Chapter 52: Kill, but Don't Bury

The ten-thousand-gold debt in the wager was one thing. The real problem was that all three gradually remembered something else.

When their personal guard returned to report, he had said Niu Youdao came out of Feng Ruonan's military camp with an entire chest of gold coins... The three began thinking it through. Then they almost did not dare continue. Could the money used to buy the betrothal gifts have been borrowed from Feng Ruonan? One by one, their eyes widened as they stared at Niu Youdao. Being watched that way made even Niu Youdao feel slightly embarrassed.

He forced a smile.

"Why are all of you looking at me like that? I ran around doing all the hard work. His Highness is the one enjoying the good fortune. Don't tell me you're planning to make me repay the money."

This was not a question of who repaid the money.

Shang Chaozong asked uneasily, "Master Dao, what exactly did you use the borrowed money for?"

Niu Youdao spread both hands. "What else would I use it for? Naturally, to buy the betrothal gifts for Your Highness's marriage! Rest assured, Your Highness. I didn't pocket so much as one coin. The personal guards kept detailed accounts of every gift we bought. I'm not the sort to take advantage over such a small sum."

"..."

The three stared at him, dumbfounded. For once, they truly had nothing to say. The money had indeed been used in the way they least wanted to accept.

You borrowed Feng Ruonan's money, used it to buy betrothal gifts, then carried those gifts to Feng Ruonan's family to propose marrying Feng Ruonan?

Even the sentence felt twisted.

Wasn't this a little too shameless?

Their feelings were understandable.

They came from the household of the mighty Prince Ning. No matter how far they had fallen, nobility was still buried in their bones. However poor they became, they would never stoop to something this disgraceful.

Shang Chaozong's vision almost swam.

He felt faint.

For the sake of the larger situation, if he had to marry Feng Ruonan, then he would marry Feng Ruonan. But if he married her like this, how was he ever supposed to face her afterward?

He was close to tears.

His expression miserable, he said, "Master Dao, if you intended to have me marry Feng Ruonan, how could you borrow Feng Ruonan's own money to buy the betrothal gifts?"

Niu Youdao reacted as though the question shocked him.

"I asked Your Highness for ten thousand gold coins and you cried poverty! You said you couldn't produce it. I'm a cultivator who only just came down the mountain. Where was I supposed to find ten thousand gold coins to advance on your behalf?"

Shang Chaozong almost wailed, "But you didn't have to borrow it from her!"

Niu Youdao stared at him. "Your Highness, that's easy for you to say. I didn't know anyone in this place. Feng Ruonan was the only person in Guangyi Commandery I had even the slightest connection to. If I didn't borrow from her, who was I supposed to borrow from? Go find someone else? Who even knew who I was? Ten thousand gold coins isn't a small sum. If I walked up to some stranger and asked to borrow it, would they simply hand it over? Of course, it's not as though there were no other way to obtain ten thousand gold coins. We could've found some wealthy household and stolen or robbed the money. That would've been fast enough. But we came to Guangyi Commandery to get things done, not to create trouble. In these chaotic times, who knows what background a rich family capable of standing securely here might have? Who knows what sort of experts they keep guarding their homes? Would it have been sensible to attack blindly? Suppose I first investigated every detail and only acted after confirming everything. Who knows whether Feng Lingbo would still be in the commandery capital by then? Feng Lingbo has a mountain of affairs to deal with. He's a busy man. He isn't going to sit obediently in the Governor's residence waiting for me to propose a marriage. Coming and going on business is normal. Given our current conditions, it's difficult for us to keep track of his movements. If I finally got the money only for him to leave the city, who knows how long everything would be delayed? With our present circumstances, the sooner this problem was solved, the better. We couldn't afford delay!"

The reasoning actually left all three unable to answer.

It sounded almost completely reasonable.

And yet something about the whole affair still felt deeply wrong. How were they supposed to look the Feng family in the face tomorrow?

