Noble Son-in-Law - Chapter 40

Chapter 40

‘It seems the men in the grassland have a real love for wine.’Shen Qingqing kept watching how the grassland leaders kept raising their glasses to toast Li Zhi.

They weren’t purposefully picking on him. They couldn’t force Emperor Qingde to drink, and the civil officials from Great Zhou looked a bit frail. As for the military officials, Li Zhi was the top dog, so they had to show him extra respect. Plus, with a wife as stunning as his, who could blame him for enjoying a few extra drinks?

With all the leaders cheering him on, Li Zhi accepted the drinks and kept downing cup after cup.

Surrounded by a bunch of big, burly guys from the grassland, he stood out as surprisingly elegant and slender.

Seeing that, Shen Qingqing couldn’t help but frown. ‘If another official took Li Zhi’s place, it would be a pretty awkward situation.’ She understood the pressure Li Zhi was under. As the head of the military, he had to prioritise the court’s dignity, even if it meant drinking to the point of feeling sick.

Watching Li Zhi’s usual gentle smile, as if the wine didn’t bother him at all, Shen Qingqing bit her lip and looked down.

She couldn’t take it anymore.

Noble Concubine Chun noticed her sister-in-law’s worried expression and smiled softly. ‘When a woman starts worrying about a man, it usually means he’s made a mark on her heart.’

“Your Majesty, I’ve heard there are eighteen types of martial arts in the Central Plains. We from the grasslands really enjoy martial arts and have even trained to learn some of the Central Plains styles. Five of us have gotten pretty good with the knife, spear, sword, stick, and whip. I was wondering if we could learn from the heroes you brought along. We’d love to experience the strength of Central Plains martial arts.”

Han Kai, the leader of the Kelun tribe, suddenly set down his large bowl and spoke up to Emperor Qingde.

Emperor Qingde smiled back.

The Kelun tribe was the largest in the grasslands right now. They had recently attempted to combine other tribes with them to establish themselves as the dominant force in the area. This was the main reason that Emperor Qingde travelled to Rehe to enforce his authority over Han Kai, but he had not expected Han Kai to challenge him first.

“Because the Chanyu is so eager, Marquis Pingxi, please select five soldiers skilled with those weapons. We’ll show the Chanyu our Central Plains martial arts,” Emperor Qingde replied, appearing relaxed and cheerful.

[“Chanyu” meaning—supreme ruler]

Li Zhi rose and responded, “I will obey your orders.”

He walked back and exited the hall. Despite having had a lot to drink, he kept a calm demeanour and strolled confidently.

Shen Qingqing let out a sigh of relief. ‘If Li Zhi got drunk here, it would have embarrassed him. And Emperor Qingde might blame him for tarnishing the Central Plains’ reputation.’

Half an hour later, everyone took a quick break before heading to the martial arts training ground.

Han Kai has assembled five powerful men for the competition. Shen Qingqing took a look and became uneasy. It was because the five imperial guards standing behind Li Zhi were tall and muscular, but they lacked the ruggedness of the grassland men.

‘Li Zhi, can you win?’

Shen Qingqing tightly clutched her handkerchief. ‘If he lost, he’d have to face Emperor Qingde’s anger because Li Zhi has selected these guards personally.’

With a loud gong, the competition started.

The first match was a sword duel. The burly grassland fighter was powerful. Even though the Great Zhou generals had impressive sword skills, they just couldn’t match his power. Their swords were easily knocked away, leading to some pretty embarrassing defeats.

After the first round, Han Kai burst into laughter. 

Emperor Qingde, however, was surprisingly calm. Instead of getting upset, he smiled and praised the grassland warrior.

Next up was spear fighting. This required more finesse, and while the grassland guy had the strength, he lacked the quickness. The Great Zhou general seized the moment and landed a hit right in his throat.

The Chanyu, Han Kai, didn’t seem too pleased about that.

Emperor Qingde simply smiled and made a comment, showing none of the arrogance that Han Kai had.

In the following three matches involving sword, stick, and whip, the Great Zhou generals managed to win two of the sword and whip contests, ultimately taking three out of five overall.

