Museum of Deadly Beasts

“B-Brother Lin!” Gu Mengzhong cried out involuntarily. He was indeed surprised to find Lin Jin sitting across the table. He was at least one thousand miles away from Jade Dragon Kingdom so he never imagined that he would be able to meet his old friend here.

“Master Gu, I was just passing by here. Did something happen?” Lin Jin proactively asked.

Gu Mengzhong wasn’t like everybody else.

He had been one of the few people who supported Lin Jin back when he was just starting out and Lin Jin remembered him for that. Gu Mengzhong and Masterchef Liao both have a special place in his heart. Hence, even if it meant delaying his own schedule, Lin Jin would help Gu Mengzhong should he have any troubles.

Perhaps he had recalled something, Gu Mengzhong shook his head. “It’s nothing, nothing at all. It’s been so long since we’ve met so let’s have a drink. Waiter, bring some wine over.”

The waiter’s face turned pale as a sheet when he heard this.

More wine?

This old man had emptied their wine cellar yesterday. If he insisted on one more round of drinking, what would they do? Hence, the waiter stood his ground. Of course, he was also emboldened by the sight of Lin Jin shaking his head at him.

Among the two, he would obviously choose to listen to Lin Jin’s request.

“Master Gu, it’ll be the same if we have tea instead. You’re right. ‘Tis been a while since we last met, and now that we’ve run into each other so far from home, we should sit down and have a nice chat.” Lin Jin had the waiter get them another pot of tea.

Gu Mengzhong nodded. He began by asking how Lin Jin was doing because he hadn’t heard about his homeland for ages. This only proved how long he had been living in a dream.

Knowing this, Lin Jin couldn’t just watch him continue living delusionally. He felt obliged to point out where the problem laid.

After a few more probes, Gu Mengzhong finally sighed.

“I hadn’t planned on telling you this because there’s no reason to get you involved, but since you insist on asking, I guess I’ll tell you about it.” Gu Mengzhong had a sip of his tea.

This time, he used a cup.

The tea he had drunk earlier had evidently worked wonders against his hangover.

Finally, Lin Jin knew what happened to Gu Mengzhong. There was a saying that ‘one pines himself away without regret’ – the only thing that could reduce a prominent figure like Master Gu to this downcast state was a woman.

“To tell you the truth, back when I was a young lad, I stayed in Heavenly Spiral Kingdom for a few years to pursue my studies. There was once a famous art academy there, and I was one of their students.”

Gu Mengzhong was only about seventeen back then; he was in the prime of his youth. There was a female teacher at the art academy with impressive painting skills and she was refined, elegant, and beautiful. The longer Gu Mengzhong studied under her guidance, the fonder he grew of her. It was only normal for this to happen since he was a passionate young man. After spending much time with a teacher who was not only skilled but also good-looking, it was inevitable that he started having feelings for her.

According to Gu Mengzhong, many of his peers also admired this female teacher.

Later on, when Gu Mengzhong’s painting skills improved, the female teacher began teaching him one-on-one. With this, he fell even harder for her.

“Once I completed my studies and planned on returning to Jade Dragon Kingdom, I braced myself and revealed my affections for her. However, instead of accepting my feelings, she told me that I was too young to understand the relationship between a man and a woman. She had no idea how sincere I was. However, seeing how serious I was, she told me that she would wait ten years for me. She said that I could meet her again after I achieved great things in life and became a wandering hero.”

There were tears in Gu Mengzhong’s eyes, but he was smiling as well. Although his hangover had mostly cleared up by now, he was still a little intoxicated. It was only in this state could he reveal his true feelings. Otherwise, he would never even consider revealing this story if his mind was sober.

“But ten years later, when my artistic skill was at its height, I met her, only to hear her complain that I still lack the air of a hero. She said to come back ten years later. I got so angry that when I came back, I started polishing my swordsmanship in addition to my painting techniques.” Gu Mengzhong suddenly revealed a resolute expression.

However, Lin Jin could tell that the teacher was simply rejecting him in a roundabout way. The fact that she made Gu Mengzhong wait for twenty years implied that she wanted him to give up. And yet, she failed to consider how stubborn Gu Mengzhong was.

“Now that the twenty years are up, I have an ink monster that can turn into a blade at will, and I have traveled the lands to uphold justice. This time, I thought that she would finally accept me. Instead of that, she didn’t even want to see me for crying out loud! The only thing she said was that she had wasted my time and that we aren’t fated for each other.” Gu Mengzhong was now a little obsessed.

A spectator sees the game better than the players.

Lin Jin understood the teacher’s intentions. Her plan was to make Gu Mengzhong give up on her, and it was a miracle that Gu Mengzhong actually believed in her promise.

It was the reason why his teacher was willing to admit that she had wasted Gu Mengzhong’s time.

After giving it some thought, Lin Jin said, “There’s something on my mind, but I’m not sure if I should say it.”

“Brother Lin, you’re my good friend. Just speak your mind as you wish,” Gu Mengzhong replied.

Lin Jin nodded. “Twenty years isn’t a short time. No matter how beautiful she was back then, she must have grown old at this point. What’s more, the fact that she’s your teacher implies that she must be at least a couple of years older than you, so it is only formal for her to not wish to see you.”

Lin Jin couldn’t have been any blunter. The teacher was probably much older than Gu Mengzhong, and now that twenty years have passed, her beauty must have already faded away.

Her not meeting Gu Mengzhong was in his best interest.

However, no one expected Gu Mengzhong to be madly in love, even after all these years. One single reply from his crush was enough to shatter his heart and to reduce him to such a state.

Speaking of which, this was Gu Mengzhong’s private matter. Despite his frustrations, he had nowhere else to vent his emotions. It was a coincidence that he revealed this incident to Lin Jin, who showed up at the right place, at the right time.

Who would have imagined that Jade Dragon Kingdom’s number one painter, Master Gu, faced such troubles in his love life?

Of course, there was another factor that Lin Jin didn’t speak of.

‘For her to reject you time and again, it’s obvious that she isn’t interested in you at all, so why haven’t you given up on her?’

In the world Lin Jin transmigrated from, there was a term that best suited Master Gu’s behavior What was that word again? Simping?

Of course, Lin Jin couldn’t say this out loud.

Master Gu continued to pour his heart out to Lin Jin.

“I don’t mind her beauty fading. To me, she’ll always be as beautiful as the day I met her, and that will never change,” Master Gu said.

Lin Jin shook his head. Of course, Master Gu thought that by this gesture, Lin Jin was doubting his feelings.

“Brother Lin, you don’t believe me? Alright, I’ll show you.” Having said that, Master Gu took out a painting from the bag sitting beside him. The painting was protected inside a wooden box and it was obvious how much Master Gu adored it since he lugged it around on his adventure.

Unrolling the painting, the portrait of a woman was revealed.

Lin Jin had seen many paintings by famous artists but this piece truly stunned him. The brushstrokes were impeccable and the woman’s expression was so vivid it was like she was alive.

Wearing a long dress, the woman sat on a rock by a stream, combing her hair. Stare at the painting for too long, and your soul would be sucked right into the painting.

By staring straight at her, the painting would easily draw you in. As for her appearance, her beauty could most definitely destroy cities. Even when compared to Shang’er, the woman in the painting was much more superior.

Of course, that may not be the case for a real person. Master Gu might have deliberately overlooked some flaws when he created this painting.

After all, beauty lies in the eyes of its beholder.

“I don’t care for her looks. She is my teacher and her painting skills are phenomenal. Even at my current level, I pale in comparison to her,” Gu Mengzhong added.