Fan Xian's heart was hairy, but his face was full of respect. He lowered his eyelids, avoiding the gaze from the young emperor, but he was too embarrassed to look at the empress dowager next to him, and the two old skins of the grand tutor and the prime minister opposite. His face was also meaningless, so his eyes naturally fell on the table next to Tai Tuo.
The table was empty, and I don't know which adult it was, but it didn't come at this time. Just as he was thinking about it, a person came over from behind the pillar beside the Long Palace Pool, saluted the Queen Mother and the Emperor in the hall, and then sat down at the table naturally.
This man was dressed in black clothes, with a slender figure and full of power, but his eyes were as calm as an ancient well, bottomless, and the strangest thing was that he had a chain wrapped around his waist, and he went up to the hall with two machetes. This guy is so brave!
Fan Xian gasped, tilted his head and asked Lin Jing, "Who is this person? He can sit at the head of the Taifu and bring a knife into the palace. I think he is an extraordinary person."
Lin Jing introduced in a low voice: "This is the first disciple of the national teacher Kuhe, Mr. Langtao, the commander of the Imperial Army in the palace. However, I heard that in recent years, he is mainly responsible for the emperor's martial arts practice, and he doesn't manage affairs much."
Fan Xian groaned, as if he had just realized, and said with a touch of shock: "So this is Miss Haitang's senior brother, no wonder the status is so detached."
At this time, Langtao's two quiet eyes with deep meaning had already cast on Fan Xian's face.
Fan Xian smiled, raised the wine glass in his hand as a gesture of goodwill, and waved a greeting to Langtao. With his lips slightly parted, he said two words silently: "Hello."
Langtao frowned slightly, not knowing what he was thinking, after hesitating for a moment, he finally raised the cup in his hand, Yaoyao and Fan Xian had a drink.
Lin Jing whispered next to Fan Xian, "My lord, this person really should pay him back, but it's a pity that he's leaving for the country the day after tomorrow, and I just met him for the first time today."
Fan Xian had a look of pity on his face, but he was thinking in his heart, wondering if Langtao would recognize him. He was thinking on this side, and Langtao was also wondering on the other side. Seeing that the young official from the Qing Kingdom had such a natural look on his face, he didn't look like a fake at all. Could it be that Chong Chong's guess made sense, the man in black on the edge of the cliff? Is it Chen Pingping's shadow guard, not Fan Tisi who is opposite
Fan Xian felt calm, scanned all the tables in the hall, and asked, "Why didn't you see Mr. Shen?"
Lin Jing replied: "Although Zhong Chong is the commander of the Zhenfu Division, his rank is not high enough to enter the palace, not to mention the Empress Dowager's birthday today, he must be in charge of guarding matters in Shangjing."
Fan Xian nodded and said nothing more. After a while, the rituals and music in the palace gradually began. The sound of silk and bamboo plays a brilliant feeling, there are dancers dancing in the court, and the clear light appears on the top. The birthday party has officially begun.
First, the emperor held a cup to celebrate the Queen Mother's birthday, and then the courtiers knelt down one by one to pray for the Queen Mother's birthday. Fan Xian, as a courtier from a foreign country, sat in the first place, and Lin Jing secretly told him what to do, so it passed smoothly. This level.
The wine, fruit and vegetables were served in the hands of beautiful maids, quietly but gracefully placed on each table. Whenever a court lady came to serve, Fan Xian would always turn his body slightly and smile to indicate that this fell on the table. In the eyes of the officials of the Northern Qi Dynasty, it was unavoidable that there was some pretentiousness, but there were also some people who would feel more delighted the more they watched, and felt that this leader of the younger generation was really extraordinary.
Fan Xian, however, looked at those gentle maids with willow eyebrows, and felt very uneasy. The young emperor stayed with these beautiful girls every day, but he didn't turn into a licentious boy. There was indeed something wrong with this matter.
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Although the Empress Dowager's birthday banquet is not an ordinary old lady's birthday, the difference is actually not that big. It's just that the guests who come here are of a higher class, and the food and drinks used are of a higher level. Naturally, the sideshow after the meal also seems... a headache To put it bluntly, this is definitely not the program that Mrs. Li in the west of Erdaohe Village, Daqingshan, Tieling, could have imagined when she celebrated her fiftieth birthday.
Fan Xian rubbed his temples, with a gentle smile on his face, but he was already scolding his mother in his heart.
