Chapter 94

**Update Time: August 29, 2012**

**Chapter 1**

Since the Spring and Autumn War, the Spring Spirit Lake had not seen the smoke of battle. Could these three merchant ships dare to provoke the Qingzhou navy?

The young nobleman, who was the unofficial leader of the group of wealthy young men on the Yellow Dragon warship, frowned deeply. In his view, the outcome of this lopsided naval battle was a foregone conclusion. However, once the fighting began, the consequences for him, with his sensitive status, would be severe, even his father would not dare to bear the responsibility.

These three Yellow Dragon warships had sailed to the vicinity of Laoshan under the guise of a naval exercise, more to show off their might. If the other side were ordinary nobles, the four giant masts on the warship would be overkill, but the grappling hooks and plow-headed darts would be enough to deal with them. After smashing or capsizing their large ships, they could accuse them of smuggling salt and iron, turning it into a case that could not be thoroughly investigated. Qingzhou had long been dissatisfied with Wang Linquan's involvement in the salt and iron trade. This would both vent the anger of General Zhao's son and warn Laoshan, achieving two goals with one action. Why not?

However, when he saw that the over a hundred men on the three ships were not only carrying standard military knives but also holding crossbows, he realized the situation was more serious. While the dynasty did not strictly prohibit civilians from carrying knives, crossbows were strictly regulated and could only be privately owned by the military. He was not blind; behind the young man who had come to Laoshan for a visit stood a towering warrior in heavy armor, holding a large iron halberd. In the dynasty's million-strong army, the number of brave men who could wield an iron halberd could be counted on one hand. The identity of the person they were about to teach a lesson to was now clear. Who else could make the Northern Liang halberd general Ning Emei personally guard them? He had heard that the Northern Liang Prince had set out on his second journey, and he never expected to run into him today.

The Northern Liang Prince was not someone anyone could pretend to be. The princes of the vassal states needed imperial approval to leave their territories, and their entourages had to follow strict regulations. Moreover, it would be safer to claim to be the prince of any other vassal state rather than the Northern Liang Prince. As the son of the Butcher, if he stood in any of the eight former states and declared himself the Northern Liang Prince, he would be swarmed by countless assassins.

The young man, also from one of the top noble families, had a complex look in his eyes and muttered to himself, "This guy brought a hundred Northern Liang light cavalry, almost on par with my father's forces. What a grand display, befitting the son of a vassal king."

The difference in their positions led to vastly different thoughts. Unlike the cautious young nobleman, the Qingzhou young men, including those surnamed Zhao, were furious after hearing Xu Fengnian's challenge. In naval battles, there were two key advantages: one was to control the upstream position, making it difficult for the enemy to resist. The other was to use large ships to crush smaller ones. The dynasty had spent a fortune building three giant warships as tall as city walls: the Yu Huang in the former Dongyue, the Shenhuang in the former Xichu, and the flagship of the Qingzhou navy. Even the large Qinglong warship would be shattered by the iron ram on the bow of these giants. The gap between the Yellow Dragon and these three giants was the same as the gap between the merchant ships and the Yellow Dragon. Where did this guy get the courage to say "Dare to fight?" He must have eaten a lot of bear hearts and leopard livers.

Among the young men in fine clothes and strong horses, two were the most aggressive and impulsive: one was the son of a general surnamed Zhao, and the other was Wei Wei, whose father was the head of the Qingzhou navy. Wei Wei was privately called a "vicious dragon" by the people of Qingzhou. Relying on his father's power, he loved to forcibly kidnap girls and take them to the lake to do as he pleased. Afterward, he would either drown them or strip them naked and force them to leave the boat. Most of the latter could not bear the humiliation and would drown themselves. What made Wei Wei even more despicable was his ability to draw a three-stone bow. Once a woman fell into the water, he would shoot her with his bow.

His father was known as the Dragon King of Qingzhou. Wei Wei, who could barely read, would often beat up scholars on the street with his falcon and dogs, learning seven or eight parts of his father's ruthlessness. He admired Li Hanlin, one of the four great villains of Liangzhou, who kept a menagerie at home. He often said that if he had the chance, he would swear brotherhood with Li Hanlin.

Wei Wei was now furious. He could not stand two things: refined scholars and more arrogant young masters. The man standing on the ship's bow had both, and he found him unbearable. How dare he speak so boldly on his territory? He was tired of living. Turning to a servant far away, he shouted, "Go get me my bow!"

The servant quickly ran to fetch the large bow that had shed much blood.

