The Legend of the Condor Heroes: From Being Expelled from Peach Blossom Island

Chapter 408 Continue to Provoke
When Wu Chengyu left Bao Xiruo's hut, Yang Kang quickly hid to the side, thinking that Wu Chengyu had not noticed him.

He no longer wanted to go inside to find Bao Xiruo to fulfill his filial duty. He had just heard a shocking secret, and unconsciously tightened his grip, crushing the poor little rabbit to death.

He was completely at a loss, who would have thought that Wanyan Honglie, who doted on him, was not his biological father.

His biological father was named Yang Tiexin. Judging from the conversation just now, he was just a countryman from Hangzhou in the Song Dynasty. He always prided himself on his status as a prince, so how could he possibly look down on such a commoner, let alone accept that he was just a commoner's child?

He tiptoed out of the inner quarters and returned to his room, his mind racing with thoughts, unable to sleep.

This was Wu Chengyu's ultimate goal tonight: to plant a deep thorn between Wanyan Honglie and Yang Kang.

Wanyan Honglie was deeply in love with Bao Xiruo and was willing to treat Yang Kang as his own son. If this secret were not revealed, Yang Kang could live comfortably as his little prince. But now that Yang Kang knows the truth, he will inevitably have more thoughts about his relationship with Wanyan Honglie in the future.

He was still a minor at the time and lacked the maturity he displayed later. When he learned about his true identity, he still chose to be Wanyan Honglie's good son. While there were some emotional factors involved, the most important one was self-interest. Back then, he was willing to put aside many unnecessary emotions for the sake of profit.

But Yang Kang now doesn't have the same mindset he would later develop. He'll inevitably overthink things, and with his mind in turmoil, he'll start to speculate about Wanyan Honglie's thoughts when they're together, and he'll always end up imagining the worst possible scenarios.

As we all know, in most cases, when a son makes a mistake and is scolded or even beaten by his father, he must feel terrible at the time. However, there is no grudge between biological fathers and sons, and they will make up as before in no time. The son will not hold a grudge.

However, if a child is an adopted son, no matter what the adoptive father's reason for disciplining him is, and regardless of whether it is his fault or not, as long as he is disciplined, even if he is not physically punished but just scolded, most adopted sons will clearly remember it in their little notebooks, waiting for the day when they can take revenge.

For them, no matter how good their adoptive father was to them, it was all at the cost of their mother's sacrifice, and they felt they had wronged their biological father. Therefore, they were born with resentment and would not be grateful, but would only hold grudges.

Dorgon was willing to give up the throne for the sake of Da Yu'er, and strongly supported Shunzhi's ascension to the throne. After his death, he was whipped by Shunzhi and his descendants were cut off.

He Yuzhu abandoned his own son and ignored his own sister. This simple-minded cook raised five members of the Jia family, but in the end, he was left all alone and froze to death in a bridge hole.

Throughout history, those who have been taken advantage of as stepfathers and accomplices have often raised ungrateful children, few of whom will end up with a good life.

This was exactly the effect Wu Chengyu wanted. As long as Yang Kang knew from a young age that Wanyan Honglie was not his biological father, even if he coveted power and wealth and was unwilling to rebel.

But after that, if Wanyan Honglie said something harsh to him or disciplined him for any reason, he would no longer take it for granted and would start to overthink it. Over time, his feelings for Wanyan Honglie would inevitably change.

But given Wu Chengyu's personality, he will definitely continue to sow discord between the two of them. He won't just light a fire and stand by and watch it develop freely. How can he stop at just a superficial attempt to cause trouble?

Yang Kang's personality has already taken shape, but it is still immature. He could never become a great hero like Guo Jing. According to the original work, depending on their positions, Yang Kang will ultimately be a relatively bad person. Therefore, Wu Chengyu has no psychological burden in doing these things.

Just like the next day, Yang Kang arrived at Wu Chengyu's side early. The two got along just like the day before. Yang Kang was very respectful, while Wu Chengyu was still unpredictable.

But Yang Kang's mindset changed. He looked at Wu Chengyu with extremely complicated thoughts.

On the one hand, he was certain that Wu Chengyu wanted to teach him real kung fu. After all, Wu Chengyu was a friend of his biological father, and the previous test was probably just for Wanyan Honglie's benefit. He was always cautious about accepting disciples and passing on his skills, and anyone would be suspicious if he agreed to it too easily.

