Red Mansion: Picking up a Lin Daiyu

Chapter 195 Lin Daiyu's Surprise
"Whether you are from a martial arts family or come from an aristocratic family, you are someone who wants to serve the country. Why should I make things difficult for you? You have already passed. I am only here to teach you some skills."

Zhao Hao was stunned when he heard this. "I thought too superficially of the Marquis, and my vision is too narrow. This is also the reason why I don't want to escort anymore."

As his thoughts flashed through his mind, Zhao Hao's expression became slightly stern. He closed his eyes and then opened them again, and the handle of the knife in his hand couldn't help but tighten.

Seeing that he was getting more aggressive, Yue Ling's eyes flashed with admiration. He hooked his palm and said, "Identity is important, but don't take yourself too lightly. Make your move."

Zhao Hao nodded, and when he took another bow step forward, he had already gathered all his strength.

As soon as the gong sounded, he quickly seized the initiative and attacked Yue Ling first.

In fact, Zhao Hao knew very little about Yue Ling's skills. He only learned some information from rumors and people in the Yunxing Escort Agency who had dealt with Yue Ling.

Despite this, Zhao Hao could conclude that this man, who was able to start as a personal guard in the Qin Palace and eventually be granted a title of nobility at such a young age, must have abilities that he was not able to match.

At this moment, I dare not be careless at all.

The news that Yue Ling was participating in the competition spread throughout the martial arts arena in an instant.

The originally lively atmosphere in the martial arts arena was now empty, with everyone gathering in the center. They all wanted to see how skilled the capital's commander-in-chief was and how he compared to the younger generation of talents in Cangzhou.

"The Marquis is actually so young."

"Yes, he seems to be younger than the young master of Yunxing Escort Agency."

"A hero is not judged by age. This man is a ruthless man who can break into battle and capture generals. How can his martial arts skills be low?"

There was a lot of noise around, but Zhao Hao's eyes were only on Yue Ling who was calm and composed across from him.

Zhao Hao suddenly jumped up and quickly approached Yue Ling's side.

As the king of weapons, the sword does not have many moves. It is nothing more than a combination of chopping, stabbing and stabbing.

It was more of a combination of strength and moves, and at this moment Zhao Hao was quick enough. When he was less than one step away from Yue Ling, he drew his sword and slashed horizontally with a force as powerful as thunder.

If the steel knife were to chop a person, Yue Ling had no doubt that it would be able to cut the person's back.

But this was Yue Ling after all. Facing the injured Zhao Hao, if he moved one more step, the meaning of his guidance would be lost.

Yue Ling raised his knife and when the blade was about to chop at his waist, Zhao Hao almost lost his grip on the knife, without waiting for him to swing it full force. Instead, he struck first and hit the blade.

Taking a few steps back, Zhao Hao's eyes were filled with even more horror.

Even his father was not so calm when teaching him martial arts. In this round, he realized the gap.

Zhao Hao was not willing to give up. Having practiced martial arts for so many years, he naturally had a proud heart, so he raised his sword and moved forward again.

Holding the hilt of the knife with both hands, Zhao Hao used all his strength without reservation. He chopped down Yue Ling's defense with great force, then changed the direction of the knife and chopped down.

This move of striking down was decisive and swift, drawing cheers from the spectators.

But when they saw Yue Ling's response, the cheers stopped abruptly.

The upward swipe only lightly touched the tip of Zhao Hao's sword, and then rolled up the blade, causing it to lose its original direction when it fell down, allowing Yue Ling to easily turn his body to avoid it.

After two rounds, Yue Ling also gained a certain understanding of Zhao Hao's martial arts.

So he turned from defense to offense, pressing forward step by step, with his sword moving forward like flying flowers in the sky.

Zhao Hao was dazzled by the sudden change and could only hold up his sword to block the attack. However, he also listened to Yue Ling's explanation: "When you attacked just now, you only wanted to be fast and fierce, but forgot to leave room for maneuver. You used all your strength in every attack. If you encounter a strong enemy, how can you change your moves quickly to deal with it?"

"The power of the sword strike is huge, but if someone dodges it, how can you maintain the momentum? Wouldn't your entire body become a flaw? This is even more dangerous on the battlefield, because in hand-to-hand combat, you never know how many enemies you will encounter at the same time."

"It's true that you can defeat the enemy with force, but force is not just about the application of force, but also about the control of force. You have to be able to do it with ease."

Zhao Hao was exhausted from defending himself and his weapon was eventually knocked away by Yue Ling.

Seeing the wooden sword stuck alone on the ground and Yue Ling's blade pointing directly at Zhao Hao's throat, the whole place was in an uproar.

They couldn't hear Yue Ling's words clearly, but in their opinion, it seemed that it would not be a problem for Yue Ling to deal with Zhao Hao even with a branch.

It's just like teaching a young child to practice, easy and carefree.

Everyone was stunned for a while, and then thunderous cheers gradually broke out.

Yue Ling smiled and comforted him, "I can see that you are a little anxious. Did you just take over the Yunxing Escort Agency, but encountered such an incident, which made your family lose all credibility? Do you want to find another way to prove yourself?"

Zhao Hao nodded and said, "Yes, I do want to serve you, sir. I told you that the day we met."

Yue Ling asked again: "Then why don't you meet other people from your escort agency?"

Zhao Hao bit his lip and said, "They are still focused on the escort agency, wanting to restore the glory of their ancestors. But after this incident, I also know that the escort agency is not a long-term solution. It is better to come to the Marquis to defend the country than to be used by villains and played around with."

