Shangguan Yaohua coldly snorted and said, "I want the Afterimage Sword not because it's rare, but because you broke my sword. This is a legitimate compensation and has nothing to do with anything else. Once this matter is settled, the two of us will be even. However, you are the main culprit behind the death of my entire family. That is that. You will never be able to repay this debt. If you want this prince to cooperate with you, there's no way! "After he finished speaking, he swaggered off. Jiang Liechen was dumbstruck by his words.
Speaking of his strange illness, there was a reason for it. Since he was young, he had been raised to be arrogant and conceited. He believed that it was natural for others to curry favor with him, and that he only needed to accept it. An Yesun was his brother who had grown up with him. The two of them would often compare notes on martial arts or quarrel. They were both on the same level, so they naturally treated each other differently.
When he became the Hierarch of the Shadow Sacrifice Sect, and later the Seven Evil Spirits, because his influence grew, many people who wanted to live in peace changed sides and tried to curry favor with him. He didn't find this strange at all, and often even felt disdain for it. At this time, if there was someone who wanted to challenge his authority and ignored him, and the other party happened to be someone who could arouse his interest, then he would naturally treat the other party better. Thus, he would be able to change his unruly attitude to one of respect. This was a rare achievement.
At this time, as he watched Shangguan Yaohua leave in high spirits, a rare smile appeared on his cold face. He muttered to himself, "Interesting … Shangguan Yaohua, just you wait. One day, this prince will let you know how to write the word 'submission'! "
Day after day, Jiang Liechen spent most of his energy on attacking cities and taking time to teach Xuan Shuang martial arts. He also took him to nearby places to carry out missions. Every time he destroyed a sect or villa, it could be considered a gradual process. It was always more troublesome than the previous one. As for Xuan Shuang, since the knot in his heart could be untied, he was able to cope with it more and more smoothly. He was always able to complete his missions with flying colors. Because of this, he felt gratified and a little melancholy. In addition, Xuan Shuang vehemently opposed him, so he rarely went to find Shangguan Yaohua. However, he still had a place in his heart. Sooner or later, he would win him over.
The biggest change was Xuan Shuang's martial arts. When Li Yijie taught him, he often felt that his comprehension was higher than before, but his personality was a little less respectful. However, when the two interacted, they were always respectful, so he didn't find it strange. Occasionally, he would mention it while chatting with others. Over time, it gradually spread throughout the palace.
One day, Shunzhi was in a very good mood, so he made a special trip to the martial arts training field. He wanted to see Xuan Shuang's martial arts, which Li Yijie repeatedly boasted about as "rapid progress". The Shangguan Yaohua, Lu Qian, Cheng Jiaxuan, and several other officials also volunteered to accompany him. Li Yijie had seen many big battles, but this time he still felt a little nervous. Perhaps it was because of his vanity. After greeting everybody, he did not forget to repeatedly remind Xuan Shuang in private.
Xuan Shuang did not think much of it, but in front of everybody, he still pretended to be a humble disciple and thanked his master for his kindness. Not too long afterwards, after being repeatedly urged by several officials, he turned his head toward Li Yijie and showed a relieved smile. Tidying up his attire, he walked toward everybody and bowed, "Emperor Ah Ma, Daren, your son Chen will present his incompetence here." Finished bowing, he cupped his fists and leaped into the air, landing not too far away in the middle of a wooden circle.
In the middle of the circle, there were several relatively low protruding wooden stakes, arranged closely together. Even if one walked slowly in the middle of the circle, if one was not careful, he would trip and fall. When Shunzhi and the others arrived, they had already caught a glimpse of this formation. At first they did not know what it was used for, but now it looked like they were trying out a set of martial arts in the middle of the circle. Just by looking at it, they could tell that the difficulty level was extremely high, so they all applauded and cheered.
Xuan Shuang took up a stance in the middle of the circle, brandishing his fists and kicking his legs, using a set of Huashan's Long Fist. Everybody present could see that his moves were steady but not lacking in grace, his movements were precise and nimble, and his martial arts were unique. When he made his moves, the sound of the wind broke the air, full of vigor and power. At the same time, he constantly changed his stance, shuttling back and forth between the wooden stakes, like a nimble thread, easily avoiding the wooden stakes, his footsteps were not hindered in the least. Perhaps even a direct disciple of Huashan who had been training martial arts for more than ten years might not be able to surpass him, at least in terms of martial arts execution.
