Chapter 167: Pitiful

Upon entering the city, Xu Fengnian chose a large inn. According to military regulations, light cavalry following a prince should present their military credentials to officials and then be assigned a camp by the local authorities. However, the crown prince had no intention of following such procedures. When they dismounted, Murong Wuzhu and Murong Tonghuang, the siblings, had already donned thick veils to conceal their faces. Murong Wuzhu was momentarily stunned to see Yu Youwei holding Wu Meiniang, clearly not expecting such a stunning woman among their group. After the harrowing ambush and counter-ambush, her spirits were at rock bottom. She lowered her head and followed closely behind Xu Fengnian up the steps, abruptly bumping into the prince's back. She was terrified, afraid of angering this foreign general's son, who seemed gentle in speech but was ruthless in action.

However, Xu Fengnian merely looked up at the two large red lanterns hanging at the inn's entrance, which bore a couplet: "Before nightfall, seek twenty-eight," and "At cockcrow, watch thirty-three." About five or six out of ten inns and hostels in Jian and He Prefectures displayed such a couplet. In his previous travels, he had never understood its meaning, and asking Lao Huang or Wen Hua would have been pointless. He waved Yu Youwei over and asked her, only then learning that it was an incomplete couplet. The first line was missing the character for "lodging," and the second line was missing "heaven." Daoism has the saying "twenty-eight constellations and thirty-three heavens," so placing it in the context of accommodation was amusing and appropriate, demonstrating the pervasive influence of Longhu Mountain, the ancestral home of Daoism, on the secular world below.

Seeing the young master with his entourage and a large group of fierce, armored soldiers, the innkeeper dared not be neglectful. He personally stepped out to greet them, despite his back ailment making it difficult to bend. Upon seeing the handsome, finely dressed young master, he bowed and remained so, diligently recommending the inn's signature wine. After receiving the room key, the ravenous Xu Fengnian asked the innkeeper to set up a table in the private courtyard. A middle-aged woman, presumably the proprietress, personally brought a pot of wine. As Xu Fengnian devoured his food, he only caught a glimpse of her extremely slender, tightly cinched waist, which made her full hips appear remarkably curvaceous. His gaze moved further up, noting her ample bosom. The innkeeper had shifty, unlikable eyes, but this young proprietress was indeed voluptuous and charming. It seemed the inn was determined to ensure these wealthy foreign military guests were well-served. The proprietress was even more alarmed when she saw the guests using their own chopsticks—silver inlaid with jade—and jadeite wine cups, with a maid in green testing for poison.

Xu Fengnian took a bite of pastry, looked up, and smiled, asking, "This pastry is good. What's it called?"

The proprietress carefully placed the wine pot on the table, curtsied, and with a unique, charming voice, replied, "Reporting to young master, it's our inn's specialty, lamp wick pastry." Her full bosom trembled with the movement.

Xu Fengnian heard the pleasant accent and exclaimed in surprise, "Is madam from Wuzhou? This accent is genuine Wuhanghu dialect, very pleasant to listen to. It's softer and more mellow than the Pilingxi dialect."

The proprietress covered her mouth with one hand and chuckled with the other, "Young master has keen hearing! Even some Wuzhou people can't distinguish between Wuhanghu and Pilingxi accents."

Xu Fengnian gestured, narrowing his eyes with a smile, "If madam doesn't mind, please sit and chat. I'm afraid madam will get tired standing."

The shrewd proprietress, observing everything, noticed the handsome young master's gaze subtly linger on her chest as he spoke. She secretly rejoiced and did not feign shyness or bashfulness, sitting down openly. She knew well that she was no longer a fresh young girl, and feigning innocent girlishness would only be annoying. It was better to be direct, relying on her mature, voluptuous figure to entice men. However, upon entering the courtyard, she hadn't dared to scrutinize her surroundings, focusing only on the man before her, whose looks were the finest she had ever seen. After sitting down and briefly glancing around, she was suddenly overcome with shame. The woman holding the white cat, in her flowing sleeves, was truly radiant. Although the faces of the three veiled women were hidden, their ethereal aura made her feel like she was sitting on pins and needles, tearful with despair at how badly she had disgraced herself. Fortunately, the young master did not disdain her "faded willow" status and chatted with her about Wuzhou's local customs, which rekindled her dead hope. She secretly wondered if this handsome young master had grown tired of bird's nest and shark fin and wanted to try this humble yet uniquely flavored lamp wick pastry.

