Centurion Jiang was tall and imposing. With his head held high and strides wide, he came to stand before the tent, his tiger-like eyes sweeping inside before he spoke again. “Which one exactly is Pei Er?”
The tent fell into silence. Several wounded soldiers who had been about to come out subconsciously retreated; no one dared respond.
“All mute?” Centurion Jiang barked again.
He was tall and his voice booming; when he shouted, it was almost ear-splitting.
Still no one around dared speak. Several wounded soldiers who had once been “taught a lesson” by him even shrank back instinctively.
Until Xu Hong behind him tugged at his clothes, pointing at Pei Er seated at the tent entrance, and said in a low voice, “Centurion, he’s Pei Er.”
Centurion Jiang’s sharp eyes immediately looked over,
Pei Er sat steadily at the tent entrance, eating unhurriedly, as though unaware of everything happening around him.
Centurion Jiang strode forward, narrowed his eyes, and looked down at him. “You’re Pei Er?”
As if he hadn’t heard, Pei Er continued eating at an unhurried pace.
Centurion Jiang said, “You’re the one who wants to marry Shen Xiu? What, did you not hear the words I put out before?”
Everyone in the tent was instantly shocked upon hearing this, Pei Er was going to marry Miss Shen? He truly… dared.
Zhang He couldn’t help admiring his courage. Moreover, since Miss Shen was his benefactor, Pei Er doing this was clearly helping her. Along with admiration, there were a few parts more gratitude.
Chen Qing, limping at this moment and standing behind the crowd, was even more shocked upon hearing it, his eyes nearly popped out. Pei Er was actually going to marry Miss Shen? This kid’s beautiful dream had really come true?
At the entrance of the tent, Pei Er still acted as though he heard nothing, continuing to eat.
Centurion Jiang finally roared in anger, “What? Are you deaf or stupid? Can’t hear or can’t understand?”
Seeing that he still paid no attention after speaking, he suddenly lifted his foot and kicked over the food basin, cursing, “What dog food is this? Truly a lowly person deserves only lowly things!”
With a “clang”!
The relatively decent meal specially prepared in the camp for the wounded soldiers, with a bit of oil and meat, was just like that knocked over together with the basin onto the dirt-covered ground, along with that egg Pei Er had never been willing to eat. The smooth egg white split open from the fall, rolling once on the ground, covered in dust.
Pei Er’s gaze fixed tightly on the rolling egg. Only when it stopped did his line of sight stop as well, his five fingers gradually clenching.
“Ha, a poor little soldier dares to compete with me? You didn’t take my previous words to heart, did you?” Centurion Jiang continued mocking, then turned to Xu Hong and Niu Feng. “You two, take him away for me. This man has no regard for military discipline, ignores his superior. I’ll personally teach him the army’s regu…”
Before he finished speaking, he suddenly sensed Pei Er beside him stand up. Centurion Jiang turned back. “What…”
Before the word fell, a fierce fist wind struck straight at his face. Pei Er’s whole aura turned cold and sharp, his strike swift as lightning.
“Centurion, be careful!” Xu Hong and the other hurriedly shouted from behind.
Centurion Jiang was no useless man either. He quickly twisted to dodge, but the punch came faster. He had only dodged halfway when a fist smashed into his face. Intense pain immediately struck; the corner of his mouth split open.
Centurion Jiang cried out in pain, his expression furious. Just as he was about to retaliate, another punch smashed in, heavier than before. He didn’t even have time to react before being knocked to the ground by that blow, seeing stars from the pain.
Pei Er’s expression was cold and severe. He suddenly bent down, a chilling coldness in his eyes, his gaze terrifying. Grabbing the other’s hair in one hand, his grip like iron claws, he yanked the head up and then violently slammed it down, smashing it heavily against the ground.
“Thud!”
In an instant, Centurion Jiang’s vision went black. Blood from the back of his head quickly soaked into his hair. Instinctively he lifted his foot to kick, and happened to strike Pei Er’s injured leg.
Pei Er gave a muffled grunt and staggered, giving Centurion Jiang a chance to roll over. The two soon grappled together, you punching, I kicking, every move ruthless, all aimed at taking life.
In the blink of an eye, they had already exchanged more than a dozen moves. Only then did Xu Hong and Niu Feng behind them react, hastily drawing their blades and stepping forward to help.
“What are you doing? What are you doing?” Zhang He hurriedly shouted upon seeing this. “They’re fighting and you’re drawing blades, what, bullying someone?”
