A young man and woman rode a pair of fine steeds, one white and one yellow. The young man was handsome, dressed in yellow robes, tall and straight-backed. The young woman was slightly dark-skinned yet lovely, her white robes fluttering in the wind.
"What a perfect pair," Song Qingshu silently praised. But remembering how the two had ridden recklessly through the streets, he felt a touch of displeasure. Seeing the grave expressions on their faces, he curiously followed their gazes.
The person they had struck was also a young man, though he wore a long queue and Qing official robes. Judging by the crowd of attendants surrounding him, he was likely some high-ranking Qing official.
"Damn it, seize them!" Though the young man had not actually been hit, he had still been badly frightened. Turning around, he immediately intended to give the culprits a proper lesson.
"Wait!" When the young man turned back and saw the lively, beautiful girl on horseback, delight rose in his heart. If I can spend one night with this little bitch, I'll die happy.
Having made up his mind, the young man abruptly changed his tone. He spun around and smacked the hats of his attendants on both sides with several slaps. "I'm talking about you lot. What if there really had been assassins just now? Wouldn't this lord have kicked the bucket and gone to meet King Yama? Come to think of it, I should thank this young lady for kindly warning you fools and making you more vigilant."
"Lord Wei's rebuke is entirely correct..." The guards around the young man nodded and bowed, hurriedly admitting their mistakes.
"Wei Xiaobao?" Song Qingshu gave him an odd look. Young as he was, he held an important Qing post; if he was not Wei Xiaobao, who else could he be? Song Qingshu surmised that he was likely the Qing envoy for the alliance that the drinkers at the inn had mentioned earlier.
After lecturing his subordinates, Wei Xiaobao turned back and grinned ingratiatingly at the girl in white. "Miss, to thank you for saving my life, I would like to invite you two to have a chat at the tavern ahead."
The woman in white wore a wonderfully strange expression. She had clearly been the one who nearly ran him down... Yet hearing how sincere he sounded, she almost had the illusion that she really had saved his life.
Seeing Wei Xiaobao's eyes constantly roaming over his cousin, the young man beside her felt his anger surge.
At first, seeing the other man surrounded by attendants and evidently of no small status, he had worried that today's matter would not end peacefully. But when he saw that Wei Xiaobao had no intention of pursuing it and was instead setting his sights on his cousin, he coldly refused, "No need."
Though Wei Xiaobao still wore a smile, he was already cursing inside. I've hated handsome, elegant bastards like this my whole life. This pretty boy keeps exchanging looks with that little bitch. They've probably already hooked up. Looks like I'll have to use some extraordinary methods...
Hearing her companion's reply, the woman in white also snapped, "We Bell Sword Twin Heroes despise lecherous scoundrels like you most of all, especially a Tartar dog of an official. If we were not concerned about damaging the alliance between Great Song and you people, we would act on behalf of heaven today."
"Shui Sheng and Wang Xiaofeng?" Hearing her announce their names, Song Qingshu recalled their identities. It seemed that, due to the effects of his trip to Jingzhou, they had yet to encounter Blood Saber Ancestor.
"It is true that I like women, but where exactly are these flowers? Zhang Kangnian, have you ever seen a pretty black flower in this world?" As soon as Wei Xiaobao said this, Zhang Kangnian and the others burst into knowing laughter. "This subordinate has never seen any beautiful flower that was black."
Hearing Wei Xiaobao mock Shui Sheng's darker complexion, Song Qingshu smiled faintly. Shui Sheng was indeed somewhat dark-skinned, but her skin was even and delicate, not unattractive in the slightest. Instead, that complexion gave her an added touch of healthy vitality. She was certainly a lovely young beauty.
The Bell Sword Twin Heroes were young and hot-blooded; how could they endure such humiliation? Shui Sheng, with her spoiled young lady's temper, directly lashed her riding whip toward Wei Xiaobao.
"Outrageous! In broad daylight, you dare assassinate a Qing envoy!" Wei Xiaobao had deliberately provoked them precisely so they would strike first. Zhang Kangnian and the others had followed Wei Xiaobao for a long time, so how could they fail to understand his intentions? They drew their blades and surrounded the Bell Sword Twin Heroes.
Seeing that today's affair could not be resolved peacefully, Wang Xiaofeng quickly drew his treasured sword and stepped forward to shield Shui Sheng.
The two sides fought noisily for half the day. Song Qingshu yawned boredly at the side. Now that his martial arts had entered the ranks of the world's foremost experts, how could such petty scuffling interest him?
Kangxi Emperor had sent Wei Xiaobao to Great Song as an envoy to discuss an alliance, but he had worried about Wei Xiaobao's safety. Thus, he had selected a large number of highly skilled Imperial Guards from the palace to protect him.
The Bell Sword Twin Heroes normally had more than enough skill to punish petty thugs and hooligans. But now, facing a pack of fierce Imperial Guards from the inner palace, they immediately found themselves hard-pressed.
Before long, the two were subdued by the guards and forced to their knees before Wei Xiaobao. "The assassins have been captured at the scene. How should they be handled? Please instruct us, Lord Wei."
Wei Xiaobao circled them several times, then gave a lecherous smile. "Attempting to assassinate envoys of two nations in broad daylight, under the clear skies—there must be some scheme behind this, some mastermind! Yes, that's it. To prevent the two from coordinating their stories, I have decided to interrogate them separately. As for this man, Zhang Kangnian, send someone to bind him and deliver him to the prefectural yamen of the Song Dynasty here. Order them to interrogate him strictly. As for this woman, the Qing Dynasty will personally interrogate her and discover exactly who wishes to undermine the relations between our two nations."
"My lord's plan is indeed brilliant, truly unfathomable..." Zhang Kangnian led the guards in another round of flattery.
Wang Xiaofeng's eyes nearly split with rage. Unless one was an idiot, how could anyone fail to understand what the other side was plotting? If his cousin were taken away by Wei Xiaobao, how could her chastity possibly remain intact?
Song Qingshu watched with great interest. He had not expected this Wei Xiaobao to be even more shameless and direct than in the original work. He really suited Song Qingshu's tastes.
There had been a classic question online in his previous life: if you could choose either Guo Jing or Wei Xiaobao as a friend, whom would you choose?
Song Qingshu did not know what others would choose, but he was certain that he would choose Wei Xiaobao. There was no other reason: Wei Xiaobao was a clever man.
Being his enemy would surely be miserable. Liu Yizhou, for example, had his beloved stolen and his reputation ruined. Zheng Keshuang had the woman he loved taken by him, then became a father by happy accident, and finally ended up a prisoner...
But being his friend brought countless benefits, too many to list here...
Did Guo Jing have friends? Aside from Old Urchin, he probably had no true friends. Wei Xiaobao was different. Whenever he needed help, he only had to raise his arm and call out, and waves upon waves of shady friends would rush forward to help him enthusiastically. The Turtle Slaying Assembly's cruel prank on Zheng Keshuang was proof enough.
In Song Qingshu's eyes, Wei Xiaobao was the biggest backer in all fourteen Jin books. He absolutely had to cling tightly to him.
Still, this behavior of bullying men and seizing women was far too ugly. Song Qingshu frowned. In the end, he could not bring himself to go over and befriend Wei Xiaobao at this moment. Just as he was worrying over how to build a connection with him, he saw several bald monks rush out from the shadows, brandishing gleaming curved blades as they charged Wei Xiaobao. He rejoiced. Heaven is truly helping me!
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