Chapter 67

Lü Qiantang was certainly not deaf. Hearing the old sword immortal, whose identity was not entirely clear, ask him to spar with the young prince, he thought, although it was mostly a laborious task of slowly feeding moves to help the prince hone his skills, he practiced the heavy sword of the Tide-Watching style, which was not as delicate and precise as other sword techniques. If he accidentally injured the young prince, who would he complain to? If he sought out the Great Pillar of the State, known for his favoritism, it would surely mean death. Should he explain to the young prince that weapons have no eyes? This young prince did not seem like someone who would be easy to reason with; he might just start making things difficult for him. Lü Qiantang sighed inwardly, well, he would just have to face whatever came his way, and if it came to it, he would have to take the hit, even if it meant standing still and letting the young prince slash him a few times.

Shu Xiu, who had been scolded by Xu Fengnian to "get lost" during the battle with the red-armored talisman general, smiled with her eyes curved. "How about that, now it's your turn, Lü Qiantang, to be in a tight spot. You insisted on learning the sword, and now let's see how you get out of this." Shu Xiu lightly spat at herself, "What do you mean, 'old lady'? I'm still young. How many women at thirty still look as beautiful as me? Pinch my cheeks, and the skin is still as smooth as water."

Shu Xiu, who had not been a miko for many years, was admiring herself, while Xu Fengnian had already gotten up. Qingniao paid the bill and gave a few extra silver coins, which made the wine stall owner overjoyed.

Watching the horse team slowly move on, the wine seller sat on an empty table bench, weighing the silver coins and secretly rejoicing. He rarely poured himself a bowl of apricot flower wine lees, which the apprentice had just scooped from the bottom of the wine vat. This stuff couldn't sell for much, but it could refresh one's spirits. An old doctor had even said it could treat summer heat, rheumatism, and winter frostbite. Villagers who had been bitten by snakes or bees often came to fetch some wine lees to detoxify, and it always worked. The shop owner looked up at the dusty three characters on the sign and thought about when he would take it down to clean it properly.

Just as he was pondering these small matters, he felt the ground tremble violently. Turning his head, he saw a general leading over a hundred elite cavalrymen, all wielding an unfamiliar large weapon, thundering past. The owner rubbed his eyes, and he hadn't seen wrong; it was indeed the heavily armored general who had been very respectful in front of the elegant young master. He had seen the armor of the Yongzhou troops a few times, which was already impressive, but this cavalry was even more formidable. Apart from the leading, imposing general, all the horses were light-armored, each equipped with a standardized Northern Liang saber and a bow, and the shop owner vaguely recognized the saber. During the wars of the Spring and Autumn period, the reputation of this killing saber had spread throughout the land. In the past, countless people in the empire were proud to own a Northern Liang war saber, but later the court issued an edict prohibiting anyone outside the Northern Liang army from privately possessing this saber, on pain of punishment. This wave of enthusiasm gradually subsided.

"Damn, which of the Yongzhou fur-clad young masters can have a hundred elite cavalrymen follow them around in such an exaggerated manner?"

"Is it a young master from a military family visiting Yongzhou from Northern Liang? But in recent years, Yongzhou has been openly competing with Liangzhou, a fact even a small citizen like me knows. How could a Northern Liang young master have the audacity to mobilize troops to gallop through Yongzhou? Isn't this a direct affront to our Governor Tian's face?" The shop owner carefully put away the silver coins, protected the half-drunk bowl of white wine with one hand, and with the other hand, he waved to scatter the dust. Thinking and thinking, he still couldn't figure out the background of the young master with the gentle and elegant demeanor. In any case, he was a great figure he had never seen before. The shop owner waited for the dust to settle, then lifted the bowl and took a sip of the wine lees, sighing deeply, "This young master, his family and demeanor are truly remarkable. I'll have to tell my wife, who has never seen the world, about this. Alas, it's a pity he's not from our Yongzhou, otherwise, it would be a matter of pride to talk about him."

Yuan Meng, the captain of the Phoenix Camp, who had fought alongside Ning Emei in the rain against the terrifying red-armored man, was a military officer from a middle-ranking scholar family in Northern Liang. His path in the civil service had not been smooth, so he joined the Northern Liang army. He had learned martial arts from a retired martial arts instructor within his clan since childhood, and his spear technique was a true inheritance. While he couldn't compare to the Little Butcher, who was a disciple of the Northern Land Spear Immortal Wang Xiu, he was still a capable general who could lead charges and arrange formations. To be honest, losing dozens of brothers in just one day of travel from Northern Liang made Yuan Meng, who treated his soldiers like his own limbs, so angry that he wanted to spit blood. What was even more frustrating was that this kind of humiliation could not be shown on his face; he didn't dare to say anything to the young prince.

