Kou Zhong, Xu Ziling, Song Shidao and Ren Jun spurred their horses as they turned into the official road, to gallop toward Yuyang. Wuming was following them, circling in the sky. Translated by foxs

Kou Zhong laughed and said, Looking at Xiao Juns entire being seems to be full of spirit, evidently your saber technique has made good progress, unlike me and Xiao Ling, who are just two useless kids.

Yet the thickness of the skin on Ren Juns face did not make any progress at all; immediately his face turned beet red as he stammered, Kou Ye, please dont laugh at me, you instructed me to practice well, how could this kid dare to be negligent?

Xu Ziling asked Ren Jun, You are sure that Yin Xianhe did not return to Shanhai Pass?

Ren Jun replied positively, Because we were expecting two Yeer to return any moment, we sent people to watch the gateway day and night, anybody entering the Pass cannot hide from us. Xu Kaishan was a day earlier than you, but Du Xing is still nowhere to be seen.

Song Shidao said, If we stayed at Shanhai Pass for two more days, we might be able to meet Yin Xianhe.

Kou Zhong sighed and said, How could we have the time? Huh? Arent those our old friends Zhang Jinshu and Qiu Nanshan?

The four men reined their horses to stop.

Under the illumination of the setting sun, a big cloud of dust was rising ahead. Zhang Jinshu and Qiu Nanshan, under escort of more than a dozen riders, were rushing toward them. The former has had a predestined affinity to meet with them once; he was the great general under Gao Kaidaos command, who was sent to scout the situation on the warlords vying for supremacy [Book 37 Chapter 4]; the latter was Gao Kaidaos chief constable, they got to know each other at the Yin Ma Yi, and fought against the wolf-bandits together, hence they could be considered comrade-in-arms who had gone through trials and tribulations together, although only barely [Book 38 Chapter 4].

Xu Ziling cheerfully said, Unexpectedly its the friend who is a dog lover.

The other side slowed down rapidly. Zhang Jinshu laughed aloud and said, Shaoshuai, Xu Xiong, you are still as svelte as before; it is worthy of celebration. This time two gentlemen raised our Han peoples fame for fighting prowess beyond the Great Wall, the news already exploded across the Jianghu. Ha!

Qiu Nanshan pulled the rein to stop the horse. He saluted Song Shidao and greeted him by saying, This Xiongtais bearing is out of the ordinary, you must be the Song Familys Er Gongzi, we, as northeast wilderness people already heard your fame for a long time.

Just by listening to this remark, they knew that they did not run into each other by chance, rather, the other side intentionally came to meet them.

After exchanging some pleasantries, Zhang Jinshu said, Lets find somewhere we can talk. Translated by foxs

Inwardly, Kou Zhong and the others were greatly astounded, realizing that the other side came not to welcome them into town, but that they had something else to talk about.

Zhang Jinshu urged his horse to enter a sparse forest by the road, everybody promptly followed.

Wuming dove down from the sky and landed on Kou Zhongs shoulder, which provoked a round of admiration and inquiry.

They stopped at the top of a hill, dismounted their horses and watched the last streak of sunlight disappearing beyond the flat line at the end of the plains, turning the heaven and earth hazy and dark. Starlight gradually appeared, the cool night breeze was blowing gently to replace the blistering heat of the day.

By the time Kou Zhong finished explaining the wolf-bandits affair, the sky was full of stars, the night sky was glorious.

Letting out a cold snort, Qiu Nanshan said, Since Xu Kaishan already lost Du Xings support, we no longer need to be polite to him.

Shaking his head, Zhang Jinshu said, Things are not that easy to solve, Xu Kaishan could rely on Luo Yi of Youzhous support. Although on the surface Luo Yi acknowledge his allegiance to Gao Ye, the fact is that he is proclaiming himself hegemon over Youzhou. Temporarily we still cannot do anything to him.

Knitting his brows, Kou Zhong asked, What kind of fellow is Luo Yi?

Song Shidao said, Luo Yi is the most powerful local tyrant and hegemon of the dark road in Youzhou. I hear that he had been exchanging information with the Li Family in secret. If Li Shimin succeeded in capturing Luoyang, he would probably be the first person to surrender to the Li Family.

Having the load on his mind evoked by him, Kou Zhong smiled wryly and said, Ay! Its Luoyang again.

Zhang Jinshu asked, I wonder if gentlemen are intending to enter the city to see Jian Dashi?

Astonished, Xu Ziling asked, Unexpectedly Zhang Xiong knows about this matter?