Shang Chaozong said weakly, "Since we'd already decided to use the hundred thousand Crow Generals as a pretext, whether we brought betrothal gifts shouldn't have mattered much. Feng Lingbo isn't so shallow that a few gifts would affect his decision. Whether the marriage succeeded had nothing to do with those gifts. There really was no need to borrow Feng Ruonan's money."

Of everyone present, he was the one who would feel most embarrassed facing the Feng family.

Niu Youdao looked astonished.

"Your Highness, do you think I wanted to borrow the money and create such a huge commotion? Feng Lingbo is still a regional power in his own right. Do you think anyone who wants to see him can simply walk through the door? Your Highness knows your own circumstances. Would Feng Lingbo willingly involve himself with you? Do you really think a marriage like this can be proposed so easily—that I can just move my lips and he'll hand over his daughter? If I didn't create a spectacle, would Feng Lingbo have agreed to see me at all? The moment I announced who I represented, there was a good chance they'd simply throw me out of the city. Was I supposed to grab the first random person I met and tell them about the hundred thousand Crow Generals so they'd pass the message upward? Is something like that safe to mention before confirming exactly who you're speaking to? And besides, creating a huge spectacle was part of the plan from the beginning. Feng Lingbo needed to understand that the matter could no longer be concealed. I had to cut off any ideas he might have about handling us quietly. Otherwise, we're standing on his territory. What if he used some method to seize control of us in secret? We might not even have a place left to cry. Your Highness, I thought through every detail for your sake. You can't be heartless now! You're not really planning to make me repay the money, are you?"

His entire manner said the repayment had absolutely nothing to do with him.

Kill, but don't bury.

"I..."

Shang Chaozong had no answer.

The man's words sounded reasonable sentence by sentence. Follow his logic and everything truly seemed to have been done entirely on Shang Chaozong's behalf.

What else could he say?

Shang Shuqing spoke gently. "Brother, Master Dao has already done everything he could. We'll find a way to repay the money."

Lan Ruoting smiled bitterly.

Shang Chaozong could only nod helplessly. The crucial point was that everyone here knew Niu Youdao had gone out under his orders and proposed the marriage on his behalf. There was no way Shang Chaozong could refuse the debt. A man could hardly marry a wife and expect someone else to pay the betrothal gifts.

"Commandery Princess is wise!"

Niu Youdao gave Shang Shuqing an emphatic thumbs-up.

Shang Shuqing bowed slightly. "Master Dao has exhausted himself on our behalf. You've worked hard."

"Not at all. Only what I should do, what I should do."

Niu Youdao waved cheerfully, then abruptly changed the subject.

"Still, there's one unpleasant thing I should make clear beforehand."

The three immediately stared at him. One thing after another had already emerged, each enough to leave them struggling to cope. What else was this fellow about to spring on them? They could hardly cover his mouth and stop him from speaking.

Shang Shuqing could only say softly, "Please speak freely."

Niu Youdao replied carelessly, "I have no problem doing the work. I'll endure hardship and complaints without issue. But there's no need to circle around the point, so I'll say it directly: I handle the work. I do not take responsibility."

That tone made all three uneasy.

Each silently wondered:

What now?

Shang Shuqing probed, "May I ask... what responsibility Master Dao is referring to?"

Niu Youdao raised his chin toward Lan Ruoting.

"Mr. Lan, is your teacher named Luo Shaofu?"

Lan Ruoting froze briefly, then nodded. "Luo Shaofu is indeed my honored teacher's name."

His heart filled with suspicion.

How had this suddenly involved his teacher? What fresh disaster was Niu Youdao preparing? Did he really intend to drag even a dead man into something?

"So it was true!"

Niu Youdao sighed with feeling.

"I only learned it from Feng Lingbo. Feng Lingbo seems to admire your honored teacher enormously. He praised him to the skies, then asked whether the strategy behind this marriage proposal was your idea. I'm still young. My shoulders are too soft to carry that much responsibility. So I admitted it was Mr. Lan's strategy. Feng Lingbo immediately praised the worthy student of a famous teacher. It would look suspicious if I changed my story now, so I'm afraid Mr. Lan will have to shoulder a little more when the time comes."

