Chapter - 33 (33) (1/2)

Those without chronic disease find it hard to laugh, being distinguished and accomplishment are not the same.

After several days of travel, they had left the City of Kunming far behind them. Since all along they did not see Wu Sangui's troops or horses pursuing, gradually everybody was relieved. One particular day they arrived at Qujing [prefecture, still in Yunnan]. When the night fell, four riders were rushing directly toward them. One rider jumped down for the horse and talked to the Valiant Cavalry vanguard that they had an urgent military intelligence to report to the Imperial Military Minister.

As soon as Wei Xiaobao received the report, he granted them an audience at once. He saw that the one in the front was a thin and small man with dark complexion; he had just about to ask the man what kind of military intelligence, when Qian Laoben, who was standing behind him, suddenly said, ”You are Kuang Xiong, are you not?”

The man bowed and said, ”Xiongdi is indeed Kuang Tianxiong. Qian Dage, how are you?”

Wei Xiaobao looked at Qian Laoben. Qian Laoben nodded and said in a low voice, ”Our own people.”

”Very good,” Wei Xiaobao said, ”Kuang Laoxiong has toiled much, let us go sit at the back.”

They went to the rear hall; all the attendants were Tian Di Hui brothers. Qian Laoben said, ”Kuang Xiongdi, this is our Green Wood Hall's Wei Xiangzhu.”

Kuang Tianxiong bowed with cupped fist; he said, ”By Heaven my father and Earth my mother, fighting the Qing restoring the Ming. Scarlet Fire Hall's Gu Xiangzhu's subordinate Kuang Tianxiong pays his respect to Wei Xiangzhu and all Green Wood Hall Dage.”

”Turns out it is Scarlet Fire Hall's Kuang Dage, nice to meet you, nice to meet you,” Wei Xiaobao said.

Qian Laoben had met this Kuang Tianxiong several times in Hunan in the past; presently he introduced Li Lishi, Qi Biaoqing, Feng Jizhong, Xu Tianchuan, Priest Xuanzhen, Gao Yanchao, and the others to him. In turn, Kuang Tianxiong also introduced his three Scarlet Fire Hall brothers. Everybody knew that the Scarlet Fire Hall was in charge of Guizhou province. In just a few days they would reach Guizhou border. Having made contact with their fellow Society brothers, the Green Wood Hall warriors were very happy.

Wei Xiaobao said, ”Last time I parted with Gu Xiangzhu in Zhili, and we have not seen each other ever since. Is everything going well with Gu Xiangzhu?”

”Gu Xiangzhu is well,” Kuang Tianxiong replied, ”He instructed subordinate to send his regards to Wei Xiangzhu and all Green Wood Hall Dage. We have heard that Wei Xiangzhu and all Dage have accomplished many important matters in recent days, and we admire you very much. Today we can pay a formal visit, this is indeed the blessing of three lifetimes.”

Wei Xiaobao laughed and said, ”We are all brothers here, there is no need for words of politeness. In just a few more days we are going to arrive at your honorable province, I wish to chat with Gu Xiangzhu.”

Kuang Tianxiong said, ”Gu Xiangzhu instructed subordinate to report to Wei Xiangzhu that it would be best if gentlemen change route eastwards, do not go through Guizhou.”

Wei Xiaobao and the warriors were startled. Kuang Tianxiong said, ”According to Gu Xiangzhu, he also wishes very much to have a chat with Wei Xiangzhu and all Dage, however, it would be best to meet within Guangxi.”

”And why is that?” Wei Xiaobao asked.

Kuang Tianxiong replied, ”We obtained information that Wu Sangui has dispatched troops and horses to Xuanwei [county level city in Qujing], the town of Hongqiao, and Xin Tian Pu district to intercept Wei Xiangzhu and all Dage to bring you harm.”

