Chapter 127: Atone Through Merit

Black Peony watched the portrait leave with undisguised reluctance. She had not looked at it nearly enough, had barely had the chance to study it closely, and already it had been taken away.

Charcoal was inconvenient to work with and had blackened Niu Youdao’s hands. He went into the little side room to wash them. When he came back out and found Black Peony still standing there in a daze, he chuckled. “Looks like you really like that drawing.”

He had figured she ought to like it. Seeing her reaction now made him even more confident.

Black Peony’s gaze toward him had become incomparably gentle. She asked the same question again. “Master Dao, are you really giving it to me? It’s a portrait of you. If I don’t give it to you, who should I give it to? Old Bear? Or keep it myself?”

Without another word, Black Peony went over, broke the seal on the wine the attendant had delivered, poured a cup, and presented it to him with both hands. Everything that needed saying was contained in the gesture.

Niu Youdao raised the cup and drank. Then he asked with complete seriousness, “Suppose I weren’t giving that portrait to you, but selling it instead. Would you buy it for a hundred thousand gold coins?”

Black Peony froze for a moment. She nodded, then shook her head. “I couldn’t afford a hundred thousand gold coins. But if I had money to spare, I definitely would.”

Yuan Fang curled his lip. He thought she was flattering Niu Youdao. The drawing was attractive enough, but who in his right mind would spend a hundred thousand gold coins on something like that? He might consider ten gold coins. A hundred thousand? Impossible!

As Black Peony finished speaking, she seemed to understand what Niu Youdao had meant earlier by “making money.” Puzzled, she asked, “Master Dao, are you planning to make money by painting?”

“Make money by painting?” Niu Youdao laughed despite himself.

If painting could change Monkey’s and Old Bear’s minds, if painting could make the Song family abandon its hatred, if painting could solve every troublesome matter, then he would not mind at all.

Unfortunately, something like this could only seem novel for a while to people who had never seen it before. An object made for appreciation was still only an object made for appreciation. Once real interests were at stake, a painting might not hold as much attraction as a bowl of rice. He shook his head with a smile. “I don’t sell my art.”

The inn attendant left the room and quickly made his way to the main hall. He went straight behind the counter. “Innkeeper, have a look at this.”

“What is it?” The innkeeper looked down at the portrait being spread open before him. Once he saw what was on it, he froze. “Is that Black Peony?”

He recognized the subject at a glance. The crucial thing was how realistic the portrait looked. It was a completely different style from ink paintings that emphasized hazy mood and suggestive atmosphere.

“That’s right.” The attendant nodded.

The innkeeper picked up the portrait. His eyes brightened as he examined it from every angle, clicking his tongue in amazement. “What kind of painting method is this? Where did it come from?”

“The guest in Room Yi-Zi drew it for Black Peony. I saw him do it with my own eyes when I went in to deliver wine. He used nothing but a stick of charcoal as a brush and went swish, swish across the paper...” The attendant gave a detailed account of everything he had seen and explained that the guest had asked him to take the portrait away for mounting. When he finished, he ventured, “Should we show something this novel to the people in the back?”

The innkeeper’s eyes flickered. He carefully rolled the portrait back up. “Mounting can wait. You keep watch here. I’m going to see the chief steward.”

“All right!” The attendant nodded.

The innkeeper took the portrait and left the counter at once, hurrying toward the castle behind the inn...

In the garden, Huang Engui and his junior fellow disciple Cui Yuan wandered about, observing their surroundings as they searched for their target.

The front counter would presumably have the target’s room number on record, but the two dared not ask. Even if they did, the counter would never tell them. They could only search slowly on their own.

They looked for a long time without finding a clue. They could hardly knock on every door one by one; if they tried that, the Inviting Moon Inn would notice them immediately.

The target would have to leave eventually. They were preparing to wait by the entrance when Cui Yuan suddenly nudged Huang Engui’s arm.

