Chapter 31: The Xie Family Exterminates the Two Northern Kingdoms, One Dead and One Disabled
Shen Liu's wedding date was set for the tenth day of the second lunar month, with less than a month left.
Luo Wan learned from Liu Zong that this was a marriage arranged by His Majesty, and she couldn't help but re-examine this Northern Emperor. She originally thought he was a casual person, but now it seems that every step he took was a carefully planned one.
The four great families in the North are in a three-way competition, with the Gu and Jiang families at their peak, each backed by a crown prince and an eldest princess.
Although the Shen and Liu families were among them, they always maintained neutrality and only obeyed the emperor's orders.
During the trip to Kantang County, Luo Wan heard Jiang Cichen mention the Gu family.
The closure of the brothel and the arrest of the county magistrate must be related to some shady activities of the Gu family.
The Gu and Jiang families have been at odds for a long time. The "move" that Jiang Cichen mentioned refers to this game of chess that will never end.
When two major forces fight each other, if one side falls, the other side will expand rapidly.
The Chen and Liu families have never taken sides and only obey the imperial power. They are the perfect candidates to check and balance the Gu and Jiang families.
That is why the Northern Emperor was so eager to urge the Shen and Liu families to get married.
The event that preceded the marriage between the two aristocratic families was the Poetry and Martial Arts Conference in the capital.
Chi Mingshi was an excellent musician and excelled in the Hongwenguan. Feng Yuyun naturally would not miss this opportunity to show off.
Therefore, the closer it got to the Poetry and Martial Arts Conference, the more frequently Luo Wan heard the sound of the zither coming from the East Courtyard in the mansion.
Thinking about his performance in the piano class, Luo Wan could only say to himself that everyone has their own destiny.
Between playing the piano and composing poetry and wielding swords and guns, she only knows how to do the latter.
On the day of the poetry and martial arts competition, the whole mansion was busy arranging the competition between Chi Mingli and Chi Mingshi.
However, there were still two maids guarding outside the ancestral hall.
These two maids were not a problem for Luo Wan. What Luo Wan was afraid of was alerting the enemy. If she had the medical book in her hands, she could just knock the two maids out, search the ancestral hall for "evidence", and then file a lawsuit against Feng Yuyun in the Dali Temple.
But she has not yet obtained the medical book, so she has to stay in the Chi Mansion and wait for the wedding of the prime minister's son.
After a burst of noise, Chi Mingli and Chi Mingshi were sent away by the Chi family.
After hearing some more noise, Pei Shaochuan climbed over the west courtyard wall again and exchanged a look with Luo Wan, who was about to go out to visit Platycodon.
Pei Shaochuan waved to her: "Wanwan, don't you want to go to the Poetry and Martial Arts Conference?"
Seeing him leaning against the wall, Tangli immediately took a ladder from the side.
Pei Shaochuan waved his hand: "It's okay."
"Master, I have something to do!" The sound of Dunzi supporting himself with gritted teeth came from outside the wall.
Pei Shaochuan was still lying steadily on the top of the wall, smiling brightly at Luo Wan, as if the thing behind him was not a high wall, but a low slope for a spring outing.
He extended his hand towards her. "Wanwan, the Poetry and Martial Arts Competition isn't just about reciting poems and writing couplets. There's also a horseback archery competition. I heard all the children of the Gu family will be participating. Don't you want to see how those Gu family members are shot off their horses by the young general of the Jiang family with a single arrow?"
Luo Wan's eyebrows twitched slightly.
During her time in the capital, she had indeed heard rumors that Duke Gu had many talented children.
Gu Zhuohan, the eldest son of the Gu family, is good at riding and shooting, but he is low-key and introverted in his behavior.
If these two families confront each other at the poetry and martial arts conference... it would be a good opportunity to observe the movements of the aristocratic families.
"Master! I can't hold on any longer!" Dunzi wailed outside the wall.
Luo Wan finally chuckled, turned to Tang Li and said, "Go get my veil."
*
Poetry and martial arts competition, parade ground.
Flags fluttered in the capital's martial arts arena, and the high platform was filled with children from aristocratic families.
