Finest Servant

Chapter 413 The Three-Beat Drum

"What?" Li Panlong laughed heartily, stroking his beard with contempt, "You can't even recognize a few characters, Lin San, you might as well go back and find some tutors to teach you how to read. Don't come out and make a fool of yourself. With your knowledge, to discuss poetry and debate, and even win the title in Jinling, truly the world's greatest joke."

All the scholars in the Fairy Hall and the gathered students and intellectuals around burst into laughter, looking at Lin Wanrong with eyes full of disdain.

"What is he up to?" Xu Zhiqing glanced at Lin Wanrong, not daring to be distracted, and whispered to Miss Xiao, her voice tinged with a hint of concern.

"No matter!" Xiao Qingxuan shook her head and smiled, "Has Miss not seen his abilities? From Jinling to the capital, he has refuted others in all matters under heaven, rarely being bested by anyone. Turning death into life, black into white, this is my husband's unique skill that no one can learn."

Xu Zhiqing chuckled, recalling Lin San's eloquent debates during the flower-viewing event and the unique experience of seeking silver in Shandong. With his ability, there was really no task in the world that could stump him. She felt much more relaxed and couldn't help but stamp her foot, complaining, "This dead man, always fooling others with tricks, never realizing how much worry he causes others."

"Really? Miss Xu is worried about him too? My husband has found a true friend in you," Xiao Qingxuan said with a faint smile, as beautiful as a fairy.

Xu Zhiqing's face turned slightly red, and seeing that Miss Xiao said nothing, her expression calm, she did not know what she had understood and felt uneasy, not daring to speak.

Seeing everyone laughing, Lin Wanrong didn't mind and chuckled, "No matter, if I really made a mistake, I can hire a tutor to teach me. But, if Brother Li, you made a mistake, what then?"

This was an outright insult to Li Panlong's intelligence, and the people in the Fairy Hall became impatient. Several young scholars shouted, "Master Li is renowned for his calligraphy and painting. He painted continuously for seven days and nights on West Lake, creating vast waves, a story passed down for ages. Even the Emperor takes pride in possessing his works. How could he recognize a character wrong? Lin San, you better release Miss Xiao, and we will spare your life." Li Panlong approvingly looked at the scholars, stroking his beard and smiling, looking very pleased with himself.

‘Paint for seven days and nights? If it were making love, I might consider it, but painting, let's forget it.’ Lin Wanrong laughed twice and said, "So Brother Li is so stalwart, I admire, I admire. However, as the saying goes, 'To err is human,' and if he accidentally recognizes a word wrong, that is not out of the question."

"Nonsense." Li Panlong waved his sleeve angrily, "Such simple characters, even a three-year-old child recognizes them. How could I mistake them? Lin San, I will make a bet with you."

"A bet? I'm not very good at that." Lin Wanrong shyly smiled, "Do you want to roll dice, play Pai Gow, or compare sizes?"

Li Panlong disdainfully said, "Those are the trivial pursuits of the petty, the height of vulgarity, and I, Li Panling, could never engage in such things. I will bet with you on recognizing characters, specifically these three characters inscribed by the Founding Emperor. If you are wrong, you will bow respectfully to me in the Fairy Hall and accept our punishment."

"What if you are wrong?" Lin Wanrong was unfazed, grinning mischievously.

"Hahaha—" Li Panlong laughed uproariously, proclaiming with arrogance, "I, Li Panlong, have been inscribing and painting all my life and have never read a character wrong or misrecognized one. If I am wrong, I will bow three times and kowtow nine times to you, and call you Lin San my master."

The surrounding scholars were startled, crying out in unison, "Master, do not."

Li Panlong waved his hand, snorting angrily, "You need not worry for me. I recognized characters at three years old and have never been mistaken. Today, I want to see what Lin San is really capable of."

Seeing that everyone's eyes were on him, Lin Wanrong shook his head, saying, "This isn't very appropriate. I'm still young, haven't even had a son yet. How can I take on a disciple? Why don't you bow to me as a big brother and I'll take you as a younger brother? Alas, in these times, humble people like me are truly rare."

