Translator: Transn Editor: Transn
He was just an ordinary cavalry leader of 1,000 soldiers, carrying out an ordinary task: escorting guests from Western Region to the royal court, walking on Norland territory, backed by the Khan flag. He never expected to encounter such a complicated situation.
The Naihang Tribe cavalry came again, with more people than the last time, led by furious King Rizhu.
“Your Highness, how do you …”
Before the leader of 1,000 soldiers could finish his sentence, he was kicked down by King Rizhu, “Back off! You idiot!” King Rizhu had never been so angry. Even when Old Man Mu humiliated his concubine, he did not feel such an urge to kill.
Flame Foal was far more important than a hundred concubines. Perhaps Dragon King was ignorant of Norland traditions and took it as an ordinary animal. King Rizhu wanted him to understand a brilliant horse was far more important than a human life to Norland people.
” Ask Dragon King to come out. I want to see him.” King Rizhu shouted. The drunk soldiers behind him waved their weapons and shouted along, “Come out!”
The leader of 1,000 soldiers bore the pain and stood up. He was an officer under Khan, but worthless in the lord’s eyes. He only dared to blame Dragon King secretly for causing the trouble, “I’ll go get him for you.”
The leader of 1,000 soldiers ran back to his tent and ordered a trusted attendant to summon Dragon King. He decided to stay away from the trouble and refused to get up from his bed again. Since King Rizhu came here in person, it was none of his business from now on.
At the crack of dawn, a small team rode out of the camp. King Rizhu took a look but did not see Dragon King with them. The leader was a young woman.
“Dragon King is such a coward. Ask him to come out. Don’t hide behind a woman.”
Shangguan Ru raised her head and said, ” I am the archer coach of the Land of Fragrance, not anyone’s shield. ” Since she refused to accept any prominent title, “archer coach” was the only title she agreed with.
King Rizhu frowned and looked again at the young woman in front of him. This was the “Queen” in which the second wife of the Khan was interested. But she looked like a young girl who had just grown up. “You are Shangguan Ru?” King Rizhu asked.
“Yes.”
“Whom do you serve? Golden Roc Fort, or Dragon King?”
This problem troubled many Western Region and Norland people. They could not understand why Supreme King’s favorite twins would serve Dragon King.
“Neither.” Shangguan Ru said coldly.
King Rizhu’s brows twisted, and he turned to general Zhe Su next to him, “It seems that Dragon King can’t control his own woman.”
His voice was not loud but could be heard from far and near. Soldiers nodded in favor of King Rizhu’s statement. Words like “boy toy” and “henpecked” gushed out from all directions.
Shangguan Ru did not say a word. She picked up the bow, pulled the string and released the arrow in one second. Before King Rizhu and his men could respond, a sharp arrow was shot at him. Although Zhe Su was fat, his response was the fastest. He urged the horse to jump in front of King Rizhu and he reached out for the arrow but missed it.
The arrow flew over King Rizhu’s head and hit the flagpole behind him.
The soldier guarding the flag was given a shake. He looked up at the arrow in astonishment: the thick wooden pole was shot through.
Norland people were renowned for brilliant riding and shooting skills. The accuracy and strength of Shangguan Ru’s shot were beyond everyone’s expectation. ” Bravo.” Someone could not help but praise aloud but immediately shut his mouth, because King Rizhu’s face was turning red, which was a sign of his intent to kill.
“Fuck! Even Dragon King’s woman has the guts to look down upon me. Go get the little bitch alive…”
King Rizhu only finished half of his sentence.
After the shot of Shangguan Ru, hundreds of female archers came out of the nearby tents. They lined in the shape of an arc, all prepared to shoot. Their target was King Rizhu.
As the cavalry was about to rush up to protect King Rizhu, a female archer shouted, “Stop! We’ll shoot anyone who goes one step further.”
King Rizhu realized that he was caught in a trap. His soldiers had the advantage in number and skill, and they could wipe out this group of women. But he was too close to the enemy to avoid being hurt. If the women shot indiscriminately, no one could protect him.
If he died under a woman’s arrow, he would become a joke in the whole grassland. King Rizhu took a look at Zhe Su. Zhe Su knew the king’s mind best and spread out his arms, “You are guests, King Rizhu is the host. Is this how you people from the Land of Fragrance behave in the host home?”
A female official next to Shangguan Ru quipped, “Ask your lord to watch his mouth, and we will watch our arrows. ”
King Rizhu laughed with extreme anger, “Ha! In the grasslands, no woman has ever asked a man to do anything.”
Zhe Su gave his lord an out, “They are guests from far away and do not understand the rules of our Norland.”
King Rizhu snorted, “I don’t have time to chat with women. Ask them to hand over Dragon King and Flame Foal.”
Before Zhe Su passed the word, the female official already heard King Rizhu and said,”Dragon King is not here.”
“Dragon King is not here…” He was startled and repeated it to King Rizhu.
