The Third Scholar of the Song Dynasty

Chapter 13

"Haha," Zhan Zhao laughed, "I also considered this point, fearing that the people from the First Manor might think of this. So your five hundred soldiers are all on standby. Last night, I dispatched the thousand soldiers and guards from Qingzhou Prefecture to set up ambushes on the four main roads leading out of the town. Unless they fly out from the sky, they will definitely fall into the ambush and be captured by me again."

"So your actions weren't noticed by the people from First Manor?"

"Hehe, the reason I asked them to choose a location was to reassure them and make them think that it was the location they chose themselves and that it was the safest place. Little did they know that they didn't choose at all."

Prince Xin, who had been listening to their conversation with a smile, interjected, "Lord Zhan, it's almost time. Why don't you go and see how things are going?"

Zhan Zhao picked up his sword and gracefully twirled it in his hand: "Yes, Your Highness!"

Li Yuxuan watched Zhan Zhao's retreating figure and said, "Brother Zhan is too cunning. I'll have to stay away from him from now on."

Prince Xin poured himself a cup of wine and drank it: "A gentleman's wisdom is only used to conquer enemies, not to scheme against friends."

friend. "

"What if we accidentally become enemies one day?"

Xu Qingzhi chuckled beside him: "Then you have nowhere to escape."

A moment later, Zhan Zhao returned with a beaming smile: "Your Highness, the matter has been settled. All twenty-three captured robbers have been taken to the Qingzhou Prefectural Government Office."

Twenty-three? Hearing that five more had suddenly appeared, Li Yuxuan thought of Xiaorou and Uncle Yang, and felt inexplicably uneasy: "Who are the people who were caught?"

"It's not clear yet; we'll know after the review is complete."

"Are there any women inside?" Zhan Zhao looked at her. "You mean Wang Rou? We didn't catch her; she got away. Have you seen her?"

Li Yuxuan nodded honestly: "If it weren't for her, I would only have half a life left to meet you."

The three men seemed to only remember that she had returned as a prisoner after she said that, and she herself only then remembered her arms, which were covered in bruises and discoloration from being grabbed by Uncle Yang.

That's strange, why doesn't it hurt much?

She rolled up her sleeves and held her arm out in front of them: "Look, this is just a side effect. I didn't know how dangerous it was back then. When I was captured, several people held up gleaming knives and tried to stab me, saying they would cut me in every limb first, to avenge our wounded brothers."

"And then what?"

"Later, I was terrified and didn't know what to do. I was prepared to die a heroic death for my country. Unexpectedly, at this critical moment, she appeared. She was an angel who saved me from the devil's clutches. She said, 'Stop! In a war between two countries, one should not kill an envoy. Besides, we need to keep her to exchange for our brothers. Remember, treat her well.' Those people naturally refused and rushed over to cut me a few times to get revenge. Then, Miss Wang Rou shouted: 'Whatever grudges you have, come at me! Don't be disrespectful to Lord Li!' That's why I was able to return with all my parts intact. Otherwise, at this moment, your Brother Xu and Brother Zhan would only be lying beside me, calling out: 'Brother Li, you must not die!'" Isn't this just making up stories? Li Yuxuan is best at it. She guarantees that those who hear it will be heartbroken and weep, thanking Miss Wang Rou for sparing her, Li Yuxuan's, great kindness.

She didn't know why she did this, but she secretly hoped that if Wang Rou ever fell into Zhan Zhao's hands, he would show her leniency because Wang Rou had once saved Li Yuxuan's life.

And what about Uncle Yang? I wonder if he escaped this time? I hope he doesn't get caught by Brother Zhan. If he does, given their status, there's no need for interrogation; he'll just be executed in the autumn.

She finished telling the story and lowered her sleeves. She couldn't let them have too much of this. Sigh, those colorful marks on her arm probably wouldn't fade for a while. Damn it, I was still here thinking about how to plead for them, and that damned Uncle Yang didn't even know to hold back, scratching her hand so badly.

What exactly is the relationship between this Uncle Yang, the Li family, and Madam Xiao?

