Chapter 283: Golden Armor and Iron Horses Enter the Dream

Xu Fengnian sat alone by the river, lost in thought. Luo Changhe, the old scholar Luo, and their group had long grown accustomed to this sight. At midnight, Xu Fengnian wielded the Profound Thunder sword, nurturing its blade with drops of his blood. The hidden meanings behind the Ten Heavenly Stems and Twelve Earthly Branches were top-secret within the Prince of Northern Liang's Residence; the former referred to Xu Fengnian's sworn death guards, and the latter to Xu Xiao's trusted personal retainers. After acquiring the Peach Blossom Sword God's twelve flying swords, Xu Fengnian deeply understood the significance of the latter. Their names were Zi Xuanjia, Chou Chunmei, Yin Zhuma, Mao Zhaolu, Chen Chunshui, Si Taohua, Wu Jinlu, Wei Huangtong, Shen Emei, You Zhuque, Xu Pifu, and Hai Tai'a. The time of nurturing each sword corresponded to the time it was forged. With the exception of Jinlu, which fortuitously received the Buddha's golden blood and developed more than half its blade embryo, the other flying swords had not even reached halfway.

The two swords with the strongest will, Profound Thunder and Tai'a, were particularly stubborn. They seemed incompatible with their new master, progressing at a snail's pace. Putting away Profound Thunder, he summoned Jinlu. With a flick of his finger, the flying sword pierced a swimming fish in the river. Finding a single sword causing splashes insufficient, Xu Fengnian, having nothing else to do, summoned eight more, making a total of nine, which sent countless splashes rising. Then, in an instant, he recalled all nine flying swords, which, after passing through his sleeve, almost wrapped around his arm and shoulder before settling into his sword pouch. This precise control alone, without mentioning anything else, was enough to leave ordinary martial artists dumbfounded.

Xu Fengnian picked up a stone and threw it into the river. Then, from a distance, the elite retainer, who was attached to Old Mr. Luo's family, approached. He hesitated for a while, seeing Xu Fengnian occasionally toss stones into the water, before walking to within thirty paces and speaking loudly: “My name is Feng Shanling. If I have disturbed Young Master Xu, or been presumptuous in any way, I hope you will forgive me.”

Xu Fengnian tossed another stone, clapped his hands, and turned, smiling, “It’s fine. I couldn’t sleep either.”

Feng Shanling sat a little further away by the riverbank, cupping his hands and bowing. “I am grateful for your help in repelling the horse bandits a few days ago, Young Master. On behalf of my brothers, I offer our thanks. Forgive my bluntness, Young Master Xu, but my brothers and I are mere servants. We dare not speak grand words of repaying a drop of kindness with a gushing spring. Firstly, it was a life-saving grace, and secondly, even if we wished to repay you, we have nothing worthy. We can only humbly ask that tomorrow, once we reach town, Young Master Xu allows us to privately treat you to drinks and meat at a clean inn.”

Xu Fengnian chuckled, “That sounds wonderful. I still have some silver left. After a good meal and drinks, I can’t afford the ladies of the Grand Green Brothel, but a visit to a smaller establishment is certainly possible. Old Brother Feng, are you interested? Although I outwardly claim to be from a minor gentry family, in truth, I am merely the son of a merchant. I’m not really cut from the same cloth as Young Master Luo and those from prestigious families, and I fear offering warmth only to be met with coldness. You, Old Brother Feng, are more to my liking. To be frank, treating you to a visit to a brothel is simply so that when I arrive in the territories of these young masters later, Old Brother Feng, you might be willing to share a meal with me, and my small business could receive some assistance.”

Feng Shanling, who had initially appeared somewhat reserved, now laughed heartily. “Young Master Xu is a straightforward man! It seems I, Feng Shanling, have judged a gentleman by my own petty standards this time. Since you’ve laid your cards on the table, I, Feng, will stop beating around the bush. It is truly my duty, and I dare not be careless. Though the horse bandits were repelled earlier, their casualties were not severe. I feared, Young Master Xu, that you might be an insider for those bandits. For the past few days, I secretly sent a brother, who was formerly a scout, to gather information in the periphery, but there was no trace of the bandits. Given that we enter a military town to rest tomorrow, I felt that I must have wronged Young Master Xu. My brothers and I are rough men who only know how to wield blades and spears, but we still have a sense of shame. So I came to offer a few words of apology to you, Young Master, and you may scold or even hit me as you wish.”

Xu Fengnian waved his hand. “It’s human nature, Old Brother Feng. You worry too much. If I were in your shoes, travelling away from home, I would also be extra cautious.”

Feng Shanling was not a glib or eloquent person. After saying all he had prepared, he didn’t know what else to say. Xu Fengnian hesitated, then asked, “I heard Old Mr. Luo say that Old Brother Feng used to be a powerful crossbowman in Northern Liang?”

Feng Shanling showed a trace of wistfulness, and chuckled, “That was a long time ago.”

Xu Fengnian picked up a flat stone beside him, skipped it across the water, and said, “The border between Liang and Mang has special crossbow control passes to prevent bows and crossbows from crossing illegally. Old Brother Feng, you probably haven’t touched a powerful crossbow in years, have you?”

The rough man, who had once become a Northern Liang trebuchet crossbowman due to his exceptional strength, gave a bitter smile and sighed with emotion. “Yes, that’s right. I still remember before leaving the army, a grown man like me, squatting on the ground, touching a powerful crossbow, secretly crying for half a day. These past few years, I’ve been a martial arts instructor for the Luo family’s guards, relying on the skills I learned in the Northern Liang army to teach archery and horsemanship to over a dozen of the Luo family’s illegitimate sons. I also managed to save some silver. I had hoped that I could finally buy a good crossbow to satisfy my craving, but unexpectedly, last year, my family welcomed a daughter. My wife said we needed to start saving for her dowry right away, buying this and that. Not to mention anything else, just that carved bed for a daughter, not counting the matching dressing table, washstand, silver cabinet, chairs, and stools, a single bed cost sixty taels of silver! Alas, the silver just flowed out like water, making me so angry that I drank heavily for several days. But then I came home and saw my little daughter’s rosy cheeks, and my anger immediately vanished.”

