Xue Huaiyi saw Princess Taiping and Shanghai Wan 'er leave and snorted heavily. He turned to look at Yang Fan and smiled. He had heard everything Yang Fan had said. Xue Huaiyi was a common man in the marketplace and was very particular about loyalty. Yang Fan's loyal reply was especially to his taste.
Xue Huaiyi patted Yang Fan's shoulder and said loudly, "Don't listen to that foxy woman's coaxing. You just need to do your job well. In the future, I will give you a great future!"
There were many palace maids and eunuchs present. Xue Huaiyi openly accused Princess Taiping of being a foxy woman. He was not afraid that his words would reach Princess Taiping's ears.
In fact, in Xue Huaiyi's heart, Princess Taiping was indeed a foxy woman. Every time he saw her, he could not help but feel restless.
If this kind of monster was not a foxy woman, then what was she?
After Princess Taiping and Shanghai Wan 'er left, they could not continue the competition. With the current physical condition of the monks of White Horse Temple, they could not continue the competition even if they wanted to. All the monks put on their robes and prepared to leave the palace.
As Xue Huaiyi led the group of monks out, he asked about the situation of the competition just now. Although Yang Fan was also annoyed that Ma Qiao had failed to live up to his expectations, if he allowed these monks to add oil to the fire and infuriate Xue Huaiyi, Ma Qiao would inevitably suffer again. Yang Fan hurriedly came over and said a few words before changing the topic. He grinned and said, "Abbot, if we can show our faces in the Upper Prime Tournament, what is the Abbot prepared to reward the disciples?"
This sentence was also what all the disciples wanted to know. Those who originally wanted to report Ma Qiao immediately shut their mouths and pricked up their ears to listen to Xue Huaiyi. Xue Huaiyi waved his hand and said, "If you can fight for the prestige of our White Horse Temple, each of you will be rewarded with 100,000 coins!"
All the monks heard this and immediately cheered. Xue Huaiyi glanced at Yang Fan and said, "As for you, White Horse Temple is qualified to enter the palace and compete because of you. I've said before that I'll give you a great future. What do you want? "
Yang Fan said, "This disciple … wants to join the army like Nineteenth Junior Brother!"
Xue Huaiyi was slightly startled. He was not lying when he said that he wanted to give Yang Fan a bright future. However, his original idea was to arrange for Yang Fan to be the master of a temple under the jurisdiction of the White Horse Temple. Or, he could turn him into a layman disciple of the White Horse Temple. Then, he could use his Great General title to request for him to be a nominal general. All in all, he did not want Yang Fan to leave his side.
The Lantern Festival was held every year. After next year, there would be another one. Once Yang Fan left, where could he find another outstanding person to lead the White Horse Temple in the competition?
Xue Huaiyi was a little displeased. "What? Seventeen, do you really want to leave me?"
Yang Fan quickly moved closer and whispered, "Abbot, if it weren't for you, this disciple and Eighteen would have fled to the ends of the earth. How could this disciple forget your kindness? If you say that this disciple is only interested in profit, I should also understand that I can only rely on you to enjoy the shade. Don't you think so? "
Xue Huaiyi's expression softened a little. "Then why did you …"
Yang Fan revealed a slightly bitter expression. "Abbot, this disciple just doesn't want to be a monk. In fact, no matter where I go, won't I still be your disciple? Moreover, if I enter the Imperial Army and make a name for myself, it won't do you any harm. Think about it, you have the Empress's trust. Although no one dares to disobey you, you can't always trouble the Empress for everything, right? If Abbot has his own strength in all aspects, especially in the army, then Abbot, you are like a big tree with deep roots. No matter how the wind blows in all directions, no matter how hard it blows, Abbot will not be shaken in the slightest. The Empress … is old after all … "
Xue Huaiyi was enlightened. He slowly nodded and said, "Yes! That makes sense! Good, since you have this intention, I will send you and Yashuang to the Imperial Army after this year's Upper Prime! "
Yang Fan hurriedly thanked him. "Thank you, Abbot!"
When Yang Fan learned that Chu Tiange's biggest wish was to return to the Imperial Army, and this request was also agreed by Xue Huaiyi, he had the idea of joining the Imperial Army. However, he never found a chance to ask. Now that Xue Huaiyi and Princess Taiping had separated, it unexpectedly helped him.
Thinking back to the time when he had infiltrated the White Horse Temple while being hunted by the entire city, he had originally wanted to resolve the situation in front of him. He had not expected that through Xue Huaiyi, not only would he be able to see the Great Tang's Hidden Prime Minister Shangguan Wan 'er in the Imperial Palace, but he would also have a chance to get close to Qiu Shenji. This monk Xue was really his lucky star!
…
Although the White Horse Temple disciples were only defeated by one goal in a contest with the Imperial Cuju Master, they were very excited for a while. But after this battle, they still saw their shortcomings, even if they didn't admit it.
Since then, they trained even harder. Originally, Yang Fan was worried that these ruffians couldn't bear hardships, but he didn't expect that once their fighting spirit was aroused, they would be able to bear hardships far better than ordinary people.
