Chapter 17 This Marquis's future son-in-law is also from Lingdong...
The closer they got, the clearer the situation around the arena became.
The arena was over two zhang high, with long poles at each of the four corners, adorned with bright red ribbons and embroidered balls, radiating a festive atmosphere.
"Why hasn't it started yet? I'm getting so impatient!"
"It'll be soon. I heard the Zou family set it at 1:15 PM, which is very auspicious."
"The Zou family really knows how to pick their time. Today is the Luhua Festival, and Luxiu Street is bustling with people. Maybe some young master or a sect's prodigy will happen to pass by and, on a whim, step onto the arena."
"You're talking nonsense. Even if the eldest daughter of the Zou family is as beautiful as an angel, no noble young master or sect prodigy would go up to her. If she were to marry into the family, how many men could handle it?"
The waves of discussion confirmed Lin Yansen's guess.
He smiled and said to his darling daughter, "Dai Dai has never seen a martial arts contest for marriage, has she? Do you want to stay and watch?"
Lin Qingdai: "Father, have you seen it?"
Lin Yansen: "I haven't seen it."
Lin Qingdai and the guards were amused by his thoughtless response.
"Then let's stay and take a look."
Ji Yujing also arrived at another corner of the crowd.
Last night, Zhao Ning chatted with them and mentioned the Zou family's martial arts contest to find a husband, asking them if they wanted to join in the fun.
After hearing this, Ye Xiao started to make a ruckus.
"Brother Ning, aren't you going to participate in such a good thing?"
"You're about the same age as my brother, it's time for you to get married."
"My brother is getting married soon, aren't you going to do anything about it?"
"Don't be afraid, we two brothers will go with you tomorrow! We'll cheer you on!!"
The piercing sound that could hurt the eardrums finally ended with a faint glance from Ji and Jing.
Zhao Ning laughed and said, "The Zou family is considered wealthy in the capital. How could we poor people like us even dream of such a thing?"
Ji Yujing looked at him: "You only know if you try, right?"
Ji Yujing's sentence was delivered in a low, cold, and straightforward tone, without revealing a trace of emotion related to passion.
But Zhao Ning was touched and inspired.
He agreed to participate.
This morning, I consulted my parents about this matter again.
The Zhao couple smiled and agreed.
Such an easy victory simply reflects an absolute certainty that Zhao Ning has no chance of winning.
After a simple breakfast at home, the three of them left.
Just after 9 PM, they arrived at the arena.
"There are so many people?"
Seeing the crowds thronging the area, Ye Xiao couldn't help but exclaim in amazement.
Zhao Ning laughed and said, "Today is the Luhua Festival. There will also be a fireworks display at night, that will be really lively."
"I'll take you around later and we'll buy some Luhua Ci (a type of rice cake) to take home and eat."
Ye Xiao had no reason to refuse.
At 1:15 PM, Hao Tianshou, the steward of the Zou family, appeared on the arena. His clothes were of excellent quality, and he was in high spirits. Just looking at him, one could tell that the Zou family was taking today's martial arts contest to choose a husband very seriously.
Hao Tianshou faced the crowd and laughed loudly.
"Thank you for your support, folks. There are no strict rules for today's martial arts contest to choose a husband. Anyone with high martial arts skills can come up to the stage to fight. The top four will be selected, and from them, the one with good character and talent will be chosen as the husband of my young lady."
Having succinctly and clearly explained everything, Hao Tianshou asked the audience, "Any further questions?"
Many people shouted, "No, let's get started!"
Hao Tianshou laughed and said, "Then let's begin. Those who come up to compete, please stop when you've made your move. Finding a husband is a joyous occasion, and today is also the Luhua Festival. It would be wonderful if everyone could be happy."
After saying this, Hao Tianshou retreated to the corner of the arena.
Before long, a burly man swept onto the arena. That man was none other than Ran San, a bodyguard from Xuanwei Escort Agency, who was known for his ferocity.
The battle started fiercely, and those who wanted to go on stage hesitated. The atmosphere was tense for several breaths before anyone went up.
Then, suddenly a man in white flew onto the arena.
This person in white was slender with delicate features. Behind his ears were tattoos of unidentified flowers, their colors dark and their branches spreading outwards.
"People from other places?"
One of the people in the crowd guessed that.
Discussions arose, but at the moment, no one could give a definitive answer.
The man in white went up on stage but did not speak.
He gestured "please" to Ran San and then made the first move.
They started with a powerful attack, extremely fast.
The villagers, who knew nothing of martial arts, saw only a series of afterimages. Ran San was caught off guard and retreated again and again. One more step back and he would fall off the stage.