Luo Wan followed Pei Shaochuan around the crowd, took off his veil, and sat down at a side table.
The archery target area on the east side of the training ground was surrounded by a crowd of people, and cheers rose and fell like waves.
Luo Wan looked across the crowd and saw Chi Mingli drawing his bow and arrow.
The man standing next to Chi Mingli shot a feather arrow through the air and hit the bull's eye fifty steps away.
"Mr. Gu Si's archery skills are indeed well-deserved!" There was a burst of praise from all around.
The man known as the Fourth Master Gu had a smug look on his face. He was none other than the fourth son of Duke Gu.
"Shooting a stationary target at fifty paces is worthy of applause?"
The crowd made way for it like Moses parting the sea.
The young man in blue came over with his hands behind his back, a slight smile on his face.
Pei Shaochuan laughed and said, "Having met Xie Yan, Gu Laosi has hit a wall this time!"
Luo Wan's heart skipped a beat; she had heard of this name before.
Xie Yan, known in Jianghu as the "Bloody Night Ghost Arrow", but that was after the entire Jiang family was executed.
He is also Jiang Cichen's biggest help in unifying the world.
Xie Yan had already picked up a mulberry wood bow. The young man's voice was as cold as broken ice: "Moving target, 200 steps."
The servant hurriedly pushed up the cart carrying the bronze bell.
The moment the bells rang, Xie Yan suddenly turned his back to the target and pulled the bowstring to its full length with his backhand.
“Whoosh!”
The moment the feathered arrow pierced the bronze bell, the second arrow followed the first one's tail feathers and split the falling willow leaves in the air. The third arrow shot through the air and severed the thin rope tied to the colorful silk, and the silk fell like a waterfall of blood.
The whole audience was shocked.
Chi Mingli looked at Xie Yan in a daze.
The fourth young master Gu's face turned pale, and Xie Yan casually threw down his longbow.
"Thank you." Xie Yan bowed to the air and whispered as he passed by Fourth Master Gu's shoulder, "Master Gu, in the three years since I left the capital, you've been incredibly successful in the archery arena!"
The fourth master Gu gritted his teeth and said, "Thank you, thank you."
Xie Yan raised an eyebrow.
The archery supervisor said, "If Master Xie wishes to participate, he must begin at the fifty-step forbidden target and compete with the other masters."
Xie Yan said indifferently, "I'm not participating. This first place is for Fourth Master Gu!"
Luo Wan withdrew his gaze.
Pei Shaochuan lowered his voice and asked, "Wanwan, do you know that three years ago, before Xie Yan went to war, he set the record of 'Nine Stars in a Row' at the Imperial Archery Competition?"
The sound of a gong was heard in the arena, and the supervising officer was announcing that Mr. Gu Si had won the championship.
Luo Wan caught a glimpse of Xie Yan leaning against a cypress tree with his arms folded, a sneer on his lips, while the fourth young master Gu's cuffs trembled slightly when he took the golden flower.
Luo Wan said: "No, I had already left the capital by then."
Pei Shaochuan unfurled his folding fan and said, "At that time, more than twenty young men from aristocratic families took turns challenging Xie Yan. He shot from noon to sunset, his quiver empty three times, and he refused to let anyone win even half a round."
"The most amazing thing was the last round. The Minister of War personally set a difficult problem, having people release nine carrier pigeons simultaneously from a hundred steps away. Guess what? Not only did Xie Yan's nine arrows hit all of them, but the feather of the last arrow even pierced the Minister's jade belt hook!"
Xie Yan, who was standing under the tree, seemed to sense something and suddenly looked up.
Through the fluttering colorful silk, Luo Wan saw that he seemed to smile.
Luo Wan asked: "What happened next?"
Pei Shaochuan said, "Later, the border war became tense, and General Jiang was ill, so he followed Jiang Cichen to the battle..."
Before Pei Shaochuan finished speaking, he saw Jiang Cichen, dressed in a red brocade robe, approaching Xie Yan, the jade pendant on his waist gleaming coldly in the sunlight.
Although they were far away, Luo Wan could still feel the refreshing scent of pine wood all around him.
Luo Wan was suspicious: "But I've never heard of the Xie family in the capital."