"Enough of your nonsense. With your abilities, you are not a match for our master." Seeing Lin San's shameless self-praising, Li Panlong's disciples couldn't stand it and interrupted Lin Wanrong's words, cheering for their master.

Li Panlong's face turned deep red, shouting, "Enough talk! The Founding Emperor's inscription is here, one glance is all it takes to know. Everyone present is well-educated; no one can falsify. Lin San, do you have any objections?"

Everyone in the field held their breath, waiting for Lin San's reply. Lin Wanrong laughed, "Reading and recognizing characters is a good thing; what objections could I have? The characters inscribed by the Founding Emperor are clear as day. Anyone can come up and look."

"So you agree?" Li Panlong sneered, "Good. As today's competition is within my Fairy Hall, to prevent you from making excuses after losing, I'll let you choose someone to recognize these three characters, so that you may be utterly convinced."

"Choose anyone?" Lin Wanrong glanced around and pointed at a fourteen or fifteen-year-old scholar, smiling, "Young man, can you read? What, your master is Li Panlong? Then it's you, I choose you."

The young scholar looked uncertainly at Li Panlong, who snorted, "Lin San, you indeed have nerve, daring to choose my disciple."

"Who to look at is not about nerve," Lin Wanrong chuckled, "Brother Li, you said yourself, these characters are extremely simple; even a three-year-old child recognizes them. Naturally, your disciple won't mistake them. Young man, come take a good look. Just don't get it wrong, for I have tens of thousands of troops and ten cannons waiting down the mountain. If I'm delayed, and they fire up the mountain because they've waited too long, it won't be my fault."

Hearing about the army and cannons below, everyone became a little uneasy. The young scholar looked at his master with fear. Li Panlong snorted, "Yu Yonglian, don't be afraid, recognize the characters boldly, your master will take responsibility."

Yu Yonglian, the young scholar, bowed and made his way forward slowly. Everyone held their breath, their eyes fixed on Lin San and Li Panlong. The field was quiet, so quiet that the sound of a pin dropping could be heard.

The two boys who brought the scroll held it upright before everyone. Though they stood at a distance, the three flamboyant characters were clearly visible. It read "Yu Tian Qi," meaning "Equal to Heaven."

Xu Zhiqing was taken aback, and even Xiao Qingxuan exclaimed in surprise, her face full of confusion. The people at "Jade Virtue Fairy Hall" had already begun to clap and cheer, while Li Panlong stroked his beard and smiled complacently. "Lin San, the victory has been decided. Do you have anything to say?"

"The victory has been decided?" Lin Wanrong asked incredulously. "Brother Li, where did you get that idea? The young fellow hasn't even approached yet, nor has he spoken a word. Where does the victory come from?"

Li Panlong, thinking that he had already won, paid no mind and snorted. "Yonglian, hurry up and recognize it, don't keep your uncles and brothers waiting."

Yu Yonglian quickly acknowledged, and as he was about to approach, Lin Wanrong grabbed him, smiling. "Little brother, how old are you this year? How many years have you been reading?"

Yu Yonglian replied, "I am fifteen this year. I have been following my mentor since I was eight, so it has been over seven years."

Lin Wanrong nodded. "Fifteen years old, that's not too young. You must look carefully at these three characters, not missing a single stroke, and definitely not reading them wrong. Otherwise, if this spreads, your whole life will be ruined."

Yu Yonglian, hearing this, kept nodding his head as he approached the handwriting of the Founding Emperor. He observed it carefully, not missing a single detail. At first, his expression was normal, but when he looked at the character for "heaven," his face gradually changed, large beads of sweat rolled down his forehead, and his legs began to tremble.

Li Panlong, growing impatient, shouted, "Yonglian, have you seen it clearly? If you have recognized it all, then tell your uncles and brothers loudly."

"Master, disciple, disciple has seen it clearly—" Yu Yonglian's face turned pale, his voice trembling as he dared not speak.

Li Panlong frowned, snorting, "Since you have seen it clearly, then speak quickly."

