Chapter 37: Blind to the Treasure Before You

It's over. Xu Yitian and Chen Guishuo both sighed inwardly. Learning that they were to be released should have let them breathe easier, but Niu Youdao's words made their hearts sink instead. There was no need to guess. Song Yanqing must have lacked even the slightest backbone and confessed everything. Otherwise, how could Niu Youdao know enough to say what he had just said? By exposing a secret like that, Song Yanqing had effectively handed Niu Youdao leverage over the Shangqing Sect. Neither man had any idea how they were supposed to explain this to Tang Susu when they returned. The humiliation might well drive her into a rage.

Yuan Gang raised his dagger and cut through the ropes binding Chen Guishuo. Then he kicked him hard in the back, sending him tumbling down the stone steps. Chen Guishuo scrambled upright and looked back. His pupils contracted sharply. Terror flooded his face. A streak of cold light had just passed across Xu Yitian's throat. Hot blood sprayed. Yuan Gang had slit Xu Yitian's neck with one stroke. Then he kicked the wide-eyed man, blood bubbling from his mouth, and sent him rolling down the steps as well. Watching Xu Yitian twitch at his feet, Chen Guishuo swallowed hard and did not dare move rashly. Niu Youdao's strength was already obvious. Chen Guishuo himself was injured. In these circumstances, running was impossible.

Niu Youdao stood with both hands resting on the sword before him, face expressionless. He did not ask why Yuan Gang had killed Xu Yitian. He did not even glance toward the movement behind him. Yuan Gang gave him an explanation anyway.

"One man is enough to carry a message back."

Niu Youdao still said nothing. His eyelids did not so much as flicker. From the moment he heard the guards describe the fighting halfway up the mountain, he had already formed a guess. He knew Monkey too well. Xu Yitian had killed that many personal guards. Monkey was never going to let him leave alive.

"Get lost!" Yuan Gang barked at Chen Guishuo below.

Chen Guishuo did not linger. The moment he received permission, he turned and hurried down the mountain. Niu Youdao remained calm. He lifted the sword in his hand, turned, and went into the temple to look around... Conditions did not permit them to carry more than thirty dead personal guards with them, nor was the present situation suitable for returning every body to its native home. Loyal bones might rest beneath any green mountain. The group chose an auspicious spot in the nearby forest, sheltered from the wind and gathering water, and dug graves there. The fallen guards were buried one by one. With so many hands working together, the task went quickly.

Some men split timber into grave markers and carved inscriptions into them before driving each marker firmly into the earth before its grave. While everyone else was busy, Shang Shuqing found the men who had witnessed the battle and questioned them again in detail. When she learned that Guan Tie had tried to persuade Yuan Gang to stay with his dying breath, she pressed further, asking carefully about Yuan Gang's actions before and after that moment. Once she had grasped the general picture, Shang Shuqing fell into thought. After all the fallen guards had been laid to rest, Shang Chaozong called Shang Shuqing over. Brother and sister poured wine, lit incense, and saw the dead off together. The incense had been taken from Nanshan Temple.

By the time the rites were complete, dusk had fallen. Everyone gradually dispersed. Those who needed to stand watch did so; the others returned to the temple to rest. In any case, the mood was heavy. They had not even reached the fief yet, and already more than thirty elite men were dead. Shang Chaozong, Lan Ruoting, and Shang Shuqing had just returned to the temple gate when a personal guard hurried over to report.

"Your Highness, Yuan Gang went to the brothers' graves."

Shang Chaozong nodded without thinking much of it and was about to enter the temple when Shang Shuqing said, "Brother, I'm going back to the graves."

Shang Chaozong turned his head and sighed. "So many brothers died. Everyone feels terrible. Some things only need to be remembered in the heart. Thinking about how to provide for their families is more useful than making a show of grief. They're all old brothers. Everyone understands. We don't need that sort of ceremony among ourselves. Besides, we don't know this area well. You're a woman alone outside with little protection. Don't overthink things. Go rest. We have to be on the road again at first light."

Shang Shuqing knew he had misunderstood and thought she intended to keep vigil at the graves.

"Brother, I'm going to see Yuan Gang. I may be able to persuade him to stay."

"Hm?"

Shang Chaozong slowly turned around. Lan Ruoting did the same. Both looked puzzled. Shang Shuqing inclined her head to them, then turned and walked quickly away, her graceful figure drifting down the mountain.

"What did Qing'er mean?" Shang Chaozong asked Lan Ruoting. "Can she really persuade Yuan Gang to stay?"

Lan Ruoting shook his head. "I doubt it. Yuan Gang clearly takes Niu Youdao's lead in everything. Niu Youdao may be Mr. Dong Guo's disciple, but he never truly received Mr. Dong Guo's instruction. His mentality seems no different from that of other cultivators, and I'm afraid he won't want to involve himself in this trouble. Still, the Commandery Princess is exceptionally intelligent and does not shoot arrows without a target. Since she said such a thing, she must have some reason. Your Highness might as well wait and see."

The sky was half dark over the green hills. Fresh graves stood one after another. Yuan Gang wandered nearby for a time and gathered a pile of wildflowers. He tied them into a bright, handsome bouquet, then carried it to the new graves. Guan Tie's marker stood at the very front, directly in the middle. It was easy to find. Yuan Gang walked over, bent down, and placed the bouquet neatly before the marker. Then he straightened and stood perfectly still, gazing at Guan Tie's name. His eyes seemed slightly unfocused. No one knew what he was thinking. A faint rustle came from someone pushing through the grass. Yuan Gang spun around. His hand had already moved instinctively to the hilt of his dagger. Then he saw Shang Shuqing approaching in her veiled hat.

