r18novel Page 308
Page 308
After a long silence, Tong Baixiong spoke again.
Dongfang Bubai smiled and said, "Of course I believe you."
Tong Baixiong stood up.
“Brother Dongfang, since the situation is so serious, I will go and organize the Fenglei Hall and Zhuque Hall, and await your orders at any time.”
Dongfang Bubai nodded.
Tong Baixiong was about to turn and leave, but as he left, his gaze couldn't help but fall on Yang Lianting, his heart filled with mixed feelings.
He never dreamed that Yang Lianting and Dongfang Bubai had this kind of relationship.
After Tong Baixiong left, only Yang Lianting and Dongfang Bubai remained.
The two remained silent at this moment.
After a while.
"Tong Baixiong treated me very well."
"Dongfang Bubai suddenly said."
Yang Lianting's expression changed again.
He understood Dongfang Bubai's meaning when Dongfang Bubai mentioned the past to Tong Baixiong.
"I see."
After a moment of silence, Yang Lianting said, "As long as he doesn't oppose me, I won't target him anymore."
Dongfang Bubai laughed and took the initiative to change the subject.
"I heard that the Five Mountains Sword Sects elected a new leader last month?"
"Correct."
Yang Lianting nodded.
A month has passed since the internal strife among the Five Mountains Sword Sects that occurred on Mount Song in June, and the Seven Star Envoys that Yang Lianting sent out to investigate have returned.
"However, instead of electing a leader for the Five Mountains Alliance, a large number of people died."
Yang Lianting then recounted what had happened on Mount Song a month earlier.
"Ren Woxing and Ren Yingying led those who had betrayed the sect to Mount Song, intending to cause trouble for a disciple of the Huashan Sect. The two sides agreed to a best-of-three duel..."
Just as Yang Lianting was speaking, Dongfang Bubai suddenly interrupted.
"Is it the young man who hurt Yingying before?"
"Correct."
Yang Lianting said.
Dongfang Bubai nodded, signaling Yang Lianting to continue.
"That kid beat Xiang Wentian, and his master Yue Buqun also beat Ren Woxing."
Yang Lianting sneered, "Ren Woxing went up Mount Song with great momentum, but he ended up with bad luck and lost face in front of the world."
Dongfang Bubai, however, paid no attention to this matter, but instead noticed something else.
"Are those young men and Yue Buqun really that skilled in martial arts?"
Dongfang Bubai was somewhat surprised.
Yang Lianting nodded.
"I heard that when Yue Buqun was fighting Ren Woxing, Ren Woxing suddenly suffered a relapse of his old injury and was defeated. But it is true that the kid defeated Xiang Wentian. If Ren Woxing hadn't intervened, Xiang Wentian might have even died at the kid's hands."
Yang Lianting was also taken aback when he heard the news.
Xiang Wentian was the Left Guardian of the Brightness Sect, whose martial arts skills were second only to Dongfang Bubai and Ren Woxing, yet he was defeated by a second-generation disciple of Mount Hua and almost killed, which is truly astonishing.
Dongfang Bubai was somewhat surprised, but he didn't say anything else, only remarking that the righteous path had produced a rising star.
Seeing that he didn't ask any more questions, Yang Lianting continued, recounting in detail how the Five Mountains Sword Sects had an internal conflict, from Zuo Lengchan and Yue Buqun's feigned loss of power during their duel, to the final infighting between the two sides, which resulted in the complete annihilation of the Songshan Sect.
Dongfang Bubai listened quietly the whole time, only asking a question at the very end.
"Who killed Zuo Lengchan? Yue Buqun?"
Yang Lianting paused for a moment, then said, "It's still that Huashan disciple."
Dongfang Bubai remained silent, but a strange glint appeared in his usually calm eyes.
After a while.
"What's his name?"
Yang Lianting glanced at Dongfang Bubai before saying, "Jiang Ning."
"Jiangning..."
Dongfang Bubai lowered his head and whispered the name.
After a while, Dongfang Bubai looked up at Yang Lianting again.
"Was it him you sent to Pingyu Town to hunt him down last time?"
Upon hearing this, Yang Lianting was startled and subconsciously looked at Dongfang Bubai, almost blurting out, "How did you know?"
But then she realized what was happening.
Dongfang Bubai knew even that he had planned to harm Tong Baixiong, so how could he not know what he had done?
"Yes."
Yang Lianting nodded in agreement.
Dongfang Bubai didn't say anything upon hearing this, as if he were just asking a question, and he didn't ask Yang Lianting why he was chasing Jiang Ning.
But Yang Lianting wanted to explain: "This person is very hostile to my Divine Sect and is also a disciple of the Five Mountains Sword Sect. He is very talented, and given time, he may lead the Five Mountains Sword Sect to be an enemy of my Divine Sect. I think he may threaten you, so I want to get rid of him in advance."
Dongfang Bubai nodded slightly.
"You don't need to send anyone to hunt him down anymore."
