Chapter 647: Three Earnest Bows

“Little Brother, this joke of yours isn’t funny at all!” Huang Lie’s face darkened.

Niu Youdao looked even more surprised. “Sect Leader Huang, do I look like I’m joking?”

Huang Lie had the urge to stab him ten thousand times. Restraining himself as best he could, he said, “Instead of finding a way to protect yourself, you’re throwing yourself into the war. Isn’t that asking for trouble? The five regional lords backed by the three major sects refuse to fight, yet they want Nanzhou to do the fighting. Do we really need to think hard to know what they’re plotting?”

“You believe them just because they gave you the title of Grand General for Suppressing the Rebellion? The mighty Master Dao of Maolu Villa isn’t that easy to fool, is he? They want Nanzhou to go die for them!”

“Even if we suppress the rebellion successfully, so what? The rebels number two million! Even if Nanzhou wins, it will be a bitter victory. Once the strength in our hands is gone, in this man-eating world, will there still be any place for us in Yan?”

Seeing how anxious he was, Niu Youdao could not help smiling. “Sect Leader Huang is worrying too much. Sending troops is precisely how we protect Nanzhou.”

“Protect Nanzhou, my ass. I don’t see it.” Sparks flew in Huang Lie’s words.

“Sect Leader Huang should have confidence in the Prince and confidence in Nanzhou’s elite troops. Once the Prince’s army marches, it will sweep away the rebels and settle Yan’s internal turmoil in one stroke!” Niu Youdao made a sweeping gesture, as though clearing the whole realm before him.

The corners of Huang Lie’s eyes nearly split. “Are you talking in your sleep? Dachan Mountain has already offended the three major sects, and now you want us to follow you into war against Han and Song as well. Win or lose, we’ll offend both sides. Are you trying to leave us no road to live?”

“When the time comes, you can slip away whenever you like. What about all the disciples of Dachan Mountain? Where are we supposed to go?”

He could hardly have spoken more plainly.

Niu Youdao raised a hand and pressed it downward, signaling him not to get worked up. “Sect Leader Huang, relax. Nothing will happen. Just order Dachan Mountain’s disciples to prepare to march with the army as soon as possible.”

“When we return victorious, if the three major sects dare trouble Dachan Mountain and settle old accounts, I’ll stand in front of you and take it!”

Huang Lie rose to his feet. “Niu Youdao, as Sect Leader of Dachan Mountain, I cannot gamble the lives and fortunes of everyone in the sect on this. I cannot afford to treat it as a joke.”

“You must give me a clear explanation today. Otherwise, Nanzhou’s army can forget about marching out so easily. If you push me too far, don’t blame me for taking the initiative to contact Han and Song.”

Seeing him like this, Niu Youdao knew there was no getting past him without an explanation. He rose as well and gestured. “Come. Come with me.”

“Come where? Explain yourself first!” Huang Lie’s voice was full of fire.

Niu Youdao turned and walked away. “The Dharma should not be lightly transmitted, and secrets should not be proclaimed to the multitude. If you want to know the truth, follow me.”

“Relax. I’m not going to do anything to you. If I harmed you and Dachan Mountain refused to march, wouldn’t that ruin everything?”

Huang Lie was so angry he nearly laughed.

At this point, he could choke Nanzhou’s army by the throat whenever he wished. What was there for Niu Youdao to fear?

Even so, since Niu Youdao had said this much, Huang Lie could hardly remain stubborn. He signaled for his fellow sect members to wait there and followed Niu Youdao alone.

The two left the villa and walked toward a nearby hill. Huang Lie had no idea what trick Niu Youdao was playing, but he still instinctively surveyed the surroundings.

They stopped before a grave mound.

Niu Youdao planted his sword before him and sighed. “Maolu Villa is the place where I’ve settled down. How could I abandon it lightly? Naturally I have to think of a way to protect it. Why won’t Sect Leader Huang believe me?”