Ran San's eyes turned cold. He activated his inner strength to stabilize his steps and braced himself against the fierce attack.
After that, they exchanged dozens of moves in a short time.
Ran San was still taken down.
He collapsed at the edge of the ring, admitting defeat to the crowd.
However, the man in white did not let him go. He rushed to him like a gust of wind, took out a dagger, and severed his tendons.
"ah."
The speed was too fast; everyone only realized what had happened when they heard Ran San's agonizing scream.
The crowd instinctively stepped back, as if that would avoid danger, but the murmurs continued.
Why did this person attack and hurt others?
"Didn't the master say to stop here? This is going too far."
"That's too ruthless. Will Master Ran still be able to escort goods in the future?"
"Ouch, it looks painful."
Hao Tianshou snapped out of his astonishment and rushed to Ran San's side, looking at him with concern before turning to the man in white. "Didn't we say to stop when it's over? Such ruthlessness! The Zou family arena doesn't welcome you."
"roll."
The wealthy merchants living near the capital all had their own ambitions.
Faced with a crisis, the Zou family steward stood ramrod straight and spoke directly.
Unexpectedly, the man in white merely smiled, the curve of his lips not very clear, but his malice was blatant.
He even said, "According to the custom in their hometown, the winner has the right to cut the tendons of the defeated opponent, and the honor will be left behind forever."
This time, not only Butler Hao, but the entire crowd seemed to be ignited, and anger spread.
"Where are you from? How can you be so barbaric?"
"This barbarian is here to cause trouble? Does he think my Xun Kingdom has no one to rely on?"
"I have never seen such an arrogant person."
...
Amid the commotion, the Zou family guards and the yamen guards who had previously maintained order around the arena were all approaching it.
On the arena, the man in white saw everything clearly.
There was no fear on his face. "A great nation like this has no tolerance for others. It seems that none of them can fight. They only know how to bark like dogs to maintain their pathetic self-esteem."
Having said all that, the experts who had been hiding in the crowd, who had originally just wanted to watch the show, could no longer hold back.
Finally, someone rushed onto the stage, shouting, "Where did this madman come from, daring to spout such nonsense in the capital of Xun Kingdom?"
"The second son of the Su family."
"As expected of the young master of the four great families in the capital, he has guts."
Su Jun landed steadily on the ring, his expression slightly cold.
Judging from his methods before, it wasn't certain he could win. But now that things have escalated to this point, simply arresting and convicting him won't erase all the consequences.
We must defeat him before the authorities can arrest him, and use his own methods against him.
The illustrious prestige of Xun State must not be diminished.
So he stepped onto the stage and stood in front of the man in white.
The guards from the yamen and the Zou family stopped and observed the situation from a distance.
But he was unable to turn the tide.
Su Jun was defeated by his opponent within a hundred moves, and this time the man in white wanted to use the same trick again.
However, everyone was on guard, and before he could succeed, Ye Xiao suddenly launched a series of powerful kicks, knocking him away.
He shielded Su Jun behind him, allowing him to safely leave the arena.
Before leaving, Su Jun smiled and said to him, "Thank you, young man."
"His legwork is superb."
Ye Xiao turned to look at him, his dark eyes bright and spirited, "You have good taste."
He didn't tone down his voice at all, and it reached the ears of the villagers in the front row. Laughter erupted from all directions, and the defeat silently dissipated.
Amidst laughter, Ye Xiao looked at the man in white with a grin, "Yes, your hometown has rules, but the rules there are barbaric and vicious, worse than wild beasts."
"You really think no one can handle you? Do you know how many experts there are in this world? Someone like me is just average among them."
Ye Xiao has truly made the most of his "eloquence" this time, and no one has stopped him this time.
Deep within the crowd, Zhao Ning saw this scene and covered her mouth with a soft laugh.
After laughing, he looked at Ji Yujing and said, "Xiao Xiao's mouth can bring the dead back to life."
Ji and Jing did not respond to this.
Lin Qingdai recognized the young man on the stage, and she couldn't help but chuckle.
Lin Yansen glanced at her sideways. "An acquaintance?"
Lin Qingdai: "A brief encounter."
Then he added, "Don't worry, Father, this man in white will pay the price for his violence today."
Hearing his beloved child say this, Lin Yansen felt curious, but his mood did indeed ease a bit.
Dai Dai never speaks without evidence. Since she has spoken, she must be certain that there is a master in the crowd who can suppress the man in white.
He only needed to focus on watching the play.
Watch this rare and spectacular show.
I will be able to share this with His Majesty tonight.
