"Did Yan Liqiang really say that?"
In the imperial garden of the Imperial Palace in the capital city, the Emperor, who had just finished dinner, looked at Eunuch Liu and asked in surprise.
At this moment, night had just fallen and the Imperial Garden was quiet. However, under the illumination of the palace lanterns, one could still see the brilliant colors of the Imperial Garden. Several eunuchs were standing dozens of feet away to guard it, so it was difficult for even a mosquito to fly in, let alone a person.
Eunuch Liu bowed his head and walked behind the Emperor. "I didn't expect him to make such a request. It was a bit unexpected. To be honest, I was a little touched when I heard it just now. In the past few years in the Imperial Capital, I have seen many people who came to the Imperial Capital to get promoted and make money and abandon their wives and children. But I have never seen a person like Li Qiang. Some people, as long as they are given a small official position, who will still remember their parents at home!"
"What about his training in the Deer Park? What did he say..." His Majesty the Emperor asked as they walked.
"He said that he had received the true teachings from Li Hongtu and Ji Xiaoyao, and that he would not give up halfway even if he returned to Ganzhou. Moreover, he could continue to serve His Majesty even in Ganzhou..."
His Majesty the Emperor frowned slightly, "Why do I feel that he is a little too eager to return to Ganzhou this time? It is a little beyond my expectation. Just because of a competition, he is going to give up everything in the Imperial Capital and go home to take care of his father?"
"I heard that Yan Liqiang has been dependent on his father since he was a child, which is different from ordinary people. Perhaps it is true that their father is kind and the son is filial. His father is very important to him, which makes him feel difficult to let go and worried. He can only choose to be loyal to the emperor first and then return home to be filial. Otherwise, if he wins this competition, he will be valued by the emperor and have a bright future in the imperial capital. Why should he give up? He is willing to participate in the blind competition, which means that he is not afraid of death and Lin Qingtian. For such a person, what else can make him retreat in the imperial capital..."
"Yes, what you said makes sense. Since he is not afraid of death and offending Lin Qingtian, I really can't think of anything else he has to be afraid of in the Imperial Capital that can scare him back to Ganzhou!" His Majesty the Emperor nodded slowly, and his brows relaxed.
"Your Majesty, this... I have something to say, but I don't know if I should say it or not?" Eunuch Liu raised his eyes, glanced at the man in the dragon robe in front of him, and then spoke cautiously.
"There are only you and me here, you can say whatever you want..."
"This... Yan Liqiang is only fifteen years old now. As long as he is given time, he will have a bright future and will be of great use. His current archery skills are naturally far superior to those of ordinary people. But if he were to compete blindly with Shi Minzhang, Shi Minzhang is a well-known archery master in Imperial Capital City. His archery skills have long been at the fifth level, and now he is probably even higher. Even if Yan Liqiang has divine power, the chances of him winning against Shi Minzhang are only fifty-fifty, or even lower, and he may not necessarily have the advantage. This is also the reason why Lin Qingtian and his party dared to push Shi Minzhang out. If something really happens to him in the blind competition, wouldn't it be a pity?"
His Majesty the Emperor glanced at Eunuch Liu, which startled him slightly and made him lower his head again.
His Majesty the Emperor raised his eyes and looked at the stars appearing in the sky. There was a strange look on his face, and he said calmly, "If he is the person I want, then he will never die at the hands of Shi Minzhang in this competition. On the contrary, if he can't even pass this level, it proves that I have misjudged him, and he may not be able to be of great use in the future!"
"Then... Your Majesty wants me to reply this time when I go back?"
His Majesty the Emperor just walked in the Imperial Garden without saying anything for a long time. Eunuch Liu followed him and did not dare to say anything more.
After two minutes, when he came to the pine trees in the imperial garden, the emperor slowed down his pace and gently stroked the straight and thick trunk of a pine tree. His face, which had been pondering, also showed a hint of determination. "You are right about what you said just now. Yan Liqiang is still young and needs experience. As long as he is given time, he will have a promising future and will be of great use. Putting him in the muddy water of the Imperial Capital at his age will be a bit restrictive and make him unable to move freely. Perhaps letting him return to Ganzhou can show his ability. I also want to see what he can do after leaving the Imperial Capital. Tell him when you go back that if he can win this blind competition, I will allow him to return to Ganzhou and entrust him with important tasks..."
"Yes, I understand. I will go back and tell him..."
After receiving the emperor's reply, Eunuch Liu quickly left the Imperial Garden, the Imperial Palace, and returned to the Deer Park...
After Liu Gonggong left, the Emperor walked alone in the Imperial Garden with his hands behind his back. No one talked about his feelings and ambitions. Only when the stars rose and the moon was shining, did the Emperor raise his head, look at the stars in the sky, and mutter to himself, "I wonder if you can be my Di Longtu and Zigan?"
…
Yan Liqiang certainly didn't know what the Emperor was thinking in the palace. Yan Liqiang thought that the Emperor asked him to fight as a token of his loyalty, but what he didn't know was that the Emperor actually had another purpose in mind - to prove that he was the person the Emperor expected...
…
Yan Liqiang received a reply from Eunuch Liu that evening, and he felt relieved.
Returning to Ganzhou was not a sudden decision for Yan Liqiang, but he had been thinking about it for the past two days. Ever since he learned about the situation that the Han Empire might face in four years in the Heavenly Dao Divine Realm and discovered that Lin Qingtian might know about the heavenly tribulation, Yan Liqiang had been thinking about this issue. Especially after he learned that the Seven Sandy Tribes would turn their butcher knives towards the Han Empire in four years and bloodbathed Ganzhou and Pingxi County, Yan Liqiang's mood has never been calm. Those familiar faces, the faces of his friends and relatives, flashed in his mind from time to time. The light of the Shatu people's scimitars made those faces pale one by one...
Previously, Yan Liqiang thought that he only needed to face the catastrophe four years later and remind as many people as possible to leave the capital when the catastrophe came. But now it seems that the situation that the Han Empire will face after the catastrophe is the most serious. The situation of the Han Empire will change completely in four years, so Yan Liqiang must also make corresponding preparations, at least he can't watch the most tragic scene happen in his hometown...
(End of this chapter)