Chapter Thirty-Seven: A Child's Innocence Reveals His Ambition
"Didn't you read the letter of recommendation that Zhao Qing sent to the lord?" Yang Xiao joked with a smile. "Tongxi is a talent that I snatched from He Yuan."
Upon hearing this, Cen Xun chuckled and shook her head. "What kind of talk is this? It's because your name is renowned far and wide that I'm willing to come and serve you." She looked at the dashing young general before her, and a smile involuntarily bloomed on her face. "I am Cen Xun, Cen Tongxi, and I greet General Yude."
“This…” Zhongli Shuo was slightly stunned and clasped his hands in greeting to Cen Xun. “I am Zhongli Shuo. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
He paused, unsure what to say next, then turned to Yang Xiao and Bai Ming reproachfully, "Lingyu, Zhaoqing, you two are really something! A young lady from a prestigious family in Jiangnan came to seek refuge without even telling me beforehand. Now I'm standing empty-handed in front of her, without bringing any gifts..."
"Zhong Lishuo," Yang Xiao interrupted him in disbelief, then laughed angrily, "Are you even human? When I came to you for help, you attacked me with a knife. Now that Tongxi is here, you want to prepare a gift for our first meeting?"
Having said that, she gripped the silver spear in her hand and held it horizontally at her side.
Seeing that things were not going well, Zhongli Shuo quickly smiled and dodged, then turned and held the knife behind his back, pulled the reins and ran away.
"Don't run!" Yang Xiao's anger, which had already subsided, dissipated completely. She arrogantly twirled the gun in her hand and spurred her horse forward to chase after them.
In an instant, two shadows, one black and one red, rushed straight into the maple forest. Two jubilant warhorses trampled the fallen leaves on the ground and stirred up a cool breeze that whistled softly beside them.
Cen Xun gently held the reins, staring at the scene before him in shock for a long while, then turned back and smiled at Bai Ming and Qi Kun beside him.
Qi Kun shrugged helplessly, "You're new here, you'll get used to it."
“Yu De is lively and loves to joke, and Ling Yu is just as sharp-tongued,” Bai Ming said with a smile as he watched their backs. “Whenever the two of them meet, this tent is destined to be noisy and chaotic.”
Cen Xun smiled and nodded, "I wonder what kind of family Lingyu will marry into after all this commotion."
Bai Ming was stunned for a moment upon hearing this, his cheeks inexplicably flushed. "Such a vigorous and accomplished female general, who in this world could be a match for her?"
“When Lingyu was living in Jiangnan, I heard a lot about your great name, General,” Cen Xun said with a light smile as he looked at Bai Ming. “She was feeling down because she was far from Chang’an, but with the gun you gave her, she seemed to care about nothing anymore and was still practicing energetically in the courtyard.”
Bai Ming sighed softly, gripping the gun in his hand tighter. He then looked up into the woods and saw the sound of horses' hooves. Chi Lian, carrying Yang Xiaotong, shot out of the woods like a rocket.
"Why aren't you chasing anymore?" Cen Xun asked with a smile as he saw Yang Xiao riding towards them.
Yang Xiao reined in her horse, her eyes filled with sunlight and crimson maple leaves. She raised her hand to wipe the sweat from her brow, waved her hand, and said, "I'm not chasing him anymore, he's too childish."
The others couldn't help but laugh upon hearing this. Qi Kun smiled and tapped her, "You talk as if you're not naive."
Before long, Zhongli Shuo galloped out of the forest. He laughed and reined in his horse, sheathing his long sword behind him. "Lingyu, really, why did you stop chasing after just a couple of moves?"
Yang Xiao raised her hand and patted Cen Xun's shoulder, "Miss Cen has traveled thousands of miles north to join us. What would it look like if the two of us were to fight each other?"
“That’s true,” Zhong Lishuo looked at Cen Xun apologetically, then clasped his hands in apology and said, “Immortal…Miss, I apologize for my rudeness.”
Cen Xun smiled and waved her hand, saying, "It's alright, it's alright. The autumn air is getting cooler, and this forest is spacious. Isn't it a perfect time for a leisurely stroll?" She held the reins and smiled at Zhong Lishuo, "To witness two ever-victorious generals competing here is truly a fortunate event."
Ever since Zhong Lishuo saw Cen Xun, his heart had inexplicably stirred. A competitive spirit, which he didn't know where it came from, suddenly ignited, urging him to show his best side to Cen Xun.
“Since Miss Cen has put it that way,” Zhong Lishuo said, suddenly becoming interested. He pulled on the reins and trotted lightly in front of them. “Lingyu, let’s have a match, just to settle the score for our first meeting. What do you say?”
“Sure,” Yang Xiaochao nodded at Zhong Lishuo, “What are we competing in?”
“Since we’re guests from afar, let’s not be hostile,” Zhong Lishuo said, pulling out a few darts from somewhere and waving them at Yang Xiao. “How about we try these?”
Bai Ming frowned and scolded Zhong Lishuo for his throwing darts, "Yu De, that's not fair. I've never seen Ling Yu practice throwing darts. Aren't you using your strength to fight against someone else's weakness?"
Yang Xiao glanced at Bai Ming, then closed her eyes and waved her hand. "What's wrong with mere darts?" She nodded at Zhong Lishuo. "I accept this challenge!"
"Oh?" Zhong Lishuo immediately became interested. "When did you take up darts?"
Yang Xiao raised her head with feigned smugness, "You can learn it just by watching others practice, why would you need to learn it specifically?"
Qi Kun, holding the reins, took a step back and watched the two eager-to-try figures with great interest.
“You,” he looked at Yang Xiao, shook his head with a smile, “you should take it easy, look how capable you are.”
