Chapter 1690 - 1683: Following Chu Jinling’s Sisi
Chapter 1690: Chapter 1683: Following Chu Jinling’s Sisi
He had originally just wanted to teach Leng Muling a lesson, but now it seemed, this young girl dared to ride on his head and teach him a lesson?
Chu Jinling hadn’t been with Chu Heng for several days now. Wandering the streets, he appeared lost and soul-crushed, even wanting to grab someone and ask, "Have you seen my Sisi?"
He felt as though he could sense Sisi. She was nearby—still lingering in Jiang Du City.
Lin Sisi had been following him for several days as well. Watching his dejected demeanor made her feel indescribably uncomfortable.
Saint Ruan, wearing a straw hat, accompanied Lin Sisi by her side. After observing this situation for days, he couldn’t hold back anymore, "Aren’t you all ridiculous? One is desperately searching, and the other desperately hiding!"
"You’re not even a zhang apart, yet you must sneak around and watch?"
"General Lin, do women warriors in the military all have some bizarre obsession with ambushing enemies?"
The man was beyond exasperated!
"Not at all!" Lin Sisi, masked and heavily veiled under a gauze hat, was tightly wrapped up. Her speech wasn’t fluent, so she had to supplement her words with gestures,
"I’m so hideous right now—I’ll terrify him. Besides, you said I might not survive much longer. I fear that if Jinling sees me, he’ll be heartbroken!"
If she could live a long and peaceful life, she would surely rush into Chu Jinling’s embrace and earnestly do everything a couple ought to do!
But with her current ghastly appearance, even she was frightened looking at her reflection in the mirror. A three-year-old child would probably have nightmares upon seeing her—how could she go scaring Jinling?
Furthermore, returning to his side would just kindle hope in him.
If she couldn’t live for two more years and had to pass away, why give him that hope only to snatch it away again?
Giving hope, then destroying it—how deeply would that wound Jinling?
She couldn’t bear to.
"But didn’t you struggle to survive exactly because of him?" Saint Ruan disdainfully picked his nose.
"The youth these days—so much drama!"
Even if they could only be together for one or two years, isn’t that time still meaningful?
Why must they be so restrained, fearing this and fearing that!
Lin Sisi had no way to explain herself to Saint Ruan. She was also just a young girl, fearful of horrifying the man she loved dearly.
She continued trailing Chu Jinling, watching him stroll around the streets and then attend an imperial martial arts talent selection tournament.
The Great Cheng Dynasty held annual martial arts assessments, which the court placed heavy emphasis on, using them to cultivate skilled individuals. Starting last year, a separate contest for women had been introduced.
This initiative had been tailored three years ago to her specifications by Chu Yihan, and implemented nationwide. Now, it had reached its final stages.
When the women’s martial arts contest was first introduced, it faced tremendous difficulties. After all, girls who had been trained in martial arts since childhood were rare, and families willing to allow daughters to participate were even rarer.
At first, no suitable talents were being discovered at all.
But her father, Lin Aotian, had strongly supported it, sending all the martial-trained women of the Lin clan onto the competition stage and even leading them to the military camp to fight against men, letting them prove themselves in combat.
Women who could best men were granted rewards and promised future opportunities to join the army if they passed the assessments.
The Great Cheng Dynasty placed importance on both civil and martial achievements, while the society had become more progressive in recent years. The populace admired the empress greatly, and women inspired by her—empowered and brave—were eager to serve their country.
Now, three years later, a commendable batch of skilled young women had finally emerged.
Lin Sisi still remembered the first time she participated, witnessing a woman on stage defeat three men in succession with one move.
It had filled her with excitement and reverence.
Following Chu Jinling today to watch, she felt happier by the minute.
The martial arts assessments today were being overseen by Ye Hongru, a military official transferred to Jiang Du City.
He had opted to stay in Jiang Du rather than return to guard the border, choosing instead to work alongside Lin Aotian to advocate for the women’s martial arts tournament.
At the moment, the third round was underway.
On stage, a young man and woman were pitted against each other. Both were youthful, but the man was tall and robust, towering over the girl by almost half a body’s length. Dressed in a black combat outfit, the girl had been dominated by the man’s overpowering strength from the beginning, falling into disadvantage.
Lin Sisi clung to a pillar, clenched her fists, and whispered, "Don’t confront him head-on! His lower body—attack his lower body, make him lose balance, then use his force against him! Hit him!"
The girl on stage didn’t hear Lin Sisi’s advice and fought independently. In this round, she lost to the man.
Lin Sisi sighed, knowing that failing the first round would likely lead to poor performance in the subsequent two rounds.
Sure enough, Lin Yu lost again, suffering defeats in all three bouts.
She was one of the top three competitors in the women’s contest, yet she couldn’t win a single match against a man ranked only 20th in the men’s tournament. The failure of the women’s martial arts selection process would undoubtedly face even greater criticism.
On the judges’ stand, Lin Aotian and Ye Hongru wore somber expressions.
After Lin Aotian announced the results, Ye Hongru stepped down to console Lin Yu.
Lin Yu, injured and clutching her chest, descended from the stage with a pale face, blood staining her lips as she choked and coughed heavily.
Ye Hongru brought her a bowl of healing medicine and handed her some golden wound medicine he carried with him. "Don’t lose hope—take care to recover. There’s always a disparity in martial arts prowess between men and women, but you’ve already accomplished a great deal."
Lin Yu’s disheveled hair framed her weary face. "There won’t be another chance. I’ve trained for seven years, yet I’ve reached this point and still can’t beat the men in the military. How can I possibly join the army?"
Her desire to protect her country and achieve glory—all dashed by a single blow in the match!
Despite Ye Hongru’s prolonged counsel and kind reassurance, Lin Yu was resolute in her decision to leave, not even swayed when Lin Aotian personally tried to persuade her.
Eventually, Ye Hongru ground his teeth in frustration. "Lin Yu, walking away like this, you shouldn’t say you admire General Lin ever again—you’re unworthy!"
Lin Yu halted her steps, turned around, and angrily wiped the blood from her mouth. Charging toward Ye Hongru, she snapped, "What gives you the right to say that about me?
I’ve participated in martial arts contests because I aspire to be like General Lin, a female general of the Great Cheng Dynasty, serving the country as she does!
I’ve persevered through these three years—I’ve already put forth my best effort!"
"Your best effort? After today, there’s still the final imperial selection test and the direct evaluation of the Crown Prince—how can you claim you have no chance?
Are you scared, or do you lack so much confidence that you can’t handle even a single setback?"
Ye Hongru shouted at her, devoid of any sentimentality.
In his eyes, martial women should embody resilience and courage, bold and dignified, standing tall and proud—just like Lin Sisi.
But this Lin Yu? She was far too disappointing!
"You... Ye Hongru, don’t think that just because you’re a general, I won’t dare curse you!" Lin Yu’s patience snapped, her eyes turning red with anger.
But unlike Ye Hongru, who grew fiercer as their exchange intensified, Lin Yu faltered as she spoke, her voice weakening until she seemed on the verge of tears.
"Ye General."
Chu Jinling’s warm, mellow voice interjected.
Clad in a white embroidered robe, his gentle and elegant demeanor exuded as he approached Ye Hongru.