Wang? Wang Rou? Good heavens! Li Yuxuan jumped up from his stool: "How is this possible? This is too much of a coincidence! How could Prefect Li be connected with bandits? Could it be that the case five years ago was committed by people from this First Manor? Impossible, absolutely impossible... Nothing is impossible... um..."

Seeing Li Yuxuan suddenly stand up with a strange expression, the three wondered what she had remembered. Zhan Zhao asked curiously, "Brother Li, are there other beauties inside who risked their lives to save you?"

Li Yuxuan shook his head. "No, I just suddenly remembered something they said that seemed a bit strange."

"What did you say?"

Li Yuxuan sat back down on the stool, shook his head and smiled, "Actually, it wasn't anything important. I was in a life-or-death situation at the time, and I was so flustered that I couldn't remember what others had told me very clearly. I only remember that a man named Uncle Yang gave me two sesame cakes to fill my stomach in the morning. I don't know if he was among the prisoners this time. He's a man who still has some conscience, I guess!"

“Uncle Yang, I know this man. His real name is Yang Xiao. He is the steward of the First Manor. He is highly skilled in martial arts and can sweep across the martial arts world with his bamboo flute. In his youth, he was the White-Clad Divine Flute Master who was famous throughout the martial arts world. I don’t know how he went into seclusion and joined the First Manor.” Zhan Zhao picked up where Li Yuxuan left off. “With his martial arts skills, we won’t be able to capture him easily.”

"Do you know him?" Li Yuxuan asked softly. The man who brought me here was Uncle Yang. I didn't see any unusual reaction from you?

"I don't know him personally; I've only heard his name mentioned by friends in the martial arts world."

"Oh, that's good," Li Yuxuan breathed a sigh of relief.

Prince Xin was unusually quiet today, sitting silently and listening to their conversation. His eyes would occasionally linger on Li Yuxuan, but he would quickly look away and continue drinking in silence. Just when Li Yuxuan had forgotten about him, he stood up and said, "Let's go back to camp."

Li Yuxuan had no choice but to abandon her conversation with Zhan Zhao and follow them back. It was rare for Zhan Zhao to have time to chat with her; she originally had many things she wanted to ask.

Back at the camp, seeing her return, Yinzi, who had been waiting outside, rushed over and threw herself into Li Yuxuan's arms: "Young Master, are you alright?"

Li Yuxuan patted her head: "Don't worry, I'm not missing anything."

Zhan Zhao clasped his hands in a fist salute to the three of them: "Now that I've brought you back, I'm leaving too. My brothers are all on their way to Qingzhou, and I have to catch up with them."

Prince Xin waved his hand and said, "Take care."

Li Yuxuan didn't expect Zhan Zhao to leave so suddenly, so he waved and said, "Take care."

Zhan Zhao smiled, mounted his chestnut horse, whipped it, and rode off, quickly disappearing at the end of the road.

Twists and turns

The three didn't stay long after returning to camp. Prince Xin and Xu Qingzhi quickly directed the soldiers to pack their belongings and set off again. The group returned to Baima Town to rest. They stayed at Ruilai Inn once more.

After dinner, Li Yuxuan remembered what Zhan Zhao had said about ambushing on all sides of the road, so he took the silver and went to the main road outside the town to check out the battlefield.

Because there were no signs of fighting in the sorghum fields on both sides of the road they took into town, and it didn't seem to disturb anyone in the town at the time. It was so quick and clean, leaving no trace. I really don't know what method Zhan Zhao used.

She strolled to the official road on the west side of the town and heard from the king that if she went out from here, she would enter Gansu Province, and if she continued forward, she would reach Anxi City.

Anxi City, the place Haitang described as being teeming with bandits and Western Xia soldiers.

He had already encountered the bandits, but not the Western Xia people. He knew that the further he went, the more likely there were two extreme possibilities: either increasing danger or complete peace. Peace was possible because everyone feared the barbarity of the Western Xia people and dared not covet the annual tribute anymore; danger lay in the fear that the Western Xia people would rob him and then renege on their debt to the Song Dynasty.

As she pondered this, she walked forward, and before she knew it, she had already left the town.

