Because Li Hongtu had said that there was no need to show off his power in the next few days, after leaving Li Hongtu, Yan Liqiang went directly to the abode where Ji Xiaoyao lived and told Ji Xiaoyao that he was going to compete blindly in a few days.
Li Hongtu lived in a thatched cottage, Ji Xiaoyao lived in a secluded house…
Li Hongtu is sloppy, while Ji Xiaoyao is particular about everything...
One of them is well-fed and well-clothed, while the other is served by a personal servant...
After staying with Li Hongtu for a long time, every time he came to Ji Xiaoyao's side, Yan Liqiang could not help but compare his two masters in his mind. He felt that one of the two masters was just like a vagrant in the mountains, while the other was a young master from a wealthy family. He really didn't know how the two could have so many entanglements.
Although Yan Liqiang used the Mind Snake out of curiosity to find out some of the past between the two when he first obtained it, later on, out of respect for his two masters, when he was with these two masters, Yan Liqiang would not use the Mind Snake's ability on them, let alone use the Mind Snake to explore the two people's grudges and past.
Yan Liqiang did not see Ji Xiaoyao immediately when he arrived at the temple, because Ji Xiaoyao was still playing the piano in the bamboo forest. Ji Xiaoyao was very focused when playing the piano and did not like being disturbed the most, so Yan Liqiang waited in the pavilion of the temple.
While Yan Liqiang was waiting, the old servant Ji An brought him a cup of fragrant tea and retreated politely and silently, leaving Yan Liqiang in the pavilion to slowly sip the tea that might only be drunk in the imperial palace, and listen to the clanging sounds coming from the bamboo forest.
Finally, an hour passed, the teacup was empty, and the sound of the piano coming from the bamboo forest of the temple suddenly died down. A few minutes later, Ji Xiaoyao, dressed in a white robe and with an otherworldly aura, came to the pavilion where Yan Liqiang was.
"Yan Liqiang greets the Master!" Yan Liqiang stood up and bowed to Ji Xiaoyao respectfully, without any carelessness - this is also the difference between Ji Xiaoyao and Li Hongtu. As Yan Liqiang's master, Ji Xiaoyao pays special attention to these details.
"Well, I heard from Ji An that you had something to talk to me about!" Ji Xiaoyao sat down steadily in front of Yan Liqiang.
Ji An, who followed Ji Xiaoyao to the pavilion, took away the teacup that Yan Liqiang had drunk from on the table, replaced it with a new set of tea set, a tea stove and a pot of new tea, and then disappeared in front of Yan Liqiang like a shadow.
Seeing his master nodded, Yan Liqiang sat down opposite Ji Xiaoyao. Ji Xiaoyao's clothes were all scented. As soon as he sat down, Yan Liqiang could smell the faint scent of pine and wormwood on Ji Xiaoyao. Sitting in front of his master, Yan Liqiang even had a feeling that perhaps the word "male god" was created for people like Ji Xiaoyao.
"I have something to report to Master!" Yan Liqiang said as he poured a cup of tea for Ji Xiaoyao.
"What's the matter? Tell me!" Ji Xiaoyao nodded.
Afterwards, Yan Liqiang told Ji Xiaoyao the causes and consequences of the blind competition and his plan to return to Ganzhou after the blind competition.
When Yan Liqiang just started speaking, Ji Xiaoyao had already picked up the teacup and raised it to his lips. But as Yan Liqiang was speaking, his hand holding the teacup froze motionless. By the time Yan Liqiang finished speaking, the tea in the cup in his hand had lost its heat.
Looking at the cup of tea in his hand that was no longer warm, Ji Xiaoyao sighed softly, and with a turn of his hand, he poured the cold tea in the cup onto the ground, "I thought you could finish learning what I taught you here before leaving..."
"I am ashamed to disappoint my master..."
Ji Xiaoyao shook his head, "It's not your fault, it's just that the Imperial Capital is a big dye vat. Even if you hide in the Deer Garden, you can't avoid being stained by the color. Your choice is reasonable. Even if I were you, I would do the same. First participate in the blind competition, and then go home to accompany and take care of my father..." At this point, Ji Xiaoyao gently put the teacup in his hand on the stone table, "I have seen the Shi Minzhang you mentioned. This matter may have something to do with me. It's not entirely because of you..."
"Ah, Master, have you seen that Shi Minzhang?" Yan Liqiang looked at Ji Xiaoyao with some surprise.
"I have seen him. Two years ago, General Shi Tao of Anbei asked someone to let his son Shi Minzhang become my disciple and learn the way of archery from me. So I met Shi Minzhang once, but I didn't accept him as my disciple. You are in Luyuan now, and learning the way of archery from me is not a top secret. Shi Minzhang probably knows about it, so there may be another meaning behind his blind competition with you!"
Yan Liqiang suddenly realized that there was a reason why Shi Minzhang and he were against each other. "Then why didn't Master accept Shi Minzhang?"
"I have seen Shi Minzhang before. His eyes are like snakes, his nose is like an eagle, and his gaze is lustful and unrighteous. He must be a treacherous and cruel person. Even if I take my skills to my grave, I will never pass them on to such a person, so I declined at that time!"
"In that case, the Shi family father and son must be holding a grudge against you, Master!"
"Of course, but no matter how much they hate me, they can't do anything to me and dare not touch me!"
"Master, have you seen Shi Minzhang? How do you think his archery skills compare to mine?"
"The greatest power of the Archery is its long reach. If you really meet him on the battlefield, you can rely on your strong bow and strong arms. Even if Shi Minzhang's Archery skills are higher than yours, you can still kill him within ten arrows from a thousand meters away. No matter how high his Archery skills are, if he can't use the strong bow you can use, he is destined to be no match for you. But if it's a blind duel, within a hundred steps, your strengths and advantages cannot be fully utilized and you are restricted everywhere. He has advanced to the fifth level of Archery and his ability to hear the wind and judge the position is already much stronger than yours. He can fully develop in a blind duel. "He can make full use of his own advantages. For this reason alone, his chance of winning is more than 60%. In addition, the opponent is deliberate. He knows that you are learning Kyudo from me, but he still dares to compete with you blindly. This means that the opponent is well prepared and has been planning for a long time. His confidence in winning may be more than 60%, but more than 70%. The opponent may have a trump card and is very sure to kill you in a blind competition. This will not only eliminate future troubles, but also slap me in the face, and finally win a game in the contest with the emperor!" At the end, Ji Xiaoyao looked at Yan Liqiang with his eyes as sharp as lightning.
After listening to Ji Xiaoyao's analysis, Yan Liqiang felt a layer of cold sweat on his back. The upcoming blind competition was more dangerous than he expected. It was entirely possible that he had become a thorn in the eyes of the other party after the last three-court trial, so they wanted to take this opportunity to get rid of him...
(End of this chapter)