Chapter 29 The Calamity of Shangxu: Drawing the Bow
You should be able to live and crawl out.
After Tang Yu finished speaking, the reaction in the room was not enthusiastic, and everyone looked at him with suspicion.
Clearly, no one believed that this thin-armed and slender young man could even struggle to lift a bow, let alone draw it, a bow that even a military officer could barely lift.
Tang Yu didn't care about their opinions. He walked straight to the platform, cupped his hands in greeting, and said, "Your Majesty, may I give it a try?"
Emperor Wen of Chu's eyes flickered slightly. He scrutinized the man for a moment and asked, "What is your position?"
Clearly, he did not recognize the person and had some doubts.
Before Tang Yu could speak, Xie Xingzheng stepped forward, knelt on one knee, and said in a deep voice, "Your Majesty, this man is the itinerant doctor who took down the imperial edict, Su Yutang."
Upon hearing this, Emperor Wen of Chu turned his gaze back to the prince.
His back was straight, his demeanor elegant, and a calm smile graced his face. A sense of satisfaction and peace of mind welled up within me.
Having suffered an initial defeat, even if Xie Xingzheng manages to turn the tide, as the envoy from the Southern Frontier said, Xie Xingzheng and his Xie family are renowned for their prestige, and a draw is insufficient to demonstrate the might and courage of the people of Great Xia.
If this person truly possesses some ability, then Southern Xinjiang has truly slapped itself in the face this time...
Emperor Wen of Chu immediately declared loudly, "Since even the physicians of my Great Xia have such courage, why not allow me to give you a try!"
"Thank you, Your Majesty!" Tang Yu bowed, then turned around and changed the subject, "However, this long-sleeved robe is inconvenient for movement. I wonder if the envoy from the Southern Frontier will mind? Shall I change my clothes first?"
The envoy from the southern border scoffed disdainfully, his eyes filled with arrogance and contempt: "Hmph, do you think you can draw the Heavenly Bow just by changing your clothes? I'll let you change your clothes a hundred times from head to toe, so what?"
Tang Yu just smiled and turned to Xie Xingzheng: "Then I'll trouble General Xie to find me a suitable set of clothes."
Xie Xingzheng's fingertips twitched slightly, and it was unclear what she was thinking.
He had tried that bow; it was indeed as heavy as a thousand stones. Unless one possessed superhuman strength or profound internal energy, no ordinary warrior could possibly draw it.
However, since the emperor had already given his permission, he could only obey and led Tang Yu to a side hall, ordering someone to find a set of military uniform.
While he went to get his clothes, Tang Yu leaned close to his ear and whispered a few words.
Xie Xingzheng frowned slightly, gave her a deep look, but still nodded in agreement.
Before long, his confidants found some small pulleys, steel wires and copper rings.
"What do you need these for?" Xie Xingzheng couldn't help but ask in a low voice.
Tang Yu crouched down and casually said, "General Xie must have already guessed that I am a member of the Tang Clan, right?"
Xie Xingzheng was slightly taken aback. He hadn't expected her to know that she had been exposed, nor had he expected her to bring it up at this moment.
"Now that you've guessed it, what's General Xie's mindset? Why didn't you expose me? And why didn't you capture me directly?" Tang Yu smiled, as if chatting casually, but her hands kept moving as she rapidly assembled the items.
Xie Xingzheng's gaze darkened slightly: "A Yue and Fang Liang truly regard you as a friend, and I haven't yet figured out the reason for your theft, so I don't want to ruin your friendship."
Tang Yu was taken aback for a moment, then smiled and said, "You're really a very nice person."
This was clearly a compliment, but when she said it, it carried a hint of sarcasm.
She had just thought about apologizing to him, but she still habitually snapped at him. Tang Yu was secretly annoyed and was about to say something to make amends when there was a rapid knocking on the door.
A young eunuch's voice came from outside the door: "General, young master, have you changed your clothes?"
Meanwhile, Tang Yu had already assembled those seemingly unrelated things into a simple and effortless device. She stretched out her arm to measure the length, nodded in satisfaction, then took off her outer clothes, put the device on, and changed into her dark-colored bodysuit.
The clothes fit her perfectly, and instantly she exuded a more dashing and heroic air. Moreover, no one could tell that a mysterious mechanism was hidden beneath the clothing.
She looked up and met Xie Xingzheng's gaze. They were speechless for a moment, but both of them were determined to win.
As for apologizing to him... Tang Yu thought it wouldn't be too late to talk about it tomorrow.
A moment later, Tang Yu returned to the front of the hall, calmly brushing away the iron filings in his palm, his expression composed.
The envoy looked at him, whose physique appeared even thinner due to his tight-fitting clothes, and his expression became even more arrogant. He coldly said, "It is an honor for you to be able to compete with our warriors from the Southern Frontier, even if you lose."
