Chapter 47: Ten Thousand Taels of Gold
Gao Junmo waved as she smiled. She directed at Xu Yi. “Please do not take offence. He’s an outspoken person. Let me introduce you. These three men are my top three constables in Guang’an City. They’re my right-hand men. The plump one is Qi Bohan. Song Peilin is ingenious, and the outspoken one is Li Zhongshu.
“Yi Xu,earlier we spoke of the Patrol Division. Owing that to you, I, Gao Junmo, have a principle of not letting my subordinates suffer. I’ve already noticed Black Dragon Hall. They have three chances to challenge you. As long as you are able to survive three duel sessions, Black Dragon Hall shall let the matter rest. If they have ulterior designs on you, my Patrol Division will take over your case. In addition, I’ve prepared a white shirt as a gift to you after you survive three duel sessions!”
“General! Chief!” Qi Bohan, Song Peilin and Li Zhongshu all shouted in unison. Chief Gao waved violently. “End of discussion. I’ve come to Guang’an for more than two years, and I’ve yet to see a constable daring to uphold the Dayue Dynasty’s Law to kill. Yi Xu has made great contributions to the Patrol Division. We’ll give credit where credit’s due. If Yi Xu’s able to survive three sessions of the Life and Death Duel, it’ll be evident that he has real prowess. He’ll be qualified to wear that white robe, won’t he?”
They declined to be persuaded. Xu Yi took a bow. “I’ll not disappoint you, Chief!” He was secretly elated. He had already realised that the white robe was the trio’s uniform. Gold, Purple, Black, White, Green. The defence force behind the Dayue Dynasty had used these five colours to differentiate their statuses.
Xu Yi’s current uniform was the lowly inferior Dark Shirt. If his uniform were white, that would mean that he was promoted two ranks and would be a peer of the other three heavyweights.
“Alright, the duel is imminent. Take a rest to recharge yourself. I’ll be cheering for you at the top!” Gao Junmo tapped Xu Yi on his shoulder and accompanied him to the door.
While Xu Yi was in conference with Gao Junmo, an extremely restless Jiang Shaochuan was shuffling around in another elegant room.
Creak! An extravagant carved door was opened. Two people walked in. The person on the left was strong and muscular, and he stood at nine feet tall. He wore a fitting gold armour. He had long unkempt hair. His eyes dismal, his expression intrepid, he looked sideways arrogantly. He was Xu Yi’s challenger for this duel session. He was Gao Pan, the Deputy of the White Horse Branch Hall within the Black Dragon Hall. Another person was rather skinny, dressed in a green sober and a square scarf. He held a fan in his hand. He was scholarly. He was Ma Wensheng, the chief advisor of the Black Dragon Hall.
Once the duo had entered through the door, Jiang Shaochuan took two big steps to leap forward. He gave Ma Wensheng a grateful look and angrily asked Gao Pan, “How come you’ve rejected meeting me despite my several invitations? Now you’ve come to meet me because Advisor Ma interceded on my behalf. Do you have any regard for me as your superior?”
Gao Pan was sent from the main hall to the White Horse Branch Hall. He had been in the new post for barely two months. He was chiselled away from the main branch. Due to his influential background, Gao Pan had never relished dealing with Jiang Shaochuan as his superior.
Jiang Shaochuan had initially intended to kill Xu Yi personally at that day’s duel so that he could get an opportunity to take Xu Yi’s waist bag, which contained the Metal Spirit. Little did he know that Gao Pan was combative and notified the main hall before he did. That had thwarted his plans.
What was more devastating was that he had to worry about Gao Pan’s duel outcome. Due to his son’s involvement, the Black Dragon Hall’s reputation was tarnished within Guang’an Prefecture. If Gao Pan is unable to kill Yi Xu in the duel session, the Black Dragon Hall would become a laughing stock. The initiator would be Jiang Shaochuan, and he would have pathetic outcomes.