Other people had lived in the palace for a long time, so they did not have a clear understanding of martial arts. Lu Qian, however, was an expert in this field, and he had studied Huashan Pai's martial arts quite a bit. Whether other people's martial arts were good or bad, whether there were any advantages or disadvantages, he was able to see them clearly. At this time, he could not help but admire Xuan Shuang. He raised his eyes to look at Li Yijie, who was standing to the side with his hands clasped behind his back, and felt a burst of jealousy in his heart. Why did he have the ability to teach such a good disciple?
Then he recalled how Shangguan Yaohua had been in the limelight at the banquet that day, but he had not been able to satisfy his desire to be a teacher. At the very least, he had not been able to attract everyone's attention. It was unlike now, when everyone praised Xuan Shuang, they would look at Li Yijie with reverence. Li Yijie's expression was indifferent, as if he was unmoved by favor or disgrace. Lu Qian thought that he was deliberately putting on an act, deliberately showing off in front of him, so his anger deepened.
Shangguan Yaohua frowned, and when the crowd applauded, he casually responded with a few words, but from beginning to end, he seemed to have a heavy burden on his mind. Anyone could see that his praise did not come from his heart. It was just that all the officials were paying attention to him, so no one paid attention to him.
Although Shunzhi was beaming with joy, there was still a shadow in his heart. At first, he did not believe in the blood-stained clothes incident, thinking that perhaps there was a misunderstanding. With Xuan Shuang's martial art skill, he could not be considered outstanding among his brothers, how could he really commit a major crime outside? But now that he saw his skill, it was more than enough to deal with a few small sects and schools. It was hard to say whether he was happy or worried.
Although the officials were praising him, when it came to their own interests, they had no choice but to think carefully. Therefore, the people present all had different thoughts. On the contrary, only Cheng Jiaxuan, who rarely praised him, was sincerely appreciating him.
At a certain stage, Xuan Shuang drew out a long sword from his waist, using a style of fist technique where he first dropped down and then lifted up. His movements flowed smoothly, without the slightest bit of awkwardness between the gaps. Once again, the crowd applauded and cheered.
Xuan Shuang smiled indifferently, and then gently shook his head to shake off the several drops of sweat on his forehead. Immediately his wrist turned, the long sword drew several sword flowers, among which there was a white sword light circling the tip of the sword, increasing his confidence and ease. His left knee sunk, his right leg kicked backward, borrowing the force to spin several times, and then his sword hacked down diagonally, cutting a thin piece of wood on the outer perimeter, which fell to the ground. From the side, it could be seen that the wood was extremely thin.
Afterwards, he repeatedly used this move, his speed did not decrease in the slightest as he moved around the circle. However, wherever the sword qi went, it did not even need to touch the wood to cut the wood. In the end, the wood that fell to the ground was always a circular thin piece. Looking at it, it was no wider than the length of a fingernail.
