Zhao Chengxiao smiled and said, "I have known about this for a long time. I have already selected ten Japanese swords." Then he stood up and shouted outside the pavilion, "Bring them in so that the adults can have a look."
As soon as he finished speaking, someone responded and carried up the things that Zhao Chengxiao had packed and placed them on the stone table in the middle of the pavilion.
Qiu Yizhi looked carefully and saw that among the pile of things were ten Japanese swords and two sets of Japanese armor. So he picked up a Japanese sword, pulled it out and looked at it, then said angrily: "Brother Zhao, you are also an expert on weapons, how come this sword is made of ordinary steel? It can't be considered a good sword! Look at these two pieces of Japanese armor, they are made of bamboo strips, there is not even a pound of iron on them, wouldn't a strong bow and crossbow be able to penetrate them with one shot?"
Zhao Chengxiao scratched his head and smiled innocently: "Sir, this is what you don't understand. Didn't you say that these things are for Liu Jiedu to give as gifts? I think they are just right. You have never given gifts, so you don't understand the etiquette involved."
Zhao Chengxiao always obeyed Qiu Yizhi's words and never spoke to him like this, which made Qiu Yizhi feel uncomfortable. Just as he was about to say something angry, he saw Lin Shuhan beside him waving his folding fan and saying, "Sir, with your status, you have always received gifts from others. How can you understand the art of gift giving? Why don't you listen to what General Zhao has to say?"
Qiu Yizhi looked at the strange smile on Lin Shuhan's face, and asked patiently, "So Brother Zhao knows the etiquette of gift giving?"
Zhao Chengxiao smiled again, but said bluntly: "I do know a little bit. Your Excellency knows that I was a mountain king for a few years, and I always had to visit the surrounding mountain strongholds. It was a common occurrence for me to give gifts to them."
"Humph!" Qiu Yizi laughed disdainfully, "Confucius said, 'It is impolite to come without returning the favor, and it is also impolite to return the favor without coming back.' I didn't expect that you bandits would have such etiquette."
"Of course. If you grab something and don't share some with others, it will always make people jealous. Once people become jealous, they will try to bring bad luck upon you. Even if it's not an open challenge, they will trip you up today and hold you back tomorrow, which will annoy you to death."
Although Zhao Chengxiao's words were simple, they were also reasonable, which made Qiu Yizhi put away her contempt and listened to him continue: "So when it comes to gifts, the emphasis is not on practicality, but the more exotic and gorgeous the better. Take these knives and two sets of armor for example, although the blades are not the best and the armor is not the strongest, the good thing is that they have complete scabbards and handles, and the colors are bright, which is the best to display at home for appreciation."
"There must be people who know the business, right? If we let them figure out the trick, wouldn't it be a laughing stock?" Qiu Yizi asked again.
Zhao Chengxiao smiled and said, "Your Excellency is wrong again. How can you give gifts to an expert? Just like giving a gift to the great hero Yuchi in the capital, it would be best to give a few of Mr. Lin's handwriting; and giving a gift to Mr. Lin would be the best way to give a few exquisite knives for him to play with. If, on the other hand, you give a few knives to the hero Yuchi, firstly, Yuchi has his own weapons, and secondly, he must have many weapons at home, so giving a gift would be a burden, not to mention that if you give a bad gift, he, the expert, would see it and make a fool of himself."
When Zhao Chengxiao said this, Lin Shuhan also agreed, "General Zhao is right. If Lord Qiu wants to give me a gift in the future, please send me some light and delicate knives. Whether it's paper cutting or seal carving, they will always be useful to me. But don't just buy a few big characters on the street and send them to me, leaving me wondering whether to use them for burning or as table corner pads..." After saying that, he laughed out loud.
Although Qiu Yizi was ridiculed by Lin Shuhan, his words were very interesting and humorous, which made him laugh along.
After chatting and laughing for a while, Qiu Yizi saw that it was getting late, so he said, "Well, listening to Brother Zhao's words today is better than reading ten books. I see that Brother Zhao has been cleaning the battlefield, cleaning the bodies, and counting the property all night. I am afraid that he must be very tired. Now that the situation has settled down a little, Brother Zhao can go and have a rest. Put these things here first, no one dares to come to this military camp to steal, so please rest assured. When I am free in the next two days, I will give them to the Jiedushi Liu Qing."
Although Qiu Yizi said this, she didn't actually take the matter to heart.
In the next two days, he entrusted all military affairs to Zhao Chengxiao, but he did not think about meeting the governor Liu Qing. Instead, he mustered up the courage to invite Wen Lingjiao to visit Jinling City together.
Wen Lingjiao was not one of those shy ladies in the boudoir, and she had already fallen in love with Qiu Yizi, so she agreed without hesitation when he asked her to come. It was also a good opportunity to relieve the worries in her heart these days. However, her relationship with the maid He'er was over, so she did not bring her to serve her.
This was Qiu Yizhi's third visit to Jinling City, and he was already very familiar with the cultural relics and scenery in the city. So he took Wen Lingjiao to Qinhuai River, Confucius Temple, Yanziji, and then to Xinjiekou and Sanshankou, and told Wen Lingjiao about his experiences in these places.
Wen Lingjiao enjoyed the trip very much, and she became even more excited after listening to Qiu Yizi's vivid explanation. She put aside all her previous troubles and worries and enjoyed herself to the fullest in Jinling, the land of gold and powder of the Six Dynasties.
One day, the two were boating on Xuanwu Lake when they heard someone on an arch bridge on the shore shouting, "Master, come here quickly! Master, come here quickly!"