Following the direction Cui Yuan indicated, Huang Engui peered through the gaps between the trees. They saw Lei Zongkang step out of one upstairs room and then open the door to the room next to it.

“Come on. Let’s go find him,” Huang Engui murmured after memorizing the room.

Cui Yuan caught his arm. “Senior Brother, isn’t it inappropriate to go straight to his door? Martial Uncle told us not to alert the snake by striking the grass.”

Huang Engui stared at the room. “If they’ve latched onto that man, they wouldn’t be so lacking in basic courtesy. He walked into the room without even knocking. Their principal probably isn’t staying in that one. This is the perfect chance to confirm what we need.”

Cui Yuan nodded, accepting the reasoning. The two left the garden, went upstairs on the opposite side, kept an eye on their surroundings, and approached the room Lei Zongkang had entered.

When they were close and no one nearby seemed to be watching, Huang Engui abruptly pushed open the door. Cui Yuan followed him inside, and the door shut again at once.

Lei Zongkang was standing by the window, staring outside while his thoughts drifted. He was somewhat worried about Black Peony’s decision. After observing Master Dao’s behavior around the city today, Lei Zongkang had not seen anything resembling a well-informed man with a powerful background.

They had taken two additional rooms the night before. Lei Zongkang, Duan Hu, and Wu Sanliang were three men, so Lei Zongkang stayed in one room alone while Duan Hu and Wu Sanliang shared the other. It would hardly have been appropriate for him, a lone man, to share a room with Black Peony.

He had just been in Duan Hu and Wu Sanliang’s room discussing the matter with them. After spending the day interacting with Master Dao, the two also felt that he did not look like someone with any great background. Even so, both still chose to trust Black Peony. They had been together for so many years and understood one another well. They believed Black Peony would never deliberately lead them into harm.

Lei Zongkang had originally hoped to persuade Wu Sanliang and Duan Hu to join him in talking some sense into Black Peony. Some decisions could still be reversed now. Once they were too deeply involved, regret might come too late. Their response left him disappointed.

After so many years together, it was impossible for the group to agree on absolutely everything. They naturally had differences of opinion from time to time, and under normal circumstances the minority followed the majority. Since Wu Sanliang and Duan Hu had taken that attitude, Lei Zongkang found it difficult to say more.

It was not that he distrusted Black Peony. He simply felt that everyone might have made this decision too rashly and carelessly.

The sudden sound of the door opening behind him made Lei Zongkang assume Duan Hu or one of the others had come in. When he turned and saw who it was, he froze.

Before he could speak, Huang Engui raised a finger to his lips. Keeping a safe distance to show he meant no harm, he lowered his voice. “Lei Zongkang, don’t worry. We’re not foolish enough to cause trouble inside the Inviting Moon Inn.”

Lei Zongkang looked at them in alarm and uncertainty. “Master Huang, Master Cui, to what do I owe this sudden visit?”

“Nothing much,” Huang Engui said. “There are simply a few things I want to ask you. I’m only here to inquire about something.”

Although the pair had made a show of harmless intent, Lei Zongkang still did not dare approach them. Suspicious, he said, “Ask whatever you wish, Master Huang.”

Huang Engui said, “I heard you found someone willing to recommend and guarantee you?”

At the mention of this, Lei Zongkang could not help smiling bitterly. “There’s been a misunderstanding. It isn’t what people outside think. He never promised any recommendation or guarantee.”

Huang Engui immediately asked, “What’s his name?”

Lei Zongkang did not understand why he cared. Still, the name itself hardly seemed secret. “Xuanyuan Dao.”

“Xuanyuan Dao... Dao...” Huang Engui muttered. He exchanged a meaningful look with Cui Yuan, then asked, “Do you know what sect or school he comes from?”

Lei Zongkang shook his head. “No. Master Huang, I’m not trying to deceive you. He hasn’t revealed anything about his origins. None of us knows where he comes from.”

