Chapter 9 (I Taught Him Knife Technique)
“Chai Yong was raised by the Princess of Jinxiang County, who was, after all, a member of the imperial clan.”
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In recent years, the country has been in turmoil. The cruel officials promoted by the Empress Dowager have been ruthless and vicious, causing countless noble families to be destroyed overnight. The atmosphere in Luoyang is tense. Officials are prepared to say goodbye when they go to court. They never discuss private matters with their colleagues. Elders are worried that their unworthy descendants will say something that will implicate the whole family. At the same time, they also want to leave a way out for their families. So they send their unmarried sons to Luoyang.
These people were almost all the second sons of the main family or the sons of concubines. They did not hold any proper jobs and spent their days idly.
Chai Yong was different from them. He was the heir of the Duke of Huo's mansion. Although he did not hold an official position, he would inherit the Duke of Huo's mansion in the future. With his background, it would be effortless for him to obtain a suitable military officer position.
Lu Sanniang is of low social status and cannot be redeemed, so Chai Yong cannot take her away. The magistrate of Liucheng County said that she was banished to Liucheng because she offended the wife of the chief secretary, so she cannot escape. Cheng Can has plenty of opportunities to get her, and there is no need to break ties with Chai Yong.
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“The county princess is far away in the capital, and her influence doesn’t extend to Xizhou…” Cheng Can drawled out his words, “Moreover, there is a member of the imperial clan whose status is higher than that of the county princess of Jinxiang, and he is also very close to us.”
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Cheng Can's gaze fell on the carriages piled high with gifts outside the window, his eyes gleaming with calculation: "Didn't you all notice? From the capital to Xizhou, the Prince has been provoking Chai Yong. If it were me, I would have been furious long ago. When the Prince wanted to see the Xiliang dance, Chai Yong was still able to laugh."
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When the empress ascended the throne, they were eating sand in the Moheyan Desert, and they are still not used to a woman defying the world to ascend to the pinnacle of power and become the monarch of a powerful empire.
Although they didn't express any opinion on the matter publicly or privately, as men, they all unanimously kept their distance from Wu Yanxing, a member of the Wu Zhou imperial family, neither wanting to offend him nor curry favor with him. They still regarded the Li family as part of the imperial clan, believing the Empress's ascension to the throne was unpopular and a hen crowing at dawn, and therefore didn't want to be associated with Wu Yanxing.
Cheng Can glanced at his silent companions, snorted coldly, threw down his wine glass, and got up to walk downstairs.
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He had a lot on his mind but couldn't express it. Reluctantly, he said, "Third Sister, we'll come to see you again after we deliver the scriptures to Xizhou!"
Lu Huaying watched them leave and helped Wang Yu back to her room.
"Feifei, I think Prince Chai and Wulang are really good people. They're not like those people from before..."
When Wang Yu mentioned the past, she recalled the faces of some people, sighed, and didn't continue speaking, but secretly glanced at Lu Huaying.
At that time, the Lu family members were confined in a courtyard. Some people came to see them with food and clothing. Wang Yu was initially grateful until she discovered their intentions.
Those days were a nightmare that all members of the Lu family wanted to forget.
Lu Huaying remained calm and said, "Sister-in-law, you're not mistaken. The young master and the fifth son are indeed not bad people."
My sister-in-law is a heavy-hearted person; the more she thinks, the harder it is for her to get better. She doesn't want her sister-in-law to worry.
Wang Yu's expression softened somewhat.
After Lu Huaying finished sleeping, she took some food and went out of the earthen house. She called out in Huyu at the door, and several barefoot children rushed out and ran to her.
"Third Sister, today is the Duke of Zhou (a figure in Chinese mythology)."
The child didn't go out!
Lu Huaying shared the food with them: "If Young Master Zhou comes looking for me with his men, what will you do?"
The children shouted in unison, "Quickly hide Sister-in-law Wang and your brother!"
Lu Huaying smiled, and after the children dispersed, she suddenly strode quickly toward a dark corner.
"Who's there? Come out!"
She gripped the pestle tightly.
A furtive figure jumped out, clasped his hands in greeting, and said, "Young lady, please don't misunderstand. My name is Pubu, and I was sent by Prince Chai! Prince Chai was worried that Young Master Cheng would make things difficult for you, so he sent me to follow you just in case. Also, the prince has something he wants to give you, but he's afraid you won't accept it, so he asked me to pass it on for you."
He took out a sachet and handed it to Lu Huaying.
Lu Huaying did not loosen her grip on the pestle, but took the sachet and untied it.
A crescent-shaped jade comb with a wild goose and lotus flower pattern fell into her palm.
Lu Huaying was taken aback.
Pubu said, "The young master said that this jade comb was the young lady's old possession. If it had fallen into other places, it would be difficult to find it again, so he took the liberty of buying it back. The young lady's Xiliang sword dance was superb, and the young master was fortunate enough to appreciate it, making his trip to Xizhou worthwhile. He presents this jade comb as a gift, and hopes that the young lady will accept it. The young master's birth mother was from Xiliang, and the young master said that when he returns from Xizhou, he would like to ask the young lady for guidance on Xiliang sword techniques. He hopes that the young lady will not hesitate to teach him."
Lu Huaying looked up in the direction Chai Yong had left. The jade comb in her hand was smooth and delicate, emitting a faint glow in the night.
The person has long since gone.
Ever since Pei Jingyao recognized her, she had been cold and wary. Pei Jingyao didn't understand her defensiveness, but Chai Yong saw through her situation. He seemed like a carefree and easygoing playboy, but he was surprisingly thoughtful. He sent a barbarian who wouldn't attract much attention, and fearing that she wouldn't accept the jade comb, he asked to learn swordsmanship.
