Xu Fengnian walked alone toward the carriage that veered off the central imperial road. Qing Niao, naturally the coachman, wore her green robe and green embroidered shoes. Xuanyuan Qingfeng, wearing a purple robe and carrying the national jade seal, sat sideways behind Qing Niao, her feet dangling outside the carriage. Seeing Xu Fengnian leave court so early, Xuanyuan Qingfeng felt puzzled but didn’t ask questions. They climbed into the carriage together, and after Xu Fengnian sat down, he smiled and said, “The Western Chu returned a sword to me. Let’s delay our departure from the capital for a few days, making Master Cao wait a little longer. This will also scare that fox-hunting Han Diaosi hiding somewhere. This Confucian Saint won’t reclaim the Yang Seal here in the capital. You should hurry and absorb more of its fortune in these days.”
Xuanyuan Qingfeng frowned. “I’ve only absorbed about four or five parts.”
Xu Fengnian laughed. “One must know contentment. Getting five or six parts is already enough; excess is worse than insufficient. Matters of fortune are unpredictable, and if something goes wrong, it will be you who suffers, not me. Come on, take it out so I can examine it for you.”
Xuanyuan Qingfeng hesitated, then huffed coldly, ultimately making no move. Xu Fengnian was baffled and sighed, “Are you really treating this jade seal as your exclusive possession? Paying back borrowed money is only natural. In the past, when you acted unreasonably with me, it was because I was easygoing and didn’t bother to argue with you. These years I’ve been hiding my strength, and Chen Zhibao was even harsher—he has already quietly attained sainthood. At the battle of Tie Men Pass, when Chen Zhibao was at his martial peak, he still couldn’t defeat Master Cao in green robes. If you provoke this Western Chu strategist and hinder his plans for restoring the nation, you’ll surely suffer the consequences. Furthermore, regarding the prophecy and fortune connected to the jade seal, you’re far inferior to your father—merely an amateur. I am far more capable than you. Let me help you examine it and fill in the gaps. Aren’t you satisfied with this?”
After hesitating repeatedly, Xuanyuan Qingfeng glared at Xu Fengnian and finally extended her slender fingers slowly. Tilting her face away, she grasped the red thread around her neck, gently lifting it. From between her snowy white bosom, she pulled out the jade seal. Xu Fengnian couldn’t help but feel amused, thinking to himself that was why she had been so hesitant and coy. He immediately pretended to be serious and upright to avoid provoking her anger. Calmly, he accepted the red thread, which still retained a faint warmth, and looked down at the jade seal of Western Chu. Xuanyuan Qingfeng turned her head away, covering her heart, her expression hidden from view—whether she was angry or blushing was unclear. The jade seal hanging from the red thread appeared translucent and smooth, with yellow and purple energies swirling rapidly inside, like rivers during the summer flood season, or fledgling birds leaving the nest. Its essence still pointed toward Xuanyuan Qingfeng, its fortune flowing out through the seal and seeping into her seven orifices and three dantians. Xu Fengnian shook his head in exasperation, looked up at the woman still sulking, and scolded with a wry smile, “This isn’t four or five parts—it’s already six or seven! I used to say you only knew how to squander, but I was wrong about you.”
As Xu Fengnian had said, Xuanyuan Qingfeng was indeed a novice. After obtaining the jade seal, she had merely focused on absorbing its fortune. Upon hearing the truth, she couldn’t help but feel delighted, “Really six or seven parts?”
Xu Fengnian nodded. “Try releasing all your energy.”
In an instant, the air inside the carriage swirled violently. The two horses suddenly stopped, as if rooted to the ground. Xu Fengnian’s hair fluttered wildly, and he clicked his tongue in admiration, narrowing his eyes and murmuring, “In Daoist terms, this is like vapor rising from the Yunmeng Marshes, shaking the Jade Emperor’s palace, and rocking Mount Kunlun. It’s almost as powerful as the old Daoist patriarch of Wudang practicing the Great Huang Ting technique.”
Xuanyuan Qingfeng closed her eyes, spreading her arms wide. In the Taian City near the imperial palace, invisible currents of energy converged rapidly toward the carriage as their center. She looked blissfully immersed in the sensation.
The jade seal in Xu Fengnian’s hand swayed more and more violently. He frowned and said gravely, “Stop now!”
Xuanyuan Qingfeng quickly regained her composure and retracted her energy. Seeming to realize her obedience was too docile, she shot an angry glare at Xu Fengnian.
