An army commander
Luo Qingzhou was slightly startled, and bowed his head and answered respectfully: "I am just a scholar, how dare I speak rashly of an army commander. What I just said was just a casual remark, Your Highness, don't take it seriously."
There was a brief silence in the room.
Nangong Huoyue picked up the pen, dipped it in ink, and continued to write with her head down, her figure still calm and peaceful: "Mr. Luo, you dare not answer the question of the commander of an army, so I will ask my own question. Mr. Luo, do you think that a princess like me who has my own fiefdom, nearly 100,000 soldiers, and is second only to the emperor and above ten thousand people, should I do as that sentence says and stay contented, or should I, as Mr. Luo just said, have ideals and be motivated and continue to work hard?"
As soon as these words came out.
Miss Qin Er, who was grinding ink, suddenly felt the ink block in her hand tremble.
Luo Qingzhou's heart skipped a beat. He raised his head and looked through the beaded curtain at the red shadow in front of the long table. His face changed and he lowered his head and said, "Your Highness, I am just a scholar..."
"Then 'Song of Water Melody', was it written by you?"
Before he could finish, Nangong Huoyue suddenly asked.
Luo Qingzhou was silent for a moment, then admitted, "Your Highness is wise."
I can continue to use excuses to conceal other poems, but there is no need to conceal the poems written on the painting boat that night.
Because at that time, Mr. Tang had already seen who did it.
Moreover, on the way here, the girl named Yuewu beside him had already reminded him.
The eldest princess should have found out long ago.
Therefore, if you continue to refuse to admit it, you will only bring trouble upon yourself.
"That song has been crushed into dust, but the fragrance remains the same?"
Nangong Huoyue asked again.
Luo Qingzhou felt the gaze of the girl Yuewu next to him looking at him, and bowed his head respectfully and said: "It was also done by me."
Nangong Huoyue continued to write with his head down, saying calmly: "I heard that this poem "Ode to Plum Blossoms" has spread all over Kyoto, and is praised by Kyoto literati as the best poem about plum blossoms. It is said that it was spread by a woman named Su Qingwan. Do you know her?"
Luo Qingzhou said respectfully: "I have met Miss Su once."
Nangong Huoyue turned her head, looked at him through the beaded curtain and said, "You saw it once, and you just picked out this masterpiece of plum blossom poetry? Mr. Luo, this poem should be written by you specifically for someone, right? Falling into mud and turning into dust, only the fragrance remains the same... Such a beautiful poem, I'm afraid there is only one person in the Qin family who is worthy of it, right?"
Qin Weimo was grinding ink with his head down, his white fingers clenched the ink block in his hand, and his facial expression could not be seen clearly.
Luo Qingzhou lowered his head and said, "I just did it casually."
"Just do it casually?"
Nangong Huoyue smiled faintly, retracted her gaze, and looked at the weak girl beside her: "What a casual move. Mr. Luo, I like the talent of the second young lady of your Qin Mansion very much, so I really want to take her away. Are you willing?"
Luo Qingzhou said respectfully: "The Second Miss is ill and weak, I'm afraid she can't serve His Highness."
Nangong Huoyue looked at him and asked, "Is Mr. Luo in poor health?"
Luo Qingzhou lowered his head and remained silent.
Nangong Huoyue retracted her gaze, picked up the rice paper on the table, looked at the words on it and said, "I like this "Three Kingdoms Story" very much, and I like the person who can write this story even more. Mr. Luo, I will give you two choices now. First, I will take Miss Qin away and raise her in Huoyue Country to serve me. Second, if you can write another story that satisfies me, I will pretend that nothing happened. Whoever deceived me before, I will not pursue it anymore."
Luo Qingzhou lowered his head and remained silent.
Nangong Huoyue looked at the story on the rice paper and said calmly, "This "Three Kingdoms Story" is very exciting. Miss Qin Er wrote this story for me, and I didn't take advantage of her. I already know what happened in your Qin family last night. I usually don't interfere in these things, but this time, I made an exception and helped you. I helped you keep an eye on the most dangerous people, and the rest of them can only be dealt with by yourselves."
Luo Qingzhou's heart moved, and he thought of the silver-armored soldiers he had just seen outside. He hesitated for a moment and asked, "Does Your Highness know about the traitors who escaped from the Song family?"
Nangong Huoyue put down the rice paper in her hand, picked up the pen again, and said: "I am not interested in knowing. Moreover, my status is special, and I will never interfere in the case of treason. There are government offices here, and the government offices are connected to the court in Kyoto. Young Master Luo should go to them."