Xu Fengnian abruptly asked, "Which person has Xuan Yuan of Gu Niu Da Gang taken an interest in recently?"

The proprietress instinctively replied, "Young master must mean the Murong siblings, right? I heard they're going to be taken to Huishan soon. All the young scholars in Jianzhou who adore them are furious."

Xu Fengnian chuckled softly, "Which Xuan Yuan young master is so fortunate?"

The proprietress hesitated, then, seeing the extraordinarily handsome young master pour a cup of bamboo leaf green tea for her and offer it, she was overwhelmed and took it with both hands, her fingers brushing his. Her heart fluttered, and she cast aside all reservations, speaking candidly, "It's not any young master or lord of the Xuan Yuan family. It's the Old Ancestor who has taken a fancy to the Murong siblings. The sister is named Murong Wuzhu, and the brother is Murong Tonghuang. They are the most famous pair in neighboring Jianzhou. There's even a song praising them, saying they will achieve immense wealth and status in the imperial palace in the capital. Isn't there a Wutong Palace in the capital? When the siblings were born, an immortal master revealed a heavenly secret and left a prophecy in the form of a song, roughly meaning 'a pair of phoenixes entering the Wutong.'"

The proprietress saw the young master's gentle smile, took another sip of wine, and grew bolder. She whispered, "I also heard that the Xuan Yuan side was afraid the siblings' fame would spread to the imperial palace. Isn't there a 'Rouge List' in the jianghu? To prevent the Murong pair from being ranked, the Xuan Yuan Old Ancestor put in a lot of effort."

Xu Fengnian narrowed his phoenix eyes, a purplish-red mark on his brow appearing like a raised eyebrow, making him seem even more refined and otherworldly. He playfully mused, "Isn't the Xuan Yuan Old Ancestor's taste a bit too eclectic? Not even sparing Murong Tonghuang?"

The proprietress was utterly captivated. Only when a maid in green coughed did she snap back to reality, covering her embarrassment by lowering her head to drink. She then looked up, taking a few good glances at the young master, and charmingly smiled, "This servant has never truly seen him, but I heard he's so handsome he can make lotuses close, and Jianzhou calls this Murong 'Lotus Lad.'"

Xu Fengnian nodded, sighing, "Xuan Yuan Old Ancestor truly lives up to the reputation of being a 'glutton of all things'."

Even if the proprietress was oblivious to the world, she knew the illustrious background of the Jiangdong Xuan Yuan family. She nervously warned, "Young master should be careful with his words. Although this isn't Jianzhou yet, 'caution is the parent of safety'."

Xu Fengnian smiled and nodded, "Madam's kindness is appreciated. I have nothing to repay you with, so I can only ask for more wine and snacks from madam."

The charming and astute proprietress gracefully stood up, curtsied again, her bosom trembling. She then turned and exited the courtyard. Xu Fengnian waited until she had left before allowing the three veiled women to remove their restraints and sit down to eat. The Murong siblings were startled upon seeing the Jing'an Princess Consort's appearance, clearly not expecting such a cold and beautiful woman in the world. Murong Wuzhu's eyes dimmed, while Murong Tonghuang secretly breathed a sigh of relief, his hostility towards the unpredictable general's son dissipating somewhat. Xu Fengnian watched the three chew slowly. He then had Qingniao fetch a standard Beiliang crossbow from the Fengzi Camp. In any army, "standardization" is a very sensitive and crucial aspect. From Beiliang's military horses to its small daggers, everything is clearly regulated and structured. Not to mention the Beiliang blade, the crossbow in the crown prince's hand was also significant. Unlike a regular crossbow, which shoots when fully drawn, this one had the advantage of separating string drawing from firing. The Beiliang crossbow also had a continuous firing function, capable of launching four bolts in succession. Xu Fengnian lowered his head, his fingers tracing the suspended blade and trigger mechanism of the crossbow, his expression focused.

Murong Tonghuang seemingly casually asked, "Crossbow?"