It should be known that these ruffians became ruffians because their families were poor and they had no food or clothing to rely on. They had also suffered a lot in the past. Although they had become ruffians now, they still had the strength to bear hardships, but it was covered by their slippery appearance. Now that they had the fighting spirit and Xue Huaiyi's reward, how could they not go all out?
After two days, they went to the palace again and competed with the Imperial Cuju Team again. After coming back, they continued to work hard to improve their skills. Yang Fan was the main force of the team every time. He had fought with Xie Xiaoman from the Imperial Cuju Team more than once. Both of them had a deep impression of each other. Every time they met, they would fight like roosters, wanting to suppress each other.
Qiu Shenji had already sent a message that the Cuju Masters selected from the Imperial Guards would be assembled tomorrow. At that time, they would rush over and compete with the White Horse Temple disciples. So today, Yang Fan didn't give them too many training tasks. He simply moved their bodies, so as not to consume too much of their physical strength.
Maqiao had been sitting on the bench these days. Of course, he didn't participate in the competition. In all the daily activities of the White Horse Temple, he was naturally excluded. Imagine if you were in a group, but everyone treated you like air. No one would sit with you when you were eating. What would it feel like?
It wasn't easy to integrate into a circle, but it was easy to be excluded and isolated by a circle. One mistake was enough to get you beaten up by everyone. From a small family and a workshop to a large city and a country, it was the same. Maqiao sat alone under the shade of the locust tree. His chin rested on his knees. He looked at his companions on the court with a lonely face.
"That's it. Brother Chu, you should go back and rest. Tomorrow, it doesn't matter if we win or lose the game against the Imperial Guards. The key is to familiarize yourself with their playing style and learn their strengths. Only by competing with such a strong team can we improve ourselves."
"Well … okay. You should also rest early. Don't practice horsemanship tonight."
Chu Kuangge wanted to say something but stopped. In the end, he just nodded and said what Yang Fan wanted him to say. He then turned around and walked to the meditation room.
Chu Kuangge was naturally confident in his riding skills. After this period of hard training, Yang Fan's horsemanship had also improved by leaps and bounds. Coupled with his superb horsemanship skills, it was enough to make up for his inferior horsemanship compared to the top experts. Chu Kuangge believed that if there were two or three experts like him and Yang Fan in their team, they would be able to compete with the Imperial Guards.
However, such experts could only be found by chance. It was very difficult to win the intense polo game with just the two of them as the main force. Chu Kuangge was not confident in this. Moreover, this matter was related to whether he could return to the Imperial Guards, so he was under great psychological pressure.
However, even if he told Yang Fan about this, Yang Fan could do nothing about it. It would only add to his worries, so it was better not to say it. In fact, Yang Fan was also aware of Chu Kuangge's psychological pressure. To Xue Huaiyi, this game was just a matter of face. To the ruffians, it was just a hundred thousand yuan of wealth. To him and Chu Tiange, it was actually of great significance.
However, he also felt that there was no need to say this out loud. Therefore, he only silently looked at Chu Kuangge's heavy footsteps and did not say anything.
Seeing that Yang Fan was idle, Maqiao unconsciously straightened his body, as if he was afraid that Yang Fan would not see him. Due to the cold shoulder from everyone these days, he had been so embarrassed that he was depressed and did not dare to speak. He was even a little afraid to come into contact with Yang Fan. However, among everyone, he was the most friendly with Yang Fan. At this time, he was even more eager to get close to Yang Fan.
"Brother Qiao, come with me!"
As expected, Yang Fan walked over, but he only said one sentence before walking towards the backyard. Maqiao hurriedly got up, patted the dust off his butt, and followed behind him.
In the late autumn dusk, the pagoda forest was very quiet.
First-level pagoda, third-level pagoda, fifth-level pagoda, and seventh-level pagoda — from one to seven, they were built for the dead monks according to their status. It was as if pagoda after pagoda stood there quietly, forming a quiet forest of pagodas.
Yang Fan walked slowly through the pagoda forest. After walking for a while, he sat down on a seven-story pagoda pedestal covered in moss. He turned his head to look at Maqiao and patted the stone pedestal beside him. Maqiao understood and walked over, carefully sitting down next to him.
Yang Fan raised his face and looked at the dusky sky. After a while, he suddenly asked, "Brother Qiao, what do you think people live for?"
Maqiao was perturbed and did not know what topic to use to break this cold situation. Suddenly hearing him say this, he could not help but laugh, "No way, Xiao Fan, you have only been a monk for a few days and you are already learning from those old monks. Don't tell me you still want to be a real monk?"
Yang Fan stared at him seriously and said word by word, "This is not a trick. I just want to know, what do you live for?"
Maqiao was at a loss. After thinking carefully for a while, he mumbled, "Live … My parents gave birth to me, of course I have to live. If I live, then live well, be filial to my parents, marry a wife and have children, continue the family line. It should … should be like this. Otherwise … what else do you think I live for? "
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