She couldn't refuse this reason.
The jade comb was left to her by her mother. She was too young when her mother passed away and didn't remember anything except this little thing.
"I thank you in advance, Your Highness." Lu Huaying put away the jade comb. "When Your Highness returns, I will teach him swordsmanship."
Pubu breathed a sigh of relief and withdrew.
Lu Huaying turned and went back into the house.
Her whole body was stiff and aching, and there was no hot water to soothe her. Boiling hot water would waste both firewood and water, so she could only wipe herself down. She took out the fine bean powder that she had been grinding over the past few days, sifted it several times, and mixed it together.
The moon had already set in the west, and it was past midnight. Lu Huaying let out a long sigh, placed the prepared powder by her bedside, and went to sleep fully clothed.
I have to do manual labor tomorrow.
They've forgotten his background.
The young man straightened his back, slowly picked up the load, held it with one hand and gripped the rope tightly with the other to keep it steady and prevent it from swaying back and forth, and started walking.
The young man asked, his lips were also chapped, with streaks of blood in the cracks.
He actually picked sheep!
The carrying pole creaked under the weight, and the basket swayed gently with the young man's steps. She curled up in a ball and, without realizing it, fell asleep amidst the howling wind and sand.
Lu Huaying hummed in agreement.
Lu Huaying walked forward step by step in the howling wind. Sand and dust filled the air, and everything in front of her was a yellow haze. She could see nothing but sand. The sand hit her face, and even though she had several layers of face towels, it still hurt.
A bundle of hay on the roof was blown away by the wind, scattering everywhere, and the sound of a dog barking came from afar.
Lu Huaying couldn't help but feel a surge of joy.
Lu Huaying lay back down and went back to sleep.
The young man glanced at her silently for a few moments, picked up his luggage, but instead of walking away as Lu Huaying had expected, he stuffed the luggage into another basket, tied it up, emptied the basket, and looked up at Lu Huaying.
The young man shook his head.
A bleak west wind swept across the barren wasteland, filling the sky with dust and sand.
As the sandstorm subsided, a...
A slender figure carrying a load on a shoulder pole.
These days seem to have no end.
How could she, at such a young age, have believed it?
The young man glanced down at her, then pulled up a white cloth and gently covered her head: "Feifei, take a nap."
After saying that, she jumped twice heavily to prove that she was really heavy.
Even at fifteen, she was still a hundred pounds. How could he not be tired carrying all the luggage plus her?
His body swayed slightly, and the load lifted into the air.
“Feifei is very light and doesn’t sink.”
The next day, she took the box of fine powder to see the Registrar: "This is the noodle recipe I made for the Lady of the Magistrate."
She got up, glanced at Wang Yu sleeping soundly on the opposite bed, rubbed her slightly aching shoulders, and massaged her waist and legs. She thought of the slender figure in her dream, and drifted off into a daze for a while, a slight smile playing on her lips.
Once word gets out, Cheng Can, Zhou Wei, the Chief Secretary... the trouble will only increase.
After speaking, the young man paused.
Lu Huaying woke up with a start, her whole body aching.
"Put me down," she said, feeling a little guilty. "I'm not tired anymore."
The young man was silent for a moment, then put down his load and lifted the lid of a basket containing luggage.
The clerk remembered this incident and took the fine powder: "I have something to discuss with you. The Prince has instructed that you do not need to do hard labor today."
He added, tearing at the crack on his lips, drawing out blood.
The young man seemed not to hear her and stretched out his hand to her: "I've picked sheep before, Feifei, come on, I can carry you."
Fifteen-year-old Lu Huaying was speechless; her willfulness was like hot water poured on snow in front of the stubborn young man.
Lu Huaying's smile froze on her face beneath the veil.
She had no choice but to walk forward, bend down, and sit in the basket.
Fifteen-year-old Lu Huaying raised her head.
“Feifei”.
Lu Huaying glanced at the gravel under her feet, then looked up at the strangely shaped, solemn, and eerie wind-eroded hills by the roadside, which emitted strange, mournful sounds. She made up her mind, squeezed out a few tears, and said with a righteous expression, "My whole body aches, and I really can't walk anymore. I'm very grateful that you brought me here. You can go now and catch up with your teacher. You don't need to see me off anymore. Let my brother's men capture me and take me back to Chang'an!"
She didn't remember where she came from or why she was walking in the Gobi Desert. The world was vast and the west wind was blowing softly. She walked slower and slower, not knowing where she was going.
He spoke softly, his tone calm, yet with an undeniable stubbornness.
“When I was a child, I helped the temple farm. I learned to carry loads from experienced monks. I used a clever technique.” His voice was gentle and deep. “It wasn’t tiring at all.”
Lu Huaying looked away.
Are you tired from walking?
He might have actually picked sheep before; he walked very steadily.
"So you can lie too."
Lu Huaying huddled in the basket, her eyes darting around, and she could clearly see beads of sweat dripping from the young man's chin into the sand.
He turned around and saw a young man, tall and thin, wearing an old jacket. His eyebrows were covered in sand, and his face was chapped from the wind, with marks like those carved by a knife or axe. Blood seeped from the cracks, which were dried by the wind and stuck to his face. His face was more frightening than a wind-eroded rock.
She cannot fall.
She stood still: "I'm very heavy, heavier than a sheep!"
“Feifei, sit on it, I’ll carry you.”
A cold wind swept past the window, blowing into the earthen house, slipping through the curtains, and into Lu Huaying's dream.
A deep, gentle voice came through the sandstorm, pulling Lu Huaying back from her daze.
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