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"Yang Ge, as the one who tied the bell, you’re the only one who can untie it. Didn’t Lou Wailou place a heavy bet on you to stir up turmoil in the martial world? If you would stand out and issue a statement affirming your loyalty to the court, asserting your non-involvement in any martial world conflicts, no matter how much Lou Wailou fans the flames or adds fuel to the fire, their efforts would be in vain."
He spread his hands, "Clearly, the government still believes Yang Ge is the most reliable."
Yang Ge was both amused and frustrated, "Just act like a person, why do you deceive Wei so, targeting honest people to bully? Didn’t you realize Wei’s brain isn’t that good to begin with? If you cross the line again, I guarantee that even if you hide in the Imperial Horse Supervisor, your legs won’t be safe!"
Shen Fa was about to retort when Yang Ge added, "And also, stop trying to be cunning with me. I wasn’t oblivious before; I simply couldn’t be bothered to argue with you. Dare to overstep again, and no matter if you hide in the Imperial Horse Supervisor, I assure you your legs won’t be protected!"
A smile that had just surfaced on Shen Fa’s face stiffened as he laughed sheepishly, "Hey, in our line of work, you understand... I’ll definitely change, definitely."
Yang Ge didn’t look at him, playing absently with his teacup, "However, both your upper and lower strategies are indeed solutions to the problem. The court’s approach of ’covering its ears to steal a bell,’ deceiving itself and others, may solve the immediate issue, but does nothing to benefit the problem at hand."
Shen Fa said helplessly, "Everyone understands the principle, but every family has its difficulties, the court has its troubles too..."
Yang Ge looked up at him, slowly shaking his head, "Sometimes I am not sure whether your patchwork mentality is beneficial or detrimental, but as long as a problem remains unresolved, it will always be a problem. Only by resolving it does it cease to be one."
Shen Fa gazed steadily at him for a few moments before sighing deeply.
Yang Ge: "What are you sighing for?"
Shen Fa, propping his head up with one hand and slowly rubbing his eyes, "I was just thinking... if back then I had insisted on taking you to the capital, whether things would be different for us now?"
Such a talent as Yang Ge, languishing in the jianghu, is truly a loss for the court...
Yang Ge smiled without answering, instead asking, "If I withdraw, can you really settle the external storms?"
Shen Fa slowly furrowed his brow, "Withdraw? Where do you plan to go?"
Yang Ge: "Never mind where I’m going, just answer my question."
Shen Fa frowned thoughtfully for a moment, then nodded firmly, "We can handle it, we must!"
Yang Ge slowly exhaled, "Very well... I’ll be making a trip to Dongying shortly, and I likely won’t return soon. Use this time to do what you must."
"Dongying?"
Shen Fa suddenly woke up, "You haven’t killed enough?"
Yang Ge smiled, "I haven’t even started killing; how can there be enough?"
Shen Fa’s expression began to change unpredictably, his brow creasing tighter, "If we’re talking from the perspective of the court, naturally, I would hope you go as far as possible, but from a friend’s perspective... I advise you it’s best not to go. The waters in Dongying are deep. If you go rashly, without inside help or reinforcements, it’s easy to get trapped there. Furthermore, the southeast matter has been settled; why seek out trouble?"
"That kind of thinking is no good..."
Yang Ge shook his head, and in a low and decisive tone he said, "From any angle, this situation is not something that the invading wokou being exterminated can simply gloss over!"
"No barbarian, no matter who, if they dare make the first move, we must respond in kind with overwhelming force. We absolutely cannot give any foreign nation the impression that our divine land is an easy target. They must remember, if they dare infringe upon our borders, they will pay a painful price!"
"Only by making them suffer and feel fear, will they and their descendants think thrice before harboring any ill intentions toward our borders. They won’t act recklessly just because they perceive weakness, like stray dogs stealing scraps, thinking misdeeds come without consequences."
Shen Fa watched him intently, "You’ve already made up your mind?"
Yang Ge nodded candidly, "Before I killed Ning Wang, I had decided to let the emperor vent his anger. When the time was right, I planned to travel far to Dongying, to settle the situation... Unfortunately, plans cannot keep up with changes."
Upon hearing this, Shen Fa wished time could rewind to when the Six Bureaus’ troops reached Lu Ting, so he could strangle that bane of existence Huang Jin to death in front of Yang Ge’s grandfather’s grave!
