Joy of Life: Starting from Teacher Fan Xian

Chapter 80: He Daoren's Challenge
The Northern Qi delegation left the Qing camp, but the ninth-rank master He Daoren who accompanied them did not leave immediately.

He stood outside the camp for a moment, then walked into the camp with his sword in his arms.

The soldiers outside the camp gate crossed their spears to try to stop him, but Taoist He ignored them, snorted coldly, and continued to walk forward with the sword in his hand. At the same time, an extremely powerful true energy burst out from his body and spread to all around.

In an instant, dozens of soldiers blocking his way seemed to be hit violently, and were shaken away and retreated to make way.

Qin Heng was worried that he would not be able to find a chance to deal with this arrogant Northern Qi expert. When he saw him, he was furious and drew his sword: "Capture him for trespassing in the Qing army camp."

Zhao Can, a personal soldier beside him, received the order and rushed out at a great speed and with great momentum. His fist broke through the wind and blasted towards the person within ten feet.

Upon seeing this, Taoist He finally loosened his arms and opened his palm like a net to catch the oncoming fist.

Amid the whistling sound, He Daoren stood still, staring at the general in front of him who had used all his strength to attack and was already a little discouraged, and said teasingly: "Your strength is good, but it's still a little lacking for me."

Zhao Can is only at the seventh level, and the gap between him and the ninth level masters is huge.

He Dao put a little more strength in, and Zhao Can stopped and retreated several feet.

A hand was placed on his back to stop him from retreating. Qin Heng showed a fierce and cold look: "This general wants to see how many of my Daqing Iron Cavalry the so-called ninth-rank masters can stop."

Taoist He embraced his sword again and said without fear or anger, "I have no intention of offending you. I just have some simple words to say to General Lin."

Everyone's eyes turned to Lin Ruo.

Lin Ruo spread his hands and said, "I don't know you. Besides, this is not a reason for you to trespass into the military camp."

Compared to Qin Heng's anger, he appeared very calm.

In the fight with Zhao Can just now, He Daoren restrained himself throughout and did not have any murderous intention, which is why Lin Ruo did not take action.

If Taoist He had any evil intentions, Lin Ruo would defeat him as quickly as possible.

"It doesn't matter if General Lin doesn't know me, as long as my master knows you." Taoist He replied.

Lin Ruo had the answer in his mind. He should have only one master: "You mean, Marquis Changning."

Taoist He nodded: "That's right."

Lin Ruo also nodded: "In that case, if you have anything to say, just say it in front of everyone. If the reason is not appropriate, General Qin will punish you for the offense. Even if I am the general envoy, I am afraid I can't do anything."

"My master invited General Lin to the military camp for a chat." Taoist He said indifferently.

Lin Ruo tilted his head slightly, smiled and asked, "What's the reason? It can't be because of the negotiation. If you want to have any improper private dealings, then I'm sorry that I can't accept the invitation."

Taoist He remained calm and replied, "Envoy Lin is joking. My master once studied under Master Zhuang Mohan and had a little relationship with Master Shu Wu of Wenyuan Pavilion of Erqing Kingdom. Master Shu highly praised you in front of Master Zhuang, and my master also admired you, so he wanted to pay a visit. I hope Envoy Lin will not reject my master's kindness."

Qin Heng interrupted, pretending to see someone off: "If you want to see him, please ask your head, Marquis Chang Ning, to come to Qingying for a visit. There is nothing else to discuss."

Taoist He was not annoyed at all, and said: "My master is at least quite famous and powerful in Shangjing City, please don't humiliate him, General Qin."

Qin Heng's eyes flashed with a sharp light, and he asked coldly: "No matter how powerful you are in Northern Qi, you can't suppress me, the people of Southern Qing."

"I will go back and report to the Lord." Taoist He seemed to have given in and didn't intend to say more.

Lin Ruo did not reply until He Daoren left the military camp, then he said to Qin Heng: "I'll go there tomorrow."

"It's up to you. But if someone in the court uses this as an excuse to make a report, this general won't do anything about it." Qin Heng implied that he didn't want Lin Ruo to go. He didn't want any accidents to happen that would give him an excuse to start a war.

"We have to regain our face."

……

Early the next morning, it was drizzling, flooding the military camp inside and outside.

Wang Qinian held up an umbrella to protect Lin Ruo and said loudly, "Sir, the rain is a bit heavy, are you still going?"

Lin Ruo nodded calmly: "Go, the Northern Qi delegation is coming, so I should go meet the Queen Mother's brother and see what he is thinking."

Only Wang Qinian accompanied him on this trip. Due to the heavy rain, Lin Ruo did not plan to bring other officials from the Supervisory Yuan.

Sitting on the carriage, Wang Qinian raised the whip, raindrops hit the hood, and they moved forward in the heavy rain.

