Chapter 202: Fang Xinyu's Return
Niu Wancai and Li Haolu led the team slowly towards Xi'an, while Zhao Xiaofei was meeting with representatives or leaders of major sects in Wudang Mountain.
They all saw the strength of the Kenan Army and the incompetence of the Chuang Army. Now they knew that the Chuang bandits' capture of the capital was an accident, and the Ming Dynasty was only temporarily resting. When the Ming Dynasty recovered, these bandits would be destroyed by the court.
So, everyone acted extremely submissive, saying they would be loyal to the court. Only Nun Miejue had a bad look on her face. She knew that she had mistrusted others and nearly put the prince to death. She wondered how the court would punish the Emei Sect!
Zhao Xiaofei walked up to Nun Miejue and said, "Nun! You are indeed wrong, but if you spare my life, we will let this matter go!"
When Zhao Xiaofei said this, Nun Miejue finally breathed a sigh of relief. If the imperial court took this to heart, their sect might be in danger of extermination. After hearing this, the other sects also felt that the Emei sect had narrowly escaped death. Fortunately, the prince did not take it to heart. It seemed that there was still hope for them to follow the imperial court.
"However, the previous title and the Dragon Slaying Sword will be taken back, and the Dragon Slaying Sword will be handed over to the Wudang Sect. Do you have any objection?" Zhao Xiaofei asked.
"No objection! Thank you, Your Highness, for your magnanimity!" Nun Miejue said with a salute.
"Also, the emperor needs a young girl who knows martial arts to teach him sword. The one who performed on the stage last time, yes, is the first one who brought all the first martial arts swords! The emperor has taken a liking to her and hopes that she can come to the palace to teach him. Can you, nun, give her up?" asked Zhao Xiaofei.
When Zhao Xiaofei said this, not only Nun Miejue, but also all the leaders of the various sects present thought that it was you, Your Highness, who had fallen for the girl. How could the Emperor be interested in her? Besides, the princess was right beside them! If you didn't take the photo, would the princess make you kneel on the washboard when you got home that night?
Seeing everyone's eyes, Zhao Xiaofei said, "Don't think that I, Zhao, have taken a fancy to this girl. The emperor came to Wudang Mountain in plain clothes and carefully selected her from many sects! Li Zichu! Please let the emperor in!"
Boom! Everyone was stunned. What? The Emperor personally came to Wudang Mountain to watch the martial arts conference? Impossible! The Emperor was only eleven or twelve years old. How could he have the guts to come to the front lines?
Just as everyone was discussing this, a eunuch's cry stopped everyone's discussion. "The Emperor has arrived!"
Everyone stood up and knelt, answering in unison: We greet the emperor, long live the emperor!
Zhu Cijiong, wearing a red pleated dragon robe and a veil on his head, but without a dragon crown, walked in with a brisk pace. His first words were, "You are all children of the Jianghu. Don't fall into the trap of following the customary rules just because I am the emperor! I grant you the freedom to kneel before me!"
Zhu Cijiong's words immediately gained the favor of these Jianghu people. Everyone bowed and thanked the emperor for his grace, then stood up. Now everyone knew that what the prince said was true. No wonder the princess didn't get angry when she wanted to kill Nun Miejue's female disciple! It turned out that she really was going to teach the emperor how to practice swordsmanship! I wonder if the emperor would be interested in his female disciple. If not, let her teach him the skills of close combat. I guess the emperor will like it.
When Nun Miejue saw that the Emperor really liked her, she breathed a sigh of relief. If the Prince really wanted this, would she give it to him or not? If she did, the other sects would say that the Emei Sect was offering a beautiful woman to seduce the Prince in order to protect itself. That would ruin their reputation! But if the Emperor went on an incognito visit and wanted to learn martial arts, and the Emei Sect sent someone to the palace to teach, that would be a different matter.
Haha! What's the difference? Anyway, Zhu Cijiong has nothing good to say! He just fell in love with the girl's beauty. If you send her to the palace, you're just walking into a tiger's mouth! Don't look at Zhu Cijiong's young age, but he has a lot of lust! He didn't grow up long enough to find beautiful women for himself.
Nun Miejue then said, "It is an honor for our sect to be able to teach martial arts to His Majesty. That girl is one of my disciples who is quite good at martial arts! Her name is Lu Ling!"
"Okay! Let her enter the palace!" Zhu Cijiong was very happy.
Nun Miejue was also very happy. With what she said just now, she gained both the inside and the outside. No one would say that their sect was sending women away for glory.
The martial arts conference concluded successfully, and everyone returned home. Zhao Xiaofei was also about to return to Nanjing with the emperor and the two princesses. They first arrived in Jingzhou—yes! The same Jingzhou where Guan Yu's carelessness had lost him! They sailed south along the river. Zhao Xiaofei and Princess Kunxing disembarked in Hankou, leaving Li Zichu to take Princess Zhaoren and the emperor back to Nanjing. He secretly told Li Zichu that if the emperor didn't return, he would be taken back, even if he had to be tied up. "I'll take care of anything that happens to you!"
So Li Zichu took the emperor and Princess Zhaoren back to Nanjing first, while Zhao Xiaofei and Princess Kunxing went to Wuchang and Hankou together to inspect the river defense work, and finally arrived at Huangshi County, where He Tengjiao was also summoned.
"Sir He, your recent work on the river defense has been quite good! The city walls have been reinforced, and the troops are fully staffed! I have no problem guarding the Yangtze River," Zhao Xiaofei said with a smile. As for He Tengjiao, Zhao Xiaofei was quite satisfied with his work. He never neglected his duties and worked wholeheartedly.
"Thank you for your praise, Your Highness! These should all be done by me! Your Highness's contribution is the greatest. This time, the recovery of the entire Huguang territory was all thanks to Your Highness's superb military strategy and strategic planning!" He Tengjiao also began to flatter him.
"No, this time it was the Emperor himself who commanded the army! This time, I had the Emperor personally lead the army to overcome difficulties. Your Majesty is wise, and our Ming Dynasty has hope for revival!" Zhao Xiaofei said. He said this because of Princess Kunxing's idea. Because their contributions were so great, he was afraid that if the court ran out of rewards, they would probably kill them. So, taking advantage of the Emperor's trip, he pushed all the credit onto Zhu Cijiong.
"Yes, yes, yes! Our emperor is gifted and intelligent, a rare wise ruler!" He Tengjiao immediately agreed.
"Have you found the person I asked you to inquire about before?" Zhao Xiaofei asked.
"I and the Embroidered Uniform Guard have searched for him! I heard that there is a man who looks very much like General Fang near Jiugong Mountain! I was just about to send someone to check it out!" said He Tengjiao.
"Oh! Then I will wait for news here in Huangshi! Please send someone to pick him up quickly!" Zhao Xiaofei immediately became excited when he heard that Fang Xinyu's whereabouts were known.
He Tengjiao saw that the prince valued military power over civil service. If he wanted to advance further, he would need to work harder on military affairs. So, He Tengjiao smiled and said, "I'll do it right away! Please rest well, Prince and Princess, in Huangshi and wait for good news!"
"Okay! Go!" said Zhao Xiaofei.
Fang Xinyu has finally recovered. Under Xilian's careful care, he has recovered well. Fang Xinyu has also trained the Miao soldiers according to Xilian's requirements. Since Fang Xinyu's guidance, Xilian's stronghold has become a dominant force in Jiugong Mountain!
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