Lin Wanrong coldly smiled, interjecting, "Little brother, this is a sacred relic of Founding Emperor, visible to everyone. You cannot fabricate it, or you'll lose your head. Speak the truth."

Yu Yonglian's sweat poured like rain, trembling as he said, "With—with—with—"

Li Panlong urged him on, "With what? Read it out quickly!"

Yu Yonglian's knees gave way, and he fell to the ground, continuously kowtowing. "Master, disciple dares not read, disciple dares not read!"

The scholars of "Jade Virtue Fairy Hall" were all shocked, and the disciples couldn't help but make a commotion. Li Panlong's face changed drastically, and he yelled, "What did you say? How do you dare not read? Have you wasted over ten years of my teaching?"

Lin Wanrong laughed, "Brother Li, this young brother is doing you a favor. If he had read these three characters straight, you would have been completely defeated today."

"Nonsense, how could I be completely defeated?" Li Panlong shouted angrily.

Lin Wanrong laughed heartily, pointing to two little boys, "You, hold the scroll closer, let the present scholars and talents see it clearly." The two boys held up the scroll, displaying it before everyone. All eyes fell on the character for "heaven" (天) in the middle. Without looking, one wouldn't know; with one look, one would be shocked. On the original character for "heaven," there was a faint ink mark at the top, just a tiny speck, not clear from a distance, but it was unmistakably the character for "man." (夫)

The scholars' faces turned pale, and the disciples of the Fairy Hall were dumbfounded, almost unable to believe what was happening before their eyes. The handwritten characters of the Founding Emperor, passed down for a thousand years, had changed in an instant. Li Panlong was like a man struck by lightning, his eyes wide, mumbling, "Impossible, this is impossible—" He suddenly pointed at Lin San and accused, "It was you, you tampered with it——"

"Me, tampered with it?" Lin Wanrong laughed out loud and said, "Brother Li, with your unparalleled mastery of both painting and calligraphy, can you really not see that when the Founding Emperor wrote the character 'Heaven,' there was already an extra dot? You are all well-known scholars of this era, please take a good look."

Everyone looked and saw that, as Lin San had said, the character Heaven (天) had a slight extra protrusion when the Founding Emperor had written it (夫). Although the mark was faint, they had disregarded it, assuming it to be an unintentional slip by the Emperor. Who would dare question such a thing? But now, with the spring rain dampening the paper, the protrusion became more pronounced.

"This, this—" The crowd looked at each other in disbelief, no one daring to say a word.

Lin Wanrong said coldly with a smirk, "What a 'Jade Virtue Fairy Hall.' The words of the Founding Emperor were clearly 'Equal to Man,' urging you to set aside your arrogance and learn from the common people. But you dare to twist the Emperor's words, considering the people of the world as insignificant, claiming 'Equal to Heaven.' Such deceptive behavior towards the Emperor and disdain for the subjects is despicable, and the crime is punishable."

The slogan "Equal to Heaven" had been the proud pillar of the "Jade Virtue Fairy Hall" for hundreds of years. But now, Lin San's words had turned their world upside down, transforming equality with heaven into equality with the common folk—a massive difference. Although the academy was filled with learned scholars, faced with this shocking change, they could think of no response.

Was it really necessary to bow to this young man? Li Panlong, who had previously been so confident, now looked ashen-faced, his lips quivering, his expression filled with despair.

Lin Wanrong chuckled sinisterly and was about to speak when Xiao Qingxuan gently tugged at his clothes and softly said, "If we can spare them, let's do so. I've been educated by the Hall since I was young, and I still have respect for them. Let's not make it difficult for these gentlemen here; we can just leave the mountain."

Lin Wanrong spread his hands, looking innocent, and said, "You saw it too; it was clearly them who made things difficult for me, not the other way around. But since my wife has spoken, I'll let them off. I was going to attack the Fairy Hall, but alas, who knows when I'll fulfill my wish?"

Xiao Qingxuan gave a soft laugh and glanced at him. Xu Zhiqing, puzzled, asked, "Lin San, is the Founding Emperor's inscription really 'Equal to Man'?"

