Chapter 47 Twins

"Don't take it lightly." Ming Huazhang seemed to sense what they were thinking, and said lightly, "From the moment you chose this path, you have gone against the light and upright. Once you reveal your whereabouts and cause the mission to be exposed in advance, you will send your comrades who carry out the order to death. Even if the mission is fortunately successful, you will be questioned by Xuanxiaowei when you return. It doesn't matter if you die, but what about your family?"

This finally silenced everyone. Han Jie saw the serious atmosphere and said with a smile: "General, they have just arrived and are still a group of new birds. We need to train them slowly in the future. Don't scare them. I know that you are all from noble families and have been raised with benevolence, righteousness, courtesy, and trustworthiness, but from now on, you must first correct one concept."

"Hiding the truth and lying to those around you is not a sign of distrust, but a sign of responsibility. To disregard the lives of others for one's own integrity is a sign of loyalty. To be willing to be misunderstood, misinterpreted, or even insulted for the sake of one's beliefs is a sign of true loyalty to one's country and family."

After Han Jie finished speaking, he glanced at the young people sitting below him and sighed sincerely: "You are all talents that I have discovered personally. I hope that one day, I can see you grow up to become the pillars of the country."

Ming Huachang was frowning in his heart, Ming Huazhang was playing the bad guy and Han Jie was playing the good guy. After this barrage of attacks, if they were still dissatisfied, they would be considered as people without sense of justice and integrity.

Ren Yao still felt like she was being fooled. She asked, "So, you asked me to leave Shendu just as a test?"

"Of course not." Han Jie said, "Xuan Xiaowei is not so idle. The excuses for leaving the capital were carefully arranged by Xuan Xiaowei according to your own situations. You have a second identity when you join Xuan Xiaowei, but you must continue to play your roles well and not attract anyone's attention. It is best to look ordinary and have no characteristics on the surface. The reason for you to leave the capital is false, but your whereabouts are real. Afterwards, someone will help you create fake traces in Chang'an and send the news back to the capital on time."

Han Jie looked at Ren Yao and said, "For example, Miss Ren. Today, a woman from Luoyang will join a martial arts school. She stays at home and rarely goes out, obsessed with practicing martial arts. This news will be passed on to the old lady of Pingnan Marquis by Xuan Xiaowei. As for how to cover up the lie in front of the old lady in the future, it's up to you."

Ming Huashang understood that there would be one more woman practicing martial arts in Luoyang, and one more female priest in Deye Temple, but those two people were not Ren Yao and Ming Huashang. As for Jiang Ling... He was sent to Xuanxiao Guard by his father, and Jiang Anhou must have known about it and would pretend to be deaf and dumb, or even take the initiative to help Jiang Ling cover up his tracks.

Ming Huashang couldn't help but say, "This is too troublesome."

Han Jie actually nodded and said, "Yes, the excuse I prepared for you is the most complicated. Deye Temple has close ties with the capital, and it took a lot of manpower just to help you get out of this situation. It's really difficult for a young lady like you who comes from a wealthy family and is doted on by your parents to disappear without anyone noticing."

Ming Huazhang replied coldly, "Normally, people like this wouldn't be so desperate as to join Xuanxiaowei."

Ming Huashang suddenly became hoarse and lowered her head silently, pretending to be deaf. She didn't want to do that either. If she was the real daughter of the Ming family, she would be crazy to give up her comfortable life and run out to suffer and take risks.

Jiang Ling counted on his fingers and said, "In order to train the three of us rookies, we have to send three veterans to play us, and there are more people spreading false information behind the scenes. This is not a good calculation."

"So, you must demonstrate abilities far beyond those of ordinary spies to make this worthwhile." Han Jie glanced at the young people below and said with a smile, "I believe you will not let me down."

Ming Huashang didn't dare to look up, and pouted quietly. It seemed that she was going to disappoint Han Jie. She joined Xuanxiaowei just to make a living. Now that her highest goal in life had been achieved, it was impossible to work hard. She just had to draw some water and not get kicked out.

Han Jie didn't know what Ming Huachang was thinking at the moment. He was still immersed in beautiful expectations and said with a cheerful face, "In the last assessment, your performance far exceeded my expectations. I thought you were good enough to help the Zhonglang General and not cause trouble, but I didn't expect you to find out the truth independently. Therefore, Xuanxiaowei made an exception and hired the three of you together."

