All of Jiangzuo
Sima Yao came from the prestigious Langya Prince's Mansion and had seen all kinds of fine horses. The little red horse she was riding at the moment was a Ferghana horse.
I glanced at the other party's carriage and horses a couple of times, only because the contrast between the ordinary carriage and the magnificent horses was a bit odd, but I didn't take it to heart.
After glancing at it twice, he looked away and casually looked elsewhere.
Just then, her ears caught snippets of conversation inside the bookstore, seemingly a dispute.
Her servant was just sent inside to buy books, but it's probably not related to the books she wanted to buy.
Sima Yao had practiced martial arts since childhood, and his senses were far more acute than those of ordinary people. He immediately focused his energy on his ears and listened intently.
The Di ethnic shopkeeper said in broken Chinese, "Only five copies of the 'Illustrated Treatise on Mountains and Rivers' arrived yesterday. This is the last one on the market. It has already been bought by this young master. This esteemed envoy must not try to take it by force."
Upon hearing this, Sima Yao's heart sank slightly: since two families were vying for the same book, it was unlikely that it would fall into her hands easily today.
However, the servant Li Wen, whom she brought with her today, is an old man from the Langya Prince's Mansion. He has a lot of experience with this kind of thing and should be able to handle it without any problem.
There was a loud "clang" as a silver ingot hit the wooden platform.
He heard Li Wen say in a deep voice, "This book has caught the eye of my young master. He has been looking at it since yesterday and is determined to get it. I am now willing to buy it from you at ten times the price. I hope you will part with it. I would be extremely grateful."
These words were polite and respectful, giving the other party ample face. Sima Yao thought to herself that although she was unrestrained and unconventional, she was not a tyrant or a scoundrel, and her servants were not people who bullied the weak. Excellent.
She pricked up her ears, eager to hear how the other person would respond.
But then a calm and resolute male voice said indifferently, "If I refuse to yield, what then?"
Not to mention the servants inside the bookstore, even Sima Yao, who was outside, froze upon hearing this answer.
A slight anger rose in her heart. She thought to herself, "I, the Princess of Langya, have treated you with such courtesy and spoken to you so politely, yet you still refuse to hand over what you want. This is outrageous!"
But Li Wen suppressed his anger and said in a deep voice, "I can tell that you have an extraordinary demeanor, and you probably hold some official position. But please listen to my advice: we are all in Jianzhang, so it's better to avoid trouble. It's just a book, and it's not worth offending my young master for it."
The man said calmly, "I'm just doing my job, so please forgive me for not being able to make an exception."
Sima Yao was furious, but when he heard the man reply that he was also doing things for others, he couldn't help but feel a little curious.
The reason was that the man's answers were calm and composed, displaying great poise. It was hard to imagine that such a person was someone else's servant, out buying books for his master. If the servant was like this, it was hard to imagine what kind of person the master must be.
Just then, the Di ethnic shop owner shouted from inside, "Gentlemen, don't fight here!"
Sima Yao had already heard her servant grunt, followed by footsteps approaching. A moment later, Li Wen emerged from behind the curtain, his face ashen, breathing heavily, clearly having suffered a setback in their earlier exchange.
Sima Yao was greatly displeased. It should be known that Li Wen was the most trusted servant of her father, Sima Jun, among the many servants of the Langya Prince's Mansion. He was mature in his dealings and had a capable and efficient retinue. Therefore, when Sima Yao went out, if she didn't want too much of a entourage, she would only have him accompany her. Unexpectedly, she suffered a loss at his hands in a single encounter.
Seeing her expression, Li Wen knew that she must have heard everything that happened in the shop. He said in a low voice, "Princess, please go back first. I will follow later to see what kind of people he is. Once we have found out his background and what happened, we will go to ask for the money. We won't have to worry about him running away."
This also shows that Li Wen is calm and composed, does not care about temporary gains or losses, and has a tenacious character. He will do whatever his master asks him to do, whether it is a matter of courtesy or force.
Sima Yao had never been treated with such humiliation before. She sneered, "No matter where he came from, he dared to lay a hand on you, Uncle Wen. I'll make him pay today!"
Before Li Wen could say that he had started the fight and was going to assess the other party's strength, the curtain was lifted, and a gentle yet dignified young man with a straight back emerged calmly. He had one hand behind his back, and in the other hand he was holding the "Essentials of Mountains and Rivers" that the two had been arguing about.
He didn't even glance at Sima Yao and the other man, and headed straight for the carriage with the blue cloth curtain across the street.
Sima Yao had never been ignored like this before, and she was furious. She shouted, "Stop right there!"
The young man was walking forward when he heard the voice and paused. He turned around and said calmly, "Miss, what can I do for you?"
Sima Yao snorted heavily and said, "You can leave, but leave the book behind."
As she spoke, she slowly drew her sword from her waist.
Her sword was named "Qilin Baijue" (麒麟百绝), which was custom-made for her beloved daughter by Sima Jun, the Prince of Langya. It was crafted by renowned masters, with a blade over five feet long and a weight far exceeding that of ordinary swords. The scabbard was engraved with a Qilin and a hundred children, and the hilt was inlaid with pearls. It was known as the number one sword of the royal family.
Upon hearing this, A Qiu exclaimed in disbelief, "Aunt Yao was actually the number one swordswoman in the Sima royal family back then? My apologies for not recognizing her!"
Sima Yao smiled sheepishly and said, "This title originally belonged to my father, but when I turned fifteen, my swordsmanship surpassed his, so the title fell to me."
