Chapter 50 – Misty River

The town of Misty Duo River, a remote town on the border between Qing and Northern Qi, had not seen any major battles for many years because it was not a place where soldiers fought. But both sides had their own garrisons, and skirmishes were naturally inevitable. When the two countries focused their trade and war efforts on the vassal states south of the Misty River, the town became even more unavoidably silent.

Fan Xian knew very well that this town belonged to Northern Wei twenty years ago, and was later incorporated into the land of Qing.

Therefore, the residents of the town did not have any feeling of closeness to their own line of envoys, and it seemed that it would take some years for the people of a country to truly accept the fact that the ruler had changed.

The town’s glazed tiles reflected a not-so-bright light toward the sky, but Fan Xian, sitting on the carriage in the middle of the street, narrowed his eyes and kept calculating how he should deal with the situation after entering the land of Beiqi.

A faint smile floated onto the corners of Fan Xian’s lips, he had never met his mother, but amazingly enough, he loved that woman called Ye Qingmei. When he thought of a young girl sneaking into the void many years ago, into a temple that the world never knew where it was, he marveled so much at his mother’s courage, boldness, and wisdom.

Fan Xian knew that he was inferior to his own mother, a fact that did not discourage him in the slightest, but rather made him more positive about facing this second life, which seemed so beautiful, but was actually very dangerous.

So he needed to know exactly where the temple was, and then go and feel the remaining scent of the place where his mother’s feet had stepped back then.

On the outskirts of the town of Misty River was a small river, which was the present-day boundary river between Northern Qi and the Kingdom of Qing. A temporary trestle bridge has long been built over the river, which will be able to accommodate a carriage.

Beiqi officials and the delegation of the Honglu Temple officials are waiting for the arrival of the delegation on the other side of the bridge, the other side of the river, those listless, yellowish local garrison is also on guard, just look at the posture of their guns, I really doubt that they are in the display of the majesty of the national army, or in the hugging of the gun barrels to borrow the power to sleep.

The first wagon went up to the bridge. The wheels of the carriages made contact with the undulating and uneven surface of the simple wooden bridge, making a cackling sound, and it looked as if the bridge might collapse at any moment, which was a bit scary.

Fan Xian already got off the car, walked to the end of the bridge, and greeted the Northern Qi officials, and then looked back at the back of the carriages one after another slowly pressed over the bridge, the bridge seems to be more and more unable to withstand the incessant rape, the creaking sound is even louder.

Seeming to see the worry between Fan Xian’s brows, the Beiqi official from Jiu Hou hurriedly explained, “It’s been tried, there’s no problem.”

Fan Xian nodded, knowing that when two countries interacted, everything was judged by strength, and there was no need for him to be too enthusiastic about this lowly official. His mind was mainly focused on the envoy’s caravan. If Haitang really wanted to kill Sean to silence him, then today on this bridge was her last chance.

As the female disciple of the first generation master Bitter Lotus, she had to be responsible for her master’s reputation, and she had to be responsible for the safety and security of the people of Northern Qi, so it was impossible for her to strike within the borders of the country.

Suddenly Fan Xian’s heart fluttered and he slowly turned around, only to see a poplar forest on the southeast-facing bank of the creek, the trees thin but straight spiking toward the sky, looking as formidable as the lances in an army.

A village girl in a flowery cloth dress was carrying a basket and watching the caravan on the palanquin pass by. The breeze from the river blew by, blowing up the flowery cloth scarf wrapped around her head, revealing that ordinary face and those clear eyes.

Fan Xian smiled as he looked at the woman called Haitang and imperceptibly nodded his head in gratitude, a gesture of goodwill of sorts. He knew that he would inevitably have to deal with her again after he went to the capital of Northern Qi, and that Chen Pingping had asked himself to find a way to get close to Bitter Lotus.

Haitang was not the same as what Fan Xian had imagined when he was in Kyoto, she was not as beautiful as Shi Feixuan, but she was more beautiful than Shi Feixuan, and while the former beauty naturally referred to her appearance, the latter beauty referred to her temperament.

Fan Xian had always thought that there were no fairy daughters in the world, and if there were, they were definitely female ghosts in disguise.

Although Haitang had come to assassinate Sean this time, and had also once thought of killing Fan Xian, Fan Xian still appreciated her, partly because he appreciated the girl’s powerful and natural strength, and partly because in the meadow Haitang crossed her arms and pointed at Fan Xian’s nose like a shrew when she was talking, that kind of village-girl feeling really made Fan Xian belligerent.

The carriage stopped at Fan Xian’s side, and he lifted the curtain to enter without looking at the riverbank again.

Crossing the river and through the forest, the delegation’s caravan arrived on top of the official road under the protection of Beiqi’s regular army. Fan Xian sniffed the flavor of the air, looked at the early green trees beside the official road, and had some strange feelings in his heart – this is leaving the country? Why don’t you feel anything at all?

