203 She must have known before anyone could Part I
The sparring match had begun. Two noble ladies stood on opposite sides for a long while. Bai Yu and Chu Jiaoxin did not move. They only stared at each other calmly. No one dared utter half a syllable.
Eventually, Bai Yu attacked first. She knew Chu Jiaoxin was not an easy foe. The last time she could handle her, she took advantage of her hot-headedness. However, after learning that Chu Jiaoxin was a disciple of the divine valley, Bai Yu could no longer underestimate her. She might not have been trained since she was young, but her skills must be formidable to a degree.
Bai Yu’s attack was deflected by Chu Jiaoxin. Seeing this, Bai Yu headed further and continued. Her swordplay was quick but did not carry a killing intent. The intent was to irritate and provoke the opponent rather than to cause real harm. And it seemed to be effective.
“Stop playing around already!” When two blades crossed, both moved to retaliate against the other person’s attack. The whisper Bai Yu heard made her smile mockingly. “Bengong shall show you that real attacks aren’t feeble like yours!”
As she declared, the defensive side switched to the offensive. Bai Yu was already prepared for the change. Chu Jiaoxin was straightforward and quick to anger. A slight stir could push her into falling into Bai Yu’s trap. She had noticed that the princess would not be the first to attack, and so Bai Yu intentionally acted offensively to bait Chu Jiaoxin into attacking. Bai Yu knew that she was more skilled at defensive stances, so now all she had to do was wait and find an opening to counter.
The sword swiftly stabbed at Bai Yu. She evaded and whirled around to approach her opponent with impressive speed, aiming to put her blade on Chu Jiaoxin’s neck. However, her movement was read by the other person, who pulled back to defend. It was as Bai Yu had intended.
Two swords crossed once again. Their edges were less than a palm away from Chu Jiaoxin’s face. Despite being able to block in time, the force that Bai Yu had put behind her attack, combined with Chu Jiaoxin’s hurried defense, sent a wave of numbness to the former princess’ wrist. Bai Yu retreated one step and gave Chu Jiaoxin a smile. Her niece-in-law’s dark eyes glared back in anger.
The crowd was captivated by the two women’s fight. While the movements seemed ordinary, their speed was spectacular, especially Bai Yu’s, who was faster and was always one step ahead. Still, Chu Jiaoxin had sharp senses and was able to block the fast attacks. Even though her wrist was numbed by the impact of the last strike, she could maintain her composure well.
Heavens… Did all daughters-in-law in Da Yang have to be this beautiful and strong?!
.....
“A shallow trick, yet executed so with such speed.” Chu Jiaoxin destroyed the silence. “I have broadened my view today. Prepare!”
The woman in front of her moved to attack again. Bai Yu resumed her defensive stance that she was confident in. Her eyes followed the object that would move into her range, and her ears listened to the sound of something piercing through the air, all in an attempt to perceive Chu Jiaoxin’s next attack. As she focused on the situation in front of her, suddenly, her sense of hearing disappeared. The image of a thrusting blade became a blurry light…
Clang! Bai Yu instinctively deflected the opponent’s sword. She stepped back, feeling an abrupt bout of dizziness.
“You…” Chu Jiaoxin could clearly see an abnormality in Bai Yu. With her numbed wrist, she could not use a complicated or violent technique. Yet Bai Yu defended and staggered back several steps.
What happened to Bai Yu?
“Prepare!”
The sound of blades crashing continued without stopping. The dizziness was gone, though her eyesight was still blurry. Bai Yu closed her eyes. Her next attacks were focused on disarming the opponent rather than provoking.
Chu Jiaoxin had yet to regain full control over her hand. She agilely defended and attacked with no hesitation after seeing that the other person had solved her problem by closing her eyes while fighting.
Despite losing her sense of sight, Bai Yu’s accuracy never decreased. Chu Jiaoxin frowned, thinking she should hurry and disarm Bai Yu as soon as possible.
Clang! Two swords fell onto the ground at the same time. It was impossible to determine whose had flown from its owner’s grip first.