It was quite amusing that Yuan Meng and the great spearman Ning Emei had the same rank, a sixth-rank official, a position that was neither high nor low. But Yuan Meng sincerely admired Ning General. The Four Fangs of Northern Liang were clearly inferior to the six adopted sons of the Great Pillar of the State, but in the Northern Liang army, those six great generals, each leading their own troops, were so powerful that they were out of reach. The Four Fangs, however, were more visible. On the battlefield, during celebrations, and when drinking, their figures could be seen. In Yuan Meng's view, among the Four Fangs, Ning General was the most beloved by the troops. Each time he led the charge, he was always the first to rush forward, just like the Great Pillar of the State. Back in the tent, he was approachable, far better than the irascible generals like Dian Xiongchu, who would lash out at the slightest provocation. Especially in the small city of Heyang, Ning General had used his spear to knock the blind East Forbidden Deputy Commander off his horse, the tip of the iron spear pressing against the man's chest, and the man didn't dare to make a sound! It was exhilarating and satisfying, this was the kind of fierce general of Northern Liang!

Ning Emei suddenly raised his spear and stopped his horse, turning to all the light cavalry and loudly said, "The young prince said to me while drinking that if he had been at the Yingchuan city gate that day, he would have had the East Forbidden Deputy Commander stripped and hung on the city gate!"

Yuan Meng was taken aback.

The hundred personal guards of the Phoenix Camp probably had the same expression as their leader Yuan Meng, with some波动 in their hearts but not taking it too seriously.

Ning Emei just relayed the message and continued to ride forward, the giant spear almost dragging on the ground.

According to the planned itinerary, they were supposed to enter a city at dusk to rest, but Xu Fengnian did not enter the city. Instead, he had Lü Qiantang choose a small path into the Qingcheng Mountains. This meant that unless they found a temple or palace on the mountain, the group would have to sleep in the wilderness. The Qingcheng Mountains, with their sixty-four peaks, were surrounded like a city, with ancient trees always green, hence the name Qingcheng.

Yongzhou had three great scenic spots. The easternmost was the "Western Sword Gate," said to have been split by a sword immortal, the most perilous. To the south was the Kuimen Pass, where it was said a sage had ridden a bull, the most majestic. And then there was this famous Daoist mountain, the birthplace of the Qingcheng King, originally a cave heaven of the Nine Dippers Daoism. The Qingyang Palace's abbot, who had been granted the title of Qingcheng King by the old emperor, was a Daoist from the Longhu Orthodox Unity School, effectively taking over the Nine Dippers Daoism, which had been thriving, leaving only the Qingyang Palace standing. As a result, the Qingcheng Mountains, which were green and lush, saw a sharp decline in incense offerings every year, much less bustling than other famous mountains, which was not in line with the mountain's renowned reputation. To make matters worse, with fewer visitors, the number of bandits who claimed the mountain as their territory increased. These scattered groups of bandits and the Qingcheng King made it difficult for the authorities to suppress them. Even with a high reward, experienced old hunters in the mountains were often disappointed, and after several setbacks, the county magistrate, seeing that the abbot of the Qingyang Palace was ungrateful, accused the government of causing trouble and making noise on this peaceful land. In a fit of anger, the magistrate was even less willing to spend the resources to suppress the bandits, unless high-ranking officials who came to explore the Qingcheng Mountains were unfortunately robbed, and under pressure, the government would send troops into the mountains. For ordinary people in danger, they were ignored.

The government was waiting for the Qingcheng Mountains to become a dead mountain and a dead city, to see how the Qingcheng King, who had an empty title, would maintain the incense offerings.

When the young prince changed the itinerary, the old Daoist Wei Shuyang, who had a deep connection with the Qingcheng Mountains, felt quite moved. In his youth, he had lived in a hut on a peak in the back mountain, but he was not the kind of person who became a Daoist out of youthful admiration. After various disappointments, he became a Daoist. He had some affection for the Qingcheng Mountains, but it was not deep. He was particularly angry about the Qingcheng King's expulsion of the Nine Dippers Daoism. If it were not for his duty to protect the young prince, he would have confronted the Qingyang Palace and the Daoist from Longhu Mountain, who had come to the Qingcheng Mountains to claim the title of king.

