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Book 49 Chapter 4 – The Ambitious and Ruthless Character’s End of the Road

After Wang Bodang left, Xu Ziling waited patiently for Yang WenGan and his men to withdraw. Who would have thought that even after waiting for half a day, Yang WenGan still did not show any sign of withdrawing?

Xu Ziling could not help groaning inwardly; while he was hesitating whether he ought to take a risk one more time to slip away, Yang WenGan suddenly spoke like he was talking to himself, “He’s gone! Xuyan, come out!”

Xu Ziling drew out a mouthful of cold air, he nearly wanted to reach up to wipe the cold sweat from his forehead, fortunately he chose this place, which was separated by a wall, to eavesdrop, otherwise, he would not be able to hide from Yang Xuyan’s eyes and ears. Yang Xuyan certainly had profound power, unexpectedly Xu Ziling was unable to detect his presence, he was indeed worthy to bear the famous reputation as the Shadow Assassin.

A moment later, Yang WenGan’s voice was heard again, “Will Li Mi fall into the trap?” he asked.

Letting out a cold snort, Yang Xuyan said, “Right now Li Mi’s path is exhausted, he has reached the end of the road, as long as there is a gleam of hope, he will not be willing to miss it; do you think he will be convinced or not? Li Mi is no longer the Mi Gong who moved unhindered north and south of the Yellow River, he already tasted the full bitter taste of lodging under another person’s roof; some things are being sought, naturally some things will be lost, I am not worried that he won’t fall into the trap.”

Yang WenGan laughed and said, “He is certainly at the end of his rope, no one’s willing to stick his head to speak to Li Yuan on his behalf. We are willing to offer our service, this fellow ought to be grateful to the utmost.”

Yang Xuyan spoke indifferently, “Is there any news about Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling?”

Hiding in the dark, immediately Xu Ziling’s spirit was greatly aroused; unexpectedly he was able to hear the two men’s conversation by accident, he could only thank Laotianye for His favor.

Yang WenGan said, “These two kids’ greatest skill is to dress up as a ghost and impersonate a god; if they are deliberately concealing their whereabouts, it is really not easy to find them.”

And then he went on, “When you intercepted Kou Zhong at Cijian that time, did you use the martial art xinfa of the ‘Yu Jin Wan Fa Gen Yuan Zhi Jing’?”

Yang Xuyan spoke heavily, “If I unleash my full power, I guarantee that Kou Zhong won’t arrive in Chang’an alive. However, my greatest enemy is not him, but Shi Zhixuan. Humph! Did you know that last night Shi Zhixuan made his move to kill Sha Fang and her more than thirty followers so that not a single chicken or a dog was spared? This matter has shaken the House of Tang; Li Yuan issued an imperial decree to seal this information off, not to let it leak outside.”

Yang WenGan blurted out, “What?”

Yang Xuyan said, “This is clearly a warning to me. Humph! Shi Zhixuan underestimates me, Yang Xuyan too much! He thought I did not know that he only see my value as a tool for him. He calculated a thousand times, he calculated ten thousand times, yet he still miscalculated that Yang Guang, that old thief, would be defeated and dispersed that quickly. On top of that, his spirit took a wrong turn because of Bi Xiuxin, resulting in him sitting down and wasting a good opportunity, helpless to lift me up as his puppet emperor. F*ck his eighteen generations ancestors, were it not for him playing ghost from the inside, how could our Great Sui’s world be caught in a bad situation that right now it is all split up and in pieces?”

Yang WenGan’s breathing turned heavy, evidently his mind was keyed up. He said, “What are you going to do?”

Yang Xuyan laughed and said, “I don’t have to do anything, because there’s Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling working on my behalf, perhaps they might have Wanwan added onto their number. It would be best if they stake everything so that a few will be defeated, all will perish. We will then reap where we have not sown.”

“Aren’t you overestimating their capability?” Yang WenGan asked, “Shi Zhixuan appears and disappears unpredictably like a spirit or a ghost, who could grasp his whereabouts? The only one who knows Shi Zhixuan’s hiding place is the Fatty An Long, and he already went back to Bashu, otherwise, we might catch him and torture him for interrogation.”

“That will be the last step,” Yang Xuyan said, “We won’t resort to that method unless it is absolutely necessary. The only thing I have to do now is to feign civility, to deceive Shi Zhixuan into believing that I am still his good disciple. Relax! Wanwan has special relationship with Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling, two men. If there is no other way, we might be able to ask for their help. When the lad has the heart and the lass has the mind, they will be together from the first beat [idiom: to hit it off]. Wanwan might use herself as a bait, to lure Shi Zhixuan, this big fish to come out.”

