"Her name was Yu An."

.

.

.

Li Lian didn't react, she already mentally prepared herself for that answer, so all she could think about now was why Yu An didn't tell her, and whether Xiao Fang knew about this or not.

Knowing that she was talking about Xiao Fang's mother, Li Lian assumed the man in her story was Xiao Fang's father, Xiao Jianhong.

"Master, you said the one you loved at the time was someone you definitely shouldn't have loved. Why's that?"

"Well, for one, Yu An and him were very close, so it felt wrong getting in between them."

"Couldn't you both just marry him?" Li Lian asked.

"Perhaps, but it's a bit more complicated than that. Yu An was the daughter of a Patriarch so there would be complications relating to Xiao Jianhong's heir if we were to both have his kids."

...

Li Lian was surprised because this was the first time she was hearing that Yu An was the daughter of a Patriarch, but now it made sense why Xiao Fang's step mother left.

'Does that mean Xiao Fang could inherit the Divine Sword sect? Maybe not, he was titled a bastard after all. However, that's because no one knew who his mother was,' Li Lian thought.

If Xiao Fang had a chance before, he definitely didn't have one now. Xiao Kong had already agreed to the Chaos sect's demand to disown Xiao Fang. This was the reason why Xiao Fang's step mother and step sister were finally returning to the Divine Sword sect after so many years.

...

"The second reason is the reason why my mother punished me," the Matriarch continued to speak. "The man I had a crush on was the sole heir of the Divine Sword sect, Xiao Jianhong."

The Matriarch assumed Li Lian was too young to know anything about what happened during those times, so she explained.

"You may not know much about the Divine Sword sect, but they are a sect full of swordsmen who claim themselves to be honorable for fighting a never ending war against the Chaos sect. As for the Chaos sect, they are known as a lawless sect full of Taboo Cultivators."

When Li Lian was growing up, she heard a few stories about the Chaos sect, so she didn't understand how the Divine Sword sect could be comparable to them. Especially since they seemed alright when she visited the sect.

"I don't understand. If the Chaos sect is so bad, then wouldn't the Divine Sword sect be heroes for fighting them?" Li Lian asked.

"Many people used to think that too, but after they formed an alliance together, they proved to the country that they were just as ruthless as the Chaos sect."

The Matriarch could see that Li Lian was still confused so she explained.

"It was just rumors at the time, but it was later confirmed that the Divine Sword sect had conquered or annihilated all of the minor sects in their own province during that alliance. This happened to be the same province my friend Yu An lived in, so I can only imagine what happened to her and her family."

...

Li Lian had already heard about this from Yu An, but contrary to what the Matriarch said, the Divine Sword sect and the Chaos sect never allied with one another, they had just agreed to a temporary ceasefire. Also, Xiao Fang had explained to her that if they didn't resort to the things they did they definitely wouldn't have survived the following year.

It was no secret that the Divine Sword sect was vastly outnumbered compared to the other major sects, but still no one ever messed with them, no one except the Chaos sect. It was only due to Xiao Kong's bluff and unwavering confidence that made the Chaos sect agree to the ceasefire. Since that day Xiao Kong was seen as a brilliant war hero, and was added to the Divine Sword sect's history books as one of the greatest war heroes to have ever fought in this generational war.

Due to the events that happened during their ceasefire, the Divine Sword sect had lost all of their allies and were blacklisted from joining any of the major events in the country. Only under the royal court's supervision were the Divine Sword sect and Chaos sect allowed to participate in the royal court's annual tournaments.

...

After a moment to lament the loss of her friend, the Matriarch continued speaking,

"Back then, the Divine Sword sect's crimes were just rumors. Xiao Jianhong was never a part of the Black Paradise sect so I could never ask him about it myself. The only time I could see him was when he came to visit Yu An. Yu An knew how I felt about him, so one day she gave me a gift, and convinced me to do something bold. Unfortunately, that was the day when the Divine Sword sect's crimes came to light. When my mother caught us, she expelled Yu An, blacklisted Xiao Jianhong, and put me under confinement in my own home for several years. I never heard from either of them again."

Truth was, the Matriarch did see Xiao Jianhong at least once a year because of the annual tournaments, but she couldn't muster up the courage to ask him what happened to Yu An.

Li Lian felt her heart ache when she heard how tragically the Matriarch's story ended. The worst thing about it was that Li Lian knew how things played out, but she couldn't tell the Matriarch about it otherwise she'd be exposing a dangerous secret.

The carriage became awkwardly quiet. The Matriarch only wanted to build a trusting relationship with Li Lian, but she ended up over sharing her past with her.

Li Lian was reluctant to let the story end this way, so she hesitantly gave the Matriarch a clue.

"Master... now that you're the Matriarch of the Black Paradise sect, can't you go visit him?"

The Matriarch shook her head.

"No one really knows what's going on in that sect, but from what I've been told, Xiao Jianhong already married the Patriarch's daughter of the Chaos sect."

Despite knowing this, the Matriarch didn't seem upset at all. She continued speaking,

"Besides, the reason Yu An convinced me to sleep with him that day was to teach me a valuable lesson. My love for him was just an illusion. I never really loved him, I just wanted to sleep with him."

Li Lian felt like her master's words were directed at her, but Li Lian knew that she deeply loved Xiao Fang, and didn't just love him for the sex. She had gone through months without sleeping in the same bed as him, but her feelings for him remained the same. Even if he was to lose his cultivation and become a cripple from the waist down, she still wouldn't love him any less. She thought about Xiao Fang everyday, and she knew he did the same.

"Master, you said that Yu An left you a gift?"

"Did I say that? I suppose she did, but I wouldn't call it a gift."

Li Lian tilted her head curiously, but the Matriarch didn't explain. The gift Yu An gave her wasn't a gift, but a curse. Yu An gave her a complete Dual Cultivation method book and in all this time she was never able to get rid of it. It was the one thing she had that reminded her of Yu An. What the Matriarch didn't know was that it was the last remaining complete Dual Cultivation book in the country since the annihilation of the Dual Cultivation sect.

"Anyways, enough about me. I'd like to meet your fiancé, can it be arranged?"

"O-Of course, if that's what Master wants."

"Good, I can't wait to meet him."

***

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