”Ah!” all Green Wood Hall warriors exclaimed in surprise. Wei Xiaobao was shocked and angered at the same time. ”His granny,” he cursed, ”This traitor is indeed unwilling to concede. He is even willing to forfeit his own son's life.”

”Wu Sangui is very sinister and ruthless,” Kuang Tianxiong said, ”He dispatches not a few martial art experts, saying that they are to deal with certain Shitai by Wei Xiangzhu's side, whose martial art skill was extremely high, and then have his son, the Tatar Princess, and Wei Xiangzhu captured, while the rest of the people would be killed to shut their mouths. Presently the Shaoguan mountain pass between Qujing and Zhanyi [another county in Qujing] has been closed, nobody could go through. The four of us took a detour through small paths on the mountain to get here; we were afraid that Wei Xiangzhu would come too late and fall into the big traitor's scheme, hence we hurried along day and night to catch up.”

Wei Xiaobao saw the four people's eyes were bloodshot, their cheeks hollow, obviously they were extremely weary. He said, ”Four Dage have toiled very much, we are very grateful.”

Kuang Tianxiong said, ”Finally we managed to deliver the news in time and have not harmed the important matter.” He sounded very relieved.

Wei Xiaobao asked his subordinates, ”All Dage, what do you think?”

Qian Laoben said, ”I wonder if Kuang Dage know the total number of troops that Wu Sangui sent to ambush us.”

Kuang Tianxiong replied, ”Wu Sangui did not have enough time to dispatch his troops from Kunming. I heard he sent the letter via flying pigeon to mobilize northern Yunnan and southern Guizhou's military forces, altogether there will be more than thirty thousand men.”

Everybody cursed and swore. The number of troops under Wei Xiaobao's command was no more than two thousand men, less than 10% of the opposite party's force; indeed the few are no match for the many.

Qian Laoben asked again, ”Did Gu Xiangzhu say where in Guangxi he wants to meet us?”

Kuang Tianxiong said, ”Gu Xiangzhu has already sent people to notify our Society's Latter Family Hall's Ma Xiangzhu in Guangxi; if Wei Xiangzhu agrees, the three Xiangzhu can meet at Lucheng, Guangxi. From here to Lucheng in the east, the road is not too easy to travel, the distance is farther, but there won't be Wu Sangui's troops guarding it. Latter Family Hall's brothers will provide support along the way, nothing should go wrong.”

When he heard that Wu Sangui had deployed more than thirty thousand troops to intercept them, Wei Xiaobao's heart was already trembling in fear; but when he heard that Gu Xiangzhu had made appropriate arrangement and Ma Xiangzhu would also send people to provide support along the way, his spirit was boosted instantly. ”Good,” he said, ”We are going to Lucheng. That old fellow Wu Sangui, damn it, there will come a day we will show him good.” Immediately he issued an order to change their course southeast. He also ordered Kuang Tianxiong, four people, to sit in a large carriage so that they could rest.

When his troops heard that Wu Sangui was sending his army to intercept and kill them, nobody was not alarmed; knowing that they were in a dangerous place, they all hastened on with their journey. Not daring to alert the local authorities, every night they pitched camp in the wilderness.

One day they arrived at Lucheng. Ma Chaoxing, the Xiangzhu of Latter Family Hall and Gu Zhizhong, the Xiangzhu of Scarlet Fire Hall of Tian Di Hui, as well as the other brothers holding leadership positions of the two Halls had already waited in Lucheng. As the three Halls' brothers met, the meeting was very warm.

That evening Ma Chaoxing prepared a large banquet to welcome Wei Xiaobao and the Green Wood Hall warriors. During the banquet they talked about how the Mu Palace had conceded to Tian Di Hui; everybody was in high spirit.

After the banquet, the Scarlet Fire Hall's sentry post reported an incoming message: Wu Sangui's troops found out about Wei Xiaobao making a detour into Guangxi, they urgently pursued, and were currently at the Guangxi border, but did not dare to enter. They had already sent urgent report to Kunming, asking for instructions, whether they should disguise themselves as robbers and infiltrated Guangxi to handle this matter.

