Yang Feng and the others had traveled for some distance, and they could see that the City of Hehuang was not far ahead.
"Niu Da, when we arrive, you take Altan into the city and find a doctor to treat him quickly. Don't let him die." Yang Feng said and took out a few pieces of broken silver from his bosom and handed them to Niu Da.
"Hero Yang, what about you all?"
"This world belongs to the Mongols. If we enter the city with the Head of the Feng Sect, none of us will escape. Don't worry, I have my own plans."
Niu Da agreed and put Altan in the horse carriage. Yang Feng also put one of his own clothes on Feng Xiangyue to cover her up. After the two of them saluted each other with fists, they immediately went their separate ways.
Before long, Yang Feng suddenly reined in his horse and shouted to Niu Da, who was not far away, "Niu Da! Well done! You didn't lose face!"
By this time, Yang Feng could no longer see Niu Da's face clearly. He only saw that Niu Da also stopped his horse and saluted in the direction of Yang Feng again.
"What about me, Uncle? Did I lose face?"
Yang Feng's nerves had been tense all along, and he had really forgotten about the little girl, He Lanxin. He saw He Lanxin smiling at him, but her small face couldn't hide the fatigue from the two-day journey. Her eyes were swollen like fish bubbles, and she looked very funny.
Seeing He Lanxin's drowsy little face, Yang Feng couldn't help but smile.
"You're so sleepy. Let's find a place for you to rest."
"No, my master is so seriously injured. We should hurry to find a doctor to treat her."
Yang Feng didn't object. He picked up He Lanxin with one hand and placed her in front of him. Suddenly, he noticed that He Lanxin's left hand was swollen severely. So, he gently lifted her left hand, which made He Lanxin's face blush.
"This hand of yours was also injured? It looks like a dislocation."
Yang Feng supported He Lanxin's wrist with both hands, held her arm with his thumbs, lifted and pulled it up and down, twisted it left and right, and the bone was reset. Then he broke two branches and tied them to He Lanxin's hand, one in front and one behind.
"Alright, this hand of yours will have to be tied to the branches for at least a month. It takes a hundred days to recover from a bone injury. After you remove the branches in more than a month, don't practice swordsmanship with this hand."
He Lanxin leaned in Yang Feng's arms at this time and nodded. Yang Feng looked at the little head in his arms and thought how lovely it was. He thought how wonderful it would be to have such a little girl accompany him in his adventures in the martial arts world.
"Uncle..." He Lanxin asked Yang Feng very carefully.
"What's up?"
"I have a question to ask you..." He Lanxin summoned her courage to say to Yang Feng.
"Ask away."
"Why did you kill my senior sister that day instead of me?"
"Hahaha!" Hearing this question, Yang Feng burst out laughing.
"There's no reason. I left the weakest one alive to humiliate your master. But it seems I killed the wrong person."
He Lanxin's heart, which was full of anticipation, suddenly broke. She murmured disappointedly and then fell asleep in Yang Feng's arms.
Niu Da drove the carriage to the City of Hehuang and found a medical clinic. So, he stopped the carriage, parted the carriage curtain, but saw a handsome and unrestrained man lying in the carriage, holding a folding fan. This person was Ji Yinchun. Niu Da was greatly shocked. This person's lightness skill was so excellent that he had no idea when he got into the carriage.
Ji Yinchun jumped up and sat upright, pulled out his folding fan and woke up the astonished Niu Da.
"Altan is now in my hands. Yang Feng still has some credibility, so I won't kill you, this barbarian. Go back wherever you came from."
Saying that, Ji Yinchun jumped onto the horseback and drove the carriage out of the City of Hehuang again.
When Ji Yinchun caught up with his Mongolian soldiers, he exchanged carriages with one of the soldiers and checked Altan's injuries at the same time. Fortunately, Yang Feng's sword didn't pierce Altan's heart. Even so, an ordinary person would not survive for more than an hour after being wounded like this. Altan was physically strong and managed to hold on for three or four hours.
Ji Yinchun took out a small vial from his bosom, poured out two or three rejuvenation pills specially prepared by him, chewed them in his mouth, and carefully applied them to Altan's rotten wound.
Ji Yinchun and his group traveled for a whole day and finally arrived in Xining.
Xining has been an important city in the northwest since ancient times. It borders the Hexi Corridor in the north and guards against Tubo in the south. The Huangshui River flows through the city. The ancient boulders have built this majestic fortress. Two ruby scimitars of Tubo are hung at the city gate, and above them is a huge horse's head. It is said that these two precious swords and the mount were the national treasures of the kings of Tubo and Amdo. When Mongolia conquered Tubo and Amdo, they cut off the hands of the kings holding the swords and the heads of their mounts and hung them at the city gate of Xining as a symbol of conquest. Many skulls and armors of senior generals of Tubo are also hung on both sides of the city gate, all symbolizing the majesty of this ancient castle and the legend of the invincibility of the Mongols. Over the thousands of years, the attacks of sandstorms have broken the boulders that built the city. When the people and soldiers of the border encountered natural disasters such as the drying up of the Huangshui River and droughts in the farmland, the King of Xining would call on the soldiers and civilians to climb the snow-capped mountains to transport water for irrigation.
