Chapter 367: Old Rival

That sense of immense strength filling his entire body astonished Yuan Gang, especially the explosive burst of force that seemed to erupt from within him.

There were too many things he simply did not understand. No predecessor had ever taught him or passed down any experience. He had been feeling his way forward entirely on his own, so he had no idea what had just happened.

The men standing guard that day had also been startled by the sudden bang. Several immediately ran over to see what was going on. They found their boss standing naked on the steps and had no idea what had happened.

No one thought there was anything shameful about seeing Yuan Gang naked. Men who lived together in groups often stripped down in the bathhouse. That was perfectly normal. What puzzled them was something else. Why had their boss's skin turned so red?

Yuan Gang walked naked down the steps toward the well in the courtyard and sat on a small stool. "Draw water and rinse me off."

Several men hurried over. Bucket after bucket came up from the well and splashed over him in sheets. Yuan Gang lowered his head, thinking about what had happened just now, and let the cold well water pour over him.

Only after they finished rinsing him did he realize something was wrong. At first, he had thought the redness in his skin would fade quickly. Yet even after repeated dousings with icy well water, there was no change at all. His skin still looked as though he had been scalded with boiling water...

At the Provincial Inspector's Residence in Beizhou, Shao Pingbo entered the study and looked toward Shao Sansheng, who stood before a map.

Shao Sansheng was standing on a stool. He pulled a silver needle from the map on the wall, shifted it slightly forward, then pinned it down again. The needle marked the fleet's approximate position at sea. Its location was adjusted every half day. If the adjustment failed to proceed smoothly, it meant the fleet's journey was not going well.

An outsider entering the study would have found it difficult to notice the tiny silver needle on the map, much less understand what it represented.

Shao Sansheng hopped down from the stool and cupped his hands. "Eldest Young Master."

Shao Pingbo stared at the map. His voice was grave. "They're almost at the entrance to the State of Han's inland waterways. Sister Zhao's part of the mission is nearly complete. From here on, it will be up to us."

Shao Sansheng said, "Rest assured, Eldest Young Master. We've operated along that water route for many years. There shouldn't be any problem."

Shao Pingbo returned behind his desk and sat down. Before he could begin dealing with official business, Shao Sansheng took out a secret report from his sleeve and handed it over. "The cultivators we secretly sent to the Qi capital have sent word."

To avoid Dachan Mountain's eyes and ears, they had gone to considerable trouble and exercised great caution.

They had no choice.

Dachan Mountain had expressly forbidden them from doing something, yet they were still doing it behind Dachan Mountain's back. If they were discovered, the consequences would be difficult.

"Oh?" Shao Pingbo immediately became interested. He opened the secret message and began reading.

As he read, his brows gradually drew together.

After closing the message, he remained silent for a long while before slowly saying, "Niu Youdao caused this much trouble in the Qi capital, yet Sister Zhao never told me. She's hiding something from me."

After seeing the contents of the message, Shao Sansheng had reached the same conclusion. He ventured, "Miss Su may still have been unable to restrain herself. She may have acted against that Niu bandit after all. In this old servant's opinion, the challenge at Flying Waterfall Terrace was almost certainly her doing."

Shao Pingbo nodded faintly. "From the moment Niu Youdao left Qingshan Commandery, Sister Zhao had a grasp of his movements all along the road. He even crossed a vast desert. An ordinary person wouldn't go to such lengths to keep tracking him. Yet the moment Niu Youdao reached the Qi capital, someone immediately released word to stir up trouble for him. Judging from the motive and the furtive way it was done, I doubt anyone besides Sister Zhao would have done it."

Shao Sansheng said, "Miss Su still failed. That Niu bandit resolved it with ease."