Ma Chaoxing laughed and said, ”Guangxi is not Wu Sangui's territory. If that traitor leads his troops across the border, it will mean open rebellion. If he sends his troops masquerading as robbers, thinking that he could push the blame toward Guangxi's Kong Sizhen, even though he is rushing, it would still be too late.”

They rested in Lucheng for one day. Wei Xiaobao still thought that they were too close to Yunnan, he was still afraid, hence he urged his party to continue their journey eastwards. By early morning the third day, he took his leave from Gu Zhizhong and Scarlet Fire Hall brothers, and led his entourage heading to the east. Ma Chaoxing and the Latter Family Hall's brothers accompanied them.

The farther they left Yunnan, the more Wei Xiaobao felt at ease. Along the way, they never stopped more than a day in one place, until they finally reached central Guangxi. After being frightened and were in limbo for a while, the Imperial Bodyguards and other officers and soldiers reverted back to their old ways, once again they extorted the local prefecture and county officials and harassed the region.

One day they reached Liuzhou [prefecture, Guangxi]. When the local prefectural magistrate heard about the arrival of the Princess, he did his utmost to curry her favor by supplying everything, nothing was too difficult. The Imperial Bodyguards and the Valiant Cavalry officers and soldiers were like fish back in water; they gorged themselves and indulged themselves everywhere in the city.

In the evening of the third day, Wei Xiaobao was having idle talk with Ma Chaoxing and other Tian Di Hui brothers in a side room, when the captain of the Imperial Bodyguards Zhang Kangnian hurriedly walked in, and called in a loud voice, ”Wei Fu Zongguan,” and stopped without continuing, his face looked awkward.

Wei Xiaobao noticed that the left part of his face was swollen, his right eye was black; obviously he had been fighting and lost. Wei Xiaobao thought, ”The Imperial Bodyguards don't hit people, others are already happy; who would be brazen enough to beat him up?” He did not want the Imperial Bodyguard to lose face in front of the Tian Di Hui brothers, hence he said to Ma Chaoxing, ”Ma Dage, please continue sitting at ease, Xiongdi must excuse myself for a while.”

”You are too kind,” Ma Chaoxing said, ”Wei Jueye, please do as you wish.”

Wei Xiaobao went out of the side room, with Zhang Kangnian followed behind him. As soon as they were outside, he said, ”Reporting to Fu Zongguan, Zhao Erge is arrested.” What he meant by 'Second Brother Zhao' was the other Imperial Bodyguard captain, Zhao Qixian.

”Damn it,” Wei Xiaobao cursed, ”Who has the guts to do that? Is it Liuzhou guard? Or prefectural magistrate yamen? What did he do? Kill people?” He was thinking that if it were not for major violation, the local authorities would not dare to arrest Imperial Bodyguards.

Zhang Kangnian looked embarrassed. ”Not local official,” he said, ”It's … it's a gambling establishment.”

Wei Xiaobao laughed aloud. ”His granny,” he said, ”Liuzhou casino dares to detain Imperial Bodyguards, it's indeed huge news. You lost, didn't you?”

Zhang Kangnian nodded. With a forced laugh he said, ”The seven of us went to gamble, it was 'big or small'. Damn it, that casino has a ghost in it, thirteen times in a row it produced 'big'; the seven of us lost more than two thousand taels. Before the fourteenth throw, Zhao Erge and I both said that this time it must be 'small' …”

Wei Xiaobao shook his head and said, ”Wrong, wrong. Most likely it would be 'big'.”

Zhang Kangnian said, ”Too bad we did not invite Fu Zongguan to guide us in gambling, otherwise we would have not fallen into this mess. The seven of us cleaned up our silver and banknotes, and bet everything on 'small'. Ay!”