The first King of Xining, Borjigin Bolzigit, the younger brother of Kublai Khan, followed his elder brother in battles since he was sixteen years old. He was titled Khan in the northern desert and achieved numerous military exploits. He led troops to capture Lhasa and destroy Tubo. He also defeated many famous Han generals in the battles in Liangzhou and Ganzhou. When Kublai Khan ascended the throne in Dadu, he bestowed the title of King of Xining upon Bolzigit, allowing him to control the three provinces of Hexi, Haidong, and Guanshi, and to be the chief minister of the three provinces. The title was passed down from generation to generation. The current King of Xining, Borjigin Suhebalu, is the grandson of Bolzigit.
Ji Yinchun led his troops into Xining City and went straight to the King of Xining's Mansion. Since the mansion was built by a Mongolian lord, it did not focus on architectural layout, landscape gardens, or feng shui and divination like the mansions of Han noblemen. It was just a deep and majestic courtyard, similar to a city within a city.
Ji Yinchun rewarded each of the Mongolian soldiers and drove the carriage into the main gate of the mansion. After driving through the high courtyard walls for a while, they finally reached the main hall of the mansion. When the servants outside the main hall saw Ji Yinchun driving the carriage to the main hall, they hurried to help hold the carriage, but Ji Yinchun dismissed all the servants.
After tying the horse, Ji Yinchun knelt on one knee outside the main hall and said, "Subordinate Ji Yinchun has come to report back!"
A door was slowly opened. Inside the main hall, on the dragon throne, sat a person with a broad back and a thick waist, a bushy beard, and eagle-like eyes. He wore a pure white embroidered brocade robe with dark dragon patterns embroidered on the knees, a gold ring on his index finger, and a jade belt around his waist. Standing beside him were two people. One wore a Zhisun suit and a Boli cap. He was short but had strong limbs, especially strong arms. The other was wearing a chainmail with bone spurs growing out of the armor. His eyes were as red as blood, and his mouth was wide with two rows of tusks, looking like a cross between a human and a beast. These three people were the King of Xining and two of the four top experts under him, Chaganbar and Morigen.
"Bartel, please rise quickly!" The King of Xining beckoned Ji Yinchun to stand up. When Ji Yinchun entered the hall, he closed the door of the main hall smoothly.
"Where is Altan? Why didn't he come with you?"
"Report to the King, this subordinate is incompetent. Yang Feng of the Emei Sect suddenly appeared and caught us off guard. The Head of the Emei Sect was abducted by him, and Altan was seriously injured by this person."
The King of Xining had an intimidating appearance. Ji Yinchun couldn't tell at this moment whether the King was angry or extremely angry after hearing his words. Only Chaganbar looked surprised, while Morigen's eyes shone and he licked his tusks with his tongue, as if he had encountered a desirable prey.
"Where is Altan now?"
"He is in the carriage outside the hall."
"Chaganbar, secretly summon the royal physician of the mansion and hurry to treat Altan's injuries."
"My King... The sword of the Emei Sect was seized by me." Saying that, Ji Yinchun pulled out a sword from his sleeve and presented it to the King of Xining with both hands.
The King of Xining examined the scabbard. He saw that it was made of cold jade and could faintly see the blade through the scabbard. When holding this sword, an inexplicable chill swept through his body. If a person without internal energy held this sword for too long, their meridians would be frozen by this cold air.
The King of Xining tried to draw the sword to have a look but couldn't no matter how hard he tried.
"My King... This sword... Can only be drawn by the Head of the Emei Sect. No one else in this world can draw it."
Hearing this, the King of Xining glared at Ji Yinchun and threw the sword to the ground. The crisp sound of jade colliding with bricks echoed in the hall. Ji Yinchun hurriedly knelt down in panic.
"Morigen, bring your spoils!"
Only then did Morigen, who was carrying a sword on his back, lead a person out from the back hall. This person was tied with a long chain and was crawling on the ground like a dog. From head to face, there were wounds left after torture.
"This person is Zhou Muzhi, the son of Chonghezi, the Head of the Kongtong Sect." Morigen reported the outcome to the King of Xining in Mongolian and at the same time took off the sword on his back. "The Lingxu Sword, the treasure of the Kongtong Sect, is presented."
The King of Xining drew the Lingxu Sword. It was an octagonal Taoist sword with patterns of Tai Chi and Yin-Yang engraved on the blade. Every swing of the sword made a clanging sound like the flapping of iron wings.
