Chapter 29: The Tongue Shines Like a Lotus Flower

  He saw a huge spearhead, as wide as a palm and half an inch long, rushing straight at his face, and Xun was so frightened that three of his souls fled, leaving only one behind - if his foot hadn't been stuck in the stirrup, he would have fallen off the horse.

  He's so regretful, why didn't he let Tai Shi Ci come with him? If Zi Yi were here, would he still be afraid of his long spear? Bring nine more, I think Zi Yi could also take this move.

  He didn't sleep for most of last night, thinking about how to persuade Guan Yu to retreat. Some of the words he wanted to say were ordinary by today's standards, but in this era, they were a bit shocking and treasonous, so he wasn't willing to let Taishi Ci hear them. But even if it was treasonous, he could explain later that it wasn't his true intention, just a temporary measure. It was better than being killed before he could even see Guan Yu.

  Just as he closed his eyes, he secretly exclaimed: "I'm done for!" Suddenly, a loud "thud" was heard, and the strong wind had just arrived in front of him, but in an instant it stopped. Opening his eyes, he saw that it was originally a familiar figure who had ridden up to him on horseback, raising the bow arm in his hand and lightly deflecting the incoming spear.

  Ah, little loli, it wasn't in vain that I've been thinking of you all this time!

  Only to see that pair of slender and slightly playful eyebrows raised high, eyes wide with anger, shouting: "He said he wanted to see my father, but my father hasn't spoken yet. What are you? How dare you make decisions on behalf of my father?" Looking around: "Tie him up, wait for the general's decision!"

  Two strong men immediately rushed up and grabbed Xi's legs, trying to pull him down from the horse. Little Rouran was furious and stamped her foot on the horseback, pointing at the yellow turban soldier who had just tried to stab Xi: "Fool, I told you to tie him up!"

  Two guards looked embarrassed, nodded repeatedly, and quickly ran over to pull the soldier off his horse and tie his hands behind his back. Only then did Xiǎo Xīn slightly calm down, bowing his head to Guān Mǐ: "Thank you for saving my life."

  "Thanks to your sister!" Guan Mei shot him a slanted glance, pouting as she said, "You're so bold, daring to charge into the formation alone to see my father?" "This is called seeking an audience on the battlefield," Shi Yun called out to Zhong Tian Qu, "Unarmed and empty-handed, what can I use to charge into the formation? You'd best hurry up and report to your father, I have important words to speak with him."

  "Wait," said Guan Yu, turning his horse's head and walking a few steps forward before suddenly turning back, "What... how am I supposed to report this? I don't even know your name."

  "Ah, certain is North Sea is Xun character Hong assistant."

  "Hmph, what a strange name and surname!" Little Luo Li said as she urged her horse to go further away. Is Xun Xin saying that my name is also strange? You two are not much better either. I really want to know, if there's another person in the household, would they be called Guan Zi, Guan Chou, Guan Yin, Guan Mao... If two people have the same zodiac sign, how would it be explained... Thinking again, fortunately this Little Luo Li is a snake, not too bad after all...

  Yeah, the snake, the year of the snake... He calculated with his fingers and found that Little Lori was born in the sixth year of Xiping, Ding Si year. This year she is actually 14 years old, virtually 15 years old, only two years younger than himself - how can our heights differ so much?

  The time was not long, only to hear a burst of noise in the enemy's formation, hundreds of people shouted simultaneously: "The general summoned the Han envoy!" However, the shouting voice was not quite uniform, and it was almost impossible to understand what they were saying. At this point, he adjusted his clothes and followed a yellow scarf soldier straight to Guan Yu's main account.

  Before the account, only a few dozen soldiers were seen holding long spears, divided into two rows on both sides, and a narrow passage was revealed in the middle. A soldier shouted: "Han envoy dismounts, reports to the door and enters!" Xi is muttering "dismounting is just dismounting, reporting to the door is just reporting to the door, what's so special", while jumping off with his whip, shouting: "North Sea Xi, seeking an audience with General Huangjin."

  Just as he was about to step into the narrow passageway, he suddenly heard a "clang" sound. He saw that all the soldiers had lowered their long spears forward at an angle of 45 degrees, with the spearheads intersecting each other, forming a gleaming "gate". Is Han couldn't help but curl his lip: "This again, I've seen it too many times in movies and TV shows."

  He had imagined all possible scenarios he might encounter today, of course, plans can't keep up with changes, and the unexpected segment that almost got him killed before entering the formation was something he couldn't have anticipated. So he didn't care about such trivial matters. Such scenes often appear in literary works, then the bold envoy would enter proudly, while the timid ones would be frightened on the spot. It's Xun Xin who said those people weren't timid, but brainless, if someone really wanted to kill you, would they still need to set up this armed gate?

  As he thought of this, he lifted the hem of his long gown and strode forward with his head held high. However, after taking just one step, he felt that something was off - firstly, the doorway was built too low, and he would have to lower his head in order to pass through, but as soon as he did, his imposing demeanor would be diminished by half; secondly, he suddenly recalled how he had almost been stabbed earlier, which showed that Zhang Jue's military discipline was not strict, and it was possible that among the Yellow Turbans before him, there were one or two fanatical elements who dared to disobey their commander's orders and would swiftly behead him with a single spear thrust... What could he do then?

