A Gentleman's Promise, Dao Yun's Gift of a Letter

Chapter 88 A Gentleman's Promise, Dao Yun's Gift of a Letter

Next, their archery skills will be tested.

The shooting position was set up in the open field, with the target placed thirty paces away.

The target is the arrow stack used in autumn archery. It is made of straw tightly bound together, with a piece of white silk pasted in the center. On the silk, a red heart the size of a fist is drawn with cinnabar.

Liang Shanbo had already retrieved his bow and arrows from the schoolhouse.

He slung his quiver over his waist, walked to his shooting position, stood with his feet slightly apart, shoulder-width apart, and his posture as straight as a pine tree.

Xie Xuan and Meng Wenlang stood beside him, only a few steps away. Xie Xuan stood with his hands behind his back, his gaze fixed on his profile. Meng Wenlang stroked his beard, his expression revealing a certain confidence.

Liang Shanbo immediately drew his arrow, nocked it, strung it, and shot one arrow after another.

"Whoosh—thud—"

The sounds of arrows piercing the air and striking targets echoed across the wilderness.

After shooting ten arrows in a row, all of them hit the target, with five of them hitting the bullseye.

He Meng stood behind Xie Xuan, his mouth slightly open, forgetting to close it. Although his archery skills were not bad, he could not be considered a master, and he was no match for Lord Xie Xuan.

Xie Xuan was a master archer. He could hit the target eight or nine times out of ten, and usually about four of his arrows hit the bullseye. He was no less skilled than the elite archers in the army who specialized in archery.

Liang Shanbo's archery skills, as he is currently demonstrating, are even better than Xie Xuan's.

Xie Xuan let out a long sigh of relief, turned to look at Meng Wenlang, and couldn't help but exclaim, "This disciple of yours is truly a pleasant surprise! I've never seen anyone so accomplished in both literature and martial arts!"

When Liang Shanbo walked up to him, he looked at Liang Shanbo and solemnly said, "I will grant your request now. In the future, you may ask me for a favor. If I deem it within my power, I will do it for you. If I find it difficult, I will not help you."

He paused, then added, "This is a gentleman's promise."

Liang Shanbo bowed deeply and said, "Shanbo respectfully thanks you, sir."

He straightened up, his gaze meeting Xie Xuan's, before they looked away.

He still didn't say what that "inconvenient to say" request was.

But Xie Xuan's promise has been made, and that is enough.

On the way back to Jinglu from the wilderness, Xie Xuan and Meng Wenlang walked side by side in front, while Liang Shanbo followed behind Meng Wenlang, half a step behind.

As Xie Xuan walked, he suddenly turned to Meng Wenlang and said, "It has been several years since I last played a game of Go with Mr. Meng. Today is a rare opportunity. May I invite you to join me at Zhuyun Villa for a game? Lord Zhu has prepared a banquet at Zhuyun Villa today and also invites you to join us."

Meng Wenlang's heart stirred.

-

"Pure talk" is speaking, a verbal exchange. "Hand talk" is like playing chess, a strategy game on the board.

He knew Xie Xuan's chess skills; they were already quite good back then, and Xie Xuan was considered one of the best among the younger generation. Now, several years later, Xie Xuan's chess skills must have improved even more.

He thought of Liang Shanbo.

This disciple's chess skills surpassed his own last month. If Liang Shanbo were to play a game against Xie Xuan today, given Liang Shanbo's current skill level, he might not necessarily lose.

But after a moment's thought, he gently suppressed the idea. Today, Liang Shanbo's performance in philosophical discussions, poetry writing, military strategy, wrestling, and archery had already greatly shocked Xie Xuan. He exclaimed in admiration several times, even gifting him his sword, and finally granting the unspoken request.

That's enough.

A sixteen-year-old boy from a poor family was skilled in literature, poetry, and military strategy; he could wrestle with He Meng and was better at archery than Xie Xuan. This was enough to convince Xie Xuan.