Caught in a small trap, even the clever and wise Miss Xu couldn't discern the truth. Lin Wanrong grinned, looked around, and mysteriously said, "The Founding Emperor was clever. That character for Heaven '天' that doesn't look like Heaven '天,' and the Man '夫' that doesn't look like Man '夫,' who knows what it's meant to be? Probably something left for later generations to guess. I just took advantage of the rain and fulfilled the old Founding Emperor's wish from many years ago."

Miss Xu gave a long "oh" and huffed, "So you really did tamper with it. The masters of the Hall opposing you truly have terrible luck."

Lin Wanrong chuckled a few times, holding onto Qingxuan as they were about to descend the mountain when suddenly a soft sound came from a distance. It was like the striking of a wooden fish, the sound becoming more and more urgent, like the beat of a drum pounding in one's heart.

"Who is that, playing with a wooden fish in broad daylight?" Lin Wanrong said, laughing.

Xiao Qingxuan's delicate body quivered slightly, and she shook her head with a bitter smile. "The abbess is summoning me, My Dear. Hold me tight."

"Abbess?" Lin Wanrong was taken aback for a moment, noticing Qingxuan's continuous trembling. He quickly hugged her tightly and exclaimed, "Qingxuan, Qingxuan, what's wrong with you?"

Xiao Qingxuan leaned weakly against him, her face as pale as paper, tears rolling down her cheeks. She murmured, "My Dear, I've followed you this far today, and even if I die, I will die content. But leaving behind our child is my failure to you. Hold me, hold me tight!"

The wooden fish's knocking grew more frantic, Xiao Qingxuan's whole body trembling lightly, seeming to lose all strength, tears falling like rain, her face pale as paper. She clung tightly to Lin Wanrong's waist, desperately wanting to melt into his embrace.

Lin Wanrong was horrified and held her body tightly, anxiously saying, "Qingxuan, Qingxuan, what's wrong? Don't scare me—"

A fleeting brilliance bloomed on Xiao Qingxuan's beautiful face as she murmured, "Three-Beat Drum, I'm not afraid! I'll live and die with My Dear. My Dear, My Dear, take me away quickly!"

"Three-Beat Drum?" Xu Zhiqing murmured to herself, her face flashing a hint of surprise.

Lin Wanrong let out a loud cry, embracing Xiao Qingxuan's soft, boneless body, and charged down the mountain. The sound of the wooden fish seemed to follow his movements, becoming more urgent. But the breath of Xiao Qingxuan, nestled in Lin Wanrong's arms, grew weaker and weaker, a faint gloom appearing in her beautiful eyes, her body gradually softening.

Feeling the chill emanating from Qingxuan's body, as if life was slowly ebbing away from her, Lin Wanrong's eyes cracked, his blood boiling as if aflame. "Ah!" he suddenly stopped, howling at the sky, drawing a musket from his bosom. "Bang!" A gunshot rang out, the smoke rising, Lin Wanrong brimming with murderous intent. "Du Xiuyuan, fire the cannons, fire the cannons!"

Down the mountain, Du Xiuyuan heard the gunshot from above, the unique signal General Lin had instructed before leaving. He hesitated for a moment, then clenched his teeth, waved a small flag and shouted, "Fire the cannons—"

Eight giant cannons belched hot flames, and several cannonballs sped through the air, striking the cliff in front of the Fairyu Hall, stirring up a fierce cloud of dust. The previously composed scholars were instantly pale and confused, their disciples thrown into chaos.

As the cannon sound rang out, the grating noise of the wooden fish stopped. Lin Wanrong gently stroked Xiao Qingxuan's cheek, softly saying, "Qingxuan, don't be afraid, as long as I'm here, no one dares to harm a hair on your head. Listen, that's the sound of cannons. I'll blow this Fairy Hall to smithereens. Anyone who dares to hurt you, I will make them pay a hundredfold."

Xiao Qingxuan's body slowly warmed up, two large tears slid down her cheeks, her long eyelashes trembling slightly. She slowly opened her eyes, lightly calling "My Dear," and her tears fell like raindrops.