"That was to be expected. How could such a small matter stop him? If he were that easy to deal with, Niu Youdao would never have survived to make such a name for himself. Sister Zhao refused to follow my arrangements." Shao Pingbo sighed, then opened the message again and swept his gaze across it. "Killed Zhuo Chao at Boundless Pavilion... cowed the small fry at Flying Waterfall Terrace... defeated Kunlin Shu at Heavenly Mirror Lake... plucked flowers at Fufang Garden. He swept aside every obstacle along the way. No one could stop him. He does what others cannot. He is a formidable enemy of mine."

His expression had grown grave.

Shao Sansheng said, "Didn't he still fall into the hands of the court of the State of Qi? Linghu Qiu and he were both captured."

"Yet something about it feels wrong to me. His objective was perfectly clear. From the moment he left Qingshan Commandery, he cut his way through obstacle after obstacle because he was after warhorses. So what was he doing wandering around the Qi capital with that Hongniang, leisurely sightseeing? We've crossed hands with him for so long. Don't we know at least something of what kind of man he is? Is he someone who would neglect important business for a woman? His behavior looks more like he was putting on a show to mislead people, or perhaps waiting for the right opportunity. If he had no assurance of his own safety, how could he have strolled around the Qi capital so carefree? How did the court of the State of Qi suddenly manage to capture him?"

Shao Sansheng asked, "Then what do you think happened?"

Shao Pingbo shook his head. He knew too little to make a judgment. "In any case, something isn't right. With Niu Youdao's ability, he isn't that easy to catch. And Linghu Qiu is a Xiaoyue Pavilion man. Niu Youdao should already know his identity. The two of them spent so long together in the Qi capital, and I suspect each was harboring his own designs, neither one bearing the other any goodwill. There may be something wrong with Linghu Qiu's capture."

Shao Sansheng said, "If Niu Youdao knows Linghu Qiu is from Xiaoyue Pavilion, would he really dare move against him?"

"Xiaoyue Pavilion is nothing!" Shao Pingbo said disdainfully. "That bastard even dared scheme against the Ice and Snow Pavilion in secret. What do you think he wouldn't dare do? Given the chance, he'd even overturn Misty Pavilion. Send word to Sister Zhao at once. Tell her what we know and ask how many things she's been hiding from us... No. Don't say anything. Send word telling her to come here herself as soon as possible. I want to ask her face-to-face exactly what is going on."

A violent storm had passed, followed by towering waves. The wind weakened, the sea gradually calmed, and the darkness hanging over the sky slowly began to thin. Guan Fangyi followed Niu Youdao out of the cabin and onto the drenched deck.

Looking at the sea that had only just finished raging, Guan Fangyi sighed. "The weather at sea truly changes its mood without warning."

At that moment, Gongsun Bu also emerged from the cabin, his expression solemn. "Master Dao, the ships ahead have sent word. Six vessels capsized. Four of them were carrying horses. Some of the people were rescued, but nearly all the horses locked in the holds went down with the ships."

Niu Youdao nodded slightly to show he understood. This was not the first time something like this had happened.

The crew became busy again. Now that the storm had passed, they raised the sails they had lowered and let the wind carry the ship onward.

After walking around outside for a while, Niu Youdao returned below deck to the cabin where the Wuliang Mountain disciples sent and received messages.

A map hung on the wall. The fleet's original course had been marked on it as well, with red dots made in cinnabar forming a broken line.

Niu Youdao pointed from the latest red dot to the mouth of a river in the State of Han. "Judging by the timing marked here, how long before that river mouth?"

Gongsun Bu answered, "About half a month."

Niu Youdao moved his hand lower and tapped the coast near Qingshan Commandery. "And how long before we reach Qingshan Commandery?"

"The old sailors aboard say a month at most."

Niu Youdao shook his head. "That won't do. The route above has to be delayed. Our ships must reach Qingshan Commandery before the false route above reaches that river mouth. Shao Pingbo is no easy man to fool. He will definitely have people waiting at the river mouth to receive the fleet. If word reaches him that the ships should have arrived but he sees nothing, the deception will be exposed. A half-month gap is too dangerous for us. Xiaoyue Pavilion could organize people to intercept us at sea at any time."