The formation on the official road is rather intimidating, along the left and right sides of the two teams, one team is full of women, there are tender little maids, sharp middle-aged servants, old and shady old sisters. The other team is full of men, but more gloomy than the women, all the brocade clothes, waist wearing a scimitar, the body through a chilly flavor.

At least half of the people in the delegation were the manpower of the Qing State Supervisory Academy. As soon as the caravan hit the official road, a strong hostile mood began to brew at the sight of the team of men wearing curved swords, and everyone’s hand subconsciously touched the hilt of the straight sword at the waist.

Qing State Supervisory Yuan, North Qi brocade, is now the world’s two big countries the most secretive and dangerous secret service organizations, this decade, both sides do not know how many times in the dark and in the open, spies and counter-espionage struggle is always so cruel and merciless, the two sides of the hands have long been stained with the other side of the blood and water.

Today suddenly met on the official road, both sides smelled each other’s body flavor are beginning to red.

Beiqi officials hurried up to Fan Xian explained a few words, Fan Xian also do not think, waved his hand, let these people relax some, after all, today is for the two countries of the friendship of the two countries, but not on the sands and swords to meet, but behind him seven tiger guards, has been calm and powerful.

Indeed, it is two neighboring countries with one coat of water, especially when crossing from this side of the Misty River, the feeling is even more obvious.

Without waiting for a break, Fan Xian immediately asked his subordinates to start arranging the handover ceremony with the other side. Wang Qinian was a bit puzzled and asked in a low voice, ”Why don’t we continue to escort Sean by us? Maybe we can ask something on the way to Shangjing.” He didn’t know what secrets were in Xiao En’s heart, but as the beloved of Fan Ti Si, he naturally knew that Fan Xian had something to ask.

Fan Xian shook his head and calmly said, “Forget it, it’s not that convenient to travel with these Northern Qi scouts along the way. It’s better to throw it to the other side, we can also worry less, if anything goes wrong with Sean on the way, naturally the Northern Qi side will be responsible, will they still dare not return Yan Bingyun to us?”

Having said that, Fan Xian still had some small depression in his heart, once he entered the upper capital, not to mention whether or not Xiao En could keep his life under the pressure of Bitter Lotus’s position, even if Xiao En regained power because of Uesugi Tiger’s relationship, he himself did not have a better way to sled open Xiao En’s yellow, old, and tight mouth.

The sound of clanking chains rang out, Fan Xian coldly watched that old man being helped down from the carriage, Sean’s legs had been broken, so getting off the carriage seemed particularly difficult, and the inside of the pants at the knees faintly exuded a faintly sweet smell of blood.

Most of the Beiqi Brocade Guards were young people, and had no idea what Sean looked like, but in the folklore and the old men of the guards’ word-of-mouth, they knew that today’s Beiqi’s secret service organization was actually created by this poor old man who couldn’t even stand up, in other words, this old man with a head full of white hair should be considered as the ancestor of his own line of people.

A somewhat strange atmosphere permeated the scene of the handover, the Beiqi Brocade Guards simply did not know how they should treat Sean, as a hero of the country? Or the remnants of the previous dynasty? Is it the old ancestor of his own group of people, or is it a felon to be strictly guarded in the future?

After a moment of silence, the emotion that flows in everyone’s blood finally prevailed, the freshly clothed and angry horsemen on the official road dismounted in unison, half-kneeled on the ground, and made a subordinate salute to the old man, and worshiped in unison, “Greetings to Lord Xiao!”

Along with the booming sound of salute, a strong and familiar power seems to have returned to old man Xiao En’s body from then on, he looked at these disciples and grandchildren on top of the official road, slightly squinting his eyes, his silver-white disheveled hair fluttering in the wind, and his withered and dry lips were slightly sheeted out, but he didn’t say anything after all, and only waved his hand faintly.

It was the feeling of this wave that made Fan Xian, who was observing from the rear, feel a chill in his heart.

Sean stood up straight, and his iron shoulders seemed to have regained the strength to take up the world.

On the other side, those women and maids from Shangjing had long been on Si Li Li’s carriage, and did not know how they carried so many ornaments and utensils with them, but actually let Si Li Li take a fragrant bath on the carriage, and after a long time, the door of the carriage gently opened, and only then did Si Li Li step on the Microsoft embroidery pier, and walked down from the carriage.

The crowd’s eyes lit up, but Fan Xian’s gaze dimmed slightly and immediately returned to normal.

A pair of slender jade hands hanging lightly outside the light green wide sleeves, a full of rich curves by the gorgeous clothes excellent set out, black hair lightly pulled, on a simple ebony fork, red lips with Zhu, eyes looking at the flow of waves, eyebrows such as a far away from the diadem, colorful light all around.

This is the Secretary Li Li, that colorful crown flow crystal river, lightly captured the emperor’s heart of the absolute beauty.