Chapter 47

If Longhu Mountain is the capital of the Immortal Mansion, then Shangyin Academy is the City of Sages.

The academy, which saw the end of the great war of the Nine Kingdoms and the decline of the Hundred Schools of Thought, still retains the grand and equal scholarly atmosphere where all scholars are treated as equals. Generally speaking, the magnificent Shangyin Academy, except for the Merit Forest where only the Chancellor can enter, is accessible to all, and all books can be read. However, over the centuries, some unwritten rules have become deeply rooted. These rules were not established by the Chancellors of successive generations but mostly due to the overwhelming fame of a particular great scholar within the academy. Out of respect, later generations naturally followed these rules. For example, Shangyin Academy has a Dàyì Lake, where countless green lotuses grow. The water is not deep, only about two people deep, and the bottom is clearly visible. The roots and stems of the lotuses can be seen, and boating on the lake feels like floating in the sky, a scene akin to a fairyland.

Ordinary academy scholars dare not come to Dàyì Lake to admire the lotuses. One reason is that this is where Huang Longshi gained his fame, and another is that a woman lives in a pavilion by the lakeside.

In the past five or six years, all the attention in Shangyin Academy has been focused on her. When she first entered the academy to study, she immediately showed the advantage of her family background, directly becoming a disciple of Chancellor Wang and a leader in military strategy. Both masters taught her everything they knew. Some people were不服 (unconvinced) and came to Dàyì Lake to challenge her. This woman, who brought a sword to the academy, did not argue but directly drew her sword and cut off the topknot of the leading student. The second time, the challenge was even more grand, and she simply drew her sword and killed one of them on the spot. Although she was placed under house arrest by the academy, no one dared to challenge her again. This woman, who is not particularly beautiful, is capable of killing. Later, she created the game of Go, which became widely popular.

Later, she evaluated the achievements of scholars across the land and played ten games of Go on Dàyì Lake, receiving equal praise and criticism. In recent years, many scholars from various countries have come to Shangyin Academy specifically to study with her. Regardless of how much criticism she has received, the fact remains that there are very few people in the world who can be criticized by her. The scholars outside the academy who criticize her the most are the ones who, when they face her, will be the first to turn and run, their integrity as weak as grass, bending and bending again.

The pavilion by Dàyì Lake does not have the grandeur of a noble family. It was built by the academy's craftsmen, with ingenious mechanisms and a unique style. Outside the pavilion, some chickens and ducks are raised, and there are several vegetable gardens, all for sustenance. There is none of the elegance of raising geese, cranes, planting chrysanthemums, or plum trees that the older scholars enjoy. This is Xu Weixiong.

Today, after finishing her class, Xu Weixiong returned to the pavilion, ate a self-sufficient lunch, and began writing the "Thousand-Character Warning." She started writing it in the Beiliang王府 (Beiliang Mansion), initially out of boredom, as she had a younger brother who was always idle. She wanted to write an essay to advise him, but seeing no effect, she put it aside. Later, when she came to Shangyin Academy, she picked up the pen again, writing a few sentences of insight and reflection every few days. Over time, the "Thousand-Character Warning" had already reached over six hundred characters. The opening lines were particularly striking: "Human affairs can be relied upon, but the will of heaven never fails. A family that spends more than it earns will decline over generations. A clan that accumulates merit and virtue will flourish for a hundred years. A country that values its people over its ruler will not decline for a thousand years. How does one die young? By speaking lightly, acting lightly, and thinking lightly, all things become light. How does one meet a violent death? By being overly secretive, harboring hidden motives, and acting in secret, all things become dark..."

Today, she wrote: "How does one face the sword? The gentleman is stubborn, the small person takes risks. How does one drown or hang oneself? Men, lacking in courage, take risks, women, full of spirit, dominate others."

At this point, Xu Weixiong paused, smiled slightly, and her thoughts flowed. She continued writing without stopping, "How does one die of a sudden illness? By being hollow inside; how does one die of a malignant sore? By being overly indulged in rich and fatty foods."

It seemed as if she was thinking of her troublesome younger brother?

Xu Weixiong's mood worsened, and she put down the wolf-hair brush, walked out of the pavilion, untied the boat, and went boating alone on the lake. The lake surface rippled, and the vast lake was occupied by only one person and one boat. If not for the thousands of lotuses, it would indeed be a bit lonely.

She lay in the boat, raised her wrist, and saw a black stone tied with a rope. This stone was just an ordinary pebble, fitting Xu Weixiong's taste. Apart from the ancient sword Hongchi, which could cut through iron like butter, she had no other valuable items. Her pens and ink were the same as those of the other scholars, and her living and eating were simple. If not for her talent and dominance, it would be hard to tell that Xu Weixiong was a princess, let alone a princess who far surpasses the daughters of other feudal lords. Even the daughter of the Yan刺王 (Yan Prince) could not compare to her in terms of nobility. Xu Weixiong looked at the stone in the sunlight, mesmerized by the halo it emitted.

On the lakeside, two people were crouching behind the lotuses, whispering to each other.

One of them had a short-lived appearance, with a sunken nose and exposed teeth, looking like he would die young. He said with difficulty, "Little Junior Brother, are you really going to go to Senior Sister Xu? She can kill people."

The other was elegant and handsome, with a striking presence. He smiled charmingly and said, "Senior Brother Liu, look carefully. Senior Sister Xu isn't carrying her sword today."