Qiu Nanshan laughed and said, Zhang Xiong is Jian Dashis only close friend, naturally he knew Shaoshuais promise to Jian Dashi; therefore, when we heard that from Shanhai Pass gentlemen are about to honor us with your presence, we immediately came to welcome you.

The tone of his voice tranquil, Zhang Jinshu asked, I wonder if this time Shaoshuai has the Flying Clouds Bow with you?

Kou Zhong responded cheerfully, Without the Flying Clouds Bow, how could we dare to see Jian Dashi? Translated by foxs

Shaken, Zhang Jinshu said, Heavens! You have indeed accomplished it!

Because they only beheaded Shen Mohuan several days before they left Longquan, the news has not reached the Central Plains yet.

Kou Zhong thought he might as well take out the Flying Clouds Bow and handed it to the two to look over; he said with a laugh, Turns out you are here for this; I thought Zhang Xiong did not want us to enter the city.

Zhang Jinshu gently caressed the two characters Flying Clouds engraved on the divine bow, revealing deep emotion on his face, he said, Shaoshuai did not guess incorrectly, you really should not enter the city.

Why? Song Shidao asked in astonishment.

Zhang Jinshu passed on the Flying Clouds Bow to Qiu Nanshan, he said with a sigh, Because Gao Ye is about to realign his allegiance to the House of Tang. If Shaoshuai entered the city, it would make us feel awkward.

Kou Zhong was shaken inwardly; he immediately understood. That time he encountered Zhang Jinshu, he already guessed this possibility.

Gao Kaidao sent Zhang Jinshu to scout Li Shimins decisive battle against Song JinGang, it was because he wanted to decide whether he should surrender and pay allegiance to the Li Clan at the earliest possible time. Now that Li Shimin has defeated Song JinGang and the Tujue coalition forces, Gao Kaidaos reaction was only to be expected.

Hows the current situation? Song Shidao asked.

Zhang Jinshu obviously considered them friends rather than enemies; he replied without the slightest hesitation, Qin Wang has now returned to Guanzhong, preparing to go all-out in attacking Luoyang. Tang Emperor Li Yuan dispatched Li Shentong to lead another army of ten thousand to Liyang to rendezvous with Li Shiji, and thus increasing the military strength in Liyang to withstand the Xia Wang Dou Jiande and Zheng Wang Wang Shichong.

Kou Zhong frowned; he said, How will Li Shiji and Li Shentong deal with the two armies?

Zhang Jinshu spoke heavily, The Tang Army in Liyang does not have this power, but Li Shiji is proficient in military matters and the art of war, he can see clearly the mutual suspicion between the Xia Army and the Zheng Army. Ignoring Wang Shichong, he opted the attacking-the-north-defending-the-west strategy, both to take the initiative to fight in the valley, while also not to leave Liyang empty.

Liyang was located northeast of Luoyang, southwest of Xucheng, hence the defending-the-west was referring to dealing with Wang Shichong, and the attacking-the-north was focusing on Dou Jiande.

Qiu Nanshan joined in, Li Shentong first led the army to capture Dou Jiandes Zhaozhou, due north of Liyang. Greatly angered, Dou Jiande personally led fifty thousand elite troops going down south to recover Zhaozhou. Li Shentongs loss was disastrous, he retreated back to Liyang in panic, leaving Li Shijis attacking-the-north-defending-the-west strategy a mere illusion. Now Dou Jiande is keeping the gong close and tightening the drum to attack Liyang. Once Liyang is trapped, the other cities that the Tang Army occupies, such as Weihui and the others, could no longer be defended. Dou Jiande can expect to clear up all the routes to enter the Pass in a short period of time. The situation is extremely critical.

Kou Zhong sighed and said, That is akin to forcing Li Shimin to go out of the Pass sooner than planned. Translated by foxs

Zhang Jinshu said, Li Shiji is not that easy to be eaten, plus Liyang city defense is strong, Dou Jiande wants to capture it, it is absolutely not an easy matter.

Xu Ziling asked, Are you guys adopting the wait-and-see stance?

Zhang Jinshu smiled and said, Xu Xiongs guess is right on. For the time being, lets not talk about these disturbing things. It would be better for us to find a place to drink and chat, and then well send someone to invite Jian Dashi to come out of the city, let him hear with his own ears Shaoshuais glorious experience in beheading Shen Mohuan.