Emperor Qingde comforted Han Kai, saying, “Our guards have trained in martial arts since childhood. The five-strong men under the Chanyu have only been practising for a few years and have achieved such skill. It is truly an honour to compete with them.”

Han Kai managed a smile and replied, “Your Majesty, you are too gracious.” He then glanced at Li Zhi, who stood across from him, and suddenly picked up a wine bowl, approaching Li Zhi with a laugh. “My Lord may appear delicate, but you were appointed as the commander of the imperial guards by the emperor. I assume your martial arts skills surpass those of the five just now, right?”

Li Zhi responded humbly, “I lack talent, but I am grateful for the emperor’s trust in appointing me as the commander of the imperial guards.”

Han Kai felt irritated by the Central Plains’ tendency towards insincerity. He glared and asked, “Regardless of your abilities, my Lord, you must excel with at least one weapon, correct?”

Li Zhi gave a wry smile. “I truly have nothing remarkable to offer. Why does the Chanyu inquire about this?”

Han Kai scoffed, “I’ve heard of your reputation for quite some time. I would like to challenge you to a duel. Will you grant me this honour?”

Li Zhi quickly replied, “The Chanyu holds me in high regard, so I would be happy to oblige. However, I must admit that I am not particularly skilled in martial arts, so feel free to choose any weapon. It won’t make much difference to me.” 

Although Li Zhi’s words emphasised that he was not such a talent, they actually revealed a great deal of confidence, suggesting that Li Zhi believed he could handle any challenge Han Kai presented.

Upon hearing Li Zhi’s words, Emperor Qingde looked serious for the first time. To be honest, he had no idea how capable Li Zhi was. He had only seen Li Zhi use a sword, and his sword moves were so exquisite that even General Huwei Guo Sheng was defeated by his sword. In addition, Li Zhi was Noble Concubine Chun’s brother, so he appointed Li Zhi as the commander of the imperial guards.

In other words, the rumours in the capital about Li Zhi relying on his sister to get promoted in the government were not wholly incorrect. 

Noble Concubine Chun was likewise concerned about her brother. She was a girl raised by her grandma. She just knew her brother had studied under a master, but she had no idea what he had learnt.

‘Han Kai is so strong.

If he really attacks ruthlessly, can Li Zhi bear it?

Li Zhi was very powerful when he bullied her at night, but Han Kai is not me…’

No matter what, Li Zhi was her nominal husband, and it would be embarrassing for her and the Shen family if he was humiliated in public.

Han Kai could sense Li Zhi’s arrogance. He looked Li Zhi up and down and sneered, “Since the Marquis said so, let’s have an arm wrestling competition!” 

Before Li Zhi could say anything, Han Kai had already sat opposite Li Zhi’s seat and slammed his elbow heavily on the table, ready to arm wrestle with Li Zhi.

Shen Qingqing: ‘…Isn’t this bullying? Li Zhi’s thigh is not as thick as Han Kai’s arm, right?’

She looked at Noble Concubine Chun anxiously, only to see that Noble Concubine Chun also frowned deeply.　

The two beautiful women were worried about him, but Li Zhi lifted his outer robe and sat down opposite Han Kai calmly. After sitting firmly, he said to Han Kai helplessly, “I have neglected martial arts recently, and I am afraid that it will be difficult to satisfy the Chanyu.”　

Han Kai didn’t want to listen to Li Zhi’s nonsense and directly put his big hand in front of Li Zhi.

Li Zhi shook his head, rolled up his sleeves, and shook hands with Han Kai.　

Both of them exposed their arms, and everyone saw that Han Kai’s arms were indeed several times thicker than Li Zhi’s.　

Han Kai showed a grim smile on his face, and he was thinking about crushing Li Zhi’s hand today!

Once the competition kicked off, Han Kai hadn’t even had a chance to show his strength when an unexpected force slammed into him from across the table. Caught off guard, he found himself pushed down by Li Zhi, just inches away from the surface!