"Don't kill me! Please, don't kill me. My father is willing to do anything for the King!" Zhou Muzhi kept kowtowing until there was a pool of blood on the floor.
Ji Yinchun took a closer look and found that all the fingernails on Zhou Muzhi's ten fingers had been pulled out. It seemed that Morigen's torture methods were extremely cruel, beyond the ordinary.
The King of Xining put away the Lingxu Sword and threw it to Morigen at will. "Get Master Zhou a change of clothes and send him to my bedchamber to be a servant." Saying that, the King of Xining rose from the throne and left the main hall, leaving Ji Yinchun still kneeling on the spot, not daring to stand up.
"Brother Ji, you guys botched this job. The King seems angry."
"I know. Do I need you to tell me?" Ji Yinchun was annoyed by Morigen's simple and foolish appearance and opened his folding fan and strode out of the main hall.
Ji Yinchun had been away from Xining for two months. After reporting to the King of Xining's Mansion, he came to the Shengping Building. Today, the Shengping Building was not yet full of guests. Ji Yinchun chose a table at the back row of the opera house and sat down, lifted his feet and placed them on the tea table, opened his folding fan with one hand, and grabbed a handful of sunflower seeds with the other, and started cracking them on his own.
"Oh, Master Ji! I'm blind. You haven't visited our Shengping Building for some time." The waiter saw Ji Yinchun and hurriedly ran over to greet him.
"Master Ji, what kind of tea would you like to drink today? I'll brew it for you."
"The Yunnan Maojian tea from March this year. I stored it in your shop last time. The month was written on the porcelain jar. Don't get it wrong. Everything else as usual."
"Understood, Master Ji!"
After a while, the waiter came over carrying a tray. On the tray was an exquisite famille rose porcelain covered bowl. Inside the bowl were several rose petals, hand-split Linze dates and dried apricots, and a few crushed rock candies. The waiter added Yunnan Maojian tea leaves, filled it with hot water, and carefully held the bowl cover.
"Enjoy your tea, Master Ji."
"Wait! When will Miss Jiang take the stage today?"
"Master Ji, Miss Jiang will perform at the hour of Xu. You still have to wait for two hours!"
Ji Yinchun nodded and motioned for the waiter to step back.
Thus, Ji Yinchun finished one pot of tea after another, and the shells of the sunflower seeds were spit all over the floor. Finally, it was the hour of Xu.
"Frivolous human feelings are like paper, and the changes of the world are like a chess game. From ancient times to the present, there is endless sorrow. Why bother with false names and empty profits..."
A troupe of actors came on stage. Leading the group was a woman dressed in a lilac-colored dress with silver embroidery on the collar and cuffs. The hem of the dress was embroidered with several extremely bright peonies using silk. She wore a phoenix coronet on her head and a gold hairpin on top. Dressed like a woman on her wedding day, she looked like a fairy descending to the mortal world, incredibly beautiful. This woman was Jiang Lai, the famous actress in Xining City and the top star of the Shengping Building.
They performed a piece of "The Moon Worship Pavilion" on stage. Ji Yinchun sat in the last row of the opera house, waiting quietly until the performance ended. The audience dispersed one after another, and the waiter was not in a hurry to blow out the lamps in the courtyard.
Jiang Lai changed into casual clothes and still had her makeup on. She came out from the backstage. At this time, only the three of them were left in the huge opera house of the Shengping Building. The dim light clearly reflected the joy on Ji Yinchun's face.
"Master Ji, you really haven't come for a long time."
"Then guess what I've been doing."
Before Jiang Lai could speak, Ji Yinchun took out a gold bracelet from his bosom. This bracelet was enameled, hollow-carved, and its craftsmanship was unparalleled. Even throughout the Central Plains, it was extremely rare.
Jiang Lai covered her mouth in surprise.
"Master Ji... Is this bracelet a gift for me?"
Ji Yinchun nodded.
Jiang Lai took the bracelet and immediately began to sob softly.
"Do you know that you suddenly disappeared for these two months? I asked around for news about you everywhere, afraid that you might be dead..."
Ji Yinchun reached out and wiped the tears from Jiang Lai's face. "Don't worry, silly girl. I won't die. Remember, Master Ji's lightness skill is the best in the world. No matter who I encounter, I will come back to see you safely."
Jiang Lai grabbed Ji Yinchun's hand and let the tears fall one by one until her makeup was ruined.
"Alright, stop crying. Go remove your makeup. It's almost curfew. I should go."
"No! You waited for me all day today and haven't eaten yet. Come to my room. I'll cook tangyuan for you."
"Silly girl knows how to care for others. Master Ji won't go. If your madam finds a man in your room, she'll break your legs."
Jiang Lai burst out laughing but had to bid farewell to Ji Yinchun. After this parting, they didn't know when they would meet again or how many more times they would be able to meet.
The plum blossoms laugh at people who are alone, and when the moon sets, they are as lonely as ever.