Xu Fengnian was unfazed by her natural arrogance and stubbornness. He had no intention of suppressing or training her like a wild horse. He thought, if every woman became as smooth and worldly-wise as Lu Chengyan from Qingzhou, whether in the martial world or within noble households, life would be dreadfully dull. He handed the jade seal and red thread back to her. “Take advantage of these days to absorb another one or two parts. Don’t be greedy—trying to eat a whole fat man in one bite isn’t good, especially for a woman. Being too fat isn’t attractive.”
Xuanyuan Qingfeng gazed silently at him and coldly replied, “That’s not funny at all.”
Xu Fengnian tucked both hands into his sleeves and smiled. “It really is cold.”
Indeed, this winter had been unusually cold in Taian City.
After Xuanyuan Qingfeng turned around and tucked the jade seal back into the hollow between her snowy peaks, Xu Fengnian suddenly asked, “Xuanyuan Qingfeng, have you noticed that you actually have a talent for strategy? Others accumulate knowledge and experience through hard work and years of political practice, but you rely on intuition?”
Xuanyuan Qingfeng scoffed. “Don’t even think about making me your North Liang hound. I deal with you one transaction at a time!”
Xu Fengnian shook his head. “Don’t be so tense. I haven’t reached the point of desperation to accept any help I can get. I just felt unusually good today, so I wanted to praise you once.”
Xuanyuan Qingfeng cut straight to the point. “Did you confront Liu Haoshi of the White Robe Case in the capital? Did you set up a challenge? This time leaving the capital, have you finally settled everything with the Zhao Emperor? From now on, we’ll compete openly, each using our own abilities?”
Xu Fengnian smiled and nodded.
In the imperial court, many matters involved deep and complex strategies, step-by-step planning, and meticulous calculations. Yet when these were brought into the open, they often appeared mundane to the court ministers, difficult to recognize as brilliant. As the prince’s heir, Xu Fengnian had come to the capital for the ceremony. Officially, he was allowed to carry a sword into the palace and not kneel before the emperor—an enormous gesture of respect from the Zhao Emperor. But beyond this sweet gesture, several heavy blows had been dealt to North Liang. Promoting Jin Lanting to the position of Right Sacrificial Official of the Imperial Academy, luring the Confucian scholar Yao Bai Feng to serve in the capital, appointing Chen Zhibao as Minister of War, and elevating Yan Jie Xi, the governor of Linzhou, to the highest honor as a royal relative—these four open and blatant strikes had all been delivered in front of the entire court. How could Xu Fengnian not seize the opportunity to make a dramatic scene? Though it appeared to be a childish tantrum, it was also Xu Fengnian’s way of stabilizing the morale of the North Liang cavalry.
The carriage slowly returned to the Xiama Wei Inn. Liu Wenbao, the pedantic scholar, had become nearly indistinguishable from a beggar, still waiting Bitterlyunder the Dragon-Claw Locust tree for Xu Fengnian to give him a chance to prove his worth. At that moment, he was squatting and chewing on a cold, hard steamed bun. Though he had suffered in terms of food, clothing, shelter, and travel, his spirit remained strong. People like him, who had endured hardships, often displayed astonishing resilience as long as they had a glimmer of hope. This resilience was tied to their aspirations. Liu Wenbao was undoubtedly among those with the greatest ambitions.
After Xu Fengnian stepped out of the carriage, he didn’t even glance at Liu Wenbao, not even giving him a sidelong look. Ordinary scholars, proud of their knowledge and strategies, would have already sought another lord. But Liu Wenbao, having endured a life of hardship, still retained his pride. The arrogance cultivated through years of studying the classics had nearly vanished, yet he still possessed the perseverance of someone determined to hold fast to the mountain. Or more accurately, determined to cling to the locust tree beside him.
Seeing Xu Fengnian about to walk directly into the inn, Liu Wenbao hurried over and whispered, “Master Xu, someone is looking for you—a young girl surnamed Li. She didn’t enter the inn but chatted with me for a while. She waited for a long time but couldn’t bear the hunger anymore and went to buy food.”
Xu Fengnian was surprised but smiled. “Did she say she lives in a temple, and that the temple belongs to her family?”
Liu Wenbao nodded eagerly. “Yes, yes! That young girl is quite interesting. I was actually wondering—how could a woman live in a temple?”
Xu Fengnian was genuinely in a good mood this time. He said to Liu Wenbao, “Go find a warm place in the inn. If Tong Ziliang asks, tell him it was my order for you to stay.”
Unexpectedly, the old scholar didn’t seem to appreciate the offer. He shook his head. “It doesn’t matter for one or two days. I can endure hardship. I’ve survived all these years, and I believe that after enduring hardship, great rewards will come.”
