Chapter 751 Major Discovery (First Update)
As night fell, the Imperial Preceptor's Hall gradually lit up.
Xiao Jingkong went to play cards with Shangguan Yan. He was bored, and Shangguan Yan was bored too, so he taught Shangguan Yan and two disciples of the Imperial Preceptor Hall the card skills he had learned from his aunt.
Four people can sit at one table, which is just right.
In Xiao Heng's room, the four people and the bird gathered together.
The bird is Xiao Jiu, and it is responsible for keeping watch. Although no one in the Imperial Preceptor's Palace is watching them, one can't be too careful.
Gu Jiao, Xiao Heng, Gu Changqing, and Gu Chengfeng sat around the table.
Gu Changqing asked, "Have you all heard about the matter between the Mu and Han families?"
The three nodded in unison.
With such a commotion, it would be hard not to hear about it, especially since Xiao Heng is now the eldest grandson of the emperor, making it incredibly easy for him to find out this kind of news.
"The Mu family handed over the military tally to protect Old Master Mu," Xiao Heng said.
"The consequences of kidnapping a princess are this serious?" Gu Chengfeng was somewhat surprised. "Even when our Emperor Zhao was being hunted down, we didn't mobilize such a large force."
Gu Changqing said, "It's different."
The Emperor of Zhao was a benevolent ruler, while His Majesty of Yan was a tyrant; their styles of conduct were completely different.
Furthermore, the King of Great Yan did this partly as a warning to others.
For years, the ten great families had maintained a facade of peace and prosperity, but a young princess brought all sorts of monsters and demons to the surface.
If the ruler doesn't take drastic measures to subdue them, these people will probably get too big for their britches. Since the consequences of their mischief are minimal, they might as well take turns causing trouble.
Xiao Heng said calmly, "The Mu family's military tally has been handed over to the King of Great Yan. In the short term, it will not be given to any aristocratic family. He may appoint a capable commander other than the Ten Great Families and the Nangong family."
Gu Changqing nodded in agreement and said, "Let's put the Mu family's military power aside for now. The only hope of winning over the Han family's Black Wind Cavalry is right now."
As soon as he finished speaking, all three of them stared at him.
He was slightly taken aback: "What's wrong? Did I say something wrong?"
Gu Chengfeng asked, "Brother, did we say we were going to try and win over the Han family's Black Wind Riders?"
Gu Changqing countered, "Shouldn't we... try to fight for it?"
"I'll try," Gu Jiao said, her eyes filled with determination.
"Why?" Gu Chengfeng looked at her in confusion.
Gu Jiao gazed intently and said, "There's no reason why, I just feel that I should try to fight for it, otherwise I might regret it."
This is a very strange intuition.
Ever since suspecting that Jingkong was related to the Xuanyuan family, this intuition has grown stronger.
Fighting might be dangerous, but not fighting is even more dangerous!
Xiao Heng analyzed, "Besides Han Ye, the Han family also has many outstanding members. The clan is full of talented people, so their chances of winning are still very high. Moreover, the rules this time are clearly in favor of the Han family."
To acquire the Black Wind Riders, one must pass three duels, two of which are related to horsemanship, and horsemanship and warhorses are precisely the strengths of the Han family.
Even with such a strong advantage in Han's favor, His Majesty still demanded that the Han family's disciples be far superior. What does "far superior" mean? It means that a narrow victory is not enough; a complete victory is required!
The victory is so convincing that people are convinced of its worth! The victory leaves them speechless!
He paused, then looked at Gu Changqing: "What are the Han family's plans?"
Gu Changqing replied, "The Han family has selected ten members, including members of the main family and members of collateral branches of the clan."
Gu Chengfeng's eyes widened: "So many? Isn't it true that a prestigious family can only have two spots?"
Xiao Heng said, "It should have been inherited by the Han family in the first place. It's already unreasonable to change it to a competition among everyone. We should at least take care of the Han family."
Gu Chengfeng curled his lips: "He's a tyrant, why would he be afraid of what people say? He's tyrannical on one hand, and on the other hand, he's trying to portray himself as a benevolent ruler."
Everyone was puzzled by the king's actions.
Gu Changqing said, "The Crown Prince gave me a spot to participate as a member of the collateral branch of the Han family. My task is to wear down the opponents and ensure that the Han family members advance."
Gu Chengfeng scoffed, "You wish!"
Gu Jiao thought for a moment and nodded: "Yes, that's a good option."
Gu Chengfeng looked at Gu Jiao: "Are you going to participate?"
Gu Jiao: "Mm."
Gu Chengfeng said seriously, "Then I'll go too!"
Gu Jiao said indifferently, "You'd better give up. With your mediocre skills, you'd be knocked off the stage in no time."
Gu Chengfeng snapped, "Who do you think you are?!"
"I'll go," Gu Jiao said.
Gu Changqing glanced at his sister, then hesitated, as if he wanted to say something but stopped himself.
Gu Jiao asked curiously, "What's wrong?"
Gu Changqing said, "Have you been in Yan for too long and forgotten that you are actually from Zhao?"
The Great Yan Dynasty selected its cavalry commanders by allowing only its own citizens to participate.
