Chapter 265: Chapter 265: The Scapegoat

Chapter 265: Chapter 265: The ScapegoatAs he copied more and more poems, Xu Qiyan gradually figured out the trick of "showing his sageliness" as a scholar. You answer whatever others ask. This is something that only fools can do.

You must whet the appetite, and whet the appetite enough.

Just like now, from No. 4 to the drinkers, from the drinkers to the courtesans, from the courtesans to the maids serving at the table, they are all watching him and waiting. Sёarᴄh the nôvelFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

In full view of the crowd, Xu Qiyan stood up and paced in the hall. After seven steps, he paused and said leisurely: "It takes ten years to sharpen a sword."

Chu Yuanzhen was stunned. He just said that he was raising a sword, and Xu Qiyan immediately made this sentence. There was no escape. This poem was written for him.

No. 4 was immediately moved. He had never met Xu Qiyan before, but he was willing to write a poem for him after a few drinks and chats. It was really shameful to treat people so friendly and enthusiastic.

No. 3 was a chivalrous scholar. Although he had some small flaws of seeking profit, he was generally a person worth making friends with. His cousin is even more kind-hearted than him, worthy of being a brother.

At the same time, Chu Yuanzhen thought of the example of Ziyang Jushi, and his heart was slightly hot. He was also a scholar and loved poetry. There was no reason not to look forward to such a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Xu Qian'an looked around at everyone and recited the second sentence: "The frosty blade has never been tested."

Ten years to sharpen a sword, the frosty blade has never been tested... The officials present chewed on this poem with a smile on their faces and shining eyes.

This couplet is well-balanced, and both the rhyme and artistic conception are like Xu Qian'an's previous poems, but the charm of poetry is not just the rhyme and artistic conception.

Ten years to sharpen a sword, the frosty blade has never been tested!

In a short sentence, the ambition and passion are vividly expressed on the paper. Ten years to sharpen a sword, this pretentious spirit can only be written by a young man like him.

Chu Yuanzhen's eyes were bright, and he straightened his back unconsciously, half leaning over the table, leaning forward, looking forward to the next couplet.

It's so fitting, so fitting.

He has traveled all over the country over the years, broadened his horizons, and cultivated his sword energy. This top-grade magic weapon of the Ren Sect has always been hidden in the scabbard and has never been displayed.

It will eventually be unsheathed, but Chu Yuanzhen himself has never thought about what kind of situation will make him draw this sword in the future.

It was not until the Ren Sect's Taoist leader sent a letter recently, summoning him back to fight against Tian Sect's disciple Li Miaozhen, that Chu Yuanzhen suddenly realized that it was waiting for this moment.

It's just a little regretful in his heart. When this sword is unsheathed, it will definitely be earth-shattering. It is not his wish to use it to kill Li Miaozhen.

"What will be the next couplet? Ten years of sharpening a sword, under what circumstances will it be unsheathed?"

Chu Yuanzhen muttered in his heart, full of eagerness to "reference" this.

At this time, Xu Qi'an shook his head and sighed: "I haven't thought of the second couplet yet."

"!!!!!!

"How come this is gone? It can't be gone. How can a poem only have the first couplet?"

"Master Xu, don't be willful, we are still waiting."

"What is the second couplet? Think about it again, think about it again..."

In the hall, everyone widened their eyes, unable to accept this fact.

Xu Qi'an spread his hands, holding the wine glass and returned to the table, and said helplessly: "I really haven't thought of it yet. How about this, I will make half a poem first, and the other half will be made up for Brother Chu later, how about it?"

"...It can only be like this." Chu Yuanzhen said disappointedly.

Everyone reluctantly accepted this result.

The drinking game continued. Although the elegant game was elegant, the atmosphere was a little dull. Fuxiang proposed to play finger-guessing, which was unanimously agreed by everyone.

The courtesans played finger-guessing with the drinkers and had a lot of fun.

"Why don't we play tossing pots."

Chu Zhuangyuan, who was not accompanied by a beauty, suggested.

This banquet was specially held to welcome him. He was the protagonist of the banquet and he had the final say.

There were rules for pitching pots. It was very simple. There was a pot in the hall. Each of the drinkers had three arrows. Those who missed the target had to drink a penalty. Those who hit the target could order anyone in the field to drink.

After a few rounds, this group of officials of high status got tipsy and gradually changed from game participants to spectators, and then from spectators to cheering crowds.

Only Xu Qian'an and Chu Yuanzhen were pitching pots on the field. Every arrow must hit the target. The two seemed to be sulking and neither of them was willing to admit defeat.

The courtesans were waving flags and shouting. If either Xu Qian'an or Chu Yuanzhen hit the target, they would cheer loudly and their faces would be flushed with excitement.