Xu Zhiqing sighed, softly saying, "If you want to save Miss Xiao's life, you'd better not take her down the mountain just yet."

"What does that mean?" Lin Wanrong exclaimed in shock.

Xu Zhiqing didn't answer him but glanced at Xiao Qingxuan and asked softly, "Miss Xiao, is the 'Three-Beat Drum' that you just mentioned the method used by Tibetan Living Buddhas to find the reincarnated soul child?"

Xiao Qingxuan nodded and sighed gently, "Sister Xu is indeed knowledgeable and has a strong memory, even knowing about the Three-Beat Drum."

Lin Wanrong was utterly confused, and he quickly grabbed Xu Zhiqing's hand, saying, "Miss Xu, what's this about the Three-Beat Drum, Four-Beat Drum? What does it all mean?"

Xiao Qingxuan gently grabbed him and said, "My Dear, let me explain it to you. My childhood was filled with hardship, and I entered this Fairy Hall and was chosen by the abbess as the successor. Every generation of the Fairy Hall's abbess must cultivate virtue and live ascetically without earthly desires. If you hadn't come today, I would have become the next abbess tomorrow."

Lin Wanrong was greatly shocked and tightly held her hand, saying, "Qingxuan, how can this be? Didn't you promise to meet me at the Jade Buddha Temple on the seventh day of the seventh month? How could you suddenly change your mind?"

Tears rolled down Xiao Qingxuan's face as she shook her head, "It's not that I changed my mind. It's because I carry your bloodline, and that's why the world has suddenly changed. I originally intended to meet you on the seventh day of the seventh month, but the abbess saw that I was pregnant and forced me to abort the child. I fought her tooth and nail, so she suggested a compromise: I would inherit the abbess position tomorrow and give birth to our child in seclusion, never to see you again. On the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, I waited for you but you never came. Today, on the golden hall, was supposed to be our last meeting—"

Tears streamed down Xiao Qingxuan's face, and she choked, unable to continue. Lin Wanrong was covered in cold sweat, unable to believe the twists and turns that had occurred. If he hadn't come today, Qingxuan would have become a nun.

He quickly grabbed Qingxuan's hand and comforted her, "Wife, don't be afraid, now that I'm here, no one will bully you. I'll destroy this Fairy Hall today, and let's see who dares to force you. Quickly tell me what this Three-Beat Drum is about?"

Xiao Qingxuan sighed, "The Three-Beat Drum comes from Tibetan Buddhist scriptures, used specifically for enlightenment and as the Fairy Hall's abbess's secret, used to choose a successor. When I was a child, the abbess recited it to me every day. It was like a spell, trapping my mind. If recited three times in a day, my mind would be exhausted, I'd enter deep meditation, and never wake up. That's why it's called the Three-Beat Drum."

Lin Wanrong broke into a cold sweat. This so-called Three-Beat Drum was actually a kind of sinister hypnotism. It had already been recited once. If it were recited twice more, he and Qingxuan would be separated by life and death.

Xiao Qingxuan smiled tenderly and said, "Since I'm married to My Dear, we'll be husband and wife through life and death. The Fairy Hall is no longer my dwelling. I broke our old promise, and it's my fault. What's wrong with enduring this Three-Beat Drum? My Dear, you'll support me, won't you?"

How could he support this? Lin Wanrong's heart was bitter. He grabbed Xiao Qingxuan's hand and said gently, "Three-Beat Drum, Four-Beat Drum, we're not afraid of them. I'll blow up this Fairy Hall today, and let's see how they can play their drum."

"Bomb my Fairy Hall?" A woman's voice rang in their ears, filled with cold authority, "With just you?"

"Pay respect to the abbess!" From afar, the disciples of the Fairy Hall ran forward, and on hearing this voice, they seemed to find their backbone, respectfully bowing their heads. Even some other people respectfully saluted.

Xiao Qingxuan tightly held Lin Wanrong's hand, her face blooming into an exceptionally beautiful smile, "My Dear, this is our last hurdle. In this life and the next, we'll be husband and wife, never to be parted!!!"

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