Yang WenGan asked, “What is the attitude of the other factions of the demonic school towards Shi Zhixuan now?”

Yang Xuyan replied, “Since Zhu Yuyan died under his hand, none of our holy school does not revere and shake in fear toward him. On top of that, Sha Fang was executed under his hand, sooner or later Pi Chen and Zuo Youxian will acknowledge allegiance under his tyrannical abuse. The most powerful Yin Gui Pai is currently a thunder of dragons without a head. Once Wanwan is gone, who would dare not to look at Shi Zhixuan’s countenance to conduct themselves? Mie Qing Dao’s Yin Zuwen and Xu Liuzong are just like An Long, they always look up at him as the only saving-star to unify the Two Sects and Six Ways. Currently, the only one that I am unable to grasp is Zhao Deyan. He has the Tujue demons as his backing, there’s no need to fear Shi Zhixuan. However, in order to achieve the goal of combining the ten scrolls of ‘Tianmo Ce’ back into one, perhaps Zhao Deyan will be willing to cooperate with Shi Zhixuan.”

And then he went on, “The top priority right now is still to eliminate Li Mi and Wang Bodang. They know too much of our secrets, both to betray Dugu Feng [peak], also to render a blow to Li Shimin. One stone three birds. Plus we don’t need to do it ourselves. There’s nothing more convenient than this.”

Yang WenGan sighed and said, “Frankly, I really don’t understand how you can deceive Shi Zhixuan. Currently his spirit is no longer a problem, unlike before, where he could become deranged at any time. Speaking about intelligence and martial art, it is really difficult to find someone who can surpass him in the world. You might also overestimate Kou and Xu, two kids’ ability. Something that the four great bald thieves could not do in the past, do you think they can do it?”

Yang Xuyan said, “I have my own way of dealing with Shi Zhixuan. Naturally it can’t be just empty promises. More importantly, I still hold too much of a value for him to use me. As for Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling, the formidable power of those two men’s joining hands cannot be underestimated, plus they are full of wisdom and schemes, to whom the deer falls is still not yet known. I really don’t need them to kill Shi Zhixuan, as long as they could inflict serious damage to him, I will have a way to make Shi Zhixuan be caught in a consigned-to-eternal-damnation situation, while rendering a great merit to Li Yuan along the way. Humph! The reason Li Yuan is still willing to fully trust me is precisely because I really regard Shi Zhixuan as my personal enemy, and Li Yuan also understands that Shi Zhixuan accepted me as his disciple is just to use me.”

After a short pause, he continued, “All right, I still have a lot of things to do, you may proceed according to plan; taking advantage of the fortunate timing while Li Jiancheng and Li Shimin are not in Chang’an, we must do a bit more work for Li Yuanji.”

Song Shidao took the proffered pearl necklace, which still held Hu Xiaoxian’s body temperature and her delicate fragrance; holding it in front of his eyes, he looked at it with a smile on his face, but did not say anything.

The brilliant, dazzling the eyes of nearly a hundred pearls stringed together into a necklace were of identical size, sparkling and translucent, bright and smooth, and moist, the texture was exquisite and dignified; everybody sighed in praise.

To judge the quality and value of pearls, among the crowd, Yin Zuwen, Wen Yanbo, Sha Chenggong and Chi Shengchun all were confident that they would be able to do so. However, Hu Fo’s request to Song Shidao naturally did not stop here. If Song Shidao’s performance was subpar, it would greatly discount everybody’s evaluation on Situ Furong.

Under everybody’s expectant gaze, Song Shidao smiled and said, “So many pearls of exact same size stringed together into a chain of pearls, this is still the first time that I encounter it. If Zaixia did not guess incorrectly, these must have come from Hepu County on the coastal area west of Lingnan, the world famous Hepu Southern Pearls. All four of our country’s major pearl producers are in the south; they are Hepu, Nanhai, Dongting, and Taihu, respectively. Nanhai [south sea] pearls are famous for being iridescence, Dongting [lake] pearls are superior in size, the wonder of Taihu [lake] pearls is that they are hollow. Only Hepu Southern Pearls are superior in their silver white character, just like this string of pearls. If the pearls are ground to powder, it can calm and soothe the nerves, it can alleviate fever and increase the yin nature; it is a famous and valuable important medicine.”

And then he handed it over to Ren Jun and said with a laugh, “Furong Ye, please take a look, see if Wenjiang misread this.”