Luo Qingzhou frowned and said nothing more.
The case of treason is certainly not something that a feudal lord who leads troops abroad and possesses great power can interfere with.
Nangong Huoyue lowered her head and wrote a few more lines, then ordered, "Yuewu, light the incense. I need to hear his affirmative choice within one stick of incense."
"Yes, Your Highness!"
Yuewu immediately went outside, brought in a stick of incense and lit it.
The room became quiet.
Miss Qin Er had a calm expression, still kneeling here, holding the ink block in her bare hands, quietly grinding the ink.
Nangong Huoyue was copying the story on the rice paper while looking at it.
The burning incense turns into smoke and birds rise up.
Luo Qingzhou lowered his head and stood outside the bead curtain. He was silent for a moment before he spoke: "Your Highness, I can't think of any story at the moment."
As soon as these words were spoken, the hands that were grinding ink suddenly stopped.
But he suddenly said, "However, I have a military book here, I wonder if Your Highness needs it?"
"A military book?"
As soon as these words came out, Nangong Huoyue suddenly stopped writing, turned her head and looked at him and said, "I had memorized all the military books of the Great Yan Empire by heart before I was thirteen. I have also read the military books of the Baihua Kingdom, Dali Kingdom and other countries."
Luo Qingzhou bowed and said, "This military book of mine is called Thirty-Six Strategies. Your Highness, have you ever read it?"
"Thirty-six Stratagems?"
Nangong Huoyue frowned and said, "I haven't heard of the name. Since there are thirty-six strategies, you can tell me the first one and I will listen."
Luo Qingzhou pondered for a moment and said respectfully: "These thirty-six strategies can be summarized in one poem. The golden and jade Tan Gong strategy, use it to capture robbers, fish and snakes laugh in the sea, sheep and tigers are separated by peach and mulberry trees, the tree is dark and the fool runs away, the cauldron is empty and the distant guest is suffering, there is a beautiful corpse on the roof beam, attack Wei and attack Guo... The first strategy is the first word of this poem, gold, and it is called the golden cicada escaping from its shell."
"Escape?"
Nangong Huoyue put down her pen, sat up straight, and seemed to be interested: "Go on."
Luo Qingzhou lowered his head and said, "The cicada sheds its shell, which means that when a cicada turns into an adult, it sheds its shell. It is a metaphor for escaping by trickery so that the opponent cannot find out in time. Wen is to preserve its form and complete its momentum; friends will not be suspicious, enemies will not move, and Xun will stop the poison."
"It means to preserve the original shape of the position, creating the impression that you are still defending the position, so that friendly forces will not be suspicious and the enemy will not dare to attack rashly. When the enemy is confused, suddenly and secretly transfer the main force without anyone noticing."
Hearing this, Nangong Huoyue's eyes lit up.
"Your Highness, in the fifth episode of "The Story of the Three Kingdoms" written by Miss Qin Er, there is a similar strategy in which a forged imperial edict is issued to all the garrisons to respond to Cao Gong, and the three heroes who broke through the pass fight against Lu Bu."
"Sun Jian was being chased by Hua Xiong. He took off his hat and asked his subordinate Zu Mao to put it on him. Then they fled in two different directions. Hua Xiong saw the hat and chased after him..."
Luo Qingzhou bowed his head and spoke slowly outside the bead curtain.
Nangong Huoyue's beautiful eyes burned as she listened, and she gradually held her breath.
Luo Qingzhou finished telling a story about the Three Kingdoms and then about the Warring States, both of which were strategies to "escape".
After he finished telling the three stories of "Escape from the Shell", Nangong Huoyue's beautiful eyes were bright and she was still not satisfied: "The plan is good, and the story is even better! What a great Thirty-Six Stratagems, Escape from the Shell!"
Reminisce for a moment.
She suddenly said, "Mr. Luo, come in and talk."
Yuewu and the others outside the curtain were startled when they heard this, and then they all looked at the young scholar at the door with complicated eyes.
His Highness has attached so much importance to the first plan alone. There are still 35 plans left, and there may even be more...
I'm afraid Your Highness will...
"Mr. Luo, come in quickly."
Seeing him standing there motionless, Yuewu quickly reminded him in a low voice.
Luo Qingzhou then lowered his head, pushed aside the bead curtain, looked at the ground, walked in, and stood not far away.
Nangong Huoyue looked him up and down with her beautiful eyes before asking impatiently, "Why is the second plan a jade character?"
Luo Qingzhou replied respectfully: "Throwing out a brick to attract jade."