“Dragon King is not here?” King Rizhu was more surprised and asked as if he misunderstood what was said.
“Where did Dragon King go?” King Rizhu asked directly.
Finally, a man emerged from the female soldiers. Fang Wenshi cupped his hands over his chest and addressed King Rizhu and his men, “Dragon King left for the royal court last night. He was in a rush and couldn’t say goodbye to King Rizhu. Our apologies.”
King Rizhu’s complexion suddenly changed once he realized his plan had been ruined by Dragon King. He really looked down on the pale young man with a sickly face.
When Gu Shenwei decided to steal the horse, he persuaded his military counselor in this way, “King Rizhu is bluffing, deliberately making it look like I am begging him, but in fact, he is begging me.”
“Begging you for what?” Fang Wenshi was confused by the confidence of Dragon King.
” I don’t know. I think the answer is in Norland. Something must have happened there in the last few days when you left. Otherwise, why did King Rizhu come all the way to see me? He must be anxious. In your impression, is King Rizhu a reckless person?”
Fang Wenshi pondered for a moment and felt that Dragon King had a point. “Right, King Rizhu does have a short temper, but he is never reckless. He is from the Queen’s family and eventually became one of the ten kings of Norland. He has wits. There must be something big going on in the royal court.”
“So I’m going to steal his horse and teach him a lesson. Then I’m going to the royal court overnight to find out what happened there.”
“You should go immediately, but stealing the horse…is that necessary?” Fang Wenshi was frightened by the savage-like King Rizhu and really worried about the consequences.
“Hey.” Gu Shenwei sneered, “If I don’t do this, I won’t be able to break his bluff. Don’t worry. He hates me the most. When I leave, you will be safer.”
“I’m not worried about my own safety.” Fang Wenshi was blushing a little,” But, but if you do so, you will offend King Rizhu for sure. There will be no turning back.”
Gu Shenwei did not think so, but he had explained enough. He did not want to reveal his speculation, “Let’s see. Besides, I need this horse.”
Fang Wenshi did not dare object.
Now standing in front of King Rizhu, his fear gradually dissipated. He started to believe Dragon King’s words that King Rizhu was bluffing.
“Where is my horse?” King Rizhu repressed his anger since Dragon King had already gone and he could not fight with a group of women. Shangguan Ru was a distinguished guest invited by the second wife of the Khan; it was worthless to offend her for no reason. Now he just wanted to have his Flame Foal back.
“What horse? Aren’t you riding a horse, and followed by a group of horses now?” Fang Wenshi was playing dumb, and he also wanted to retaliate for his contempt.
“Flame Foal. Its whole body is red. Didn’t you see it yesterday?”
“It is a great honor to be remembered by you. Well, it is an awesome horse. I also told Dragon King on the way that such a good horse could not be found anywhere else except in Norland…”
“Hand it over!” King Rizhu huffed, interrupting this fat, white scholar’s nagging.
“What?”
“The horse.”
“Flame Foal?”
“Yes.”
“You must be joking. How can we have your Flame Foal? Maybe…” Fang Wenshi turned back and looked at the female soldiers, “Whose naughty mare seduced King Rizhu’s precious horse here?”
The female soldiers restrained from laughing and shook their heads, “No, no, our horses are behaving themselves.”
Fang Wenshi nodded his head and said, “It seems that your highness is barking up the wrong tree. There is abundant water and luxuriant grass here, maybe there are also wild horses nearby. Flame Foal may be playing with them now.”
Dragon King was gone, so was the horse. King Rizhu was like a furious lion trapped in a cage, having nowhere to vent his anger.
Zhe Su always read his mind but made a mistake this time. He asked in a low voice, “Do you want me to go in and search for it?”
“Search for what?” King Rizhu finally found a place to vent his anger, “He has already ridden the horse to the royal court, you fucking idiots! You have thousands of people. You know nothing but drinking and fighting. You didn’t even know the horse was stolen. Go back, I will rectify the military discipline. If you dare to let one fly in or out, I will chop you all into ground meat…”
King Rizhu turned back and rode away. The Naihang Tribe cavalry were all hanging their heads in dismay, and many of them regretted not having enough to drink last night. It seemed that the rectification would last for several months.
Fang Wenshi was smug, feeling like he defeated the enemy with clever words.
Shangguan Ru secretly took a sigh of relief. For a while, she could clearly feel the killing intent of King Rizhu, which was a sign that a maniac was ready to put all his eggs in one basket.
As before, Dragon King’s plan was like walking on the edge of a cliff. Even though the executors knew it should be safe, they still felt scared.
Shangguan Ru had an unnoticeable smile.
Long Fanyun and Old Man Mu returned to the camp later. They packed up their belongings and prepared to depart with the others. They all rode on ordinary horses.
Flame Foal was being ridden by its new owner and running fast like the wind. Gu Shenwei had to take a rest once in a while, waiting for Maid Lotus and Chu Nanping to catch up.
Two days later, the three arrived at the unprepared royal court.
