He Lan Tianxia

Well, I was just worried about who would handle the matter at Anqiao Temple. It's even better since the county magistrate is willing to take charge.

Prince Murong and his wife were taken away inexplicably, leaving a group of onlookers discussing the matter.

Upon arriving at the yamen, the county magistrate was sitting at his desk when Murong Junlan and Yan'er walked in on their own.

"You audacious scoundrel, why don't you kneel before me?" The county magistrate slammed his gavel.

Murong Junlan stood majestically in the hall, staring straight at the county magistrate, and slowly uttered a few words: "You are not worthy."

"Oh dear!" the county magistrate cried out in anger. "How dare you, a county official, not kneel before me? Guards!" The county magistrate was furious.

"If you don't get down to business and just spout nonsense, believe me, I'll tear down your courtroom."

"Oh, you look down on me? If I don't teach you a lesson, you'll really think you're the boss." The magistrate beckoned the constables in.

Looking at the group of young constables, Murong Junlan asked Yan'er beside him, "My beloved consort, would you like to practice your skills?"

"Me?" Yan'er hadn't reacted yet.

"What? You're scared?" Murong Junlan looked at his bound body. "I don't think it's convenient for me to play with them."

"Your Highness, I'm not very good at fighting, and I don't want to hurt innocent people." Yan'er felt that this was indeed the case.

“That’s easy.” Murong Junlan turned to the county magistrate and said, “Sir, how about this, we have a competition. If you win, you can do whatever you want with us. If we win, you have to untie me yourself, and you have to let me…love…her be the county magistrate for a few days. Do you agree?”

"Me, the county magistrate?" Yan'er exclaimed in surprise.

The magistrate slammed his gavel: "You audacious scoundrels! Guards, give them each twenty strokes of the cane!"

"Majestic!" The constable brandished his baton in a show of force, but no one dared to approach, after all, Murong Junlan's aura was too overwhelming.

The magistrate was furious and ordered, "Get them!"

Led by the head constable, the constables surrounded Murong Junlan and his companion with sticks in hand. The head constable shouted "Kill!" and charged forward with his sticks.

Yan'er took two steps back and hid in Murong Junlan's arms. Murong Junlan was still tied up. Seeing this, the head constable was amused. He rushed forward and raised his stick to strike the two of them...

"Ah, ah, ah, ah..." The constables scattered and fled, abandoning their sticks. But what about the head constable? He stood there frozen in terror, holding the large wooden stick in both hands, his mouth agape, speechless.

Murong Junlan seemed to have not moved at all. Only he knew that he had picked up a few pebbles on his way here and had just thrown them out. The constable was held in place by Murong Junlan's two hands.

The magistrate, seeing this, realized the situation was dire and knew that fleeing was the best course of action. He turned to hide through the back door.

"Where are you going?" Murong Junlan gently pushed the constable's stick to the ground, and then hit the magistrate's ear with a pebble in his hand.

Ouch! The magistrate collapsed to the ground with a thud, too weak to even cry for help.

"Well, sir, could my wife sit in that position for a few days?"

The magistrate tried to get up several times but failed. Finally, he simply sat on the ground, panting heavily, and agreed: "Okay, you can sit for as long as you want."

The magistrate thought to himself, "Sit here as long as you like. These two seem to be even more powerful than that monk who came last time. Do whatever you want, I'll just pack my bags and retire to my hometown, okay?"

"You—come here and untie me."

The magistrate tried to get up several times but couldn't. He kept wiping the sweat rolling down his forehead with his sleeve. Only then did he remember the head constable, so he shouted, "You dog, why don't you come and help me up?"

The head constable, being a martial arts practitioner, didn't flinch when his stick fell. He immediately rushed over to help the magistrate up, and then heard him give his orders:

"Help me over there and untie this gentleman."

The head constable helped the magistrate to Murong Junlan's side. The magistrate nervously tried to untie Murong Junlan, but because his hands were shaking so badly, he couldn't untie him no matter how many times he tried.

Yan'er suggested, "Let me do it."

Murong Junlan declined, saying, "No need."

When the magistrate reached out again, Murong Junlan took a light breath, and the thick ropes binding him snapped with a "crack," startling both the constable and the magistrate to the ground.

To their astonishment, Murong Junlan turned and softly asked his beloved concubine if she would like to experience being a county magistrate for a few days. Seeing Yan'er shake her head, he then addressed the magistrate again:

"Sit back down."

The head constable helped the magistrate back to the trial table. This time, the magistrate dared not utter a sound. He first ordered the constables to bring over two grand chairs so that the two imposing figures could sit down. Then, he kept his eyes fixed on Murong Junlan, waiting for his mission.

