Chapter 380: Exhausting Heart and Mind

Fufang Garden.

Inside a pavilion, Mr. Yucang sat amid piles of books and scrolls, reading from a volume in his hands.

Dugu Jing arrived and, from across the long table, presented a letter with both hands. "Master, a letter from Niu Youdao."

Mr. Yucang was startled. He abruptly looked up. "He knows my identity?"

Dugu Jing hurriedly replied, "No. The letter was delivered to one of our lower contact points and passed upward level by level. It isn't addressed to anyone by name, but this letter should be meant for you. Only you can make the decision."

Mr. Yucang looked doubtful. He reached out, took the letter, and unfolded it. His gaze abruptly tightened.

"He actually knows what we're looking for."

Dugu Jing said, "Linghu Qiu's arrest proves that Niu Youdao already knew his identity beforehand. So the claim that the item is in Zhao Xiongge's hands was probably nonsense. That leaves two possibilities. First, Dong Guo Haoran truly did give it to him back then. After all, he was the only person Dong Guo Haoran saw at the end of his life. Entrusting it to him before death would be perfectly natural. That was also the direction we originally focused on. Second, after Linghu Qiu was captured, he talked and revealed that he had stayed beside Niu Youdao because of that item, after which the court of the State of Qi told Niu Youdao. But it seems unlikely that the court of the State of Qi would tell Niu Youdao after learning something like this. So this disciple suspects there is a high probability the item is in Niu Youdao's hands."

Mr. Yucang pondered. "If Dong Guo Haoran truly entrusted it to him, he should also have intended for Niu Youdao to give it to the Shangqing Sect. Niu Youdao went to the Shangqing Sect and stayed there for years, yet he never handed it over. Heh."

Dugu Jing said, "We've already experienced how cunning that young man is despite his age. Considering how the Shangqing Sect treated him, it isn't particularly difficult to understand why he wouldn't hand it over."

Mr. Yucang said, "He killed three hundred of our people aboard the fleet, and now he actually wants to negotiate with us."

Dugu Jing said nothing. He merely watched him.

Mr. Yucang considered the matter for a while, then asked, "Do you think he would sincerely hand the item over? Could there be some trick?"

Dugu Jing said, "That fellow is extremely crafty and his methods are anything but ordinary. Anything is possible."

Mr. Yucang asked, "Then whom should we send?"

At the Provincial Inspector's Residence in Beizhou. Shao Sansheng had fallen asleep sprawled over a table, personally keeping watch beside his master's sickbed. He was sleeping soundly when the faint sound of coughing reached his ears and jolted him awake. He raised his head and discovered the patient was gone from the couch. Then another bout of coughing came from behind him. A hunched figure stood before a map, holding up a lamp as he studied it.

Maps hung everywhere in Shao Pingbo's study, bedroom, and other rooms so he could use them whenever needed.

"Eldest Young Master, you're awake?" Shao Sansheng was overjoyed. He had never expected Shao Pingbo, unconscious for several days, to wake so suddenly.

He hurried over. Seeing Shao Pingbo covering his mouth with a handkerchief as he coughed, while his eyes remained fixed on the map, Shao Sansheng quickly took the oil lamp from his other hand.

"Eldest Young Master, you're ill. Mr. Zhong specifically instructed that you must recuperate quietly and cannot overwork yourself. Please lie down and rest."

Shao Pingbo lowered the handkerchief and waved a hand. "It's fine. With a whole group of cultivators nursing my health, I won't die."

But Shao Sansheng saw specks of blood on the handkerchief where he had coughed. He stamped his foot in distress. "Eldest Young Master, you're coughing blood and still saying you're fine? Please lie down and rest!"

Shao Pingbo coughed twice, then turned to look at him. "The one truly in trouble now is Beizhou. Han and Yan have never abandoned their desire to destroy Beizhou. I can obstruct them for a time, but not forever. Once Beizhou falls, my Shao family will lose all value to the cultivation world. Dachan Mountain will cast the Shao family aside like worn shoes. That is when we will truly be in trouble. Time is pressing. There isn't much left for us. How can you ask me to rest?"

