Chapter 268: What Kind of Relationship Is That?

Shao Sansheng said, "If that's the case, doesn't he know we have ties to Xiaoyue Pavilion?"

"Not necessarily with certainty. He'll think it over. If I truly had the ability to mobilize a force this large, how could he still be alive today? Everyone who has a grudge with him will become a suspect. He'll certainly suspect me, but I doubt he'll be able to confirm it."

As Shao Pingbo spoke, he rose and walked around the long desk. "Contact Sister Zhao immediately. Ask her how much the people sent this time actually knew. Given Xiaoyue Pavilion's structure, those assassins shouldn't have known too much. That would be best. Otherwise Niu Youdao may be able to conclude that I'm connected to Xiaoyue Pavilion."

"Against someone like him, the best way to deal with him is to keep him from seeing clearly."

"There's another thing. I don't know what Linghu Qiu's purpose is in mixing himself up with Niu Youdao, but there has to be a reason. If Linghu Qiu really belongs to Xiaoyue Pavilion, then Xiaoyue Pavilion must know that reason."

"Previously, they were probably afraid that openly stopping Sister Zhao would expose Linghu Qiu's identity. This time, after suffering losses, they will inevitably use that as an excuse to order Sister Zhao to stop interfering."

"Ask Sister Zhao whether Xiaoyue Pavilion used this affair as grounds to order her to stop. If they did, then once all these factors are connected, there will be no doubt that Linghu Qiu belongs to Xiaoyue Pavilion!"

"Until we understand how Niu Youdao killed Zhuo Chao, acting rashly is not wise. If Xiaoyue Pavilion has issued an order, tell Sister Zhao not to make another reckless move. Let her obey it. This is no time to anger Xiaoyue Pavilion. Handle the warhorse affair first and don't delay the larger matter."

"Also, the facts have now proven my earlier judgment correct. Niu Youdao is unquestionably going to the State of Qi to handle the warhorse affair."

"Tell Sister Zhao that, so long as it doesn't interfere with our own operation, she should do everything she can to prevent Niu Youdao from obtaining warhorses."

"Make absolutely sure she understands: only on the condition that it does not affect our own business. She must not act recklessly or force matters..."

Inside the hall of a courtyard, lamplight shone brightly. Several people sat cross-legged on meditation cushions. Tang Yi sat at the head, with Luo Yuangong, Su Po, and Tang Susu to either side. Tang Susu's position as elder had already been restored. The hall was silent. No one spoke.

"This is impossible. How could Niu Youdao possibly defeat Zhuo Chao?" Tang Susu finally broke the silence.

Su Po looked up. "Junior Sister thinks Ice and Snow Pavilion would make up something like this?"

Tang Susu snorted coldly. "That brat is treacherous. He must have used some underhanded trick!"

Su Po could not be bothered arguing with her. Tang Yi and Luo Yuangong remained silent as well. There was no point debating the issue. The news itself was what had left everyone silent.

They had repeatedly confirmed it. This was no rumor. Ice and Snow Pavilion had formally announced the adjustment to the Golden Core Ranking and explicitly stated that the change had occurred because Niu Youdao killed Zhuo Chao.

For the people who had once stripped Niu Youdao of the position of Sect Leader and effectively driven him out of Shangqing Sect, their feelings were complicated.

Back then, they had all believed Niu Youdao too young to shoulder great responsibility. They had gone against the sect rules and ancestral instructions laid down by their founding patriarch and deprived him of the position of Sect Leader.

And now?

Not only had the man established himself, but from what they heard, he was doing quite well. Even the three sects that had once attached themselves to the Song family now obeyed him, while Tianyu Sect had to give him some measure of face.

Back then, Shangqing Sect had likewise depended on the Song family. In terms of strength, any one of those three sects had been stronger than Shangqing Sect.

If Niu Youdao could command even those three sects, then saying he had been too young to lead Shangqing Sect now seemed like a joke.

After surviving the ambush at Nanshan Temple, he had completely severed ties with Shangqing Sect. Then he killed an envoy of Yan and became famous beneath Heaven. He emerged safely from the dark cloud that had gathered around him at the Ice and Snow Pavilion. And now he had even killed an expert ranked among the first-rate on the Golden Core Ranking. Judging only by the events everyone already knew about, who in Shangqing Sect could have accomplished any of them? Who possessed that kind of ability?

