Chapter 111 The Battle for Supremacy Ends in the Transformation of the Scales
Before long, a pawn brought out a sandalwood chessboard and placed it in front of the two.
Yang Xiao looked at the chessboard in front of her, then turned back to the unfinished game of chess that had been placed on the small table earlier, puzzled. "Why not use the ready-made pieces?"
“That game of chess,” Xiao Yan followed Yang Xiao’s gaze to the white jade chessboard, “will be of great use in the future.”
"Really?" Yang Xiao looked at Xiao Yan with great interest. "Who is their opponent?"
“Both sides are me,” Xiao Yan said, resting his chin on his hand. After a moment of contemplation, he smiled and said, “Or perhaps, on one side are me, Lu Qi, and Yang Song, and on the other side are Zhong Li’an and the others… and you.”
Yang Xiao was taken aback by what she heard. She looked back at the unfinished game of chess, closed her eyes, and sighed with a smile.
"Come on," Xiao Yan tilted his head towards Yang Xiao and pushed the red pieces in front of her, "Let me see how skillful you are in manipulating your pieces on the chessboard."
The military's leisurely pastimes were thus presented to her. Xiao Yan probably never imagined that this seasoned general would be utterly outmatched by her soldiers when it came to playing games.
However, she had an excuse: she placed her pieces quickly enough and didn't want to think about the formation in the game.
Since we're all on the same side anyway, so what if we lose?
Looking at the chess set up in front of her, Yang Xiao chuckled and sighed, "Then I'll have to trouble you to play a game with a chess novice like me."
After a soft laugh, the room fell silent, with only the occasional "clack-clack" of pieces being placed.
There seemed to be a long sigh from Yang Xiao, who appeared helpless.
"Checkmate." Black's cannon landed on Red's flying advisor, and Red's main force was completely restrained by Black. Even Red's chariot, which had broken into the Chu River and Han border, was trapped by a horse and a bishop and could not move.
Even though this was the first time she had ever played chess with complete focus.
Looking at the fierce battle on the chessboard, Yang Xiao couldn't help but shake her head with a smile, "I concede."
Xiao Yan also breathed a sigh of relief. "I have to say, it's really hard to beat you in a game." She leaned over the chessboard and said, "The troops are coordinated and deployed in a swift and powerful manner. Tsk, you truly deserve to be called a world-renowned military talent."
"Stop teasing me," Yang Xiao said with a wry smile. "I wouldn't believe you if you said you didn't know how to do Tai Chi."
"Oh?" Xiao Yan looked at Yang Xiao with interest. "What do you mean?"
Yang Xiao pointed at the "elephant" and "horse" around Xiao Yan and said, "No matter how strong my attack is, it can't withstand your maneuvering and neutralizing force. Your layout is like interwoven silk threads. On the surface, it looks loose, but in reality, if I move, I will be firmly bound by you and unable to move."
She pointed to her own predicament, looking at Xiao Yan with a smile, "Unable to advance and defeat the enemy, unable to retreat and defend, even the fiercest offensive will be instantly neutralized by you, right?"
“There are very few people in the world who can see through my chess game,” Xiao Yan nodded and looked at Yang Xiao approvingly. “I knew I hadn’t misjudged you. Before you recover from your injury, come and play chess with me more often.”
Yang Xiao nodded and pondered for a moment, "I heard that Xue Chang is going to send troops to invade, and you still have the leisure to play chess?"
Xiao Yan looked at Yang Xiao, smiled and shook his head, "All formations are interconnected, so it doesn't matter where you practice them. As for Xue Chang, just leave this troublesome matter to Xiao Yun, so he won't cause trouble for no reason."
"Aren't you comfortable sending me?" Yang Xiao looked up at Xiao Yan and asked with a frown.
"I'm not at ease."
Xiao Yan took a sip of hot tea, looked up at Yang Xiao who was frowning, and said, "Your injuries haven't fully healed, how can I feel at ease letting you go to the battlefield?"
She smiled and patted Yang Xiao's shoulder, then stood up and said, "I won't keep you here today. When we take our seats tomorrow, you can offer some advice on Xue Chang's matter."
Yang Xiao secretly breathed a sigh of relief, nodded, and clasped her hands in a fist salute to Xiao Yan, "Alright, farewell."
Watching Yang Xiao leave the main hall, Xiao Yan also put down the chess piece in his hand, turned to look at Lu Qi who had been waiting for a long time, and teased, "You've been here for so long, why doesn't she pay any attention to you at all?"
