Mark
At the end of Linlanghai City is the calligraphy and painting street. Zi Shuxingzhi is standing tall and slender, admiring a painting called "Bi Luo Xian Ze", muttering to himself, "The brushwork is skillful, like flowing clouds and running water, and the white space is even more exquisite, leaving enough space and artistic conception. The calligraphy is good, and the painting is even better." The postman knew nothing about calligraphy and painting, but since he had drunk the other person's tea, he felt like he owed the man a favor, and was too embarrassed to show his face to others, so he nodded vigorously to agree.
Zishu Xingzhi, of course, understood that the postman didn't understand calligraphy and painting, nor was he interested in them. This reminded him of that man. As a child, whenever he heard someone talking about calligraphy and painting, he'd find an excuse to escape. When Zishu Xingzhi asked him why he disliked elegant things, he'd spout off his own philosophies: "They're just superficial things, devoid of true meaning. I disdain them." Zishu Xingzhi then asked, "Painting people reminds me of them, and painting scenery preserves a piece of it forever. How can they be superficial things?" He then argued convincingly: "Rather than thinking about people, I'd rather keep them with me forever. As for beautiful scenery, even if I can only see it once in my lifetime, I'd rather imprint it in my mind. How can a mere piece of paper capture the spirit of the person?" He'd been full of misconceptions since childhood. However, it wasn't until he was gone, never to see him again, that Zishu Xingzhi suddenly realized: no matter how skilled a painter might be, it's hard to capture the soul of the person you're thinking of. Now, reflecting on it, he realized that those misconceptions were actually true principles that opened up new avenues.
His thoughts were like the tide, floating in the memories, his eyes were a little vague, and he did not notice that a large group of people were approaching this direction.
When the horsemen and horses approached, the leading official dismounted gracefully. The postman looked at the official uniform and flirted, muttering to himself, "How did we even alarm the Dali Temple?" The official then bowed to Zishu Xingzhi and said, "Marquis Dingyuan."
Zishu Xingzhi finally came back to his senses, turned around, looked at the person who had come, and without any surprise, he also bowed to the official and said, "Sir."
The official introduced himself, "I am Lin Yan, the chief judge of the Dali Temple of Qi State. I am hereby ordered by the Hong Emperor of Qi State to invite Marquis Dingyuan back to the embassy to discuss matters between the two countries."
Zi Shuxingzhi was somewhat puzzled and asked, "Since this is a matter between two countries, why did you order the Dali Temple to discuss it with me?"
Lin Yan glanced around, thought for a moment, took a step forward, and whispered: "There are too many people here, so it is inconvenient to speak directly. Please follow me back to the hall to discuss in detail. Our temple has prepared the carriage, please get in here." He turned sideways and raised his arm towards the carriage behind him.
Zishu Xingzhi looked at the carriage and the Dali Temple officials, but did not pursue the matter too much. He got on the carriage leisurely, and the postman followed the team back.
The postman felt he wanted to know what had happened even more than Zishu Xingzhi did. On his way back, he rode alongside Lin Yan and said, "Minister Lin, why did the Dali Temple get involved? Did something go wrong?"
Lin Yan turned his head to look at the postman and said mysteriously, "I can only tell you now that this matter is far from as simple as it seems. This Dingyuan Marquis may have a great background. I'm afraid that it's easy for him to come now, but it will be difficult for him to leave."
The postman nodded, not quite understanding, but suddenly feeling ominous, he looked up at the carriage carrying Dingyuan Hou for a long while, sighed, shook his head helplessly, and whispered, "What a good person, what a pity."
The carriage pulled Dingyuan Hou back, which was just a symbol of respect and status for him. In fact, it was only a few steps away from Linlanghai City to the guest embassy. Zishu Xingzhi lifted his clothes lightly in front of the embassy and slowly got off the carriage. Led by a group of Dali Temple officials, he returned to the guest embassy in a graceful manner. He didn't care. As soon as he stepped into the gate, a group of yamen runners from the Dali Temple surrounded the entire embassy.
Zishu Xingzhi was led to the main hall of the elegant room where he lived. Three figures were already waiting in the hall. When they saw him appear, they all stood up. Lin Yan walked up to him and introduced the three great Vajras to him one by one. He raised his right hand and said, "This is Sun Zili, the Junior Minister of the Dali Temple. Junior Minister Sun." Zishu Xingzhi looked at him. He saw that this man, with his official hat pressed down on his brow, was tall and thin. He was mature and steady and reliable. To have reached the position of Junior Minister at such a young age, he must have something extraordinary. Zishu Xingzhi bowed, and the other party also bowed in respect. Lin Yan's hand reached the one in the middle. Zishu Xingzhi's eyes darkened, but he heard Lin Yan say, "This is His Royal Highness the Wise King, also the Grand General of our dynasty." It turned out that the person he was fighting was of great background. Shangguan Yichen nodded slightly, and Zishu Xingzhi bowed. He followed Lin Yan's hand and looked to the left. Before Lin Yan could speak, he smiled and said, "I recognize this person. He is Prime Minister Jing who brought me to the residence. I didn't expect to see him so soon. I'm honored to meet you." Zishu Xingzhi bowed again, and Zhong Yujing also bowed and said, "Marquis Dingyuan is honored." Before the two stood up, Shangguan Yichen had taken a step forward and stood in front of Zhong Yujing. "Today, the three of us are ordered by the emperor to come here to ask Marquis Dingyuan about some matters. I hope Marquis Dingyuan will tell me in detail." Shangguan Yichen went straight to the point.
As the three of them sat down, Zishu Xingzhi asked with a smile, "Oh? I was wondering what the heck was going on to provoke the officials from your Dali Temple to personally invite me. I thought this was quite respectable, but I never expected to see three more gentlemen waiting here. What is it that he wants to discuss with me? Could it be that the Hong Emperor has suddenly realized something and has something to say to me?"
