Chapter 108 Ancient Martial Dynasty
Chapter 108 Ancient Martial Dynasty
September 1125, the sixth year of Xuanhe.
Northeast of Daqian, in Yizhou
The sun sets over the long river, the afterglow is as faint as a candle, the earth is gradually shrouded in twilight, and the red sun slowly falls with an unspeakable loneliness.
A convoy was heading north, preparing to head to Damingfu, the capital of Yizhou and an important border town.
In the center of the convoy, a majestic and luxurious carriage was moving quietly. Its wheels were tall, and it rolled smoothly and solemnly. The body of the carriage was made of exquisite high-quality wood and inlaid with gold and jade. A lifelike four-clawed python was wrapped around the outer wall. The horses pulling the carriage all had bright fur and strong physiques.
On the outskirts of the convoy, more than thirty cavalrymen formed a line to guard the carriage. At the lead position, a fully armored figure suddenly shook, as if an illusory projection had become real and was implanted into this world by the mysterious power of origin.
After the descent was completed, Jiang He observed the outside world through the helmet. He was in a plain. The mountains at the end of his sight stood tall and majestic. The distance between them was difficult to estimate.
At the same time, basic information that matches the current identity flooded into his mind. The higher the identity, the more extensive and in-depth the initial intelligence. If it was a previous death row inmate who started, it would be like black eyes.
"Daming Prefecture is located east of the Jianchi Mountains, south of the Ink Great Wall, and at the end of the Hangming Canal. It is the capital of the northeastern wing of the nine states of the Daqian world. It is also an important frontline town to resist the northern barbarians. The emperor turned to Taoism ten years ago and established four major military governorships to command the military forces of the four directions. The King of Anbei, who commands an army of 160,000, is the Grand Governor of Anbei."
"My uncle suppressed a rebellion in the south, but unfortunately died in battle. He was awarded the title of Earl of Suppressing Rebellion, but since he had no offspring, the title fell to me."
Jiang He pondered. His title did not seem to be of high value. It might be because the Southern Ming court was not qualified enough. The Southern Ming was not a unified dynasty and was not compatible with the Daqian that ruled the nine provinces.
The convoy moved forward with the sound of horse hooves.
Jiang He looked back at the luxurious carriage behind him, his heart slightly moved, and he secretly reviewed the initial information he had learned.
"Princess Anbei is the direct disciple of the Taoist master of the Five Dou Dao Sect, the national religion. As for the Taoist master, he is one of the six great masters in the secular world. According to the description in Jianghu, he should be a silver life. My current mission is to escort the princess back to Daming Prefecture and then take up the post of the fourth-rank commander."
Just as someone turned around, the curtain of the carriage was pulled open, and an old woman with a cane walked out. She was dressed in cloth, had a thin physique, and her face was full of wrinkles of time, but her eyes were bright.
The old woman walked lightly. After landing, she took a few steps and quickly passed the cavalry and came to the leading position.
"Master, my little ones are acting strangely. Please be careful and don't let the thieves disturb the young lady. I am not good at fighting in battles. Thank you in advance."
As she finished speaking, centipedes as long as her forearms emerged from the cuffs of the old woman's collars. They were shiny black and obviously contained a deadly poison. One of them was wrapped around a ginseng of top-quality. After it fell into her hand, she gently pushed it away and handed it to someone from a distance.
Jiang He reached out to catch the ginseng, and the rich scent of plants rushed into his nostrils. After the basic value was increased, this rare treasure containing vitality was very easy to identify. Its effect in saving lives in critical moments was no less than that of a vitality potion.
"Generous."
Jiang He recognized the person in front of him, or rather, the other party was a world-famous martial arts master. Grandma Jiudu was ranked ninth in the world by Tianxing Tower and was enshrined in the Anbei Palace. She usually served as the princess's bodyguard and her poison skills were superb.
