“Duke Feng, the value of this item isn’t as high as you think.” For some unknown reason, Yun Ye still spoke these words aloud. Li Anlan glanced at Yun Ye with curiosity, but seeing his composed expression, she could only sit silently in the host’s seat like a wooden puppet.
“Yun Ye, this old man has killed countless people in his lifetime and seen innumerable heroes and brave warriors. In mounted and dismounted combat, fighting with real blades and spears, I have never feared anything. Even if I died at an enemy’s hand, I would die laughing. Unfortunately, these past years, victory has generally been mine…”
Seeing his weathered expression, Yun Ye didn’t understand what he was trying to say, but then watched as he pulled an arrow from the quiver on his back and placed it in Yun Ye’s hand.
This arrow was as thick as a finger, nearly three feet long, with black tail feathers. The arrowhead was peculiar—while others’ arrowheads were either pointed or triangular, Feng Ang’s arrowhead was shaped like a small shovel, gleaming with cold light. Such an arrow’s power couldn’t match armor-piercing cones, and its flight would also be affected—it was neither one thing nor another.
Feng Ang said nothing and walked to the wall. Only then did Yun Ye notice a massive bow leaning against the wall. Without seeing how he moved, the enormous bow was already drawn, the cold gleaming arrowhead aimed directly at Yun Ye.
Li Anlan cried out in alarm and threw herself onto Yun Ye, wanting to shield him from the arrow. At this moment, Yun Ye surprisingly had no mind to worry about the arrow that could take his life at any moment. Instead, he looked down at Li Anlan, seeing her tightly closed eyes, her whole body trembling with tension, tears continuously flowing from the corners of her eyes, her mouth quivering as if wanting to say something but unable to speak.
Patting Li Anlan’s shoulder, he said with a laugh, “Silly woman, your body can’t block that arrow. Next time you want to shield me, put on armor first.” He tried to push Li Anlan away but discovered she was holding him tightly.
“Yun Ye, this old man has walked through life fearless and undaunted until now, but just now—when you spoke those two words ‘syphilis’—this old man truly became afraid. If others threatened this old man with this, I would chop off their heads in the first instant. Only you! I don’t dare! When my son Zhidai was following Sun Simiao to study medicine, he heard him say that your understanding of syphilis is extremely deep. If there’s still one person in this world who can cure syphilis, it must be you. If you can cure it, that means you’ve conquered syphilis. When you say you can make syphilis spread throughout Lingnan, this old man doesn’t dare not believe you.”
“In the third year of the Daye era, fifteen villages became ghost dwellings. Dozens of living people with faces covered in sores, more terrifying than ghosts, wandered day and night in the mountain forests, not daring to see people—they were called ghost people. This old man witnessed it with his own eyes.”
“In the first year of Renshou of the former Sui, syphilis appeared in Gaozhou. My mother, a person as compassionate as an immortal, personally ordered the lockdown of Gaozhou. The sounds of panic and wailing cries from within the city didn’t cease for three months. My mother stood on a high platform, tears of blood streaming down, her vital energy greatly damaged. In the second year of Renshou, my mother passed away in Guangzhou. With such misery, how can you ask me not to fear syphilis?”
“Yun Ye! Leave Lingnan, leave! Otherwise I will surely be unable to restrain myself from killing you. What do three sons matter? Even if you killed them all, see if this old man would furrow his brow even once.”
“I was born here and grew up here. Though Lingnan is remote and desolate, it is the fertile soil my ancestors left behind after slash-and-burn farming, fighting with wild beasts, and battling dragons. My Feng clan will also reproduce here generation after generation. You are a demon—Lingnan doesn’t dare keep you. Every day you stay longer brings endless poison. One mountain god’s drumming caused over two hundred of my men to die without intact corpses. One sentence about Lingnan having endless treasures made all the nobles of the court rush toward Lingnan like moths to flame. Across the strait, warfare never ceases. Leave, leave quickly! Take your treasures, take your grain, take that pack of beasts under your command and leave, never to return. Otherwise, I vow to kill you!” Just as he finished speaking, the thick arrow whistled past Yun Ye’s ear, shot through the hall, and broke three arm-thick bamboo stalks in succession before the dense tree canopy crashed to the ground.
Liu Jinbao seized the opportunity to rush in, positioning himself between Yun Ye and Feng Ang. At Yun Ye’s single command, he would pounce forward. Wu She also appeared silently at the window.
“Get out!” Yun Ye and Feng Ang simultaneously pointed at Liu Jinbao and berated him. Liu Jinbao could only sheepishly put away his blade and slink out along the wall, not understanding what game they were playing. Naturally, Wu She also disappeared from the window.
“Old Feng! You’ve fucking lost your mind, daring to shoot arrows at me! Do you know you just severed so many strands of my hair? Can you afford to compensate? Do you think I enjoy coming to this godforsaken place? My greatest hope is to die of old age at Yushan and be buried in my ancestral grave. Listen clearly—I was kidnapped by Dou Yanshan to Nanzhao, and only after killing Dou Yanshan did I drift to Lingnan. What’s wrong with looking after my own child?”
“Your three bastard sons dared to set their sights on my woman—what of it if they got killed? Out of respect for you, Old Feng, I used the mountain god’s drumming method. If I didn’t care about propriety, why would I bother with mountain god’s drumming—it would have been Marquis Yun dismembering bones long ago! If I had been flirtatious with your woman, harboring ill intentions, you, Old Feng, would have shot that arrow at me long ago. Would you have thought about saving face?”