Zhong Yujing saw Sun Zili's hand suddenly tighten its grip on the armrest, and her expression darkened. Shangguan Yichen, on the other hand, casually pulled a painting from his sleeve, twisted the top of the paper, and gently spread it out before presenting it to Marquis Dingyuan. He tilted his head and smiled, "Does your Majesty recognize this?"
Marquis Dingyuan looked over and took a moment to examine the pattern copied from the scroll. He was shocked and asked, "Where did you get this drawing?"
"This picture?" Shangguan Yichen looked at him with exaggerated doubt, "Then the Marquis recognizes this picture. What is this picture?"
Dingyuan Hou became cautious and asked carefully, "Why are you asking this?"
Shangguan Yichen pursed his lips and smiled, lazily folded the paper and tucked it into his sleeve. "Tell you the truth, my Lord. Someone has reported that this picture is related to a murder case involving the royal family in Daqi."
Marquis Dingyuan frowned and looked alert.
Shangguan Yichen glanced at him, raised the corner of his lips, and said lightly: "The person who assassinated King Yao of Daqi has this mark on his body."
"What nonsense! How could a member of the Qing Kingdom's royal family do such a thing? Stop slandering me!"
When Marquis Dingyuan said this, all three of them froze, their jaws dropped. They were astonished that a thunderstorm had suddenly struck a sunny March day, catching them unawares. They were also stunned that this pattern was actually connected to the Qing Kingdom's royal family!
Shangguan Yichen's lips curled up immediately, and he fixed his gaze on Marquis Dingyuan, smiling, "Since that's the case, this king doesn't need to doubt what he saw that day." He raised his left hand and pointed to the inside of the lower half of his right arm. He raised his chin towards Zishu Xingzhi and pointed at Zishu Xingzhi's right arm again, "What I saw in the hall that day was not a wrong judgment."
Marquis Dingyuan subconsciously covered his right arm, briefly recalling the past, and then said seriously, "Yes, since I am a member of the royal family, it is natural that I have this mark on my body. So what?"
"How?" Shangguan Yichen asked back, snorting and laughing. When he raised his eyes again, ice-cold shone in his eyes. He said in a low, cold voice, "Then I'll ask Marquis Dingyuan to stay in Qi Country for a while longer!"
Suddenly, a large group of yamen runners rushed in from the back of the hall, surrounding the entire main hall. Several of them surrounded Zi Shuxingzhi and stood close to him. Zi Shuxingzhi was shocked and stood up suddenly and asked, "What are you doing?"
Shangguan Yichen also stood up and said coldly: "What are you doing? According to the laws of my Qi country, assassinating a prince should be punished by death and the nine generations of the clan should be exterminated. People from other countries who come to my dynasty to commit crimes should be punished according to the laws of my dynasty! Now Marquis Dingyuan is the suspect in this case, so naturally you should be detained first according to the laws of Qi country. I hope Marquis Dingyuan will cooperate, so that you can suffer less." He glanced at Zishuxing.
The two yamen runners beside Zishu Xingzhi had bound his arms, immobilizing him. He struggled desperately, shouting angrily, "I am an envoy sent by the Qing Kingdom to yours. It's a well-established rule that envoys shouldn't be dragged into the affairs of our two countries! Furthermore, I'm the Marquis of Dingyuan, the Qing Kingdom. How dare you treat me like this? Aren't you afraid of an attack from the south?"
Shangguan Yichen narrowed his eyes slightly and smiled, then said in a deep voice, "If Qingguo has such intentions, they should attack directly, and this will make me respect them. But beating around the bush and being sarcastic have no demeanor and dignity, and are unworthy of the name of a great country!" He then turned to Zishuxing and said, "Tell your lord to fight if he wants to. This king is looking forward to meeting him!"
Zi Shuxingzhi wanted to struggle, but was captured and could only look at them angrily.
Sun Zili said, "Then I'll have to inconvenience Marquis Dingyuan into staying in the Dali Temple's torture chamber for a few days." He said to the bailiffs in a deep voice, "Take him away!"
Half a month after Marquis Dingyuan was imprisoned, the early winter wind was as sharp as a knife, stripping all the yellow and green leaves from the trees in Linjun City. The declaration of war had been issued, and the Qing army's iron hooves clattered southward. Emperor Qingfeng personally led tens of thousands of elite troops, but was forced to stop outside the pass. Shangguan Yichen's 200,000 elite troops had already lined up at the border between the two countries, waiting for a long time.
After reading the declaration of war in Qianyuan Hall, Shangguan Yichen volunteered to lead the army to attack. The national treasury was empty, and Qi State had lost its former strength, already outwardly strong but inwardly weak. The ministers were unaware of this and continued to petition for war, acting with confidence. Emperor Hong was uneasy and hesitant. He needed to maintain his integrity, but how could he do so? Would it cost him more than he deserved? Shangguan Yichen solemnly swore a military pledge before Emperor Hong, just as he had done when the Qiang and Rong attacked the city. "Your Majesty, please let go. I, along with tens of thousands of soldiers, will keep the Qing army outside the pass and will never allow them to set foot within Qi's borders. I swear to win this battle and protect the people of Qi."
The vast expanse beyond the Great Wall was barren, with no grass growing. It was desolate and silent, with only the rustling of flags in the wind to be heard. Emperor Qingfeng gazed at the densely packed army across from him, which seemed to block the path forward like a city wall, with no end in sight. The figure at the forefront, clad in silver armor, towered like a mountain. The horse beneath him was also covered in the same silver armor. A startled heart seized Emperor Feng, who immediately understood what was happening, yet he still shouted in a deep voice, "Who is coming?"
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