If he had not met Xu Yi, Jiang Shaochuan would have bet on Gao Pan’s victory. However, his encounter with Xu Yi the day before had changed his mind. He had seen with his own eyes that the obnoxious and arrogant Xu Yi had no regards for Black Dragon Hall. If Xu Yi were a reckless man and a dimwit, Jiang Shaochuan would need to worry no further. However, his meeting with Xu Yi had brought him a financial catastrophe and an utter loss of face in their debate. That had shown the true mettle of Xu Yi. He would not have struck if he had no confidence in taking Xu Yi’s life.
That explained his worry regarding that afternoon’s duel. He had wanted to meet Gao Pan to give some cautionary advice. Little had he known that Gao Pan had such arrogance, and he had not given him face by declining to meet in person. He had to enlist Ma Wensheng’s help to bring Gao Pan to him.
When the duo met, Jiang Shaochuan’s fury was ignited. “Mr. Wensheng, I came along at your request. Surely it’s not for me to witness how Hall Master Jiang flaunt his position of power, is it?” Gao Pan ignored Jiang Shaochuan completely. He turned to speak with Ma Wensheng.
Ma Wensheng closed his fan and offered a smile. “Come on, we’re family. When we face an enemy, we should be united. Hall Master Gao, Hall Master Jiang’s your superior after all. According to Black Dragon Hall’s strict rules, respect is our tenet. You ought to work on the relationship with Hall Master Jiang. This meeting that Hall Master Jiang has initiated, he has something important to discuss.”
Ma Wensheng was highly valued and trusted by the Black Dragon Hall’s supreme leader. No matter how conceited Gan Pan was, he had to give Ma Wensheng due respect. With extreme reluctance, he urged Jiang Shaochuan to get straight to his point. In hindsight, at the previous encounter with Xu Yi, Jiang Shaochuan had suffered most of his life’s load of humiliation. He was able to share his analysis patiently with his comrades. Needless to say, he had left out how he had been swindled by Xu Yi. He exaggerated Xu Yi’s formidable prowess.
Gao Pan was undaunted. “I thought you would have had something more important to share with us. Hall Master Jiang, please pardon my impoliteness. Perhaps you’ve been in your comfort zone all this while and have lost your shine. Perhaps that’s the underlying cause for the limited growth of our Black Dragon Hall in White Horse County. I’m a plain person. However, I know that to contend with our competitors, we need to have both strategies and guts. We’ll know how good or bad Xu Yi after our fight. We’ll soon see if he’s able to take on my Duan Hun Spear. Pardon me if I sound like I’m bragging. I’ve always beaten my opponents.”
Before concluding, he tapped on his gold armour and continued, “Furthermore, I’ve been awarded the anointed robe built by the Alchemists Chamber. I’ll be able to rip off the head of any highly skilled opponent.”
Ma Wensheng halted Jiang Shaochuan, who was about to leave the conversation. Sternly, he stated, “I’ve no doubt in your victory, Hall Master Gao. However, Hall Master Jiang has good cause for concern. We must to mitigate all risks of failure. Otherwise, it’ll be on my conscience. Both of you are aware that this duel is the only challenge throughout Guang’an Prefecture in this past year. It’s indeed been the talk of the prefecture. A lot of attention is directed at this event. Moreover, the originating cause for the duel has been propagated vigorously. Our Black Dragon Hall has suffered a huge loss of face and is now a laughing stock…”
Before he could finish his sentence, Jiang Shaochuan knelt down on a single knee. His face contorted and trembled. “It’s all because of my failure as a father. I’m unable to teach my son well. I need your help, Advisor Wensheng, to update our supreme leader. I am willing to take any form of punishment.”
Gao Pan sneered. Ma Wensheng came forward to help Jiang Shaochuan get up onto his feet. “No doubt your son got the ball rolling. The root cause is not here. It lies with Constable Yi. If he’s not killed, our Black Dragon Hall’s reputation will be destroyed. Hall Master Gao, it’s good to hear that you are so confident in defeating our enemy. However, when something’s gone awry, what will the consequences be? Perhaps you’ve not been informed. Our supreme leader has bought your win for ten thousand taels of gold!”