“If I hadn’t come, your son would have become my son’s father—wouldn’t you have become my father? If I didn’t vent this foul anger, wouldn’t I be laughed to death when I return to Chang’an? How could I face people?”
“You don’t need to rush me. If it weren’t for my son and woman being here, I wouldn’t want to stay even one day in this steamer-like hellhole. The treasures—of course I’ll take them, along with your family’s sixty percent share. Bring it all out for me. It’s His Majesty’s decree, not my demand. I’ll also take the grain—the army is campaigning everywhere and needs it. I’ll leave behind a thousand of those beasts to ensure your sons won’t cuckold me.”
“Old Feng, this is an unprecedented transformation in a thousand years. A golden age is about to arrive, and our Great Tang cavalry is destined to trample across mountains and rivers. How can you huddle in Lingnan? Would it kill you to build two larger ships? All you know is how to play the hero on land. If you’re capable, go to sea! You won’t do it, so I will. I’ve wanted to be a pirate since I was young—I even dreamed about it as a child.”
While saying these words, Li Anlan pinched Yun Ye’s arm desperately, especially when he mentioned being cuckolded—she pinched even harder.
“As long as you scram, the princess and I can discuss anything. Didn’t His Majesty send Sun Rengshi here? No wonder your mouth has gotten much tougher, calling me ‘Old Feng’ and ‘I’ so arrogantly. You want to be my father? Go ask my dad first. That old man can wrestle tigers, and my mother has the courage to stand against ten thousand men. If you’re capable, go ahead—this old man would love to see it.”
“Going to sea—what the hell do you know? Stay close and there’s no profit; go far and people die, shipload after shipload of dead people. I’m very curious though—why don’t people die on your ships? What’s the secret? Tell me, and I won’t make you compensate for my three sons.”
Yun Ye walked to the courtyard, picked a green tangerine, and tossed it to Feng Ang. “It’s a disease called scurvy, caused by lacking something in the body. Don’t ask—even if I explained, you wouldn’t understand. You just need to know that eating tangerines can replenish that thing. Also eat bean sprouts every day. That way there’ll be no problem going to sea. Eat one or two green tangerines daily—greatly beneficial!”
Old Feng sat imposingly in his chair, thought for a moment, and said, “I won’t be wrong to listen to you on this matter. I’ll consider my three sons as having died at sea. From now on, no one is to mention this matter. Do you want this old man’s sixty percent share of Lingnan’s profits or sixty percent from across the strait? Make it clear.”
“Of course sixty percent from across the strait. If it were sixty percent of Lingnan’s share, would your family have anything left?”
“Boy, though you’re sinister and vicious, you can be counted as a straightforward person. You didn’t covet the Feng family’s centuries of accumulation and did your evil deeds openly. Such a person can still be reasoned with. That dog Zhang Liang—this time he’s harmed everyone badly. Next time this old man goes to Chang’an, cook me another table of dishes as an apology. We’ll skip it here. You hurry and finish your business and quickly get the hell out of Lingnan. Don’t come to see your son too often in the future. If you miss him, take him to Chang’an. If your woman is reluctant, take her too. I guarantee her fief will remain safe and sound.”
Having said this, he didn’t wait for Yun Ye to see him out. He shouldered his bow, grabbed the rabbit by its ears, and strode away.
As soon as Feng Ang left, Yun Ye’s spirit relaxed and immediately sweat poured down like rain. In an instant, his clothes were soaked through, and his legs were so weak he couldn’t move. The earlier confrontation had nearly exhausted all his strength. When Feng Ang aimed the arrow at him, Yun Ye felt he had already died. Fortunately, he had trained himself over these years—otherwise, he would have wet his pants like when he was struck by lightning while riding on the roof of Taiji Palace. When a person is locked onto by powerful killing intent, that feeling is unforgettable for life.
“Help me back to the bedroom—my legs are weak, I can’t walk.”
This woman had no sense of observation. Yun Ye was about to collapse, yet she was still puffing out her cheeks in anger. Only when she heard his call did she notice something was wrong with Yun Ye. She quickly supported him, half-dragging and half-pulling him back to the bedroom.
As soon as he entered the room, Yun Ye began tearing at his clothes—they were sticking to his body and extremely uncomfortable. Seeing Yun Ye strip naked, Li Anlan immediately jumped to the side, thinking he was about to have his way with her again.
“In broad daylight—no way! Wait until evening, then do as you please.”
“As if! I’m scared weak all over—who has the interest to bother with you? Quickly get me bathwater. I’m covered in sweat. You think Feng Ang’s arrow was just for show? Someone with a weaker heart would have been scared to death.”
“I was also aimed at—why aren’t my legs weak?”
“You had your back to the arrow. I was facing him eye to eye. Plus you were only thinking about dying together, while I was thinking about how to survive—of course it’s different.” Yun Ye wiped a few times under his armpits and crotch with his clothes before tossing them far away. They were ruined anyway.
“If we died together, would we be buried together? Would you be happy?”
“Are you stupid? Who would be happy about dying? Next time you want to die, go die by yourself and leave the child to me. I still want to watch him grow up, get married, and have children. I haven’t tasted all the flavors of life—how could I just die? If you’re tired of living, my belt is right there. Hang it around your neck and it’ll be over in a moment. After I give you a grand funeral, I’ll recite a verse: ‘Ten years, life and death separate vast, I don’t think of you, yet can’t forget.’ Then I’ll laugh tragically three times and take my son back to Chang’an to live a happy life.”