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This matter really couldn’t be blamed on his belated realization; he truly had no idea there was a grave in Yang Ge’s backyard. Not just him, even Fang Ke, who frequented Yang Ge’s house, had no clue that there was a grave in the backyard...
By the time they received the news and rushed to the grave, the skull-choppers from the Eastern Factory had already dug it up. It was too late to do anything!
"The heavens toy with us!"
Shen Fa covered his eyes with both hands and chuckled bitterly, "If it weren’t for Huang Jin, that hermaphrodite with a rotten ass, maybe you and the imperial court still had a chance for reconciliation, right?"
Yang Ge pondered for a moment before answering softly, "There should have been, I guess. I didn’t have much of a grudge against the Emperor. I actually could understand his difficulties... My mother had my fortune told before. The fortune-teller said I was born under a light destiny, with weak stature, and was not fated for officialdom or wealth. Perhaps that’s my destiny here."
After pausing, he continued, "Before you two arrived, Li and I were discussing this. We had previously agreed to wait and see how things played out in the martial arts world before deciding whether to focus on the ’Pavilion Beyond the Pavilion’ or to go to Dongying to seek revenge. Since you’ve brought it up, I won’t delay any further. Consider it as repaying the Emperor and the imperial court a final favor."
He looked at Shen Fa earnestly and said firmly, "From now on, I, Yang Ge, owe nothing to the imperial court; our ties are severed. Shen, if you are still willing to acknowledge me, Yang Ge, as your friend, you’re welcome to seek me out for a drink or tea anytime. But if you no longer wish to recognize our friendship, feel free to come at me with open attacks or in secret; I’ll take them all."
"From now on, on the vast lands of the Central Plains, there will only be the swordsman Yang Erlang, no longer the Imperial Guard Yang Ge."
After speaking, he gently touched the gilded waist badge on the tea table and pushed it back in front of Shen Fa.
He then picked up his teacup, gently clinked it against the one in front of Shen Fa, and drank it all in one go.
Shen Fa slowly reached out to take the teacup to his lips and took slow sips... This cup of tea was incredibly bitter!
After putting the two teacups back on the desk, Yang Ge took a long breath and felt as though he had shed a heavy burden, his entire body suddenly lighter.
Just then, a piercingly shrill neigh of a horse cut through the air, accompanied by the calling voice of Li Jincheng, "Yang Ge, come out quickly!"
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Yang Ge rose with a puzzled expression and stepped out of the wooden hut to see a flat-bottomed big boat moored by the riverside, with several burly men leading a majestic black horse, taller than a man with mane wild and curly like a lion’s, off the boat.
The black horse arrogantly pulled this way and that, with a man holding its reins, being tossed about like a noodle in the air.
On closer inspection, wasn’t the man being tossed around in the air Wu Eryong from Lianhuan Fort?
"Er Yong, where did this thing come from?"
He leapt forward in confusion, steadied Wu Eryong with one hand, and took the reins from him with the other. With a flex of his right arm, he managed to pull the black horse to a standstill.
Wu Eryong let go of the reins, wiped his forehead, whether it was rain or sweat, bowed with a fist and said, "My Lord, this steed is a return gift from Jiang to you. He said their brothers accidentally came upon this dragon-bred treasure horse, strong and spirited, too wild for anyone to tame. They thought you might like to have a try."
Pausing, he added, "Jiang and his brothers have prepared five such horses as gifts to the five valiant men of Zhoushan who fought against the Japanese pirates in Nansha Bay, saying that fine horses deserve fine saddles, and precious swords belong to heroes..."
"Strong and untamed?"
Yang Ge raised his head, examining the ferocious black horse that was a mass of coiled muscles, looking like an overly muscular gym enthusiast.
The black horse seemed to sense something too, lowering its gaze and considering Yang Ge with disdain.
After a few moments, it snorted contemptuously, turned its head with a flick, and blew two streams of steam from its nostrils, each a foot long.
"Hey, looking down on me, huh?"
Yang Ge laughed, grabbed the reins, and smoothly mounted the horse’s back.
Without hesitation, the black horse swung its head to knock against Yang Ge.
But Yang Ge wasn’t one to be bullied. He swung his fist, large as a sandbag, and struck it twice on the forehead, "Behave yourself!"
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