Chapter 367 Taking on a Disciple?
"The hatred of killing one's father and mother must be avenged," Lin Changning hummed softly, somewhat unsure of what Li Mingde meant by saying so much to him.
Even if one wants revenge or to show loyalty, one should speak to the prince.
However, since Li Mingde had just lost his loved ones, Lin Changning only dared to mutter these words to himself and did not dare to say them aloud.
So he simply offered a word of comfort: "I believe the Crown Prince will surely achieve his wish."
Li Mingde stood up, supporting himself on the coffin, his body trembling slightly. He looked at Lin Changning and suddenly clasped his hands in a fist salute: "Please, Vice Commander, accept me as your apprentice and teach me swordsmanship!!!"
Lin Changning: ?
"ah?"
Seeing Lin Changning's somewhat bewildered expression, Li Mingde lifted his robe and knelt down directly in front of Lin Changning. Lin Changning thought to himself, "Damn it!" and hurriedly reached out to help Li Mingde up.
He looked around in a bit of panic. There were so many people paying their respects in the mourning hall. It was inappropriate for the crown prince to kneel before him!
Lin Changning looked somewhat panicked and helpless, and directly reached out and lifted Li Mingde up from the ground.
Li Mingxiu and Qi Rong, who had just entered from outside, were also speechless when they saw the scene in the mourning hall.
Lin Changning looked helplessly at Qi Rong at the door, supporting Li Mingde with both hands and insisting that he not kneel down.
Li Mingxiu didn't have so many concerns. When he and Qi Rong came in, he had already heard Mingde say that he wanted to become Lin Changning's disciple.
Lin Changning looked at Qi Rong with pleading eyes. One insisted on kneeling down, while the other forcefully lifted him up, leaving Qi Rong stunned for a while.
When Li Mingde saw Li Mingxiu enter, he looked at Li Mingxiu with a pleading look in his eyes.
"Seventeenth brother, please put in a good word for me."
Li Mingxiu walked directly into the mourning hall and gently advised Li Mingde, "Eighth Brother, you should ask my father about this matter. After all, Lin Qianshi is one of my father's men. It's no use making things difficult for him."
Qi Rong nodded in agreement: "Your Highness, please don't make things difficult for Xiao Liu."
Hearing the two speak up for him, Lin Changning silently breathed a sigh of relief, while a flash of disappointment crossed Li Mingde's eyes.
Just as Lin Changning was about to head to the banquet hall with Qi Rong and the others, the King of Chu strode towards the mourning hall with several trusted men, and happened to run into Lin Changning and his group.
A group of people bowed to the King of Chu, who looked at Li Mingde, whose face was still somewhat gloomy, and waved his hand at them.
"Get up."
Just as I was about to say a few more words to comfort Li Mingde, he suddenly knelt down on the road.
The King of Chu was also taken aback for a moment. He took two steps forward and was about to help Li Mingde up: "Xiao De, just tell your Ninth Uncle what you have to say. Get up first."
Li Mingde shook his head and knelt on the ground: "Uncle Jiu, I want to become Lin Qianshi's apprentice and learn swordsmanship. Please grant my request."
The King of Chu was also somewhat bewildered by Li Mingde's move. He glanced at Lin Changning, then turned his gaze to Li Mingxiu and Qi Rong.
What exactly is going on with those eye contact signals?
Li Mingxiu never expected that Li Mingde would so readily lift his father up in front of everyone.
He hurriedly stepped forward to help Li Mingde up: "Brother Ba, let's talk about this tonight. It's not appropriate with so many people around."
Li Mingde pushed Li Mingxiu's hand away and respectfully kowtowed to the King of Chu: "Ninth Uncle, I used to think that my martial arts were decent and that I was well-versed in military strategy and would surely win battles. But now that I have seen more things and met more people, I realize how shallow I was before. Along the way, I was saved by the Vice Commander and have seen the hidden talents under your command. I want to serve you and avenge my father, but if I remain the same as before, I'm afraid I will never succeed in this lifetime. I beg you, Ninth Uncle, to grant my request and let the Vice Commander teach me swordsmanship!"
The King of Chu was pleased that his child was ambitious and wanted to learn martial arts. So he looked at Lin Changning with a hint of hesitation in his eyes.
Lin Changning is skilled in martial arts and quick-witted, and he has made many contributions to him, so he values him highly.
The question of whether or not to accept the child as an apprentice must be asked. Just as the King of Chu was about to ask Lin Changning, he heard Qi Rong suddenly interrupt.
“Uncle, this is not appropriate. Changning’s swordsmanship is a family secret that is not easily passed on to outsiders. If the young master wants to learn it, there are many other skilled people in the manor. Moreover, Changning is a few years younger than Mingde. I think this is not suitable.”
Li Mingde looked up and stared straight at Qi Rong. Qi Rong didn't back down and glared back. He didn't want Li Mingde to get too involved with Lin Changning.
Lin Changning was also in a dilemma. In fact, it wasn't that her family's swordsmanship couldn't be passed on, since she had already shown it to Qi Rong.
However, with Qi Rong's words, the King of Chu is likely in a dilemma.
After careful consideration, Lin Changning understood Qi Rong's intention. Li Mingde was now the son of a traitor. If the two of them were to become master and disciple, they would be deeply involved in the future, and Lin Changning might be implicated by Li Mingde at any moment.
So he simply refused the offer.
The King of Chu was in a dilemma, unsure whether to agree or not. He looked at Lin Changning, thinking it over and over. Now that the King of Sheng was dead, the remaining troops under his command were all in Taiyuan. And now, in the mourning hall, Mingde had even knelt down and begged him. If he didn't agree, everyone behind him would be watching.
Thinking of this, the King of Chu was already preparing to order Lin Changning to take Li Mingde as his disciple. Just as he was about to speak, Li Mingxiu suddenly knelt down, gritted his teeth, and said.
"Father, I wish to learn swordsmanship with my myna bird. Please grant me permission!"
Qi Rong glanced at his kneeling elder brother, a knowing look flashing in his eyes. His elder brother was afraid of putting him and his uncle in a difficult position, which was why he suggested learning swordsmanship with Li Mingde.
Lin Changning is a general under the King of Chu, so it's no problem for him to teach the King's successor. He doesn't even need to be called a master. Li Mingde naturally thought of this as well.
So the two of them worked together, learned swordsmanship, and had no other reason to talk about it.
Li Mingde turned his head and glanced at Li Mingxiu, a hint of gratitude flashing in his eyes. Along the way, he had witnessed Lin Changning's ferocity and genuinely wanted to learn swordsmanship from him, so that he could at least protect himself on the battlefield in the future.
He didn't necessarily want to become Lin Changning's apprentice; he just wanted to use this incident to tell the King of Chu that he would bring the people left behind by his father to completely join the King of Chu's camp. When he first arrived, the only person he knew was Lin Changning, and Lin Changning's swordsmanship was indeed outstanding.
He then conceived the idea of becoming Lin Changning's apprentice, thus completely binding himself to the people of the Chu King's camp. Through their interactions, he realized that Lin Changning was not a bad person. Strictly speaking, the two were not particularly friendly, but when it was time to save him, Lin Changning still stepped in.
Therefore, Li Mingde thought that since he had already followed Uncle Jiu, he might as well find a kind and generous person to be his associate.
The King of Chu looked at Lin Changning again: "What does Changning think?"
Even the young master wanted to learn swordsmanship from him, so Lin Changning naturally had no room for objection.
He clasped his hands respectfully towards the King of Chu and said, "It is a blessing for Changning."
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