Such a wonderful pitching pot duel was very rare.

At the beginning, the courtesans were fair and did not favor any side. Gradually, the twelve courtesans split into two camps, one supporting Chu Yuanzhen and the other being Xu Qi'an's fans... all of them were women Xu Qi'an had slept with, such as Fuxiang, Mingyan, Xiaoya, etc. "It's hard to tell who wins if we play this way, so I suggest blindfolding them," said Xu Qi'an. Chu Yuanzhen pondered for a moment, shook his head and said, "Even if we blindfold them, we will hit the target every time. My suggestion is that each of us has 20 arrows, and whoever

finishes first wins."

Know how to play!

The eyes of the drinkers and courtesans lit up, and they all agreed.

Fuxiang ordered the maid to bring a silk scarf to blindfold the two. Xu Qi'an found that the silk scarf was hazy and had good light transmittance, and the outline of the barnacles could be

vaguely seen.

He turned around silently, with his back to the field.

Chu Yuanzhen was stunned, smiled and shook his head, and turned his back as well.

The atmosphere on the field became more lively. Not only did they mask their faces, but they

also turned around. They had never seen this way of playing before.

"How do we play this?" Ming Yan said in a delicate voice, "Who can hit the target?"

Another courtesan giggled, "Whoever wins, Ming Yan will serve him tonight."

Ming Yan blushed and said "Pah", secretly looking at Xu Qi'an.

Xu Qi'an habitually talked nonsense, covered his eyes and laughed, "No, no, the first place is

too little, I want all of you."

The courtesans were not afraid at all, and responded with a smile, "I'm afraid that Master Xu will have to lean on the wall to report to the government office tomorrow."

The laughter "boomed" and the beauties were all laughing.

"No. 3 declined my proposal. He looked like a serious person who never went to the

Jiaofangsi, but his elder brother was just the opposite."

Chu Yuanzhen sighed in his heart. This Xu Qiyan was indeed a romantic person. He was like a fish in water in the Jiaofangsi and could let go more than any scholar.

For the current literati, the Jiaofangsi and the brothel were more of a place for socializing, drinking and socializing with colleagues and classmates. The brothel was a place for ordinary people to go. People with real status would first choose the Jiaofangsi.

There were talented courtesans acting as the commanding officers, and beautiful and well- behaved maids pouring wine and serving. This was the appearance.

But the literati took into account their face and would not be too unrestrained. This Xu Qiyan

was different.

"Even if I die under the peony flowers, I will still be romantic!" Xu Qiyan hugged Fuxiang's

waist.

The sudden golden sentence made everyone present secretly admire how this person's talent was so terrible, and he could say good sentences and good poems easily.

If this person reads, he will become a great scholar.

Xu Pingzhi is not a good man.

"Dong!" An arrow accurately hit the barnacle, interrupting everyone's divergent thoughts and

returning their attention.

After throwing one arrow, Xu Qi'an smiled and said, "Brother Chu, let's start."

"Okay!" Chu Yuanzhen replied indifferently.

While speaking, he casually threw an arrow back and hit it accurately.

"Wow..."

Ming Yan exclaimed and widened his eyes.

Dong Dong Dong.....

Xu Qi'an and Chu Yuanzhen each shot an arrow, and each shot hit the target. Every time they

hit an arrow, the courtesans exclaimed and felt their eyes were opened.

Throwing arrows into the pot is just a small game, but the two of them played it in a variety of

ways.

One after another, when Xu Qi'an finished throwing the tenth arrow, Chu Yuanzhen had

already thrown thirteen arrows, leaving only seven in his hand.

When Xu Qi'an had five arrows left, Chu Yuanzhen had only two in his hand.

It seemed that the winner had been decided.

Fuxiang and Mingyan, the courtesans who supported Xu Qi'an, looked gloomy, unable to hide

their disappointment.

The courtesans who supported Chu Yuanzhen applauded in advance, giving applause to the number one scholar in the 27th year of Yuanjing.

The officials watching around seemed to have expected this result, and their smiles were the

faintest.

Chu Yuanzhen was a legendary figure. When he was still a student, he had already stood out among his classmates, with outstanding talent and appearance. Later, he gave up literature and practiced Taoism. No one was optimistic about him, and a close friend angrily broke off

his friendship with him.

But who would have thought that in just a few years, he would soar to the sky and challenge

Zhang Kaitai, the Golden Gong. Although he lost, he was still honored and was praised by Wei Yuan as the number one swordsman in the capital.

In their opinion, such a peerless genius was naturally much more outstanding than Xu Qi'an,

who could investigate cases.

