Chapter 381: Shang Mirror

Shang Shuqing glanced at Yuan Fang, not knowing what he was talking about. It was not her place to ask.

Niu Youdao, however, knew. Recently, he had only had Yuan Fang send one message to Chen Guishuo.

Now that a reply had come, he could finally set his mind at ease. Chen Guishuo was an important chess piece to him, and protecting that piece was one of the reasons he had kept Ghost Mother close.

The warhorses had been seized in the State of Qi, and Xianyin Mountain had turned on its original side and helped him. Anyone looking at the matter would assume the problem lay with Xianyin Mountain, that Xianyin Mountain had leaked the information. No one would connect the breach to the water route through the State of Han, and therefore no one would suspect Chen Guishuo. Niu Youdao had to make sure Chen Guishuo remained protected. His arrangements were already quite secure, but to be safe, he had still ordered Chen Guishuo to cut off contact with this side and eliminate any chance of an accident.

Completely insulating Chen Guishuo from the affair was both for Niu Youdao's own sake and an obligation to Chen Guishuo himself.

"Understood," Niu Youdao replied indifferently, showing no particular reaction.

With no further instructions, Yuan Fang left.

Not long afterward, Duan Hu arrived and reported, "Master Dao, someone outside the valley is asking to see you."

Niu Youdao asked, "Who?"

Duan Hu said, "He didn't reveal his identity. He only said he came at your invitation."

Niu Youdao's eyes snapped open. He stared at his reflection in the mirror. "Our honored guest has arrived. How many people came?"

"Just one!"

"Invite him in. Also, have Hongniang and the others prepare themselves. Tell the three sects to heighten their vigilance. If they notice anything unusual, report to me immediately!"

"Yes!" Duan Hu accepted the order and left.

Shang Shuqing's hands immediately moved faster. Hearing that Niu Youdao was mobilizing so many people, she naturally understood that something important was happening.

Thinking of the man before her, she could not help feeling deeply moved.

She still remembered clearly the circumstances in which she had first invited him out of the mountains.

Back then, he had been confined at Peach Blossom Spring and forced to read other people's expressions in everything he did. Yet in the blink of an eye, before anyone quite realized it, so many people had gathered under his hand. Three entire sects now obeyed his orders, and any one of them was far stronger than the Shangqing Sect of those days. And where was the Shangqing Sect now? They were probably regretting it bitterly.

As for her and her brother, who had once been like homeless dogs, he had helped them stand back up.

At moments like this, she would remember what Yuan Gang had once told her: To you, Master Dao himself is more important than his cultivation...

Once Niu Youdao was properly groomed and stepped outside, he ran straight into Guan Fangyi hurrying toward him.

Guan Fangyi nodded in greeting to Shang Shuqing, who had followed him out, then turned and fell in behind Niu Youdao. "What's going on?"

Niu Youdao said, "Have your Heavenly Sword Talisman ready. Someone from Xiaoyue Pavilion is here."

"Ah! So soon?" Guan Fangyi was somewhat surprised. Inwardly, her nerves tightened.

Shang Shuqing watched the two disappear beyond the courtyard. Everyone who had been eating breakfast had already vanished to take up positions. The pavilions and terraces had been cleared and put in order. Niu Youdao sat beneath a pavilion drinking tea, waiting quietly. Guan Fangyi stood nearby on guard. Before long, Duan Hu led over a man in a black robe.

The newcomer's head and face were concealed, and he was clearly wearing a false mask. He slowly sat opposite Niu Youdao.

Niu Youdao waved Duan Hu away, personally poured a cup of tea, and gestured toward it while the black-robed man studied him. "Please, have some tea."

"No need." The black-robed man's voice was hoarse, obviously disguised. His gaze remained fixed on Niu Youdao.

Naturally, he would never casually drink tea in a place like this. He was not tired of living. In the eyes of some people, Niu Youdao was hardly a good man.

Niu Youdao smiled. "May I ask your honored name?"

"Is there any need for you to know?"

"You know who I am, while I don't know who you are. That leaves me at something of a disadvantage."

"That isn't the point of our meeting."

"True enough. Your people have always been mysterious creatures who can't bear the light of day."

"I didn't come here to trade insults with you."

"If I can't confirm your identity, how am I supposed to negotiate with you? And how could I possibly hand the item over?"

The black-robed man drew a folded sheet of paper from his sleeve, slapped it onto the table, and pushed it across.

Niu Youdao took it and unfolded it. It was the invitation letter he himself had written. Naturally, he recognized his own handwriting.

The black-robed man asked, "Enough dragging this out. Where is the item?"

Niu Youdao folded the paper again. "First we agree on the terms. Once the terms are settled, naturally I'll give you the item."

"What terms? Speak."

"All past grievances between us are written off. You are not to trouble me again."

For Xiaoyue Pavilion, this was within expectations. The black-robed man said, "Fine. As long as the item is genuine, I can make that decision."

Niu Youdao said, "Don't be in such a hurry. There's more. Linghu Qiu and his two attendants are to leave Xiaoyue Pavilion from this day forward, and Xiaoyue Pavilion is never to trouble them again."

The black-robed man said, "That sounds like a joke. You're the one who landed them in this situation. Don't tell me you're trying to save them now."

Even Guan Fangyi, standing nearby as his protector, looked surprised.

Niu Youdao said, "You don't need to concern yourself with that. I only want to know whether you agree."

The black-robed man hesitated. "I can't decide that myself. I need to ask my superiors."

Niu Youdao nodded. "Fine. I'll wait for your answer. While you're asking, bring up two more matters. First, I want ten million gold coins. Second, as long as someone is one of my people, Xiaoyue Pavilion is not to move against them without cause."