Dongfang Bubai said, "The men you sent can't kill him now."
"it is good."
Yang Lianting nodded.
Dongfang Bubai suddenly laughed.
"Let him grow. This world is too boring. Let's see how high he can go. Maybe he will give me a surprise."
Chapter 411: The Capital
July.
A caravan of twenty or thirty people was on its way.
"Manager, we've arrived."
A member of the caravan said to a middle-aged man.
The steward nodded, then went to report to the leader of the caravan, before stopping in front of the last carriage and speaking.
"Young Master Jiang, we've arrived."
As soon as the steward finished speaking, the front curtain of the carriage was lifted from the inside, and a young man stepped out of the carriage.
"Thank you for your help along the way."
Jiang Ning smiled and thanked him.
The manager chuckled.
"Meeting is fate. Since we are all from different parts of the country and are able to gather together by chance, we should help each other as much as we can."
After saying that, the steward pointed in a direction.
“Young Master Jiang, if you go straight from here, you will soon reach the main road. If you follow the main road, it will be only a few dozen miles to the capital. We need to sell our goods in a nearby town and rest for a while, so we will not travel with you.”
Jiang Ning cupped his hands and said, "Thank you."
The steward returned the greeting with a smile and said, "See you again sometime."
After saying goodbye to the manager, Jiang Ning turned and left. He hadn't seen the leader while traveling with the caravan; it was just the manager who had dealt with him. When he left, he only needed to say goodbye to the manager.
Watching Jiang Ning's departing figure, one of the caravan members couldn't help but ask curiously.
"Look how young this guy is, daring to venture out all by himself. Isn't he afraid of running into bandits or mountain thieves?"
Another member of the caravan said, "Didn't you see the sword hanging at his waist? He's a martial arts practitioner; maybe he's highly skilled and not afraid of bandits or robbers."
The person who had spoken earlier couldn't help but curl his lip.
"Judging from his age, he's about the same age as my son. What kind of martial arts skills could he possibly have? I bet he only has a little bit of rudimentary skill. Judging from his clothes, he's not from an ordinary family. I guess he's some young master from a powerful family who's out experiencing life."
The caravan member shook his head.
The manager turned around and scolded the two men.
"What are you all talking about? Hurry up and get out of here. Sell these goods so you can collect your money and go home to your wives and kids. Isn't that more important than gossiping about others?"
"Yes Yes."
The two men quickly smiled apologetically and stopped discussing the Jiangning issue.
……
After leaving the caravan, Jiang Ning followed the direction indicated by the steward and soon arrived at the official road.
The official road was very wide, but only a few people could be seen hurrying along it.
However, these people did not walk in the middle of the official road, but rather on the edge of it.
In ancient times, official roads were not only for government officials, but also for ordinary people. However, ordinary people needed to be careful when using official roads and give way to government officials when they encountered them on their way.
If you were to encounter an urgent message traveling 800 li (approximately 400 kilometers), and were unable to avoid being hit on the road, the consequences would be as light as death; in more serious cases, you would be held responsible for delaying important matters of the court.
Jiang Ning did not walk in the middle of the official road, but instead walked along the edge of the road with these people.
The people who were on their way also noticed Jiang Ning and their eyes showed curiosity.
Judging from their appearance, Jiang Ning's clothes suggested he wasn't an ordinary person. Why was he walking like them without a mount or anything?
Despite their curiosity, they had no intention of striking up a conversation and simply walked silently along the official road.
Jiang Ning looked at the group of people and could tell from their clothes and belongings that they were all engaged in different professions.
Jiang Ning merely observed them briefly without speaking to them; they were simply fellow travelers on the same route.
They traveled several miles along the official road without incident, and encountered no bandits or other unexpected events.
Although the current imperial court has weakened to the point that it can no longer control some regions, it is still a unified dynasty, and no one would dare to rob the official road.
After walking for a while, Jiang Ning suddenly heard the sound of horses' hooves behind him. The sound grew closer and closer, and Jiang Ning couldn't help but turn around to look. A man dressed as an official was riding a horse at full gallop on the official road.
"Urgent message, make way."
The courier shouted as he rode at full speed.
Upon hearing this, the other people on the official road panicked and scattered, moving directly to the outside of the road. Jiang Ning, however, was not so alarmed; he walked close to the side of the road without blocking anyone's way.
call out!
The courier sped past Jiang Ning, stirring up a gust of wind that ruffled Jiang Ning's hair and robes.
Dust from the official road drifted in the air. Jiang Ning covered his nose and waved his hand, looking at the postman who had disappeared ahead, and couldn't help but think.
Eight hundred miles urgent?
This situation usually indicates a major national event that requires urgent notification to the imperial court.
Has something big happened?
Jiang Ning thought to himself.
He was a江湖人 (jianghu person, a person who lived in the martial arts world) and not very clear about the affairs of the imperial court. He only found out what had happened when he stopped the courier who was delivering the urgent message.