soon," she announced, her voice precise.
Ma Jingguo simply let out a low "Um." He closed his eyes, retreating again into his memories, listening to Mu Huidai playing the guzheng beside him. He opened his eyes just enough to stare, not at her face, but at her fingers. He had taken this young woman because her surname was Mu, her hands were beautiful like his Mu Dishi's, and she played the guzheng well. She was a pale replacement.
Li Howin, the young man whose eyes reminded him of his lost love, offered a cup of tea. He spoke softly. "Chief, I went to the market a few days ago and brought your favorite tea."
Ma Jingguo took the cup and inhaled the sweet, fragrant green tea. The scent instantly conjured the happy days in Tianshan: Mu Dishi handing him a cup after he chopped wood, and the routine that followed—a kiss where he could taste the faint green tea on Mu Dishi's lips.
"Xiao shushu…" he murmured, a genuine, painful term of endearment. He drank the tea, then held the empty cup out to Li Howin. He looked at the trembling young man. "Do you miss your parents?"
Li Howin stammered, lowering his head as he refilled the cup. "I… I…"
Ma Jingguo sighed, his pity fleeting. "If you miss them, please tell me." His voice softened, dangerously. "If you want, you can stay with them for a few days."
Hope flashed in Li Howin's eyes. "I miss them very much... but..."
Ma Jingguo cut him off with a chilling finality. "When you visit them and return to Sunset Sector, I will not kill them." His eyes narrowed, utterly ruthless. "But if you don't come back after the visit, I will kill all the people in Li Village with the surname Li." He looked at Li Howin's fearful, trembling lips. "Come here."
Li Howin hesitantly moved closer. Ma Jingguo drank the tea, then raised his index finger to lift Li Howin's chin. He lowered his head and kissed Li Howin's trembling lips, passing the warm, sweet green tea from his mouth into the young man's. It was a kiss of possessive ownership, a cruel reenactment of a memory.
Li Howin, conditioned by repeated exposure to Ma Jingguo's possessive rituals, numbly obeyed and swallowed the green tea. He felt Ma Jingguo's soft tongue slide into his mouth, its presence an intimate, terrifying violation. After their tongues entangled, Ma Jingguo slowly retracted his and delicately licked Li Howin's trembling lips.
Ma Jingguo smiled, satisfied with the submission. "After returning from Gu Manor, I will ask Chaomei to accompany you to meet your parents." He returned to sipping his tea, his composure regained.
Ma Jingguo sighed and closed his eyes. He recalled the moment he began his desperate attempt to replace his lost love. He may no longer have Mu Dishi, but he had surrounded himself with people who possessed his beloved's characteristics.
Years ago, Ma Jingguo had passed through Li Village on his way to Tianshan. He and Mu Dishi often stopped at the local inn there. He went to their usual resting spot and found two people already seated. He simply tossed them a small gold ingot and bought their table.
He looked to his right and saw four martial artists seated nearby, conversing quietly.
"Do you know that we met a young man who looked like Mu Dishi in Jiangnan? At first glance, I thought this young man was Mu Dishi!" one said excitedly.
"Really?" the other replied, eager for gossip.
"Even people who knew Mu Dishi say so themselves, but the young man…" He shook his head dismissively.
"What? The young man what?" the others urged.
"Although they have similar features, this young man's fighting skill is not as good as that of Mu Dishi. Their fighting skills are as far apart as heaven and earth. I heard that Mu Dishi is a man with skill and beauty. Not only that, he is…" The man motioned the others closer to whisper. "He likes men..." He giggled cruelly. "I heard that he was a man whore. He slept with more than fifty martial artists, and in return, they helped him kill all the martial artists in the Mu Treasure Cave…"
Even whispered, the words reached Ma Jingguo clearly, striking him like physical blows. The image of his cherished love was being defiled. He stood up slowly, walked to their table, and plastered a dangerous smile on his face, his murderous intention barely concealed.
He addressed the group, his voice deceptively pleasant. "Shixiong, you surely know a lot about Mu Dishi? Are you related to him? Is he your friend?"
The martial artist, startled by the handsome stranger, quickly denied any connection. "No, I am not related to Mu Dishi in anyway."
Ma Jingguo's smiles vanished, replaced by a glacial gaze. "If you aren't a family member or a friend, how do you know so much about Mu Dishi's affairs?" He leaned in, his voice dropping to an icy whisper. "Have you slept with Mu Dishi?"
