svetikya Page 168
Page 168
Li Chang'an has overstepped his bounds today, even chatting and laughing with the young emperor, which has made everyone in Northern Qi very unhappy. Lang Tao is just one example of this.
In the Empress Dowager's eyes, Li Chang'an was definitely no match for Lang Tao.
"Your Highness Prince Yong, would you be willing to join me in this martial arts contest?"
Li Chang'an replied frankly, "Of course I'm willing!"
"However, my opponent is not Mr. Wolf Peach!"
The Empress Dowager asked curiously, "Oh? Does Prince Yong want to choose an opponent?"
Wolf Peach also sneered, "Does His Highness Prince Yong fear that he cannot defeat this commoner and therefore wants to choose an opponent with slightly weaker martial arts skills?"
Li Chang'an pointed at the crabapple tree that was stealing food and asked loudly, "Mr. Wolf Peach, how is the Holy Maiden's martial arts!"
Wolf Peach truthfully replied, "He's a little weaker than me, but he's one of the top players below the Grandmaster level!"
Li Chang'an said, "Alright, both the Holy Maiden and I are revered as Heavenly Vein Beings, so why don't we have a competition today!"
"Firstly, to add to the festivities of the Empress Dowager's birthday banquet, and secondly, to determine the true inheritor of the Heavenly Lineage!"
The Empress Dowager and the Emperor hesitated, both of them wary of Li Chang'an. What if Li Chang'an lost?
At this moment, Haitang decisively said, "Well said! This Holy Maiden has long wanted to experience His Highness Prince Yong's skills!"
"Prince Yong's literary talent is astonishing, but I wonder what his real skills are like. Is he just good at writing and composing poems about the wind and the moon?"
Li Chang'an slapped the table and said, "I have long heard of the Holy Maiden's extraordinary talent, and I have long wanted to learn from her!"
Seeing that Haitang Duoduo was going to take action, Lang Tao naturally had no objections. In his eyes, Haitang would definitely beat Li Chang'an to a pulp.
Gao Da asked Wang Qinian with concern, "How skilled is your prince in martial arts? Can he defeat the Holy Maiden of Northern Qi?"
Wang Qinian feigned a worried expression, "I don't know, I'm afraid it's difficult!"
Although the Empress Dowager and the young emperor were unsure, they couldn't find a reason to stop it, especially since Li Chang'an himself hadn't refused.
The expected beating of Li Chang'an by the Holy Maiden, which the officials of Northern Qi had anticipated, did not happen.
Each of them carried a long sword, and their moves were fierce and evenly matched!
They fought in the air one moment and in close combat on the ground the next, fighting for a full quarter of an hour without a clear winner.
Gao Da looked astonished. "Brother Wang, your prince actually has such cultivation! He's on par with a ninth-rank saintess!"
Wang Qinian suddenly realized, "So that's how it is! So that's how it is!"
"This holy maiden has taken a liking to my prince. She even invited him out for drinks late at night on the Shangsi Festival!"
"With such deep affection and friendship, how could we possibly fight? She's here to help my prince out of this predicament!"
Gao Da exclaimed in shock, "Such a thing! Prince Yong is truly something else, he's trying to capture the Holy Maiden!"
Wang Qinian said smugly, "It's a pity about the Northern Qi. They've been cultivating a saintess for so many years, and she's even called a celestial being."
"He was just kidnapped by our Prince Yong..."
Li Chang'an and Haitang appeared to be fighting fiercely, but neither of them intended to kill the other.
Wolf Peach, the most knowledgeable among them, shook his head repeatedly, but couldn't interrupt.
He couldn't very well say that his junior sister was faking the martial arts competition.
"Clap! Clap! Clap!"
After the martial arts competition ended, the Empress Dowager smiled and applauded.
"Great! A draw is good!"
"Today is my birthday. It is not necessary to see who is superior or inferior. It would be best if we could not determine a winner."
From then on, the birthday banquet proceeded smoothly and ended happily.
After the birthday banquet, Empress Dowager Wei met with Lang Tao in the Imperial Study.
"Lang Tao, you go and keep an eye on Li Chang'an. Bring him to the Imperial Study at 9 PM tonight. I have something to discuss with him."
Among the Empress Dowager's trusted confidants, Lang Tao was the most skilled in martial arts and the most reliable in handling affairs.
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Empress Dowager Wei continued, "You visited your uncle the other day; I wonder if he gave you any instructions."
Wolf Peach said, "I was just about to say this. My master has never cared about worldly affairs, but he did have something to say this time."
"With the Jinyiwei headquarters burned down, Nanqing will inevitably take advantage of the chaos and loot. Nanqing also needs some internal turmoil."