Huang Engui and Cui Yuan exchanged another glance. Then Huang Engui walked slowly to a chair and sat down. He gave a leisurely sigh. “It seems the few of you really are tired of living. You actually dare oppose our Liuxian Sect.”

Lei Zongkang was astonished. “Master Huang, why would you say that? When have we ever shown anything but respect toward the Liuxian Sect? When have we ever opposed you?”

Huang Engui said, “Do you truly not know that man’s background, or are you pretending not to know?”

Lei Zongkang sensed a deeper meaning in his words. “I truly don’t know. Does Master Huang have some guidance for me?”

“That man isn’t Xuanyuan Dao at all. Xuanyuan Dao is a false name. His real name is Niu Youdao. His true identity is a cast-off disciple of the State of Yan’s Shangqing Sect. He killed the grandson of the Commandant of Justice of the State of Yan...” Huang Engui briefly recounted the most damning parts of Niu Youdao’s history, from killing Song Yanqing to killing the Liuxian Sect disciple Liu Ziyu, and then assassinating Song Long, an envoy of the State of Yan. When he finished, he asked coldly, “You’re mixing together with a man like that. If that isn’t opposing the Liuxian Sect, what is?”

Lei Zongkang listened with his heart pounding. No wonder he had felt there was something abnormal about Master Dao. If what Huang Engui said was true, then they really had stumbled into opposition with the Liuxian Sect. The Liuxian Sect was hardly something people like them could afford to provoke. He hurriedly said, “We genuinely knew nothing about this. We actually have no real relationship with him...” He emphasized that they had merely agreed to follow the man, then repeatedly assured him, “Master Huang, rest assured. I’ll speak to Black Peony and the others as soon as I can. We’ll break ties with him immediately. We would never dare oppose the Liuxian Sect!”

Huang Engui sneered. “Now that you’ve involved yourselves, do you really think you can enter when you please and leave when you please? You truly grabbed at the first doctor you saw in a panic. Did none of you stop to consider how serious it is to assassinate an envoy of the State of Yan? Do you think the State of Yan will let him go? Even Commandery Prince Yongping, Shang Chaozong, was so eager to avoid being implicated that he cast Niu Youdao aside. Yet you people rushed forward to attach yourselves to him. You really don’t fear death.”

Lei Zongkang felt cold sweat breaking out. “Master Huang...”

Huang Engui raised a hand and cut him off. “Since I came here personally, and since I’m sitting here speaking to you calmly, I’m obviously not here to pick a fight. You and I have no grievance. Besides, you only just met the man and haven’t done anything for him yet. I have no reason to make trouble for you. But this matter is no longer something you can dismiss just by saying it’s over.”

Lei Zongkang hurried forward and cupped his hands. “Master Huang, please show me a way through this.”

Huang Engui said indifferently, “You know the rules of Star-Plucking City. Guests staying at the Inviting Moon Inn aren’t people we can casually touch. Nor do we want to alert the snake by striking the grass and let him slip away. Do you understand?”

Lei Zongkang froze for a moment, then suddenly understood. They wanted his side to help keep watch on Niu Youdao.

He nodded at once. “Master Huang, rest assured. I’ll notify my companions immediately. We’ll keep watch on him for the Liuxian Sect and atone through merit!”

Huang Engui waved a hand. “For Black Peony to agree to something like this, who knows what sort of bewitching potion that fellow fed her. That man is exceedingly cunning. The fact that he has escaped repeated attempts on his life proves as much. I don’t want anything else going wrong. You alone should know about this for now. Don’t tell Black Peony or the others. The more people who know, the easier it is to reveal something and make him suspicious.”

He paused, then added, “Don’t worry. You won’t be working for nothing. Once this is done, I’ll ask the sect to consider recommending and guaranteeing you. Whether it succeeds in the end will depend on your luck.”

[End of Chapter 127]