Taking the Jianchi Mountain Sword Contest as a period, every twenty years, Tianxing Tower will judge the world's masters. It can be said that a hundred boats compete with each other. However, this list does not include the six grand masters. After all, there is no point in listing them side by side, and carefully sorting them will mean asking for trouble.
Hearing what Ping Luan Bo said, Granny Jiudu looked subtle.
"My Lord, I know you lived in the south for a long time before, but after you came to Yizhou, if the dignitaries give you ginseng, you'd better not say polite words like "generous". We have high-quality ginseng here. It's not uncommon. It can only be regarded as a meeting gift without any mistakes. It's easy for people to misunderstand that you are being weird. I can't help it. Precious things are poisonous."
"Gold and silver are also fine." Jiang He said seriously, both are important alchemical materials. "I haven't touched silver for six or seven years." The Nine Poison Granny looked embarrassed. She served in the palace and was equivalent to the chief housekeeper. She could just give orders for anything she needed. Even if she wanted to reward the servants, she didn't need to give them in person, she could just let the accountant collect the money. Silver was completely useless. If it was really in short supply, as long as the news was released, groups of wealthy merchants would take the initiative to present it the next day.
Jiang He was speechless, the level of using money was still too far away from him. The ninth man in the world was willing to become a priest in the palace, which must have been a moving reason. But generally speaking, not all heroes were free.
According to initial intelligence, three years ago, the prince of the royal palace went out hunting and had a conflict with a martial artist over prey. The latter was planning to settle the matter peacefully, but was suddenly hit in the face by the prince's whip. As a result, the martial artist was willing to kill himself. Although he killed the prince suddenly, his family was also destroyed and his property was confiscated. There were many inside stories in this matter, and it caused a lot of uproar.
"Does Grandma Jiudu know Lei Junzi, who is ranked eighth in the world?" Jiang He asked. Lei Junzi is the Grey Knight. The other party did not provide any identity guidance at the beginning and was very confident in his own title.
"I have met that guy who is good at using long swords and thunder magic a few times." Grandma Jiudu said with a smile, "He was the leader of the young generation in the Jianchi Mountain Sword Competition, and later became the eighth in the world. He just disappeared for several years."
While the two were talking, a centipede suddenly started rolling wildly.
"Then I'll leave it to you, sir." Grandma Jiudu clasped her fists, turned around and went straight back to the carriage, her lightness skills ethereal.
Jiang He looked back and saw smoke and dust rising in front of him.
The deputy general immediately dismounted, rested his head on the quiver, listened attentively to the ground, and then mounted his horse again to report.
"Master, about a hundred riders."
Jiang He pondered. It was not just the difference in numbers. What was more important was that the guards needed to protect the carriage. If he ordered a charge, he should be able to kill a lot of enemy cavalry. But after the charge, the direction was changed and the carriage was exposed to the enemy's attack.
However, if they stayed where they were, the cavalry's charge advantage could not be brought into play, and without the added bonus of speed, their own losses would surely be heavy. In short, they would be caught in a dilemma.
"Give me a bow and arrow." Jiang He said.
The deputy general named Du Chang immediately threw his bow and quiver over.
Jiang He pulled out an arrow and tore off a piece of cloth from the coat outside the iron armor. Since iron armor can easily get cold or conduct heat, ancient soldiers usually chose to add a layer of coat on the outside. After tearing off the cloth, he took out a black gem and tied it to the position of the arrowhead, then bent the bow and put the arrow on.
Jiang He was not very accurate when it came to archery, but with his 11 points of physique and 9 points of strength, he could easily pull this one-stone-two-bucket bow to a full-moon state.
The fingers loosened, the arrow flew off the string, soared high into the sky, and then fell sharply at the end.
Deputy General Du Chang praised, "My Lord, you are very strong."
Another man who served as a military officer said helplessly: "But it's useless."
"Don't worry."
Jiang He drew his bow again and shot out the second black arrow.
(End of this chapter)