The two Yellow Dragon warships had a total of four hundred soldiers, known as "Yellow Headed Gentlemen" because of their yellow clothes and hats, symbolizing the earth's victory over water in the Five Elements. Each warship was equipped with ten long spears, ten grappling hooks, thirty-two crossbows, and three thousand three hundred arrows, as well as forty sets of armor, according to the naval tactics manual "The White Star Yin Scripture." The best fighters among the Yellow Headed Gentlemen were called "Jizhuo Soldiers," and there were several dozen on the Yellow Dragon. With the wind at their backs, the two warships had a clear advantage over the enemy's mere hundred crossbows, and victory seemed certain.

The women on the Yellow Dragon warships wore the grand robes and long sleeves characteristic of noblewomen. The "long sleeves" were first created by Empress Zhao Zhi in the palace, along with the phoenix crown and ceremonial robes, which were the regular attire of the empresses and concubines. In recent years, as the court relaxed its rules, this style began to spread among the high-ranking families in the civilian world. The women on the warship, dressed in various colors of long sleeves, looked like a group of colorful butterflies and orioles, very beautiful. Their luxurious attire and the mindset of the young men on the ship were slightly different. They had no strong animosity toward the man with the two knives. To them, he looked handsome and dashing. The two knives, one long and one short, were beautiful and ancient, respectively, and his fearless stance on the ship's bow against four hundred Yellow Headed Gentlemen made him look like a heroic general. Regardless of whether he was just a show-off, his boldness alone made their hearts race. Who wouldn't want a brave and fearless young master as a lover?

They did not care about the tension between the two sides. Two of the more daring young ladies from Qingzhou's noble families had already thrown him flirtatious glances.

Xu Fengnian was not particularly concerned about whether the Qingzhou navy would engage in battle. He was more focused on observing the details of the Yellow Dragon warship, such as the orderly movement of the warships, the cleanliness of the grappling hooks and masts, and the completeness of the cowhide and iron armor on the ship's deck and sails. From these details, he could gauge the combat effectiveness of the Qingzhou navy. The old Taoist Wei Shuyang stood by his side to guard against any sneak attacks. Xu Fengnian turned to Ning Emei and casually discussed some key points of naval warfare, giving a concise evaluation of the Qingzhou navy. Ning Emei, one of the four generals of Northern Liang, was not familiar with naval warfare, but he was surprised by the Prince's expertise in naval strategy and tactics, which he explained clearly and thoroughly, not just from reading "The White Star Yin Scripture."

The halberd general smiled and bowed, requesting permission. "If the enemy dares to fight, I can break the warship's grappling hooks with one strike, preventing them from getting close. As for archery, the Yellow Headed Gentlemen are far inferior to our Northern Liang soldiers. I humbly request that Your Highness allow me to lead the charge and show the Qingzhou navy what true battlefield bravery looks like!"

Xu Fengnian shook his head and joked, "General Ning, we have issued a challenge, but whether they accept it is up to them. If you act first, and there are repercussions, I, the Prince with a poor reputation, am not afraid. At worst, my father will have a shouting match with the Chief Cabinet Minister and other grand secretaries in the imperial court. But be careful, you might not even be able to remain a general. Look at that warship general of the same rank as you, he looks very pleased, probably thinking that helping with this matter will get him a promotion and wealth. General Ning, you and I are already suffering, and if we can't get a promotion, that's fine, but if we are demoted, my reputation will be ruined across the thirty states. Who would dare to serve me, the unscrupulous Prince, in the future?"

The imposing Ning Emei, having roughly understood the Prince's character, smiled and said, "That makes sense. I should ask Your Highness and the Great General to make me a Thousand Warrior General on this trip. It would be a good way to show off in front of Your Highness."

Xu Fengnian laughed, "Certainly."

When the Northern Liang light cavalry focused on the enemy, they occasionally observed the Prince and General Ning. Seeing their leaders so relaxed, they were all filled with courage. The Northern Liang army was one of the least favored by the Liyang Dynasty, with thirty thousand invincible iron cavalry stationed on the border between Liyang and the Northern Barbarians. They could do nothing about the prevailing attitude that had lasted for over a decade. They had finally seized the opportunity to leave Northern Liang with the Prince and General Ning. Although they had lost many brothers in the rain-soaked battle, who in the Northern Liang army feared death? Later, when General Ning felled the arrogant former general of Gu Jian棠 with a single strike at the Yingchuan city gate, and when he heard that the Prince had personally said he would hang the deputy commander of the Eastern Forbidden Army on the city gate if he were there, the Fengzi Camp light cavalry, who had initially been skeptical, began to believe more than doubt. Regardless of whether the Prince was rash, his arrogant and domineering demeanor was worthy of the Northern Liang Xu family's banner!

The Prince's agile movements in the rapids, especially his technique of grabbing the iron halberd to save people, were all seen and remembered by the Fengzi Camp. The light cavalry who were saved by the Prince recently boasted to their comrades with a sense of pride.

