The death of the HeiYue Shaman is a big incident that happened in Western Göktürk, but it cannot stop the gathering of the Eight Ministries to take place as usual.
In the early morning the next day, Cui Buqu and the rest proceeds to the gathering after they have bathe and ate the breakfast sent by Jin Lian's servant, Muge.
"Master Cui, my master wishes to say that if you wanted to see the corpse of the HeiYue Shaman, she can arrange it. However, you people cannot remain there for long." Says Muge.
Yesterday, the Second Prince targets Feng Xiao on purpose, and later on Feng Xiao showed up in his yurt. Connecting these two facts, even if Jin Lian is slow, she can feel that something is not right, so let alone the fact that she knew the extends of Feng Xiao's martial arts. If Feng Xiao really was drugged by the Second Prince, then the sun of that day most likely would have rose from the East, it is definitely not possible. She has even suspected whether the death of the HeiYue Shaman is Feng Xiao's doing, but because Cui Buqu denies it, she decides that they really did not have a reason to do so.
On the other hand, with the cruel, daunt, and daring nature of the Second Prince, he is more likely to be the murderer who pins the blame onto someone else.
In Qiemo, Jin Lian witnesses the ability of Cui Buqu to examine corpses, so of course she hopes for him to use his skills again to investigate the truth behind the HeiYue Shaman's death.
Cui Buqu shakes his head, however, "The murderer burnt the corpse to destroy all the evidence, they killed him before immediately deciding to refuse his body into ash, I fear their plans are nigh flawless. If I take a look at it now, I fear there is nothing I can find."
Muge only partially understands, but she would bring these words to Jin Lian.
After Cui Buqu and Feng Xiao eat what cannot be said the best breakfast in Göktürk, they follow Muge to the grassy lands next to the lake.
Because all around it were long, swaying green grasses, this name was given to it, in Han, it is called the Green Grass Lake.
It is not late, and neither is it early, and under the clustering of servants, they were only vaguely punctual.
He has lost the fuming, furious breathe from yesterday, and his eyes are on Cui Buqu and Feng Xiao, sweeping over both men once. The corner of his lips twists up into an evil smile, it is granted that he is thinking about all sorts of tricks to punish them.
Fo Er's gazes lingers for a long time on Feng Xiao, before turning away thoughtfully.
"He knows that I am injured." Feng Xiao says.
The reason top martial arts are top martial artists, is not simply because their martial arts were incredible, but is it because they have honed a really accurate and sharp ability to analyse others. Feng Xiao's martial arts can be ranked among the first ten best beneath the Heavens, perhaps even the top five, but his confidence has always came from his abilities and not his own self-centric delusion. Fo Er has fought twice with him, so he is very familiar about Feng Xiao's abilities. Compared to Feng Xiao, Fo Er can perhaps be one of the first top ten as well.
If Feng Xiao had not been injured, Fo Er must reconsider his plans when he wants to target him, but after the incident yesterday night, Fo Er is very certain that Feng Xiao is injured, and that his wounds are not light at all, otherwise he would not have needed to create a plan to veil the smell of blood. So today, Fo Er would give his all to think of a way to force Feng Xiao into battle.
In the so-called gathering, it is not a gathering where everyone sits in a circle and chat with each other. The ways of Göktürk people are simple but brutal, they judge the abilities of others with the extent of their martial arts. If you win, then you are a victor that will be received with respect, and everything you ask for will be granted, yet if you lose….. So since each of the Sui Empire's ambassadors look like they will collapse with a single punch, how could they convince them that the Sui Empire is reliable and powerful ally to depend on?
Cui Buqu says, "It is very likely that he will ask for a one-to-one combat with you."
Feng Xiao, "Then, in front of everyone, he will conveniently kill me."
Cui Buqu nods his head.
It is only through this way he can assert his pride and dominance, to kill and become the victor of his battle, instilling bewilderment in everyone's hearts.