Speaking about big powers in the world at that time, since Zhi Shi Lang Wang Bo first opened the pole and gathered the crowd in an uprising, great heroes have been pursuing the deer in the Central Plains, each one competed in wisdom and courage until Yuwen Huaji started a mutiny in Jiangdu by murdering his superior, that is, by assassinating Emperor Yang; the Central Earth thereupon became a land without a master. In various regions, one after another tyrannical warlords, using uprising as a pretext, cutting the land apart and proclaiming themselves hegemon in different scales, large and small, but most were people who look-at-the-wind-and-steer-the-rudder, those who attached themselves to the strong, hoping to cast their lot to a bright lord who someday would unify the world, and then they would be conferred the title marquis and rise through the nobility, to enjoy endless riches and honor, glory and splendor. Therefore, they split and then joined again, the situation changed dramatically.

Defeating Yuwen Huaji has made Li Mi, who was originally the most powerful and was regarded as the foremost climb to the pinnacle of the task of establishing and maintaining hegemony. Unfortunately, he also planted a root of the trouble, leading to his crushing defeat at Yanshi, and was forced to surrender to the Tang, which made him losing his standing even more, and could no longer exist.

All four of the major clans, both in the political world during the last years of the Sui dynasty and in Wulin world, were tower of strength, the powerful warlords of the old Sui with the highest chance of taking over the Sui palace courtyard. Yuwen Huaji was annihilated, the Dugu Clan was defeated in their struggle with Wang Shichong and ran away into Guanzhong to attach themselves to the Li Family. Gradually the situation became clearly divided, it was turning into Guanzhong-based and Lingnan-based Li Clan and Song Clan; north and south standing opposite to each other.

This moment, among the various overlords of the north, Liu Wuzhou and Xue Ju were defeated by Li Shimin at Baiju and Qianqhui Yuan, respectively; the powerful hegemon Jianghuais Du Fuwei surrendered without a fight. In the Central Plains, only Dou Jiande and Wang Shichong, two major forces barely had the power to resist the Li Clan. Translated by foxs

Among the various overlords of the south, Li Zitong and Shen Faxing, because of long-term war, did not have time to look after themselves, their allotted share was to wait to be annihilated, they no longer had any strength to go up north to contend for hegemony. Only Balings Xiao Xian and Yuzhangs Lin Shihong barely had the remaining power to contend for hegemony. Also, because of mutual restraint, they were powerless to join the decisive battle, with the Yellow River at the center of the most critical battlefield.

In this gradually clearing up situation, Kou Zhong became the sharp blade that the Song Clan from the distant south stretched out toward the Yellow River, the battlefield in the fight for supremacy. Although the Shao Shuai Armys wings had just grown and they barely have enough power to defend Pengliang, their base of operations, they are fairly indispensable.

First of all, Shao Shuai Army had control over the seaport on the north side of Pengliang, they could operate big maritime trade, while also obtaining the Song Clans unending support. But more importantly, not only the Shaoshuai Kou Zhong himself was one of the most outstanding martial art masters of the younger generation whose name shook the world, moreover, his military accomplishment splendid, he was an expert in using the weak to defeat the strong, using the few to win over the many, no one dared to doubt his military talent, not to be outdone [orig. to have no time for civilities (idiom)] by Li Shimin, whose merit in military service was unrivalled, and has become the formidable opponent that Li Shimin had the most apprehension toward.

Furthermore, the Li Clan themselves was not without internal worries. The struggle between Li Shimin and the Princeling and Imperial Concubines factions, plus the intervention of the Tujue people, who glared like a tiger watching its prey from the northern territory, who might go down south any moment, greatly increased the hard-to-predict variables.

It was precisely under this kind of situation that Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling parted company. Bringing along the little falcon Wuming, he went alone to Zhaozhou to see Dou Jiande. As long as he could make Dou Jiande forming an alliance with Wang Shichong, whom he despised, then they had the opportunity to make Li Shimin, who triumphed in every battle, to suffer the first big defeat, as well as to preserve Luoyang, which would give the Shao Shuai Army the space and time to strive for a breather, also for the little falcon, whose wings and feathers had just grown, to become a bold and powerful falcon able to move unhindered across the cast sky.

After three days and nights of nonstop journey, Kou Zhong arrived in Zhaocheng at dusk. The high-ranking military officer guarding the gate immediately flew to notify Dou Jiande. Liu Heita personally came out to welcome him. The two men met in person, naturally they were extremely happy.