Wei Xiaobao laughed and said, ”When it was opened, it was 'big', wasn't it?”

Zhang Kangnian spread out his arms with the palm up, gesturing a hopeless situation. He said, ”The banker wanted to take our money, we did not allow him; we said that in all gambling establishment under the heavens, there is no way you could have fourteen 'big' in a row; they must be cheating. The casino owner came out to help to resolve the dispute, he said this time it did not count, nobody wins, nobody loses. Zhao Erge said no, he did not accept; this time it should have been 'small', the banker must have been cheating. We have lost such a lot of money, and this time obviously we won big, how could he say it did not count?”

Wei Xiaobao laughed. ”Damn it,” he cursed, ”You guys have no shame; clearly you lost, yet you still made a scene. Fourteen 'big' in a row is nothing, I have seen twenty four 'big' in a row.”

Zhang Kangnian said, ”The casino owner said the same thing, but Zhao Erge said that in Beijing, under the Son of Heaven's foot, there is no such rule. He threw a fit. I pulled my saber. The casino owner was so scared that his face turned white. He said that he was indebted to the Imperial Bodyguard Daren for our visit, he said that for the last several play, how could they dare to win our Imperial Bodyguard Daren's money. Whatever amount the Imperial Bodyguard Daren lost, Xiaoren would return everything along with his gratitude. Zhao Erge said, 'Alright, we did not lose, you just swindled our money, three thousand one hundred fifty three taels. We don't want the change, just consider it our bad luck; you can pay us back only three thousand taels.'”

Wei Xiaobao laughed aloud. In the meantime, they had reached the garden. ”Doesn't it mean that you have just gotten rich?” he asked, ”Did he pay?”

Zhang Kangnian said, ”The casino boss was also very straightforward, he said that with friends, yi qi must be held first and foremost. He presented three thousand taels with both hands and handed it to Zhao Erge. Zhao Erge took it without so much of a thanks, he said that he accepted his gesture, just consider it his good luck. If he cheats again next time, he would not let him go.”

Wei Xiaobao knitted his brows and said, ”This time it is clear that Zhao Qixian is in the wrong. Others have given you face, plus let you walk out with shining white silver in your hands; not only you have your face intact, you also gain wealth, why would he say such thing?”

”That's right,” Zhang Kangnian said, ”If Zhao Erge said some pleasant talk and thanked him, it would be all right. But, after taking the money he still had to say offensive words …”

”Correct!” Wei Xiaobao said, ”We eat and make our living in Jianghu; stealing, robbing, swindling, everything is permissible, but we must never offend our friends. There is a saying, 'When one split the bamboo into two, one must not harm the bamboo shoot.'”

”Yes, yes,” Zhang Kangnian replied, but in his heart he thought, ”Clearly we make our living in the Palace, you are the Imperial Envoy Minister, first class viscount; how could you say that we eat and make our living in Jianghu?”

Wei Xiaobao asked further, ”So how did the fight start? That casino owner's martial art skill is very high?”

”It's not that,” Zhang Kangnian replied, ”The seven of us took the money, we were about to leave the casino, when one of the casino guests suddenly cursed, 'Damn it, if getting rich is that easy, why would we have to gamble a fart? It would be better if everybody just enter the imperial palace to serve the Emperor … Emperor …' Fu Zongguan, when that rebel thief mentioned His Majesty, he spoke very disrespectful words, I do not dare to repeat it.”

Wei Xiaobao nodded. ”I understand,” he said, ”This fellow's nerve is indeed not small.”