Gu Jiao: Uh, I really forgot.
...
Purple bamboo forest.
A disciple is sweeping fallen leaves in the front yard of the small bamboo house.
Gu Jiao stepped forward.
She looked around the courtyard for a while, but couldn't figure it out. Then she called out to the disciple, "Little Master."
The disciple stopped what he was doing, turned around, and seeing that it was Gu Jiao, he greeted her politely: "Young Master Xiao."
"You still remember me?" Gu Jiao smiled slightly. "Is the Imperial Advisor here?"
The disciple smiled shyly: "I just went out."
How strange, a man is smiling at him, why is he shy?
Gu Jiao raised an eyebrow: "Oh, when will he be back?"
The disciple said, "It doesn't seem to be too long. The Grand Preceptor didn't let us take away his chessboard, so he should come back to play again in a while."
Gu Jiao: "Thank you."
She then fell silent and waited quietly in place.
The disciple swept away the fallen leaves twice and spoke again: "Is Young Master Xiao waiting here for the Grand Preceptor to return?"
Gu Jiao said, "Yes, I need to talk to him about something."
The disciple said, "Then please come inside and wait."
Can I go inside and wait?
Gu Jiao readily entered the courtyard, leaving her shoes on the steps, and then, wearing white gaiters, stepped onto the spotless floor and entered the main room.
The disciple invited her to sit on the guest cushion and poured her a cup of cool tea: "Young Master Xiao, please have some tea."
Gu Jiao took the teacup: "Thank you, no need to entertain me, I can wait by myself, you go and do your work."
"Please make yourself at home, Young Master Xiao."
After saying this, the disciple lifted the curtain and went out.
Gu Jiao touched her chin. "You didn't even explain anything. You trust me that much?"
It would be strange if Gu Jiao sat here obediently.
Having finally made it to the Grand Master's lair, how could we not take a deep dive in?
There is currently only one disciple in the courtyard, and he is diligently sweeping it. He has only swept a small part of it, and it will take a while for him to finish sweeping.
Gu Jiao quietly stood up and wandered around the main room.
The main room was empty, with nothing to provide any information, but there was a small study on the east side.
Gu Jiao quietly pushed open the study door, and a fragrant aroma of books wafted out.
The window was open, and the light was nice.
The furnishings are simple, consisting of only a row of bookshelves, a bookcase, a desk, and a display cabinet.
Gu Jiao has learned the Yan language quite well and can read it without any problems, but these are all the Analects and the Book of Poetry, which give her a headache.
Soon, she was drawn to the toys on the display shelf.
That's right, it's a toy.
Miniature versions of wooden knives, wooden swords, bows and arrows, mini meteor hammers, mini nine-section whips, and mini red-tasseled spears.
Seriously? Even the special weapons she made for Xiao Jingkong weren't this complete.
Is the Imperial Advisor really that childlike?
Who is it for?
Before long, Gu Jiao found a pinned-up picture book next to these small weapons.
She thought the Imperial Advisor's collection consisted of calligraphy and paintings by famous masters, but when she opened it, she found it was all children's doodles.
"Huh? What's this again?"
Gu Jiao put down the booklet and picked up a scroll from another compartment.
She untied the ribbon, unfolded it, and saw a portrait of a baby girl.
She was fair-skinned and clean-cut, with delicate and lovely features.
Gu Jiao admired it for a moment: "Hmm, it's quite pretty."
There were more than a dozen scrolls in the compartment. Gu Jiao looked at them all and found that they were all of the same person. From baby girl to little girl, Gu Jiao seemed to see this person growing up before her eyes.
Why does this little girl look so familiar? Have I seen her before?
The portraits were painted when the child was about seven or eight years old.
"Has the Imperial Preceptor's Hall ever had female disciples?" Gu Jiao asked, extremely puzzled.
If she isn't the Grand Preceptor's disciple, then who is this little girl to him?
Could it be that she secretly had a daughter with someone else?
Otherwise, it would be hard to explain why there are so many of her things here.
Besides the little girl's portrait, Gu Jiao also found another portrait in the largest cabinet of the multi-treasure cabinet.
The painting depicts a tall, slender, and dashing warrior clad in black armor, holding a red-tasseled spear in his hand.
The person in the portrait did not have facial features filled in.
However, Gu Jiao recognized the red-tasseled spear as Xuan Yuanli's divine weapon.
So... this person is Xuanyuan Li?
Below the portrait is a line of text: "Remembering an old friend, February 19th, Bing Shen year."
Are the Imperial Preceptor and Xuanyuan Li old friends?
Gu Jiao also discovered something interesting – a terracotta courtyard, with three terracotta figures sitting under a peach tree, raising their cups in a toast.
None of the three pinched each other's cheeks, and their clothes were all men's long robes that could be seen everywhere on the street.
Gu Jiao touched her chin, thinking to herself, one is the Imperial Advisor, one is Xuanyuan Li, and the other... could it be the King?
Were these three sworn brothers?
"Your Excellency, Imperial Advisor!"
Suddenly, a disciple's voice came from the doorway.
The double reward event is still ongoing, remember to use your monthly pass.
(End of this chapter)
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