Chapter 55 Chinese Painting

Before daybreak, Ming Huachang was called up by Ming Huazhang as usual to go to the training ground for extra training. Her physical strength was still very poor, but compared to the first day when she was dizzy and breathless, it was much better.

Today they were learning archery. Ming Huashang tried her best to pull the bow into a crescent shape. Ming Huazhang watched from behind, sighed softly, and held her shoulders: "It's not like that."

He straightened her shoulders, held her waist, and said, "Keep your waist straight, but don't put too much strength on your waist, be careful not to hurt your spine. Use the strength of your back."

Ming Huashang couldn't tell the difference between waist strength and back strength, because she had no strength in either. Ming Huazhang was standing behind her, and a cool pine scent permeated her nose. His hands on her lower back were particularly strong. Even through her clothes, Ming Huashang could feel that his hands were slender, white, beautiful and powerful.

Ming Huashang's heart suddenly beat wildly. The bowstring at her fingertips loosened, and the arrow flew out with a buzzing sound and hit the target in Jiangling.

Jiang Ling put down his bow, looked at the target carefully, and gave Ming Huashang a thumbs up: "Good archery."

Ming Huachang pursed her lips, feeling angry and embarrassed. She had been shooting for so long and hadn't even hit the edge of her own target, but she accidentally shot Jiang Ling's bull's eye. How could this be justified! When the points were calculated later, wouldn't this arrow be counted in Jiang Ling's score?

Ming Huazhang saw Ming Huachang's frustration, but he did not guess that Ming Huachang was frustrated because Jiang Ling's score was about to surpass her. Ming Huazhang comforted her: "Don't worry, take your time."

Ming Huashang sighed and pulled the bowstring with great effort: "Archery is so difficult. I haven't hit a single arrow in such a long time. Oh, am I born with a missing string? Why can't I do anything right?"

Ming Huashang was just complaining casually. When she was in the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion, she complained to Zhaocai Jinbao every day that she was clumsy, could not play the piano well, could not do needlework correctly, and was only suitable for lying down.

But her complaints were limited to this, and she continued to do what she had to do. Unexpectedly, Ming Huazhang held her hand without thinking, and put his other hand around her shoulder to help her pull the bowstring, with a calm and serious attitude: "No, you just haven't mastered the trick."

A clear breath suddenly approached, like pine and cypress after snow, and Ming Huashang fell into the cold, light, yet inexplicably stable wood fragrance. Ming Huashang was stunned, completely losing control of his body, and his hand was passively pulled away by the bowstring.

Ming Huazhang held her hand, stretched his arms, and drew the bow into a full moon. Ming Huazhang was cautious of her and did not use all his strength. His posture seemed calm and at ease. His shoulders and arms formed a beautiful curve, but his posture was extremely stable, perfectly showing the boy's slender limbs, thin waist and abdomen, and broad frame.

Ming Huashang, who was trapped in his circle, looked particularly petite. She stood in front of Ming Huazhang in a daze. She could feel the power accumulated in the strings through the air, and her hair trembled slightly from the force.

Ming Huashang was stunned when she heard a faint breeze blowing past her ears: "Focus, look at the bull's eye."

His chest vibrated slightly when he spoke, and his voice sounded particularly deep and beautiful. This sentence seemed to have awakened a switch, and Ming Huashang suddenly felt a heat rushing to her head, steaming her face, but her body seemed to be broken and she was completely unable to move.

Ming Huazhang did not notice Ming Huashang's stiffness. He was much taller than her and could easily circle around her. Ming Huazhang even kept a distance on purpose and taught her archery in a gentlemanly manner, without any intention of taking advantage of her.

His openness made Ming Huachang feel even more ashamed. She forced herself to look at the arrow instead of paying attention to the steady and strong heartbeat behind her, the silent intrusion of temperature, and the fair and clear jaw in the afterglow.

Ming Huashang kept lecturing herself, wondering what she was thinking. This was her brother who grew up with her. Even if they were not related by blood, they were no different from siblings. How could she use such shallow and frivolous thoughts to defile her brother who was as handsome as the moon?

Forget it now, forget it now, don't blush anymore! If Ming Huazhang sees this, she'd better die.