He added, "My elder brother's swordsmanship is second only to my father's in the family, which is quite impressive."
This further changed A Qiu's understanding of Emperor Wu, Sima Yan. Originally, she thought that Emperor Wu, Sima Yan, was truly incompetent in both literature and military affairs, but now she realized that it was Sima Yao's humble remark.
When the young man saw her draw her sword, he initially didn't think much of it, a faint smile playing on his lips as he said, "A fine sword."
But as his sword intent intensified, a solemn expression began to appear on his face, and he unconsciously tucked the book behind his back.
Seeing his expression and actions, Sima Yao knew that he was definitely not going to return the book, and her anger only intensified.
Only then did the young man's gaze shift from the blade of the "Qilin Hundred Absolutes" sword to her face. Upon seeing her countenance, he paused slightly, seemingly stunned.
His gaze moved from Sima Yao's face to her hair, scrutinizing her closely, not missing a single strand of hair down to her ears.
If this person refused to give her the book, it wasn't a capital offense. Sima Yao knew what was important and wouldn't take someone's life so easily. But what she hated most in her life was a lecherous man.
This man looked like a decent human being, yet he rudely looked her up and down. If this were inside the palace or the imperial city, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to gouge out his eyes or chop off his head.
Sima Yao was never a good-tempered person to begin with. Today, because of a book called "The Essentials of Mountains and Rivers", she had suffered setbacks at this person's hands one after another. Now, this person was staring at her so rudely. She had never suffered any more humiliation in her life. She had finally gotten her revenge on this person. A murderous intent suddenly arose in her heart.
A cold laugh escaped her lips as she slashed her "Qilin Hundred Absolutes" sword across her body, locking onto her opponent's surroundings and mercilessly slashing down at his chest.
This is an offensive tactic only used against highly skilled opponents, designed to lock them down and leave them no room to escape.
As the Qilin Baijue appeared, Li Wen cried out urgently, "Miss, please don't!" but it was too late to stop him.
From Li Wen's perspective, he didn't see the way the man had been staring at Sima Yao. Therefore, he assumed that Sima Yao was angry because she couldn't get the book. But in his opinion, it was a bit too much to take someone's life over a book.
He knew about Sima Yao's swordsmanship. In the entire Langya Prince's Mansion, only Sima Jun could barely withstand about twenty rounds of attacks from her. Even Li Wen himself had been repeatedly defeated by her.
If such a powerful blow were delivered to that person, they would surely be decapitated.
As Sima Yao unleashed her sword strike, the young man's gaze sharpened, as if he had just realized what was happening, and he immediately drew his sword from his waist to parry.
But just as he raised his sword to block in front of him, the "Qilin Hundred Absolutes" sword tip arrived.
A series of extremely piercing metallic clangs rang out.
His sword was cleaved in two, but the "Qilin Hundred Absolutes" sword technique was not hindered at all. The sword energy surged wildly like a vast ocean, as if it wanted to devour him completely and fight to the death.
The sword technique that Sima Jun passed on to Sima Yao was called the Invincible Sword Technique because it was a heavy sword. The "Qilin Hundred Absolutes" far exceeded ordinary swords in both weight and length. Therefore, if one tried to block it head-on, the only result would be the destruction of the weapon. This was also a characteristic of the Sima family's sword technique.
Sima Yao had few rivals in his life, and his previous encounters were mostly brief and to the point. He had never been truly provoked to fight. It was indeed unfortunate that this young man ran into him here.
Just as this man was about to die from the "Hundred Absolutes of the Qilin", a sword suddenly and silently slashed from the side.
The sword was thrust out silently, and could have easily struck her ribs, forcing her to withdraw her sword to defend herself, thus automatically freeing the young man from his predicament. However, the swordsman, perhaps valuing his status, was unwilling to launch a sneak attack. Therefore, although the sword was thrust out from the side, it directly intercepted her strike rather than attempting to injure her.
In Sima Yao's vision, she first saw a point of blue light enter her sword aura, which then continued to expand and surge endlessly. Then she felt a thick, viscous force wrap around her "Qilin Hundred Absolutes" sword, which actually caused her entire heavy sword to tilt to one side.
The thing a swordsman fears most is undoubtedly losing control of his sword. And since its debut, Sima Yao's "Qilin Hundred Absolutes" has never experienced such a loss of control of the blade.
In the past, only she could suppress others' swords with the force of her heavy sword. No one had ever been able to so easily neutralize the unstoppable momentum of her heavy sword with such a subtle and skillful technique. By using the methods of "sticking," "carrying," and "neutralizing," she easily broke the heavy sword that the Sima family was so proud of.
No one in Jianzhang had ever heard of such a master.
She was horrified. Losing her balance, she staggered a few steps to the left, using the sword as a crutch to steady herself. She gasped for breath, her face turning pale.
Only then did she get a clear look at the other person's sword.
Its sword is about four feet long, with an elegant and refined design, like a refined scholar, and the tip of the sword is engraved with a few fallen bamboo leaves.
In that instant, a thought flashed through her mind: "Light as a feather, swift as thunder, unpredictable as gods and ghosts, a celestial being descending from the heavens."
Her gaze traveled from the sword upwards, finally landing on the figure of the person wielding it.
The first thing that caught her eye was a pair of deep, peaceful eyes, seemingly containing boundless wisdom. The corners of these eyes were etched with countless fine lines carved by the winds and frosts of life, yet this only imbued the owner of those eyes with a composure and tranquility honed by the passage of time.
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