The tension that had seized him like a hunting leopard slowly eased, and his fingers withdrew from the dagger. Shang Shuqing stopped beside him and looked at the bouquet before the grave.

"This is the first time I've seen flowers offered before a grave."

"It's not a ceremony," Yuan Gang replied indifferently.

Shang Shuqing glanced at the darkening sky and decided not to circle around the matter.

"Guan Tie hoped before he died that Brother Yuan would stay. You never gave him an answer. Can you give him one now?"

"We aren't walking the same road. I won't stay."

"Why can't you?"

"Because Master Dao won't stay."

That answer left Shang Shuqing somewhat helpless.

"He is a cultivator. Given my brother's and my circumstances, no cultivator dares openly side with us. Anyone who does will inevitably face pressure from other cultivators. Besides, he has offended the Song clan. If he remains in one fixed place, the Song clan will find it much easier to deal with him. We can understand why he does not want to stay. But you are different. If you stay, no one will deliberately target you. The Song clan won't even pay attention to you. Brother Yuan, my brother admires you greatly. He is rarely wrong when judging a man like you. My brother and I have little to offer now. All we possess is sincerity. We sincerely invite you to stay. I believe that is what Guan Tie hoped to see as well."

Yuan Gang said, "I know what you two are thinking. You think Master Dao's cultivation isn't high. That only means you have eyes but can't recognize the treasure in front of you. Given your present circumstances, the man Master Dao is matters more than his cultivation. You're trying to keep the wrong person."

Interest entered Shang Shuqing's voice. "I'd like to hear more."

Yuan Gang answered without expression, "If Master Dao stays, I stay. If Master Dao leaves, I leave."

After all that, he had simply come back to the same answer.

Shang Shuqing gave a bitter smile. "Then what would make the cultivator stay?"

In truth, she had almost no confidence in persuading Niu Youdao.

Yuan Gang said calmly, "Master Dao used to say something often: 'Riding through the jianghu—wind or rain, it makes no difference.'"

Shang Shuqing froze for a moment. Then she understood. There were very few things Niu Youdao truly cared about. Yet if Yuan Gang had mentioned something from Niu Youdao's past, there had to be at least a sliver of hope. Her earlier judgment had not been wrong.

Her spirits rose slightly. "Then what could make Master Dao rein in his horse upon the jianghu?"

Yuan Gang remained silent for quite a while.

At last, still looking at Guan Tie's grave marker, he said, "Master Dao is more interested in matters connected to cultivation."

With that, he immediately turned and strode away, unwilling to say another word. He had already done things today that he should not have done and said things he should not have said. Master Dao was already in trouble because of him. Shang Shuqing turned and watched him go. Beneath her veil, her bright eyes flickered with excitement. In her previous dealings with Niu Youdao, nothing he said ever seemed reliable, and he had been impossible to get a grip on. She had never found an angle from which to approach him. Yuan Gang's words had finally pointed out a direction. At Nanshan Temple, mealtime had arrived, yet Shang Shuqing still had not returned.

Food had already been placed on the low table. Sitting cross-legged across from Lan Ruoting, Shang Chaozong asked, "Why hasn't Qing'er come back yet?"

Lan Ruoting shook his head slightly and gestured toward the meal. "Your Highness should eat first. The Commandery Princess's food can be kept warm. There's no need to worry about her. Someone is keeping watch nearby, and if anything happens, word will reach us immediately."

He had barely finished speaking when a personal guard entered from outside and cupped his hands.

"Your Highness, the Commandery Princess sent word. She asks Your Highness and Mr. Lan to eat first and not wait for her."

Shang Chaozong frowned. "What is she doing?"

"I don't know. I only know she went to the cultivator."

Shang Chaozong and Lan Ruoting exchanged a look...

A single oil lamp dimly lit the room. Niu Youdao sat cross-legged on a meditation cushion. A small table stood before him, and on it rested a plate bearing an enormous slab of meat, steam rolling from its surface. It was lean meat from a wild boar supposedly killed not long ago.

"Ah..."

Niu Youdao prodded it several times with his chopsticks and could not help sighing. Boiled meat again. And such an enormous lump.

How was a person supposed to eat this?

To be fair, he had to admit that Shang Chaozong's party had never mistreated him when it came to food. Every time there was anything good, they gave him the best of it first. At the beginning, whenever they had the chance to eat meat on the road, the personal guards would always bring him the largest chunk of fat. A great white lump of greasy flesh, enough to make his vision swim and his stomach turn. But he understood their thinking. To these men, and especially to ordinary people struggling to fill their stomachs in this age of war, fat meat was excellent food. For warriors burning enormous amounts of strength every day, it was better still. Giving him the biggest piece of fat meant they were treating him as well as they possibly could.

Unfortunately, he simply could not enjoy such good fortune. Later he told them he did not eat fatty meat and preferred lean cuts. The giant slab before him was one result. Lean was lean, but couldn't they at least cut it into smaller pieces and prepare it with a little care? They had boiled an enormous lump in plain water, sprinkled on some salt, and served it. Niu Youdao truly could not praise the culinary arts of this era. For him, even a simple plate of tofu mixed with scallions would have been better. He had already told himself countless times that once things settled down, he absolutely had to improve the food situation.

[End of Chapter 37]