Gentle girls now like to call themselves old ladies to play bold, rude men now like to play disgustingly with a shy smile, butchers who kill pigs like to eat vegetables from their neighbors, old mothers who wear a flower on their heads and can’t get married like to go around as matchmakers . This person likes to get close to the things he is least good at, and he likes to do the things he is worst at. According to psychology, what you lack will be emphasized subconsciously.
Therefore, the Qing Kingdom, which has always been famous for its martial arts, is now under the leadership of His Majesty, and has begun to walk on the road of Wenzhi. It is obvious that the military generals and martial arts masters in Kyoto have popularized the so-called poetry club. The imperial concubine Shugui loves literature, so Being favored, the second prince studied the scriptures deeply and won the hearts of the people, until Fan Xian, a generation of poets, was born, which immediately attracted the attention and admiration of all scholars.
But the Northern Qi Dynasty, which has always been the center of the world's literature, is now striving to become stronger. It is not popular to recite poems and fight against each other. Instead, it likes to play duels. Therefore, small scimitars were thrown all over the gate of the Nanqing mission, and Northern Qi masters who wanted to compete with Fan Xian could line up from the gate of the mission all the way to the valley of Yanshan.
Fan Xian stayed behind closed doors and traveled with Begonia, finally avoiding the tragic fate of fighting in the arena every day. Unexpectedly, before returning to China, he couldn't escape in this hall.
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…
"Lord Fan, what do you think of this proposal?" The queen mother smiled, and cast her eyes on the table where Fan Xian was sitting. Although she was asking a question, her tone was beyond doubt.
Fan Xian shuddered slightly. A general in the Northern Qi Dynasty proposed a martial arts competition earlier. Although it sounded good, it was just a competition of martial arts, but everyone knew that the officials of the Northern Qi Dynasty knew that there was no way to win the so-called generation of poets above literature. She was about to humiliate herself, and the queen mother didn't know why, she seemed to dislike herself very much.
He stood up, scanned the hall with his eyes, and suddenly said with a smile: "Old Queen Mother, foreign ministers have no strength to restrain chickens, so let's get rid of it."
The hall laughed loudly. No one would believe Fan Xian's words. Fan Xian's deeds of killing Cheng Jushu and beating Ye Ling with black fists have already spread all over the world. He is recognized as a rare man with both civil and military skills. An envoy from the Southern Kingdom is so timid.
The queen mother said calmly, "Master Fan is too modest." She said a few more words, but she did not allow Fan Xian to refuse.
Fan Xian's eyelids twitched, and he thought, no wonder in the time-travel novels I read in my previous life, all the time-travelers upheld the glorious tradition of Lord Wei, and referred to all the queen mothers as "old bitch"—if I let him now, I really lost the face of the court, and it's really hard to explain to my father and the old cripple when I go back to the south. I don't know what kind of dirty rumors will be played by Xinyang.
So he took half a step back with a smile and bowed his hands in response.
The empress dowager's eyes brightened slightly, but the emperor who was sitting next to the empress looked worried, and asked with concern: "Fan Qing, if you feel unwell, you can avoid it."
Although Fan Xian had only chatted with the emperor a few times, and he had a grudge in his heart for a long time, but when he heard the genuine concern in his words, and thought that the other party was a ninety-five supreme being after all, he couldn't help being touched, so he raised his head and said loudly: " Your Majesty, even if blood is splashed in front of the hall by the foreign ministers, it should be treated as blood fireworks for the Empress Dowager's birthday celebration."
These nondescript words violated etiquette, and immediately spoiled the atmosphere. Sure enough, the Empress Dowager's face darkened. The emperor, however, smiled and thought it was very interesting. This Fan Xian was indeed a eccentric character who was gentle on the outside but stubborn on the inside and refused to suffer. He waved his hand and said, "That's enough to say. Since it's a competition, it's natural to go to the end. .”
The emperor's eyes turned cold, and he looked at the officials in the palace and said: "If anyone thinks he can't control the strength of his shots, then he should not come out to make a fool of himself." These words blocked the shots of those who were about to play accidental injuries.
The hearts of the ministers froze, and they found that the young emperor had matured so quickly in these years that it was a bit surprising. Why are you so kind to Fan Xian? Is this our emperor, or the emperor of Qing Kingdom
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When the words fell, a military general came from outside the hall, bowed to the queen mother and the emperor, and said in a deep voice: "I, Cheng Puzhu, would like to ask Lord Fan of the Qing Kingdom for advice."