Yang Xiao, holding the reins, smiled and looked back at Qi Kun, "Master, don't worry, I know what I'm doing." Then she looked at the eager Zhongli Shuo, "Tell me, Yude, how do you want the competition to proceed?"
"So confident, huh?" Zhong Lishuo looked at Yang Xiao's determined expression with slight surprise, then, as if his fighting spirit had been ignited, he threw three darts at her. "Come on, catch. Later, Zhao Qing will shoot down the leaves, and we'll each throw three darts. Whoever hits the most leaves and the ones that penetrate deep into the wood wins, how about it?"
Yang Xiao twirled the dart in her hand, looked up and nodded, "No problem," then smiled at Bai Ming, "Then I'll have to trouble you."
Bai Ming nodded to the two of them. "Okay," he said, nocking an arrow and aiming at the thickest tree in the distance. "Ready?"
Zhong Lishuo spurred his horse forward, raised his hand to point at the tree in front of him, and Yang Xiao also put away her joking expression, held her breath, and held her dart, waiting quietly.
The arrow flew with a crisp "snap" as it left the bowstring, and the next moment, a flurry of red leaves fell from the tree, turning half the sky crimson.
Zhong Lishuo stood sideways on the saddle bridge, suddenly raised his hand, and the dart flew straight forward like the arrow from before. Everyone held their breath and looked forward, only to see the dart pierce through a red leaf and stick firmly into the tree trunk.
Just as everyone was marveling, two more darts were also launched. The movements were fluid and without any hesitation. In an instant, three darts and three red leaves were embedded straight into the tree trunk.
Upon seeing this, Cen Xun couldn't help but gasp, looking at Zhong Lishuo with eyes full of approval.
Zhong Lishuo also excitedly turned his horse around, glanced back at Cen Xun with a smile, and then looked with interest at Yang Xiao, who was all ready to go.
All the expectant eyes of the crowd fell on Yang Xiao. For a moment, all they could hear was the rustling of the wind and the soft sound of falling leaves.
Yang Xiaowei raised her upper arm, closed her eyes and listened intently. After a long silence, she suddenly opened her eyes, flicked her wrist, and the dart flew out of her hand. It whistled through the air, pierced straight through the red leaves, and was firmly nailed to the tree trunk.
Everyone around was stunned. Zhong Lishuo stared in disbelief at the dart embedded in the tree trunk, then turned to Yang Xiao in astonishment, "Lingyu, you..."
Yang Xiao also stopped, looking at the dart she had thrown, and couldn't help but laugh and sigh. She looked at the tree trunk, picked up another dart, and suddenly flicked her wrist and threw it out.
The three darts were thrown one after another, and each time they struck the tree, they caused the red leaves to flutter and fall down.
"Good!" Bai Ming exclaimed repeatedly as he watched Yang Xiao finish her move.
Zhong Lishuo looked at Yang Xiao in disbelief. "Didn't you say you'd never practiced darts? How come you're so good at it?" With that, he spurred his horse forward and trotted to the tree trunk.
The group rode their horses forward. Zhong Lishuo's three darts were lined up in a row, each with two or three leaves attached, neatly stuck to the tree. Yang Xiao's three darts, on the other hand, were arranged in a triangle, firmly embedded in the tree trunk, impossible to remove.
Zhong Lishuo looked at the three bare darts that Yang Xiao had nailed to the tree, and couldn't help but turn around and smile at her. "Lingyu," he pointed to the darts on the tree, "where are your leaves?"
Yang Xiaoli stood there, chuckling and scratching her head. "Just tell me, how deeply did you penetrate the wood?"
“Deep.” Zhong Lishuo nodded noncommittally, raised his hand to touch the dart that was almost completely embedded in the tree, and then looked back at Yang Xiao, “By the way, I didn’t see you use much force, how did it get stuck like this?”
Yang Xiao crossed his arms, looked up, and laughed, "It's just a clever trick. You used its pointed end to pierce the tree trunk, so how could it not go deep?"
Zhong Lishuo nodded upon hearing this, thoughtfully pulled out his dart, gestured towards the tree, and then smiled at Yang Xiao as if he had just thought of something. "But I have more leaves than you," he said, turning to Cen Xun and Qi Kun. "Strategist, Miss Cen, in your opinion, who wins this round?"
Cen Xun smiled as he looked at Zhong Lishuo and Yang Xiao, "General, you and Lingyu each have your strengths. It's really hard to say who will win."
"The rule that Yude just mentioned means that the number of leaves is compared first, and then the depth of penetration into the wood is considered." Qi Kun smiled and pointed at Yang Xiao. "Looking at it this way, Lingyu, you are slightly inferior."
"Great!" Zhongli Shuo smiled excitedly at everyone, "I won this round."
Seeing Zhong Lishuo's delighted expression, Yang Xiao chuckled and waved her hand, "I've only just started playing, so it's normal for me to lose to you, isn't it?"
“I must say,” Zhong Lishuo smiled approvingly at Yang Xiao, “that you did such a good job on your first attempt. Even if you are slightly inferior, I am still completely convinced of your skill.”
Bai Ming had long since put away his bow and arrows, and was smiling as he watched the group of people playing around nearby, when suddenly his attention was drawn to something on the ground.
"Yude, wait, don't get too excited." Bai Ming raised his hand to interrupt Zhong Lishuo, and then gently tugged at the reins, causing the white horse to trot towards the tree trunk. Bai Ming turned sideways, leaned down and reached his hand to the ground, then turned back and sat on the saddle, his movements smooth and nimble.
He turned his horse around and walked towards the group with a light laugh.
Yang Xiao watched Bai Ming's retreating figure, smiling approvingly at him, "So capable? What did you go to pick up?"
Bai Ming ran back to the group and waved the red leaf he was holding at them. "Look, it seems the outcome of this competition is still uncertain."
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