Liang Xiong never expected that as soon as Li Wanming opened her mouth, she would demand, "Kneel down, pour tea, and admit your mistake!"
Was she going this far...
How could this Princess of the Heir Apparent seem so vulgar? Instead of a gentlewoman from a noble family, she was more like a rowdy tough - guy.
Moreover, asking the Princess of the Heir Apparent to kneel down and pour tea for him? Was he crazy?
Liang Xiong instinctively looked at the Prince of Ning.
When Xiao Jingnan joined the army in the southern border back then, Liang Xiong had already been transferred to the northwestern border. So he didn't know Xiao Jingnan, but he did recognize the then - Commander - in - Chief of the southern border, the Prince of Ning.
The Prince of Ning was just standing under the veranda, stroking his beard in silence.
His calm and composed look seemed as if he was just waiting to watch the show.
This meant that he would do nothing and just let the Princess of the Heir Apparent and them have this bet?
Fine...
Since that was the case, don't blame them for being merciless!
No matter how delicate the Wind - Leaf Pot was, it was still just a variation of the pot - throwing game.
The soldiers under his command were all elites in the army, capable of hitting a target a hundred miles away. How could they be stumped by this small long - necked vase?
Liang Xiong burst into laughter twice. "I didn't expect Miss Cheng to be so bold and straightforward at such a young age! Alright, I'll let my Yan - Yun Cavalry play with you!"
He raised his hand, and immediately three young junior officers stepped forward from behind him.
"Just as you said, each person gets five reeds. If you can beat any one of them... I'll also kneel down and pour tea for you!"
Hearing this, Xiao Jingnan no longer objected. He just smiled and silently took two steps back, as if he was afraid that Liang Xiong's blood would splash on him later...
Liang Xiong didn't know who Li Wanming was, but Xiao Jingnan did very well.
His wife was the kind of fierce person who had stripped half of the young ladies in the capital!
Although pot - throwing was an elegant game, it was still a gambling game after all.
As long as it had something to do with "playing" or "gambling", he had never seen Li Wanming lose!
So it was obvious even to a fool that this General Liang was going to be in big trouble...
On the contrary, Li Rusong was sweating nervously. "Oh, it's just a pot - throwing game. Why be so serious? General Liang, my daughter is just a child who doesn't know any better and is just talking nonsense. Please don't take it to heart..."
He wasn't afraid that Li Wanming would lose, but that Liang Xiong would end up looking bad.
Back in Min Province, Li Wanming had been undefeated in all the gambling houses. If her mother hadn't finally chased her home with a stick, she might have made all the gambling - house owners in Min Province go bankrupt!
Liang Xiong had said that if he lost, he would kneel down and pour tea...
He was probably going to knock his head off!
General Yunhui was a third - rank official, barely his superior, and also a favorite subordinate of General Feng. How could he let such a person kneel and kowtow to Li Wanming...
This girl was really out of control once she got into the mood to play!
Why make such a big bet for no reason?
But Liang Xiong didn't understand his meaning. Seeing him trying to stop, he thought Li Rusong was afraid that his daughter would lose face if she lost.
So he patted Li Rusong on the shoulder and said arrogantly with a laugh, "General Li, don't be in a hurry. Even if your daughter really loses, I won't make her kowtow. At most, I'll just let her offer me a cup of tea. Maybe she can even worship me as her master! Hahaha..."
He thought that after years of military service, he had some prestige. It wouldn't be overstepping for the Princess of the Heir Apparent to be his apprentice.
Moreover, this young girl was calm and composed in the face of their group of fierce military generals. She was quite courageous... He actually had a bit of an urge to take her as his apprentice.
After hearing his words, Li Wanming raised her eyebrows slightly and asked curiously, "Then if the Yan - Yun Cavalry loses, will you, General Liang, worship me as your master?"
Well!
This girl was really gutsy!