Ming Huashang raised her eyebrows and asked quietly, "So, only one person really passed each assessment?"

"It depends on your choice." Han Jie still had that good-tempered look, and answered patiently, "If you fight on your own and kill each other, then the final winner passes and will perform individual tasks in the future; if you choose to cooperate, once the mission fails, regardless of individual merits, you will all be eliminated. Only in very rare cases can newcomers complete the mission together, and everyone will advance together. In the subsequent training, the default is to be a group, and go on missions together in the future."

"Since the establishment of Xuanxiaowei, only three groups of newcomers have been promoted together." Han Jie pointed to the opposite side and said, "One group is your captain and Xie Jichuan, one group is a pair of siblings, and the remaining group is you three."

Han Jie stroked his beard and smiled slowly, "But the first two groups already had a deep friendship, but you three didn't know each other at all, but you were able to cooperate without reservation. You really have pure hearts."

Xie Jichuan tilted his head and kindly helped them translate: "General Han meant that you are the stupidest."

Ming Huashang opened her mouth, but was speechless.

"Don't be so blunt, it's offensive." Han Jie said with a smile, "You three are honest, but General Ming and Xie Jichuan are a little too suspicious, so it's a good opportunity to put you together to reconcile. From now on, the five of you will be a group, named Xuanwu."

Ming Huashang blinked, feeling an indescribable strangeness. Jiang Ling crossed the table and approached Ming Huashang, asking, "Is he calling us turtles?"

Jiang Ling's voice was not small. After he finished speaking, the whole room fell silent. Ming Huashang quietly glanced at the people above and glared at Jiang Ling: "I told you to read more books. The general is wishing us a long life."

Ren Yao turned around stiffly, trying to imagine that he had never met these two people before.

It's so embarrassing.

Han Jie couldn't hold back his smile anymore, and said, "Xuanwu is a tortoise-snake mythical beast, so it's not really a black turtle... But if you don't like it, you can change the name with another group."

"No need." Ming Huazhang raised his long and narrow palm and said lightly, "Xuanwu has a good meaning, so let's take this."

"Yes." Xie Jichuan said with a smile, "It's a very auspicious sign that you will live a long life in this industry."

Jiang Ling tried to express his dissatisfaction with being a black turtle, but Ming Huashang quickly stuffed a fruit into his mouth to stop him from talking. Han Jie's eyes twitched, but he still kept his composure and continued, "For safety reasons, each of you must give yourself a code name. When you communicate in Xuanxiaowei in the future, only use the code name, not your real name."

Ming Huazhang said, "Alright. Xie Jichuan and I already had code names. My name is Nan Dou and his is Wei Yue. Remember this. If you see Liu Xing Dou or Yan Zi in the future, it means this is a code left by one of us."

Jiang Ling exclaimed, "Your name is Wei Yue, why is your symbol a swallow, not a moon?"

Ming Huashang finally understood how others felt when they looked at her before. Jiang Ling's lack of culture was embarrassing. Ming Huashang reminded him quietly: "Xie's code name comes from the name of the star - Wei Su, Wei Yue Yan, so he painted a swallow."

Jiang Ling said "Oh", and it seemed that he didn't understand. Xie Jichuan smiled and looked at Ming Huashang: "Sister, you really understand me. Your second brother guessed wrong at first, thinking it meant 'the swallows in front of the hall of Wang and Xie in the old days'."

She actually surpassed Ming Huazhang? Before Ming Huachang could even feel flattered and surprised, Ming Huazhang interrupted her coldly: "You called me sister?"

Xie Jichuan glared at Ming Huazhang: "You are such a hypocrite, so boring."

Ming Huashang was embarrassed, but she quickly smiled and said, "It's okay, it's okay, Brother Xie, you can call me whatever you want. But the word "moon" is a bit too cold, as it means the season of autumn is coming and everything is withering.

Xie Jichuan raised his eyebrows, with a twinkle of smile in his eyes: "Sister Huachang really understands me. I even suspected that you were taken away by mistake, but you are actually my sister."

Ming Huashang was startled and could not control her expression. She almost thought Xie Jichuan knew something. A pen flew in the air. Xie Jichuan leaned over and held the pen with two fingers. He smiled and said, "Jingzhan, you are being unreasonable. You are not happy when I call you sister, and you are not happy when I call her by her name. Do you want to stop anyone who approaches your second mother?"