"..."

Lan Ruoting stared blankly.

He thought it over, then asked suspiciously, "That hardly counts as taking responsibility. If anything, I might even earn Feng Lingbo's appreciation. How could I steal Master Dao's credit?"

"Forget about credit. What would I want it for? I've always kept a low profile. I don't like standing in the limelight. I hope Mr. Lan can understand."

Niu Youdao unconsciously scratched the side of his nose.

Then he added casually, "Oh, right. Naturally, borrowing Feng Ruonan's money to buy the betrothal gifts was also Mr. Lan's idea. I hope Mr. Lan will shoulder that as well."

"Ah!"

Lan Ruoting's expression changed dramatically.

His eyes widened at Niu Youdao in something close to horror.

Inside, grief and outrage surged together. Even someone as thick-skinned as you doesn't want responsibility for something this shameless, so you told them it was my idea? Shang Chaozong and Shang Shuqing were completely speechless.

Now they understood.

No wonder this fellow dared do anything. He committed the dirty deeds, then let other people carry the blame, stripping himself clean of responsibility afterward. What was there left for him to fear if someone else always stepped forward to take the fall? After this affair, all three finally felt they had gained some understanding of the man before them. Lan Ruoting simply could not comprehend it.

Dong Guo Haoran had possessed such bearing and character. How had he accepted a disciple like this on his deathbed? Yuan Gang understood Master Dao too well. He stood nearby without the slightest ripple of surprise. Lan Ruoting's expression twisted until it was impossible to tell whether he wanted to cry or laugh. In the end, he could only brace himself and nod.

He had accepted.

The key point was that Niu Youdao had worked hard to accomplish something this important. Refusing to shoulder even a little responsibility for him now would also seem unreasonable. Still, Lan Ruoting could not help worrying about meeting the Feng family tomorrow.

He had no idea what sort of warm "greetings" they might have prepared for him.

Freed of his debts, Niu Youdao's smile became noticeably brighter. He discussed with the others how tomorrow's formal meeting with the Feng family should be handled. Naturally, the specific marriage negotiations were assigned to Lan Ruoting.

It would be inappropriate for Shang Chaozong to discuss his own marriage personally. It would also be inappropriate for his unmarried younger sister to handle the negotiations. Lan Ruoting was the only suitable choice.

Niu Youdao could have done it, but he was too lazy to concern himself with all the ceremonial minutiae. As far as he was concerned, he had already built the bridge and paved the road. If they still managed to walk crooked after that, then they were beyond saving.

Staying with a pack of pigs would only get him dragged down sooner or later. He might as well leave early.

So he turned and went to find somewhere to rest, leaving the remaining details for the others to work out slowly.

"Master Dao, I'll see you out."

Shang Shuqing followed him and personally escorted him from the room. Niu Youdao accepted the treatment as though it were perfectly natural and did not refuse. That said, he had gradually developed some fondness for this ugly yet thoughtful and reasonable woman.

He casually joked, "Walking around at night in that veiled hat, can you even see the road clearly? Be careful you don't trip."

Shang Shuqing answered gently, "I'm used to it."

The words were calm, but somewhere deep within them seemed to hide the faintest trace of bitterness. Niu Youdao immediately felt awkward about continuing to joke on that subject and smoothly changed topics.

"I noticed earlier. Why did you bring all the monks from Nanshan Temple along?"

Walking gracefully beside him, Shang Shuqing replied softly, "Before Master Dao left Nanshan Temple, you instructed us to keep that bear demon. Naturally, when we left, we had to bring him along so we could give Master Dao an accounting. But the bear demon absolutely refused to leave by himself. He said that if he went, the monks of Nanshan Temple would have little chance of surviving in these troubled times with their present strength. If the last of Nanshan Temple's cohesion scattered, he would have failed the old abbot's dying trust. In short, he refused to leave alone no matter what. Even with a blade against his neck, he would rather die than abandon those monks. We had no choice, so we brought all of them along. Now we'll leave it to Master Dao to decide what to do with them."

[End of Chapter 52]