The Queen Mother nodded slightly. The emperor knew Cheng Puzhu's level, and the other party was Langtao's nephew, who was considered to be a student of the Tianyi faction, and now he was serving in the Forbidden Army in the palace, probably because he heard the order from Shangfeng, so he came to compete. The emperor knew from Haitang's mouth that Fan Xian was already a master of the ninth rank, but Cheng Puzhu was only at the seventh rank. Why... The emperor glanced at Langtao, his martial arts master, but found that Langtao was sitting on the table, There was no reaction on the face.
Cheng Puzhu bowed to Fan Xian again, and said in a deep voice, "Master Fan is well-versed in both literature and martial arts, and his reputation spreads all over the world. Cheng Puzhu asks Master Fan for guidance."
Fan Xian smiled, and glanced at Langtao, knowing that today's competition in the palace was not for the sake of being competitive, but that Langtao wanted to see his own attacking style before he returned to China. Having never made a move in front of everyone, Langtao must still have doubts about what happened on the edge of the cliff.
He cupped his hands towards Cheng Puzhu and said, "Master Cheng?"
Cheng Puzhu replied in a deep voice: "Exactly."
Fan Xian said, "You are not my opponent." Then he sat down.
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…
The officials were in an uproar, thinking that this Fan Xian was too arrogant. Just as I was thinking about it, I heard a steady voice: "Master Cheng, please give me advice."
Cheng Puzhu was angry, but he saw the guard behind Fan Xian took a step forward and stood in front of him. At this time, the skylight hit down from the glass on the roof of the hall, and scattered a clear light. The hall was extremely bright, so it was very clear to see the infinite killing intent contained in the guard's simple face.
Just one step, Gundam just took a step forward, but his whole person has undergone tremendous changes. Before, he was just an inconspicuous guard, hiding in Fan Xian's figure, but now he was stepping out, but he had a faint guru demeanor. At this time, there was no wind in the hall, but the real energy flowing in Gao Da's body made his clothes flutter slightly.
Fan Xian took advantage of the cover of the desk to sit on the ground in half, with two fingers holding the small wine glass, his eyes slightly narrowed, and he watched the expression of Langtao opposite him from the corner of his eye.
Wolf Tao didn't seem to be very interested in the affairs between the venues, and was holding the dishes on the plate with chopsticks in his hand. But Fan Xian's eyes were sharp, and he still saw his chin slightly nodding, which... was an expression of agreement.
Cheng Puzhu took a deep breath and looked at the Gundam in front of him. Everyone in Shangjing knew that the other party was an expert guard of the Southern Dynasty Mission. He once restrained General Tan Wu under General Uesugi in one move. He was a real expert!
But things have been like this, there is no room for Cheng Puzhu to back down, only to see him shout: "Please allow me to use a knife, Your Majesty!"
Although the young emperor admired Fan Xian, he was not a fool after all. Of course he knew that he was the emperor of the Northern Qi Dynasty, and he also admired the courage and power of this general. , this time is purely a martial arts competition, don't regard him as the face of the imperial court, regardless of victory or defeat, I will reward you."
The empress dowager, the protagonist of the birthday banquet, glanced at her son with disapproval in her eyes, but the young emperor smiled and didn't seem to see his mother's eyes.
The two brothers Lin Wen and Lin Jing were extremely nervous, thinking that they were about to leave for the country soon, why did they have such a fuss in the palace again? If one side wins, the people of Northern Qi will lose face, which is not good; if the other side wins, it will be even worse for the Qing Dynasty to lose face! However, the officials of the Qing Kingdom have cultivated a natural ruthlessness over the past few decades. Seeing the opponent's provocation, even the civil servants were really angry, and said to Gao Da: "Guard Gao, stop at the end, don't win too hard. gone."
Never fought, but won first. Fan Xian glanced at the two deputy envoys beside him, smiled wryly, and thought that these two were more arrogant than himself, so he turned to the emperor on the dragon chair and said, "Your Majesty, please allow the subordinates of the foreign ministers to send swords into the palace." temple."
The emperor looked at him with a smile and waved his hand.
The outside of the hall had known that there would be a martial arts competition in the main hall, and today it was the Empress Dowager's birthday banquet, so the palace was relaxed, and His Majesty also nodded, so all the courtiers who were eating in the side hall rushed to the entrance of the hall, Cast eager eyes on the field.
