Chapter 820 A word carries the weight of nine tripods, a sword strike is as light as a swan.
"Senior Brother!"
As the moon rose above the trees, the two groups of people met on an official road deep in the mountains.
The group consisted of only four people on four horses.
The other group, which was larger, consisted of over a hundred cavalrymen in black armor and robes, led by four people: two women and two men.
The woman in red was walking at the front of the group of four.
Upon seeing the young man in a scholar's robe leading the group opposite her, she couldn't help but shout out, spurring her horse forward at full speed.
On the other side, Ouyang Rong only brought Rong Zhen, Li Guo'er, and Lu Ya.
Seeing the woman in red with tears in her eyes, he smiled slightly.
"Junior Sister".
Xie Lingjiang rode her horse around him, her gaze first falling on the sword at his waist, then on the blood-stained bandage around his waist.
"Senior Brother, your shoulder."
"It's nothing, it doesn't hurt much anymore."
Xie Lingjiang touched it with heartache, and continued to examine it carefully. Finding that it was mostly fine, she breathed a sigh of relief.
Her eyebrows furrowed slightly as she asked, "Who inflicted this shoulder injury?"
Behind Ouyang Rong, a young woman in palace attire who had followed him slightly averted her gaze.
Ouyang Rong looked helpless, stepped aside to make way, and gestured with his hands:
"Alright, it's really nothing. Let's go. Your Highness and Princess are waiting for you at the riverside camp."
His gaze passed over Xie Lingjiang's shoulder and landed on the large group behind her. Among the three leaders besides his junior sister, there was a Taoist priest who looked similar to Lu Ya. He had never seen him before and he was a bit unfamiliar with him, so he just smiled as a greeting.
Zhang Shixiu was also secretly observing Ouyang Rong. Upon seeing this, he clasped his hands in a salute from his horse.
Ouyang Rong turned his head and smiled at Qin Ying and Qin Yanqing, who were standing next to Zhang Shixiu:
"Just this evening, I received a message from your scouts that you were coming. The Prince was prepared to come and receive you personally, but... he was a little frightened today. The Prince has a history of convulsions. The Princess and the Prince were worried about his health and managed to calm him down with great difficulty. The Prince asked me to pass on a message to you, telling you not to feel neglected. He said he would not forget the kindness and help that Old Master Qin and the Qin family had given to the Xunyang Prince's Mansion and would keep it in his heart."
Qin Ying and Qin Yanqing also forgot to introduce Zhang Shixiu, since they weren't familiar with him.
Qin Ying waved to Ouyang Rong, "Governor Ouyang, you're too kind. We were afraid we'd arrived too late, but now it seems..."
She glanced around and asked curiously, "Has Li Congshan and the others not arrived yet? Whose are these hoofprints on the ground? Have reinforcements arrived from Xunyang City? Should we evacuate first?"
Qin Yanqing also cast a probing glance at Ouyang Rong.
Upon hearing this, Ouyang Rong exchanged glances with Li Guo'er, Rong Zhen, and the others behind him.
Qin Ying, Qin Yanqing, and Zhang Shixiu noticed that Ouyang Rong's eyes looked a little strange.
The latter pondered for a moment and said:
"We'll talk about it when we get back, in detail on the way."
Ouyang Rong turned his horse around and led the way back.
He noticed out of the corner of his eye that Xie Lingjiang beside him seemed a little distracted, and asked curiously:
"Junior Sister?"
"Yes, I'm here."
Xie Lingjiang, dressed in red, rode a red horse. Just now, while Ouyang Rong and Qin Ying were talking, her gaze was drawn to a quiet girl in palace attire behind her.
At that moment, she was called by her senior brother, and she turned around and gave him a slight smile.
"Alright, then we'll do as our senior brother says and go visit the prince first."
Having reached a consensus, everyone returned to the woods together.
Along the way, Qin Ying curiously looked around and found that they were heading towards a riverside camp. There were many bonfires there, illuminating the soldiers who were lighting fires around them. It seemed that their destination was also there.
Xie Lingjiang kept trying to exchange glances with her best friend Li Guo'er throughout the journey.
However, Li Guo'er seemed a little absent-minded and didn't respond to him much.
Ouyang Rong recounted in detail what had happened that evening.
The matter of the luminous pearl being the Dingjian sword was not discussed for the time being. Instead, the story of Li Congshan and Miaozhen was told, including Miaozhen's betrayal at the last minute and the resolution of the crisis.
Xie Lingjiang, Qin Ying, and the others listened intently, their expressions quite varied, occasionally revealing lingering fear. In the end, they all breathed a sigh of relief.
Zhang Shixiu was also filled with lingering fear and said with a face full of shame:
"It's all my fault. I lost the compass and almost caused trouble for the prince. Fortunately, Prefect Ouyang saved the day."
Ouyang Rong shook his head: "It's not about turning the tide. We'll discuss some things later."
Halfway there, Xie Lingjiang suddenly said:
"Senior Brother, thank goodness you were here. To be honest, I felt relieved when I learned you had left Qingya Post Station, unlike Fellow Daoist Zhang and Qin Ying who were so anxious. Now it seems we almost messed things up. If you weren't here..."
