On the carriage to the palace, Eunuch Zhao still had a serious expression: "Miss Jinjin, His Majesty is in a very bad mood right now. Please bear with us. We've made a huge embarrassment."
Chu Jinjin was also in a bad mood: "What exactly happened? Is it related to the Northern Desert delegation?"
Eunuch Zhao nodded emphatically.
The purpose of the delegation is self-evident; even without this, they still want to show off their respective strengths.
For example, they might present various challenging problems to showcase their wisdom, or send out their respective experts to compete.
"We had three matches yesterday and lost them all." Eunuch Zhao squinted and said, word by word, "I was there too, so I can tell Miss Jinjin that I have seen the masters of the Northern Desert several times. Their archery skills are superb, and they are all divine archers. Hitting a willow leaf from a hundred paces is nothing to them. They can shoot any bird in the world wherever they want. But in terms of land skills, we have the advantage."
He paused for a moment: "General Yang personally took part last night—the same one who was in the Empress Dowager's palace that day."
Chu Jinjin realized the seriousness of the problem: "Your kung fu is quite good, how did you lose?"
Although General Yang could not be considered a top expert, he was one of the few powerful people he had ever seen in this world, especially his murderous aura, which was genuinely cultivated.
“He was defeated by an ordinary soldier from the Northern Desert. He was indeed an ordinary soldier; you could tell just by looking at his manner of speaking.” Eunuch Zhao seemed unsure how to describe him. “That soldier’s skills were actually quite average; I felt he could have been easily defeated. But he was incredibly strong and seemed to feel no pain. When he was hit in the nose, he cried out in pain. Instead, while General Yang was distracted, a group of people broke his arms.”
Chu Jinjin's eyes widened: "A bunch of people with broken arms?"
What kind of strength would that require?
Eunuch Zhao sighed again: "His Majesty was reluctant to let you take the risk, but it concerns the face of the country, and he really can't think of anyone else but you."
The delegation consisted of several dozen people. According to tradition, they took turns sending out opponents to fight. When one lost, the other would take his place. At the same time, they were paired up by rank, since the strength of soldiers and generals was definitely vastly different.
The Imperial Guard was certainly not lacking in skilled fighters.
However, none of the selected fighters were able to fight back. In the end, they shamelessly sent General Yang to the field, hoping to save face, but it only made them look even more humiliated.
"That powerful?" Chu Jinjin sensed something was wrong and asked seriously, "Eunuch Zhao, do you think I can win? Tell me seriously."
What she knew was less about kung fu and more about killing techniques. Even General Zhao was defeated by her, and her opponent was just an ordinary soldier. Suddenly, she felt a little insecure.
Eunuch Zhao smiled wryly: "If even Miss Jinjin is no match for you, then there's no point in competing with the others."
He wasn't sure what the unspoken implication was.
He was barely considered a skilled fighter, but the soldier was too strange, like an emotionless wooden figure, and his tone of voice was odd, like a child just learning to speak.
Sparring is not a life-or-death struggle. Naturally, no blood should be drawn in front of the emperor. The point is to stop when the point is reached.
The strange thing is that even when a vital point is hit, the opponent has no reaction. For example, in General Yang's round, he punched his opponent in the chest right from the start, and in theory, the opponent should have been temporarily incapacitated.
General Yang later said that the other party's bones were extremely hard. He wanted to teach the other party a lesson and used 70% of his strength. He couldn't say that he broke the ribs, but there must have been some bone fractures.
There was no response from the other party.
As the carriage arrived at the palace gate, Chu Jinjin heard the sound of hooves and lifted the curtain, just as the other person did the same.
Chu Jinjin blinked: "Greetings, General Wang."
Wang Guangchen cupped his hands in greeting: "Greetings, Miss Chu."
After the curtain was lowered, Eunuch Zhao explained, "His Majesty's intention is that not only you and General Wang, but almost every expert he can think of has come."
Chu Jinjin didn't care at all: "They'll go first. This General Wang is just as skilled as me. If he's not a match for me, I'm probably in trouble too."
She had personally experienced Wang Guangchen's strength, and even if she and Li Dahua joined forces, they were not 100% confident that they could keep him.
Simply put, this person's strength, speed, and skills have all reached their peak. Li Dahua could win with her strength, but she has various tricks up her sleeve. However, in a situation like this where it's just a friendly spar and no one can kill, she probably wouldn't be able to beat her.
However, it seems that Xiao Huai really had no other choice but to get Wang Guangchen into the palace.
Eunuch Zhao asked with curiosity, "Does Miss Jinjin know General Wang?"
Chu Jinjin: "...I don't know him."
Let's not talk about the beating incident, after all, Eunuch Zhao is Xiao Huai's man.
Chu Jinjin quickly changed the subject, talking about the strange Mu Wei she had met last night. She had only said half of it when Eunuch Zhao nodded repeatedly: "He is the younger brother of the King of the Northern Desert, the fifth in line."
Chu Jinjin was speechless.
I think it's best to go out less in the future.
Chu Jinjin was first taken to see the Emperor.
After a few days apart, Xiao Huai looked quite haggard from the troubles in the Northern Desert and seemed to have no interest in romance for the time being. He politely told Chu Jinjin to rise.
Besides Chu Jinjin, there was Wang Guangchen, who had arrived earlier, and five or six unfamiliar men, all of whom, judging from their aura, were experts.
Chu Jinjin didn't know them, but they did, and they all took the initiative to greet her, without giving her any special treatment just because she was a woman.
This is true strength.
"Gentlemen, I entrust this competition to you. If you win, I will reward you handsomely; if you lose, I will not blame you, and you will still be rewarded handsomely." Xiao Huai stood up and looked at everyone with a solemn expression. "When you fight, you don't need to hold back too much; you can hurt people!"
The last three words were spoken almost through gritted teeth.
After three consecutive defeats, the general is no match for ordinary soldiers. If the next match continues like this, morale will be shattered before the battle even begins.
I can't afford to lose face like that.
Chu Jinjin followed suit by clasping her hands in greeting.
Xiao Huai still showed her special consideration, letting the others walk in front while the two of them walked at the back.
"Jinjin, I didn't want you to take any risks, but this competition is of great importance."
Chu Jinjin said solemnly, "Your Majesty, there's no need to be so polite. I am also one of your subjects, and it is only right for me to serve the country. Besides, you have just done me a great favor."
Xiao Huai smiled helplessly: "I was just about to bring this up when you, you really have extraordinary courage, dragging the Prime Minister's wife to file a complaint with the Emperor. It has truly opened my eyes."
As they were talking, they arrived at the training ground.
The envoy from the Northern Desert had been waiting there for a long time. When Xiao Huai appeared, he gave a perfunctory greeting, his attitude filled with arrogance and contempt.
Chu Jinjin immediately recognized Mu Wei in the crowd.
Mu Wei also saw her and laughed heartily: "Miss Chu, you didn't expect this, did you? We meet so soon."
Chu Jinjin retorted sarcastically, "So you are the prince of the Northern Desert. Hiding your true colors, I thought you were some lowly rat from somewhere."
“The Central Plains dialect is profound and complex; this sounds like an insult.” Mu Wei didn’t care at all. “I’m not hiding anything; Mu Wei is my name.”
Chu Jinjin cracked her knuckles: "Prince Mu, stop arguing, how about we have a few rounds of fighting?"
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