  Thinking of this, his legs couldn't help but tremble slightly. The Yellow Turban soldier who led him here was still urging: "Hurry up!" Zi Yun swallowed a mouthful of saliva and thought to himself that since he had already come this far, whether he stuck his head out or not, it would be the same outcome, so he might as well fight them. So instead of going forward, he retreated, and coldly laughed: "I'm afraid I've come to the wrong place, this isn't a barracks, but a dog den, only a dog hole would be so low and narrow!"

  As soon as this was said, all the nearby Yellow Turbans glared at him with anger in their eyes. Obviously, a few of them had hot tempers and were about to attack on the spot. Is Xun felt his neck getting colder and colder, but fortunately, it was that little Loli who came to rescue him again - "Mr. said it makes sense, who let you guys play like this? Get out of the way, let him go see my dad!"

  He glanced at the little loli who had rushed out of the tent, thinking that her height was just right for wearing armor and standing in front of the gate... Good girl, you've saved me again! If you're ever in a desperate situation, come find me, I'll take care of you for life! Of course, he only thought this to himself and didn't dare say it out loud.

  At this time, she followed Guan Yu into the main tent. Before entering the tent, she heard Guan Yu whispering in her ear: "My father has been in a bad mood for the past two days and his temper is not good, so be more careful." Xun nodded slightly in gratitude, took a deep breath, and then entered with a straight back.

  Although it was the commander's large tent, it was actually quite tattered and patched up everywhere, with several "skylights" that hadn't been sewn up yet, so inside the tent was unexpectedly quite bright. As soon as he entered the tent, he looked around and saw only four or five Yellow Turban bandits standing sparsely inside, probably not guards but rather staff members. Guan Hai sat cross-legged in the center, with nothing but a grass mat under him and no tables in front of him.

  Seeing him come in, Guan Hai coldly opened his mouth and said: "You have a big nerve, are you coming to issue a challenge?"

  "No, no, something like that..." Xun shook his head and was about to continue in a more refined tone, but his eyes caught sight of someone behind Gan Hai, who looked like the "interpreter" he had met on Mount Fusu. Although classical Chinese sounded much more majestic than plain speech, Gan Hai was an uncouth man who couldn't understand it at all; if he had to get it through the interpreter, who knows what it would turn into? He might as well speak in plain language himself - so he quickly changed his tone:

  "That day on Mount Fusu, the general spared my life and also cured my dumbness. So today I've come especially to repay his kindness and point out a way for the general to escape."

  "Ha! You think I'm about to kick the bucket or something? Who needs you to show them the way?"

  He raised his thumb and pointed behind him: "Do you see the soldiers I brought?"

  Guan Hai let out a loud "Dang" and swiftly pulled out the ring-headed knife from his waist, scaring Xun so much that he took two steps back. Just then, he heard a cry of "Aiyo" behind him, followed by a strong force kicking his lower back - "You damned fool! You're killing me..." It turned out that Guan Si had just arrived, but was stepped on the toe by Xun.

  Although this little loli is young and short, her strength is in no way inferior to that of a grown man. With one swing, she was about to fall into Guan Hai's arms. Guan Hai drew his sword from its scabbard, turned the blade over, and used the back of the knife to support his chest. In this way, the momentum that had been building up in Xun all along suddenly disappeared, but the atmosphere inside the tent also became much more relaxed, no longer as tense as before.

  "With this bit of courage, this bit of strength, you still dare to intimidate me?" Guan Hai gritted his teeth and suppressed a smile. "There are only three to five thousand government soldiers around, if you have the guts, come and fight! How can I be afraid of you?!"

  It's not easy to stand firm, stretch out his left hand and gently push the big knife in Guan Hai's hand open a little, then wipe the cold sweat on his forehead: "Hehe, Lord... your daughter's strength is really great, I'm a scholar, I don't understand martial arts, it's understandable, hehe, it's understandable..."

  He took a deep breath, finally calming his mind, and then answered Guan Hai's question: "Those are not ordinary soldiers, they are Pingyuan soldiers. The general has fought with them on the plains, whether strong or weak, he should be very clear in his heart."

  Guan Hai's face suddenly fell when he heard the words. Shi Xiong took a glance at the door - he had not said much to Guan Yu on this journey, but in his boredom, he had managed to get quite a few pieces of gossip from Guan Yu's subordinates. From Liu Xuande's fondness for women with white skin, to Guan Yunchang's similar tastes, and Zhang Fei's ability to eat four people's worth of food in one meal... He knew almost everything about the military, including the details of the battles between the Pingyuan army and the Yellow Turbans, the causes and consequences, the victories and losses. He was aware that Guan Yu and Zhang Fei's Pingyuan army was very capable, and Guan Hai's Yellow Turban army had hardly ever gained any advantage over them. Seeing Guan Hai's expression reveal a hint of apprehension, Shi Xiong hastily added another sentence:

  "A certain General Guan with a big beard led the troops..."

  "Guān ~ Yún Cháng!" Xun noticed that Guan Yu's hand, which was holding the knife, suddenly tightened. "Huh, good! You go back and tell him to hurry up and get ready, I'll chop off his head right here to avenge those few defeats in battle!"