Ten million gold coins? Guan Fangyi's eyes flickered repeatedly. What could possibly be worth this much? And what sort of object gave him enough leverage to demand so many concessions from Xiaoyue Pavilion?

The black-robed man said, "Leaving the other demands aside for now, how are we supposed to know who is one of your people and who isn't? If you want to make trouble and casually point to someone as yours, wouldn't we be constrained at every turn?"

Niu Youdao said, "That's simple. I won't make things difficult for you. Anyone publicly known and plainly recognized as one of my people is not to be touched. You've made four demands. I can only agree to the first. I can't give you an answer on the others for now."

Niu Youdao inclined his head. "Fine. I'm in no hurry. You can answer after asking your superiors."

The black-robed man said, "What about the item? At the very least, I need to know whether it's genuine and whether it's truly in your hands. Otherwise, how am I supposed to report upward?"

Clang!

Niu Youdao took out a bronze mirror and tossed it straight onto the table, gesturing for the other man to inspect it as he pleased.

The black-robed man froze. He had not expected Niu Youdao to be so clean and decisive about it, tossing the thing down like a piece of scrap. It made him seriously doubt whether the object was genuine.

Guan Fangyi was curious too. Her eyes remained fixed on the bronze mirror on the table. What was going on? Wasn't it just a bronze mirror?

The black-robed man picked it up and examined it front and back. Suspicion entered his voice. "You're certain this is real?"

Niu Youdao said, "Whether it's genuine, I don't know. But Dong Guo Haoran truly gave it to me before he died. Dong Guo Haoran lost his life over this object, so I imagine it isn't fake. Linghu Qiu spent so long beside me, probing from every angle over and over again. Wasn't this what he was after?"

Probing from every angle over and over again? The black-robed man cursed Linghu Qiu for a fool inwardly. No wonder he had exposed himself.

"If it really is genuine, aren't you afraid I'll take it and run?" the black-robed man asked.

The moment he said that, the Heavenly Sword Talisman appeared in Guan Fangyi's hand, drawing a sidelong glance from him.

Niu Youdao laughed. "If you want to grab it, go ahead and try. I'll let you take it. But I guarantee that before long, everyone beneath Heaven will know the object is in Xiaoyue Pavilion's hands. If you're not afraid of the trouble, then steal it and see. That's the leverage behind this transaction. Agree to my terms, and I guarantee this matter won't leak. Otherwise, you can always break your word and come after me. I can't afford to provoke you people, and I don't want that trouble. If I did, I wouldn't be giving you this object in the first place."

The black-robed man said nothing more. He set the bronze mirror back on the table, then took a small cloth bundle from his sleeve and opened it. Inside were two brushes and a small box.

He opened the box, revealing something like black ink. Taking one brush, he dipped it into the liquid and carefully brushed it across the patterns on the back of the bronze mirror.

Then he laid a sheet of paper over the surface, took the clean brush, and gently worked it across the paper covering the mirror's reverse.

After a short while, he peeled the paper away. The pattern from the back of the bronze mirror had been clearly transferred onto it. Next, he began making a rubbing of the front.

Niu Youdao chuckled. "You truly came prepared. It seems Xiaoyue Pavilion already has rubbings of this bronze mirror for comparison."

The black-robed man ignored him. After finishing the rubbing of the mirror's front, he carefully blew both sheets dry, folded them, and put them away.

"I'll return after consulting my superiors." With that, the black-robed man rose and left.

Niu Youdao had barely watched him go before Guan Fangyi snatched up the bronze mirror. Not caring that it was dirty, she turned it over and over in her hands. "What exactly is this bronze mirror?"

Niu Youdao's gaze fell instead on the Heavenly Sword Talisman in her hand. He clicked his tongue. "Hongniang, you carry a Heavenly Sword Talisman around and still cry poor, still demand that I support you. Aren't you embarrassed?"

Guan Fangyi rolled her eyes. "What does using a Heavenly Sword Talisman have to do with whether I have money?"

Niu Youdao scoffed. "Could someone without money afford something as extravagant as a Heavenly Sword Talisman?"

"I didn't buy it. When I was young, plenty of people gave me gifts. A fellow from Tianxing Sect courted me in those days and gave me some talismans for self-defense. It would've been rude to refuse such generosity."

Niu Youdao looked as though his jaw might drop. "Some? How many is 'some'? I know Tianxing Sect specializes in refining talismans, but Heavenly Sword Talismans aren't easy to make, are they? What kind of man gives something this expensive—a high-grade Heavenly Sword Talisman—as a courtship gift? His status in Tianxing Sect couldn't have been low, or he never would've gotten his hands on them."

Guan Fangyi plainly did not want to dwell on the subject. She spat, "Stop changing the subject. Tell me honestly, what exactly is this?" She raised the bronze mirror in her hand.

Niu Youdao answered mildly, "Nothing much. The Shang Mirror."

"What?" Guan Fangyi looked as though her eyes might leap from their sockets. She cried out, "This is the Shang Mirror, foremost of the Eight State-Protecting Divine Artifacts forged by Shang Song, founding emperor of the State of Wu?"

Niu Youdao gave a confirming sound. While she was stunned, he snatched the mirror back and put it away. "What did you think it was?"

Guan Fangyi still could not believe it. "This shabby mirror doesn't look special at all. How could it be the Shang Mirror, the State of Qin's state-protecting divine artifact?"

For someone who had never seen it before, it was truly difficult to connect such an ordinary-looking mirror with that legendary treasure.

Niu Youdao sighed. "If it weren't that thing, what right would I have to demand so many terms from them?"

[End of Chapter 381]