Believe it or not.
As far as Wu Shuangren was concerned—
At nineteen, he became famous throughout the land!
210 Arrow God Fengxian, Yuan Family Boiling Wine
Chang'an City.
The Yuan residence.
Inside the hall, Xue Ling and Peng Cheng knelt before Yuan Shu.
"Tell me that Wu Shuangren is only at the First Rate- rate level, and that the Yi Province Militia is led by the Xu Family."
Yuan Shu stared sharply at the two of them. "There's a lot of talk outside that Wu Shuangren defeated Great Grandmaster. How do you explain that?"
When Xue Ling and Peng Cheng heard the rumors about Wu Shuangren, they realized something was wrong.
Regardless of whether Lu Yulin truly became Great Grandmaster, it is certain that his opponent far surpassed ordinary First Rank experts; and it is also likely true that his opponent lost to Wu Shuangren.
Therefore, Wu Shuangren's true strength is far greater than the two people's investigation revealed!
"It was our oversight; please punish us, Master!"
Neither of them dared to defend themselves and immediately kowtowed heavily.
"Drag him away and beat him to death!"
Yuan Shu's eyes were icy.
The two looked up abruptly, their expressions somewhat surprised.
Before they could speak, two guards had already appeared behind them and subdued them.
"Master, spare my life!"
We are willing to make amends for our mistakes!
But Yuan Shu ignored them completely, waving his hand to signal the guards to take the two away.
Xue Ling and Peng Cheng dared not resist, because if they did, it wouldn't just be the two of them who would die, but their entire family!
"A bunch of useless trash!"
After Xue Ling and Peng Cheng were dragged away, Yuan Shu slammed his hand heavily on the table in front of him.
Although the Xu Family outwardly accepted the Yuan Clan's attempts to win them over, their attitude remained ambiguous.
This is what Yuan Shu has never understood.
For the Xu Family, there probably wouldn't be a better choice than the Yuan Clan.
Now, combined with the news coming from Jiannan Circuit, Yuan Shu finally understood.
This Yi Province Militia might have nothing to do with the Xu Family at all; it was all orchestrated by that young man named Wu Shuangren!
Wu Shuangren was unwilling to submit to the Yuan Clan, and the Xu Family chose Wu Shuangren over Wu Shuangren Yuan Clan.
Nineteen years old, Great Grandmaster?
Yuan Shu's face was grim.
It's normal for young people to be proud and unwilling to be subordinate to others, and to reject the Yuan Clan's attempts to win them over.
If Wu Shuangren truly possessed such exceptional talent and single-handedly established the Yi Province Militia, Xu Clan's choice to invest in Wu Shuangren and reject the Yuan Clan would be understandable.
After all, Wu Shuangren is now the son-in-law of the Xu Clan, and both sides share in each other's fortunes, something the Yuan Clan cannot offer the Xu Family.
In this way, Yuan Feng's plan to secretly win over the troops of Yi Province, which he had set up for the Yuan Clan before his death, completely failed.
"Father, things have come to this, you can't blame me..."
Yuan Shu muttered to himself.
That day, he sat alone in the lobby for a long time.
That evening, Wang Junning, a censor from the Chancellery, secretly visited Yuan's residence and had a private conversation with Yuan Shu.
The Imperial Palace.
The young Emperor Li Bian strolled leisurely in the Imperial Garden.
This is the most relaxing and enjoyable moment of his day.
At other times, he was either receiving instruction from the Three Dukes, or from his mother, or handling state affairs with the assistance of ministers.
Everyone was telling him how to be a good emperor, but no one asked him what kind of emperor he wanted to be.
"Lü Qing."
Li Bian walked into a pavilion and sat down, then suddenly spoke up.
Soon, a tall general with a broad back and a narrow waist walked over.
This person was dressed in golden chainmail, wore a phoenix-winged helmet, and carried a giant bow taller than a man, making him very conspicuous.
"His Majesty."
The visitor stopped outside the pavilion and bowed to Li Bian.
"Minister Lü, there's no need for such formalities."
Li Bian waved his hand and asked with some curiosity, "I have recently heard some rumors in the capital that a nineteen-year-old genius has emerged in Jiannan Circuit and defeated a newly Great Grandmaster. Therefore, I would like to ask Minister Lü, is it really possible for someone in this world to become Great Grandmaster at the age of nineteen?"
The man outside the pavilion stood up straight, his expression calm.
He was Lü Fengxian, the Grand General of the Left Feathered Forest Army and the Commander-in-Chief of the Imperial Bodyguards.
He commanded all the emperor's personal guards.
In addition to this, Lü Fengxian also had another well-known identity—
Great Grandmaster!
Many Great Grandmaster in the world have honorific titles. The prince in the northern border is honored as the "Hegemon-King," the general in the Shanbei Circuit is honored as the "Dragon General," and this Great Grandmaster, who is in charge of the defense of the imperial palace and guards the safety of the emperor, is honored as the "Arrow God."
The arrows Fengxian never miss their mark!
This is Lü Fengxian's archery style.