As the sun sets, only a few people hurry along the official road.

Yinzi tugged at her hand: "Young Master, let's go back. It's too unsafe outside."

Li Yuxuan looked at the official road, which was as calm as ever, with only fresh signs of broken trees on both sides. Knowing that she couldn't see anything with her mortal eyes, she turned around and said, "Let's go back."

No sooner had she finished speaking than a scream of terror rang out above her, sending chills down her spine. She quickly backed away, and when she looked up again, she saw a green figure plummeting from the tree straight down to where she had just been standing. It landed with a thud right in front of her.

Then a little girl in a green dress yelped as she scrambled to her feet. Seeing Li Yuxuan standing in front of her, she crossed her arms, her eyes flashing with a fierce light: "Boy, why didn't you catch me when I fell?"

~~~~The following is just to reach the word count, please ignore it.——————This chapter will be completed tonight. This is a short story I wrote before, but I haven't posted the full text yet. If you like it, I will post the full text.

Happy birthday

This day was Linzi's 28th birthday.

As a typical single woman in the city, she only invited one friend to Pizza Hut on Wuyi Road for dinner.

Pizza Hut, or "Leftovers" (meaning "always leftovers"), the names do complement each other quite well.

They arrived early, but Pizza Hut was still packed. They found a seat in the middle. Their friend took a beautifully wrapped box out of her bag: "Linzi, happy birthday!"

"Wow!" Lin Zi exclaimed exaggeratedly, reaching out to take the gift. "You won't pity me and give me a diamond ring, will you? I'll feel so embarrassed."

"Keep showing off." His friend stood up and slapped Lin Zi's head, which was hanging down. "You want a diamond ring from me? You've wasted your 28 years of your life! Looking at your appearance, you're definitely a top-tier beauty like Xiao Mimi. I just don't know why God gave you such a dim-witted idiot!"

Lin Zi used his right hand to block Lin Shu's continued attack: "You're wrong, I have a magnificent fangirl mind, I've been fangirling over my second brother for many years..."

Before she could finish speaking, two people flashed past her like a gust of wind. One of them struck her left shoulder with perfect precision, and the gift she was holding in her left hand flew off the table with equally perfect precision...

"Ah...!" Lin Zi screamed, using his incredibly agile teleportation technique to pounce on the gift box that was performing a free fall.

At that critical moment, a leg unexpectedly slipped between Linzi's hand and the gift. Tragically, it was a man's leg. And above it was... a spot that could kill her.

Her powerful hands, with their immense strength, landed directly, without any concealment, and spectacularly on this man's strategic location.

The gift finally completed its free fall, emitting a very pleasant and crisp cracking sound.

"Ah!!!" Lin Zi let out another earth-shattering scream. This scream had nothing to do with the gift; it was purely a stress reaction after seeing the location of her hands.

"Ah!!!!" A similar scream came from above her, but the voice was much lower.

The two screams successfully drew the attention of everyone in Pizza Hut.

Lin Zi's friend, who was stunned by what she saw, quickly pulled her hand away and back to her chair.

But she was quickly lifted up by a hand again. She didn't need to look to know who was lifting her. Just by the force with which the person was gripping her arm, she knew that he had the urge to kill her.

She swallowed hard, stood up, and looked up to meet the eyes in front of her. If the earlier accident had only embarrassed her, the eyes she saw now completely shut her up. The man in front of her had a pair of captivating eyes that looked exactly like her second brother's. Even when he was angry, those eyes seemed to convey endless tenderness.

She looked into those eyes, forgetting what she wanted to say and forgetting the situation at hand. She was momentarily captivated.

Looking at Lin Zi's dazed and foolish appearance, and at the amazed look in her dark and bright eyes, the man swallowed all his anger and released her: "Fine, a good man doesn't fight with a woman, but if I lose my martial arts skills from now on, I will definitely hunt you down to the ends of the earth."

After the man finished speaking, he smiled brightly at Lin Zi and said, "Ma'am, could you please write down your name and phone number for me? I need to go to the hospital for a check-up later. If this slap really caused some unspeakable injury, I'll have to ask you for medical expenses, won't I?"