"Eldest Young Master..." Shao Sansheng said miserably.

Shao Pingbo raised a hand and cut him off. He covered his mouth and coughed again, then stared at the map. "I've studied the overall situation among the states. I believe it is necessary for me to make a personal journey to the State of Qi. I need to meet Hao Yuntu myself."

Shao Sansheng was shocked. "Eldest Young Master, how can your body endure a journey that long? Why not send a capable subordinate in your place?"

Shao Pingbo shook his head. "There truly isn't much time left for us. The warhorses were robbed while traveling by sea, which means the water route through the State of Han is no longer dependable either. On this journey, I must persuade Hao Yuntu to provide me with warhorses. I must also persuade Emperor Hai Wuji of the State of Zhao to open a route for me so the horses can be delivered to Beizhou as quickly as possible. At the same time, I need to seek alliances with both states and use them to pressure the State of Han and the State of Yan, buying time for Beizhou. Otherwise, once the State of Han and the State of Yan learn that warhorses are about to arrive, they may suddenly launch an attack on Beizhou. None of these matters can be delayed. Unless I go personally, they cannot be concluded quickly enough."

Eldest Young Master was already in this condition, yet he was still exhausting heart and mind over these affairs.

Holding the lamp in both hands, Shao Sansheng's expression grew complicated. Especially when he saw Shao Pingbo's hair in the lamplight, tears of grief welled up uncontrollably. During the several days Shao Pingbo had lain unconscious, most of his hair had turned white. There was now more white than black.

"Cough, cough!"

Shao Pingbo covered his mouth and coughed again, then pointed toward the position of the Qi capital on the map.

"After Hao Yuntu, which prince do you think is most likely to take control of the State of Qi?"

Shao Sansheng freed one hand and wiped his tears with his sleeve. "Everyone beneath Heaven knows Prince Jin, Hao Qi, is Hao Yuntu's eldest son, while Prince Yu, Hao Hong, is the current Empress's eldest son. The two of them will inevitably have to decide victory between themselves. The winner will ascend the throne of the State of Qi. None of the other princes has forces comparable to theirs."

"Not so!" Shao Pingbo shook his head, staring at the position of the Qi capital. "I've considered it for a long time. Instead, I think Prince Ying, Hao Zhen, shows signs of a hidden dragon lying in the depths. If he remains silent, so be it. Once he cries out, he will astonish everyone!"

Shao Sansheng was surprised. "Why?"

Shao Pingbo did not answer.

Still staring at the map, he said slowly, "For the State of Qi, Hao Yuntu can be counted as a formidable ruler of his generation. He has nearly swept away the power of the State of Qi's feudal lords. He accomplished what successive Qi emperors failed to do, and the state has gradually grown stronger under his rule."

"But every man's lifespan eventually runs out. Hao Yuntu has a group of cultivators maintaining his health and appears to be in his prime, yet he is nearly sixty. In another ten years, he will be close to seventy. For an ordinary mortal, even an emperor, what does approaching seventy mean?"

Shao Sansheng answered, "It means a successor must be chosen."

Shao Pingbo covered his mouth with the handkerchief and coughed. "Exactly. When that time comes, many things will no longer be under Hao Yuntu's control. The princes beneath him have waited too long for his position. They will have run out of patience. Once they reach that point, no one will be able to hold back anymore. Everyone who needs to jump out will jump out. Hao Yuntu will be old. The cultivation sects will inevitably begin looking for a successor to the imperial power as well. They too will have to choose among the princes. The princes' thinking will change, and the cultivation sects' thinking will change with it. No matter how ambitious Hao Yuntu may be, circumstances will no longer obey him, and his own state of mind will have to change as well. I predict that in roughly another ten years, the State of Qi will inevitably be filled with internal turmoil."

He turned back. "Contact Sister Zhao. Tell her that no matter the cost, she must help me eliminate the Princess Consort of Prince Ying!"

"The Princess Consort of Prince Ying?" Shao Sansheng was greatly startled. "You want to kill Prince Ying Hao Zhen's wife?"