At this time, Chu Yuanzhen had already thrown the second to last arrow, which accurately hit

the pot. Fuxiang pursed her lips, retracted her gaze from the barnacle, glanced at Xu Qi'an, and was surprised to find that the corners of this man's mouth were slightly raised... She was very familiar with this expression. Every time Xu Qi'an was in high spirits, he would slightly raise

his mouth.

Is he sure?!

As soon as the thought came to her mind, Fuxiang saw an absurd scene. Xu Qi'an threw the

five arrows in his hand at the same time. They drew a neat arc in the air and perfectly entered

the pot.

Five arrows had only one sound: dong!

The hall fell into silence in an instant, and pairs of eyes were wide open.

This works too?

"Ah..." Mingyan cheered and threw herself into Xu Qi'an's arms excitedly: "Master Xu, I love

you so much."

Fuxiang frowned repeatedly.

"What a magical skill." An imperial censor exclaimed.

"It turns out that throwing pots can be played like this. It's eye-opening." Another official

smiled and agreed.

The eyes of the courtesans looking at Xu Qi'an were suddenly full of admiration.

Chu Yuanzhen took off his silk scarf and smiled, "Great, great."

The tea party lasted until the beginning of the night (nine o'clock in the evening). The

courtesans yawned and stood up to say goodbye, their skirts fluttering and their bodies light.

Although they were a little sleepy, the beauties were still not satisfied. They felt that the

banquet with Xu Qi'an, the first swordsman in the capital, was very interesting. It was a pity that such high-quality guests could not be met every day.

Ming Yan secretly wrote on Xu Qi'an's palm to seduce him to his Qingchi Courtyard, but

Fuxiang stabbed him a few times and then drove him away.

Chu Yuanzhen did not stay overnight at the Jiaofangsi and said goodbye. Xu Qi'an personally

sent him out of the courtyard.

Number 4 is too indifferent and free and easy, and has the character of a scholar... I can't find a chance to make him socially dead... Xu Qi'an looked at the back of the blue-shirted swordsman and felt very sorry.

But scholars have their weaknesses, such as poetry.

He hid the second line first and took it out when the time was right. Leaving the maid to clean up the mess, Fuxiang took Xu Qi'an's arm and went into the

bedroom. Xu Qi'an sat at the table drinking tea. His ears moved and he heard Zhong Li's voice.

He turned his head to look at the screen. The candlelight reflected her graceful shadow, which

was cast on the screen. She was taking off her dresses one by one and changing into a light gauze dress.

While bathing, Xu Qi'an suddenly said:

"I will redeem you in a few days."

Fuxiang was stunned for a moment, and her smart eyes flashed with complex colors. She

quickly calmed down and chuckled, "Xu Lang just became a viscount. It's not good for your reputation to take a concubine now."

"That's fine." Xu Qi'an hugged her smooth waist and said with a smile.

After taking a bath, he and Fuxiang rolled on the bed. When the young general in white robe

went in and out seven times, he suddenly heard a "click" sound, followed by a sense of

weightlessness.

The bed collapsed.

Fuxiang screamed and entangled Xu Qian'an, and her long legs like a white python tightly hooked his waist, which scared him.

....Zhong Li, I want to find the supervisor to return the goods!

Xu Qian'an was furious.

After leaving Yingmei Pavilion, Chu Yuanzhen waved his sword finger, and the long sword on

his back seemed to come alive, freed from the restraints like a swimming fish, and stopped in front of him.

Chu Yuanzhen stepped on the scabbard and whispered, "Let's go."

The long sword paused slightly, suddenly pierced the night sky, and soared straight up.

The moment he flew into the night sky, Chu Yuanzhen felt that countless eyes in the capital

were locked on him, and then moved away. Among them, the most chilling gaze came from the towering observatory.

He quickly left the inner city and flew towards the south of the outer city.

If I remember correctly, No. 6 Hengyuan was in the Health Hall. He lowered his altitude and

searched for a long time, and finally found the Health Hall in the south city.

Chu Yuanzhen was not born and raised in the capital. He studied in the Imperial Academy,

passed the imperial examination, and lived in the inner city. He had never been to the outer city where the poor gathered.

He pressed the sword head and landed lightly in the courtyard of the Health Hall. When he

jumped off the scabbard, he heard the sound of chanting Buddha's name from under the eaves:

"Amitabha."

Chu Yuanzhen held the hilt of the sword and put the sword back into the sword bag behind

him. He looked in the direction of the sound. In the darkness under the eaves, there stood a

monk wearing a simple blue robe. He was burly, with thick eyebrows and big eyes, and hard

facial lines.

"Master Hengyuan?" Chu Yuanzhen greeted with a smile.

"It's me, the donor is number four?" Hengyuan put his hands together and looked at him

quietly. The two people who met for the first time did not act very calmly. They were neither close nor unfamiliar. Hengyuan led Chu Yuanzhen into the house, lit the oil lamp, and took out a jar of wine from under the bed, turned out two porcelain bowls, and simply wiped the dust with his

sleeves.