Ming Huazhang explained the key points of archery in detail, and Ming Huachang responded incoherently, but in fact, she could not hear what Ming Huazhang was saying at all. The bowstring was stretched to the limit and then suddenly relaxed, making a buzzing sound in the air, and a stream of air hit their faces, curling up the ends of their hair.

Ming Huachang raised her eyes for some unknown reason and met Ming Huazhang's downcast eyes. His face was like jade, his eyes were dark, and his lips were slightly pursed, making him look even colder and more aloof.

Ming Huazhang looked at Ming Huachang's face and asked, "Do you really understand?"

Ming Huashang dared not say that she had not heard a word, and dodged and lowered her eyes. Ming Huazhang knew that she was distracted, so he pulled out another arrow from the quiver, put it on the string, and said sternly: "Come again."

Ming Huachang took it with a guilty conscience. Ming Huazhang had no intention of letting her go and continued to teach her archery. However, Ming Huachang seemed to be learning very slowly today. She shot more than ten arrows in a row but still looked distracted.

Minghua Zhang frowned, looking very serious: "What's wrong? Is there something on your mind?"

Ming Huachang's face suddenly felt like it was burning. She thought in despair that it was all over. Her face must have turned as red as a monkey's butt!

She didn't know that her face was only lightly powdered, like the glow of the rising sun, full of life and radiance. Her watery eyes were so charming that she seemed to be unable to express herself.

Ming Huashang thought that if he held her hand and taught her archery like this, she would probably never be able to learn it. But Ming Huashang couldn't say it out loud, otherwise it would seem like she was having improper thoughts about her brother.

Ming Huashang lowered her head and said, "I'm tired."

Tired so soon? Ming Huazhang stared at Ming Huachang suspiciously, but he didn't force her and let her rest.

After Ming Huashang was able to move freely, she immediately retreated to the side. The wind from the open space blew on her, blowing away Ming Huazhang's breath, and she finally felt that she could breathe.

Her movements were somewhat obvious, and Ming Huazhang, holding the bow, turned back to look at her in surprise. Ming Huachang was afraid that her brother would see that she had something to hide, so she turned around quickly and pretended to look to the side.

Ming Huazhang followed her gaze, his eyes slightly cold.

The person she was looking at was Su Xingzhi. Was she absent-minded just now because of Su Xingzhi?

Ming Huazhang was in a state of dread. Before he could say anything, someone approached from behind and stopped three steps away from him to greet him: "Hello, my dear. Can I have a word with you?"

Ming Huashang was startled and turned around quickly, looking at the person coming with caution. Ming Huazhang nodded calmly and said to Ming Huashang, "Practice archery first after you have rested. I will be back soon."

Ming Huashang agreed and watched Ming Huazhang walk away, worry in her eyes. Jiang Ling shot another arrow and said, "Don't look at me. Do you two breathe out of the same nostril? Being apart for a moment makes you feel like you are parting forever. It's disgusting."

Ming Huashang glared at him unhappily and said, "Go ahead and shoot your arrow!"

Ming Huazhang often disappeared suddenly. Ming Huashang didn't worry about it before, but Han Jie arranged a strange banquet yesterday and called Ming Huazhang away from the training ground today. She couldn't help but think about it.

Amid the greenery, Ming Huazhang pushed the door open calmly. He was not surprised to see Han Jie: "General Han."

Han Jie's face was cold and he didn't smile. He was quite polite to Ming Huazhang: "Now that you are here, please sit down first."

"Don't bother." Ming Huazhang didn't move, and asked, "Do you have the answer to yesterday's question?"

Han Jie raised his eyes and looked at Ming Huazhang expressionlessly. Ming Huazhang looked back indifferently. Han Jie smiled thinly and said, "Then we should sit down and talk. General Zhonglang, please."

Ming Huazhang did not insist this time, and walked into the inner room, lifted his coat and sat down. Han Jie calmly poured tea for the two of them, put down the teapot, and then spoke: "Your answer is correct."

Ming Huazhang raised his eyebrows slightly: "Oh?"

Han Jie rubbed his knees and sighed, "I have read all the analyses you submitted. I am very pleased. Although you insisted that it was Zhang San in class yesterday, most students did not change their answers and still maintained their original guesses. They have their own ideas, which is a good thing. Unfortunately, their ideas are wrong."