”Isn't that so?” Zhang Kangnian said, ”When we heard him, naturally we were enraged. Zhao Erge threw the money onto a table; he drew his saber, and tried to grab that man's chest with his left hand. 'Bang!' that man punched Zhao Erge that he passed out. The rest of us, six people, made our move together. This rebel thief's martial art skill is indeed not low. Before I could see clearly, my face was punched; I was thrown out of the casino door, immediately the sky was dark and the earth black. I did not know what happened next. When I woke up, I saw Zhao Erge and the five brothers lying on the floor. That man put his foot on Zhao Erge's head and said, 'There are seven animals in here, one thousand taels each. You go quickly to get the money to redeem them. Laozi will only wait for four hours [orig. two sichen]. After four hours, if you don't come back, laozi will slaughter them and sell them off. For ten taels a catty, if the business is not bad, I can sell one animal for more than a thousand taels.”

Wei Xiaobao was amused and shocked at the same time; he asked, ”Do you know which group this fellow belongs to? Did you manage to find out?”

Zhang Kangnian replied, ”This man is very tall, his fist is bigger than a rice bowl, his face is covered in grizzled beard, his clothes were tattered, he almost looks like a beggar.”

”How many companions does he have?” Wei Xiaobao asked.

Zhang Kangnian replied, ”This … this … subordinates is not too clear. There were about seventeen, eighteen guests in the casino at that time, but I don't know if they are his companions or not.”

Wei Xiaobao knew that since Zhang Kangnian was beaten by the man that he passed out, naturally he wanted to get away as soon as he could without daring to look around too much. He thought, ”This old beggar must be a Jianghu hero; seeing the Imperial Bodyguards gambled shamelessly, he could not refrain from making his move. He would not necessarily want to slaughter them and sell them. I don't think anybody would agree to pay ten taels a catty of Zhao Qixian's meat. If I deployed large military force to deal with him, one person, it's not the conduct of a real man.”

He thought further, ”This old beggar has a very good martial art skill. If I ask Shifu to help me deal with him, I am sure it would be a cinch; but how could Shifu be willing to spend some effort for the Palace's Imperial Bodyguards? If I let this matter known to Ma Ziangzhu and the others, they would definitely laugh at my subordinates, thinking that the Imperial Bodyguards are useless.” Hence he also thought that asking for Feng Jizhong, Xu Tianchuan or the other's help would also be inappropriate. Suddenly he remembered two people. ”Don't be anxious,” he said, ”I will personally look at this matter.”

Zhang Kangnian's face lit up. ”Yes, yes,” he said, ”I'll get a hundred men, I think it should be enough.”

Wei Xiaobao shook his head and said, ”No need to bring that many.”

”Fu Zongguan should be a bit more careful,” Zhang Kangnian said, ”That old beggar's hands and feet were very fierce.”

”No worries,” Wei Xiaobao said, ”You have me.”

Returning to his own room, he fetched a large fold of banknotes, a dozen or so gold ingots, and stuffed everything into his pocket. Next he went to a room in the eastern wing and knocked, ”Are the two gentlemen here?” he called.

The door opened, Lu Gaoxuan appeared and said, ”Please come in.”

Wei Xiaobao said, ”Could the two gentlemen come with me? We have something to handle.”

Lu Gaoxuan and Fat Toutuo were wearing Valiant Cavalry Sergeant uniform; they always go with Wei Xiaobao as his companions, but in Kunming and along the way, they had not done anything for fear that other people might recognize their identity. Day in and day out they always hid in their room, and were quite bored. Hearing Wei Xiaobao was going to take them on some errand, they followed him enthusiastically.

Seeing Wei Xiaobao was only taking two Valiant Cavalry Sergeants, Zhang Kangnian was greatly disappointed. ”Fu Zongguan,” he said, ”Let subordinate call several Imperial Bodyguard brothers to wait upon Fu Zongguan.”

”No need,” Wei Xiaobao replied, ”Too many people will be troublesome instead. You brought a hundred people, if he gets us all, a thousand taels each, a hundred thousand taels total, it is going to hurt me a little bit. But if only four of us going, it is only four thousand taels, merely a trifle, I won't take it to heart.”