Hu Xiaoxian clapped her hands and said, “Shen Xiansheng’s knowledge is extensive and exquisite, you have a unique insight. After going through Xiansheng’s appraisal, the value of this Xiaoxian’s string of necklace is immediately different.”

Ren Jun took the proffered pearl necklace; perhaps because he still felt the warmth of the string of pearls, unexpectedly he only stared blankly.

Hu Fo revealed a submitting-cheerfully expression; he said, “These are indeed the rare Hepu Southern Pearls; at first I made an error of judgment as well, thinking that they are Taihu’s hollow fresh water pearls. Afterwards, I took one pearl and grind the tip, I began to be certain that it is southern pearl. Unexpectedly Shen Xiansheng can see it through in just one glance, you are indeed admirable.”

Chi Shengchun respectfully said, “Whenever Shen Xiansheng is free, please visit my humble abode to give me a bit of your brilliant opinion.”

Kou Zhong cried ‘Lucky!’ inwardly. Song Shidao was born in the most famous family influential for generations of the south, he was particularly adept in the precious local products of the south. If the subject of the test were the local products of the north, naturally he would not be speaking as clearly and logically as just now, he might even make the northerners present split their sides in laughter.

This moment Ren Jun returned the string of pearls back to Hu Xiaoxian. Hu Xiaoxian took it with a smile on her face, whether it was intentional or not, her fingertips brushed over Ren Jun’s fingers holding the pearl necklace. Ren Jun lightly shook, as if he was electrocuted. None of the Jianghu veterans around the table missed it.

Evidently Sha Chenggong had some interest in Hu Xiaoxian; he seized this opportunity to ask, “Hu Xiaojie, I wonder if you could let Zaixia broaden my horizons?”

Hu Xiaoxian was deliberately teasing Ren Jun, the reason was to provoke Chi Shengchun’s jealousy. Her beautiful eyes were still glancing on Ren Jun, she handed over the pearl necklace to Sha Chenggong.

Sha Chenggong took the pearl necklace, he praised without ceasing.

The pearl necklace was passed on from hand to hand; by the time the pearl necklace returned to Hu Xiaoxian’s snow white flaky neck, Yin Zuwen raised his cup and said, “Let’s toast for Situ Xiong’s original business acumen and for the erudite and multi-talented Shen Xiansheng.”

Everybody raised their cup to toast.

The sound of music arose, a group of all female musicians, holding all kinds of musical instrument, entered the hall, walking and playing at the same time.

By the time Ji Qian’s fragrant-self appeared, no one did not have their eyes light up.

This flamboyant beauty, whose name was second only to Shang Xiufang, was dressed in a Hu [non-Han] attire, narrow sleeves, skintight, a short jacket with the lapel slanted to the left, and a pair of trousers, leather boots wrapped around her legs, both putting her sweet, fair, and graceful beauty, as well as her graceful and delicate physique – in full display, also to bring up a different kind of agility and straightforward air, female adornment in male style’s healthy and beautiful manner.

They heard her sing, “From the Hu riders smoke and dust arise, feathered hat and fishy armpits filled the air with saltiness. The girls learn Hu makeup to be Hu women, the artistry is entering Hu songs to attend to Hu music. The sound of the fire and the wind was sorely swallowed that the spring oriole ceases and turns into long desolation. Hu sound and Hu rider in Hu adornment, for the past fifty years in chaotic struggle over the lake.”

Xu Ziling hurriedly rushed back to Shang Lin Yuan, the leader of the men standing guard at the gate respectfully told him, “Chi Laoban’s order: when Kuang Ye is back, Xiaoren must immediately take Kuang Ye to the Huang Ju Ting, which is where Yin Guo Yue [state father-in-law] is holding the banquet.”

Xu Ziling mused that Chi Shengchun finally took the bait; he asked, “Where is my Xiongdi?”

The man replied, “Cai Ye’s good self was invited by Chi Ye to the Huang Ju Ting already.”

Xu Ziling had no way of declining, he had to agree.

Ji Qian’s song ended, she took her seat amidst the blazing applause and cheers. The rest of the musicians and the dancers retired to another hall for another performance, leaving only two young maids to serve and to pour wine.

Suddenly there was a burst of firecrackers noise coming from the outside. This moment the sound of drums and music was still lingering in their eardrums, and Ji Qian’s touching song was still winding around the beam, so that inside and outside, people could feel that Shang Lin Yuan’s air was different from other places. Kou Zhong was beginning to understand why every night, when the City of Chang’an was brightly lit, Hou kid always could not help but going to mingle in Shang Lin Yuan.