From the corner of his eye, Pei Er also saw the two men’s movement. Immediately he hooked his right leg, bringing Centurion Jiang down, and swiftly clamped a hand around his throat. But Centurion Jiang also dragged him down with him, two fingers like hooks shooting straight toward his eyes.
Pei Er did not dodge in the slightest, his eyes like cold stars.
Panting heavily, ignoring Xu and Niu who were about to step forward, he stared straight at Centurion Jiang, his tone contemptuous as he spoke the very words Li Chanxiu had said before: “What, is this all you’re capable of? Only daring to make a move when you have numbers on your side?”
Hearing this, Centurion Jiang grew furious, his face flushed red, his hand pausing.
Pei Er continued, “If you truly have ability, then wait until the competition. We’ll compete openly on the drill ground and see who is stronger, who… is more qualified to marry Miss Shen!”
He panted, his expression cold and handsome. Blood from his forehead flowed down, covering his eyes, yet his gaze burned like a torch as he spoke word by word the sentence he truly wanted to say in his heart.
At this moment Zhang Hu also hurried over. Seeing that Centurion Jiang’s two subordinates had both drawn blades, and though Pei Er slightly held the upper hand, his curved blade was still at his waist and he might not have time to draw it, he said, “Fighting with weapons is forbidden in camp. Are you openly defying General Chen’s orders?”
Centurion Jiang ground his teeth, eyes nearly splitting with rage, glaring fiercely at Pei Er above him.
Having suffered such a loss today, he naturally did not wish to let it go. But he was extremely conceited, believing that in this camp his martial skill ranked third, only his elder brother and General Chen ranked ahead. As for the brat before him, he had merely relied on a sudden sneak attack to catch him off guard and gain a slight advantage.
Just as Li Chanxiu had said, this man cared greatly about face. In front of so many people, he was unwilling to admit he could only bully by relying on power. Moreover, fighting with weapons truly was forbidden in camp…
Thinking this, he gritted his teeth and said to Xu and Niu, “You two, stand down.”
Xu Hong and Niu Feng hesitated but sheathed their blades.
Seeing this, Pei Er narrowed his eyes slightly and gradually loosened the five fingers locking his throat.
Centurion Jiang likewise withdrew his eagle-hooked fingers. He flipped over and climbed up, dusted off the dirt on his body, and glared viciously at Pei Er, suppressing his anger. “Fine, you’ve got guts. We’ll meet on the drill ground. If I win, I marry Miss Shen. If you lose, kneel and kowtow three times to me and call me Grandfather!”
“…Shouldn’t it be that if Pei Er wins, then Pei Er marries Miss Shen?” Zhang He couldn’t help muttering softly.
Hearing this, Centurion Jiang’s tiger eyes suddenly swept toward him, his gaze fierce.
Zhang He’s heart trembled, and he didn’t dare make another sound. Zhang Hu hurriedly stepped in front of his younger brother, blocking the line of sight.
Centurion Jiang gave a cold snort, withdrew his gaze, looked again at Pei Er, and asked, “Well?”
Pei Er raised a hand and wiped away the blood obscuring the sight of his right eye, saying coldly, “Fine!”
“Since that’s the case, I’ll spare you for now.” Centurion Jiang snorted again, swept a glance over everyone, and then left with Xu and Niu.
As soon as the three went far away, the camp instantly erupted.
“Impressive, Pei Er, you actually had Centurion Jiang pinned down just now.”
“In previous military competitions, aside from Commandant Jiang and General Chen who don’t compete, no one could beat him.”
“Pei Er, you’re going to participate in this military competition? Aren’t your injuries not healed yet?”
“Pei Er, you’ve really made something of yourself, you’re actually going to marry Miss Shen?!”
That last sentence was Chen Qing’s excited shout.
Then Zhang He also cheered him on: “Pei Er, you must pull yourself together! Defeat Centurion Jiang, knock down his arrogance, and vent some anger for us poor soldiers!”
As soon as the words fell, the earlier uproar in the wounded soldiers’ camp suddenly quieted. Everyone’s expressions turned strange.
Zhang Hu sighed helplessly and turned to glare fiercely at his younger brother.
Everyone knew that Centurion Jiang was not so easy to defeat. Even Zhang Hu, the strongest present, was not his match. The reason Pei Er had gained the upper hand today was most likely because he struck suddenly and caught the other off guard.