Zhang Kangnian knew he was only joking, but seeing him casually bringing only two sergeants to face such a serious danger, he thought Wei Xiaobao was pulling his rank too much. ”Yes, yes,” he said, ”But that rebel thief's martial art skill is really high.”

”Fine,” Wei Xiaobao said, ”Let me have a match with him. If I lose, he only needs to cut my flesh in pieces and sell it; it's not such a big deal.”

Zhang Kangnian knitted his brows, he did not dare to say anything anymore. He did not know that these two Valiant Cavalry Sergeants were first-class characters of the Wulin world. Any rogue character of the casino, no matter how high his martial art skill, he could not possibly surpass the two martial art experts of the Divine Dragon Cult.

Zhang Kangnian took Wei Xiaobao to the gambling establishment. They had just reached the door when they heard someone inside the casino called out loudly, ”I have a pair of seven here, isn't it big enough?”

Another man laughed aloud and said, ”Awfully sorry, in Xiongdi's hand, I just happen to have a pair of eight.” Followed by a loud slap, apparently the first man slapped his tiles [of card] onto the table, while cursing loudly.

Wei Xiaobao and Zhang Kangnian looked at each other; they thought, ”How come they are still gambling inside?” Wei Xiaobao stepped in. Zhang Kangnian cowered behind him. Lu Gaoxuan and Fat Toutuo stepped into the door and stopped at the threshold, waiting for Wei Xiaobao's instruction.

They saw a large platform in the hall, four people were sitting on the four corners, gambling. Zhao Qixian and five Imperial Bodyguards were lying on the floor. On the east sat a man, his face was covered in grizzled beard, his clothes were tattered, from the holes in his garment they could see hairy, dark-colored muscles; he must be the old beggar.

On the south sat a young, handsome scholar. Wei Xiaobao was startled, he recognized the man as Li Xihua, whom he had met in Beijing. His martial art skill was rather good, he was hit by Chen Jinnan's 'Blood Clotting Divine Claw', and since then Wei Xiaobao had never seen him. Unexpectedly now they met again at a Liuzhou gambling establishment.

On the west sat a man dressed as a farmer, a peasant, about fifty years or so, with an anxious expression, drooping eyebrows and lowered eyes; evidently he had lost and could not recover his money.

The one sitting on the north looked very peculiar, he was very short and very fat, his entire body looked like a meatball, but his clothing was extremely luxurious, his long robe and magua [buttoned mandarin jacket] were embroidered. The five sense organs on his face [i.e. nose, eyes, lips, tongue, ears] were crowded together, as if someone had taken his head and rubbed it between his palms, turning it into a ball. This short and fat man's hands were holding a pair of dominoes, his pair of big eyes turned into a slit, as he focused his attention to the tiles.

Wei Xiaobao mused, ”I wonder if this Li Xihua recognizes me? It has been a long while, plus I am wearing officer's uniform today; most likely he does not recognize me. There is no hurry to greet him.” Thereupon he laughed and said, ”Four friends look very exciting, Xiongdi also wants to play a hand, I wonder if I can?”

While saying that, he walked over to the table. He saw piles of money, about five or six thousand taels, and surprisingly, the pile in front of the peasant was the biggest. He was the biggest winner, yet his face carried the biggest loser expression; Wei Xiaobao felt a bit strange.

The short and fat man reached out to slowly draw a tile with his three fat fingers. Suddenly, ”Aha!” he yelled. Wei Xiaobao jumped in fright. The short and fat man laughed aloud and said, ”Wonderful, wonderful! This time I won't lose to you, will I?” 'Slap!' he slapped the tile onto the table. It was a ten-dot, a 'plum blossom' [i.e. five dots and five dots].

Wei Xiaobao thought, ”Most likely the tile in his hand is also a 'plum blossom'; a pair of plum blossoms' chance of winning is very high.” The short and fat man was all smiles. 'Slap!' he slapped the other tile onto the table.

