novelhk Page 194
Page 194
"It's me! We were at Yuxian Temple during the day..."
Before Zhao Yuan could finish speaking, someone suddenly pulled him back sharply.
He turned his head and saw that it was Liu Huiniang.
The girl's eyes widened as she angrily said, "This is Ah Xiu's cousin, how could you lay a hand on her like that!"
"I......"
Zhao Yuan chuckled and said, "Isn't it because I was afraid she would shout and alert the Imperial Guards outside?"
"Pah, pah..."
Chen Liqing blushed and wiped her lips with a resentful expression.
"Ah Xiu, you were right, this guy is a pervert, a scoundrel, a bastard..."
Zhao Yuan quickly wiped his hands with his clothes.
When Chen Liqing struggled just now, his hands were covered in the girl's saliva.
Although it was said to be the saliva of a beautiful woman, Zhao Yuan had no such hobby.
"Sister, Brother Zhao must have seen the Imperial Guards at the gate, which is why he climbed over the wall to get in,"
Liu Huiniang was still angry just now.
Now they immediately began to explain for Zhao Yuan.
"Brother Zhao is a gentleman, definitely not someone with ulterior motives."
Chapter 270 The Emperor is Wise
The side room was the bedroom for the two girls.
Zhao Yuan and Shi Qian naturally couldn't go in.
Chen Liqing then ushered the two into the main hall.
Liu Huiniang went to make them tea.
Zhao Yuan, seeing that Chen Xizhen had been making a fuss in the courtyard for a while but was nowhere to be seen, was quite puzzled.
"Where is Master Chen? Isn't he coming back tonight?"
Chen Liqing pursed her lips and replied casually.
"My father is currently practicing the Five Thunder Gathering Technique, and he spends most of his nights in seclusion at the Thunder Ancestor Temple."
Liu Huiniang walked in carrying two cups of tea. After hearing her cousin's words, she said helplessly,
"I don't know why, but my uncle believed the Taoist priest's deceptive words wholeheartedly. He really thought that he had achieved success in his cultivation and could spit out lightning and summon wind and rain."
"That's normal; even smart people have their moments of folly..."
Before Zhao Yuan could finish speaking, Chen Liqing glared at him.
"You're the one who's confused!"
Because of what just happened, Zhao Yuan's goodwill towards Chen Liqing seems to have plummeted to its lowest point.
Zhao Yuan didn't argue with her and took the tea from Liu Huiniang.
After taking a sip, she asked, "By the way, Ah Xiu, what's with the Imperial Guards at the gate? Could they have been sent by Gao Kan to cause trouble?"
“They’re not here to cause trouble,”
Liu Huiniang placed another cup of tea in front of Shi Qian, then puffed out her cheeks and said angrily,
"The head of the Imperial Guards said that my uncle has already betrothed Ah Xiu and my cousin to that scoundrel Gao Kan!"
"These imperial guards are blocking the entrance, claiming they're here to protect the future wife of the Grand Commandant!"
"Cough cough..."
Shi Qian had just taken a sip of tea when he almost choked on his words.
"Miss Liu is going to marry Grand Commandant Gao? Then brother..."
"What business is it of his if Ah Xiu and I get married?"
Chen Liqing snorted coldly.
"How can it be unrelated? Just now in the side room, weren't you asking Miss Liu if she was willing to marry my brother?" Shi Qian teased.
Liu Huiniang blushed immediately.
Chen Liqing seized the opportunity to scoff, "It's a shame Ah Xiu just said you were a gentleman. What kind of gentleman eavesdrops on a girl's private conversation?"
"It was just a coincidence, wasn't it?"
Zhao Yuan laughed and quickly changed the subject.
"Ah Xiu, how about I get you out of here right now?"
"Brother, there's no need,"
Liu Huiniang shook her head.
"Miss Liu, you don't really want to marry Gao Kan, do you?" Shi Qian asked in surprise.
"How could Ah Xiu possibly marry someone like that!"
Liu Huiniang stamped her foot, sat down in the chair next to Zhao Yuan, and explained,
"My uncle has been practicing that Five Thunder Compilation Technique these days, and it is said that he will be able to complete it in about ten days."
"In Ah Xiu's opinion, this should be her uncle's delaying tactic. In about ten days, her uncle should take Ah Xiu and her cousin away from Tokyo to Jingyang Town in Shandong."
Zhao Yuan recalled the plot of "The Tale of the Suppression of Bandits".
I do remember that such a thing did happen.
However, in the original storyline, it was only Gao Kan who took a liking to Chen Liqing.
In order to buy time, Chen Xizhen not only offered to make him her son-in-law, but also recognized Gao Kan as her godson.
"By the way, brother, you came to see Ah Xiu so late at night, there must be something you need, right?"
Liu Huiniang winked slyly.
"Let Ah Xiu guess, is there some trouble with the matter of that top scholar Xu?"