Ming Huazhang did not move, quietly waiting for Han Jie's next words. Han Jie smiled and said, "I sent people to chase Zhang San after class yesterday, and finally found him in Pingkangfang. Our people waited outside, intending to take the painting in the middle of the night, but at midnight, there was a sudden noise in the building, and our people rushed in during the chaos and found Zhang San dead."

Ming Huazhang asked: "What about the painting?"

"I don't know." Han Jie said, "This is the biggest problem. Zhang San's body fell in the brothel, and the cane was placed next to him. The hidden line was quietly opened, and the cane was indeed hollow inside, but the painting disappeared."

Ming Huazhang used a question, but his tone was very certain: "The painting was taken away by the murderer?"

"That's what I thought, too. The theft of the painting is closely related to the murderer," Han Jie said. "But the strange thing is that Zhang San didn't see anyone during that period. After he entered the brothel, he asked the courtesan to accompany him and went into the room to have fun. Our people were divided into two groups. One group stood guard outside the building, staring at the window, and the other group squatted in the hall, staring at Zhang San's door. Later, other guests also wanted to The courtesan was called, and the madam went to pick her up. Zhang San and the madam quarreled for a long time, and it was very ugly. The prostitutes in the building and our spies saw it clearly and were sure that it was Zhang San. After that, Zhang San was comforted and went back to his room to wait alone. The spies kept watching him to ensure that not a single fly flew in. But after the singing and dancing in the brothel stopped, the madam went to check the room and found that Zhang San was dead.

Ming Huazhang raised his eyebrows, finding the matter interesting: "You mean, Zhang San was alone in a closed room, no one entered, and he died?"

"Yes," Han Jie said, "Later, people from Jingzhao Prefecture came and found nothing suspicious, so they determined that he had committed suicide. If the painting he was carrying had not been lost, I would have thought it was suicide too."

Ming Huazhang ran his fingers along the edge of the teacup but did not drink. The mist blurred the outline of his fingers, which only looked startlingly white.

Ming Huazhang asked slowly: "So, you want me to find the murderer who killed Zhang San?"

"No." Han Jie said, "Although Zhang San's death was bizarre, how the murder took place in the secret room is actually irrelevant. What you are looking for is the painting."

Ming Huazhang pointed at the bottom of the painting and said, "What is in the painting? Who is Zhang San? Who is the painter? What do you want to do?"

Han Jie was silent. Ming Huazhang put down the teacup, and a soft sound came from the porcelain tray on the wooden table: "This mission will risk your life. If you don't explain clearly, I won't believe it. Which is more important, the painting or the secret? You decide for yourself."

Han Jie sighed, knowing that he could not fool Ming Huazhang, and that this step would have to happen sooner or later, so he said, "The painter, who is also the host of the banquet, is called Wei Tan. You may not remember this name, but you must have heard of his master - Yan Liben, Yan Sikong."

Ming Huazhang's pupils widened slightly: "Right Prime Minister Yan?"

"It's him," Han Jie said. "Yan Sikong was good at painting, but he was also good at drawing architectural drawings. Cuiwei Palace and Daci'en Temple were both designed by him, but the most famous one is Daming Palace."

The steam from the tea rose up, clouding the sight of the two people. Ming Huazhang's eyes seemed to be ambiguous: "Could the lost painting be the design drawing of Daming Palace?"

"Yes," Han Jie said, "During the reign of Emperor Gaozong, he ordered the reconstruction of Daming Palace and ordered Yan Sikong to design and build it. Later, the empress moved the capital, and Daming Palace was left idle after less than two years. In the blink of an eye, more than ten years passed, and the empress decided to move back to Chang'an. However, the main hall of Daming Palace, Hanyuan Hall, was struck by lightning a few days ago and urgently needed repairs. The empress was not very satisfied with the layout of Daming Palace and wanted to rest together. But Yan Sikong had passed away for more than ten years. He did not allow his descendants to learn painting and burned all the manuscripts about Daming Palace. No one in the Yan family could understand Daming Palace. There was only one disciple, Wei Tan, who followed Yan Sikong during the Longshuo years. He was the most likely and the only person capable of restoring Yan Sikong's design.

"After the Queen decided to move the capital in March, she sent someone back to Chang'an and ordered Wei Dan to redraw the blueprint. He worked on it for a month and finally finished it a few days ago. But he showed off the blueprint at a banquet, and then, as you know, Wei Dan was poisoned and the blueprint was stolen by Zhang San. Now Zhang San is also dead, and the whereabouts of the blueprint are completely unknown."