But Pei Er seemed not to hear any of them. He walked over, picked up the smashed egg, borrowed some water from someone nearby, and rinsed it. The dirt on the egg white was quickly washed clean, but the yolk could not be washed.
In the end, he sat at the tent entrance and, mixed with dust, ate the egg mouthful by mouthful. Blood from his temple flowed down again, staining his hands.
Zhang Hu walked over and handed him a piece of white cloth.
Pei Er looked up at him once, silently accepted it, and pressed it to his wound.
Zhang Hu sat down beside him. After hesitating for a moment, he chose his words carefully. “Jiang Chong, this man, does rely on his elder brother’s status to act tyrannically, but he himself does have some skill. Although you slightly held the upper hand today, it’s hard to say what will happen on the drill ground, especially since he uses underhanded tricks. And the military competition isn’t just about fists and kicks; it also tests riding and archery. Jiang Chong comes from a good background and has ridden horses since childhood. In riding and archery he’s also outstanding…”
At this point, he coughed lightly, a little embarrassed. “Although I’m not as capable as Jiang Chong, if you need someone to practice with, I can help. After all, Miss Shen is a benefactor to Zhang He and me. Helping her is helping us brothers.”
Hearing this, however, Pei Er said flatly, “No need.”
He wasn’t helping Miss Shen, he truly wanted to marry her. And even if he were helping her, it had nothing to do with the Zhang brothers.
Zhang Hu was clearly choked for a moment and finally understood why Chen Qing said this man had a young master’s temperament and usually acted as if he didn’t see others.
***
When Li Chanxiu came in the afternoon to deliver the medicinal soup, he only then learned that Pei Er had clashed with Centurion Jiang that morning and fought.
He set down the medicine box and, while applying medicine for him, frowned. “Didn’t we agree yesterday not to have a conflict with him for now? Your injuries aren’t healed yet. After this fight, have your wounds split open again?”
Pei Er’s gaze flickered away, and he did not dare answer.
There was blood at his temple, and his knuckles were bruised purple, with some broken skin. He had been fierce while fighting, but after the fight, in front of Li Chanxiu, he looked somewhat disheveled.
Especially when he saw the other glance at his hands, he quickly curled his fingers unnaturally, trying to hide those injuries.
Seeing him like this, Li Chanxiu found it somewhat amusing. While applying medicine, he deliberately pressed on one of his wounds and asked, “Why didn’t you listen to me?”
Pei Er’s eyelashes trembled lightly from the pain, yet he made no sound. He only looked up at Li Chanxiu, dark eyes carrying a trace of unwillingness, and explained in a muffled voice, “He knocked over the egg.”
Li Chanxiu: “……”
Just for that?
After finishing applying the medicine, he pulled over a broken stool from the side and sat down in front of Pei Er. “Since you’ve already crossed hands with him, then we might as well take this opportunity to give you some intensive tutoring first.”
As he spoke, he took out a small booklet. On it were little stick-figure drawings he had stayed up late last night to draw, all showing figures practicing fist and foot techniques.
“I’ve watched Centurion Jiang fight with others several times before and know some of his patterns. They’re all in these drawings. Although I haven’t practiced martial arts, I’ve seen others practice. In a moment, we’ll analyze them together, how to respond to his moves. Also…”
As he spoke, he took out another small booklet, also filled with similar little figures, and continued, “This is a booklet on fist and foot techniques I obtained by chance. Take it and have a look. The techniques in it might be useful to you.”
This too he had stayed up late drawing yesterday. They were some techniques he knew from his dream. In the dream, due to the cold poison, he had always been mediocre in martial arts and couldn’t wield heavy weapons on the battlefield.
The techniques in this booklet were ones that taught him to use clever force. When facing someone stronger in strength and skill, one could use technique to win, achieving the effect of “using four ounces to deflect a thousand pounds.”
Speaking of which, it had also been given by a certain… thoughtful person.
Centurion Jiang was strong and robust, while Pei Er was injured. Using this method of clever force to win was most suitable.
Looking at the techniques displayed by the little figures in the second booklet, Pei Er felt an inexplicable sense of familiarity.
But he quickly saw that these were all techniques relying on clever force to win. Intuitively, he felt he probably wouldn’t need them. Rather, someone slender like Miss Shen could appropriately practice them to guard against villains.
