Chapter 135: 135. A Word is Final (Second Revision)
Translator: 549690339
“Enough!” Nian Ruxue’s expression showed her embarrassment, “Second brother isn’t home, eldest brother has nothing to do, so he has to make fun of
Nian Jinxing’s eyes narrowed slightly, suddenly he laughed, “You’re angry already? I’m sorry, I was just joking with you earlier. When are you leaving in the afternoon? I’ll go with you and cheer you on.”
Nian Ruxue took back her mask, her face was cold as she said, “The legs are on my elder brother, if you want to go, just go. Can I stop you?”
Nian Jinxing stared at Nian Ruxue’s eyes, after a moment, he walked to the side and sat down, “In that case, I won’t go.”
“Whatever you want!” Nian Ruxue put down the mask and went into the inner room.
When the maid came over to serve water, Nian Ruxue changed her clothes.
After cleansing her face, she reapplied her makeup, prepared to go out, Nian Jinxing was still in her room and hadn’t left.
Nian Ruxue did not put on her mask but held it in her hand and left the room. Nian Jinxing followed, his expression was peculiar.
Not until they got in the carriage, except for Shiqi, who had been serving Nian Ruxue for many years, nobody else appeared.
The siblings each occupied one side of the carriage. Nian Ruxue closed her eyes in pretended sleep, Nian Jinxing glanced at her from time to time. No one spoke.
The noise grew louder as they got closer, they had arrived at the Battle Arena in West City.
Nian Jinxing was the first one to get off the carriage, smiling. He reached out to help Nian Ruxue.
Nian Ruxue looked at him, the iceberg-like face also revealed a gentle smile. She stepped off the carriage leaning on Nian Jinxing’s arm.
The appearance of the siblings, looking at each other and smiling, seemed unbelievably harmonious and warm to outsiders.
“Fourth sister, eldest brother is blind, don’t take it to heart”, said Nian Jinxing, as he accompanied Nian Ruxue towards her battlefield.
Nian Ruxue held her mask in her hand without putting it on.
Compared to the morning, it attracted more men’s attention, and many amazing gazes were cast in her direction.
Nian Jinxing saw it and chuckled softly, saying in a low voice, “Fourth sister is so talented and beautiful, to marry the second prince and become an Imperial
Concubine, is really a pity. If fourth sister can get a good ranking in the Martial
Arts Examination, there might be a chance to change this engagement.” “Thank you for your concern, elder brother”, Nian Ruxue’s smile did not reach her eyes.
Nearing the Battle Arena, Nian Jinxing chuckled lightly, “I am here to see your superb techniques, sister. Don’t disappoint me.”
Nian Ruxue did not answer.
The competition will start in a quarter of an hour, everyone in each group was checking in.
People who passed the first round, if they did not check in on time for the second round, would be immediately disqualified, and their opponents from the same group would be directly promoted.
Both Nian Ruxue and her second-round opponent had shown up. The opponent was a tall and lean man with quite a bit of a Jianghu Hero’s demeanor.
There were no seats at the sidelines, the viewers could only stand in designated areas. Those who disrupted the order would be immediately driven away.
Nian Ruxue, as one of the only two female competitors, had to wait till the fourth round to go on stage, but plenty of spectators had already gathered around her battlefield in advance, all of them being men.
Nian Jinxing was annoyed by this chaotic environment, when he heard someone say “Su Liang is over there, the competition is about to start,” he asked Nian Ruxue if she wanted to go over and take a look.
She had already checked in and was not on stage for the time being.
“Okay,” Nian Ruxue nodded slightly, “Let’s go and see.”
Nian Jinxing knew Su Liang. It was Nian Ruxue, who once claimed it was Su Liang who had injured Duanmu Ao behind the Huguo Temple, resulting in her being granted the marriage.
While walking towards Su Liang’s Battlefield, the crowd was large. Nian Jinxing carefully protected Nian Ruxue to prevent her from being bumped into.
“Elder brother doesn’t need to act this way, ” Nian Ruxue whispered softly. Nian Jinxing’s smile was mild, “Isn’t this what the fourth sister likes?”
Soon thereafter, the siblings caught sight of Su Liang as well as Qin Yujin, Lin Xueqing, and others watching from the sidelines.
The two walked over, Nian Jinxing squeezed his way next to Qin Yujin. He smiled and greeted “Miss Qin”.
Qin Yujin, who was absorbed in the fight, suddenly saw Nian Jinxing and gasped, subconsciously leaning towards Lin Xueqing.