The little eunuch took the long knife used by Gundam from the corner gate of the palace, handed it to the eunuch in front of the palace, and passed it into the palace. Fan Xian saw Wang Qinian looking ghostly at the entrance of the main hall, and couldn't help but shudder, thinking that the old Wang might have itchy hands, and wanted to resume his old job of touching things in the palace
Back to this side, Gao Da held the handle of the long knife with both hands, and his mental state suddenly entered a very wonderful state. The previous power is gone, the sense of oppression is gone, and the rest of the field... seems to be only a knife. Even if one person has one knife, in the eyes of bystanders, there is still only one knife.
Langtao paused, looked at the unique long knife in Gao Da's hand, and frowned slightly as he thought of something.
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Cheng Puzhu stood opposite Gundam, looked at the opponent who was standing steadily, put aside all distracting thoughts in his mind, took a breath, and slowly pulled out the scimitar in the sheath, the blade rubbed against the mouth of the sheath, sending out a burst of life A metallic sound that oozes blood.
Gundam still didn't move, holding the long knife in both hands, and leaned a few inches to the right.
Cheng Puzhu slowly mobilized his true energy and poured it into his wrist, feeling that his forearm seemed to have cooperated with the scimitar, so he raised the blade slightly. He is Langtao's nephew, a member of the Kuhe faction, although he is only at the seventh rank, he has the self-confidence bestowed by his master. The other party can be arrogant, but he will not.
The light of the knife blooms like snow!
The distance of more than ten feet, between the two masters, seemed to disappear in an instant, as if it did not exist! The next moment, Cheng Puzhu had already appeared in front of Gundam, and the distance between the two was extremely close, as if face to face, body to body!
And the snow-like light of the knife came from Cheng Puzhu's hand, the scimitar was hanging upside down strangely, he held the scimitar high, but the tip of the knife pierced Gundam's left shoulder!
The distance between the two is too close, even Cheng Puzhu can only hang the scimitar upside down, using this very insidious and unpredictable way to stab, not to mention Gao Da holding the long knife in both hands, it is impossible to get out of the sheath at this time Opportunity, even if the long knife is out of its sheath, there is no way to play a role in such a short distance.
Cheng Puzhu really deserved to be an extraordinary teacher, in a short period of time, relying on his judgment on the opponent's weapons, he made a plan to control the enemy.
The officials were slightly startled, as if they were about to see Gao Gao's shoulder bleeding.
Fan Xian frowned slightly, as if he hadn't thought that Cheng Puzhu's attack was as swift and thunderous as wind and thunder.
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…
Heck! An extremely unpleasant voice sounded. Immediately afterwards, after a cracking sound, there was another muffled sound. The next moment, the Empress Dowager and the Emperor outside the palace peeped at the ministers, and they all watched in surprise as a figure was blown away!
Cheng Puzhu fell heavily to the ground, his face was covered with blood, and he looked seriously injured!
Everyone thought that Gundam sent Cheng Puzhu flying out with his true energy, and they couldn't help being shocked. Apart from the four great masters, maybe only a few top-ranking experts of the ninth rank can fly a seventh-rank master with only true energy, and Gundam... is just a guard of the Nanqing Mission!
Only those martial arts masters in the arena can clearly see what happened. When Cheng Puzhu's scimitar stabbed down, Gao Da didn't draw the knife, but held the long knife in both hands and lifted it up!
The handle of the long knife is about an inch in size, and the handle with such a small area actually matched the tip of Cheng Puzhu's machete!
The long knife in Gao Da's hand was as tall as a person. When he raised the knife and stood it upright, the scabbard stood firmly on the ground.
So when the machete stabbed the handle of the knife, it meant that Pu Zhu's whole body's true energy and aura were transmitted to the bluestone floor under his feet with the long knife in Gao Da's hand as a bridge. Gundam was standing on the sidelines, watching Cheng Puzhu's long-prepared blow, which made a head-on collision with the ground.
In the future, the soil will be thick, so what if you are a great master
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At that moment, Cheng Puzhu felt an extremely powerful force coming back from the tip of the knife, which made him suffocate for a while.
And at this moment, Gao Da raised his sword and clasped his fists, his arms seemed to hold a circle, he turned to the left, and the steel-like elbow of his right hand hit Cheng Puzhu's chin hard, how powerful this blow was, Immediately, the opponent's teeth fell off and his lip was cleft, and blood flowed horizontally. It's up to Gundam to be merciful, otherwise Cheng Puzhu will die with just one blow.
Rather than saying that Cheng Puzhu was defeated by Gundam, it is better to say that he was defeated by Dadi.