This incident attracted everyone's attention, and Ming Huashang was able to quickly adjust her facial expression and said with a smile: "It doesn't matter, we are teammates from now on, there is no need to pay attention to these false formalities. Besides, I am counting on Brother Xie to give me some advice. If Brother Xie doesn't mind, you can call me Shangshang just like Jiang Ling and Sister Ren."

Ming Huazhang's face was cold, and he said coldly: "No."

"Your sister has agreed, why do you care?" Xie Jichuan rolled his eyes at Ming Huazhang and looked at Ming Huashang with a smile, "Shangshang is really nice, can it be taken from Shangshang's Hua, Yunqihuang?"

Ming Huashang's eyes sparkled and she nodded repeatedly: "Thank you, brother, for your erudition. This is exactly the poem."

Han Jie couldn't bear to watch this, so he coughed and said, "You will eat and live together and see each other day and night in the future. There will be plenty of time to bond. Why don't you finish the business first?"

Ming Huashang responded quickly, lowered her head and thought of the name obediently. Ming Huazhang sat at the head of the table, narrowed his eyes, and looked at Xie Jichuan from the side.

Xie Jichuan noticed his gaze, blinked and smiled.

Finally, Ren Yao's code name was Qi Sha, and his secret code was a gun. Jiang Ling's code name was Jin Niu, and his secret code was a cow. The reason was simple: to gather wealth.

His aesthetic is still simple, straightforward and rich.

In the blink of an eye, only Ming Huashang was left. She thought Jiang Ling's naming idea was very good, so she said happily: "Then I will call you Shouxing."

The room fell into silence. Ming Huashang said, "Shou Xing is such a lucky name! Do you think it's not nice?"

Theoretically, Ming Huashang could call her whatever she wanted, but the rest of them couldn't say anything nice against their conscience. Ming Huashang saw the reluctance on their faces and said sympathetically, "Why not change it to Fuxing? Luxing?"

Han Jie began to doubt his judgment of people. He always felt that the people he picked up were not normal. Han Jie had other things to do and really didn't want to waste time with them. He said, "These names are all good, but I have a better one for you. You and General Zhonglang of Ming are a rare dragon and phoenix twin, and you both happen to be in the Xuanxiao Guard. It would be a pity to miss such a fate. I heard that General Zhonglang is known as the Jade Prince of the Ming Family. How about you two brothers and sisters be called Shuangbi?"

Ming Huashang thought this code name was good, noble, valuable, and nice to hear. Her eyes lit up, but when she saw Ming Huazhang, she paused: "But, my second brother already has a code name."

"Just change it." Han Jie looked at Ming Huazhang, "What do you think?"

A name is something external to one's body, let alone a code name. Ming Huazhang said, "I have no opinion. But will this expose me?"

There are very few twins in the capital, and they are the only one with both a boy and a girl. Once this code is leaked, it will be a fatal threat to Ming Huashang.

Han Jie smiled meaningfully: "When the fake becomes real, the real becomes fake, this is the cover-up."

Ming Huazhang thought about it and felt that what Han Jie said made sense. The most obvious thing was actually the safest, so he agreed. Han Jie breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Today is your first day here. Go check out the residence and get familiar with the road. We will start training tomorrow. Although you all have talents, you are still too immature. You will not be able to become useful without thinking. Any other questions?"

Han Jie said this purely out of politeness. He was ready to stand up, but he didn't expect someone to raise his hand. Han Jie looked over and asked with a smile, "What's wrong?"

Ming Huashang whispered, "It's not a big deal. It's just... I don't know how the monthly salary will be calculated?"

Han Jie really began to doubt his judgment of others this time. He took a deep breath and smiled, "Xuanxiao Guard also has official ranks and grades, and all treatment is the same as that of court officials. For example, you are now a regular ninth-rank official who has just joined Xuanxiao Guard. According to the rules, you are entitled to 55 dan of rice per year, 1,500 dan of monthly salary, 250 dan of food, 200 dan of sundries, 417 dan of guardhouse, 2 mu of official land, and two servants. If you do not need servants, you can return them in cash at 200 wen per person per month. In addition, the clothes for the four seasons and the diet for the solar terms will be based on the arrangements of the court that year. If you have made meritorious services, there will be additional rewards."

