Chapter 46: Are You Tired of Living?

Niu Youdao looked surprised.

"The facts are all there. Can the Commandery Governor truly not see them?"

Feng Lingbo's expression turned cold.

"Stop playing riddles with me. Where are the things written on the gift list? Hand them over, and I can consider marrying my daughter to him."

Niu Youdao would never take such pretty words seriously. Hand the thing over first, and then expect you to marry off your daughter?

Not a chance.

He immediately answered without yielding an inch.

"Not consider it. You must agree. Your daughter... His Highness is determined to marry her!"

Feng Lingbo laughed coldly.

"Such arrogance! You've come onto my territory. Do you really think you can choose whether to hand something over or not?"

Niu Youdao abruptly turned and swept one hand toward the doorway. His voice rang through the hall.

"If the Commandery Governor dares go outside right now and loudly announce that Commandery Prince Yongping holds one hundred thousand Crow Generals, His Highness will immediately present those hundred thousand Crow Generals to you without taking a single coin. You won't even need to threaten us!"

Everyone in the hall froze.

One hundred thousand Crow Generals?

Shang Chaozong possessed one hundred thousand Crow Generals?

Several people were secretly shaken.

So this was the "heavy gift" written on the list?

Feng Lingbo's gaze became strange.

He did not understand what Niu Youdao meant. Then again, how could he possibly go outside and publicly expose such a thing? Niu Youdao turned back and pressed him relentlessly.

"Do you dare, Commandery Governor? Let me ask you plainly: do you dare or do you not?"

Feng Lingbo still had not fully followed the turn in logic.

"If you don't hand over the goods, don't even dream of leaving Guangyi Commandery!"

Niu Youdao flicked his sleeve with a look of contempt.

"If His Highness dared send me here, how could he possibly have made no preparations? So what if I can't leave Guangyi Commandery? If the Commandery Governor dares act recklessly, someone will naturally expose the matter of the hundred thousand Crow Generals. When that happens, I hardly need explain what will become of this tiny patch of land. Forget Great Yan—the State of Zhao to the west may be the first to break through Qingshan Commandery and invade Guangyi Commandery. Can the Commandery Governor stop them? And among all the heroes of the surrounding states, who would simply sit by and watch you obtain them?"

Feng Lingbo's expression shifted between light and dark. Now he understood the meaning behind Niu Youdao's repeated question of whether he dared. The man was certain Feng Lingbo did not dare make the matter public.

Feng Lingbo skipped over the issue of whether Shang Chaozong could be detained and said heavily, "Since the item is written on the gift list, isn't it meant to be given to me? If I don't see what was promised, how am I supposed to marry my daughter to him?"

Niu Youdao's expression softened.

"As for the thing itself... let's speak frankly. There is no need to deceive the Commandery Governor, and this isn't something we could deceive you about anyway. His Highness does not currently have the hundred thousand Crow Generals in his hands."

"What?"

Peng Yulan's eyes widened in anger. Were they using her daughter as a joke? She could no longer hold back.

"You dare put something you don't even possess on the gift list? Are you playing games with us?"

Niu Youdao pressed both hands downward, signaling her to calm herself.

"Currently. I said currently. Sooner or later, he'll have them."

Feng Lingbo smiled without humor.

"Nothing but wild claims from an empty mouth! You dare come here demanding my daughter with something that may not even exist? Do you take us for fools? I think you've grown tired of living!"

A murderous light had already entered his eyes.

"Empty claims?"

Niu Youdao looked astonished, then fired back sharply.

"Does the Commandery Governor think the present emperor is a fool? Once Prince Ning died, why did the emperor suddenly turn against His Highness? Given the Commandery Governor's sources, surely you know the truth. The emperor had long feared Prince Ning's control over the military and clearly intended to uproot Prince Ning's entire line. Yet why imprison His Highness for so many years without killing him? Was the emperor suddenly kindhearted? And why release him now? Did he suddenly remember the affection owed to imperial blood? Where did all of this come from? Does none of it deserve the Commandery Governor's careful thought?"