Lu Qi, holding a folding fan, chuckled, "Perhaps she's still resentful that our formation was too tricky, causing her to suffer three consecutive defeats." He tucked the fan behind his back. "Or perhaps, you truly trust her completely?"
Xiao Yan smiled and sat back down, glancing sideways at Lu Qi. "What do you think?"
"Should we send someone to keep an eye on it?"
"What do you think?" Xiao Yan's teasing tone carried a hint of displeasure. "If even you don't know what I'm thinking, then there's really no one in this vast palace who understands me."
“That’s not quite right,” Lu Qi said, waving his fan as he took a few steps toward the direction Yang Xiao had gone. “She will understand.”
"Oh?" Xiao Yan looked at Lu Qi with interest. "You trust her that much?"
Upon hearing this, Lu Qi turned to look at Xiao Yan and said, "I believe her even more than you do."
"Never mind," Xiao Yan sighed with a smile, stood up and walked to Lu Qi's side, looking out at the road bathed in the glow of the sunset. "Let's wait and see how much trouble she can stir up in this situation."
-
After returning to his bedchamber with the eunuchs from Xiao Yan's faction, Yang Xiao hurriedly took a sip of tea, then excused himself from feeling unwell and dismissed the servants. He sat down at the table, where a very thin silk cloth was laid out.
"Zhu Yang Palace..." Yang Xiao murmured, twirling a brush with freshly applied ink, her chin resting on her hand.
She closed her eyes and recalled for a while, then picked up her brush and sketched on the silk cloth, accurately depicting the path she had walked that morning.
“Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches, Nine Palaces and Eight Gates…” Yang Xiao frowned as she looked at the “Treatise on Dunjia” that Cen Xun had given her earlier, and couldn’t help but raise her hand to rub her hair. “It’s so complicated, how can I see through this formation in a short time?” She sighed and leaned her head wearily against the wall behind her. “Every formation has a core, there’s no such thing as an absolutely impenetrable wall.”
She shook her head, sat up, and leaned on the table, looking at the "Treatise on Dunjia." She compared it to the topographical map she had just drawn, circling her fingers on the map, trying to extract the threads of circulation.
Just as she was slumped over the table, at her wits' end, footsteps suddenly sounded at the door. She propped her head up and glanced sharply towards the door. The next second, the flying needle that had been flicked to her fingertips suddenly flew out and struck the person's hair ribbon.
While the man was distracted, Yang Xiao had already folded the drawings and put them in her clothes. She also pulled out the half-finished calligraphy from under the table and pressed it onto the table with a paperweight.
"If you don't knock next time, I won't be giving you the hairband anymore." Yang Xiao prepared her brush in the inkstone, silently studying the old calligraphy of the sages, and said coldly without turning her head.
Lu Qi smiled and removed the needle from his head. "With your skills, it's a pity you're not an assassin."
"Okay, I'll take care of you tonight."
"To be honest, I really can't beat you now." Lu Qi sat down at Yang Xiao's table. "Why did you suddenly decide to practice calligraphy?"
“Cultivating one’s character,” Yang Xiao said, deliberately drawing out her words as she put down her pen. She turned to look at Lu Qi, “What, after leaving home and hooking up with Xiao Yan, you’ve ruined your martial arts skills?”
Upon hearing this, Lu Qi smiled and shook his head, "Don't tease me, or I'll tell on you when we get back."
Yang Xiao rolled her eyes at him, picked up the now-cold tea and took a sip. "Do you think you can even get back into the house?"
“I don’t think I did anything wrong,” Lu Qi smiled. “The tea’s gone cold. Drink less cold water in autumn.”
Yang Xiao put down her teacup and waved her hand. "There's no right or wrong in this kind of thing. They're just serving their own interests." She handed Lu Qi a cup of hot tea and said, "Whether it's Xiao Yan or Zhong Li'an, aren't they both just trying to unify the world and bring peace to the people?"
Lu Qi took the hot tea, smiled and nodded, "That makes sense, but it's not entirely correct."
"Whether it's right or wrong, in my opinion, if I can protect the people from suffering, then I've lived up to the skills I've honed over the years. No matter how I quell this endless struggle, my life hasn't been in vain."
Lu Qi listened attentively, and upon hearing this, he sighed solemnly, "Everyone wants to avoid war, yet war is inevitable. How difficult it is to achieve peace without fighting! How long can stability achieved through peace talks last?"
"You see things very clearly," Yang Xiao laughed self-deprecatingly. "The words of petty people should not be entirely believed." She looked up at Lu Qi and teased, "When did He Yuan join you? And why did he send someone to deliver the unique medicinal herbs of Jiangnan to Cheng Feng?"