The Qingcheng Mountains were known for their frequent fog. After half an hour of entering the mountains, the dusk seemed particularly heavy. Xu Fengnian was not in a hurry to have Lü Qiantang find a place to rest for the night. He rode his white horse, looking relaxed. Yu Youwei listened to the old Daoist Wei Shuyang introduce the Qingcheng Mountains, which were known for their beautiful scenery, and was not worried about sleeping outdoors. When she and her father were caught in the flood of refugees from the Western Chu royal city, they had endured all kinds of hardships.

Xu Fengnian, thinking about the time he had encountered a group of bandits on the mountain, smiled. If he hadn't known that Old Huang was the Ninth Sword Huang, he might have taken much longer to realize that this gap-toothed, wine-loving man was a master. At the time, Xu Fengnian was on horseback, while Old Huang was running on foot, carrying a box and a bag, not slowing down at all. If he were an ordinary person, how could he have had the strength to run half a mountain with a horse? Why didn't he think of it then?

Xu Fengnian came back to his senses and looked at the familiar scenery, smiling, "Lü Qiantang, about a mile up, there's an abandoned temple. Go check it out."

Lü Qiantang took the order and left.

The mountain was damp, and Yu Youwei felt a bit cold, hugging Wumei. Xu Fengnian noticed and gently said, "You and Jiang Ni will sleep in the carriage tonight."

Yu Youwei's expression was complex, lowering her eyes to meet Wumei's gaze.

Soon, Lü Qiantang returned and respectfully reported, "Your Highness, there is indeed an abandoned temple, and it is empty."

Xu Fengnian nodded and turned to Yang Qingfeng, "Go catch some game."

Yang Qingfeng leaped into the dense forest, and the horse continued to move forward obediently.

The temple was still the same, but it was even more dilapidated than before. Lü Qiantang gathered some firewood and started a fire in the courtyard. They would naturally take turns keeping watch tonight. If Shu Xiu refused, Lü Qiantang wouldn't mind such trivial matters. Among the three of them, who was higher in status, the Great Pillar of the State didn't care, and the young prince had never said a word. It seemed they were supposed to compete on their own during the journey. As for who was stronger, it was hard to say. Lü Qiantang had absolute confidence in his Red Cloud Sword, but he wasn't blindly arrogant. In the battle with the red-armored talisman general, Shu Xiu's internal strength was not to be underestimated, and Yang Qingfeng's mysterious techniques were unpredictable. Even if they competed, what would it change? The maid Qingniao, whom the young prince called by name, had shocked him with her skills earlier.

Yang Qingfeng returned with several mountain chickens and a wild deer, but the young prince specifically chose the mountain chickens, smiling, "These are a specialty of the Qingcheng Mountains, the White Fruit Chicken, which feeds on white fruit and has meat that is even more fragrant than the wild deer. You'll see when you taste it, but the condition is that I can control my mouth and not eat it all myself."

There was a clear spring behind the temple. Qingniao and Jiang Ni, whom Xu Fengnian had ordered with a glare, were peeling and cleaning the game. For the long term, Xu Fengnian had Qingniao teach Jiang Ni, who could burn a goose, how to control the fire. Xu Fengnian sat on the steps, with the long and short swords Xiu Dong and Chun Lei stacked on his knees. Yu Youwei, who didn't want to sit on the ground and dirty her clothes, stood beside Xu Fengnian, hugging Wumei. The old sword god lay on his back on the highest step, using a piece of blue stone he had picked up as a pillow. Yang Qingfeng was feeding the horses outside the courtyard, while Shu Xiu and Lü Qiantang stood guard at the gate like door gods.

Xu Fengnian waited for the food to be ready, turned his head, and pointed to a distant, towering peak, softly saying, "That peak is the Qingyang Palace. On a clear night after the rain, you can see the spectacle of thousands of lamps lighting up the sky. But I've only heard this from Old Huang; I've never seen it myself. Back then, I was robbed at the foot of the mountain, and I almost died running. In a panic, I rode into a forest path and was knocked off my horse by a low-hanging branch. Then I and Old Huang were tied up and brought here. Fortunately, it was a close call, and we even got to taste half a White Fruit Chicken. I think I generously gave Old Huang a chicken leg, or was it half a chicken? In any case, he was so grateful that he was crying and laughing, it was hilarious."

Yu Youwei saw that the young prince, who was laughing, wasn't actually smiling.