A dark glint flashed across Nian Jinxing’s eyes, which went unnoticed by anyone.
“Master Nian,” Said Qin Yujin, having recovered from her surprise, she nodded slightly in greeting.
“Does Miss Qin know Miss Su Liang well?” Nian Jinxing asked with a smile.
“Yes,” Qin Yujin answered offhandedly, continuing to watch the fight.
Xing Yusheng noticed this, took Qin Yujin’s place and came over to greet Nian Jinxing.
Ning Jing glanced at Nian Jinxing coldly and then withdrew her gaze.
Nian Ruxue didn’t squeeze into the crowd. She just stood on the outskirts watching the man dressed in black the entire time.
Su Liang had returned home in the afternoon to change into a black suit, which accentuated her thin and straight figure, as well as her aloof demeanor.
The sight of her bare face caused many men to lose focus for a moment, but they also felt an awe that kept them at a distance.
The opponent in the first round used fist-fighting techniques, and so did Su Liang. Neither of them used weapons.
But weapons were allowed in the Martial Arts Examination, and there were no restrictions on their type.
The opponent in the second round used a short knife, and Ning Jing brought Su Liang a spear from the carriage.
The short knife required close contact to be useful, whereas the long spear directly increased the distance between the two fighters, which was an excellent counter to the short knife.
The match didn’t last long, it ended with Su Liang using the spear to knock her opponent out of the arena.
There were people cheering loudly.
Others claimed that Su Liang won owing to her superior weapon rather than her impressive techniques.
Lin Xueqing whispered to Ning Qing, “Sister Su is hiding her real skills, right?” For those who do not understand spearplay, it looked like Su Liang barely moved her feet.
Ning Jing nodded lightly, confirming Lin Xueqings guess.
As the opponent used a weapon and so did Su Liang, there was no unfairness at all.
Su Liang could switch weapons based on her opponents’ choices – this was her prowess.
Ning Jing had cautioned Su Liang not to reveal too much of her strength when it was unnecessary; enough was enough.
Thus, although Su Liang had won two rounds, defeating two formidable opponents, the onlookers did not fully perceive the ferocity and dominance of her techniques.
Lin Xueqing’s eyes brightened, “I knew it!”
Upon hearing her, Xing Yusheng pushed Qin Yujin who stood in the middle away and smiled at Lin Xueqing.
Qin Yujin: …He truly treats her like his sister, without any formality at all!
Su Liang descended from the stage and spotted Nian Ruxue on the fringe. She was still dressed in the men’s clothing from the morning, with no mask on, and was smiling faintly at Su Liang.
Once the Nian siblings had left, Su Liang received her friends’ congratulatory remarks, ruffled Zhengzheng’s hair, and decided to head home.
When she saw Nian Ruxue in masculine attire wearing a mask in the morning, Su Liang momentarily doubted if it was really her. To her surprise, Nian Ruxue showed up in the afternoon, sans mask, proving that it was indeed her.
Su Liang was reminded of the time on the back mountain of Huguo Temple when Nian Ruxue was harassed by Duanmu Ao but he dared not lay a hand on her. Whether Nian Ruxue was skilled in martial arts was not necessarily related to this. After all, their statuses were worlds apart.
Su Liang lost interest in watching Nian Ruxue’s matches for the moment, as they’d Cross paths sooner or later if Nian Ruxue wasn’t eliminated.
By evening, Su Liang had returned home, read a few pages of a book, and was preparing dinner when she heard Qi Jun’s voice and came out of the kitchen.
“Miss Su, Master instructed me to update you on the second round,” Qi Jun said with a smile. “Miss Nian still wore her mask during her match. Although her opponent seemed powerful, he was much weaker than the two you faced today.
She defeated him effortlessly.”
Then, Qi Jun informed Su Liang about a few impressive contenders they had noticed while watching the competition, focussing on their weapons and whom she might face the next day.
The groups were fixed from the start, so it was possible to anticipate who she would compete against in each round.
“Understood, thank you.” Su Liang asked Qi Jun to wait, picked eight freshly made steamed buns, and asked him to take them back for Old Lady Xing and Xing Yusheng to try.
Upon returning to the mansion, Qi Jun delivered the steamed buns to Old Lady Xing. Xing Ji and Xing Yusheng were both present.
Xing Yusheng was wonderfully recounting the day’s battles of Su Liang to Old Lady Xing, while Xing Ji was silently listening on the side.