Xu Fengnian ignored him, instead recalling the famous "Flowing Wind Marksmanship" of the Beiliang army. These archers rode through battle formations, weaving and moving, sniping enemy generals, taking lives from a hundred paces away. They were a long-renowned elite unit of Beiliang. To become a Flowing Wind archer was exceedingly difficult; both horsemanship and archery had to be outstanding. They were the highest-ranked of Beiliang's six grades of armored soldiers, totaling over 1,200 people, 600 of whom were organized into the Dalu Camp, with the rest serving mostly as scouts and patrols. Beiliang had an unwritten rule: wealthy youths who wanted to earn real military merits on the border first had to be trained by veteran soldiers until they lost several layers of skin and several pounds. If qualified and excellent, they would be thrown into the Scout Camp to serve as a scout. Only after engaging in real combat with Northern Mang spies and cutting off three heads were they considered to have a foothold in the Beiliang army. Not long ago, Li Hanlin sent a letter saying he had successfully become a scout and dreamed of encountering those barbarians from Northern Mang. The letter also mentioned that his father, upon hearing he was not content to stay in the rear but ran off to be a scout, was so furious he nearly erupted. He disregarded his busy government duties and rushed to the border military town, intending to tie up his only son, the sole heir to the Li family, and drag him home. He almost clashed with the Beiliang army. Fortunately, the Grand Pillar State returned non-stop from the capital to the border and persuaded Lord Li, who was about to become the Beiliang Dao Governor, to go back.

Ah, that Northern Mang, which had been constantly waging war on the doorstep of the Liyang Dynasty.

Xu Fengnian was lost in thought.

Border poets of the dynasty liked to describe those barbarians as savages who drank blood and ate raw meat. The land of a hundred barbarians had fierce customs; their soldiers were all armored cavalry, with hundreds of thousands of archers. From their emperor down to the common people, they had customs like a son marrying his deceased father's wife or a brother marrying his deceased brother's widow. This was considered utterly shocking and immoral by the dynasty. Yet, Northern Mang's biggest scandal in recent years was a woman who, having caused chaos in the imperial court, became empress. Over thirty years, she had served three emperors successively, two of whom were father and son. The last short-lived emperor, who had been on the throne for only thirteen days, was even her nephew by blood. This was unimaginable in the Liyang Dynasty. This empress was said to have three thousand male consorts. Despite being over fifty, her vitality was strong. A few years ago, she even sent a secret envoy to Xu Xiao, stating that if Xu Xiao would surrender to Northern Mang, she was willing to "marry Xu" and share the world with him. To this grand offer, which was half-provocation and half-enticement, Xu Xiao was decisive: he first executed the envoy, then sent a message back to Northern Mang with only five words: "As a slave, Xu is still too old."

Xu Fengnian smiled. Xu Xiao was truly vicious. That old woman was, after all, the Empress of Northern Mang, yet he dismissed her as too old even to be a slave. But the old woman's cunning was truly terrifying; she showed no anger at such outrageous humiliation, merely shrugging it off with a smile.

Xu Fengnian put down the crossbow and looked up at the displeased Murong Tonghuang, frowning and saying, "Don't put on airs with me. Even stray cats and dogs rescued from the roadside know to wag their tails."

Murong Tonghuang's eyes were cold, staring intently at Xu Fengnian.

Xu Fengnian extended a hand and flicked the scabbard of the Embroidery Winter saber. The saber flipped up and, with a *smack*, knocked this most famous pale-faced youth of Jianzhou backward, sending him tumbling to the ground. Xu Fengnian sneered, "I'm not that pervert Xuan Yuan Da Pan; I'm not interested in you. So what if you look like a woman? Can you even bear me a child, you bastard? You know about mules, right—the offspring of a male donkey and a female horse? That's what you are."

Murong Wuzhu was dumbfounded by Xu Fengnian's extremely venomous words.

Murong Tonghuang lowered his head, a laugh slowly squeezing out from between his clenched teeth.

Murong Wuzhu, finding courage from somewhere, gripped a dagger with both hands and faced Xu Fengnian.

Xu Fengnian picked up the crossbow again and pressed it against Murong Tonghuang's head.

Murong Wuzhu, her face streaked with tears, cried out, "Don't!"

Murong Tonghuang raised his head. With the crossbow pressing against his brow, he looked up at Xu Fengnian and actually smiled, a smile that could topple nations, naturally charming and soft. He said, "This slave knows his mistake."

Murong Wuzhu's dagger clattered to the ground. She stared blankly at Murong Tonghuang, as if looking at a stranger.

The Jing'an Princess Consort's smile was peculiar, while Yu Youwei avoided looking at the scene, stroking Wu Meiniang's soft fur.

Xu Fengnian squatted down, looked at his face, and calmly said, "How pitiful."