Li.
Is this Xuanyuan Li?
If Xuanyuan Li were still alive, he should be about the same age as the king.
This must be a portrait from his youth.
Why does it feel so familiar, as if I’ve seen it somewhere before?
Is it the teardrop-shaped mole? Xiao Hen has one too.
Or is it the Red-Tasseled Spear in his hand?
"This is Xuanyuan Li, the former head of the Xuanyuan Family," Ye Qing, seeing her transfixed by the portrait, kindly introduced it to her.
In Yan Country, the Xuanyuan Family is a taboo subject shrouded in great secrecy, and only someone like Ye Qing, who is the leading disciple of the National Master Hall, could have the audacity to bring it up.
Gu Jiao looked at the portrait for a while longer, carefully put it away, and then opened another one.
This time, she checked the name first, Xuanyuan Sheng.
It was also a youthful portrait, he appeared to be in his early twenties.
He wore silver armor and wielded a Red-Tasseled Spear, bearing a strong resemblance to Xuanyuan Li, exceedingly valiant, with a cinnabar mole between his eyebrows.
If he were to shed his battle armor, he would surely be a handsome young master with a demeanor as radiant as jade.
Watching the portrait, Ye Qing said, "Xuanyuan Sheng was often sick and weak as a child, and because of the cinnabar mole between his eyebrows, he was often laughed at by other young masters as a small girl. Afterward, he trained relentlessly in martial arts with his father, striving to become stronger, and finally he became a great general capable of continuing the legendary saga of the war god Xuanyuan Li."
Gu Jiao remarked with sentiment, "There’s actually such an anecdote."
The man in the portrait had a tall stature, fierce eyes, and an aura of command and conquer; who could have guessed he had such an experience as a child?
The third portrait opened by Gu Jiao depicted the Empress of the Xuanyuan royal family before she left her family for marriage, with the name Xuanyuan Hanyang written below.
It showed her playing polo on horseback, exuding the air of a fierce and valiant daughter from a general’s house.
Her appearance was extremely beautiful.
Shangguan Yun bore a striking resemblance to her, especially with those phoenix eyes.
Looking at it this way, Xiao Hen also looks quite similar to her.
The fourth portrait Gu Jiao opened was of another lady from the Xuanyuan Family, named Xuanyuan Zu.
"Who is she?" Gu Jiao asked Ye Qing.
Ye Qing replied with a pleasant expression, "Xuanyuan Zu, the legitimate eldest daughter of Xuanyuan Li’s family, the biological sister of Xuanyuan Sheng, and later on, she became the consort of Prince Jing."
Gu Jiao was puzzled, "Consort... of the prince?"
Seeing that the two disciples remained still, Gu Jiao realized it probably wasn’t appropriate for her to help, so she stayed put.
But the disciple was so flurried that the portraits he had just picked up fell again, and as he scrambled to grab them, he nearly tumbled down the stairs.
Ye Qing was also thrown into disarray by his actions.
A scroll rolled to Gu Jiao’s feet, she stooped to pick it up, and without unrolling it, walked over to hand it to them, "Here."
Ye Qing received it, "Thank you."
Several scrolls had unfurled on the ground, but without paying special attention, Gu Jiao turned to leave.
However, out of the corner of her eye, she inadvertently caught a glimpse of one of the portraits.
Her first instinct was to continue on her way, but her second impulse abruptly stopped her.
This time, she openly gazed at that portrait, and the disciple quickly rolled it up and put it away.
He repeatedly apologized, "I’m sorry, Big Brother."
Ye Qing responded forgivingly, "It’s fine, just be more careful next time."
Feeling grateful, he said, "Yes, well, Big Brother, I’m going now."
Ye Qing nodded, "Go ahead."
The disciple, holding a heap of books and portraits, descended to the second floor.
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