The thirty cups of Shaodaozi are arranged in three rows on the deck.
The strong smell of alcohol mixed with the river breeze tumbled and spread in the air.
Fan Zhou, Yun Huai, and the others wanted to speak, but Jiang Yun raised his hand to stop them.
Jiang Yun put down the wine jar in his arms, stretched out his sleeves, and stood up. The jade belt and the wide golden sleeves fluttered with the wind.
From all directions, all eyes converged at this spot. On the opposite boat, Sui Heng lightly tapped the railing with his fingers, waiting for Jiang Yun’s reply patiently.
“Tell him that Gu can compete with him, but this is not included in the agreement. If he wants to compete with Gu, he must increase the bargaining chips.”
Jiang Yun opened his mouth and told the soldier to go and deliver the message.
Fan Zhou and Yun Huai were shocked. “Your Highness!”
Even a strong and healthy general like Yun Huai may not be able to withstand thirty cups of Shaodaozi. Has His Highness gone crazy?
Jiang Yun’s dark eyes were as calm as watery jade, quietly gazing at the vast flowing river and saying, “Pass the message.”
The Crown Prince’s voice was not high, but he exuded an inviolable dignity. The soldier next to him bowed respectfully and immediately strode forward, standing at the bow of the ship and loudly delivering messages to the other side.
“Increase the bargaining chips?!”
Everyone was in an uproar, and even Sui Heng showed a hint of surprise.
He thought that with thirty cups of Shaodaozi, the smell of the alcohol alone would make that hypocrite’s legs go weak. Unexpectedly, the other party could continue to pounce like a demon.
“Gu doesn’t have any bargaining chips to increase for him. Go ask, what does he want?”
Sui Heng lazily spoke.
The soldier answered yes, then also stride to the bow of the boat on the opposite side and asked the question.
Jiang Yun had already stood behind the railing, his white fingers gently caressing the surface of the wooden railing, saying, “If Gu can win two games in a row, within two years, the Sui army shall not cross the Yellow River and invade an inch of the Jiang Empire.”
Fan Zhou and other advisors, as well as a group of generals, showed a surprised expression, not expecting that Jiang Yun would propose this condition.
Two years—what a precious amount of time!
If the Jiang Empire can really get two years of rest and recuperation, there is so much that can be done: the treasury would be more solid, the troops would be stronger, the problems between the Yun and Luo Kingdoms could be completely solved, there may be an opportunity to implement a land reclamation order for the Muyun Pass, and the Jiang Empire might have a chance to build the navy… in just an instant, a dozen questions that continued to be addressed swept through Fan Zhou’s mind.
Even the soldier in charge of delivering the message was slightly stunned, then confidently passed the Crown Prince’s reply to the other side.
There was another commotion on the opposite boat.
Sui Heng finally restrained his cynical demeanor, and a coldness and sharpness flashed through his eyes.
Xu Qiao, Chen Qi, and other advisors and generals standing behind also frowned.
Now, the Jiang Empire has worries and difficulties both domestically and internationally, it is the time that they can’t catch their breath. When the Yellow River freezes this winter, it will be the best time to directly take control of the Jiang Empire. If they give them two years to catch their breath and recover, their Highness will not be able to swing south until the winter of the year after at the earliest.
Although the Crown Prince of Jiang is weak, but he is cunning. Who knows what kind of trick he will come up with?
However, such an important event as the meeting between the two Crown Princes on the Yangtze River today, although not a direct military confrontation, is another type of war without gunpowder.
Every action taken by both sides will affect the authority and dignity of their own country.
After all, it was their Highness who initiated the drinking match, and their Highness pushed him first. If their Highness refuses the Crown Prince of Jiang’s request at this moment, he would be suspected of going back on his word and retreating from the battlefield.
And the size of this bargaining chip proposed by the Crown Prince of Jiang is very tricky and appropriate. It was not a direct request for the city from their Highness, but only a two-year agreement.
Both emotion and reason are not considered excessive.
Sui Heng has not experienced the feeling of being held by someone for a long time since the downfall of the Yan family.