Chu Yuanzhen never said no to wine, he drank it as soon as he drank it, but he was a little curious: "Can Buddhist disciples drink?"

Hengyuan answered calmly: "Martial monks can eat both meat and vegetables." There is also a subtext in this sentence: Martial monks do not need to observe precepts.

"I met No. 3 today."

Chu Yuanzhen regretted not bringing peanuts. He always felt that something was missing

with wine but no food.

Hengyuan nodded.

"No. 3 pretended not to know me... With his intelligence, I believe he recognized me at that

time. I don't know why he pretended not to know me."

Chu Yuanzhen shook his head helplessly and said: "The eighth level of self-cultivation is a

little shallow."

However, he knew the secret of No. 3. No. 3 was related to the Qingqi Chongxiao of the Sub- Saint Temple. When dealing with No. 3, you can't just look at the surface. Master Hengyuan took a sip of wine and said thoughtfully: "Compared to No. 3, I am more compatible with Lord Xu. You may not know that he did not die in Yunzhou..." After No. 6 explained the resurrection of Xu Qi'an, Chu Yuanzhen nodded: "Although the

rebirth pill is good, it has too many restrictions. He survived by relying on his own luck. "I just met Xu Qi'an in the Jiaofang Division. I have a good impression of her. I think it's

because I heard you discuss it too many times in the fragments of the Earth Book. I don't feel unfamiliar with him."

After a pause, No. 4 smiled and said: "I have never been with No. 3, but Xu Qi'an is indeed very much to my taste."

After drinking the turbid wine in the jar, Chu Yuanzhen proposed to go to see the child. After

seeing it, his expression was quite depressed.

"Although I don't like Buddhism, they have a saying that is very right. The world is like a sea

of suffering, and all living beings are struggling in the sea of suffering. "Chu Yuanzhen said

with emotion.

Master Hengyuan glanced at him.

Chu Yuanzhen hurriedly said: "No offense."

Hengyuan then retracted his gaze.

"Three days later is the second round of the imperial examination. Let's go and see No. 3

together." Hengyuan said: "No. 3 is unwilling to reveal his identity to us. He said that if we meet, we only need to smile at each other."

"Is that so." Chu Yuanzhen suddenly realized.

Time passed in a flash, and three days passed.

At dawn, Xu Erlang arrived at the Imperial Examination Hall accompanied by his family.

"The ninth rank of Confucianism has the ability to remember everything at a glance. This

exam is about the meaning of the classics. Erlang must have no pressure. "Xu Qian'an patted

his shoulder and encouraged him.

Uncle Xu and Aunt Xu smiled. According to Erlang himself, he performed very well in the first day's policy questions. He was good at policy questions, and the second round of scriptures was not a big problem. In the eyes of his uncle and aunt, Erlang was almost certain to become a tribute scholar.

Xu Xinnian raised his chin slightly and said proudly: "There are many talented students in the world. We must not be careless. There may be stronger than me." There may be...Xu Qian'an thought to himself, you are better at pretending. After saying goodbye to his family, he walked towards the entrance of the tribute hall and

planned to line up to enter. At this moment, a loud voice came to his ears: "Amitabha. "

Xu Xinnian looked sideways and saw two people standing on the street, one was a burly monk,

and the other was a swordsman in green.

After seeing him, the monk and the swordsman both smiled in a mysterious way.

.... Xu Xinnian's face froze, he lowered his head, and hurried back to his father and elder

brother, and he felt safe.

"Dad, elder brother, I suspect someone wants to do something bad to me." Xu Xinnian said in a deep voice.

Upon hearing this, Xu Pingzhi raised his eyebrows and looked like lightning: "Who?"

He was a patrolling imperial sword guard, and he knew that a large number of chivalrous men

from the rivers and lakes had recently poured into the capital, which was an extremely

unstable factor for public security.

The most obvious thing was that there were more thieves on the beams. Those low-class people from the rivers and lakes had spent all their money in the capital, and they had no way

to make money, so their first choice was to steal and rob.

"A monk and a swordsman. "Xu Xinnian turned around and pointed to somewhere behind.

Xu Qian'an looked for a moment and said, "Where is that person?"

"????"

Xu Xinnian showed a look of horror: "He was just there."

"Well, you said you have no pressure, I think you are hallucinating." Xu Qian'an patted his

little brother on the shoulder and said:

"Erlang, don't pay attention to those people you don't know and who behave strangely."

As he said that, he put his hand behind Xu Xinnian. Xu Erlang looked behind him and said puzzledly: "What do you mean, brother?"

"It's okay, I'll take the blame for you."