"What girl?"
"The people Vice General Mo brought today, I noticed, all of them treat her with great respect—"
"She actually wants to have a match with Deputy General Mo? Deputy General Mo is undefeated in our entire army!"
"Why don't you go and see for yourself?"
Several soldiers whispered among themselves. Hua Qing and Yu Tan both rubbed their foreheads in exasperation and couldn't help but feel a little resentful towards Shang Shaoyan. Even if the county princess was skilled and had high martial arts skills, she was still a woman. Women's strength is not great, so how could she possibly defeat Mo Xing?
If she loses, the prestige of the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion will only decline greatly; if she wins, some people will inevitably say that Mo Xing threw the game.
This is going to be a difficult situation.
The two followed along, their minds heavy with worry, and soon arrived at the training ground.
Shang Shaoyan was still wearing the same short-sleeved Hu-style clothes that were convenient for sparring, and he was choosing his weapon on the field. Mo Xing had already chosen his broadsword and was waiting on the side, laughing loudly, "Princess, please go easy on me later and give me some face in front of my brothers!"
Not only were Yu Tan and Hua Qing speechless, but all the soldiers present were also skeptical and immediately began to doubt the fairness of the competition.
Shang Shaoyan wasn't annoyed. She looked around, then playfully picked up the heaviest bow on the field, an eight-stone bow. To everyone's astonishment, she easily drew the bowstring taut, frowned, and said with some dissatisfaction, "Deputy General Mo, why are the bows here so light?"
Everyone: "..."
Mo Xing was already used to this. He waved his hand and said, "Princess, hurry up and make me lose in a more respectable way."
The crowd had stopped making a fuss and were now quietly watching Shang Shaoyan.
Shang Shaoyan laughed heartily, a hint of arrogance on his bright face: "No need to choose, just play like this."
Mo Xing was taken aback for a moment, then smiled: "Is the county princess being lenient with me?"
Shang Shaoyan smiled without saying a word, but simply waved to Mo Xing.
Mo Xing immediately drew his sword and stepped forward. Everyone could see that Mo Xing was putting in his full strength. In the past, when Mo Xing sparred with the soldiers, he would not even use five-tenths of his strength. This was the first time he had gone all out in a sparring match, and his opponent was a seemingly frail young woman.
Hua Qing had been stunned when Shang Shaoyan drew his bow to its full extent, but now, seeing this, he came to his senses and said to Tan, "Why is Mo Xing using his full strength? Even if the county princess has superhuman strength, she can't withstand his—"
Before he could finish speaking, Shang Shaoyan made a spectacular move by catching a blade with his bare hands. Then, with a slight exertion, the greatsword that everyone was very familiar with, the one that had slain many barbarian tribes, shattered into two pieces.
In the silence, Shang Shaoyan spoke somewhat apologetically: "I'm sorry, Deputy General Mo... I lost control of my strength for a moment. I'll replace your knife with a new one in a few days."
Mo Xing was stunned for only a moment before quickly regaining his senses. Suppressing his heartache, he forced a smile at Shang Shaoyan: "Haha, it's alright, Your Highness has excellent skills."
Then, distraught, he jumped off the training ground and left this place of sorrow like a wandering ghost.
Shang Shaoyan looked at Mo Xing's departing figure with some apology and a bit of helplessness, hesitating whether he should chase after him.
But soon, Hua Qing stepped forward: "Princess, this humble general requests to spar with you."
Seeing that Elder Xin had followed, Shang Shaoyan secretly breathed a sigh of relief and quickly agreed to Hua Qing's request: "General Hua, please—"
Hua Qing nodded, and then picked up a long whip.
A long whip?
Shang Shaoyan raised an eyebrow, indicating that he felt she had used brute force and wanted to see her true skills.
Seeing that Hua Qing was ready, Shang Shaoyan thought for a moment, then picked up a long whip and nodded to Hua Qing.
Hua Qing narrowed his eyes, then lashed out with his whip, moving closer to Shang Shaoyan as if trying to roll down the hair ornament she used to tie her ponytail.
Shang Shaoyan stood still, slightly turned her body to avoid the long whip, and then lashed out with the whip, instantly and accurately wrapping it around the handle of Hua Qing's long whip. With a forceful pull, the long whip in Hua Qing's hand fell into her hand.
Hua Qing stared at Shang Shaoyan in shock.
He had only watched Mo Xing and Shang Shaoyan spar and thought that Shang Shaoyan was using brute force. But now that he had personally gone up on stage, he realized how unfathomable Shang Shaoyan's strength was.
She probably... used less than 30% of her strength.
Her skills were equally astonishing. Hua Qing felt a sense of familiarity with them, stood there for a while, and then exclaimed in shock, "Is this the lost Shangjia whip technique?"
Shang Shaoyan raised an eyebrow, without denying it.
The soldiers below the stage immediately erupted in an uproar.
The merchants' various strategies are all top-notch. Just now, when they heard Mo Xing and Hua Qing call this young lady "county princess", they hadn't realized it yet, but now they all understood—she is a descendant of the Shang family!
Shang Shaoyan's eyes were clear and calm: "Shang Erniang, the 36th generation descendant of the Shang family, has been taught martial arts by her parents and grandfather since childhood. Three months ago, she replicated the Shang family whip technique and made a fool of herself."
Hua Qing was stunned for a moment, and then this nine-foot-tall man actually had tears in his eyes. He bowed deeply to Shang Shaoyan: "The county princess has truly mastered the military strategy of the Shang family. If the old Duke and his wife knew this in the afterlife, they would surely be greatly comforted."
Shang Shaoyan didn't speak, but bowed to him with his hands clasped in greeting.
The soldiers watching were all taken aback.
This is the daughter of two generals and a successor of the Shang family's military strategy. Although she is still young, she is already no less capable than the two deceased generals.
Shang Shaoyan spoke up again at this moment. Her voice was neither loud nor soft, but in the quiet of the room, everyone could hear her clearly: "I was busy with trivial matters in Shengjing last year and was unable to come here. However, I sent a lot of weapons and military pay to the Northwest, all for the purpose of protecting the Shang family army for my parents and protecting the Northwest for the Southern Chen."
She paused for a moment, then said, “I know that I am weak and alone and cannot restore the glory of the Northwest, which has been forgotten by His Majesty, on my own. But in the days to come, I will stay in the Northwest and fight against the barbarians and guard the border with you all until the Northwest no longer needs me.”
Her eyes and brows were full of spirit and vigor, which stirred the hearts of all the soldiers.
They lost General Shang and General Cheng, but now they have a new leader and a new faith.
Shang Shaoyan bowed to everyone, then nimbly jumped off the training ground and returned to his tent.
Inside the tent, the four were discussing something, and when Shang Shaoyan entered, they all sighed.
Shang Shaoyan raised an eyebrow and asked, "Why are you sighing? I haven't let my parents down, have I?"
Yu Tan laughed and said, "It's not just not embarrassing, it's incredibly impressive! The student has surpassed the teacher, Your Highness, this humble general is completely defeated!"
The other two generals laughed, but Old Master Xin stared intently at Shang Shaoyan, his eyes filled with scrutiny.
Shang Shaoyan glanced back calmly, his eyes clear.
Old Master Xin seemed to have thought of something, so he stood up and said meaningfully to Shang Shaoyan, "Princess, may I have a word with you in private?"
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