Murong Junlan took a sip of the tea the constable brought him before slowly saying:

"Withdraw the arrest warrant for me. Order a city-wide manhunt for the abbot of Dark Wood Temple." He paused, then added:

"Post a notice that any family with a boy under the age of fifteen who is willing to learn martial arts can come to Anqiao Temple to learn martial arts for free. Those who are willing to stay will be rewarded separately. No one will be forced to become a monk."

After instructing Murong Junlan to return in three days, he took his princess out for a stroll. Before leaving, he asked the county magistrate for a dozen taels of silver for protection, so he wouldn't have to perform on the street for a bowl of noodles later.

The magistrate immediately took out a gold ingot and offered it to Murong Junlan, but Murong Junlan refused. He wasn't a robber, so why would he need gold?

The two wandered aimlessly when suddenly, drums and gongs began to beat loudly in the open space ahead. Looking around, they saw a platform hastily erected with wooden planks, and a banner hanging in front of it read: "Martial Arts Contest to Find a Bride."

On the stage, a woman dressed in short clothes was bowing with her hands clasped in front of her.

"Fellow villagers, I am Hong Xiuying. In order to find a suitable husband, I have specially held a martial arts contest here today. If any hero takes a fancy to me, you are welcome to come up on stage and compete with me."

After he finished speaking, a murmur of surprise and restless voices rose from the audience. A moment later, a short, dark-skinned, burly man walked onto the stage. He laughed at the woman and said arrogantly, "My lady, your husband has been waiting for you for a long time, but I will show you mercy and be gentle with you."

Hong Xiuying had no intention of being polite to such a frivolous person; she attacked without a word. The burly man was clearly a martial artist as well. After several dozen moves, Hong Xiuying feigned defeat and tried to fall to the ground. The burly man reached out to grab her, but Hong Xiuying deftly sprang to her feet, kicking away his hand and simultaneously striking him in the abdomen. The burly man couldn't dodge in time and was struck, falling off the stage in pain. Clutching his stomach, he cursed Hong Xiuying as a shrew; the kick would likely leave him unable to perform sexually for a while.

The second person to come on stage was a refined young man, holding a fan. He practiced Tai Chi fan, but his movements were neither soft nor gentle. Compared to Hong Xiuying, he seemed even more effeminate. After several dozen rounds, he was forced to abandon his fan and leave the stage.

The third, fourth, fifth... were all knocked off the stage, and someone in the audience shouted, "So good at fighting, does she want to get married?"

"Yeah, who would dare to marry her? If they argue, you might accidentally knock your head off somewhere."

"What's a head? If I beat up your ancestors for eight generations, how will you continue your family line?"

"That's not necessarily true. Maybe this woman is quite skilled in that area?"

"How do you know? You haven't even tried it."

"I haven't tried it, but have you?"

……

All sorts of foul language were used. Hong Xiuying pretended not to hear it; a woman of the underworld had seen it all. She bowed slightly and said loudly:

"The young woman has taken a fancy to someone. I wonder if this gentleman would like to come up on stage and compete with her?"

After saying that, Hong Xiuying threw a small embroidered ball at Murong Junlan.

Murong Junlan tried to dodge, but Yan'er reached out and caught it. She handed the embroidered ball to Murong Junlan and teased, "Your Highness, Miss Hong Xiuying on the stage has taken a liking to you."

Murong Junlan was momentarily embarrassed. He pushed the embroidered ball away and hurriedly said, "Throw it away."

"Throw it?" Yan'er suddenly became playful. She blinked and smiled mischievously at Murong Junlan. "Your Highness, someone threw a bridal ball and hit you. If you don't go, I'll go up."

Murong Junlan grew anxious: "What are you doing up there, a girl like you?"

Yan'er waved the embroidered ball in her hand: "A martial arts contest to choose a husband."

"Oh dear, my beloved concubine, don't get involved in this. Let's go quickly." Murong Junlan pulled Yan'er and turned to leave.

"What, does this gentleman not even have the courage to go on stage? It seems I threw my embroidered ball at the wrong person."

The people below the stage started to jeer, and all their eyes turned to Murong Junlan. Some people began to whisper among themselves.

"So what if you're so good-looking? You're just a pretty face."

"Are you just jealous of other people's good looks? If you had a daughter, you might have already come to steal her away."

"Didn't you see? There's a pretty girl standing next to him. She's probably already married and her kids might be old enough to run errands by now."

"Oh dear, once you marry, you can't marry another one. It's perfectly normal for a man to have three wives and four concubines."

"Shh, his wife is listening. They might fight to the death when they get back."

"I think that lady is so beautiful. The skin of the woman on stage doesn't even look as good as hers."

Yan'er suddenly shouted, "I'm going up there! If I lose, you have to marry Miss Hong right away!" After saying that, Yan'er ran up to the martial arts contest stage, and Murong Junlan couldn't stop her.