“These steamed buns were made by Miss Su and she asked me to bring them
back for Old Lady Xing and the Crown Prince to taste.” Qi Jun presented the buns.
Old Lady Xing was delighted beyond measure, “That girl is a wonderful cook!”
She picked one up and handed it to Xing Ji, “You taste it!”
Xing Ji took a bite and nodded faintly, “Very tasty.”
Xing Yusheng suddenly remembered something and told Xing Ji, “Su Liang really liked the gift you sent and asked me to convey her gratitude.”
Xing Ji raised his bun, “Gift received.”
Xing Yusheng let out a soft grunt, “I didn’t ask you to have this…”
Old Lady Xing couldn’t help but chuckle. Of late, she had noticed a slight thaw in the relationship between the father and son, which relieved her greatly.
Though very few nobles from the capital city attended the first day of the Military Exam in person, whoever needed to be informed was promptly updated.
The two female participants, Nian Ruxue, and Su Liang, attracted maximum attention during this Exam.
Prior to this, the name “Su Liang” was scarcely known in the capital city. However, after today, everybody knew that Su Yuanzhou had a granddaughter alive and well, who was skilled in martial arts and was quite fearsome.
Duanmu Chen, who had been actively following the Military Exam, showed no surprise at Su Liang’s performance. In fact, he was quite sure that she was holding back her true strength.
What surprised him instead, was Nian Ruxue.
“When that woman appeared wearing a mask in the first round, I thought she had found a substitute and planned to have someone unmask her.” Duanmu Chen scoffed.
Chang’an was taken aback, “That can’t be right? A mask can’t hide the entire face. If there was a substitute, even with a mask on, people who know her would recognise her. Moreover, Miss Nian didn’t wear a mask during the second round. She might have done it to clear any doubt?”
Duanmu Chen snorted, “Since it’s her, then she’s just putting on an act and seeking attention!”
Chang’an hesitated.
Duanmu Chen grumbled, “Just say what you want to say!”
Chang’an then voiced his thoughts, “Today, both the opponents that Miss Su faced were formidable, but Miss Nian’s opponent was much weaker by comparison. Sir, could this have been just a coincidence?”
Duanmu Chen’s eyes glinted as he straightened his back, “This year’s Military Exam selection has been overseen by the Crown Prince. Even if we smell a rat, I can’t get involved. The competition is open to the public throughout. It is normal to have many weaklings on the first day. As the competition progresses, it will be clear who is truly talented!”
“To be honest, sir, I am eagerly waiting for Miss Su and Miss Nian to compete against each other,” Chang’an said.
Duanmu Chen laughed coldly, “So am I.”
Nian Mansion.
During the still of the night, Nian Ruxue lay in bed with her eyes wide open.
A shadow approached hers quietly when she suddenly sat up and whispered,
“Why are you so late?”
The shadow sat beside the bed, and said, “Fourth sister.”
Nian Ruxue sighed lightly, embraced the shadow, and said, “Fifth sister, I didn’t blame you. When didn’t show up at the agreed time, I was worried that something had happened to you.”
“When do you need me to step in, Fourth sister?” The shadow asked.
After pondering for a moment, Nian Ruxue said, “Today, I have dispelled some people’s doubts. From now on, just hide in my room.
With a little disguise, even if the mask falls off, no one will discover.”
“Good,” the shadow replied. “Just remember what you promised me, Fourth sister. ”
“Rest assured,” Nian Ruxue softly stroked the shadow’s hair. “The engagement with Gu Ling was a misunderstanding by her mother, who thought it was me who saved her. I wanted to clarify, but then, you ran into an accident. Guts mother died and their family suffered greatly. You have been wronged a lot, and I always felt guilty about it.”
“All that is in the past; now, all I want is to find him.” The shadow muttered.
“You know, Second brother knows him the best. Earlier this year, Second brother went to the north on a mission and they met secretly,” Nian Ruxue said softly. “I know where he is. Using you, Fifth sister, is my last resort. There are always people trying to manipulate my marriage. Now, I’m being framed and forced to marry that lecherous Second Prince. If I don’t become the Martial Arts
Champion, I’ll never be able to turn the tables.”
“Don’t worry, Fourth sister. After my accident, you’re the only one who didn’t forget me, and you were the kindest to me. I’ll help you.” The shadow promised. “After this, you tell me where Gu Ling is, I’ll find him, and never come back.”
Nian Ruxue nodded seriously, “Deal..”