Feeling the chill of the rain, Lin Ruo closed his eyes in the carriage to rest. He didn't know how long it had passed, but the sun was no longer high in the sky, and the rain was getting heavier.

The carriage finally stopped, and there were sounds of people rushing and armor colliding. At the same time, Wang Qinian's voice rang out from outside the curtain: "Sir, they won't let us into the camp. They said only one person can go in, and the carriage must be parked outside the camp."

After opening the curtain and taking a look, Lin Ruo immediately asked outside the curtain: "Master Wang, do you want to get wet in the rain outside?"

Wang Qinian responded helplessly: "Sir, I am weak and cannot stand the cold."

"Then let's go in." Lin Ruo said casually.

"Okay, sir." Wang Qinian was excited for a moment, and drove the carriage, completely ignoring the obstruction of the surrounding soldiers, and rushed into the military camp in one go. For a moment, he was like a deserted place.

The Qi soldiers scattered in all directions, and anyone who dared to approach and attack the horses was completely beaten back by Wang Qinian.

The noise gradually died down, and an order came, and the Qi soldiers stopped fighting one after another.

"Sir, we still got caught in the rain." Wang Qinian complained outside the car.

"That's because you're incompetent." Lin Ruo laughed and said loudly to Qi Bing outside, "If I were outside the car, no one would be able to keep me wet in the rain."

"This Nanqing people are too arrogant. This is my Qi country's military camp."

“We can’t let them go back.”

The Qi soldiers were furious, but the ninth-rank master He Daoren stood quietly in the rain, shouting to stop the restless formation and staring at the carriage.

"Envoy Lin, my master is waiting anxiously."

"Really? The rain is a bit heavy, and it's inconvenient to come." Lin Ruo explained very reasonably why he was late. It was definitely not because he overslept this morning.

After getting off the carriage, Lin Ruo walked in the rain, with the umbrella on his head following closely to shield him from the wind and rain.

"Sir, Wang is caught in the rain again."

"Bring a bigger umbrella next time."

"Master He, there should be heaters and other items in the main camp."

"I don't know."

Listening to the two people talking nonsense in front of him, He Daoren led his men towards the main camp without even turning his head.

When they were outside the main camp, Taoist He held his sword and stepped aside: "Envoy Lin, please come in."

"The sword is nice, Taoist He, can you show it to me?" Lin Ruo looked over and said abruptly, then stretched out his hand.

He Daoren's face froze, he loosened his hand holding the sword, and reached out to grab the arm that was stretched out. But the hands moved very quickly, and by the time He Daoren grabbed the arm, he had already touched the sword as he wished.

Taoist He secretly exerted force to force him to retract his hand.

As the force gradually increased, He Daoren was somewhat impressed by the man's endurance, but when he looked up, he saw that the 17-year-old General Lin looked extremely relaxed.

A look of surprise flashed across He Daoren's eyes.

"Master He, have you had enough fun?" Lin Ruo looked at him with a teasing expression, and the latter unconsciously let go of his hand.

"I've touched it, it's just average." Lin Ruo suddenly made a comment, and then walked into the camp leisurely.

He Daoren was so humiliated that he had not yet recovered from the shock. He looked at Wang Qinian behind him with a little anger.

Wang Qinian shuddered and said with a smile: "This sword is pretty good."

I thought to myself that the master was so bold that he even dared to offend a ninth-rank master.

When Lin Ruo entered the camp, he saw a man in bright and colorful clothes making tea. He was wearing a brocade robe and a jade belt around his waist, looking very gorgeous.

"Envoy Lin, please take a seat." Marquis Changning said softly.

Lin Ruo bowed and took a seat silently.

Marquis Changning poured him a cup of tea and said with a smile: "General Envoy Lin is quite powerful. He can still be so arrogant even when he enters my Qi camp."

"I was just returning the favor to Taoist He. Now we are even." Lin Ruo said calmly. His action was actually a response to Taoist He's provocation in the Qing camp yesterday. Since there was a give and take, there was no need to make a fuss about it.

Taoist He snorted, as if he was very unconvinced, and kept thinking about why this person could withstand his ninth-grade strength.

After testing, it was clear that he was just a seventh-rank warrior, only slightly stronger than Zhao Can.

Changning Hou changed the subject and said, "Envoy Lin, please have a taste. This is the yellow tea produced only in Northern Qi. It can invigorate the mind and relieve fatigue."

Lin Ruo took a sip and felt a fragrance lingering in his mouth: "Yes, it's good tea."

Marquis Changning was very satisfied with Lin Ruo's reply. He smiled and said, "In that case, General Lin, do you have any idea to come to Northern Qi to take a look?"

"What are you looking at?" Lin Ruo asked.

"The mountains and rivers of Northern Qi are so beautiful. I can be sure of that. It is much better than Shangqing Kingdom." Marquis Changning said confidently.