Feng Xiao smiles lazily, "In that case, I am really scared."
Their conversation is interrupted when Khan Apa arrives.
The arrival of the Khan would also mean the begin of the gathering. All the guests are served with excellent wine and delicious dishes. The Khan raises a cup and gets on his feet to thank all his guests to come from all lands afar, then he has also mentioned ambassadors of the Sui Empire and Khan Ishbara and honoured them with cups of wine.
From the way Cui Buqu sees it, this Göktürk Khan is quite intelligent if he isn't submerged in the beauty of women.
Khan Ishbara is forceful. He sends Fo Er to force Khan Apa into an alliance with them, it is a given that this deal contains no little benefits for the Khan. Fo Er came first before them to the Sanmi Mountains, so that is why Cui Buqu and his company were arrested when they just arrived.
But once the Khan acknowledges that the Sui Empire's people were not pushovers, very quickly he switches the scene and treats them with politeness. Even regarding the death of the HeiYue Shaman yesterday, he did not seek trouble with them, instead, he even pacifies the matter and allow Cui Buqu and his people to sleep a sound night.
Just as Cui Buqu's thoughts begin to travel far, Khan Apa is currently smiling and laughing as he speaks to his audiences. It could be seen that the death of the HeiYue Shaman did not affect his happiness in obtaining a new concubine.
He claps his hands, and a few Göktürk martial artists comes forth, carrying curved knives on them and begins to dance.
It is different from the Kucha music yesterday. Today is a day that brings strong feels of battle, for they danced with knives and fierce music. In these sort dance where real knives and moves are brought from real battles, those few martial artist's moves were quite appealing to look at.
This can calm the hearts of a great many people, and a lot of them were eager for the martial arts competition that will take place later. The ambassador of the Western regions is thinking about how he should show-off , the little kingdoms near the outskirts of Göktürk were thinking about how they can avoid being completely swallowed. The Second Prince is thinking about how he could avenge himself on Cui Buqu and his people. The First Prince is recalled the night before, how he stood up to his little brother and the aftermath of his feelings, is quite difficult to quell, so he is currently looking for another chance to control that incredibly arrogant brother of his. Khan Apa holds his woman's hand as he laughs in a low voice, watching the knife dance and did not pay attention to the responses of others.
As for Fo Er—
He is next to the dancers, his gaze meeting Feng Xiao's from afar, and after a while, he gives a deep, long, knowing smile.
As if he is saying: I know you are injured, and your injury is not light. In the past we fought on equal grounds, but today, I want you dead.
As the knife dance ends, the martial artists all dissipates. The Second Prince has finally waited until his chance to speak, so he stands on his feet, bringing a sense of proudness and arrogance as he glances at everyone, then he turns to his father and says, "Lord Father, in the past, the gathering begins with a competition of martial arts, but I feel like since we have a few more guests of honour this year, we should change our rules a little, otherwise, this is simply not respecting them."
Once Jin Lian hears this, she knows what bad idea he is going to give, so she immediately protests, "Khan, the competition has been the tradition of the Sanmi Mountains for decades. To change it all of a sudden is not respecting our guests."
Khan Apa raises a hand to interrupt her, he seems to be interested in the Second Prince's suggestion, "How should we change it?"
The Second Prince shot Jin Lian a look of victory and says, "In the past, we start from archery on horseback and it is judged by the distance and accuracy to determine the victor. However, Fo Er is the number one fighter of both Eastern and Western Göktürk, so to compete in such a way is degrading him. Why don't we let one participant ride on horseback, and one holding a fruit while they run? The archer needs to shoot the fruit from the distance of one hundred steps. If the arrow hits the fruit, then he claims victory."
Most of the audience who listened to this inhales sharply.
To be able to shoot from the distance of one hundred steps is already the skill of a top martial artist, so what could be said if the target is moving around at all times?
Additionally, the target's movements is not consistent. It is held in the hand of a person, running around on horseback. If one is to be careless, it is fine if they shot into empty space, but what if they hit the person holding the fruit?