Finally, the tip of his foot tapped lightly on the half-broken tree stump, and borrowing the force, he leaped up. While his body was in midair, he raised his sword and waved it. A burst of sword qi shot out, cutting down the remaining few wood stakes. Without waiting too long, without waiting for his feet to land firmly, he brandished his sword several times, cutting the scattered pieces of wood into thin pieces. Very soon the ground was full of them. Xuan Shuang leaped out of the wooden circle, with both hands holding his long sword upright in front of his body, he said, "I have made Emperor Ama and various Wangye laugh. Erchen is ashamed. "
This time Shunzhi was very happy, so much so that the anxiety he had been worrying about all this time was greatly diluted. He laughed and said, "What laughing? Although Zhen is not proficient in martial art, but Zhen has seen quite a few martial art performances in the Palace. Zhen definitely will not show favoritism. It is not an exaggeration to say that in the Palace right now, even if you are ranked among the top martial art masters, it would not be excessive. "Xuan Shuang modestly said," Many thanks for Emperor Ama's praise, Erchen is overwhelmed by the favor. Erchen is untalented, my martial art skill is only so-so, I definitely cannot compare with my brothers. "
Shunzhi laughed and said, "If Zhen has to say, they have trained longer than you, but their progress is much lower than yours. I wonder if there is any secret? Can you tell us, so that we can share one or two? "
Xuan Shuang said, "Speaking of it, there is nothing special. Shifu once taught Erchen: 'There is no such thing as a top genius in the world, there are only mediocre people who do not work hard.' Erchen was greatly inspired after hearing it. No matter what kind of natural talent, as long as one can thoroughly comprehend each style, not hesitating to spend twice as much time, or even ten times, or even a hundred times more time than other people, one will definitely achieve something. Reading books pays particular attention to 'reviewing the old and learning the new', martial art is the same. Erchen is relying on this clumsy perseverance, not fearing cold or heat, persisting in carrying it out, and finally my martial art skill has a little bit of shape. In front of other people, it is not so bad that I cannot show it off. "
Shunzhi laughed and said, "Excellent. All my beloved ministers have heard it. A little child can do this kind of thing, if all of you can also hold this kind of persistent spirit, diligently running the country, why worry that you won't be able to achieve great things? This principle is very good, it is simple enough, but unfortunately not many people can truly understand it. "And then he turned to Li Yijie and said," It is difficult for Minister Li to set your vision so far ahead. You do not hide personal interest, wholeheartedly serve the public interest, pledge your loyalty to Zhen, you are indeed one of our Great Qing's virtuous ministers. Zhen will certainly reward you handsomely! Speak, what kind of gift do you want? If you have any request, Zhen will do my best to satisfy it. "
Li Yijie said, "Thank you very much, Your Majesty." More than half of his merit was falsely claimed, but he did not feel anything unusual about it. This time when he heard Shunzhi's question, his face turned slightly red, and then he said, "Your Majesty, to be able to serve you is lowly officer's good fortune. I do not dare to ask for any great gift, I just do not know … if I may be so bold as to ask, does Your Majesty still remember the promise you made a few days ago? "
When Shunzhi was with his subjects, he had casually made quite a few promises, but what he really took to heart was still closely related to himself. This time, seeing Li Yijie and Xuan Shuang's faces were full of expectation, he suddenly felt somewhat worried: Li Yijie, don't think you can exploit this loophole and take the opportunity to persuade me to appoint Xuan Shuang as the Crown Prince? Humph, in order to express this intention, the Prince Regent played a trick of pretending to be mysterious. You want to use both the carrot and the stick to force Zhen to come up with an idea as soon as possible? But when he thought about it, he did not seem to have promised Li Yijie this kind of thing, so the situation might not be as bad as it seemed.
Li Yijie did not wait for him to answer, and interjected first, "Lowly officer is afraid, what I am referring to is the whereabouts of that Miss Nangong."
Shunzhi's heart relaxed, and then he felt a sense of heartfelt apology spontaneously. But seeing his sincere face, Shunzhi could not honestly say that he had forgotten. He vaguely responded, "Don't worry, Miss Nangong is definitely not in danger. My subordinates have finally found some direction in their investigation. I believe that they will give you an answer within the next few days. "
Li Yijie happily said, "Thank … thank you very much, Your Majesty. Lowly officer simply does not know how to thank you. From now on, lowly officer … is willing to be an ox or a horse for Your Majesty to repay Your Majesty's kindness! "He was so happy that when he spoke again, even his voice could not help but tremble a little.
Lu Qian was listening on the side. He originally thought that Li Yijie was unexpectedly willing to ask someone to do something for him, and had long been amazed. It was only now that he heard that it had something to do with Nangong Xue. He stepped forward and said happily, "What is it? Does Your Majesty also want to help find the whereabouts of Nangong Xue? In that case, lowly officer will represent Lord Li in thanking the Holy Lord for his great kindness. "
When Lu Qian had just surrendered, Shunzhi remembered that he was the leader of the rebels who had opposed him for six years. It was precisely the Qingtian Stronghold's bandits that had caused the imperial court to repeatedly lose soldiers and generals, so his attitude was inevitably stiff. Even if he occasionally asked him to do something for him, it was always a few trivial matters, and he had never given him any real power.
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