After speaking with her father, Lin Qingdai's gaze swept around.
She was looking for Ji and Jing, but the crowds were so dense that she couldn't see the end of them, and she couldn't find them anywhere.
On the arena, Ye Xiao made his move without any preamble.
It is a waste of time to use etiquette on barbarians.
They started with a strong attack.
Ye Xiao's speed was unmatched in the entire Lingdong region, except for Ji Yujing. However, when he faced this sinister white-clad man, he was outmatched after a hundred moves. He was finally struck and staggered backward.
Just as he was about to fall, a gray figure suddenly appeared behind him, unleashing internal energy to forcefully support him.
"We still need to practice when we get back."
Ye Xiao was unconvinced and muttered to himself, "This guy looks several years older than me. When I'm his age, I'll definitely be able to beat him down."
However, on the surface, not a single word was spoken.
Ji Yujing stared coldly at the man in white. "You've played three matches in a row. Do you need a break?"
"If you don't use it, I'll let you have a hundred moves."
His arrogant words made the man in white want to laugh.
Ji Yujing asked him why he was laughing.
The man in white said disdainfully, "Those three were just as arrogant before they made their move. Why are all the prodigies of your Xun Kingdom so stubborn?"
Ji Yujing chuckled upon hearing this, "I don't know about them. As for whether I'm the toughest person, you'll have to ask my fists first."
As soon as he finished speaking, he swung his long arm. It looked extremely effortless, but his inner strength overflowed, causing the white-robed man's clothes to flutter sharply.
The same was true of the gauze and lanterns behind him.
The man in white took this as a provocation and moved against the wind. He rushed towards Ji Yujing even faster than before, creating a whistling, ear-piercing wind.
In the blink of an eye, his fist was already aimed at Ji Yujing's forehead.
During this time, Ji and Jing simply stood quietly in place.
There was no movement, only a cold, indifferent gaze. Until the wind howled in front of his forehead, his black hair whipping wildly. He suddenly struck, precisely seizing the white-clad man's wrist.
Snap.
It was forcibly broken.
The sound of bones breaking echoed in all directions, leaving the onlookers stunned.
One move?
How could that young man with the scar on his face win in a single move? He was faster and stronger than the man in white.
"Scraps".
"My hand..."
The white-clad man's voice was frantic and broken, dispelling the stunned silence of the crowd. A surge of sound erupted, spreading outwards with irreversible force.
"We won! We won!!! The pride of our Xun Kingdom has won."
"How did they win? I didn't see it clearly."
"Hahaha, it's normal that you can't see it clearly."
"If you could see it clearly, you could also go up into the ring and exchange a few blows."
"That was so satisfying! So satisfying!"
The guards who had been waiting patiently below the stage rushed forward and restrained the man in white, taking him away.
With things having escalated to this point, the Zou family had lost all interest in continuing the martial arts contest for marriage.
Hao Tianshou intervened and called a halt, and the onlookers gradually dispersed.
Lin Qingdai and the others were already in a hidden spot, so it would have been easy for them to leave.
Before she could finish telling her father she was leaving, Lin Yansen spoke first, his words directed at Chen Qing: "Go and call those two young men on the stage over. I would like to invite them for tea and give them some rewards."
"Their actions today protected the dignity of our great nation, Xun, and they deserve to be rewarded."
At this moment, Lin Yansen finally began to feel the self-awareness of a first-class prince.
Chen Qing accepted the order and prepared to leave.
Lin Qingdai listened and watched, "..."
It all started as just a bit of fun, so how did it escalate to this point?
"Father, let's not do it."
Lin Yansen: "I can't avoid it this time, otherwise His Majesty will blame me if he finds out."
Lin Qingdai couldn't persuade him, and she was too lazy to try anymore.
Anyway, Ji and Jing probably won't pay any attention to him.
Chen Qing rushed towards Ji Yujing and Ye Xiao at top speed.
"Young heroes, please wait."
He called out loudly, stopping Ji and the other two in their tracks.
They looked at Chen Qing, only to see him smiling, his kindness shining brightly.
It was Ye Xiao who answered him, "Brother, is there something you need?"
Chen Qing respectfully clasped his hands in greeting: "Our Marquis witnessed your heroic performance earlier and would like to invite you two for tea and to reward you."
At the end of his sentence, he turned and pointed in the direction where Lin Yansen and Lin Qingdai were.
“Our lord is over there.”
Ye Xiao and the other two looked in the direction he was pointing.
Ye Xiao was stunned, and his heart suddenly surged with turmoil, roaring incessantly.
"My God! Isn't that the little beauty?"