Ouyang Rong smiled and patted his junior sister on the shoulder: "Junior sister's act of leaving poems with the princess can be described as a stroke of genius."
Behind them, Rongzhen followed silently, glancing up at the fellow disciples chatting and laughing in front of her.
At one point, Xie Lingjiang turned around and looked over, but Rong Zhen looked away again.
Xie Lingjiang never asked Rong Zhen why she was there.
Before long, the group arrived at the riverside camp.
The camp, which had been tense and hostile at dusk, was now quiet and peaceful.
The nearly three hundred White Tiger Guards who surrendered set up camp on the spot under Miaozhen's command.
The Li family is still on the other side of the river.
Three hundred White Tiger Guards set up camp on the left bank, while the rest of the group rested on the right bank.
Although the conflict has been resolved and the former has submitted, for some kind of implicit safety precaution, the two sides are still separated by a river.
Ouyang Rong led Xie Lingjiang and the others through the left bank camp and across the water to the right bank.
On the way, Xie Lingjiang and Qin Ying both felt that the atmosphere at the camp was quiet and somewhat strange.
Xie Lingjiang observed Miaozhen.
Upon discovering that this middle-aged female official, who seemed to have a grudge against the Prince's Mansion, was unusually docile at this moment, the eldest brother calmly chatted with her for a few words. Miaozhen then sent people to prepare boats and silently watched them cross the river... Everything was so harmonious.
However, she keenly noticed that Miaozhen and the other White Tiger Guards looked at their senior brother's back with an indescribable sense of awe.
After an incense stick has burned.
On the right bank, Qin Ying, Qin Yanqing, and Li Xian exchanged pleasantries before withdrawing.
Li Xian offered a few words of encouragement. The Qin siblings, knowing that Li Xian, Ouyang Rong, Xie Lingjiang, and others had important matters to discuss, wisely left without lingering.
Lu Ya and Zhang Shixiu also took their leave temporarily at Li Guo'er's instruction.
The two brothers walked away side by side, and Zhang Shixiu asked inexplicably:
"Junior Brother Lu, is he the Ouyang Lianghan you've been mentioning? The young master of the Xunyang Prince's Mansion?"
“That’s right. What do you think of Young Master Ouyang, Senior Brother? I remember that Senior Brother Zhang knows some physiognomy.”
Zhang Shixiu remained silent for a moment, then turned back and glanced at the young man in scholar's robes who was being questioned by the prince and the heir apparent.
His eyes held a somewhat enigmatic look:
"Too handsome. Looking at his face, his forehead is like a mountain peak, his temples are like a rhinoceros horn, and his eyes are like jade pendants... His lowered eyelashes are like clouds obscuring the moon, and his open eyes are like candles illuminating the darkness..."
Upon hearing this, Lu Ya chuckled: "Are you praising his good looks? I don't usually pay much attention to people, but I just think this Young Master Ouyang looks like a private tutor from the countryside."
Zhang Shixiu's gaze was meaningful:
"They're pretty much the same, both being teachers, but according to the theory of Nine Bones and Nine Qi... this is the countenance of an emperor's teacher."
Lu Ya glanced sideways...
On the right bank, at the campfire campsite, all the idlers retreated, leaving only Ouyang Rong, Xie Lingjiang, and Li Xian's family.
Xie Lingjiang tacitly stayed behind.
However, Rongzhen also stayed behind.
Xie Lingjiang glanced at Rong Zhen, who showed no sign of leaving.
Li Xian and Li Dalang also noticed this and turned their gazes over.
Xie Lingjiang thought that her uncle would say something and drive Rongzhen away.
After waiting a while, they noticed that Li Xian and his son coughed, then looked away and began to talk about serious matters.
Xie Lingjiang frowned slightly.
After a short while, she slowly turned around and looked at Ouyang Rong.
The latter, without glancing to the side, took out a scroll in front of everyone.
Ouyang Rong took out a luminous pearl from the painting again.
Li Xian couldn't wait to ask.
"Isn't it Tanlang Bujian at dusk?"
Ouyang Rong shook his head.
Li Xian, Li Dalang, and the others exchanged surprised glances.
Ouyang Rong lowered his head and stared at the luminous pearl in his palm.
After the conflict was resolved in the evening, it returned to normal. Its public display of power not long ago, and the possibility of it displaying its supernatural abilities, seemed to have nothing to do with it.
Ouyang Rong turned to Li Guo'er and Wei Mei and asked:
Did you have any special feelings at the time?
Wei Mei asked in confusion, "No? I'm puzzled too."
Li Guo'er stared at the luminous pearl in the night, speechless.
Ouyang Rong glanced at her again.
Li Dalang asked, "If it's not Tanlang, then who could it be?"
Everyone fell silent.
Ouyang Rong took out the note and glanced at it.
Suddenly, he asked, "Has Her Highness the Little Princess practiced Qi cultivation?"
Li Guo'er seemed lost in thought, ignoring everything.
Xie Lingjiang stepped forward directly, knowing best as a close friend: "Guo'er hasn't started practicing Qi yet. As a member of the royal family, there are some taboos regarding Qi cultivation."