"Fan Xian, the envoy of Nanqing, is the illegitimate son of Emperor Qing and Ye Qingmei. Spreading this news will be enough to throw Nanqing into chaos for a while."
In fact, Ku He had already guessed it when Wu Zhu beat him up.
However, I was too badly injured at the time to take care of myself.
Now that his injuries have healed considerably, and since Lang Tao brought up the matter again, he wanted to spread the news.
Ye Qingmei is a key figure in the rise of the Qing Kingdom. The revelation of her son's identity is enough to throw the Southern Qing leadership into chaos.
Chapter 123 The Empress Dowager Kneels! Fan Xian, we all have a bright future! (23)
Upon hearing this news, Empress Dowager Wei's eyes lit up.
"Ye Qingmei, she's a legend in the Southern Qing Kingdom!"
"Nanqing suddenly grew powerful in twenty years, transforming from a small vassal state into a behemoth, and Ye Qingmei deserves much credit for that!"
"Her death caused a bloodbath in Nanqing for a period of time."
"Fan Xian is actually her son with Emperor Qing! No wonder he was promoted so quickly!"
"I understand. Tomorrow I will personally summon Wei Hua. This matter must be handled as soon as possible!"
After finishing discussing Fan Xian's matter, Lang Tao, following Empress Dowager Wei's arrangement, planned to bring Li Chang'an to the palace late at night.
Empress Dowager Wei must talk to Li Chang'an about how many people actually know that the young emperor is a woman.
If only Li Chang'an knows, then we must find a way to eliminate him!
If more people know about it, then we'll have to see what Li Chang'an's demands are and whether a deal can be made.
If the ruthless and suspicious Emperor Qing were to find out about this, Empress Dowager Wei would truly be at a loss for what to do.
After nightfall, Empress Dowager Wei finished dealing with state affairs and returned to her palace.
It was still early, and she needed to rest for a while before preparing to deal with Li Chang'an.
At today's birthday banquet, she felt that the young emperor and Li Chang'an were too familiar with each other, and Haitang's demeanor when she sparred with him was also somewhat awkward.
His intuition told him that Li Chang'an was a very difficult person to deal with.
Empress Dowager Wei came from a prominent family and also loved poetry, calligraphy, and painting, but she never showed her hobbies to others.
She knew Li Chang'an well because he was exceptionally talented in poetry, calligraphy, and painting.
However, when Li Chang'an came to Northern Qi this time, Empress Dowager Wei felt that Li Chang'an was far more complex and profound than he appeared on the surface.
When he entered the palace, Teng Ran noticed a person standing under a painting on the wall.
"Li Chang'an! How did you get in!"
Without turning his head, Li Chang'an said, "Go ahead and shout, let everyone know that there is a man hiding in the Empress Dowager's palace in Northern Qi."
Although Empress Dowager Wei controlled the court, she was not a powerful woman and had not yet reached the point of being able to rule arbitrarily and do whatever she wanted.
She quickly realized that if Li Chang'an could enter silently, he could also kill her silently!
Moreover, Li Chang'an is right, no one should know that there is a man in her palace!
"You! You were indeed hiding your cultivation level!"
"Ninth Rank Upper? Ninth Rank Peak... or... impossible, you can't be a Grandmaster!"
Li Chang'an ignored Empress Dowager Wei's words and kept looking at the painting on the wall.
"My needlework has actually ended up in the hands of the Empress Dowager."
"It seems that the Empress Dowager and Li Yunrui have a close relationship. They must have accomplished quite a bit through the Junshan Association, right?"
The painting was originally purchased by Li Yunrui, and the Imperial Guards tried to seize it but failed. It now appears that Empress Dowager Wei eventually exchanged it with Li Yunrui.
Empress Dowager Wei took a few deep breaths, trying to calm herself down as much as possible.
She knew that she was completely at Li Chang'an's mercy and could only try to find a way out by seeing what Li Chang'an wanted.
"Li Chang'an, what exactly do you want?"
"If you have any requests, you can make them up, and we can discuss them."
Li Chang'an turned around and sat on the Empress Dowager's comfortable bed. "I think there are too many countries in this world. Just keep one."
Empress Dowager Wei said nervously, "You want to destroy my Great Qi? You want the lives of my daughter and me?"
Li Chang'an waved his hand and said, "Qi should be destroyed, but killing you will only make the situation more chaotic, and I am not willing to do the work for that old man, Emperor Qing."
Empress Dowager Wei said with a sneer, "So you really want to rebel. You were the one who orchestrated Shen Zhong's death. Just how much power do you have!"
Li Chang'an smiled calmly, "That's not important, and I don't want to tell you."