Gongsun Bu understood immediately. "We'll say repeated storms at sea slowed the journey."

Niu Youdao gave a sound of agreement.

Guan Fangyi asked curiously, "Why would Shao Pingbo immediately know you took the warhorses just because they fail to appear? Why would he come intercept you?"

Niu Youdao chuckled. "If our positions were reversed and my warhorses disappeared, the first person I would suspect would be him. I would immediately organize people to intercept him on the sea route toward Qingshan Commandery. I wouldn't need any other reason."

Guan Fangyi still looked slightly puzzled. Gongsun Bu smiled faintly. Only those who had been at Niu Youdao's side for some time knew that the two men were old rivals.

Niu Youdao warned her, "Hongniang, Shao Pingbo is no simple man. He's dangerous. If you ever meet him in the future, be very careful."

Guan Fangyi gave an absent "Oh," plainly not taking it very seriously. "How extraordinary can he really be?"

Niu Youdao said, "He tore Beizhou away from the State of Yan with one hand, stood against both the State of Han and the State of Yan, wedged himself between two states while leaving neither able to do anything about him, and still managed to make Beizhou prosper under his control. He even got Xiaoyue Pavilion to help him secure a shipment of warhorses this large. Do you think a man like that can be simple?"

Guan Fangyi said, "Isn't Shao Dengyun the one who commands Beizhou's troops and rules the region on his own authority?"

Niu Youdao shook his head. "Shao Dengyun was an old subordinate of Prince Ning, Shang Jianbo. The old Prince Ning men around Commandery Prince Yongping know him well. Shao Dengyun is a capable general. He may be good on a battlefield, but he absolutely does not have the ability to maneuver among states and play powers against one another like this. All of it was his son's doing. Beizhou's present situation was planned and driven forward by Shao Pingbo himself. Shao Dengyun was merely pushed onto the stage. Among all the powers of the various states, there are probably only a handful of people whose methods surpass his."

Guan Fangyi was visibly startled.

Niu Youdao turned to Gongsun Bu again. "As for what happened in the Qi capital this time, I suspect that fellow never made a move. Otherwise we would not have obtained this batch of warhorses so easily, nor escaped so easily. I don't know whether Xiaoyue Pavilion restrained him because of Linghu Qiu, or whether there was some other reason. It's also possible Dachan Mountain tightened its control over him after being frightened once before. In any case, I had the feeling his information was unusually blocked this time. Otherwise there were things he could not possibly have missed. If he had seen an opening, he would definitely have kicked me while I was down. I'd even prepared to cross hands with him in the State of Qi, but the whole time I never felt him exert any pressure. Dachan Mountain escaped disaster because of that. A pity."

Gongsun Bu more or less understood what he meant. Niu Youdao had apparently intended to engineer something that would cripple Dachan Mountain, the power backing Shao Pingbo, but Dachan Mountain had never given him the opportunity.

Guan Fangyi pondered for a moment. "The way you describe him, Shao Pingbo probably can't be allowed to live. Now that you've stolen his warhorses, he'll easily become a future threat. You need to find a way to get rid of him."

Niu Youdao walked out as though he had heard nothing unusual.

Gongsun Bu smiled.

Seeing the two men's reactions, Guan Fangyi stared. "What does that mean? Did I say something wrong?"

Gongsun Bu leaned closer and murmured, "It's not that Master Dao doesn't want to get rid of him. It's that he never has been able to. Shao Pingbo has been trying to get rid of Master Dao all along too. Do you think Master Dao wanted to make such a spectacle at the Ice and Snow Pavilion? Do you think Shao Pingbo wanted to bear the reputation of killing his mother and elder brother?"

Guan Fangyi froze for a moment.

Then realization dawned.

So these two truly were old rivals...

[End of Chapter 367]