Huang Lie stood beside him, glanced at the inscription on the gravestone, and knew who lay buried there. After knowing Niu Youdao this long, he naturally knew something of his past.

He snorted. “Spare me this performance. The fate of all Dachan Mountain is at stake. I’m not going to muddle through this in ignorance.”

“There you go again. Suppressing the rebellion is all we’re talking about. Who is Meng Shanming? This is something he can handle with ease. What are you so afraid of?”

“Are you going to tell me or not?”

“You truly want to know?”

“Obviously!”

“This is a secret. It cannot be shown to people lightly. Among the living, apart from my closest confidants, the only ones I can tell are the dead.”

Huang Lie was startled.

He thought Niu Youdao meant to silence him permanently and instantly became highly alert to everything around them. Yet he found nothing unusual.

His voice sank. “What do you mean?”

“It’s secret. I can’t casually tell people. If I tell you, can you guarantee you won’t leak it?”

“If it truly is a secret, naturally I won’t leak it.”

“Not even to your fellow disciples in Dachan Mountain.”

“No problem.” Huang Lie agreed at once.

By now his curiosity was unbearable. What secret could possibly justify all this mystery?

Niu Youdao lifted his chin toward the grave mound. “Bow to her three times first.”

Three bows to a grave?

The person buried there was no relative of his.

Huang Lie looked suspicious. “What do you mean?”

Niu Youdao stared at him. “If you can’t show even this much sincerity, how am I supposed to trust your promise?”

“...”

Huang Lie was speechless.

What kind of logic was that?

After hesitating for a while, he decided it was nothing more than bowing to the dead. It was hardly a serious loss.

He asked, “If I bow, you’ll tell me?”

“So long as you give her three earnest bows, I’ll tell you. I won’t go back on my word.”

Huang Lie was still half suspicious.

But with the conversation already at this point, there seemed little reason to refuse over something so trivial compared with the enormous affair before him.

In the end, he bent at the waist.

Before Black Peony’s grave, the Sect Leader of Dachan Mountain truly gave three slow, earnest bows.

When he straightened again, one eyebrow had already risen. “Now can you tell me?”

“You’re certain you won’t leak it?”

“Enough nonsense. I bowed already. Don’t tell me you plan to go back on your word.”

Niu Youdao planted his sword with one hand and beckoned with the other, motioning for Huang Lie to lean closer.

Huang Lie hesitated.

Still maintaining a high degree of vigilance, he finally bent an ear toward him.

“The imperial court sent people to kill me and wanted me dead. How could I not guard against it? How could I not know what schemes those five regional lords are playing?”

“But with Meng Shanming here, none of it is worth fearing. Meng Shanming has already settled the grand strategy: suppress the regional lords, not the rebels...”

Niu Youdao lowered his voice and explained the confidential plan.

After hearing him out, Huang Lie froze.

Then, as the trick hidden inside the strategy became clear, his eyes suddenly flashed with brilliance. He clapped his hands and exclaimed, “Brilliant! Meng Shanming truly deserves his reputation. He is indeed the pillar of Nanzhou!”

Niu Youdao patted him on the back. “Now you can let Dachan Mountain march with the army without worrying, yes?”

Huang Lie nodded with a smile.

Then his smile suddenly stiffened.

Suspicion appeared in his eyes. “Things have already reached this point. The court has handed over the military authority of the Grand General for Suppressing the Rebellion, and the order is about to be publicly implemented. How is this still some great secret?”

He glanced at the grave mound again.

His expression practically said: was this really worth making the dignified Sect Leader of Dachan Mountain bow three times to a grave?

Niu Youdao asked in return, “As far as I know, the imperial court has not proclaimed it throughout the realm yet. They could still go back on it at any time.”

“Can you guarantee there are no spies inside Dachan Mountain? The imperial court’s mentality is better to give it to foreign thieves than to a household slave. Do you think they wouldn’t dare retract their order?”

“Great Sect Leader Huang, this concerns the fate of both our sides. We cannot afford even the smallest mistake. You tell me—did I dare reveal it to you lightly before?”