He was born into First Rank rank at the age of twenty-one, joining the Northern Headquarters Imperial Guard.
For five years, he never lost a martial arts competition in Chang'an City.
At the age of thirty-three, Lü Fengxian publicly challenged Han Shizhong, the top martial artist of the Imperial Guard.
At that time, Han Shizhong was already Great Grandmaster!
The two sides agreed to fight at dawn. Lü Fengxian waited on a rooftop at the fighting location, sitting quietly all night.
The next morning, as the first rays of dawn fell and Han Shizhong stepped into the long street where the battle was taking place, Lü Fengxian suddenly stood up, drew his bow to its fullest extent, and fired a series of arrows at Han Shizhong.
Lü Fengxian shot out all thirty arrows in his quiver within ten breaths!
Han Shizhong blocked twenty-nine arrows, but was struck in the shoulder by the last one, the arrow piercing through his armor!
After shooting the arrow, Lü Fengxian immediately admitted defeat.
After this battle, he reached the level of Great Grandmaster!
"Your Majesty, the youngest First Rank in history was the Prince of the Western Capital, who entered the First Rank at the age of seventeen. But even the Prince of the Western Capital only became Great Grandmaster at the age of twenty-three."
Lü Fengxian calmly stated, "Therefore, in my opinion, the rumors are just rumors."
Li Bian nodded upon hearing this. "Indeed, even the Prince of the Western Capital couldn't become Great Grandmaster at the age of nineteen... Lord Lü, if you were to fight the Prince of the Western Capital, who would win?"
Although royal children are generally more mature than their peers, at the age of twelve, they are still mostly young at heart, so Li Bian couldn't help but ask out of curiosity.
Upon hearing this, Lü Fengxian remained calm. "If we prepare in advance and attack from three hundred paces away, I have a 60% chance of winning. If we meet on a narrow path, I only have a 10% chance of winning."
"I see."
Li Bian nodded thoughtfully.
Lü Fengxian hesitated for a moment, then cupped his hands and said:
"Your Majesty, the bravery of a mere mortal is ultimately only enough to defeat a hundred men. As the Son of Heaven, Your Majesty's word commands a million soldiers; even ten Great Grandmaster combined cannot compare!"
A smile bloomed on Li Bian's face.
He had heard countless flattering words since childhood, but how could the same words spoken by a stranger be the same as those spoken by Great Grandmaster himself?
"What you say is absolutely right, my dear minister."
Li Bian nodded with a smile.
The emperor and his minister chatted for a while longer before Li Bian got up and left.
It's time to pay my respects to Empress Dowager Cui Clan.
Lü Fengxian escorted the emperor to the Cining Palace, handed over the defense work to the general of the Right Feathered Forest Army, and then left.
He has his own residence near the palace, so he doesn't need to stay overnight at the palace and can go home to rest.
"Greetings, sir."
When Lü Fengxian returned to his residence, all his servants prostrated themselves and knelt down to pay their respects.
He was extremely strict in his rules, managing his household like an army, and did not allow anyone to violate his rules.
"Sir, an invitation has arrived from the Yuan family."
After Lü Fengxian sat down inside the room, the butler immediately handed her a letter with both hands.
He took the post and glanced at it briefly.
This is an invitation personally written by Yuan Shu, inviting him to a banquet at his residence tonight.
As the general in charge of the emperor's personal guard, he should not get too close to the court officials.
However, in the past period, many important officials in the court have been taking the initiative to contact him.
The Yuan Clan and Lu Clan families were the most active among them.
Of course, Empress Dowager Cui Clan also summoned him twice within the palace.
Lü Fengxian naturally understood why these people were so eager to win him over.
The emperor is young, and the country is in turmoil due to the inexperience of the ruler.
Factional strife has now erupted in the central government, the situation is turbulent, and all sides are eager to make their moves.
Lü Fengxian was in charge of both the Left Feathered Forest Army and the Emperor's personal guard, and was also Great Grandmaster.
His decision on which side to side with will directly impact the political situation!
"Reply to Lord Yuan, I will be at the banquet on time tonight."
Lü Fengxian the instructions.
That evening, he arrived at the gate of the Yuan residence on time.
The main gate of the Yuan residence was wide open, and two rows of servants in blue robes filed out, carrying glass lanterns that illuminated the gate as bright as day.
"General Lü, please come in."
The Yuan family steward greeted them with a beaming smile and a bow.
Lü Fengxian walked in calmly.
The butler led him through three courtyards to a main hall.
Before even entering, a warm fragrance wafted over, making one's bones feel slightly weak.
In the main hall, Yuan Shu sat cross-legged on a rosewood couch, draped in a Yuebai silk robe. Upon seeing Lü Fengxian, he immediately rose to greet her.
"Fengxian, several jars of fine wine have just arrived from Nanyang. I know you're a connoisseur of wine, so let's enjoy them together today and drink until we're completely drunk! Hahaha!"
He smiled, stepped forward, took Lü Fengxian's hand, and pulled her to sit down beside him.
A smile appeared on Lü Fengxian's face as she thanked Yuan Shu.