Tang Yu smiled calmly and walked leisurely to the Heavenly Bow. He bent down and grasped the bow, circulating his inner strength in his palm. His little finger pulled the steel wire in his sleeve, subtly guiding it, and the bow slowly rose up.
However, the bow was indeed extremely heavy, and it was not easy to lift it completely. So she braced one end of the bow against the blue bricks in front of the hall for leverage to stabilize it. The whole movement was not easy at all.
Upon seeing this, the envoy from the southern border laughed and said sarcastically, "If you don't have the strength, don't force yourself, lest you make a fool of yourself and humiliate yourself."
Tang Yu's lips curved into a deeper smile, her eyes sparkling with an innocent look. She asked, "Isn't the competition about whether you can draw the bow? What does it matter whether you can lift it steadily?"
These words, though spoken lightly, were utterly laughable in the eyes of the envoy from the southern border.
"The force required to draw this bow is more than twice that of lifting it. You can barely lift it, yet you dare to boast about drawing the Heavenly Bow?" He sneered without any politeness, mocking, "Aren't you Great Xia people all just a bunch of boastful bastards?"
These words were extremely blunt and offensive. Upon hearing them, the faces of the Great Xia officials in the hall all changed, their anger surging, yet none of them could refute them on the spot.
The look in his eyes as he gazed at Tang Yu was complex.
They naturally hoped he could prove those who looked down on the Great Xia wrong, but he couldn't even lift a bow, leaving them disappointed and unable to bear watching any longer. They only hoped that a brave young man from Great Xia would one day turn the tide.
"Oh?" Tang Yu didn't care, and her smile widened.
The next instant, her smile vanished, her expression turning grim. Her left hand gripped the bow tightly, her body leaning back, while her right hand naturally rested on the bowstring.
Unseen by anyone, she quietly fastened the copper ring, connected to the steel cable in her sleeve, onto the bowstring. The mechanism clicked very softly, the steel cable pulled the pulley, and then a low bow note was heard.
That thousand-stone "heavenly bow" was actually slowly drawn in her hands!
It wasn't until the bowstring was fully drawn, like a full moon, that everyone realized what was happening.
Their eyes widened, and at first there was a deathly silence. A moment later, a deafening roar of exclamations erupted!
"It's really opened!"
The officials of the Great Xia Dynasty cheered in unison, and even the palace maids and eunuchs around them couldn't help but cheer softly. But the envoys from the Southern Frontier stared at the scene before them with wide eyes, their faces filled with disbelief.
Tang Yu released his grip, and the bowed body slammed heavily onto the ground with a loud "bang," cracking even the blue bricks, demonstrating its immense weight.
The envoy from the southern border staggered back a step, his face ashen, muttering, "Impossible...this is impossible!"
No matter how unwilling he was to believe it, he had seen it with his own eyes: this frail traveling doctor effortlessly drew the precious bow that everyone was so proud of, in front of a hall full of generals and ministers, the delegation from the southern border, and even nameless palace maids!
Emperor Wen of Chu's eyes flashed with shock, but he also breathed a sigh of relief and couldn't help but exclaim with delight, "Excellent!"
The envoy, however, remained shocked and furious, refusing to believe it, and cried out in a shrill voice, "Impossible! He must have tricked us!"
Having said that, he was about to step forward to search Tang Yu. Xie Xingzheng, however, was one step ahead, his unsheathed sword blocking his path, his eyes cold, and he abruptly stopped him in his tracks.
Tang Yu wasn't annoyed. She spread her arms wide to show everyone and said loudly, "I have nothing in my hands. A bet is a bet, surely the envoy isn't trying to renege?"
The crowd snapped out of their euphoria and immediately echoed the sentiments, expressing their dissatisfaction with the Southern Xinjiang people's suspicions.
The envoy from the southern border turned ashen-purple. He had intended to use the Heavenly Bow to humiliate the Great Xia, but he had ended up losing both face and resources. Now that he had completely lost face, if he continued his unreasonable behavior, it would be difficult to salvage the situation.
He angrily flung his sleeves and gritted his teeth in defeat: "This time, I, the Southern Frontier, have lost!"
Although Emperor Wen of Chu was delighted, he still had to maintain the demeanor of a great power in this occasion. He laughed heartily and raised his cup, "Although my Great Xia has hidden talents, the warriors of the Southern Frontier are not weak either, only slightly inferior. They are all the best among the younger generation of my Central Plains and Southern Frontier. Today, I have had a good time."
The courtiers echoed their agreement, raising their cups in agreement, creating a joyous and jubilant atmosphere in the hall, a stark contrast to the humiliation and embarrassment on the faces of the people from the southern border.
Xie Xingzheng retreated to the side of the hall with his sword, but his gaze unconsciously fell on Tang Yu, who had just returned to the table. A barely perceptible smile and undisguised admiration flashed in his eyes.
Tang Yu caught this out of the corner of her eye, and a smug look appeared on her lips.
He has good taste!
*
Until the banquet ended, the people from southern Xinjiang did not cause any further trouble.