Liang Xiong patted his chest and said boldly, "Of course! If any one of them loses to you, I'll offer you tea and call you master!"
...
It was over.
Li Rusong covered his face.
General Liang was doomed today...
A strange light flashed in Li Wanming's eyes. "A promise?"
Liang Xiong replied, "Is irrevocable!"
He didn't notice that both Xiao Jingnan and the Prince of Ning were looking pity - stricken and silently took two more steps back.
Li Wanming stood in front of the reeds. "Shall I go first?"
Liang Xiong made a gesture of invitation. "Please..."
As soon as he finished speaking, Li Wanming casually picked up the long reed on the table.
Without showing any obvious effort, she threw out one reed after another in quick succession!
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh...
Li Wanming had a faint smile on her lips and was calm and composed, but her hands never stopped.
In a short while, all five light reed poles had been steadily inserted into the long - necked vase on the willow branch!
Liang Xiong was stunned.
Was it that fast...
He didn't even see how Li Wanming made her moves.
It was... already over?
She didn't even seem to aim...
Li Wanming clapped her hands. "It's your turn!"
The three junior officers looked at each other.
Just now, they were full of confidence, thinking that with five reeds, they could surely hit three or four. Winning should have been a piece of cake...
Who would have thought that Li Wanming had hit all five while walking casually!
This put a lot of pressure on them!
Liang Xiong had boasted too much just now. He had said that as long as Li Wanming could beat any one of them, she would win.
Now, even if they hit all five, they could at most draw with her!
The three junior officers couldn't help but feel their scalps go numb.
Li Wanming slowly paced to one side, sat down, and poured herself a cup of tea. Then, to make them even more annoyed, she said, "Oh, don't be nervous, Generals. If you can draw with me, you win."
Liang Xiong immediately felt angry.
He had fought his way through mountains of corpses and seas of blood. How could he be afraid of a young girl?
He pushed the three junior officers aside.
"Get out of my way!"
"I'll throw at the Wind - Leaf Pot myself!"
He just didn't believe that this thing could be that difficult!
After saying that, Liang Xiong picked up a reed pole.
It was only when the reed pole was in his hand that he realized the Wind - Leaf Pot might be more difficult than he had imagined.
The reed pole was so light, like a feather.
It was almost impossible to throw a feather three zhang away and accurately insert it into the vase.
But he had already boasted, so he couldn't just admit that he couldn't do it now...
Sweat oozed from Liang Xiong's palms.
He aimed for a long time and finally threw the long pole.
Coincidentally, a gust of wind blew, blowing the long pole to one side... making it even farther from the vase.
He missed...
According to the bet with Li Wanming, he had already lost.
Liang Xiong's face burned.
Red bloodshot eyes appeared in his eyes. He grabbed the reed poles on the table and threw them one after another without any regard!
In a blink of an eye, he had thrown out more than twenty poles...
Not a single one hit.
Liang Xiong's face turned from red to white. Beads of sweat as big as soybeans appeared on his forehead. He gritted his teeth, and his whole body couldn't help but tremble slightly.
It was only then that Li Wanming realized that she might have gone too far with her joke.
Although Liang Xiong was only in his early thirties, he had been in the military for half his life and had a higher official rank than her father. She couldn't really make him worship her as his master...
Moreover, the Wind - Leaf Pot looked difficult, but in fact, there was a trick to it.
Just now, when no one was looking, Li Wanming had dipped the reed poles in the wine on the table. With the slight weight of the wine, she was able to hit all of them...
Nine out of ten gambling games involve cheating.
This was a truth she had learned in the gambling houses in Min Province.
But using this trick to beat General Yunhui was really unworthy of victory.
"Actually, I don't really count as winning..."
Li Wanming said awkwardly. Just as she was about to reveal this little trick, she saw Liang Xiong suddenly turn around, lift the hem of his clothes, and kneel down in front of her. He kowtowed three times with a thud.
"Your subordinate, Liang Xiong, pays respects to Master!"