The martial artist, rattled but defiant, spat out, "Mu Dishi is my enemy, this xiong-tai, indeed, I am one of the martial artists who slept with Mu Dishi, but after I slept with him, I refused to help him kill the other martial artists."
Ma Jingguo's smile grew, chillingly sweet. "Really? Do you know who Ma Jingguo is?"
The martial artist looked confused. "Who?"
Ma Jingguo slowly savored the name. "Ma… Jingguo…"
The man dismissed him with a sneer. "No, who cares who he is!"
Ma Jingguo snapped, his face contorted by insane fury. "Ma Jingguo is a very jealous man and a very possessive person! He hates when others touch things that belong to him, or bad talk about people he knows!" He moved with blinding speed, grabbing the martial artist's hand, drawing a knife from his belt, and plunging the blade deep into the man's hand, pinning it to the table.
The martial artist roared in agony and threw his left punch at Ma Jingguo. Ma Jingguo met the blow with a punch of his own. The force of Ma Jingguo's fist shattered the man's knuckles, and the sheer impact forced the two forearm bones to burst out through the skin near the elbow.
The other three martial artists immediately scrambled back, drawing their swords. Ma Jingguo looked at them with a sneer, his eyes promising a horrible death. He spoke in a cold, low voice. "Scram or die."
The wounded martial artist, barely able to speak through the pain, pleaded. "Who are you?"
Ma Jingguo ignored the question, his focus narrow and obsessive. "You heard people say that Mu Dishi slept with other martial artists, or did these fifty martial artists say it themselves?"
The man groaned, his voice weak. "These martial artists said it themselves, so I had the idea to say it!"
Ma Jingguo leaned closer, his expression intense. "So, you really haven't slept with Mu Dishi?"
The injured martial artist screamed, desperately denying the lie that had cost him his hand. "No!"
Ma Jingguo straightened. "Waiter, come here with a piece of paper and a brush." The waiter, trembling, quickly placed the items on the table. Ma Jingguo addressed the wounded man. "Can you write?"
The waiter answered for him. "Yes."
Ma Jingguo twisted the knife deeper into the man's hand, eliciting another piercing scream. "Name?" he demanded, his voice devoid of mercy.
The injured martial artist, screaming and terrified, finally listed the names and sects of the fifty martial artists who claimed to have slept with Mu Dishi. Ma Jingguo grabbed the paper, threw a small silver piece to the waiter, and leaned in close to the whimpering man.
He whispered into the man's ear, his voice possessive and final. "In life and in death, no one can have Mu Dishi, because Mu Dishi is mine." Without a moment's hesitation, he yanked his knife out of the man's hand and viciously slit the martial artist's throat.
Yuan Chaomei entered the inn, walking directly to the Chief. "Chief, Wen qianbei and I have passed the news to the Gu family already."
Ma Jingguo handed her the blood-stained note with fifty names. His order was chillingly absolute. "Chaomei, find these prodigal men and turn them into eunuchs."
Yuan Chaomei took the paper, then gave him a report on another ongoing search. "The young man you are looking for is with Yan Zhanjin."
"He is sick?" Ma Jingguo asked, referring to the rumored look-alike.
"He is poisoned with the seven colors pill."
Ma Jingguo mused, his curiosity piqued. "Chaomei, later, I will go to see if he really resembles my xiao shushu."
Later that night, Ma Jingguo walked slowly in the darkness until he spotted the young man standing alone at a gate. From the back, the youth—with his long, silky hair—did bear a resemblance to Mu Dishi. Ma Jingguo reached out and touched the young man's hair. The texture was wrong, utterly unlike Mu Dishi's.
Everybody praises you for looking like my xiao shushu, he thought coldly. If Zhanjin can think of a way to cure you with my xiao shushu's acupuncture techniques, you might stand a chance to survive.
He decided to test the resemblance and the youth's luck. He gathered all his vast internal energy and delivered a massive punch to the youth's back. His powerful energy ripped through the youth's body, violently opening the meridians and forcing the deadly poison to drain into the young man's left arm, offering a desperate chance at survival.
As Ma Jingguo walked past the reeling, shocked youth, he delivered a final, cold assessment. "You don't look like him." He uttered the words with frigid disgust. "Why does everyone think you look like him?"