Xu Fengnian smiled knowingly, “Does your daughter resemble Old Brother Feng or your wife? If she takes after you more, you certainly would need to prepare more dowry.”

Feng Shanling paused, then burst into laughter. “Young Master Xu speaks truthfully, Old Feng loves to hear it! Heh, well, to be honest, it’s fortunate that besides her eyes, which she got from her father, she resembles her mother in every other way. It shouldn’t be too difficult for her to find a suitable family in the future.”

Xu Fengnian quipped, “It’s a pity I’m a bit too old, otherwise I could claim kinship with Old Brother Feng and call you my father-in-law.”

Feng Shanling replied seriously, “Don’t even think about it! Before my daughter turns thirteen or fourteen, any little rascal who dares to have ill intentions will be strung up on a tree and beaten by me!”

After speaking, Feng Shanling was the first to laugh, then remembered to cup his hands and apologize to Xu Fengnian.

Xu Fengnian nodded. “A son-in-law is half a son to his mother-in-law, growing more pleasing with each glance. But to the father-in-law, he’s half an enemy, a scoundrel who steals his daughter. My father used to say he wished my two elder sisters would never marry. What’s the point of marrying? You painstakingly raise a daughter, only for another man to mistreat her without an ounce of care.”

Feng Shanling chuckled, “Exactly, exactly! I used to complain to my wife about how my father-in-law always glowered at me when I first came to propose. Now that I have a daughter of my own, I finally understand.”

Xu Fengnian looked at the brilliant starry river above, then glanced south.

Feng Shanling felt, from the bottom of his heart, that Young Master Xu was approachable, much more pleasing and comfortable to be around than the scions of noble families like Luo Changhe. Those individuals, even if outwardly unpretentious and amiable, ultimately drew a clear line between themselves and him and his brothers. If one was sensible enough to stay outside that boundary, those noble scions would naturally be cordial and offer a smile. But if one carelessly crossed the line, they would surely stumble. Such unspoken rules were well understood by martial artists like Feng Shanling who made a living within the gates of great clans. Yet, this young master before him, perhaps owing to his merchant background outweighing his gentry status, was much easier to approach and suited Feng Shanling’s temperament and disposition, making him worth befriending. As for whether they could become close friends, that would, of course, be seen over time; Feng Shanling was no three-year-old child to immediately pour out his heart and soul, believing they could become brothers who would risk their lives for each other.

Xu Fengnian asked curiously, “Old Brother Feng, why did you leave the Northern Liang army?”

Feng Shanling looked at the river, plucked a clump of wild grass, and sighed. “I joined the army late and missed the Spring and Autumn War. I enlisted when the Grand General was on his way to Northern Liang. My parents had also passed away, so I had no family to worry about. I just wanted to accumulate military merits to bring glory to my family name, and when I went home to visit my father’s grave and offer him wine, I could stand tall, couldn’t I? With good luck and some brute strength, within two years of joining the army, I became a powerful crossbowman. I followed the Grand General and the Northern Liang army all the way to Nanking Prefecture in Northern Mang. It was exhilarating! I killed so many barbarians that my eyes turned red. One time, my powerful crossbow was even trampled and broken, and I was so dazed I didn’t know what to do, until the Captain slapped me on the head and told me to just charge in with a Northern Liang blade. At that moment, I didn’t care about being afraid of death; I only thought that killing one barbarian wouldn’t be a loss, killing two would be a profit, and if I killed a few more, I could even become a junior captain. Unexpectedly, after only running a few hundred paces with my brothers, I tripped over a corpse and fell flat on my face. Fortunately, when I got up, while my courage was still there, I hacked and slashed wildly, and I actually managed to kill two barbarians. After that, in several major battles, I never had a chance to charge into the formation and kill enemies myself. With the Grand General and General Chen there, the Northern Mang barbarians had no power to fight back at all. Later, I heard that His Majesty the Emperor also personally led an expedition and joined our Northern Liang army. At first, my brothers and I were quite happy. But then, I just couldn’t understand it anymore. The war was suddenly called off, and the Northern Liang army was even ordered to withdraw south first. The Grand General didn’t say anything either. I didn’t understand anything back then, I just felt that I had joined the wrong army, and I was suffocated with frustration. So, I left along with many brothers. Some of them became horse bandits, saying that if the Grand General wouldn’t kill the barbarians, they would. My other brothers and I also went our separate ways on the road. Then I ran into a branch family head of the Luo family. I thought, well, they are a family that migrated from the Central Plains, so working for them wouldn’t be disgraceful. So I settled down there. It was much later, listening to the Luo family members chatting, that I learned it was the Zhao Emperor who issued an imperial decree, forcing the Grand General to retreat.”

Feng Shanling tossed the wild grass into the river, a look of regret on his face. “All these years, when I sleep at night, I still wake up with a start if I hear horse hooves outside the wall. Or I’ll be dreaming, and subconsciously I’ll do a sit-up, thinking of grabbing my blade and going to battle.”

Xu Fengnian wanted to smile but couldn’t.

The rough man rubbed his cheek, muttering to himself, “My wife has complained countless times about it, but it seems I won’t change in this lifetime.”

Xu Fengnian exhaled slowly, pursed his lips, and remained silent.

How many old soldiers in Northern Liang still heard the clang of weapons and the thunder of horses in their dreams?