Poor Linzi was still reeling from that look in his eyes. She casually took out a business card from her bag and handed it to the man.

The man read the words "Lin Shu, Planning Department, Fangyuan Advertising Company" aloud, then slipped the card into his pocket and walked toward his seat. "I'll go get something to eat first. You two can wait for my good news."

Watching the man's back disappear into the distance, Linzi's friend quickly grabbed Linzi's hand and fled Pizza Hut. Linzi, seeing her friend's panicked appearance, couldn't help but giggle: "What are you doing? The handsome guy hasn't had enough of looking at us yet!"

Lin Shu gave Zuo Nan a sharp rap on the head without any hesitation: "Still looking? Haven't you had enough of being toyed with? Haven't you embarrassed yourself enough?"

"How is it shameful? He offered himself up... Besides, what I'm losing isn't my reputation, it's my loneliness."

...

"And..." her friend continued, "Why did you give your business card to that man just now? Aren't you afraid he'll try to blackmail you? There are too many bad people in this world, and he doesn't seem like a good person to me."

"Please, do you think a man's thing is made of noodles? Even a rooster made of noodles can withstand blows. Fine, if he really gets interested, I'll call 110 right away and report him for rape and extortion."

"Oh my god, Xiaolin, you're supposed to be a refined young lady from a scholarly family, how come I get dizzy just from your words? My slang is too vulgar, at least change it." His friend hailed a taxi: "I'm really leaving now, bye-bye!"

"Go, go, go!" Linzi waved to the smoking taxi's rear end: "You waved your sleeve, leaving me with only loneliness."

Linzi could actually go home, but she didn't want to. Last year on her birthday, she made a solemn vow to her parents that she would definitely get married before she turned 28. She also tried her best to go on countless blind dates, but as a result, on her 28th birthday today, she is still penniless and without a single blanket. She hasn't even managed to snag a single piece of water.

She walked aimlessly ahead. She had already called her mother, saying she wouldn't be coming home tonight because many colleagues were celebrating her birthday. Only heaven knew that she simply didn't want to go back and see her parents' disappointed yet forced smiles. Her parents had raised her with great difficulty, and she couldn't let them see her sadness and loneliness again.

She didn't want to go shopping anymore; shopping alone was pointless. At her age, most of her friends were married, and forcing them to come out and keep her company wasn't her way of life. A classmate called at noon suggesting they all go out for a karaoke party that evening, but she refused that too.

Loneliness is not her fault, but letting loneliness run rampant is.

But there's one place where she can escape loneliness: the internet. Back in her cramped one-bedroom apartment, she immediately went to her computer. It's said that modern people all suffer from some degree of internet narcissism, a consequence of life's pressures. Work and family leave people feeling suffocated, so they turn to the internet for some explicit and violent content to at least soothe their racing nerves.

Without the internet's stimulating effect, there would undoubtedly be many more men with erectile dysfunction in the world. One of the most direct manifestations of this in men is impotence when under excessive stress. The sheer volume of incredibly attractive women online provides a far more stimulating hormonal experience than the delicate touch of a nurse in a hospital treatment room wearing plastic gloves.

Lin Zi turned on her computer and entered a local dating group she often chatted in. She saw that everyone was having a heated discussion about men and the internet, so she casually typed in the above paragraph.

The group chat immediately turned bright red... Everyone was spitting blood...

A netizen named "Summer" immediately wrote: "I disagree with this. Without the internet, men would sleep with women every day..."

In this group, Linzi's nickname is "Transvestite," given to her by netizens because her remarks are always very irritable and outrageous, and netizens don't believe she is a woman.

This "Summer" was probably the person she knew best in the group, because every time she appeared, he would chime in with a banter. If she didn't appear in the group for a few days, he would type in red, seemingly genuinely, "Hey, ladyboy, I miss you, come out!" A subtle, unspoken ambiguity had always existed between them. Lin Zi admitted that if love at first sight existed, she had fallen for this online friend named "Summer" after just one chat. Even though she had never seen his face.