To be quite honest, this is just playing with lives.
The Second Prince is determined not to let Cui Buqu and Feng Xiao off so easily, so naturally, he would not just let the archer simply pick a nameless servant to hold the fruit.
"Both the archer and the target bearer needs to be someone with considerable status. It is not allowed to ask a servant to go onto the field."
Fo Er claps his hands and says, "The Second Prince's idea is very good, so let me have the start!"
He did not permit Khan Apa or Cui Buqu and his men to object to it, so he simply orders his vice to take the apple and get onto the horse, then rides forth.
The horse runs into the distance until it is a hundred steps away, then turns around to run back, only then did Fo Er picks up the bow, infusing all his inner strength and steadily shoots the arrow!
Everyone squints their eyes as they watch the arrow flies ahead.
At this distance, it is impossible for a normal archer to hit its target, because they still needed to reconsider the bow's very own mechanisms, and the bow that Fo Er is holding can only shoot the distance of approximately one hundred steps, not more.
But after infusing inner strength, once the arrow reaches to the distance of one hundred steps, it did not show signs of slowing down, in fact it seems to fly even faster until it hits the apple in the vice Göktürk ambassador's hand.
From the crowd a wave of roaring cheers sounds, as if everyone is clapping their hands wildly. It does not matter what sort of enmity is between themselves and Khan Ishbara, Fo Er's performance has astounded all of them, and the victor is always rewarded with respect.
Fo Er puts down the bow with a calm expression and turns towards Feng Xiao, giving him a faint little smile.
He could see that among the three of them, Cui Buqu does not know any form of martial arts, so he definitely could not hold a bow at all. Qiao Xian's martial arts aren't bad, but it does not meant that she can shoot an arrow accurately. This is also a technique that tests the eyes, otherwise there would not have been units within an army that specializes in archery. So even if Qiao Xian is trained in archery, it is impossible for her to be just like him, shooting a target with extreme accuracy from one hundred meters when the target is such a small apple. So, even if they obtained the same result, but loses in their performance, it could already be considered that they have lost.
Although losing an archery competition does not seem like much, what Cui Buqu and his company would be losing isn't just the pride of the Sui Empire, but also the alliance of Khan Apa in the end.
If they do not wish to lose, then Feng Xiao is their only choice to be on the field—
That would have been good, too. Because Feng Xiao is injured, so if he pulls the arrow, it would hurt his wounds, worsening his injuries. Therefore, even if they have won this round, then in the second round, they would still definitely lose.
Fo Er's smile deepens.
How would you deal with this?
No matter what you manage to conjure, in the end you would lose.
Cui Buqu furrows his brows slightly, as if he is also worrying, so he turns around to tell Feng Xiao something.
Feng Xiao shows a look of displeasure, and both of them seem to squabble between themselves, even though it is quickly pacified.
From Fo Er's perspective, there is no doubt that a conflict is happening between his enemies.
If the enemy is unable to be united, their hearts are not aligned, then it would make it easier for them to lose.
Fo Er thinks about this fact happily.
The Second Prince even added fuel to fire, "Could it be that the Sui Empire ambassadors have grown afraid? It is hard to blame you people. After all, Fo Er is the number one fighter of Göktürk, you people can never compete. So why don't you surrender and give up on the alliance? I can plead for mercy on your behalf, so that Lord Father will grant you some goats and sheep, so you may still have some pride left on your way back to the Sui Empire."
In reality, there is no alliance between Fo Er and the Second Prince, since they are two people with no relationship to each other. Before this, Fo Er also thought of the Second Prince as someone very impatient and irritating, not much different from Khan Ishbara. With someone like this as their successor, he does not see how the well off in the future would Western Göktürk be. But now, they both share the same enemy, and he need not even open his own mouth to get the Second Prince to help him. Fo Er suddenly feels that the Second Prince isn't as irritating and he thought before.