“Look how furious you were just now. A dignified Sect Leader couldn’t even keep his temper steady. You didn’t stop to think whether I would really dig a pit for myself.”

Huang Lie was no fool.

He still half doubted this explanation.

Nanzhou had already received the imperial edict. Could the court truly reverse itself now?

Would it disregard Yan’s survival and not fear being drowned in the spit of the realm?

Would the three major sects agree?

Even so, no one could guarantee there would be absolutely no mishap.

The matter truly was enormous and concerned the fate of everyone in Nanzhou. Extra caution was not necessarily wrong.

Nor did Huang Lie believe Niu Youdao would deliberately make such a show merely to force him to bow three times before a grave. There was no reason for that.

After thinking for a moment, he asked, “Have you considered what happens once Nanzhou’s forces march out? Even if the rebellion is successfully suppressed, the imperial court may not let us return so easily. What will we do then?”

Niu Youdao raised an eyebrow. “The men in our hands aren’t decorations. Is it really up to them?”

“We’ve already come through storms and great waves. Are we supposed to fear one little pit they dig?”

“If I can suppress a rebellion, I can rebel too. Let Shang Jianxiong try me if he has the guts!”

“Relax. Who is Meng Shanming? He is a master at laying plans across a battlefield. Naturally he has preparations of his own.”

“Would I put in this much effort only to dig my own grave?”

Put that way, Huang Lie thought it made sense.

He did not know whether to be pleased or worried.

Why did every complicated matter seem so simple once it reached this bastard’s hands?

“Great Sect Leader Huang, if there’s nothing else, stop dragging this out. Go back early and have Dachan Mountain’s disciples make their preparations. This cannot be delayed.”

“I’m leaving.” Huang Lie turned away.

Now that he understood the situation, his mood was much lighter. The anxiety that had filled him finally dispersed.

“I won’t see you out!” Niu Youdao called after him, turning with both hands resting over the sword planted before his abdomen.

Huang Lie waved without looking back, then suddenly shot away through the air and entered the villa directly.

Before long, a large flying mount rose from Maolu Villa and vanished into the sky.

Only after the guests had disappeared did Niu Youdao slowly turn back toward the grave mound.

He circled it at an unhurried pace, pulling out the tender new grass that had sprouted around it as he muttered softly.

“You. You simply refused to believe me.”

“If I dared do what I did back then, naturally I had a way to get out. Was there really any need for you to pretend to be me and die in my place?”

“Other debts are easy to repay. A debt of favor is hard.”

“I’m a man who has always had others owing me. I don’t owe people. And yet you left me with a debt I can never repay.”

“This affair has grown too large. Things on a battlefield change from moment to moment. I may be able to guess how it begins, but I may not be able to guess how it ends.”

“The situation is no longer something I can control in every direction. I can only take one step and look several steps ahead.”

“Once I leave this time, I’m afraid I may not necessarily return. If something unexpected happens, I may have to leave you here alone.”

“I don’t know when I’ll be able to come back.”

“Duan Hu and the others... I haven’t treated them badly. They’re all doing well. They can hold their heads high now. They finally look like proper men, nothing like when I first met them.”

“But you left too early.”

“You were there for the suffering, yet missed the good days that came after.”

“I failed to think things through back then and let you walk into danger. That was my fault. I wronged you.”

“When you were alive, you always bent and bowed before others, humbling yourself and swallowing humiliation, reading people’s expressions at every turn.”

“You envied and feared the people from the great sects.”

“Today, I made the Sect Leader of Dachan Mountain bend his back and bow his head to you.”

“I’m going.”

“One more guest, then I’m leaving. Nearly everyone will be withdrawing for the time being.”

“I only hope we can come back safely.”

Niu Youdao raised a hand and patted the gravestone.

A melancholy sigh escaped him.

Then the emotion disappeared from his face.

Light and untroubled once more, he turned away and left, still walking with his familiar habit of leaning on his sword.

[End of Chapter 647]