On the other hand, he also hated Wu Chengyu for letting him know his true identity, which left him at a loss and unsure of how to conduct himself. He was no longer as carefree as before in the Prince's mansion. In a short time, he seemed to have grown up a lot.

Wu Chengyu roughly understood what Yang Kang was thinking. The boy's gaze was strange, a mixture of intimacy and resistance. Even the best actor couldn't fake that kind of look.

"I told you to calm your mind and focus yesterday, otherwise I wouldn't be able to pass on the divine skill to you. Why do you look even worse this morning? Look at those dark circles under your eyes, you didn't sleep last night."

Yang Kang, despite his young age, was adept at feigning. Upon hearing Wu Chengyu's words, he quickly suppressed the chaotic thoughts in his mind, put on a smile, and nodded and bowed.

“Master, it’s really not my fault. Ever since I found out you were going to pass on your divine skills to me, I was so excited last night that I couldn’t sleep at all, which is why I’m feeling a bit weak.”

"Alright, since that's the case, let's call it a day. I'll teach you whenever you can calm down."

Yang Kang was shocked. He was now severely insecure and eagerly hoped to achieve success in his cultivation so that he could at least protect himself. Therefore, he could not wait even a moment longer.

"Master, please don't! You promised to pass on your skills to me today. Don't worry, I will be fully focused and won't slack off."

Wu Chengyu shook his head and said, "Profound internal energy cultivation methods are extremely difficult to master. In your current state, you will only achieve twice the result with half the effort. How about this, besides internal energy cultivation, I will first teach you some other fist and foot techniques and weapons. Let me think about it."

After Wu Chengyu finished speaking, he remained silent. Yang Kang then hurriedly poured tea for Wu Chengyu.

After pretending to ponder for a moment, Wu Chengyu finally spoke: "Your Jin Kingdom was founded on horseback, but unfortunately, by your generation, you have been spoiled since childhood, and there are many纨绔 (spoiled brats) and few with real skills."

As I see it, you will definitely have to share the prince's burdens in the future, and perhaps one day you will even lead troops into battle. I will first teach you some superb skills on horseback.

For some reason, I suddenly found myself missing an old friend today. He came from an extraordinary family; he was a descendant of General Yang Zaixing, a great general under Yue Fei. This Yang Zaixing hailed from the Tianbo Yang family, and he was invincible in battle, a true slayer of a hundred men. My old friend once demonstrated the Yang family spear technique to me; it was truly first-rate horsemanship. Very well, today I will first teach you the Yang family spear technique.”

Upon hearing this, Yang Kang felt a sense of unease. He immediately realized that the old friend Wu Chengyu mentioned was his biological father, and that the Yang family spear technique must have been specially taught to him by Wu Chengyu in remembrance of his old friend.

Yang Zaixing had killed so many Jin soldiers that rivers of blood flowed, and even this young prince had heard of him and knew that he was a true fierce general on the battlefield. Yang Kang now knew that he was a descendant of the Yang family generals and was somewhat resistant to this identity, but the young man always had some longing for the fierce generals on the battlefield, and he did not actually refuse to learn the Yang family spear technique.

As for Wu Chengyu, he had never even met Yang Tiexin, so how could he possibly have learned the Yang Family Spear technique from Yang Tiexin? However, the Yang Family Spear technique was widely known, and even Qiu Chuji in the original novel knew it. The Murong family manual that Wu Chengyu obtained also contained a set of Yang Family Spear techniques, which might even be more complete than what Yang Tiexin had learned.

At that moment, Wu Chengyu asked Yang Kang to find an iron spear and taught Yang Kang how to use it, move by move.

"The Yang Family Spear technique consists of sixty-four moves. Although it is circulated in the martial arts world, it only has thirty-six moves and is not perfect. What I am teaching you today is the true Yang Family Spear technique."

The Yang family spear technique states: "The front hand is upright, the back hand is firm; both the upward and downward hands have openings. It goes like an arrow and returns like a thread; with swift hands and quick eyes, it strikes the face."

A dazzling display of spear techniques. A throat-locking spear, unstoppable even by ghosts and gods. A counter-attack spear, impossible for even immortals to defend against.