"Then the Marquis this person is talking about, isn't he Marquis Lin, his brother's future father-in-law?"
"Wow, having fun in the capital is so exciting."
Ji Yujing understood immediately.
It was in the first place that he shouldn't have gone. Stepping onto the stage was already a high-profile move, which might attract attention and suspicion from all sides.
Accepting the invitation from a first-class prince in full view of everyone doubles the danger.
However, when he noticed that the little girl's eyelashes were lowered, and she seemed to be idly tracing the embroidery on her cuffs without looking at him, her avoidance was obvious.
A sudden surge of emotion welled up within him, faint yet sharp, piercing his very being and causing him discomfort.
Before he could even ponder why this was happening, he heard himself say, "Your Excellency is too kind. Please lead the way, brother."
In a short while, Ji and Jing arrived in front of Lin Yansen.
Just as Ji Yujing had expected, Ye Xiao acted with "moderation and restraint." Take this moment, for example. He had already recognized Lin Qingdai, and according to his personality, he should have started shouting exaggeratedly on the way here. But he didn't. When he got closer, he pretended not to recognize Lin Qingdai.
"Lord Lin." Ji Yujing and the other two bowed to Lin Yansen.
Lin Yansen carefully examined the three of them, his gaze gentle, revealing a kind of elder’s affection for the young: “A new generation, a great generation of heroes.”
“You did a very good job today. I’ll treat you to tea, and then we’ll go to the gold shop to get you some gold jewelry.”
Hearing these words, Ye Xiao and Shao Ning were secretly amazed. "Is this the power of the top families in the capital? They give away gold artifacts as soon as they meet."
Ji Yujing's lips twitched slightly, almost imperceptibly: "Thank you, Lord Marquis, but as citizens of Xun, what we did before was simply what we should do."
"Tea is fine, but goldware..."
Ji Yujing wanted to refuse, but before he could finish speaking, Lin Yansen turned to the side and put his arm around his shoulder. In Xun Kingdom, the distinction between superior and inferior was clear, but in Lin Yansen's mind, these distinctions seemed to be nonexistent.
His demeanor was natural, his enthusiasm genuine and unpretentious.
"..."
Ji and Jing's words came to an abrupt halt.
He glanced at Lin Qingdai instinctively and saw the girl smiling with her eyebrows curved, looking amused. Her bright black eyes also held a hint of schadenfreude.
In that instant, much of her former elegance vanished, and a lively spirit emerged.
It looks like a proud and cunning white fox.
He suddenly felt an urge to pinch her face.
The index finger of his right hand, hanging by his side, twitched slightly out of everyone's sight.
Lin Yansen took Ji Yujing and the others to Huanxue Teahouse, a place he frequented.
Upon seeing the two characters "Summoning Snow" on the plaque above the door, Ji Yujing couldn't help but recall the Summoning Snow tea he had drunk at Old Man Yuyong's place.
"Is the teahouse owner from the north?"
Upon hearing this, Lin Yansen turned to look at him, a hint of surprise in his eyes: "How did you know?"
Ji Yujing: "Just guessing. Huanxue is a type of tea from the north."
Lin Yansen's liking for him increased even more after seeing that he knew about tea.
"You guessed right."
“In the capital, there are merchants from all over the country, and there are various support policies. But it wasn’t like this ten or twenty years ago. Back then, anyone entering the capital had to have a permit from the local government and then go to the capital’s government office for approval upon arrival.”
"The procedures are complicated and the standards are strict, which makes people hesitate to participate."
The Zhao Ning family had experienced everything that Lin Yansen described.
He couldn't help but chime in, "Your last sentence, Lord Marquis, really touched the heart of this humble subject."
Lin Yansen: "Oh? You came to the capital from out of town?"
Shao Ning: "Yes, all three of us are from Lingdong."
Lingdong?
Lin Yansen's steps suddenly faltered.
"What's wrong?" Shao Ning asked with concern upon seeing this.
Lin Yansen: "My future son-in-law is also from Lingdong."
After a two-breath pause, he added, "A very capable young man."
Upon hearing this, everyone fell silent.
Lin Qingdai: Father, is it possible that your future son-in-law is standing right next to you?
Ye Xiao: ...At this point, it's safer to play dumb, right?
Shao Ning: Wasn't he supposed to be participating in a martial arts contest to find a husband today? How did it turn into Ci-ge meeting his future father-in-law?
Ji and Jing were immersed in silence, feeling only absurdity.
On the other hand, he felt that given the Lin family's circumstances, the marriage contract left by their ancestors was not entirely unacceptable.
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