Is this ugly monster crazy?
Sui Heng thought to himself.
How could he dare to drink thirty bowls of Shaodaozi? Or was he certain that he wouldn’t dare to agree to this two-year agreement, so he deliberately used this method to provoke him, wanting him to bow down first?
What a hypocrite with cunning tactics!
Sui Heng thinks.
Sui Heng suddenly remembered the arrow wound that had once pierced his entire right arm, and the pain of cracking his bone, which lasted for a whole month, was unforgettable for his entire life. At this moment, his dormant wolf-like nature, conquering desire, and fighting desire within Sui Heng’s body were once again aroused in a rare way.
Chen Qi said solemnly, “Your Highness, this person is cunning and skilled in using schemes. Your Highness must not agree with him easily.”
Sui Heng raised his hand to stop him.
Then he summoned his own soldier, with cold and profound eyes, and said, “Tell him, Gu is not a fool. Two years is impossible. At the latest, next winter, Gu will definitely lead troops south and directly take the Jiang capital.”
“The premise is that if he can really drink those thirty bowls of Shaodaozi, he will win Gu in the archery section.”
“Otherwise, this winter will be the death of Jiang Rongyu.”
Sui Heng’s internal breath was thick, and his voice was like a long whistle. Even without having his own soldier pass over the message, his cold and sharp voice clearly penetrated the vast, flowing river and echoed on the surface of the river.
He is the Crown Prince of Sui, not a coward who cannot afford to lose.
Since he was the one who brought up this matter of drinking matches, he would accompany him to the end.
He wants to see how this hypocrite is going to drink these thirty bowls of Shaodaozi.
The moment Sui Heng’s words came out, everyone fell into a brief silence, including the people who had flocked to both sides of the river to watch. No one could have expected that today’s meeting, which arose due to the ownership of the Luo Kingdom, would have such a huge impact on the situation in the south and north of the Yangtze River.
Thirty bowls of Shaodaozi is not a small number. For the first time, the people crowded on the south bank looked at the sickly Crown Prince in a golden satin robe, standing at the head of the boat with shock and surprise.
Next winter, even if it’s less than two years, it will still be almost a year and a half.
Can the rumored sickly and weak Crown Prince really drink those thirty bowls of Shaodaozi?
The river breeze in March has a faint salty taste. Jiang Yun stood up against the railing, his golden sleeves lifted against the wind. After hearing Sui Heng’s words, he calmly ordered the soldiers to set up the table and wine.
He had imagined countless scenes of them facing each other in battle, and even though they had not actually met yet, Jiang Yun had already deeply felt the cruelty and ruthlessness of two Crown Princes of rival countries meeting in battle.
And there were no personal grudges mixed in this yet either.
If personal grudges are mixed in, the situation will only become more cruel and complex.
Jiang Yun lowered his eyes, withdrew his gaze, and his eyelashes were also tinted with a hint of the unique tide of the river. He stood up and walked to the front of the table, facing the countless eye-catching gazes from both sides and Sui Heng’s probing and ruthless wolf-like gaze. Starting from the left, he picked up the first bowl of Shaodaozi and drank it all in one gulp.
After drinking, he displayed the empty bowl facing out and threw it directly into the river.
Next came the second and third bowls. Jiang Yun remained calm and drank ten bowls in a row.
He was as tall as jade, and his demeanor was always elegant. Only Fan Zhou and the others who are close can hear a faint cough or two.
“Your Highness!”
Fan Zhou was in a hurry to go forward to help.
Jiang Yun said that there was no need and started to drink the second row.
On the opposite boat, Sui Heng narrowed his eyes and was greatly surprised to see this scene.
He thinks, Does this ugly monster really doesn’t want his life anymore?
He was always willing to accompany, and as Jiang Yun finished his ten bowls, he easily drank the same amount, and it happened to be one bowl more than Jiang Yun.
“Soldiers, beat drums, and play elegant music.”
“Today, Gu will have a drink with the Crown Prince Rongyu.”