Han Jie finished a long paragraph in one breath, then looked at Ming Huashang with a smile: "Any other questions?"

Ming Huashang wrote quickly on the paper. She looked at the numbers on the paper with satisfaction, folded it up, and said, "It's all right. Thank you, General Han."

As expected, the imperial court was reliable. Her salary included rice and land, and all her food, clothing, housing, and transportation were covered. She was even given servants. Laba gave her porridge, ice in summer, and seasonal subsidies during festivals. Isn't this much more considerate than a man?

Please let her live this kind of life for the rest of her life.

Han Jie silently glanced at Ming Huashang, refrained from saying anything, and stood up, "Since there is nothing else, then you two can get acquainted first. I have other things to do, so I will leave first."

Ming Huashang said happily: "General, walk slowly, be careful of the slippery road!"

Jiang Ling looked at Ming Huashang's flattering look and couldn't understand: "This salary is not much money, it's probably not even as expensive as your clothes. Are you so happy?"

Ming Huashang rolled her eyes at him in annoyance: "I earned this myself, how can it be the same?"

Jiang Ling was speechless. Xie Jichuan walked to Ming Huashang and bent down to look at the words on her paper: "Sister Shangshang remembered it very carefully. She actually wrote it all down. I didn't expect that Shangshang is such an ambitious young lady. She doesn't need Ming Huashang to support her in the future."

"Thank Jichuan." Ming Huazhang also stood up calmly and looked at him expressionlessly. "For the sake of Han Jie, I don't want to be laughed at. I have tolerated you several times today. Why don't you stop?"

"Shangshang." Xie Jichuan pulled Ming Huashang's sleeve and said, "Look at your second brother's face. It's almost as if he wrote, 'Don't get close to my sister.' What are you doing with a knife? Do you think I'm afraid of you?"

Ming Huashang quickly stopped Ming Huazhang and said, "Second brother, second brother, thank you for joking. He is doing this for your own good."

Ming Huazhang was really fed up with Xie Jichuan, but Ming Huashang was always in front of him. He was afraid of hurting her, so he couldn't use any force, and was actually held back by Ming Huashang. Xie Jichuan was still madly courting death. He stood behind Ming Huashang with his sleeves folded, and chuckled fearlessly: "That's right. This is a matter between me and my sister Shangshang, what does it have to do with you?"

Ming Huashang got a headache when she heard Xie Jichuan's voice. She quickly hugged Ming Huazhang's arm and dragged him out forcefully: "Brother, I've been climbing the mountain road for a whole day. I'm tired! Can you take me to find a place to stay?"

Jiang Ling said "huh" in disgust and shook off the goose bumps on his body: "Have you and your brother always been getting along like this?"

Ren Yao actually thought it was a bit sweet, but when Jiang Ling said that, she objected. She glanced at Jiang Ling and said, "Why do you care about the affairs of siblings?"

Ming Huashang felt a little embarrassed. She didn't think it was a big deal when she acted coquettishly before, but now in front of so many people, she realized that she and Ming Huazhang were too close.

She still held Ming Huazhang's arm, not knowing whether to let go. Fortunately, Ming Huazhang was still as elegant as the wind and the moon, and he held Ming Huachang's hand without any concern and said, "I'll take you to rest."

Ming Huashang raised her eyes and saw Ming Huazhang's star-like eyes. Even if someone was making fun of him, he was still as deep as the abyss and as tall as the mountain. Other people's speculations instantly became filth and were not worthy of touching him at all.

Ming Huashang felt relieved and hummed softly, letting Ming Huazhang lead her out.

When they went out, they bumped into someone at the garden gate. Ming Huazhang and Ming Huashang walked inside, and the people inside were about to come out, also a man and a woman.

The boy sensed someone coming, and naturally reached out to protect the woman behind him: "Sister, be careful."

Ming Huashang raised her eyes subconsciously, and the two of them faced each other and their eyes met.

Ming Huashang's pupils suddenly shrank when she saw the girl being protected by the young man.

Su Yuji?

Ming Huashang stared at the other boy in a daze. This boy was not very old, and although his clothes were simple, they were very clean. He stood straight and had a handsome face. Standing in the shadow of the tree, he looked like a pine or cypress, with a cold and tough aura.

Ming Huashang knew who this was.

Nanny Su’s grandson, the real daughter’s relative in the farming family, and Ming Huashang’s biological brother—Su Xingzhi.