Nangong Manor.
Nangong Manor was located in a small alley in the north of Tingzhou. It did not look very eye-catching, but when they walked into the alley, Jiang Baiqu and Yi Shuimei realized that the interior of the alley was actually very large.
That person led the two of them and slowly pushed the door open. He smiled and said,"Please, Princess Fei Xu and my young master have been waiting for a long time.”
Jiang Baiqu looked at his beloved steed and lightly brushed it. The black steed seemed to understand human nature and exhaled. Bai Qu smiled and nodded. Then, he hastily tied the two horses to the horse stone. He carried the silent Yi Shuimei and stepped in without hesitation.
The hall of Nangong Manor was brightly lit, but there was nothing luxurious or extravagant. However, compared to the ordinary nobles, there were more paintings.
At this moment, a faint voice came from the hall."May Your Majesty and Consort Chen be safe. Nangong Jiu has been waiting for you.”This voice was a little calm, but there was also a hint of elegance. Along with that voice, Yi Shuimei first saw a fan handle carved with peach blossoms through the light gauze, and then the hand holding the fan handle. It was slender and long. One look and one could tell that it was a hand holding a pen.
Jiang Baiqu had observed every detail of this scene, and he said in surprise,""Oh? The legendary Young Master Shan was more like a scholar. If it was just by looking at people, it would be really difficult for people to connect him to the underworld.”
As expected, it was also a delicate face, delicate as if her facial features were carved out of crystal. Her eyebrows were also like the bones outlined by Heaven Duke, handsome and flawless.
Nangong Jiu looked at Yi Shuimei." Concubine Chen is indeed as the rumors say. She's isolated from the world and is pure and otherworldly."”Then, he looked at Jiang Baiqu and bowed slightly. His pale yellow silk robe was slightly wrinkled, reflecting the dazzling light and directly approaching Bai Qu's line of sight. "Your Majesty," he said unhurriedly,"Nangong first invited Princess Feixu out to dispel your worries."”
"Princess, have you finished visiting my studio?" she asked with a laugh.”
Fei Xu's bright voice came from the inner room. She said,"Young Master's art studio is indeed extraordinary.”When Bai Qu heard this voice, he was stunned. There was no trace of shock or anger. The conversation between the two of them was like that of old friends.
Nangong Jiu smiled confidently at Jiang Baiqu and Yi Shuimei.""Your Majesty and Your Highness, why don't you enter my art studio to take a look as a pastime? Perhaps it will solve the doubts in your heart.”
Jiang Baiqu maintained his arrogant attitude, but he had another thought in his heart."This Nangong Jiu is really powerful. I don't know anything about him, but he can see through me. This string is always in his hands, but we seem to have become puppets. We can't take the initiative at all…"
At this moment, Yi Shuimei pretended to turn around and look at the decorations in the hall. She whispered to Jiang Baiqu,"Your Majesty, why don't you let nature take its course? The three of us will coordinate with each other and won't suffer any losses.”
When Jiang Baiqu heard this, he also felt that it was to his liking, so he laughed loudly and said,""Just what I wanted!"
"Haha, alright, please." Nangong Jiu waved his right hand sideways and made an inviting gesture.
In the studio. Princess Fei Xu was looking up at a painting on the wall.
The paintings were all small pieces of artwork, and on them, there were different kinds of fine brush characters. Some were young masters who looked like scholars, some were women who looked like daughters from humble families, some were generals with imposing appearances, and there were also many imperial clans who founded sects and emperors who ruled the world.
They were lined with white silk and framed with yellow wood. They were properly mounted and placed on top of Beiqiang. They were as neat as a battle formation, but they had a unique charm.
Even the moment Yi Shuimei opened the curtain and came in, she could not help but open her mouth in shock and sigh when she saw the painting on this wall.
"Young Master Nangong's painting is indeed extraordinary…it's so lifelike.”Yi Shuimei praised sincerely. She immediately understood why Fei Xu was unwilling to come out of this studio. For those who loved paintings, this was naturally a treasure trove.
When Jiang Baiqu and Yi Shuimei's eyes were also focused on the wall, Jiang Baiqu still maintained a high degree of vigilance.
Nangong Jiu couldn't help but respect Jiang Baiqu from the bottom of his heart when he saw how meticulous Jiang Baiqu was. Nangong Jiu looked at them admiring his painting and said calmly,""A wise man does not do things in secret. Nangong Jiu, I also heard that Your Majesty was attacked by assassins, so I boldly guessed that Your Majesty would come here to visit…It was indeed as I expected.”
When Jiang Baiqu heard this, he said,""Hehe, when I saw Brother Nangong's painting, I couldn't help but ask, does Brother Nangong have some relationship with the Art Immortal?”
Nangong Jiu was stunned. He didn't expect Jiang Baiqu to ask such an unimportant question at this moment. Perhaps he was surprised by how strong Jiang Baiqu was, so he couldn't help but answer,""Yes, yes…Emperor Baiqu has good eyesight. Senior Shen is my master!”
" If that's the case…If this painting of yours were to be taken out, it would definitely be extraordinary…" Jiang Baiqu's voice remained a little cold, as if there was a double meaning in his words.
Nangong Jiu also understood the implication and said with a smile,""That's right. The reason why the Nangong Nobles can prosper to this day is because of my business with the underworld.”
"Oh? What do you mean?" Yi Shuimei and Jiang Feixu were both immersed in the painting, but only Jiang Baiqu remained calm.
"These meticulous portraits are known as One-Foot Paintings in the pugilistic world. The people drawn on the One-Foot Paintings are the people that the Nangong Nobles have ordered the pugilistic world to kill. Therefore, once the foot-long diagram is passed down…"
"Then how can the person drawn be immortal?" Jiang Baiqu sneered.”Jiang Baiqu's voice was so majestic that it shocked Nangong Jiu. It was as if a cold air had filled the entire room.