Shao Pingbo stared at the map in silence. He did not tell Shao Sansheng why.

His silence was answer enough.

"Yes!" Shao Sansheng acknowledged.

Then he tentatively asked, "Should I also ask exactly what happened with the warhorses being robbed?"

At the mention of this, Shao Pingbo was seized by another violent fit of coughing, as though he would cough up his lungs. When he finally lowered the handkerchief again, another patch had been stained crimson.

He waved the handkerchief. "The warhorses have already reached Qingshan Commandery. None of us has any way to go there, gather them back up, and bring them home. There is no point continuing to fixate on the matter. Given the current situation, the account with Niu Youdao can only be set aside for now. First deal with what is immediately pressing. We still need Sister Zhao to handle matters for us. This is not the time to hold her accountable. Nor are we in any position to pursue responsibility against her. Simply tell her the situation. When the time comes for her to give us an explanation, she will naturally do so. If she doesn't want to speak, asking will be useless. For now, let her keep feeling guilty. That will make her work even harder to handle our affairs properly."

"Understood. This old servant knows what to do," Shao Sansheng replied.

In Qingshan Commandery, Guan Fangyi walked gracefully among the pavilions of Maolu Villa. Upon entering one pavilion, she found nearly all several dozen of her people from Fufang Garden already gathered. Each sat with a bowl of plain rice porridge, and each held a golden stick in one hand, biting into it with a crisp crunch. Even Uncle Chen and Old Six Xu were no exception.

"When we were in the Qi capital, I never saw all of you show up this neatly for a meal. How embarrassing." Guan Fangyi gave a disdainful snort.

Everyone looked over, and quite a few chuckled.

Old Six Xu swallowed what was in his mouth and laughed awkwardly. "Big Sister, say what you like, but Master Dao's food changes every day. You actually start looking forward to it. It tastes really good. Once we get used to eating here, I'm afraid we won't be able to swallow food from anywhere else in the future. Here—youtiao. Try one, Big Sister."

He pointed at the heap of golden sticks on the table.

"Youtiao?" Guan Fangyi muttered as she sat down. Another name she had never heard before.

Someone had already filled a bowl of plain rice porridge and placed it before her. She had just picked up a youtiao when Yuan Fang appeared, leading two monks carrying over a pot of porridge.

Guan Fangyi immediately looked back. "Demon, you didn't poison it, did you?"

Yuan Fang's eyes instantly widened. "Bullshit! With the reputation of my Nanshan Temple, would we do something like that?"

Guan Fangyi immediately broke into giggles. She had only been teasing him. She opened her mouth and bit into the youtiao. Crisp, fragrant, and satisfying. The more she chewed, the better it tasted. Then she took a sip of plain rice porridge and instantly felt as though every taste bud had opened at once. The others all burst out laughing too. The whole group found the arrangement rather interesting.

That Master Dao had actually brought in a band of monks to wait on everyone looked a little strange, yet there was also something uniquely refined about it. Seeing the monks coming and going from time to time somehow seemed to calm the mind as well.

If these people knew what Yuan Fang and the monks of Nanshan Temple had originally done for a living, they probably would not be laughing anymore. Most likely, they would carefully test their food all over again.

After signaling the two monks to set everything down properly, Yuan Fang gave a cold snort and headed toward Niu Youdao's courtyard. Before the dressing table, Niu Youdao sat quietly with his eyes closed. Shang Shuqing stood behind him, carefully arranging his hair.

After a while, she said, "Master Dao, people from Jinzhou have arrived. They say they want to buy a batch of warhorses from us. My brother asked me to ask what you think."

Niu Youdao said slowly, "I don't handle that matter. Have His Highness discuss it with Tianyu Sect."

"Mm," Shang Shuqing answered.

"Master Dao!" Yuan Fang called from outside as he entered.

He cupped his hands toward Shang Shuqing as well and smiled. "Commandery Princess."

By now, he had long grown accustomed to seeing her arrange Niu Youdao's hair.

Yuan Fang walked to Niu Youdao's side, bent down, and reported, "There's a reply from over there. They said they understand."

[End of Chapter 380]