Rong Zhen suddenly spoke up, confirming again: "She has no spiritual energy fluctuations, it can't be faked."
Ouyang Rong nodded slightly.
He kept the luminous pearl in his hand and handed the note back.
"Your Highness, please accept this gift. This calligraphy was originally intended for you."
Li Guo'er slowly raised her eyes and stared at him for a while.
"Is it a gift for me? Then I'll accept it."
Ouyang Rong nodded nonchalantly: "Mm."
Seeing this, Li Xian asked somewhat seriously:
"What does Tanlang plan to do with this cauldron sword?"
All eyes immediately turned to Ouyang Rong.
Even Xie Lingjiang, who had been paying close attention to Rong Zhen, glanced at her senior brother.
"If I had a choice, I originally intended to hand it over to the Prince, so that he could go north to the capital, present the cauldron and sword in the name of auspicious omens, and seize that important opportunity."
"Previously, I had this idea in mind when I asked you to wait for me in Longcheng County. At that time, I discovered that the Red Lotus Sword Seal might be able to awaken it, but I did not expect it to manifest itself this evening."
"However, I suddenly remembered something that is also very important."
Li Xian and Wei Mei grew increasingly expectant as they listened, and immediately asked, "What is it?"
Ouyang Rong tossed the luminous pearl in his palm, then suddenly threw it forward towards Xie Lingjiang.
Upon seeing this, everyone's heart skipped a beat. This was a crucial "Dingjian" sword, and it was just thrown away so casually?
The luminous pearl fell into Xie Lingjiang's arms.
"Senior Brother?"
She was both puzzled and surprised.
Ouyang Rong said with a serious expression:
"Back in Dragon City, it was given to you, Junior Sister. A promise is a promise, so the ownership of this item can only be decided by you, Junior Sister."
He paused, then emphasized, as if it were a pointless statement:
I will never forget any of the things I promised you.
Upon hearing this, the woman in red froze on the spot.
The atmosphere was quiet.
Gradually, she became the envy and focus of everyone's attention, but Xie Lingjiang bit her lip tightly and stared straight at her senior brother.
She knew what he meant.
I also know that this is an enormous favor.
But for her, the most important thing was not the favor or ownership of the cauldron sword, but her senior brother's attitude!
He said he would never forget what he had promised her.
It's not just about the fact that the luminous pearl nominally belongs to her; it also refers to their love affair in the rain and their engagement on the rooftop.
His promise is heavier than a cauldron of swords!
Xie Lingjiang was a proud woman and didn't really care that the Night-Shining Pearl Sword had been given to her. However, she was particularly concerned about whether her senior brother remembered it or not.
But the woman would never admit it, would never admit to being petty and narrow-minded.
But whether he does it or not is a different matter from whether she cares or not.
Rongzhen shared the same thoughts as Xie Lingjiang.
She turned her head to look at Ouyang Rong, her eyes flickering, her ten fingers unconsciously twisting together inside her sleeves.
To say she wasn't envious at all of Xie Lingjiang's treatment would be a lie, but this action further proved that Ouyang Lianghan was indeed a true man of his word. He would never forget what he had promised her.
A young woman in palace attire felt she hadn't misjudged the man.
Xie Lingjiang was unaware of Rong Zhen's feelings. Now, being watched by many eyes and moved by her senior brother's actions, she felt a mix of emotions: joy, heartache, and gratitude.
Xie Lingjiang took a deep breath, held the luminous pearl in her hand, and looked around at everyone.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Rongzhen's seemingly envious gaze, her best friend Li Guo'er with a complicated expression, and the Li Xian couple who seemed both expectant and wanting to speak.
Everyone was waiting for her.
Xie Lingjiang suddenly said to Li Xian:
"Uncle, to be honest, I have no old feelings for Emperor Taizong or Ligan, nor have I ever received any favors from that era. My belief in restoring Ligan is far less than my friendship with Sister Guo'er and my relationship with you all. These are not my beliefs."
Upon hearing this, both Ouyang Rong and Li Guo'er were stunned.
Li Xian, Li Dalang, and Wei Mei subconsciously tensed up.
The woman in red glanced around the arena, smiled sweetly, and uttered a sentence that seemed both joking and utterly serious:
"If you ask about faith... I followed my father and senior brother into the world, and they are definitely not wrong."
As soon as she finished speaking, the Xie family noblewoman, dressed in fiery red, casually tossed out a crescent moon. It traced a parabola in the air, ending up in Li Xian's arms.
Discard it like worn-out shoes, treat it as lightly as a feather.
Li Xian held the luminous pearl in a daze, hearing her earnest nod and say:
"Leave your uncle, but do not let down the people of the world."
After He Lixian finished speaking, Xie Lingjiang turned her head to look at Ouyang Rong.
She smiled radiantly, pointing towards Rongzhen:
"Don't try to fool me. Don't think it's that easy. Quickly tell me the truth: where did my embroiderer sister go? And why did you bring this short, grumpy woman back? What nonsense did she agree to?"
(End of this chapter)
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