He put down the booklet and was about to say it wasn’t necessary, but when he met Li Chanxiu’s expectant gaze, he involuntarily stopped himself. Acting as if nothing was amiss, he picked up the booklet again, glanced at it a few more times, and said seriously, “Mm, very useful. Thank you… Miss Shen.”
Li Chanxiu immediately felt relieved. “As long as you can use it.”
Then he asked, “By the way, how are your riding and archery skills?”
Before Pei Er could answer, he pressed lightly at his own brow. “I almost forgot, you don’t remember anything.”
However, Pei Er hesitated and said, “Although I don’t remember, I have a feeling… they should be alright.”
Li Chanxiu was surprised. “How good is ‘alright’?”
Pei Er thought for a moment. Two phrases surfaced in his mind. “Shooting through a willow leaf at a hundred paces. Never missing a shot.”
Upon hearing this, Li Chanxiu couldn’t help but laugh.
Not far away, Chen Qing clutched his stomach and burst out laughing.
Pei Er did not understand and looked up at the two of them.
“You don’t believe me?” he couldn’t help asking Li Chanxiu.
Li Chanxiu gave a light cough, suppressing his smile. “No, it’s just a bit surprising.”
Pei Er: “……” You just don’t believe me.
Chen Qing beside them laughed outright. “Do you even know what those two phrases mean? ‘Shooting through a willow leaf at a hundred paces’ and ‘never missing a shot’, those would better describe Pei Shizi in Bingzhou.”
Pei Er frowned. “Who is Pei Shizi?”
This time Li Chanxiu stopped smiling and explained seriously, “Pei Shizi is the defending general of Bingzhou, General Pei Zhen, and also Yan Wang Shizi. It’s said his riding and archery are extremely formidable. When he was young in Luoyang, he became famous throughout the capital for shooting through a willow leaf at a hundred paces and striking two targets with one arrow.”
Seeing his serious expression as he earnestly praised someone he himself had never heard of, Pei Er suddenly felt a little uncomfortable.
He suddenly thought that when that Pei Shizi had still been in Luoyang, bearing great fame, Miss Shen had also been in Luoyang, just a young lady in her boudoir…
And at this moment Chen Qing exaggeratedly added from the side, “I heard that when Pei Shizi was eighteen, he dared to hold a silver spear and personally lead two hundred iron cavalry into the Hu people’s main camp, charging back and forth among thirty thousand men, killing until those Hu soldiers were thrown into panic and their formations completely in chaos. He even captured several Hu royal clansmen, shaking the northern lands with his might.”
Once they began speaking of Yan Wang Shizi, the other wounded soldiers could not help gathering around as well, each adding their own remarks.
Some said that Yan Wang Shizi had taken advantage of the Hu people resting at midnight, catching them off guard and thus achieving a great victory. Others said that Yan Wang Shizi was a youthful hero, courage in every inch of him, leading two hundred iron cavalry like wolves among sheep, slaughtering until the Hu dared not move.
“If only our Great Zhou had more generals like that, the northern lands would have long been reclaimed. We wouldn’t have to live in daily fear, worrying that the Hu might suddenly attack again.”
At last, an old soldier with somewhat graying beard sighed with emotion.
Li Chanxiu listened quietly, no emotion discernible on his face. Only after the crowd dispersed did he return to himself and look again at Pei Er.
Pei Er had lowered his eyes, his expression seemingly somewhat gloomy.
Li Chanxiu thought he had been struck a blow and could not help comforting him. “You needn’t think too much. Although Centurion Jiang’s archery is good, it is far from the level of shooting through a willow leaf at a hundred paces. If you truly have that skill, you will certainly win at the competition.”
Pei Er lifted his head but looked at him and asked, “Do you think that Pei Shizi is formidable?”
Li Chanxiu was slightly startled upon hearing this.
Pei Zhen was naturally formidable. Although he had never seen him, in the dream later on, when the Central Plains fell and the iron hooves of the Hu reached the northern bank of the Yangtze, watering their horses and eyeing the river, it had been Pei Zhen who turned the tide, defended the Yangtze, and retook the Huai River defensive line, allowing the fleeing and panic-stricken Great Zhou court to prolong its rule for over another decade. However…
Li Chanxiu withdrew his thoughts and smiled. “I’ve never seen him either. How would I know whether he’s formidable?”
So she’s never seen him?
Pei Er’s mood immediately brightened again, though he kept a composed face, pretending to pick up the booklet and continue studying it.
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