At those words, most of those in the hall fell into contemplation.

Peng Yulan went silent.

Feng Lingbo's expression showed that he too was thinking carefully. Yuan Gang stood there calmly, his face utterly undisturbed.

He watched Master Dao seize the initiative with words and dominate the hall as though there were nothing worth worrying about. Niu Youdao strode two quick steps toward Peng Yulan and pointed outward, seeming almost indignant.

"It isn't that the present emperor doesn't want His Highness dead. It isn't that he is softhearted. And it certainly isn't because he cherishes the blood ties of the imperial clan. He knows Prince Ning left His Highness one hundred thousand Crow Generals. He wants those hundred thousand Crow Generals in his own hands!"

Then Niu Youdao strode quickly toward Feng Lingbo, his voice ringing with conviction.

"Could His Highness simply hand them over? Of course not. He knows perfectly well that once he does, he dies. So for years, though imprisoned in the Imperial Prison and subjected to interrogation and torture day after day, His Highness would rather die than speak! Fortunately Heaven has eyes. The present emperor reaped what he sowed. His purging of Prince Ning's old subordinates threw Great Yan into turmoil. Within, men such as the Commandery Governor hold troops for their own ends. Beyond the borders, Shao Dengyun opened the gates and allowed the armies of Great Yan's old enemy, the State of Han, to invade. The surrounding states watch like wolves, waiting to carve up Yan. Even marrying off several princesses in political marriages has failed to settle the chaos! With troubles within and enemies without, why did the emperor release His Highness? Not because he repented. Because he realized he could not force His Highness to speak, so he decided to loosen the reins in order to seize them later! His Highness understands that with his present strength, if he rashly retrieves the hundred thousand Crow Generals, he will only be making a wedding dress for the emperor. After the way the emperor treated Prince Ning's line, how could His Highness possibly let him benefit? Driven into a dead end and fighting for one slim chance to live, His Highness would rather offer those hundred thousand Crow Generals to the Commandery Governor than let the emperor have them! Why does His Highness want to marry your daughter? Because your daughter is the jewel in the Commandery Governor's palm, and because she has rendered military service defending Guangyi Commandery. Once His Highness marries her, then after the Commandery Governor obtains the hundred thousand Crow Generals, you will not tear down the bridge after crossing the river. At the very least, you will not kill His Highness. At the very least, His Highness will keep his life! That is all there is to the cause and consequence of this matter. What exactly does the Commandery Governor still doubt? Do you truly believe His Highness has grown tired of living and deliberately came here to mock you? If so, wouldn't that be laughable? His Highness's sincerity in wishing to marry your daughter can be seen by Heaven and sun alike. What more is there to suspect?"

The words came in a rapid torrent, yet not once did his phrasing become confused. The barrage pressed down on everyone listening until they almost felt short of breath.

But when they thought carefully about it, the argument also carried a strange sense of clarity, as though matters truly were just as he had said.

The hall fell silent.

Everyone was still turning over his words when Feng Ruonan's sharp shout came from outside.

"Dog thief! Die!"

Every head in the hall turned toward the entrance. Feng Ruonan, armored and carrying a long spear, came charging toward them with murderous fury. Only she would dare rampage through the Commandery Governor's residence this way.

The cavalry she had brought had already been stopped outside the estate. Her subordinates hardly dared storm the Commandery Governor's residence armed and mounted unless they actually intended rebellion. Feng Ruonan was not merely shouting.

She truly wanted to kill.

From her perspective, borrowing her money to buy the betrothal gifts used to marry her was practically a humiliation aimed at her appearance, as though she were so ugly no one would take her otherwise. Worse, the money had been swindled from her. She had seen people bully others before, but never like this. Shame and rage burned through her. Unless Niu Youdao died, she would not be able to vent the hatred in her heart.

She charged into the hall and, without another word, snapped her spear forward.

Whoosh!

The point drove straight toward Niu Youdao's chest with a rush of wind. This woman clearly possessed considerable strength and had trained in martial arts for years. Feng Lingbo and Peng Yulan watched coldly from the side. They seemed interested in seeing what Niu Youdao could actually do. Yuan Gang did not give them the chance.