"Um,"
Zhao Yuan did not hide anything from Chen Liqing and told her everything about his visit to the prison that day.
"This scholar Xu is worthy of respect for his dedication to the country. It's a pity that he didn't understand the current emperor's intentions before he did so."
Liu Huiniang sighed, "It's one thing if he can't see things clearly himself, but now he's dragging his brother down with him."
"Wouldn't it be better to fight the Liao people?"
Hearing the two talking about the martial arts champion who had submitted a petition, Chen Liqing, who was standing nearby, was immediately puzzled and asked,
"If the Sixteen Prefectures of Yan and Yun can be recovered, the imperial court will have land for raising horses, and there will be more cavalry to defend the borders, so we won't be passively attacked anymore! Isn't that a good thing?"
"Cousin, you only know one side of the story, not the other,"
Liu Huiniang recounted the situation of the Jurchens in detail.
"Xu Guanzhong, the martial arts champion, was originally from Daming Prefecture in Hebei. He was very familiar with the training of soldiers on the northern border."
In his memorial to the emperor, he mentioned that all the passes and cities in Hebei were short of soldiers, and in some places, the shortage was as high as 80%.
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"Besides the vacancies, the remaining soldiers are also completely untrained. If the Jurchens really march south in the future, do you think they can stop them?"
"That's impossible,"
Although Chen Liqing was impulsive, her father was, after all, an officer in the Imperial Guard.
Besides learning martial arts skills from her father, the female guard also possessed considerable knowledge of military strategy and warfare.
"His Majesty is wise, but he has been deceived by treacherous officials. If we can reclaim the Sixteen Prefectures of Yan and Yun and execute the treacherous ministers in the court, His Majesty will surely be motivated to govern well!"
"Did your uncle tell your sister that?"
Liu Huiniang said with a smile, "Sister, since you have already said that the Emperor is wise, then if he is wise, how could he be deceived by others?"
. ........ .......
"this......"
Chen Liqing was immediately speechless.
This female guard was hot-tempered and reckless, no less so than Li Kui.
Although he was a bit smarter than that black fellow, he didn't have Black Whirlwind's honesty and straightforwardness.
"Furthermore, if that emperor is truly wise, why would my uncle resign from his military post and devote himself to Taoist cultivation?" Liu Huiniang asked again.
Although Chen Liqing had a bad temper, she wasn't stupid.
Previously, it was simply because Chen Xizhen would tell her every day,
The emperor was wise, and she believed that practicing martial arts meant serving the emperor and the country, which is why she made it her life's goal.
But now, Liu Huiniang has two questions in a row.
This made Chen Liqing begin to doubt her father's past teachings.
“Sister, you’ve always lived in Bianliang, the capital of the Eastern Capital, and you’re unaware of the situation in other places.”
Liu Huiniang sighed deeply.
"Ah Xiu used to be just like her sister. From a young age, she heard her father teach her that the emperor was wise and that all the problems in the court and the local areas were the work of corrupt and treacherous officials!"
"But this time, Shandong was hit by a plague. Ah Xiu fled with her parents and got separated along the way. What she saw and heard made her realize that the so-called emperor's wisdom was nothing but the lies of the literati and military generals who were deceiving themselves."
"Because only in this way can they convince themselves to continue to be loyal to the emperor."
"Otherwise, if the person in that position is incompetent, who would be willing to work and risk their lives for him?"
Chapter 271 A Two-Pronged Approach
Chen Liqing fell silent, her beautiful face filled with a conflicted expression.
Looking at her, Liu Huiniang shook her head and then said to Zhao Yuan,
"Brother, Ah Xiu doesn't have a good solution for Scholar Xu's matter at the moment,"
The girl shook her head.
"The imperial prison holds people whom the emperor wants to punish. To get someone out of there, unless..."
Liu Huiniang paused suddenly as she spoke.
She glanced at Chen Liqing, who was still in a daze beside her, leaned close to Zhao Yuan's ear, and whispered, "..."
"Brother, did you bring the sleeping potion that Doctor An and his wife concocted last time?"
"I did bring it, but the Censorate is full of mixed people, so there was no chance to administer the drug," Zhao Yuan said helplessly.
"Brother, this medicine isn't for them,"
Liu Huiniang chuckled and said "187," then whispered a few words to Zhao Yuan.
Finally, he said...
"...This method also carries significant risks. Whether or not to use it is up to you, elder brother, to decide."
"Although it's somewhat risky, it's still a good strategy,"
Zhao Yuan nodded: "Let's do it your way."
They have already obtained a plan to rescue Xu Guanzhong from Liu Huiniang.
Zhao Yuan sat for a while longer before bidding farewell to Shi Qian and leaving.
Liu Huiniang watched as the two of them climbed over the wall and escaped.
Just as I was about to turn around and go back into the house, I suddenly felt a tightness around my waist.
She was startled and quickly turned her head.
She then realized that the person hugging her from behind was actually her cousin, Chen Liqing.