Cold sweat broke out on Han Kai’s forehead as he struggled to counter Li Zhi’s pressure. No matter how hard he clenched his teeth and tensed his muscles, he just couldn’t budge his fist towards the centre.

He looked up, locking eyes with Li Zhi.

Veins were popping on Li Zhi’s forehead, and his handsome face was slightly flushed, clearly showing he was putting in a lot of effort.

When Han Kai met his gaze, Li Zhi managed a small smile and said as calmly as he could, “I appreciate your kindness, Chanyu, but you should really enjoy the competition. No need to hold back.”

Han Kai was taken aback by such arrogant words. ‘You b*stard! Who said I’m holding back?’

Frustrated, Han Kai couldn’t help but push back with some of his strength, bringing his fist closer to the edge of the table again.

Realising he’d fallen for Li Zhi’s trick, Han Kai quickly refocused and pushed their fists back towards the middle.

Emperor Qingde couldn’t resist getting up and moving closer, just like the other ministers.

However, the ministers intentionally left a space on the north side for the emperor’s concubines and the wife of Marquis Pingxi to watch. 

Emperor Qingde, being attentive, knew Noble Concubine Chun was concerned about her brother, so he positioned himself on Li Zhi’s side.

Li Zhi glanced over at Shen Qingqing.

When their eyes met, Shen Qingqing felt a wave of anxiety and quickly looked down.

Li Zhi looked across at Han Kai and leaned in, whispering to Emperor Qingde, “Your Majesty, could you please shift to the centre and block me? My veins are sticking out, and it looks awful. I’m concerned it may scare my wife.”

Emperor Qingde and the other ministers ended up speechless.

Han Kai was also taken aback.

‘Clearly, this b*stard couldn’t see his own veins, which he thought were so unsightly! But really, who cares about being ugly? What does “too ugly” even mean? Is he really concerned about his looks? And why would a grown man be so fixated on beauty? Is he just trying to show off how much he adores his stunning wife?’

After thinking that, Han Kai was so furious he felt like he might explode. What really pushed him over the edge was when he slammed his fist on the table with a loud bang!

He stared at the table in disbelief.

Li Zhi grinned and said, “Thanks for your kindness, Chanyu.”

Han Kai was left speechless.

When he looked up, he saw Li Zhi’s overly charming yet insincere face. ‘This arrogant b*stard! If I wouldn’t take down Li Zhi in this lifetime, I wouldn’t deserve the name Han!’

The competition wrapped up, and the banquet came to an end, but Emperor Qingde had to join the leaders from the grasslands for some horse racing in the afternoon, so Li Zhi naturally tagged along.

Meanwhile, Shen Qingqing made her way back to the courtyard she shared with Li Zhi.

After Yu Chan left, Shen Qingqing lay on the bed, wide awake. Her mind was racing with thoughts of Li Zhi’s graceful demeanour after his victory and Han Kai’s furious, flushed face.

‘How could Li Zhi possibly be stronger than Han Kai? So, it is clear that Li Zhi didn’t just ride on his sister’s coattails to achieve success; he is genuinely talented.’

Shen Qingqing absentmindedly ran her fingers over the mattress, feeling a strange mix of emotions.

Later that evening, Li Zhi had to join Emperor Qingde for dinner, so Shen Qingqing settled for a light meal before heading to bed.

It was nearly two in the morning when Li Zhi finally returned. As he stepped around the screen, a strong whiff of alcohol hit her.

Shen Qingqing, who hadn’t managed to sleep at all, was instantly jolted awake by the smell. As Li Zhi approached the gauze curtain, she quickly covered her nose and said with a hint of annoyance, “You need to shower first!”

In response, Li Zhi suddenly stumbled. His tall frame barely managed to lift the curtain before he collapsed onto Shen Qingqing. She couldn’t handle his weight and was pinned down. Just when she thought he might be getting flirty, she heard him groan, “I have a headache. Please help me, Miss Seven.”

With that, his head drooped, and he passed out beside her.

Shen Qingqing pushed herself up and was taken aback by the alarming redness of Li Zhi’s face.

End of chapter 40

Have a nice day!