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A eunuch helped Cheng Puzhu back down for treatment, Gao Dao calmly bowed to His Majesty and the Queen Mother, drew out his long knife, and slowly retreated behind Fan Xian. With a chuckle, at this time, the bluestone slab in the previous battle ground cracked inch by inch. It was only then that the officials in the palace realized that the unsheathed long knife was actually stabbed by Cheng Puzhu's scimitar and smashed into the bluestone slab. What kind of power is this
Knowing that Gundam is a trick, the officials talked a lot, but they couldn't say much.
Fan Xian looked at the expressions of the officials of the Northern Qi Dynasty, and smiled a little self-confidently. In the eyes of everyone, this smile is a bit hateful. Fan Xian handed the wine glass he drank to behind him.
Da Da was slightly taken aback, took the wine glass and drank it down in one gulp: "Thank you for the wine, thank you for your guidance." I don't know what Fan Xian once taught him.
Fan Xian smiled and said, "It should be given by the Empress Dowager Xie..."
Before he finished speaking, he found that the hall suddenly became quiet, including the courtiers and eunuchs outside the hall, because... Lang Tao had spoken.
Langtao looked at Fan Xian with a smile, and said, "Master Fan's small tricks really deserve their reputation. Unexpectedly, even Your Excellency's guards are well aware of this." After saying this, he stood up and gently untied himself. He handed over the coat to the maid behind him, revealing the two machetes connected together at his waist.
There was a hum in the hall!
Lord Wolf Peach is about to make a move! Lang Tao is the first disciple of the national teacher, His Majesty's martial arts teacher, and the officials in the capital have not seen him make a move for many years, so they did not expect to make an exception for the people of Nanqing today.
The officials cast their scorching eyes on Langtao, but because of the special status of the other party, they dare not say anything more.
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Before Langtao came out, Fan Xian had already laughed, and waved his hands and said, "I'm not your opponent." Earlier he denounced Cheng Puzhu as not his opponent, but now he admits that he is not his opponent, and falls to the people of Northern Qi In the ears, it is a bit open and aboveboard.
But Langtao smiled and said: "Whether you are an opponent or not, you have to fight to know."
Fan Xian's heart trembled slightly, and he knew that if he really fought against this master, first, if he didn't use the dark crossbow, poison needle, aphrodisiac and poison powder, he would definitely not be the opponent's three-in-one enemy; second, if the opponent really confirmed I am the person on the edge of the cliff, judging from Ku He's infinite cover-up for the temple, I am afraid that I will end up being chased and killed.
He frowned, but he also knew that personally challenging as Langtao had given enough face to the people of Nanqing, and it was impossible for him to let Gundam play again. Just as his heart was getting tougher, when he was about to make a move, he heard a voice: "Brother, let me do it."
Fan Xian was happy, very happy.
The Northern Qi people were also happy, and the people who watched the excitement were even happier.
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Haitang slowly walked out from behind the queen mother, and said to Langtao with a slight blessing: "Senior brother, I'm coming."
Seeing that it was her, Langtao revealed a gentle expression, and said, "That's fine, Junior Sister...just be careful of Master Fan's... methods."
Haitang bowed to the queen mother and the emperor, walked up to Fan Xian without saying anything, and said with a smile, "Will you come?"
"Come on, why don't you come?" The two of them didn't feel that the conversation was like children playing house.
Of course, the Northern Qi people on the inner and outer three floors surrounding the main hall didn't notice it, and even the officials of the Nanqing Mission didn't notice it. More than victory or defeat, more than the face of the two countries, I just want to watch what happens later.
One is Nanqing Shixian, who is both civil and military, and Fan Xian who became the chief inspector of the Overwatch Council when he was less than twenty years old.
One is the Northern Qi Tiannv, the youngest Ninth-Rank Master after Ku He, the legendary Tianmai Master, and Hai Tang who is considered the most likely to become the fifth Grand Master.
Both of them are the most famous young people in the world today. There are rumors in the market that these two people once traveled around in the capital, and it seems that they cherish each other. This also proves that the two are indeed on the same level characters.
The two finally meet.
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After an unknown amount of time, Wang Qinian, who was guarding the entrance of the main hall, yawned, looked at the two young men and women fighting in the hall, and muttered, "Who are you lying to?"
An eunuch beside him said indignantly: "You actually faked fighting in the martial arts competition in front of the palace! Girl Haitang, how can you bear to let us spectators down?"
Wang Qinian said angrily: "The money from you spectators will be confiscated. Naturally, you are not serious about acting. So what about fake beatings? Just based on their identities, His Majesty the Emperor might be too embarrassed to crack down on fake beatings."