Emperor Wen of Chu was in high spirits and naturally wanted to reward Tang Yu. However, the envoys from the southern border were to return the next day, and to save face for them, the matter had to be discussed later. He promised that he would summon Tang Yu to the palace in a few days, not only to reward him but also to have Xie Xingzheng accompany him on a proper tour of the palace.
After the banquet, Xie Xingzheng was kept in the palace by Emperor Wen of Chu for a discussion, while Tang Yu returned to the escort agency first.
She had been extremely tired from traveling all day, and hadn't slept a wink last night. Tang Yu returned to her room, changed her clothes, and fell into a deep sleep the moment her head hit the pillow.
But as the night deepened and all was quiet, she suddenly opened her eyes, a cold glint flashing in them.
What a joke, how could she sleep peacefully?
The utterly hypocritical smile of Yueying was still vivid in her mind, and the bloody afterimage of the Beauty Ruins was still clear in her memory. Thinking of those women forced to fight wild beasts, and the heinous acts that trampled on life, her anger was hard to quell, so how could she just give up?
Since the proper channels are failing, let's try a different approach. They need evidence to arrest her? Then let's sneak into her boudoir tonight and find the evidence they need!
Tang Yu changed into a night outfit, tied up her black hair, and nimbly climbed over the wall of the escort agency.
The night was deep and the streets were deserted. Occasionally, the sound of a night watchman striking his clapper could be heard. Tang Yu slipped into the shadows and soon arrived in front of Yaohua Pavilion.
Although the lights were still on inside the pavilion, and laughter and cheerful voices could be heard occasionally, it was already deserted, as many of the girls had returned to their rooms to rest. Only a few guests remained, drunk and lying on the couches, with the sounds of string and wind instruments playing intermittently.
As Tang Yu held her breath, her figure moved like a ghost, skimming the shadows under the eaves. With a light leap, she scaled the second-floor veranda. After confirming that no one was around, she lightly touched the ground with her toes and swiftly slipped into the house.
However, the room was empty, and Yueying was nowhere to be seen.
Tang Yu snorted: Who knows if she went to that beauty market to do evil again.
Seeing this as a golden opportunity, she calmed herself and carefully searched the area. After a moment, sure enough, deep inside the wardrobe, she found a garment with a tear in the left sleeve. The tear was exactly the same as the one from the previous night.
Tang Yu was overjoyed; this woman was indeed the one behind the Beauty Ruins!
With this evidence, no matter how much the envoys from the southern border tried to protect her, they couldn't save her!
But at that moment, a palm strike came from behind, and she suddenly felt a sharp pain in the back of her neck!
With a heavy blow, she groaned, her vision went black, and she collapsed to the ground, losing consciousness.
Behind him was none other than the blind old man from the Beauty Ruins.
His cloudy, lifeless eyes stared coldly at Tang Yu for a long time before he reached out and carried her to the bed.
After a long while, he tremblingly reached out and slowly rolled up Tang Yu's left sleeve. His old, rough fingertips carefully explored her fair upper arm, as if searching for something.
Just then, the door creaked open.
The old man paused, immediately stopped, turned around, and bowed respectfully, saying, "Lord of the Ruins."
Yueying slowly walked inside.
She glanced at the conscious person on the bed, a smile playing on her lips, but her tone was as cold as a knife: "What? Feeling to see if she has crescent moons?"
“This old servant…can’t touch it.” The old man’s voice was low, tinged with disappointment, before he hurriedly explained, “But those poisonous snakes dare not approach. Perhaps it’s her blood, and she was from back then…”
"That's enough," Yueying interrupted him.
He immediately raised his hand, his sharp nails slicing heavily across Tang Yu's exposed, fair arm. Finally, he stopped at a very shallow crescent-shaped mark, then with a sudden, forceful stroke, left a deep, bloody nail mark on her skin.
Although he sensed that his master was in a bad mood, the old man was still unwilling to give up and cautiously asked, "Master of the Ruins, does she... have a crescent moon?"
Yueying lowered her eyes and coldly uttered two words: "No."
"But..." The old man was not willing to give up and wanted to say something more.
"Shut up," Yueying interrupted with a cold laugh.
After a moment, as if she had thought of something, her tone carried a hint of morbid pleasure: "If you think she is the same person from back then, I have an even simpler way."
She leaned down, gently pinched Tang Yu's slender neck, applied a little force, and then suddenly released her, a malicious smile appearing on her beautiful face.
“Take her to Shangxu and throw her into the blood pool. If she really is Yue Qimeng… she should be able to survive and crawl out.”
[Author's Note]
Tang Yu: Master math, physics, and chemistry! You'll be fearless anywhere in the Great Xia!
Xie Xingzheng: What are mathematics, physics, and chemistry?
Tang Yu (innocent face, pointing to an author who is kneeling and thanking the nutrient solution): I don't know, that's the line she gave me.
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