Li Changhai was tempted to go up to the woman and ask her directly. After all, he was a Prince, and this was his uncle"s army camp. But he held himself back, and slowly moved towards the unconscious form of Qin Feng instead.For some strange reason, he felt a lot safer with the younger man close by.
In the meantime, an argument seemed to have broken out between two experts!
"Luo Qingke! So it was you and your Purple Serpent Sect! I had not expected you to play a hand in this conflict. It seems you Northerners are the ones behind all of this nonsense with the Barbarians, just as I thought!"
Li Sanlang looked up at the figure that had just appeared so mysteriously, and was surprised to find that it was a handsome woman who looked no more than forty. In her right hand was a long sword that seemed to gleam with a greenish sheen, and she was wearing an over-robe that was the color of pale jade.
For a moment, he wondered who she was, and was curious to see what she looked like; since she had her back to him, he couldn"t see her face. But her grey-haired opponent seemed to recognize her. And feared her too, judging from the sudden drain of blood from his heavily wrinkled features.
Then he seemed to recover, and a forced smile appeared on his face.
"Nu Yuanqing! I had not heard that you were present here at the Third Army Headquarters. What draws you all the way here? Is the Winter season that boring at the Heaven Sword School?"
"Oh? That would make things more convenient for you, wouldn"t it? If Lady Xie was alone here? Did you really think that we would wait until Spring to send support her way? After she had taken the trouble of going all the way to our Heaven Sword School to invite us to the fight?" sniffed the woman at that, as she turned away from the Second Ducal Prince, who was edging away from the site of their impending battle.
So this Nu Yuanqing was from the Heaven Sword School! Was she there to rescue Qin Feng? Or was this part of the arrangement that his grandmother had made with the School?
Li Changhai hid his confusion. He knew that he didn"t look too steady, since he was leaning on what was left of that glaive that Qin Feng had lent him. And from the fresh blood stains on his borrowed armor and uniform, this Second Ducal Prince knew that he was probably as badly injured as he looked!
But he ignored the pair that was talking and continued to move closer towards the heavily-injured disciple from the Heaven Sword School. If this Nu Yuanqing was someone that his grandmother had arranged, it would make sense to stay close to Qin Feng, wouldn"t it? After all, the young man was from her Heaven Sword School.
Besides that, staying close to Qin Feng would also make things easier for her. Especially when the old man, Luo Qingke, seemed to be still waiting for a chance to strike at him!
Although he could not help but wonder why she had not bothered to step out earlier, when Qin Feng was being battered by the old man before her eyes.
"I see. So the famous Lady Xie Nianxue is willing to set aside her pride, to seek help from the Heaven Sword School. But they sent only you? That is hardly good manners, is it? What is your position in the School now? Are you even an accepted Elder?
"I think the Heaven Sword School has seriously shortchanged Lady Xie in this matter."
Nu Yuanqing"s shoulders seemed to stiffen as soon as the old man said that. And her voice, when she replied, was devoid of any warmth at all:
"So daring! You believe that you are a match for my Southwind Sword? Come then!"
But Luo Qingke merely chuckled, and took a step back. He even folded his hands behind his back as he did so.
"Oh! I wouldn"t dare! But ... Forgive my honest words. Sending a simple apprentice of the sword like that boy there? To fight for the honor of the Heaven Sword School? That is a little ... under-whelming, isn"t it?"
Nu Yuanqing sniffed again. "The honor of the Heaven Sword School? Did you really think that we would leave that in the hands of a child like that? He is merely one of the dregs that we had thrown out, after failing to enter the Inner Court at the mountain."
"Oh? Then ... he is merely serving the Marquis on his own accord? Do you really expect me to believe that? We have been watching over matters here in Changqing City for as long as your Heaven Sword School, you know?"
"Really? And this is the best that you can do? Depending on those worthless Barbarians?"
Li Sanlang looked away from the pair then, and cast his eyes outside the walls once again. The army was still fending off the Barbarians, and it seemed to be winning against the chaotic horde even though it was seriously outnumbered. It seemed calling them worthless was not too outrageous an insult.
"All part of our plan, as you should understand. We do not wish the Southern Reaches or the Marquis to fall. Although killing off some of its more promising youngsters would be advantageous to us," the old man replied with a wide grin. Apparently, Nu Yuanqing"s attempt to insult him was not working.
"And sending Ye Hongge here was part of your plan, I suppose? So that you could draw Lady Xie away? Why did you even bother? He is hardly any match for her. You would sacrifice him, so that you can lead the Barbarians here, to exploit the hole in the wall that he had made earlier?"
The old man in purple laughed at her mocking tone. "It is like you said. A good plan, don"t you think? The appearance of one of your Heaven Sword School disciples here however, was a bit of a surprise. I had not expected you to be so ... proactive.
"And I seriously doubt that he is here on his own accord. The way that he fought earlier ... Well, he is clearly here to support the Ducal Prince, isn"t he?"
The middle-aged woman in green glanced his way then, and her smile seemed warm. Which was enough to make Qin Feng wonder if she was going to claim credit for his a.s.sault on the man earlier. As if the Heaven Sword School had anything to do with that!
"What makes you so sure that we sent him?"
* * *