Han Jie didn't say it explicitly, but seeing that he was determined to find Yan Sikong to rebuild the Daming Palace, Ming Huazhang was very suspicious that there were some unknown secret passages in the Daming Palace, so he had to find the original designer. Ming Huazhang raised his eyebrows, knowingly did not ask any more questions, and said: "Yan Sikong has passed away for more than ten years, and things have changed a lot. Are you sure that as long as you find the blueprints, you can rebuild the palace?"

"What else?" Han Jie asked, "Yan Sikong is dead, his descendants no longer paint, and his only apprentice also died a violent death. Do you have any other options?"

Ming Huazhang was stumped by the question, but after thinking about it, it made sense. The designer was gone, but as long as there were drawings, the craftsmen could at least restore it by guessing. If there were no drawings, there would be no way to start.

Ming Huazhang asked: "What if we can't find it back?"

Han Jie looked at him with a half-smile: "That means that God does not agree with the Queen moving the capital back to Chang'an, so the matter has to be abandoned."

Ming Huazhang was immediately shocked when he heard this, and his body unconsciously straightened up. He didn't ask any more questions, and went straight to the point: "By when do you want to complete the task?"

"Of course the sooner the better." Han Jie said, "Let me remind you again, now is the beginning of summer, it is the best time to start construction. It will take at least four months to repair the Hanyuan Hall. It is already April now. If we can't let the world see the magnificent Daming Palace before August, then the relocation of the capital will not be possible this year."

The later we move the capital, the more trouble we will face. If we can’t find the blueprints soon, the project won’t be completed in August, and we won’t be able to move the capital this year. Who can guarantee what the Queen will think when we wait until next year?

Ming Huazhang's dark eyes were clear and firm, and he raised his hand to salute: "Nan Dou, I obey your orders. I will find the Daming Palace Map within ten days."

"Now we are in love." Han Jie finally smiled and asked curiously, "You don't ask about the reward after completing the task, or the punishment if you fail? Or do you think you are very confident in yourself and firmly believe that you will not fail?"

Ming Huazhang smiled softly: "On the contrary, I am not sure at all. After all, this mission is different from the past. The target is just a map. If it is burned, it is burned. I have no way to do anything."

"Then you still dare to answer it?"

"When faced with major issues, there is no need to worry about personal gains and losses."

Han Jie raised his eyebrows, saying meaningfully: "Right and wrong? What is 'right'?"

"Protect the country, be loyal to the emperor and defend the country, isn't that right?"

Han Jie smiled, patting his knees and nodding slowly: "That's right, no one in the world dares to deny this. Among more than 50 assignments, only seven people wrote that the murderer was Zhang San. Your group is unanimous. You don't have to go to class later. Hurry back and pack your bags. Go out to Chang'an to look for paintings before it gets dark. When you arrive in Chang'an, follow the old method to find the contact person, and they will tell you the details."

Ming Huazhang bowed, stood up and walked out. As soon as he turned around, Han Jie called him and said, "Call Qianshan by the way."

Well, now he can be sure that the other two are Su Xingzhi and Su Yuji. Ming Huazhang did not turn around and asked, "General Han, why are you sending two teams to one mission?"

"Old people are sentimental and worry about nothing. They are always like this." Han Jie said, "If you fail, you have to let me add a layer of insurance. Don't worry, they won't hinder you. If you meet them in Chang'an, you can cooperate openly."

Ming Huazhang didn't reply and walked away. Han Jie looked at the young man whose back couldn't hide his coldness and arrogance, took a sip of tea, and chuckled, "You are indeed a young man, but you are still too arrogant."

When Ming Huazhang heard that Han Jie had sent another team, whether for security or surveillance, he felt uncomfortable but could accept it. However, that person happened to be Su Xingzhi.

According to the rules of Xuanxiaowei, Han Jie only met Ming Huazhang and Su Xingzhi, which means that they were on parallel missions and there was no question of who was leading whom. When Ming Huazhang thought that someone would be watching him from behind when he went to Chang'an to find his target, the dissatisfaction in his heart was like a wildfire in the autumn wind, which became more and more intense.

Especially when Ming Huazhang returned to the training ground and found Ming Huashang talking to Su Xingzhi, the feeling of dissatisfaction almost reached its peak.