"Qu Yong, you're a grown man, don't cry. It's just a broken arm, it's nothing."

Su Wan squatted down to comfort the man lying on the ground, then turned to Meng Ruliu, who was trimming tree branches beside her, and said, "Sister Yi, give me the splint when it's done, so I can fix it for him."

This man stole her BMW. Before Meng Ruliu could even make a move, Xuehua kicked him and knocked him down. The examination revealed a broken arm.

Meng Ruliu slowly trimmed the tree branch and said, "I understand."

Looking at Qu Yong, who was crying like a child on the ground, one of the onlookers laughed and said, "Now he can't go to the capital to compete for the title of martial arts champion."

Another said, "How can you fight with a broken arm? He looks so strong, who knew he'd break his arm just from being kicked by a horse's hoof?"

Everyone witnessed Qu Yong bullying the waiter in the restaurant and offered their sarcastic remarks.

Qu Yong cried even harder, saying, "I've practiced martial arts for ten years, and I had already signed up... sob sob..."

Su Wan took the splint from Meng Ruliu and said, "You probably have an unbalanced diet and don't get enough calcium, so your bone density is low... Anyway, I've put a splint on you. Don't use your right hand for a month, and you'll recover."

She skillfully bandaged Qu Yong's wounds, then stood up and said, "Don't bully people with your strength anymore."

Qu Yong, his face flushed red, left in tears.

Su Wan walked up to Xuehua and stroked Xuehua's gray mane: "You saw that I was angry, so you kicked him, right?"

Snowflakes seemed to understand her words, and lowered their heads to rub against her face.

Meng Ruliu said, "Sister, your horse is a precious steed, priceless. The capital is holding a martial arts examination, and many martial artists will surely go. It wouldn't be good if they saw it."

“Let’s not go into town during the day,” Su Wan suggested. “Let’s go when it’s getting dark, then no one will be able to see us.”

The two left the restaurant and lingered on the road until dusk. As darkness fell, they finally led their horses toward the capital.

Just as Meng Ruliu had said, the closer they got to the capital, the more people they encountered dressed as martial artists. Many rode past them on horseback, each one strong and carrying weapons.

Upon arriving at the city gate, they saw flames illuminating two long lines of soldiers, dozens of whom were being inspected one by one.

A soldier shouted, "Those who are participating in the martial arts examination, come this way, state your names, and you may bring weapons into the city. Ordinary people, come this way, and you are not allowed to bring weapons into the city."

Meng Ruliu said, "What should I do... I can't bring these whips in. It wasn't this strict when I went to the capital before."

Su Wan said, "Now that the emperor has been killed, the capital will definitely be more secure than usual."

Her eyes darted around, and she pulled Meng Ruliu to a secluded spot, saying to Meng Ruliu, "Sister-in-law, I'll help you disguise yourself as a man so you can bring weapons into the city."

Meng Ruliu recalled Su Wan disguising herself as a doctor to examine her, and smiled, "My sworn sister will definitely be fine with makeup."

"Not only do we have to look the same, but we also have to change our voices..." Su Wan carried the clothes and items needed for makeup with her and said while dressing Meng Ruliu, "Sister Chu said that now when I do my makeup, almost no one can tell the difference."

After dressing up, she looked herself up and down to make sure there were no flaws, then had Meng Ruliu say a few words before walking out with her.

"That Qu Yong has a broken bone, Sister Meng, you can impersonate him and sneak into the city." After giving her instructions, she led her horse to the line of ordinary people.

She was a little worried and kept her eyes on Meng Ruliu's group. Meng Ruliu's line was shorter, so she went to the soldier checking her first. The soldier held up a piece of paper, looked Meng Ruliu up and down, and asked, "Are you a registered candidate?"

Meng Ruliu replied, "Yes, my name is Qu Yong."

The soldier glanced down at the paper, then circled a name: "His Excellency the Prime Minister has ordered that no candidate may leave the city before the martial arts examination concludes. Do you understand?"

Meng Ruliu nodded, and the soldiers let her into the city.

Seeing that they had no weapons, Su Wan's soldiers also allowed them into the city. The two met up on the city streets, found a restaurant to eat and drink their fill, left their horses at an inn, and headed towards the Duke's mansion.

Halfway there, they saw soldiers blocking the road ahead. Many pedestrians were standing there pointing and talking.

Su Wan asked a woman, who replied, "Did you just arrive? Just ahead is the Second Prince's Ping'an Mansion. The Prime Minister and a group of officials have been kneeling since noon, begging the Second Prince to ascend the throne and take charge of the government."

Su Wan said to Meng Ruliu, "The Prime Minister wants to invite the Second Prince to take charge? Let's go listen."

The two squeezed to the front, only to be stopped by a row of soldiers: "No passage is allowed."

Meng Ruliu said, "We need to go this way to get to the Duke's mansion."

The soldier glanced at Meng Ruliu and said, "I don't care which way you go. Go your own way."

Su Wan peered through the gaps between the soldiers and saw a bright fire at the end of the street, where a group of officials were kneeling in front of a mansion, which must be the residence of the Second Prince.

She pulled Meng Ruliu out of the crowd and said, "I want to go listen, Sister Yi, come with me."

The two arrived at a dark corner, and Su Wan found a place to climb, quickly scaling the rooftop.

Meng Ruliu was startled: "Sister-in-law, you can actually climb rooftops? When did you learn that?"

“Brother Chu taught me this.” Su Wan reached out and pulled Meng Ruliu. “Sister-in-law, let me help you. Let’s go across from the roof.”

"Won't the soldiers spot us?" Meng Ruliu asked worriedly. "If we get caught, that would be troublesome."

"Don't worry, it's already so dark now. We'll walk on the shady side of the rooftop, so they won't be able to see us." Su Wan held Meng Ruliu's hand. "Sister Yi, walk slowly. We can speed up once we get used to it."

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