Qiu Yizi looked carefully and saw that it was Wang Laowu who came with the army.
Wang Laowu was in charge of delivering messages in the army, so Qiu Yizhi thought that he must be delivering a message of something urgent, so he rowed the boat to the bridge after much trouble, raised his head and said, "It's Laowu, why are you so anxious and shouting?"
Wang Laowu started to talk nonsense and said, "I know that you are having fun with Miss Wen, and it would be a big disappointment to disturb you at this time. But Zhao Touer insisted on asking me to come and call you... You also know that Zhao Tou is my direct superior, and he is very capable and should not be offended. That's why I came here to ruin your fun. If you want to blame someone, don't blame me!"
Qiu Yizhi was furious after hearing Wang Laowu's long and scattered speech without explaining the cause of the matter. She interrupted him and said, "Laowu, if you have something to say, please say it quickly. What did Zhao Chengxiao ask me to do?"
"Oh, actually it wasn't Tou Zhao who was looking for you. It was some Jiedu Liu who was looking for you. When he couldn't find you, he found Tou Zhao and asked Tou Zhao to look for you." Wang Laowu continued to ramble, "If you ask me, Tou Zhao is your subordinate and he only listens to you. Who the hell is this Jiedu Liu? How dare he order Tou Zhao to do something? Unexpectedly, Tou Zhao is good-tempered and agreed."
Qiu Yizhi listened to Wang Laowu's nonsense and understood the reason. He said, "Wang Laowu, don't talk nonsense. Liu Jiedu is a third-rank military commander and a great figure! But since Zhao Chengxiao asked you to come to me, did he tell me where he wanted me to go?"
"They said it, they said it. They said that Liu Jiedu is already waiting for you in Mr. Lin's manor, and with him came an imperial envoy from the capital who was delivering the imperial decree..." said Wang Laowu.
"What? Imperial envoy?" Qiu Yizi seemed a little surprised, and then complained, "Old Five, how come you don't know the priorities when you speak? It's such an important matter, why didn't you tell me earlier?"
As he spoke, Qiu Yizhi casually threw the boat rope to Wang Laowu and asked him to tow the boat to the shore. He then said to Wen Lingjiao on the boat, "Liu Qing called me, so I wouldn't bother with him. However, the imperial envoy who came to announce the emperor's decree cannot be neglected. It seems that the lady's interest will be disturbed today. How about making up for it later?"
Wen Lingjiao was not an unreasonable person. She smiled and nodded, saying, "My Lord, you are going to do some serious work. Please do as you please. I will naturally go home by myself."
Qiu Yizi felt relieved after hearing this. Coincidentally, Wang Laowu had already towed the cruise ship to the shore. She stepped onto the embankment, bowed to Wen Lingjiao, and followed Wang Laowu to Lin Shuhan's manor.
Wang Laowu was quick-witted and quick-footed. Qiu Yizi rode his Ferghana horse, which could travel a thousand miles a day, through the streets and alleys and arrived at the gate of Lin Shuhan's manor. Wang Laowu was not much slower. When Qiu Yizi reined in the horse, he had already reached out to take the reins, helped Qiu Yizi get off the horse, and led the horse to the stable to enjoy the hay.
Qiu Yizi was very familiar with Lin Shuhan's manor. She knew that since the man was an imperial envoy from the court, even if Lin Shuhan despised him in his heart, he would still open the courtyard to welcome him for her sake, and then she would walk along the mossy path all the way to the central hall.
Before he got close to the central hall, the butler of the manor came forward and said to Qiu Yizi, "Sir, my young master is already drinking tea with a few guests in the central hall, waiting for you to come over."
Qiu Yizi nodded and signaled the butler to lead the way.
However, when he approached the two-meter-high central hall, he did not hear any voices from inside. It seemed like an empty room. Qiu Yizhi felt strange and asked the housekeeper beside him, "Is Mr. Lin really in there?"
The housekeeper nodded and said, "My young master has a bad temper. Since he ordered me to do so, I dare not ask in detail. Is it true? If you go over and take a look, you will know that we have arrived, right?"
Qiu Yizhi thought it made sense, so he left the old housekeeper alone and walked slowly to the door of the hall. He looked inside and saw Lin Shuhan, Zhao Chengxiao, Liu Qing, and another person whose face was very familiar but he couldn't figure out who he was. The four of them were sitting in the hall drinking tea. These four people either bowed their heads and kept silent, or closed their eyes to rest, or concentrated on drinking tea, or shook their heads and pondered. No one spoke, making the whole hall as silent as a cemetery in the middle of the night.
Qiu Yizi found it funny, so he didn't report it loudly. He walked into the house, bowed to everyone, and said with a smile: "So there really is someone here. I heard that the room was so quiet, so I thought it was Mr. Lin's housekeeper who was lying to me!"
Lin Shuhan, Zhao Chengxiao, and Liu Qing did not answer, but the unfamiliar man stood up first, bowed to Qiu Yizi and said, "Your Highness Yi, don't you recognize me?"
Qiu Yizi was stunned when he heard this: since he called himself "Your Highness Yi", he must be from the old Youyan Dao without a doubt. It seems that most of the officers from the old Youyan Dao have been promoted since King Youyan ascended the throne. Presumably, the imperial envoy who came to convey the imperial edict must also be an old acquaintance from Youyan Dao.
So Qiu Yizhi calmed down, carefully identified the man's features, and suddenly laughed out loud: "Shi Wei, you, a pimp, when did you suddenly become an imperial envoy? But now things are different. I am just a small seventh-rank county magistrate, but I have to kowtow to you and pay my respects!" (To be continued)