Liu Heita had already heard the news about Kou Zhong propagating his prestige beyond the Great Wall. Seeing the falcon perching on his shoulder, he sighed in praise, The people of the prairie beyond the Great Wall have always looked down upon us. In his military campaign to Gaoli, Yang Guang, that muddle-headed ruler, suffered defeat in every battle, he even became the laughingstock of the outer tribes. This time Shaoshuai can greatly change their impression, they no longer dare to say that our Central Plains have no one in it. Translated by foxs

Kou Zhong said, Li Shimins battle of Baiju also caused sensation across the prairie, whod dare to say that our Central Plains have no one in it?

Amazed, Liu Heita said, Shaoshuais bosom is indeed different from ordinary people, even toward the enemy you think so highly like this.

Riding side-by-side with Liu Heita toward the Dudu Fu [commander-in-chief official residence] at the center of the city, which Dou Jiande used as his command headquarters, Kou Zhong noticed that the situation on the street was like before, the shops were still open for business, peoples livelihood did not seem to be affected in the slightest, he was full of praise inwardly. Laughing, he said, Underestimating the enemy is a big taboo in the art of war. Hey! Can you not Shaoshuai this and Shaoshuai that to me? I am still that same Xiao Zhong.

Perhaps because Kou Zhongs remark was invoking Liu Heitas wounded heart due to Susu, this iron man let a low sigh, but did not respond.

In order to divert his attention, Kou Zhong asked, Hows Liyangs recent situation?

Liu Heitas spirit was aroused, he said, Li Shentongs troops retreated in defeat back to Liyang, along with Li Shiji they closed the door and hold fast to it. Attacking is not right for us, but not attacking is not right even more. Xia Wang [king of Xia] is having a headache because of this.

Is there any movement on Wang Shichongs side other there? Didnt you form an alliance with him? Kou Zhong asked, If he is willing to send troops up north to drag Li Shijis hind legs, even if he is as good in city defense as Li Shimin, Im afraid he would still unable to turn around a hopeless situation.

Letting out a cold snort, Liu Heita said, Even mentioning this persons name already brings anger in our hearts; according to our intelligence, Wang Shichong is holding Yang Dong prisoner in Han Liang Dian [lit. containing cool palace hall], forcing him to abdicate so that he could proclaim himself emperor in a way that justifies the use of the term [idiom: proper, legitimate]. Tell me, how could we cooperate with someone who does not understand the situation like that?

Astonished, Kou Zhong said, I thought he already murdered Yang Dong and ascended the emperors throne by now, turns out he is still only Zheng Wang [king of Zheng].

Liu Heita replied, This is the agreement between Xia Wang and him, which is to preserve Yang Dong and delay his proclamation of himself as the emperor, until we defeat the Li Clans army, and then we will see how we are going to divide the outcome of the war. Who would have thought that Wang Shichong is so not tactful? If he really proclaims himself the emperor, it shows clearly that he wanted us to acknowledge allegiance to him. This is called the contract of alliance ceases and it becomes empty promises.

After a short pause, he said, Lets talk some more after we see Xia Wang! He is very happy that you are willing to come to see him.

The two galloped into the Dudu Fu. Translated by foxs

By the time Kou Zhong entered the Zhaochengs city gate, Xu Ziling, Song Shidao and Ren Jun had also found Lei Jiuzhi, who was recuperating in a small town southwest of Luoyang.

Lei Jiuzhis spirit has been recovered completely, but from time to time he still felt tired; it is thus clear how malicious and deeply harmful the Seven Needles to Control the Mind was.

Using the Long-Life true qi, Xu Ziling helped him stretching his tendon and invigorating his channels. Afterwards, Xu Ziling, Song Shidao and Lei Jiuzhi, three men sat down in the small living room to have a meeting, while Ren Jun was responsible to light the fire and cook the meal.

Stretching out his four limbs, Lei Jiuzhi spoke in astonishment, I did not see Ziling only for two, three months, yet your neigong already made remarkable progress, the incredible pace of advancement is really hard to believe. Now my body feels relaxed, like the disaster has totally gone. I thought I would never recover completely.

Hearing that, the two were extremely happy.

Song Shidao said, Since this man who knows how to use the Seven Needles to Control the Mind is on Zhao Deyans side, he must belong to the demonic school. If we have the opportunity, we must rid the world of calamity.

Xu Ziling could not help respectfully offering his opinion, If I could hear him speaking again, Im sure I can identify him.