“Cheng Feng?” Lu Qi frowned upon hearing this. “Didn’t you kill that man? Cheng Feng was devoted to Xiao Yun, fearing he wouldn’t become emperor, and that’s why he often argued with your brother…” He stroked his chin thoughtfully. “His Highness and I only learned about He Yuan’s secret dealings with Xiao Yun after you captured Lujiang. As for this poison…” He looked up at Yang Xiao solemnly, “We have never heard of it.”
Mentioning Lujiang County, Yang Xiao's mind was struck as if by lightning. The scene of Zhong Lishuo's sacrifice, Bai Ming's injuries, Cen Xun starting over with tears in his eyes, the crimson before the city gate... a flood of memories rushed into Yang Xiao's mind, and her heart was filled with bitterness. The tears that welled up were choked in her throat, and she forced them back.
She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and said, "Don't mention Lujiang County here."
Lu Qi was taken aback, but then seemed to understand something and nodded slightly.
“Arrow poison tree, have you heard of it?” Yang Xiao calmed down and looked up at Lu Qi. “Since Cheng Feng has it, Xiao Yun must have it too. This thing is deadly when it comes into contact with blood, so be careful.”
Upon hearing this, Lu Qi nodded thoughtfully.
"I'm telling you about the poison from the bottom of my heart, so don't let it become a reason for Xiao Yun to kill me," Yang Xiao said with a smile, looking at Lu Qi teasingly.
"Don't you understand my character?" Lu Qi smiled and looked back at Yang Xiao.
"Using someone else to do your dirty work isn't uncommon." Yang Xiao's lips were still curved in a smile, but there was no hint of amusement in her eyes. "After all... I've been someone's tool before."
Lu Qi's eyes flickered, and he immediately understood what Yang Xiao meant. "Don't worry, Lingyu, she is truly sincere towards you."
Yang Xiao smiled with relief, "I hope so. By the way..." She looked up at Lu Qi, "Why did you come here?"
"Let me see if Xiao Yun is trying to trip you up," he chuckled. "Who knew someone would take my good intentions for granted, come up to me with a needle, and keep insulting me."
Yang Xiao leaned back against the wall, not responding to Lu Qi's words. "These two siblings are really something. One is afraid I'll die, and the other can't wait for me to die. The human nature of the people here is more complicated than that of the Chang'an Array."
Lu Qi smiled upon hearing this, "The Chang'an Formation can only temporarily protect the people in the city in the face of great disaster, so how can it be considered complicated?"
Yang Xiao laughed a few times after hearing this, "You've changed the entire palace so much that there are no straight roads anymore, and you still say it's not complicated? Why don't you take another step and turn the whole of Chang'an into a circle?"
“How can that be? Chang’an has always been square-shaped. How can we change it just like that?” Lu Qi chuckled and patted Yang Xiao’s shoulder. “The square formation is enough for Chang’an.” With that, he got up and walked outside. “Seeing that Xiao Yun hasn’t planted anyone here, I’m relieved. I’m not staying any longer. Staying here too long will only get me scolded.”
Yang Xiao ignored him, pondering Lu Qi's words. The palace was round, the city was square, and the entire Chang'an Formation was a dynamic formation, capable of responding and shifting within it, allowing thousands of troops to be annihilated within the city. Square on the outside, round on the inside, heaven is round and earth is square... Yang Xiao looked up at the flickering candlelight on the ceiling, leaning against the wall in deep thought.
Could it be that this palace is the key to the formation? Like a person's dantian, it spreads its energy throughout the entire Chang'an formation.
Yang Xiao hurriedly flipped through the book Cen Xun had given her, then looked up at the darkening sky outside the window. "This formation must be attacked from within..." Yang Xiao murmured to herself, drawing circles between the three halls on the map with her finger.
“If we want to attack from the outside…” Yang Xiao gestured to the straight road she had walked that day, “we must seal off all the air vents, and then launch a coordinated attack on their hearts…”
Where is the air vent? Is it on the straight road? Yang Xiao leaned against the wall in frustration, covered his face with the military book, and let out a long sigh.
Forget it, let's finish the drawing first, and let Cen Xun worry about the rest. With that thought, Yang Xiao sat up and caught the book that had slipped off her face.
I don't know how many more days it will take to complete the journey through the Chang'an Formation.
Yang Xiao put away the military treatise, hid the blueprints in a hidden pocket in his belt, and with a flick of his wrist, the candle by the bedside shook a few times, leaving behind a wisp of smoke.
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