If Xie Xuan were to learn that Liang Shanbo's chess skills were also quite remarkable, and that he had only been learning chess for a little over half a year, Xie Xuan might even begin to doubt that this young man was no ordinary person.

Meng Wenlang understood the saying, "Too much is as bad as too little."

Thinking of this, Meng Wenlang smiled and simply said, "Alright. I was just about to play chess with Youdu, today is a good day."

As they talked, they unknowingly returned to the gate of Jinglu.

Ah Qi was standing outside the door. She had been sent out by Xie Daoyun and had been waiting here ever since.

Seeing Xie Xuan, Meng Wenlang, and Liang Shanbo approaching, she bowed to Xie Xuan and then quickly walked into the quiet house.

Wang Ningzhi had repeatedly instructed her that she must keep an eye on Xie Daoyun whenever a man appeared near her.

When Liang Shanbo followed Xie Xuan and Meng Wenlang into the quiet cottage, the blue silk curtain was still hanging there, and in a corner of the cottage, Xie Daoyun was still sitting behind the curtain.

Xie Daoyun's voice came from behind the tent, clear and gentle as ever: "Jie, how did the wrestling and archery tests go?"

Xie Xuan recounted the events of the previous day, stating that Liang Shanbo had defeated He Meng in the wrestling match, and that his archery skills were superb, hitting the bullseye five times out of ten, a feat that would be considered excellent even among the elite archers in the army. He made no attempt to conceal his admiration for Liang Shanbo.

After listening, Xie Daoyun remained silent for a moment.

She was truly astonished, never expecting that Liang Shanbo's martial arts skills were so extraordinary, that his archery skills surpassed Xie Xuan's, and that his wrestling skills were even better than He Meng's.

She had just made a decision: if Liang Shanbo was indeed skilled in wrestling and archery, she would give him the "pine and cypress" letter.

Now it seems that this decision can be fulfilled.

He didn't give her a reason for not giving it to him.

Her clear voice came from behind the curtain again, her tone more relaxed than before: "Jie, you just gave him a sword. I was thinking that I should also give him something, since I questioned him today."

She deliberately made her tone calm, as if recounting an ordinary event: "I just wrote a note with the four characters 'The grace of pine and cypress' on it, and I'll give it to him. What this young man did today is worthy of those four characters."

Xie Xuan was slightly taken aback, feeling somewhat surprised.

Aqi stood behind the tent, her brows furrowed, not daring to say anything. However, Xie Daoyun had given a calligraphy to a stranger today, and she would have to report this to Wang Ningzhi when she returned to the Wang family.

Qingxiao gracefully emerged from behind the curtain, holding a piece of paper in her hands. She walked up to Liang Shanbo, presented the paper with both hands, and bowed slightly, displaying impeccable manners.

Liang Shanbo accepted it with both hands and looked down at it. It was a light blue sheet of paper with four characters written in running script: "The posture of pine and cypress".

The grace of pine and cypress!

This was Xie Daoyun's assessment of him.

Pine and cypress trees remain evergreen through winter, defying wind and snow without changing their color; they are the trees of a virtuous person, the trees of steadfastness.

She said he had the bearing of a pine or cypress, meaning that although he came from humble origins, he possessed the character and integrity of a pine or cypress.

This was no ordinary compliment; it was a talented woman from a prominent family telling him in a solemn way: I see your potential.

He held the green letter in his hands and bowed to the blue silk curtain: "Shanbo is deeply grateful for Madam's generous gift. I am ashamed to accept such praise. From now on, I will strive to live up to this and dare not fail Madam's expectations."

Behind the curtain, Xie Daoyun nodded slightly and said nothing more.

Thus, today Xie Xuan presented a sword, which is called "Waiting for the Time Sword"; Xie Daoyun presented a letter, which reads "The Grace of Pine and Cypress".

A sword is a token, a promise for the future; a note is a comment, a praise for integrity.

Sword and letter, one strong and one gentle, one martial and one literary, perfectly complement each other in today's examination.