At this moment, Nangong Jiu spread out his folding fan and pretended to be calm as he said,"" But Nangong has never drawn His Majesty's face…" Nangong Jiu was also a little confused."Why would I feel uneasy? Could this be the so-called might of an emperor? Invincible?"
"Oh?" When Jiang Baiqu heard this, he was a little curious.
"Your Majesty, please take a look!" Nangong Jiu pointed at the painting on the wall and explained carefully.
"In the first row of the Emperor's Scroll, there are the emperors that I drew. The emperors of the Northern Desert, Western Shu, Guihai, and even Yu Li are also heroes that I admire. The Emperor of the Northern Desert only drew Xiao Bicheng and his sister, but I valued the Kun Emperor, Xiao Qinglan, more. That's why she was ranked higher than him. The Emperor of Guihai only painted Old Man Guihai…As for me, the number of paintings I drew was also countable. However, after seeing His Majesty today, it seems that I have to draw again.”
"Oh? I see that Young Master cherishes ink as much as gold, and Bai Qu has no merit or virtue, so why would he paint for me?”
"The aura of an emperor is one that comes from not being angry. If I don't draw Your Majesty, who should I draw?”Nangong Jiu said slowly.
Jiang Baiqu smiled and didn't answer the question. He just said,""Please continue, Young Master."
Nangong Jiu nodded and pointed at the second and third rows. He continued,""The dragons and people of the martial world are all here. The paintings include the masters of the past who are also hundred-year-old.”Then, he moved his fan down and said,""I don't want to miss out on the people of Jianghu, such as phoenixes, chivalrous women, or talented women. Your Majesty, do you know who it is?”She pointed at the first painting on the fourth row.
It was a white-robed woman with a sword in her right hand. Her eyebrows were as sharp as willows, and she smiled coldly without saying a word.
"If it was a few years ago, I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to guess, but now?" Jiang Baiqu said. It must be Xuanyuan…"
"That's right. In terms of martial arts, no one can match her. And this talented lady from Xuanji, Jun Weiyan, is one of the best in the Nine States. About half a year ago, my painting of Xuanyuan Yufeng was stolen. That person coveted the Xuanyuan Sword, so he wanted to use the power of the black and white sects to snatch the sword from Xuanyuan Yufeng during her trip to Xiangyang. That person supported the might of the One-Foot Painting, but in the end, it was a tragic sight. This One-Foot Painting naturally returned to my hands.”
Jiang Baiqu listened to him carefully while looking at the painting. "Are you trying to say that the person drawn by this one foot diagram might not be killed?"”
"Hehe, Xuanyuan Yufeng is just an exception…Or perhaps, the paintings in this room are all accidental…The one-foot-long paintings that the assassins gave out are different from the ones here…I've already said what I wanted to say, I didn't dare to draw His Majesty's one-foot-long painting!”Nangong Jiu raised his voice. It was as if he wanted to prove or prove his innocence.
"Yes, I believe you too. I just came here to look for some clues.”Jiang Baiqu was not in a hurry to make a conclusion and agreed.
" However," Nangong Jiu continued," there's another use for this foot-map. It might be much more powerful than killing…"
When Jiang Baiqu heard this, he felt that it was a new idea. He couldn't help but ask,""Oh? What's that?"
"Yes, protect. Those who I have drawn but haven't released are people that my Nangong family is destined to protect. The martial world would naturally give him some face. In fact, I don't have the ability to protect the senior experts on the wall. Their attainments are all above mine. It's just that the paintings I draw must be admired. How could there be people from the underworld who dared to target the person I admired?”
"I see. This was much more realistic than the flashes of blades and swords. However, he didn't know what Young Master Nangong meant by that!”Jiang Baiqu's words were always like that. He only spoke halfway and would never easily point it out.
Nangong Jiu laughed and asked softly,""How would Nangong dare to say that he will protect Your Majesty? " His Majesty is a genius of the Nine Regions, and he has the protection of heaven and earth. However…" When he said this, his voice suddenly lowered, and his smile became mysterious, as if there was some mysterious conspiracy.
"But what?" Jiang Baiqu didn't like it when others wanted to threaten him or restrict him, breaking the suspense he wanted to keep.
"But what about Consort Chen? I heard that the assassin failed to injure His Majesty's dragon body, but he managed to touch Consort Chen's hair…"
Jiang Feixu and Yi Shuimei were both shocked at this moment. Their mood of looking at the painting was also broken. Jiang Feixu had also been listening to their conversation for a long time.
Yi Shuimei looked at Nangong Jiu quietly through the veil. Her expression was extremely cold. However, Nangong Jiu didn't know that…
"What do you want to do?" Jiang Baiqu had challenged his patience again and again, and he couldn't hold it in any longer. However, he still tried his best to maintain his composure.
For a moment, the two men's figures seemed so abrupt in the quiet inner room, standing opposite each other. Like ice and fire, they could collide and hurt each other at any time.
Nangong Jiu bowed and said,""Nangong only wants to draw a one-foot-long painting for Consort Chen and keep it in this inner room forever to fulfill Your Majesty's wish…"
"Why?" Jiang Baiqu was somewhat puzzled. Could it be that he was really going through all the trouble to do something that didn't seem to benefit him? And even risk offending the heavens?
"Just so that my Nangong family won't be implicated and won't be framed!”Nangong Jiu's voice seemed to be completely different from his previous refined, gentle, slow, and firm voice.
"Draw a one-foot map for Shui Mei?"
"Draw a foot-long diagram for Concubine Chen!"
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