His tone remained lazy, but his eyes were filled with many expressions of exploration and interest.
This was the first time Sui Heng had the impulse to lift the curtain and see what the ugly monster on the other side, which he despised from the bottom of his heart, looked like.
But it’s just an impulse.
Fierce, high-pitched, dense-as-rain drums immediately vibrated on the river, interspersed with melodious and pleasant tunes.
This is a song called “Breaking the Formation.”
Everyone’s gaze converged on the two figures, one golden and one black, with an intense collision of colors. Amidst the intense and almost breathless drum beats, one empty wine bowl after another was thrown into the river.
Invisible swords and weapons collide between the river breeze and strong liquor.
After an unknown amount of time, the melody suddenly broke, and the drums stopped abruptly. Two black wine bowls carved with exquisite peony patterns were simultaneously thrown into the river.
The two Crown Princes from Jiangnan and Jiangbei drank their last bowl of wine at the same time.
Jiang Yun reached out, holding onto the railing, his jade-like knuckles turned faintly white. Sui Heng’s long eyebrows raised, and the corners of his eyes were sharp and substantial, staring straight at Jiang Yun.
This ugly monster actually finished drinking thirty bowls of Shaodaozi, and the speed was not slow.
Sui Heng’s heart was filled with surprise.
This surprise had overshadowed even his concern for the results.
The advisors and generals in the north of the Yangtze River were naturally surprised, but the ones who felt the most incredulous were the Guozhu of the Jiangnan countries and the famous scholars and officials.
It should be noted that in the Liushang Banquet in the past, this rumored frail and sickly Crown Prince of Jiang, almost never drank alcohol and only drank tea, except for the necessary etiquette that could not be abolished. It’s unbelievable that even after drinking thirty bowls of Shaodaozi in public, he can still stand still. They are afraid that even an ordinary, strong general would stagger and walk unsteadily with such a large amount of Shaodaozi.
The Northern Region liquor personally prepared by the Crown Prince of Sui was not fake, and people couldn’t help but doubt whether the rumors about the weak and sickly Crown Prince of Jiang in the past were all fake or not.
The Crown Prince of Jiang should, in fact, be a well-built and very robust Crown Prince. It is only because he’s living in seclusion and not showing himself in front of people much that he was falsely spread and labeled as frail.
After all, no one has witnessed how this Crown Prince was weak and sickly with their own eyes. How could a weak and sickly person fall off such a high cliff without dying? And how could he drink thirty bowls of Shaodaozi in one breath?
Jiang Yun was indeed fine, as he had already used his inner strength to dissipate some of the alcohol strength, but he is not that good either. After all, Shaodaozi is a fierce wine that is extremely unfriendly to the stomach.
Fan Zhou immediately had someone bring the hangover soup for the wine, and Jiang Yun drank some before sitting down at the bow of the boat.
The river breeze is rustling, and the tide is surging. Suddenly, dark clouds accumulate on the horizon, indicating signs of rain again. There was a faint sound of thunder coming from deep within the clouds, just like the tense atmosphere of swords and crossbows on the river.
Jiang Yun coughed lightly, and his hair was also tinged with a hint of moisture. He picked the hangover soup up and took another sip.
Sui Heng didn’t say anything more. He directly asked people to fetch the bow and arrows, and then ordered people to put Luo Fengjun on the boat and then throw him into the middle of the river, ten zhang away.
The Luo Kingdom’s ruler immediately kneeled down in fear, “Your Highness, please spare my child. He really doesn’t know anything.”
The ruler of the Luo Kingdom saw killing intent in Sui Heng’s eyes. He was afraid that Sui Heng would become enraged and directly shoot Luo Fengjun to death with the arrow.
Sui Heng ignored him.
Sui Heng made two rules for the competition and let Jiang Yun choose.
Shoot something from Luo Fengjun’s body for the prize. Whoever shoots first wins. Second, shooting birds from the river within one incense burner, each shoots ten arrows, whoever shoots down a large number of birds will be counted as the winner.