Bai Yu and Chu Jiaoxin separated. They stood, panting, at the opposite corners of the training ground as silence fell upon the area. Their last attacks were too fast to discern. It seemed the match ended with no winner or loser, only the wounded.
“Royal doctor! Attend to Qin Wang Fei.” Ouyang Feilong’s commanding voice pulled everyone’s thoughts back to the present. Hearing his words, Chu Jiaoxin was made to realize that her wrist was cut by Bai Yu’s blade. The wound was not deep, but still deep enough to shed blood.
Bai Hua did not wait for the royal doctors to arrive. She took the wrist of the person who shared a husband with her to check the pulse. Ouyang Mingxian then came to stand beside Chu Jiaoxin.
With dim consciousness, Bai Yu slowly opened her eyes. Warmth enveloped her as the golden light of high-level regenerative magic floated around her. She was completely free of dizziness.
“You’ve done well.” The gentle voice of the man who never liked to cherish flowers was heard. Bai Yu turned to Ouyang Feilong and accepted his extended hand to help support her. He could see that something was amiss.
“One heal, one fight. It seems Qin Wang’s consorts are incredibly talented and perfect.” Bai Xue’s clear yet cool voice came to accompany the sight of two women and one man who formed a family.
Ouyang Mingxian was truly lucky. An amusing thought appeared in Bai Yu’s mind, although she herself had just passed the moment of life and death.
“Many thanks to Consort Dowager for the praise.” Chu Jiaoxin, whose wound was healed by Bai Hua, spoke to Bai Xue. Her tone was completely flat. It seemed to indicate that she did not want to continue the conversation.
Bai Xue smiled, unconcerned.
“You should take a look at the empress.” After being healed, Chu Jiaoxin then recalled that Bai Yu had been acting strangely a while ago. If that had not happened, then she might have lost.
“Yes.” Shortly, Bai Hua came to stand in front of Bai Yu to check her pulse but was stopped by Bai Yu.
“Bengong is fine.”
Everything happened so fast that Bai Yu could not comprehend it. The cause of her dizziness might have been the weather, which she was not used to. Normally, Bai Yu would train her martial arts or sword in cold weather, so she suddenly felt faint when having to fight under the bright sun. Fortunately, she was able to continue the match to the end.
“Zhen has just used healing magic on you. It would be good to let her check.” Ouyang Feilong looked at her with eyes full of care.
Bai Yu shook her head before turning to give Bai Hua a tired smile. “It’s because I’m not used to the weather, so I tire more easily. Your Majesty, please don’t worry.”
“But…” Bai Hua disagreed. Her tone was concerned as she tried to speak to Bai Yu.
“Bengong feels fine, only needs a little rest.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.” At her repeated insistence, Bai Hua finally backed down, despite still feeling doubtful about the turbulence in Bai Yu’s magic current. Chu Jiaoxin looked at her in surprise as well, though the first consort said nothing in objection.
“Then zhen shall send you back to your palace.” Ouyang Feilong went along with her wish as well. Bai Yu nodded, letting his strong arms guide her movement.
“Farewell to the Emperor. Farewell to the Empress.”
The party ended with the guests all feeling worried about Bai Yu. In truth, Bai Yu’s abnormality was noticed by only a few. However, as soon as the match ended, Bai Yu’s silence instantly clued those who had martial skills in. But they could all feel assured at the thought of her being in Ouyang Feilong’s care.
“Father, mother, do not worry. Bengong shall take care of the empress.” Though Bai Xue did not care about Bai Yu as much as others in the Bai and Yue family, she knew what she had to do.
“Thank you, Your Highness.” Bai Han thanked his daughter, who held a higher status.
“Very well.” Bai Xue nodded before leaving the party in the order of her seniority.
“Farewell to Consort Dowager.”
Soon, all the nobles poured out of the area. The party ended as the match concluded with a draw. Words of praise for Empress Bai’s and Qin Wang Fei’s beauty and strength spread throughout the inner court.
Th𝗲 most uptodate novels are published on free(w)ebnov(e)l.𝒄𝒐𝙢