Xu Fengnian saw a robust young man on the Yellow Dragon warship take a large ox horn bow and draw it to a full moon, showing considerable arm strength.

The arrow was aimed directly at him.

Xu Fengnian, holding the sword Xiudong in his right hand, narrowed his beautiful phoenix eyes and said to himself, "I've been waiting for you."

At Laoshan, Wang Linquan came to his youngest daughter Wang Chudong's study to watch the battle.

Wang Dongxiang's "First Snow" study was the tallest building on Laoshan, filled with books scattered everywhere, but she never asked her maids to tidy up. The study was a forbidden zone, especially when she was writing or composing poetry, and no one was allowed to disturb her. Each book was rated and categorized, given different nicknames, and when she was bored, she would lie on the floor among the books, imagining battles between different categories, talking to herself, and entertaining herself, so she was never lonely. Therefore, the maids outside the study often heard her say things like, "Ah, the classics have defeated military strategy. Punish the forty-six military books by not letting me read them for half a month," "Oh, the poetry of Xishu and the lyrics of Nantang are evenly matched. Excellent! Reward the generals of each side with three days of reading 'The Anthology of Flowers' and 'The Preface to the Bodhisattva Mantra.'"

The maids were used to their young mistress's whimsical ideas and felt lucky to serve such a cheerful and carefree master. When the young mistress got bored with writing or reading, she would play cuju, swing, or play polo with them. Some of the maids had even appeared in "First Snow of Dongxiang," which was quite amazing. Scholars across the land knew about them, and many talented young men from Qingzhou's noble families came to seek a "First Snow maid" as a wife, which, along with the old man's claim to be a descendant of Dongxiang, was considered one of the two great curiosities of the state.

Wang Chudong tiptoed and looked at the standoff on the lake, worriedly asking, "Father, can we win?"

Wang Linquan, with the wisdom of his years, was confident. "The Qingzhou navy may look impressive with their large ships and many men, but they are actually just for show. Qingzhou has been at peace for ten years, and these Yellow Headed Gentlemen are just putting on a show. The Prince's personal guards are different, selected from the best, skilled in riding and archery. One hundred agile and fierce soldiers against four hundred untrained men, if they really fight, the Yellow Headed Gentlemen will be defeated in a few moments. But the Prince needs to consider the political implications and cannot make the first move. The Qingzhou navy also dare not fight after the Prince reveals his identity. This is not a small matter of officials bullying the people, which can be easily covered up. A battle between two official armies is a major taboo in the court. Now we will see if the Qingzhou navy has any discerning people. If it is controlled by someone like Wei Wei, they will likely lose both the battle and the political struggle. Once the Qingzhou navy's incompetence is exposed, the corruption and lawlessness of the navy's commander, Wei Dong, will be impossible to hide, and the governor will have to take action. The Qingzhou navy, which was tightly controlled by Gu Jian棠's former subordinates and repeatedly questioned my salt and iron river transport business, will finally be open to my direct control."

Wang Chudong murmured, "The Spring Spirit Lake, thirty-six thousand acres, one hundred soldiers against four hundred."

Wang Linquan quickly reined in his thoughts, not wanting to talk about the political intrigues, and smiled, praising her, "Good poem, good poem, with great momentum."

Wang Chudong glared at him, "This isn't a poem! I was just talking nonsense."

Wang Linquan, with a thick-skinned boast, said, "My Chudong can speak a thousand words in a moment and turn nonsense into poetry."

Wang Chudong was about to argue when she suddenly saw the storm on the lake change. She pointed to the lake and raised her voice, "Look!"

On the third deck of the warship, Wei Wei drew his bow into a large circle and shot an arrow in a flash!

The sharp arrow shot straight at Xu Fengnian.

Earlier, General Ning Emei had seen someone draw a bow and wanted to block the arrow for the Prince, but the old Taoist Wei Shuyang signaled that it was unnecessary.

Xu Fengnian instantly drew his sword. The people on the warship and the four hundred Yellow Headed Gentlemen only saw a dazzling white arc. When they looked again, the arrow, which had been flying with great momentum, was cut in half, and the arrowhead was held in the man's hand. Without giving Wei Wei time to react, Xu Fengnian lightly tossed the half-arrow and flicked it with his finger. The arrow flew swiftly, but it was not aimed at Wei Wei. Instead, it was aimed at the young nobleman, who had already retreated to a safe position, clearly planning to watch the battle from the sidelines. Xu Fengnian would not let him get away with it. If he was fishing, he would catch the biggest fish. This young man was likely a descendant of Prince Jing'an Zhao Heng. Before entering Xiangfan, Xu Fengnian wanted to show