One dangerous affair after another—Shangqing Sect would probably not even have dared touch them. Yet a disciple cast out by Shangqing Sect had gone out there and fought Heaven and earth! More importantly, that cast-out disciple should originally have been Shangqing Sect's Sect Leader. They were the ones who had used scheming methods to overturn him.

Commandery Prince Yongping, whom Shangqing Sect had once looked down upon, was now flourishing, leaving the court of the State of Yan unable to do anything to him.

The disciple Shangqing Sect had cast aside had likewise stirred storm after storm across the realm, making Shangqing Sect look pale by comparison. The Song family to which Shangqing Sect had once attached itself had already collapsed and been exterminated.

According to the information they had heard from Shao Pingbo, the destruction of the Song household had also been Niu Youdao's work.

Shangqing Sect had transferred its allegiance to Beizhou, yet its present circumstances were difficult. Dachan Mountain had nearly driven them out of Beizhou. They had survived only because Shao Pingbo protected them.

Even then, Dachan Mountain inevitably reached out and clamped down on the resources available to Shangqing Sect. The resources they could obtain had fallen drastically, while most of the work they were given consisted of miscellaneous chores. Then there was Zhao Xiongge, who had been expelled from the sect in earlier years.

He had now become one of the Golden Core Ranking's top experts, a man whose name alone was enough to deter petty villains beneath Heaven. Thinking over all of this, and reflecting on what had happened, Su Po could not help sighing inwardly.

Over these years, it seemed that every major decision made by Shangqing Sect's leadership had gone badly wrong, one after another, leaving the sect weaker with each passing year. As the saying went: one cowardly soldier weakens one man; a cowardly general weakens the whole nest. There seemed to be some truth to it!

Under their current circumstances, dissatisfaction had already begun spreading among Shangqing Sect's disciples. For now, no one dared voice it openly, but some had already begun privately blaming the leadership for using abnormal methods to strip Niu Youdao of the position of Sect Leader. Everyone could see what had happened. Everyone had heard the stories. Niu Youdao was famous beneath Heaven.

Even sects as large as Liuxian Sect and the other two now followed his lead. If Niu Youdao could support three sects of that size, then surely helping Shangqing Sect live a little better would not be difficult. Tang Yi and the elders knew perfectly well that such words were circulating.

What could they say?

People were practical. The resources available to the disciples were shrinking by the day. They had to find some way to survive. If the people making the decisions were incompetent, could they really forbid everyone else from complaining a little? Back then, everyone had believed Niu Youdao incapable. They had looked down on him and unanimously removed him. Now that they saw him flourishing, some people had begun thinking about him again. That was why Tang Yi and the others were sitting here today.

Some disciples within the sect had jointly raised a question and were demanding an answer from Tang Yi and the senior leadership.

What did they ask?

They asked about Tang Yi's relationship with Niu Youdao. They asked whether Tang Yi and Niu Youdao had dissolved their marriage. Tang Yi did not know how to answer. When Niu Youdao had been weak, she could say the two of them were still husband and wife.

Now that Niu Youdao was flourishing, if she claimed they still were and Niu Youdao later refused to acknowledge it, how was she supposed to bear the humiliation? In the end, Su Po had answered on her behalf. He said the Sect Leader and Niu Youdao were still husband and wife. That gave the disciples something to say.

If the two had formally bowed to Heaven and Earth as husband and wife, and Shangqing Sect had never publicly announced that Niu Youdao was expelled from Shangqing Sect, then husband and wife remaining estranged until death made no sense. Nor was it reasonable for a disciple of Shangqing Sect to ignore his sect forever! They said a great deal, but never once mentioned how everyone had unanimously agreed to remove Niu Youdao back then.

Nor did anyone say that if Niu Youdao continued ignoring his sect, Shangqing Sect should cleanse its own house. There was no point saying it. Did Shangqing Sect still possess the ability to cleanse its house of someone like Niu Youdao?