Lin Ruo said indifferently: "Northern Qi has a vast territory, so it is natural that the scenery is picturesque. However, I haven't even seen all the mountains and rivers of Qing Kingdom, so I really don't have the time to travel all the way to see the mountains and rivers of Northern Qi."

Marquis Changning added, "Empress Lin is young, but he has a great reputation among the scholars of Southern Qing. You should know that the literary world is headed by the great Northern Qi scholar Zhuang Mohan. If Envoy Lin wants to make further progress, I can introduce him to you."

Lin Ruo laughed and said in a deep voice, "Master Zhuang Mohan is admirable. It is shameful to become his disciple just for fame and fortune. What Marquis Changning said is very problematic."

The literary styles of Northern Qi and Qing are indeed not at the same level at present. It is no exaggeration to say that if a person from Southern Qing can pass the imperial examination in Northern Qi, it would be easy for him to return to Qing to become an official.

On the other hand, the Qing Kingdom is far from having such ability.

This is also the reason why the Northern Qi Dynasty always considered itself to be orthodox. They had the best cultural resources and it was hard not to be convinced.

The emergence of the great master Zhuang Mohan has undoubtedly taken this persuasiveness to a higher level.

"Could it be that Marquis Changning's words are meant to win people's hearts as I expected yesterday?" Lin Ruo asked straightforwardly.

Marquis Changning took a sip of tea and said, "Envoy Lin can think it is, or he can think it is not."

"The Qing Kingdom only won once, which does not mean it has the capital to continue winning, so there is no need for me to try to win you over."

The Northern Qi was still in turmoil, which became an excuse for the failure of this war.

They will not admit the decline of national strength. Lin Ruo nodded and said with a smile: "I understand. What Changning Hou meant is that he really just hit it off with Lin at first sight."

"Not really. Since Shu Wu mentioned you, it's no problem to take this opportunity to get to know you." Chang Ning Hou said. He didn't have a very deep impression of Lin Ruo. The fact that he dared to enter the Qi camp alone and cause such a commotion was the only thing he admired.

"So what does Marquis Changning think about the peace talks?"

"I actually have no objection to all the conditions proposed by your Qing Kingdom. The ones who have objections are the officials in the delegation. This is why I did not go to the Qing camp with the delegation."

Marquis Changning is the Queen Mother's younger brother, so naturally he stands on the side of the Queen Mother's party.

There is currently a lot of opposition to the Queen Mother's regency in Northern Qi, so the young Queen Mother of Northern Qi naturally hopes to end the border war as soon as possible and focus on domestic reorganization.

The purpose of Marquis Changning is to achieve this goal.

The delegation was a faction of civil servants protesting against the regent, and it was normal for them to oppose the cession of territory. The two sides were not on the same front.

"In a few days, the delegation will finally surrender, and you in Qing Kingdom can still be happy for a few days." Marquis Changning said this lightly.

Lin Ruo understood the implication of the words and thought to himself that no one really believed that Northern Qi would be able to fight against Qing after rectifying the domestic situation. The idea of ​​Changning Hou, who grew up in a wealthy countryside, was extremely naive.

Little did he know that the Northern Qi army he led would suffer the same disastrous defeat in the future, and he would even have to lead an envoy to Southern Qing in person to apologize.

Then it leads to a series of events about Fan Xian's mission to Northern Qi...

The rain gradually subsided and the sun showed signs of coming out.

In the Qing camp, the second round of negotiations between the two sides ended. The Northern Qi delegation still disagreed with Qing's request to cede territory, but their attitude became much more moderate.

The officials of the Honglu Temple had long anticipated that submission would be a gradual process, and they did not treat him too harshly.

The Northern Qi delegation left the Qing camp, and Lin Ruo also left the Qi camp.

Taoist He walked him out, looking at him uncontrollably, trying to clarify the doubts in his heart.

"What's wrong? Master He likes to stare at me so much." Lin Ruo turned around and teased.

He Daoren replied directly: "Nothing, I just really want to try my hand at fighting with General Envoy Lin."

There are some things whose results you can't tell just by looking at them.

"This is not appropriate. I'm afraid it will lead to the resumption of war between the two countries." Lin Ruo reminded him. Of course, he would not be afraid if a fight really came to that.

"Don't worry, General Lin. I, Taoist He, am not a rude warrior."

Taoist He held the sword, thought for a moment and said, "After the peace talks are over, I will come to Qingying in person to look for General Lin. I hope General Lin will be willing to give me some advice then."

Wang Qinian decisively refused: "Sir, you can't agree to him. How can you seek justice when a ninth-rank master bullies a seventh-rank warrior like you?"

"Is there really no one who can tell that I'm at the ninth level?" Lin Ruo thought to himself, this cheat is a bit powerful.

"Since Taoist He is willing, I, Lin, am ready to accompany you at any time." Lin Ruo accepted the challenge.

(End of this chapter)