Chapter 27

Chapter 27

Episode 27.
“I’ll take your punishment!”
Hua Tong boiled and ate.
I covered both ears. For a moment, I wondered if I’d brought him along for the ride. I expected it, but it was just one more nag.
After a few days in the cage, he came out half a man, his voice still intact. I was tempted to starve him some more.
“I told you.”
“Did you think that if the Grand Duke did that, I would accept that I was right? How reckless of you. You should be looking ahead, drawing up blueprints and thinking of taking over the maintenance of the Southern Palace and rising to a higher position. How can you be held back by someone like me?”
He vowed to never put the two of them together again.
“You should say it right. I don’t care about black tiger.”
“No, but still.”
“It’s because black tigers are ignorant.”
“……?”
Black Ho was visibly flustered.
“What do you expect me to do after giving you so much loyalty just to save your life?”
Black Ho’s mouth twitched, but he quickly shook his head.
“Don’t shake your head. I’m not saying you’re wrong.”
In my previous life, I was lonely and alone. I traveled the world without anyone to trust.
I had to endure many hardships and grit my teeth to ascend to the position of Captain of the Ten Thousand People.
The world was too harsh for me to consider warm.
My mother died early, my family treated me like a nobody, and everyone watched me from afar, not wanting to touch me lest a spark fall on them.
I needed friends, and I needed people I could trust. Over time, I found a few of them, but the dark memories of my past remained with me like an afterimage, like an imprint.
So I said.
“I thought, ‘You’re the stupidest person I’ve ever met, and you’re the perfect match for me, who doesn’t give a shit what anyone says.
I was convinced that I could trust the black man in front of me, and that I had his back. I liked his stupid behavior, and it lit a fire under me.
“So.”
I held out my hand and looked at Black Lake.
“Lend me your power for this life.”
“…….”
Black Ho stared at my outstretched hand for a long, long time.
“…… to the Grand Duke.”
“Yes.”
“You speak with such ease. You’ve already made it.”
“What do you mean?”
At my confusion, Ebony held out his hand and smiled wryly.
“I meant that if it weren’t for you, the Grand Duke, I’d have nowhere to go.”
“That’s why I tend to take care of such tramps.”
I chuckled and clasped Black Lake’s hand.
“So, which front are we being sent to?”
“That will be decided today. Black Ho, I see you’re here.”
Turning my gaze toward the executive chamber where the Jia Zhu meeting was taking place, I recalled the elderly man and the Southern Palace Elder.
* * *
“As you all know, there are three main areas where the imperial family needs martial artists: the Hongjian region, then the dwarves and immigrant tribes, and finally the Green Forest, the Waterway, and the front line. For the sake of simplicity, I will refer to the Hongjian as the upper front, the immigrant tribes and dwarves as the middle front, and the green forests, waterways, and the Great Wall as the lower front.”
Elder Nine pointed to three spots on the wide map.
“If we are to accept the Grand Duke’s willingness to join the front, I believe we should choose one of these three locations to discuss.”
Elder Gu’s words were followed by the words of Elder Namgung Ho. His expression was as serious as ever.
“Before that, do you really want the Grand Duke to join the battlefield? I think we should discuss that matter first. No matter what anyone says, the Grand Duke is the Grand Duke, and he’s also the winner of the Sword Festival…… Plus.”
“And again. I have something to say, Elder Ten.”
The Four Elders interrupted Nan Gonghou. The Fourth Elder’s eyes didn’t hide his discomfort, and his expression reflected it.
“I just want to say that the Grand Duke did a good job.”
“Of course…….”
“No matter how much this and that is said, we need to be clear about the duke and the prince. What. We need to think about what’s best for our Southern Palace, and nothing else. The Sword Festival is an indicator and milestone of the future, and the Grand Duke’s remarks there are troubling enough.”
Namgung Ho was as mute as a honeyed mute at the Four Elders’ words. He hadn’t expected to express his disapproval so strongly.
“Gu Feifang was there. If nothing else, we’ve given them a good meal to eat while they think Gu Feifang’s behavior is suspicious. A very good bite.”
The incident with Mrs. Pang would not be recounted at length, but the Four Elders looked back at the others and nodded as if to confirm his words. The Sixth Elder Namgungil and the Seventh Elder Namgungje shook their heads in agreement.
At the consensus that had been formed, Namgung Ho opened his mouth to speak a few more times before sighing.
Then.
“I have a different opinion.”
The Second Elder, Namgungbon, stepped forward and directly contradicted Namgung’s words.
“Elder Four is right, if we must separate the public from the private, we must think separately.”
Elder Four’s expression twisted at that. He couldn’t be happy to have his words so openly contradicted.
“I don’t remember talking about it after the incident, and I’ve told everyone in Anhui.”