Sui Heng also said that he could let Jiang Yun have an extra arrow, as he had agreed previously.
The ruler of the Luo Kingdom’s face suddenly paled, and he immediately approached Sui Heng on his knees, pleading, “Your Highness, this is absolutely unacceptable.”
Cold arrows have no eyes, and they can’t see anything clearly from a distance of ten zhang. If the Crown Prince of Jiang’s archery skills are not precise and he loses accuracy, his son’s life will be ruined. Moreover, archery on the river is much more difficult and prone to errors due to the influence of the river wind. The ruler of the Luo Kingdom was so anxious that tears streamed down his face.
Seeing that Sui Heng was unmoved and indifferent, he faced south and kowtowed to Jiang Yun across the river, hoping that Jiang Yun would be generous and spare his son’s life, until blood flowed from his forehead.
Jiang Yun had already vaguely guessed what Sui Heng was playing.
After calmly finishing the hangover soup, he stretched out his sleeves and stood up, saying, “Gu choose the second option.”
“But tell him that Gu doesn’t need him to let Gu have an extra arrow.”
Jiang Yun directly asked Yun Huai to fetch nine arrows.
The thunder grew louder, the clouds rolled over, and the sky quickly darkened. Tiny raindrops had already begun to fall.
The rain on the river comes naturally, changing from sunny to cloudy in just a blink of an eye.
Jiang Yun took an arrow and strung it up, bending his bow and raising his golden wide-sleeves against the rain, slowly aiming the arrowhead at one spot.
The black, arched body contrasts strongly with the slender fingers that resemble jade.
In the next moment, the shooting arrows burst out like starlight, piercing through the wind and rain curtain of the river, emitting a piercing and sharp roar, and sinking into the depths of the clouds.
Mournful cranes cry followed closely.
If one disregards appearance, the image of the Crown Prince in golden clothes holding a strong bow and standing upright is truly like an immortal in the clouds.
The onlookers looked at this scene in astonishment, feeling their hearts rise to their throats. However, they had not yet seen any signs of the prey. Another sharp arrow, carrying a sharper sound, shot up against the wind, piercing straight through the tail of the previous arrow and shooting out.
The first arrow instantly split into pieces.
Sui Heng lazily lowered his bow and smiled awkwardly. “A momentary dizziness, don’t be offended.”
“This one doesn’t count.”
Although he was smiling, the coldness in his eyes seemed to penetrate human bones, and Jiang Yun was the object of his penetration and gnawing.
The technique and momentum of that arrow just now were so familiar that the bone in Sui Heng’s right arm began to ache again.
It turns out the person who shot and wounded him last year wasn’t any advisor at all, it was this hypocrite. This hypocrite is really hiding something, enough to “surprise” him.
Then, let’s have a good time.
Sui Heng thought with gloomy eyes.
Half a pillar of incense passed by, and Sui Heng’s eyes blurred countless times. The arrows he shot only followed Jiang Yun’s arrows, so much so that all the birds Jiang Yun had hunted first were invalidated, and the number of prey they had captured in their hands was zero.
Fan Zhou cursed that he’s shameless.
Jiang Yun continued to shoot the arrows with his usual expression.
The clouds are pressing against the top, the thunder is rolling, the raindrops are getting denser, and soon there are no traces of birds on the river.
When the incense burner was about to finish, the two people’s arrowheads happened to be aimed at a single bird of prey that had passed between the two giant boats at the same time.
And both of them happened to have only one last arrow left in their hands.
One arrow to determine the winner.
Two sharp and piercing sounds sounded simultaneously, and two sharp arrows shot in the opposite direction pierced through the bird’s body, then simultaneously plunged into the opponent’s arrowhead, shattering it into pieces.
Although the arrowhead was shattered, the two arrow bodies still hummed and roared as they charged forward.
Only one arrow was pointed at the hull of the ship, pinning the flyer’s bird to the deck.
The other arrow whistled shrilly, heading straight for the golden figure standing on the opposite bow.