The strange beast overturns, pear blossoms cover the sky, and a black dragon surges from the river to the beach. Embroiderers shuttle back and forth, rushing towards the sun and moon, as the Golden Gate Stone is opened to seize Anhui.

Once mastered, the Yang family spear technique makes one a top-tier warrior on the battlefield. However, every great building starts from the ground up, and any martial art must be practiced from the basics.

The main techniques of spear fighting are blocking, seizing, and thrusting. Other techniques include pointing, striking, picking, parrying, entangling, and flourishing. What you need to learn first is how to hold the spear and how to thrust.

Wu Chengyu then genuinely imparted his knowledge, carefully teaching Yang Kang the fundamentals of spear technique and correcting each of Yang Kang's movements bit by bit.

Yang Kang had very complicated feelings about the Yang Family Spear. He didn't want to accept that he was a successor of the Yang Family Spear, but he couldn't help wanting to learn it. However, this guy was really good at understanding. Even when he was slightly distracted, he still managed to memorize all the movements.

"Come on, grab the butt of the spear with one hand, raise your arm horizontally, and hold the spear in mid-air. Feel every change in the spear. The longer you hold it, the greater your arm strength will be, and you will gradually become as flexible as your own arm. Only in this way can you achieve the state of oneness between spear and man."

You're still far from good enough. Use the time it takes to drink a cup of tea as a guide. Practice at least three sets each morning and evening. When you can hold the spear with one hand for half an hour without it wobbling, then you've entered the basics of spearmanship.

After teaching all the spear techniques, Yang Kang only needed to practice repeatedly on his own. Wu Chengyu then had Yang Kang practice holding the spear upright, which was indeed the fundamental method for those who wanted to build a solid foundation in spear techniques. Anyone who wanted to master spear techniques had to overcome the hurdle of holding the spear upright.

Wu Chengyu, meanwhile, sat down and drank tea. After watching Yan Kang grit his teeth and sweat profusely, he wondered if it was the insecurity he felt after learning about his true identity the night before. Yan Kang was working much harder than Wu Chengyu had expected.

Soon, the time it takes to drink a cup of tea was up. Yang Kang was so tired that his arms went numb and his clothes were soaked with sweat. He quickly sat down next to Wu Chengyu, grabbed the teapot, and poured the tea directly into his mouth.

Wu Chengyu, looking disgusted, instructed the maid to change the teapot and brew a fresh pot of tea, then spoke to Yang Kang.

"How about it? Practicing martial arts isn't easy, is it? This is just the most basic spear technique. The more advanced the martial arts, the harder it is to practice. If you can't stick with it, you can give up. That way, I'll have more time to enjoy myself."

Yang Kang gritted his teeth. Now that things had come to this, he couldn't give up. The father-son relationship was all a lie; only the martial arts skills he had mastered were real.

He didn't reply. After a short rest, he picked up his gun again. After completing three sets, he was exhausted and somewhat dazed. He unconsciously asked a question.

"Master, do you believe there is such a thing as genuine sincerity without a reason in this world?"

Wu Chengyu knew that the real issue was about to be addressed. Now was the time when Yang Kang's thinking was most wavering, and also the time when it was easiest to take advantage of his weakness.

He immediately used his persuasive skills, employing ultrasonic waves to influence Yang Kang's thoughts and subconscious.

"I am all alone and have never known what true sincerity is. However, in my opinion, people do everything with a purpose. There is no one in this world who is completely selfless; it's just that they do things differently."

"Like me, why am I teaching you martial arts? Isn't it because I want you to enjoy wealth and luxury? It can't be because you're good-looking, can it?"

Yang Kang was even more confused: "Then Master, why do you think my father likes my mother?"

"Haha, of course it's because he thinks your mother is beautiful. If your mother's appearance didn't meet your father's standards, how could he, as a prince, possibly marry a Han woman and make her his principal wife?"

Under Wu Chengyu's deliberate misleading, Yang Kang nodded unconsciously. He began to think that Wanyan Honglie was good to his mother because he coveted her beauty, and that he was good to him because he wanted to please his mother.

In short, his motives were not pure, so he began to doubt whether Wanyan Honglie truly had fatherly feelings for him.

　Chapter Two, though late, is finally here.
　　
　
(End of this chapter)