“I know everyone is curious, but since the earlier disturbance will be decided and dealt with within the Southern Palace, I’d like you to focus on the meaning of the Sword Bash and the significance of the tournament.”
“However. The treatment and outcome will be publicized so that everyone in Anhui and those watching can know, so please don’t worry and enjoy the sword tournament to the end. ”
“To say so and then do otherwise would be to dishonor the name of the Southern Palace, and I believe that the case against Mrs. Pang and the contest are separate, and that the winner of the contest should be properly rewarded, and that the winner should be the Grand Duke.”
The elder Namgungbon turned to look at the patriarch of the Namgung family, Namgungmubai.
“I believe that the winner should be rewarded and honored as he deserves. Go.”
Nangong Mu Bai locked eyes with the Southern Palace Head, then swept his gaze over the leaders, from the First Elder to the Ten Elders to the Iron-blooded An Baek. His gaze finally landed on the Four Elders who had cornered the Ten Elders earlier.
Seeing the stares directed at him, he chewed his lower lip hard before bowing his head.
“Since everyone thinks so, if you have a suitable elixir, you can give me one.”
“I will.”
“Then we shall proceed.”
“That’s…….”
Elder Gu’s gaze involuntarily drifted to Iron-Blooded Sword Saint An Bai.
“It is my wish as the winner of the Sword Branch Competition that you share in the punishment of the man known as Black Tiger, who is the main culprit in this incident, according to the Grand Duke’s words. Even if it’s my master’s order, I dare not speak of the contents of the mission against Confucius, the enemies of the Southern Palace.”
“What if the Southern Palace’s laws punish you for your crimes?”
“For a minimum of ten years, and a maximum of thirty years, he must participate in a battle in the name of the Southern Palace, where he will be rewarded for his merits, or he will rot in the black pit for the rest of his life. The choice to participate in the battlefield is only a small part of the reward for your service to the Southern Palace.”
Shaking his head at the Southern Archer’s straightforward words, Nangong Mu Baek pondered.
“So you’re saying that I’ll be punished for my crimes, period?”
“That’s right. Let’s say a dozen years. The appropriate place is probably in the middle of the country…….”
“If I may add, I’ll go.”
Elder Southern Archer interrupted and opened his mouth to speak, and everyone on the boat turned to look at the party. It was Elder Nangong Yue, who had been a shadowy figure ever since the Gazoo Conference had been going on, not saying a word or mentioning anything.
“……Say it. Elder Sun.”
“Deserved punishment, deserved treatment, deserved punishment, deserved punishment. All are good words, and all are right.”
Elder Sun looked directly at Nangong Yue and spoke one word after another.
“But first.”
Everyone’s attention was drawn to the sound of his voice as he looked at his son-in-law and opened his mouth.
“Ever since the imperial family lost a member, there has never been a precedent for the Southern Palace’s enemy leader to turn to the military, right?”
The four elderly Southern Palace soldiers frowned.
“……What does that have to do with anything, Elder Sun?”
“If the Grand Duke were to join the imperial army, it would be welcomed with open arms, but there are sure to be those who would look askance at a situation like this. Isn’t that right, Elder Four?”
“Who would look upon it so?”
“Many, many. The Four Elders did not speak first. The Six Great Families, even members of the Old Sect. If we let things get out of hand, we’ll end up with a ridiculous situation where we’ll be able to drive our enemies into the ground and not receive any recognition.”
First Elder Southern Palace Yue’s words made Fourth Elder Southern Palace Yue’s face flare up. To him, Zong Jie himself had become a despicable man who would sell his own family’s enemies for a pittance. There was no way he could refute Elder Sun’s words.
However, with an expression of unconcern, Nangong Yue continued.
“Grand Duke Hana is willing to go down that path. For the sake of the Southern Palace, and for the sake of good faith with the Black Horans. This could solidify the Southern Palace’s position in the imperial court and set an example for other families and factions.”
The Elders, mesmerized by his words, stirred. How could the Southern Palace move for a cause and still bring about the greater good?
“Send him to the lower front.”
From the moment the Fourth Elder Nangong clamped his lips shut, no one was paying attention to the words of the First Elder Nangong.
“The Southern Palace’s frequent conflicts with the Green Forest are a good reason, and we can withstand imperial pressure well enough, and it will also force the other sects and clans to follow our lead. My own family is a people who hate to be left behind, so we should treat them as such, not as those who come to pay for their sins, but as representatives of the Southern Palace.”
With those words, the First Elder Nangong Yue closed his mouth and smiled, as if he had said all he needed to say.
No one could argue with the fact that the conversation had shifted from crimes and punishments to the fact that the Grand Duke’s actions and words had brought honor to the Southern Palace.
With just a few words, he had completely changed the atmosphere, and his smile grew even wider.