Yun Huai was closest to Jiang Yun and immediately drew his sword to block it. However, that sharp arrow even penetrated the body of his long sword at a terrifying speed, piercing through the curtain and deeply disappearing into Jiang Yun’s arm.
A large expanse of fresh blood immediately seeped out through the golden sleeves.
Yun Huai rushed forward and finally realized that it was not an ordinary arrow but a black iron arrow.
“Your Highness!”
Led by Fan Zhou, everyone else was shocked.
Jiang Yun was still able to bear it and said that it was nothing. He instructed the soldiers, “Go and get the prey.”
“This lunatic, his target from the beginning was not the prey, but His Highness!”
Fan Zhou had already guessed that Sui Heng might take the opportunity to avenge that one arrow, but he did not expect him to use it in such a blatant way.
The heavy rain finally poured down.
Looking at the bustling group of people on the opposite boat and Jiang Yun standing quietly at the bow of the boat, Sui Heng’s eyes suddenly shrank.
Just now, he actually gave Jiang Yun a choice.
He didn’t expect that Jiang Yun would rather take his arrow in order to obtain the prey.
He once again misjudged this hypocritical, ugly monster.
It would be a lie if he said there wasn’t the slightest hint of surprise and annoyance. but it is not in vain for this hypocrite to taste the pain of bone cracking for a whole month.
But being able to make this hypocrite taste the pain of cracked bones for a whole month wouldn’t be a waste of a good arrow.
“Your Highness.”
Xu Qiao was a little worried about Sui Heng’s state.
They all didn’t expect that Jiang Rongyu, who was famous for his sickness, was really hiding such powerful archery skills. Combined with the other party’s ability to drink thirty bowls of Shaodaozi, Xu Qiao had ample reason to suspect that the previous theory of illness was mostly false. He even felt that the other party might be a brave and robust man with a terrifying appearance.
His Highness has been acting crazily lately. Although he has avenged himself with one arrow, he has ultimately lost the archery competition and even lost to the most hated Jiang Rongyu.
Sui Heng calmly said, “Gu is fine.”
“It’s just a Luo Kingdom. Gu can throw it out today and retrieve it tomorrow.”
Next time they meet, he will make sure that this hypocrite dies without a burial ground.
Oh, of course, it would be even better if he could be killed by this arrow.
Xu Qiao naturally understood that most of the countries and lands in the south and north of the Yangtze River had already fallen into the Sui Empire’s territory. Even the Qi Kingdom, which dominates the east, chose to befriend the Sui Empire. A Luo Kingdom indeed cannot influence the overall situation.
Sui Heng’s willingness to agree to Jiang Yun’s two-year agreement was mostly due to the mentality of cats teasing mice.
However, Xu Qiao had many different thoughts about this Jiang Rongyu. He couldn’t help but ask Chen Qi, “Military Advisor Chen also doesn’t know that this Jiang Rongyu was hiding such a powerful ability?”
According to Chen Qi’s previous statement, Jiang Rongyu has no talent or virtue, and all the talents passed down in the world are forged. However, with skills like archery that require countless days and nights of hard training, this person is so outstanding. Is it true that he is a useless, mediocre talent, as rumored?
Chen Qi remained silent for a moment, as he was also shocked in his heart.
The people still stood by the river in the rain, waiting for news. When the people on the south bank heard that the Crown Prince of Jiang had won the archery competition, the crowd suddenly burst into thunderous cheers and bowed to the Jiang Empire’s boat.
Jiang Yun insisted on standing at the bow of the ship and waiting until the giant boat docked.
The people could not see the bloodstains flowing on the Crown Prince’s arm. They only saw the figure of the Crown Prince standing tall under the dim rain curtain, with golden sleeves shining brightly.
They realized for the first time that their Crown Prince not only had admirable virtues but also had hidden and remarkable talents.
The spring tide brings rain, and the Emperor’s son returns.
T/N: Just a lil spoiler, they will reunite soon, please stay tuned. Also, the little one will make his appearance in the next 2 chaps ( ꈍᴗꈍ)