Ji Qian’s expression was not cold at all, but she was not chatting warmly either, showing clearly that after a few words of politeness, she might ask to be excused. Toward this famous courtesan who dared to treat her appointment with Li Yuanji like purple coming out of red, even with everybody’s wealth, influence and skill, they still did not dare to utter half a sentence.

As soon as she sat down, Ji Qian showed off her seasoned side; her face full of graceful smile, she raised her cup and said, “Let Ji Qian toast everybody one cup first.”

Everybody hastily raised their cup in return.

With Hu Xiaoxian’s foxy charm and Ji Qian’s bright countenance, immediately the room was filled with springtime.

Ji Qian suddenly leaned over to whisper something in Hu Xiaoxian’s, who was sitting by her side, ear. Unexpectedly, under the eyes of everybody present, the two women laughed heartily, acting as though there were nobody else there, their charming attitude grew without restraint.

Everybody, none was lucky to escape, could only stare blankly. Hu Fo’s attention was focused on Ji Qian.

Forgetting his standing, Sha Chenggong said, “Xiaoxian, would you be kind enough to tell us what Ji Xiaojie said in your ear? Let us share the good news.”

With a smile on her face, Ji Qian said, “Xiaoxian Jie [elder sister] will keep the secret for me; I guarantee that even Da Xian, he, the Senior, can’t do anything about it.” [Translator’s note: play of words, Xiaoxian’s name means little immortal, while Hu Fo’s title Da Xian means great immortal.]

She then cast her gaze toward Ren Jun and said with a laugh, “This gentleman must be Furong Laoban Ye, the man who knows how to make money the most in the world, our Great Tang’s richest individual. The shop you opened in Chang’an is the place I frequent the most; let me toast you a cup.”

Ren Jun came to his senses. Hurriedly raising his cup, he returned the salute and said, “I will have my people check the inventory, everything that Qian Xiaojie deposited in my, Situ Furong’s shop will be send back to Qian Xiaojie’s residence before noon tomorrow; just consider it a little kindly feelings, Qian Xiaojie please kindly accept.”

Hearing that, Kou Zhong, Lei Jiuzhi and Song Shidao were you look at me I look at you; other people thought that they were amazed that Situ Furong was making exception by being outspoken and straightforward, but actually they were astonished by Ren Jun’s quick wit, because he had fittingly showed that when Situ Furong met the object of his affection, he could change from miserly rich man to someone who would not hesitate to pay a thousand [catty of] gold, so suddenly the ‘Situ Furong’ had a character.

Ji Qian spoke blissfully, “Thank you very much Laoban Ye!”

Kou Zhong began to feel Ji Qian’s formidable power. That kind of totally undisguised style was indeed very attractive, no wonder there were so many men had their spirit and soul upside down because of her. A popular prostitute who staked a thousand pieces of gold on one throw at the gambling table surely had her unique disposition and splendor.

Looking at her manner, Ji Qian did not seem to consider Ren Jun’s generous treatment to be worthy in her eyes, her eyes revealed the unfathomable content of her fragrant heart.

Ji Qian’s beautiful eyes casting a glance toward Song Shidao, she spoke softly and tenderly, “Shen Xiansheng has a pair of really sharp eyes, no wonder you can see things that accurately.”

Inwardly Kou Zhong was full of admiration; Ji Qian indeed had a skill in treating the guests, she had the entire situation completely under her control.

Ji Qian’s beautiful eyes finally floated onto his face. Kou Zhong rushed half a step ahead of her by clearing his throat and said, “Xiaodi Cai Yuanyong, I only run errands for Furong Ye; originally I was not supposed to sit here, but Chi Laoban dragged me inside. It’s an honor to meet you at last!”

His remark immediately provoked the entire hall into loud laughter, Lei Jiuzhi and Song Shidao included. The two women even doubled-up in laughter, so that the room felt like springtime.

Wen Yanbo said with a laugh, “I did not expect Cai Xiong to be this witty.”

Holding back his laughter, Ren Jun said, “Ladies and Gentlemen must not believe what Yuanyong said, he and Wentong are both …”

This moment someone at the door announced, “Kuang Wentong, Kuang Ye has arrived!” and thus interrupted Ren Jun’s words.

Xu Ziling stepped over the threshold and entered the Huang Ju Ting, his mind was still stuck on the scene he witnessed before, suddenly he became the target of everybody’s eyes. Smiling wryly in his heart, he looked up, and to his surprise, he saw both Ji Qian and Hu Xiaoxian as the guests of honor. Even with his cool-headed skill, he was still shocked inwardly.