He cut across instantly.

One step shifted his body into Niu Youdao's path. He turned slightly, letting the spearhead skim past his chest, then shot out one hand and seized the shaft just below the spearhead. The thrust stopped dead before him. It could not advance another inch.

"Ha!"

Feng Ruonan exhaled sharply.

Gripping the spear with both hands, she leaned her whole body forward and competed directly with Yuan Gang's strength.

Her teeth clenched.

Her face flushed red.

Yuan Gang held the spear motionless before him.

His body did not sway.

He looked sideways at her coldly and let her exhaust every ounce of strength she possessed. The others in the hall regarded Yuan Gang with visible surprise.

They all knew Feng Ruonan had practiced martial arts since childhood and had been born with unusual strength. Most men were far weaker than she was. They could also see that Yuan Gang was not a cultivator. For someone so young to possess such formidable external hard-body training was exceedingly rare. Niu Youdao, of course, already understood the situation.

A man who could clash head-on with Chen Guishuo and others through brute physical force alone was hardly going to suffer easily at Feng Ruonan's hands.

Even Niu Youdao had never expected Yuan Gang's hard qigong to become this powerful after coming to this world. Feng Lingbo watched Yuan Gang closely, his gaze flickering.

He reached an immediate judgment.

Put this man on a battlefield and he could become a fierce general capable of cutting through ten thousand troops. From one glimpse, one could infer the whole.

Prince Ning had once terrified enemy armies, and the Yingyang and Wulie Guards truly lived up to their fame! The reports from below had never mentioned Yuan Gang's origins. Feng Lingbo had mistakenly assumed he came from those elite guards.

Seeing that her daughter could not even reach Niu Youdao, much less gain an advantage, Peng Yulan tilted her head slightly and gave a signal.

An elderly man of somewhat prosperous build stood off to one side, dressed like a household servant, his hair graying.

He flashed forward.

One palm struck the shaft of the spear. The shaft slammed against Yuan Gang's chest. Yuan Gang staggered and retreated several heavy steps. The old man smoothly took the spear from Feng Ruonan as well.

Then one light-looking hand settled on the nearly berserk woman's shoulder and held her in place so firmly that she could not break free. The old man's strength was obvious. Niu Youdao flashed forward and pressed a palm against Yuan Gang's back. Only then did he discover a hidden force surging through Yuan Gang's body. It actually drove Niu Youdao backward along with him. Niu Youdao quickly planted one leg behind himself, circulated his cultivation, and dispersed the force.

Only after another two retreating steps did both men finally stop. Niu Youdao abruptly turned toward the old man. The fellow had plainly acted out of favoritism and intended to teach Yuan Gang a lesson. The strike had not been light.

It had looked like a casual palm, but the hidden force within it had been more than enough to injure someone. Murderous light flashed instantly in Niu Youdao's eyes.

His voice turned ice cold.

"Old man, are you tired of living?"

The sudden viciousness made everyone in the hall look at him. The old man regarded Yuan Gang with added surprise.

He had not used all that much strength in the strike, but he had still expected it to shake Yuan Gang badly enough to make him cough blood. Instead, the result had exceeded his expectations. Ordinary external hard-body training tempered muscles, bones, and skin. Could this man's method even temper the internal organs? Yuan Gang raised his arms slightly and released the remaining force through his body. The turmoil in his organs gradually settled.

He slowly breathed out.

Then he turned his head toward Niu Youdao and spoke in a low voice.

"Master Dao, I'm fine."

Niu Youdao's expression changed instantly.

He smiled brightly at the old man.

"Elder, I'll remember that palm. If I get the chance someday, I'll be sure to let you taste one of mine in return."

The old man remained genial.

He inclined his body slightly.

"This old servant will be waiting."

"Good!"

Niu Youdao smiled warmly and nodded. His gaze, however, was deep and memorable, lingering on the old man's face as though he had no intention of forgetting it anytime soon.

[End of Chapter 46]