Grateful for my excellent disciple!
Although we haven’t t for a while, Mr. Wu’s gaze towards Xu Qing was increasingly affectionate.
Also attending the banquet was Vice General ng Yuxuan from the Jinghai Navy.
He is an hereditary Military Officer, currently dispatched by the Court to the Southeast to take care of pirates, concurrently holding the position of Vice General in Jinhua Prefecture, Zhijiang Province.
Upon hearing this, Xu Qing thought to himself, should Vice General ng visit so remote temples outside Jinhua Prefecture?
The story of "A Chinese Ghost Story" took place in a Lanre located in the north of Jinhua.
Lanre is not a temple’s na but a kind of designation, belonging to temples not officially recognized.
Thus, although Xu Qing also inquired about the temples in Jinhua Prefecture, he still did not know whether the story had occurred or in which specific temple it had taken place.
But he believed, in this world filled with demons and ghosts, there surely were similar stories.
"Ruqian, Gongming’s deeds on Giant Whale Island you have heard of. Going forward, you and Gongming will be my left and right arms, let’s achieve great feats together. Co, let’s drink this toast," Mr. Wu, slightly drunk, pulled Xu Qing and ng Yuxuan for a toast.
Ruqian is Vice General ng’s courtesy na.
This na was sowhat familiar to Xu Qing.
ng Yuxuan was a man of few words, but was well-cultured, possessing the deanor of a Confucian General, yet Xu Qing could tell, his martial arts skills were impressive.
His temples were not bulging like typical martial artists, his eyes contained restrained divine light, and his Qi-Blood deeply hidden.
There was also an aura that felt familiar to Xu Qing.
"The martial arts from the Great Zen Temple?"
He was secretly astonished.
No doubt, ng Yuxuan’s martial arts lineage was connected to the Great Zen Temple.
Moreover, several of ng Yuxuan’s attendants seed to be secular disciples from the Great Zen Temple, though Xu initially thought they were all like Guard Wang and Guard Ma.
Now, after his observations, it seed ng Yuxuan himself was connected with the Great Zen Temple.
He actually felt this was a good thing.
Because the martial artists from the Great Zen Temple were nurous and well-known in worldly society; if they could leverage this against the East Sea Gang, it would indeed be fortunate.
The Grand Secretary also had an interesting approach, being cautious of the Great Zen Temple yet utilizing individuals like ng Yuxuan, who were connected with the temple, in pirate suppression endeavors.
It must be said, this move was rather clever.
Moreover, ng Yuxuan himself seed to have a sense of national duty.
In conversing with him, Xu Qing realized that ng Yuxuan bore the quality of a civil servant worried about his country.
This was different from Households Commander Zuo, who leaned more toward idealism as a military officer.
ng Yuxuan was very empathetic, though not eloquent, his words were not inferior nor arrogant, making one feel very comfortable.
It even made one overlook his identity as a military general.
ng Yuxuan and Xu Qing really enjoyed their chat, saying, "Xu Jieyuan, I know you are Jiangnan’s foremost scholar, I’ve composed a poem about my aspirations in life and wish for your critique, may I?"
He spoke with a hint of shyness.
At that mont, he resembled a literary enthusiast, eager for the comnts of a celebrated literary giant.
Xu Qing smiled, "Big brother ng, please don’t place too high. I only have a little familiarity with eight-legged essays, being called ’Jiangnan’s foremost scholar’ is just local exaggeration, not worth ntioning. But I see you, big brother ng, bear an elegant scholarly deanor, if there is a poem, surely it is a fine work, I am eager to listen."
ng Yuxuan, after interacting with Xu Qing, found him to have a gentle deanor, inspiring transformation unknowingly, which greatly differed from external rumors, thus he felt quite favorably towards him.
He imdiately said, "Then I shall present my humble work."
Thus Mr. Wu, and Mr. He listened with great interest.
ng Yuxuan spontaneously recited, "Temporarily resting in a small abode, bonded in troubling tis. Calling over the guests with a jug, waving a brush, discussing strategies. Clouds guard the toothpicks full, stars hold the treasured swords horizontally. Becoming a marquis is not my aspiration, I only wish the ocean waves would calm."
After he finished his poem, the entire room sighed.
Especially Mr. Wu, lanted, "Ruqian, you possess such literary talent, I didn’t realize, you’ve kept it hidden so well..."
Mr. He also clapped in praise, the poetic scene truly embodied the scholar’s concern for the country, absolutely a superior work, worthy of being passed down through generations.
Usually, civil servants belittle military officers, but ng Yuxuan’s poem, even Mr. He regretted ng had not taken the Imperial Examination; to becoming a minister in the future, would also be a splendid tale.
What a pity!
Xu Qing was secretly shocked.
Because he recognized this poem, it clearly was written by the historical figure Qi Jiguang from a previous era.
Now looking at ng Yuxuan, his gaze completely changed.
Could he actually be Qi Jiguang of this world?
His gaze turned eager!
This is a famous general of his ti!
Naturally, Xu Qing praised him without reserve.
Seeing his carefully prepared poem even earning praises from Xu Jieyuan, Mr. He, a Second Rank Scholar and Mr. Wu made ng Yuxuan very pleased.
In fact, he was also a person highly valued by the Grand Secretary, but gaining acceptance among civil servants had its obvious benefits, not to ntion the sense of achievent.
With ng Yuxuan’s poem, the banquet beca even more lively.
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