Besides, because of the rumors the Song family had spread in the past, public opinion was already unfavorable to Shangqing Sect in its dispute with Niu Youdao. If the two sides quarreled openly, Niu Youdao held the moral advantage. Shangqing Sect was the party without reason on its side. Tang Yi knew, and the elders knew, what those disciples wanted. They wanted Tang Yi to swallow her pride and go find Niu Youdao.

"All of you understand what the disciples mean. What do the elders think?" Tang Yi asked.

Luo Yuangong asked, "Sect Leader, that divorce letter Niu Youdao wrote back then—did you truly return it to him?"

Tang Yi fell silent. Because Shao Pingbo had been pursuing her at the time, she had wanted to cut off certain ideas within the sect, so she had claimed she returned the letter to Niu Youdao. But now, she finally told the truth.

"I said it didn't count and burned it in front of him."

"..."

Everyone was speechless. What kind of situation was that?

She burned it?

Yes, she had burned it in front of him, but that did not mean he had taken it back. Then what kind of relationship did the two of them have now?

Tang Susu, however, immediately perked up. "He didn't accept it. Perhaps that means he took back his decision. The disciples' thinking is understandable, but we can't make the Sect Leader lower herself and endure humiliation."

"In my view, Shangqing Sect's current circumstances aren't impossible to improve. Shao Pingbo is an outstanding choice in both appearance and ability, and beyond that, his feelings for the Sect Leader are sincere."

"It isn't reasonable for the Sect Leader to remain unmarried forever either. You might consider him!"

She was the person least willing to see Niu Youdao return to Shangqing Sect. Setting aside everything else, she had repeatedly tried to put Niu Youdao to death. If Niu Youdao returned, how was she supposed to face him?

Su Po said, "I object. What good are looks and ability? What about character? A man who killed his brothers and his mother—how could we let the Sect Leader entrust her life to him?"

Tang Susu said, "Senior Brother, the stories about him killing his brothers and mother are all rumors. How can rumors be trusted so easily? And if, as Senior Brother says, we look down on his character, then what exactly are we doing by living under his roof?"

"Enough!" Tang Yi cut her off sharply.

She stared at Tang Susu. "Does Great-Aunt want me to sell myself for prosperity, or does Elder Tang want me, as Sect Leader, to sell myself for Shangqing Sect's prosperity?"

"If that is how we obtain this so-called 'prosperity,' would Shangqing Sect have the face to enjoy it? Would we be able to face the generations of ancestors who came before us?"

Tang Susu argued, "If the two of you genuinely come to share affection, how could that be called selling yourself for prosperity?"

Tang Yi said, "I will not remarry in this lifetime. There is no need to discuss this matter again!"

Tang Susu's brows knitted tightly.

Luo Yuangong slowly asked, "Sect Leader is so resolute. Have you already made a decision?"

The sky is vast, the wilds boundless;
When the wind bends the grass, cattle and sheep appear. The blue sky was clear as a jewel, dotted with cotton-white clouds that made the heart feel open and refreshed. The endless grassland rolled gently into the distance, green grass rippling in waves beneath the wind. More than twenty riders galloped freely across the prairie, passing herd after herd of cattle and sheep.

Ahead, another great herd of fine horses came thundering toward them, at least several hundred strong. Their manes streamed in the wind, unrestrained and free, graceful and wild. The herders waved their poles while smaller, weaker foals struggled desperately to keep up at the rear of the herd. After sweeping past the horses, Niu Youdao and the others continued onward. Across this vast grassland, even their hearts seemed to become freer and more unrestrained.

Everyone had already changed into the clothing of the nomadic peoples. Niu Youdao even wore a fur hat. They rode without stopping along the winding course of a river. There was no need to worry about losing their direction, nor any need to worry about changing mounts.

The nomadic peoples lived by following water. So long as one traveled along a river, fenced grazing lands belonging to herders would appear every so often. Spend a little money and there were always horses available to choose from and exchange.

In this respect, once inside the borders of the State of Qi, travel was far more convenient than in the other states. Fine horses that were scarce elsewhere were the one thing the State of Qi had no shortage of.

[End of Chapter 268]