Luo Wan had heard of Xie Yan in his previous life because he was extremely famous in the martial arts world. After Tingyu Tower converted to the imperial court, the name Xie Yan became even more well-known.
But in this life, so far, this was the first time Luo Wan heard someone mention Xie Yan in the capital. She had never thought that she would meet Xie Yan in the capital.
Unexpected, yet reasonable.
Pei Shaochuan said with some regret: "The Xie family was wiped out eighteen years ago."
"Destroy the whole family?"
Luo Wan was shocked. Pei Shaochuan continued, "Eighteen years ago, Jiang Shu and his wife were hunted by the Yun Kingdom army. It was Xie An who led the team to break out of the encirclement. However, the Xie family suffered heavy losses in that war. Jiang Shu and his wife both died in the battle. Xie An only brought back the infant Jiang Cichen."
Luo Wan was puzzled: "Since he's back, why would he destroy the family?"
Pei Shaochuan said: "Because of the extermination of the family, it happened in the capital."
Before Luo Wan could respond, Pei Shaochuan said, "Not long after returning to the capital, the Xie family was wiped out by assassins from the Yun Kingdom, leaving only their only son, Xie Yan. The two pillars of the Northern Kingdom are Jiang Shu and Xie An."
Under the cypress tree, Xie Yan leaned lazily against the trunk, playing with a copper coin between his fingertips.
When Jiang Cichen approached, he looked up, and copper coins fluttered between his knuckles like butterflies: "After three years, these rubbish are still as vulnerable as ever."
Jiang Cichen glanced at the Fourth Master Gu, who was forcing a smile on the distant podium, and said in a low voice, "It's a pity that there was no blood today."
Xie Yan chuckled softly, and the copper coin dinged in the air. "Back in the capital, you'll be the revered and respected General Jiang. Why are you still obsessed with bloodshed? The wind and sand at the border haven't blown away your hostility."
Jiang Cichen said: "The wedding date of the Chen and Liu families has been set."
In their early years, Shen Zhiyan and Liu Shuyi were a talented and beautiful young couple praised by everyone in the capital. Now that the wedding date was set, it naturally didn't take long for the news to spread throughout the capital.
Xie Yan said, "We shouldn't return to the capital at this time. After Shen Zhiyan, the marriage that His Majesty grants will definitely be to you."
Jiang Cichen looked towards a certain spot on the side table, and met Luo Wan's eyes through the fluttering colorful silk. He spoke slowly, "If I don't marry Princess Xiliang, what can he do to me?"
Xie Yan said: "You're overthinking it. You're the prince consort, so you're getting married."
Jiang Cichen: "Neither marry nor marry."
Xie Yan said affirmatively, "Very ambitious. Shen Zhiyan was also as ambitious as you before."
You still have to wait patiently to marry Liu Shuyi.
Xie Yan added, "But don't worry. Although the Princess of Xiliang is determined to live with you, and the King of Xiliang has sent envoys to discuss a marriage, there are too many people in the capital who don't want this marriage to happen. Beiye Ji and the Gu family will definitely find ways to prevent it. Your good marriage is likely to fail."
Jiang Cichen didn't comment, only said: "Let's go, the polo game is about to start."
Xie Yan stood up straight, and the copper coin fell steadily back into his sleeve. He suddenly raised his hand and made a "picking stars" gesture towards the people at the side table. This is the etiquette of the people in the martial arts world when saying goodbye.
Jiang Cichen turned around with a gloomy face.
Xie Yan noticed his expression and suddenly raised the corner of his mouth maliciously: "General Jiang, you still think that Master Pei's fiancée is an assassin?"
Jiang Cichen said coldly: "Whose fiancée is she? What does it have to do with me?"
Xie Yan was stunned for a moment. It seemed that what he wanted to express was not this. He did not think much about it, but just nodded in agreement: "Yeah, it's okay."
Xie Yan walked backwards into the crowd, not forgetting to bow to Luo Wan from a distance.
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The author has something to say: ●Please collect(^_^)v[Let me see]
●Huh~ wipe the sweat.
I want to write a sweet story, sob[burst crying][burst crying][burst crying]
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