Forgotten Legend of the Bloodied Flower

"I…"

Nan Shu Cheng couldn't say anything. All the words he wanted to say were swallowed back into his throat as he watched the back of these two people.

He didn't know what he should feel.

Should he be glad that his daughter finally left since only trouble had arisen since she came to this residence? Or should he be sad because his daughter left?

He didn't know.

At this moment, countless thoughts and feeling surged like torrent tide. It was so fast and rapid that it nearly swallowed him whole.

After an unknown amount of time, Nan Shu Cheng closed his eyes.

It was too late for regret.

This was the path he had chosen and also the decision he made in the first place. There was no way he could waste time dwelling on the past.

Isn't it just a woman?

Women are nothing more than a tool. He can favor one in an instance but throw her away in the next moment.

After that, Nan Shu Cheng turned around and walked back in the direction of his quarter.

…

<Nan Hua's side>

"Hua'er," Old Master Nan called his granddaughter dotingly. He carried her and put her on his lap tenderly. "Are you going to stay in that rotten residence if I didn't bring you away and go down with them?"

Nan Hua's eyes flashed at her grandfather's words. "I'll not do anything like that."

Old Master Nan looked at his granddaughter helplessly. He knew that whatever she was planning to do, he wouldn't be able to do anything to stop her. This daughter of his was also very stubborn.

"Alright, alright. Be good now and don't go there anymore, alright?"

"I know, Grandfather." Nan Hua then looked at her grandfather and pondered for a moment. "Have you known about what he did for a long time, Grandfather?"

Old Master Nan was stunned. He naturally knew who Nan Hua meant when she said 'he' because there was only one person she could possibly mentioned at this time. He looked at his granddaughter for a moment then sighed.

"Yes."

"Grandfather didn't stop him?" Nan Hua asked with her clear black obsidian eyes.

Old Master Nan looked at her gaze and sighed. "He's already an adult and I can't control what he wants to do. I have already warned him, but what he wants to do in the end is not something I can control."

Thinking about when he was still young and controlled the two children so that they could follow his steps, Old Master Nan smiled bitterly. If not because his wife persuaded him to give them break, they might have trained all day long.

He had long noticed that none of his children inherited his talent to become a soldier.

Their martial arts ability was average and might not even be suitable to lead a lot of people. Since Nan Si Qiao was a girl back then, he no longer forced her and let her spent most of her time with her mother.

But not Nan Shu Cheng.

It was until Nan Shu Cheng was wounded and nearly crippled for his life that Old Master Nan finally gave up on making him learn martial arts. He only arranged for his son to get married with a woman from a rather good family in hope that he could get grandsons who could finally inherit his martial arts talent.

He got Nan Luo.

But Nan Shu Cheng was not willing to let Nan Luo followed Old Master Nan's steps in the beginning. It was the rebellious attitude that the man showed against him by making Nan Luo wanted to become an official instead of a soldier.

At the same time, he hated the arrangement from his father for him to marry that woman.

"I see."

Nan Hua lowered her eyes.

Old Master Nan looked at his granddaughter and patted her head tenderly. He had already forced his children to do what they didn't want to do many times in the past, causing them to resent him. But the resentment Nan Shu Cheng had was instead passed towards his wife and daughter.

It was what Old Master Nan couldn't forgive.

Sighing once more, Old Master Nan had long vowed to himself that he would not force his grandson and granddaughter to do what they didn't want. If they wanted to train, he would facilitate them. If they didn't want to, he would allow them.

No, that didn't include Nan Luo.

That brat still needed some discipline since he wanted to become a great general like him.

"Hua'er, are you against your marriage agreement?"

Nan Hua blinked her eyes, feeling surprised by her grandfather's question. She raised her head and saw Old Master Nan was looking at her with serious expression.

When the agreement was made, Nan Hua was still a baby or toddler back then. There was no chance for her to speak of her opinion because she didn't even understand anything. It was simply an arrangement that the adult had made for her.

Blinking her eyes once more, Nan Hua asked back, "Would it be possible to go against an agreement made by Emperor Huan?"

Emperor Huan, the most respected emperor in the heart of many people.

It had only been slightly over a decade since Emperor Huan passed away. His name was still ringing in the heart of many people. Those who dared to slight him would have to face a beating from countless people around them.

Old Master Nan smiled bitterly. "There's always a way if you want to."

By sacrificing some of his military merit, it was not impossible for him to request for annulment from the current Emperor. However, this would cause his status to be much lower than before.

Not to mention, it would be hard to be able to use the request for something else.

Nan Hua shook her head. "There's no need."

Looking at his sensible granddaughter, Old Master Nan sighed and patted her head. "If that's what you wish."