Hu Xiaoxian was not a problem, but Ji Qian revealed an astonished expression. The beautiful pupils of her eyes were gazing intently at Xu Ziling, as if she was looking straight through him.

Xu Ziling and Kou Zhong cried ‘Bad!’ inwardly at the same time, knowing that Ji Qian, relying on women’s keen intuition, was suspicious toward Xu Ziling; furthermore, they knew that she was not going to be polite toward this ‘swindler’. If she exposed him on the spot as ‘Yong Qin’, it would be a major catastrophe.

Ren Jun began to play his role as Situ Furong; he acted calmly and stood up easily, while saying with a laugh, “Wentong, where the hell did you go? You need to apologize and drink as a punishment.”

Kou Zhong paid particular attention to Xue Wanche’s reaction. Noticing that he was paying close attention to Ji Qian’s strange look when Xu Ziling appeared, plus his pair of eyes emitted pondering deeply look, Kou Zhong cried ‘Not good!’ inwardly.

Feeling uneasy all over, Xu Ziling sat in the only empty chair between Ji Qian and Yin Zuwen. According to the original arrangement, sitting by Yin Zuwen’s left side ought to be Ji Qian, but because Ji Qian wanted to sit by Hu Xiaoxian, her original seat was vacant.

Xu Ziling raised his cup and using Kuang Wentong’s voice and intonation he delivered his final struggle, “If Wentong knew that rather than standing outside the door and looking after the carriage I could come in here to drink and make merry, I would have gone quickly and returned swiftly. Ay, Yuanyong and I actually already made appointment with Er Wenhuan and Qiao Gongshan, two Daren; just now I had no choice but to apologize to them and cancel the appointment.”

Yin Zuwen laughed and said, “Wentong and Yuanyong are both candid men; let us drink a cup for their straight talk without any scruple!”

The crowd raised their cup again to toast.

Ji Qian only moistened her lips slightly and put down the wine cup.

Xue Wanche was unwilling to let it off; he smiled and said, “I wonder if Qian Xiaojie and Wentong Xiong know each other?”

Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling exchanged a glance; they prepared themselves for the worst.

Xu Ziling looked at Ji Qian first, and then he looked at Hu Xiaoxian, acting as if he did not know which one was Qian Xiaojie.

Lei Jiuzhi, Song Shidao, and Ren Jun were severely shaken inwardly, they finally sensed the peculiar atmosphere between Ji Qian and Xu Ziling.

Tenderly and charmingly Ji Qian slightly shrugged her shoulders; knitting her pretty eyebrows, she said, “Xue Daren is not a good man! Do you want to force Ji Qian to reveal other people’s personal secret?”

Astonished, Chi Shengchun said, “Why did Qian Xiaojie make such accusations against Xue Da Jiangjun?”

Xue Wanche also asked in bewilderment, “What does it have to do with Wentong Xiong personal secret?”

Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling saw a line of opportunity to live instead, because Ji Qian’s expression distinguished and accomplished, the tone of her voice gentle, she did not seem to see Xu Ziling as an enemy. Naturally, just like Chi Shengchun and Xue Wanche, they did not understand the meaning behind Ji Qian’s remark.

The other people, none was not curious of Ji Qian’s remark; not letting her to get away easily, Hu Xiaoxian said with a laugh, “Xiao Qian must not keep listeners in suspense, all right? If you and Kuang Xiong are not old acquaintances, how could you know his personal secret?”

Hardening his scalp, Xu Ziling said, “Xiaodi is the one who wants to know the answer to this riddle the most. Qian Xiaojie, please speak forthrightly and give us directions.”

Sha Chenggong was obviously very interested in Ji Qian; hearing what was said, he pushed the wave and added to the billows by saying, “Since Kuang Xiong does not mind, naturally we won’t mind even more. Qian Xiaojie can give us the answer to the riddle!”

Ji Qian smiled, but did not say anything. Running her beautiful eyes over everybody around the table, she finally fixed her gaze on Ren Jun’s face, and spoke indifferently, “After I tell you this, the first person who must not mind will be Situ Laoban Ye.”

Confused, Ren Jun said, “How could I mind?”

Ji Qian’s gaze floated toward Xu Ziling by her side, she spoke softly, with a hint of naughtiness in her voice, “Just now, did Kuang Daye really only go to see Er Daren and Qiao Daren?”