The man with the short-lived appearance looked even more troubled and advised nervously, "Little Junior Brother, you haven't been in the academy long. You shouldn't upset Senior Sister Xu. On my first day, I saw her draw her sword and kill someone. After that, when I met the Master and the other senior brothers and sisters, my legs turned to jelly."

The charming young man, who had studied under the same master as the timid senior brother, teased, "Senior Brother Liu, how many legs did you have?"

Senior Brother Liu, with a serious expression, thought for a moment and then said solemnly, "Three!"

The young man, who looked much better than his senior brother, chuckled, "Senior Brother, if I can get on Senior Sister Xu's boat, will you call me Senior Brother in the future?"

Senior Brother Liu nodded without hesitation, "No problem."

The young man was the talented youth who had played ten games of Go with Xu Weixiong. Even though the board was not a nineteen-line one, he was not at all upset. He thought he had an eighty percent chance of winning on a nineteen-line board, but when Xu Weixiong brought out a fifteen-line board, he was only surprised. His unique personality meant that he didn't care about appearances, which were worth little. As long as he won the ten games of Go, he would never touch a nineteen-line board again, or even a Go stone for the rest of his life. If Xu Weixiong became the best Go player in the country, it would only make him seem even more invincible. Unfortunately, he didn't even win on the fifteen-line board, but he was still very happy. Not winning or losing was also good, as it gave him a reason to stay in the academy. It seemed that there was nothing in the world that he found not worth being happy about.

He slipped into the lake, like a fish, and swam toward the boat.

Senior Brother Liu watched in shock, not even thinking about the terms of their bet, which only mentioned what would happen if the young man won, not if he lost.

The young man indeed had great courage.

None of the other senior brothers dared to persistently pursue Senior Sister Xu.

Senior Brother Liu watched intently, ready to save the young man at any moment.

In the middle of the lake, Xu Weixiong frowned, pulled back her wrist, and instinctively reached for her sword. Realizing she didn't have it, she stood up, quickly pulled up a lotus plant, and with a swift movement, impaled the large fish and sent it to the bottom of the lake.

Seeing no movement, Xu Weixiong said calmly, "Don't do it again."

Senior Brother Liu, who was peeking behind the lotus leaves, was even more nervous than the two in the lake, afraid that they would start fighting. Dàyì Lake was one of the few quiet places in the academy, and in other areas, there were always scholars from Jixia who engaged in high-minded discussions, or even madmen who jumped off buildings, into the water, or stripped naked and ran around. To Senior Brother Liu, who did ordinary things with an ordinary mind and wrote ordinary articles, this was hard to accept. So when he occasionally heard or saw Senior Sister Xu making those who refused to study properly look foolish, he privately found it very satisfying. As for the mysterious young man, he didn't know him well but had a deep respect for him. Senior Brother Liu quite liked this talented and outspoken young man.

Senior Brother Liu watched with wide eyes as the young man, who had a bump on his forehead, swam back with his belly up, looking quite content.

Climbing onto the shore, the young man chuckled, "The Chancellor once told me that only the defeated should be chased, not the carefree. I think that's nonsense!"

Senior Brother Liu panicked, "Little Junior Brother, be careful, be careful."

The young man didn't take it seriously, stood up, and shook off most of the lake water. He turned to look at the woman who had just left the boat, his eyes filled with unhidden admiration, but without the usual fear and reverence of other scholars.

Senior Brother Liu worried, "Little Junior Brother, be careful of catching a cold."

The young man put his arm around the shoulder of his closest senior brother and smiled, "Senior Brother Liu, when we go to the capital, let's go to the highest Wu Ying Hall in the imperial city to admire the moon."

Senior Brother Liu laughed, "That's impossible."

But he didn't dare to say it.

The young man, with a thick skin, said, "The capital has the most opportunities. With Senior Brother Liu's appearance, marrying a princess or a noble lady would be easy. I'll be your matchmaker, and then we can climb the Wu Ying Hall, the Wen Hua Hall, and the Bao He Hall."

Senior Brother Liu touched his face and nodded, "That's indeed a way."

Xu Weixiong returned to the pavilion alone, with no particular thoughts about what had happened in the lake.

The young man's background was mysterious. Playing ten games of Go with him on a fifteen-line board was out of her pride, not because she favored him. When he broke the rules and passed the exams of the Jixia scholars to enter the academy, and then specifically joined her school of strategy, Xu Weixiong became more cautious. Xu Zihu could act recklessly in the southern provinces, using her father's authority to bully others, but Xu Weixiong was not a useless flower vase. She had to consider the Xu family's interests with every step, and she could not afford to make a mistake. She was not like her foolish younger brother Xu Longxiang, who could act without thinking.

She had hoped that a certain person would amount to something.

But he didn't study the Way of the King, the Way of the Tyrant, or military strategy, and instead took up a sword to learn martial arts!

The Beiliang region had a million households and thirty thousand iron cavalry, a vast and glorious family business second only to the emperor. Could a single sword support it?

Xu Weixiong stared at the stone on her wrist and whispered, "You idiot!"

After cursing, her mood improved slightly, but soon became serious again. She touched the stone with two fingers and sneered, "More arrogant than a prince."

Because she remembered what her father wrote in a secret letter after investigating the young man: "This boy's background is unknown, but the three thousand eunuchs of the inner palace must bow to him."

{Piaotian Literature}