Lei Jiuzhi said, If you can really impersonate Situ Furong, it will be more perfect than my original idea, because pawnshop business is not easy to do at all, reputation is especially important. If the Xiang Family could win Situ Furong network of pawnshops covering the whole world on the gambling table, they would be like a tiger that has grown wings.

After a short pause, he went on, However, the chance that we would reveal the cloven foot is also very high, because Xiang Gui and the others will not have time to personally make their move. If he is forced to go out and determine victory and defeat on the gambling table with us, based on their usual style, they would investigate first, which, for them, is merely the exertion of lifting their hand, because the Xiang Familys network of intelligence also cover the whole world. If they found out that Situ Furong is still in Pingyao, our scam will immediately be exposed. And if that happened, whether we could escape alive will be a question.

Song Shidao smiled and said, I hear that he is a man greedy for life, afraid of death. We could exploit this point; we force him to leave Pingyao to avoid disaster. Under this kind of situation, naturally he would conceal his whereabouts, and then we would appear at this moment in Changan. It will be like seamless heavenly clothes.

It was as if Lei Jiuzhi had just known Song Shidao for the first time; he stared at him blankly for half a day before slapping the table and said, Not only Er Gongzis mind is very quick, but also daring, experienced and careful. But how are we going to force him to leave Pingyao? Translated by foxs

Song Shidao slyly said, Leave this matter to me. For the past few years, Situ Furong started to expand his pawnshop business to the south. Due to his secondary business in providing loan with an extremely heavy interest, he implicated a lot of people and made them lose their family fortune. I could use this pretext to write a letter to Situ Furong, stating clearly that I will come to Pingyao to settle the account with him. With no one to help him, he will only have one choice, which is the choice we want him to pick.

Ren Jun, who was bringing the dishes to the table, spoke excitedly, Song Er Ye is really formidable. Finished speaking, he turned around and went inside.

Lei Jiuzhi cheerfully said, Forget about Situ Furong, anybody who discovers that the Song Family of Lingnan is coming to give him bad luck will also look for a hole, the deeper the better to hide in. This problem is solved! The remaining problem is what is Situ Furongs appearance look like? What are his particular preference and habit? How does he like to dress? What kind of person is his competent partner Shen Wenjiang? The more detailed we know the better, the more we can avoid being uncovered.

This aspect is completely without problem, Xu Ziling said, We could learn about everything that we need to know from Ou Liangcais mouth. The most wonderful thing is that Situ Furong never met stranger, and that he had never been to Changan, which is very beneficial to us.

Lei Jiuzhi said, Not that I want to pour cold water on you, but you ought to know that in a hundred secrets, there might be one loose end. Such a rare opportunity, we simply must win and wont allow any failure. Not only Pingyao is the most populous and affluent big city in the Li Clans Taiyuan, it also have an extremely close commercial tie with Changan. We only need one Pingyao merchant coming to Changan who knew Situ Furong, then there will be a possibility that we could reveal the cloven foot.

Muttering to himself irresolutely, Song Shidao said, This matter is indeed beyond our control. The only way to reduce the possibility of error to the lowest point is to ask Ou Liangcai to find a Pingyao merchant who has been living and doing business in Pingyao for a long time, but is also very familiar with Changan business world to go one step ahead of us to investigate Pingyao people doing business in Changan. Thereupon we can gain the initiative by striking first, we use all kinds of feasible means to prevent this kind of people from coming across us.

Xu Zilings heart was moved, he said, Da Dao She might be an ideal choice. Their specialty is escorting goods for Pingyao merchants; they ought to know very well who goes to Changan often. But to obtain their cooperation is not easy at all, this kind of thing cannot be forced.

Lei Jiuzhi was silent for half a day. He spoke heavily, I wonder if you could contact Li Jing to find a way. Most of the Pingyao merchants support Li Shimin, Da Dao Shes Qiu Qipeng also has no choice but to look at Li Shimin and give Li Jing a little bit of face.

Lifting his head to look at the beam of the house, Xu Ziling sighed and said, I dont want to involve Li Jing in this matter. Ay! Translated by foxs

Song Shidao said, It would be better if you see Li Shimin directly, so that things can be a bit simpler. If we could eliminate the Xiang Family, to Li Shimin it would have many advantages and no disadvantages. Li Shimin might even cover up for us. The only problem is that it might make this deal even bigger than it is.

Lei Jiuzhi laughed and said, The bigger the deal, the more Chi Shengchun will not suspect it; that is even more brilliant.

Very well! Xu Ziling dejectedly said, Looks like there is no other choice, right?