Xu Fengnian didn’t insist on being overly courteous to this elderly Confucian scholar, who had not settled down even in his fifties. Xuanyuan Qingfeng had already entered the inn directly, so he let Qing Niao go in first while he stayed alone at the gate to await the young Miss Li.
Liu Wenbao cautiously asked with curiosity, “Why did you leave court so quickly, Master Xu?”
Xu Fengnian half-truthfully replied, “I almost fought with Gu Jiantang and was sent back.”
Liu Wenbao was stunned and dared not ask further.
In the distance, the young girl, determined to become a righteous female martial artist, was joyfully hopping toward the Xiama Wei Inn, skipping like a child playing hopscotch.
It wasn’t easy for her to find out that Xu Fengnian was staying at Xiama Wei. She had traveled a long way, thinking herself a true martial artist with deep loyalty and friendship—something truly admirable!
She had brought a few silver notes with her, but she had instructed the clumsy monk Nanbei to give them away as gifts to everyone he met. She hadn’t thought about buying clothes or cosmetics. She only had a few pitiful silver coins and copper coins. She had gotten up unusually early that morning and hurriedly came to the outskirts of Xiama Wei. She had forgotten to eat breakfast in the early morning cold, shivering from the chill. Unable to endure her hunger any longer, she bought a steamer basket of white steamed buns. Because of those eight or nine buns, she developed a terrible impression of Taian City—it was too expensive! If she had wandered the capital with Xu Fengnian back then, she probably would have starved to death. Gripping an expensive bun that would have cost several coins back home in the mountains, she hopped slowly toward the inn.
From afar, she saw a familiar figure, but the person was dressed entirely in white—white hair, white clothes, white shoes—looking like a snowman. She wasn’t sure. Could it really be Xu Fengnian?
They say only those returning home feel anxious near their hometown, but Xiama Wei wasn’t her home. Yet because of him, she stopped hopping and slowly approached the old Dragon-Claw Locust tree.
As she drew closer and recognized the face she had longed to see, the girl froze on the spot, still chewing a bite of her bun. Staring at the familiar yet unfamiliar man, she forgot all about being a female martial artist or a graceful lady. She turned and ran, scattering the buns in her hands.
Liu Wenbao was astonished. Had the young girl been frightened by the young prince beside him?
Xu Fengnian couldn’t help but smile. He walked over and picked up the buns that weren’t too dirty, holding them in his arms.
The girl ran a short distance, then turned back, tears streaming down her face. “Xu Fengnian, are you dying? My father is powerful. I’ll go back and tell him. You have to wait for me!”
Then she turned again, ready to run.
Xu Fengnian freed one hand, placed it on her head, and turned her around. “I’m not dying. I just dyed my hair white so I’d stand out while traveling.”
The girl was innocent and playful, but not foolish. She was furious. “You’re lying!”
Xu Fengnian stuffed a bun into her mouth and took one for himself. With his mouth full, he mumbled, “Where’s that clumsy monk Nanbei?”
Miss Li took out a bun and sobbed, “The clumsy Nanbei went to the palace to wait for the emperor’s audience. He’s going to argue with that Qing Ci Chancellor and the White Lotus Master again.”
Xu Fengnian reached out and wiped the tears from her cheeks. Her face was frozen red, looking quite comically cute. Xu Fengnian had no sister, but he had always regarded her as his own little sister. Gently smiling, he said, “You finally meet me after so long, and all you do is cry? Don’t you worry Nanbei will laugh at you?”
Miss Li was gloomy. “He’s so stupid, I don’t even laugh at him.”
Xu Fengnian took her cold little hand and walked toward Xiama Wei.
One of life’s great joys is meeting an old friend in a foreign land.
Xu Fengnian turned his head slightly and gazed into the distance.
Some came into the martial world, full of spirit and ambition. When they left, they departed the martial world, their hearts at peace.
Xu Fengnian turned his head back, looked down at the little girl beside him, and said calmly, “Unfortunately, Wen Hua won’t have the chance to travel the martial world with us anymore.”
“Why? Is he still no good at sword training? Is he still carrying a wooden sword?”
“He became very skilled, but he no longer practices swordsmanship.”
“Isn’t he in the capital? Where did he go?”
“I’m looking for him.”
“Hmph! Wen Hua didn’t even wait for me! He’s so inconsiderate! When I see him again, I’ll scold him to death!”
“Alright, if I find that kid first, I’ll scold him for both of us.”
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