As he spoke, Zhao Hao half-knelt on the ground and clasped his fists towards Yue Ling, saying, "Please give me some time, Lord. Yunxing Escort Agency was once the largest escort agency in Cangzhou, so it still has some foundation. Lord, if you are doing something in the local area, we will definitely be able to help. When I have reorganized the escort agency, I will definitely lead the people to join Lord."

Yue Ling leaned over to help him up, patted his shoulder and consoled him, "Okay, take your time. I'm still short of a deputy general, so let's see what you can do."

Zhao Hao's eyes widened, and he said happily, "Thank you, Lord!"

Yue Ling nodded slightly, looked around, and then waved his hand downward, causing everyone in the room to fall silent.

Then, Yue Ling said in a deep voice: "I am the Marquis of Anjing. Today, I am recruiting soldiers. I must come to see the style of our Cangzhou warriors. Now Cangzhou is in a disaster year. The first thing to do when recruiting soldiers is to build our hometown. Seeing everyone's enthusiasm, I am also very relieved." "It doesn't matter if you can't join the army. Do your part for your hometown. Whether the division of labor is good or bad, it is to contribute to Cangzhou and seek the welfare of Cangzhou's elders and fellow countrymen."

"Tomorrow, flowers will bloom like brocade, and Cangzhou will be full of songs. The people will remember your contributions! The emperor will not forget your achievements either!"

There was thunderous cheers in the martial arts arena. Yue Ling led Zhao Hao out of the crowd and met Shi Ding.

Shi Ding came forward and said with a smile: "To be so prominent is what a great commander should be."

Yue Ling shook his head and smiled.

The three of them left the martial arts arena together. Yue Ling asked Zhao Hao beside him, "Now that not everyone in the Yunxing Escort Agency listens to you, who do you think is the backbone?"

Zhao Hao replied: "My second uncle, my father's younger brother Zhao Yuanxing."

Yue Ling narrowed his eyes slightly and asked again: "Do you know if there are any people in Cangzhou City who are good at using poison?"

Zhao Hao thought for a moment, shook his head and said, "I haven't heard of it."

Yue Ling and Zhao Hao looked at each other and said, "Okay, if you have anything, you can come to the government office to find me. After you have dealt with your family affairs, come and find General Shi for training. There is a big difference between practicing martial arts and joining the army."

Zhao Hao clasped his fists and responded, "As you wish."

"Pay attention to your own safety."

Zhao Hao was stunned again, and then nodded woodenly.

……

The inner house of the government office,

Lin Daiyu looked at the setting sun outside, counted the time, and sat at the table, swinging her feet in boredom.

"It's already past the middle of the You hour, Brother Yue should be back by now."

While she was thinking about this, Lin Daiyu called out again, "Xueyan, make another pot of tea and bring it over."

Xueyan did not come back from the door, but Zijuan came over and took the teapot.

Lin Daiyu looked Zijuan up and down and asked, "Are you feeling better? What happened last night? You were able to sleep for most of the day."

Zijuan blushed and didn't know what was going on.

"Well, I just didn't sleep well at night. I'm fine now."

Lin Daiyu sighed and said nothing more. Her eyes returned to the book in her hands.

Instead, Zijuan asked tentatively, "Miss, I forgot what the master said about Miss Xue last night. How about I ask him again today?"

Lin Daiyu put down the book, frowned, stared at him with affectionate eyes, and said, "Forget it now. You look like a fool. You won't remember anything even if I ask you several times. I'll ask you tonight."

Zijuan lowered her head in shame and walked away with the teapot.

Lin Daiyu couldn't help but secretly complain: "Sister, who is usually so steady, becomes a different person when she goes to Brother Yue's room. She loses her cleverness and becomes as dull as Xueyan. She doesn't even look in the mirror. She is no longer as dignified as before!"

"What a girl with no self-control, you are far inferior to me."

Sighing softly, Lin Daiyu continued to mutter, "Why hasn't Brother Yue come back yet? It makes me anxious to wait."

At that moment, I heard some noise outside the door.

Lin Daiyu quickly came to her senses, straightened her sitting posture, and picked up the book again.

As soon as the door opened, Lin Daiyu looked up and saw that the person she had been thinking about had returned. She smiled unconsciously.

"I went to the martial arts arena today and got covered in dust. Let me change my clothes and then we can have dinner together."

Lin Daiyu nodded softly and went back to her room to get the surprise she had prepared for Yue Ling.

There was no conversation during the meal. After washing up, Lin Daiyu came to Yue Ling again.

Ignoring Yue Ling who was following behind him, he sat down at the desk and unfolded the letter from home.

"Brother Yue, this is the reply from Daddy, about the Cangzhou Salt Industry. Also, Daddy has sent someone here, so it shouldn't be too long before we can meet Brother Yue."

Yue Ling was delighted to see this, as he had indeed been worried about this matter recently.

Midsummer is the best time to dry sea salt. If you miss it, it would be like missing out on mining for silver this year.

Yue Ling took it with a smile and sat next to Lin Daiyu, "Thank you, Sister Lin, for the surprise. This is indeed very important."

Lin Daiyu shook her head and said, "This belongs to Daddy, so I didn't prepare it."

As she spoke, Lin Daiyu slowly unfolded the piece of brocade that she had been holding in her hand.

"A map?"

(End of this chapter)