As the other people looked at it, they were staring blankly for a moment, and then broke into hearty laugh. Turned out it was a 'four and six', also a ten-dot; ten-dot plus ten-dot was no more than a departing ten. In Pai Jiu [paigow], nothing is smaller than a departing ten. He was only a player; even if the banker also had a departing ten, departing ten beats departing ten, the banker still wins.

The peasant still had a distressed look on his face, it did not have the least bit of smiling expression. Wei Xiaobao looked at the tiles in front of him, it was a pair of nine. Currently he was the banker, hence the difference between his pair and the short and fat man's was 108,000 li. Wei Xiaobao thought, ”This man has neither word nor movement; he is a very formidable gambler.”

”What's so funny?” the short and fat man asked. He turned to the peasant, ”My pair of tens beats your pair of nines. A hundred taels, quickly pay.”

The peasant shook his head, ”You lost,” he said.

The short and fat man was angry. ”Are you nuts?” he cried out, ”Count it; this tile has one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, ten dots. That tile also one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, ten dots. Aren't they a pair of tens?”

Wei Xiaobao cast a glance toward Zhang Kangnian; he thought, ”This short and fat man will make a good Imperial Bodyguard; winning he takes the money, losing he makes a racket.”

The peasant still shook his head, saying, ”This is a departing ten. You lost.”

The short and fat man could not restrain his rage, he sprang up. However, as he stood up, unexpectedly he was a head shorter than when he sat. Turned out when he sat on the stool, his legs were hanging in the air, hence he was taller compared to when he was standing up. Extending his fat hand, he pointed his finger to the peasant's nose and shouted, ”I got an a departing ten, you got a departing nine. Naturally departing ten beats your departing nine.”

The peasant said, ”Mine is a pair of nines, yours is a departing ten. Departing ten means zero.”

The short and fat man said, ”Isn't this a plain bullying?”

Wei Xiaobao could not hold his peace much longer. ”Laoxiong,” he interjected, ”What you have is not a pair.” While saying that, he picked a plum blossom, and a four-and-six from the tiles scattered on the table, then he paired the plum blossom with the other plum blossom, and the four-and-six with the other four-and-six. ”Now these,” he said, ”Are pairs. Your two ten-dots have different pattern, plum blossom are all black, while four-and-six have some reds on it. They are not a pair.”

The short and fat man still refused to accept; pointing to the pair of nines, he said, ”Are you saying that your pair of nines has the same pattern? One tile is entirely black, the other has some reds on it, they are not the same. Ten dots is bigger than nine dots.”

Wei Xiaobao thought that this man was stubborn and always wanted to win the argument; temporarily he was at a loss as how to make him understand. He said, ”This is Pai Jiu's rule, it has been always like that.”

The short and fat man said, ”Even if it has been always like that, it is still illogical. Anything illogical is out of the question. Are we following reason or not?”

All along, Li Xihua and the old beggar were only sitting quietly with a smile on their faces, they did not interrupt at all. Wei Xiaobao laughed and said, ”Naturally in gambling we must follow the rule; if there is no rule, how can we gamble?”

”Alright,” the short and fat man said, ”Let me ask you, the little baby: why is it that my ten dots cannot beat his nine dots?” While saying that, he picked a pair of plum blossoms and slammed it in front of him.

”Uh, yours was not this pair,” Wei Xiaobao said.

The short and fat man was furious; both sides of his cheeks were bulging, as he shouted, ”Muddleheaded kid, who says mine was not this pair?” Picking up the pair of plum blossoms, he casually flipped it over, slapped it onto the table in front of him, flipped it back up, and said, ”When I slapped it earlier, it left a mark on the table, just look!”

He saw a clear impression of the tiles on the table, as if the dots of a pair of plum blossoms were embossed on the wood. His hand strength was indeed not weak; Wei Xiaobao was agape and tongue-tied, he was speechless.

The peasant said, ”Right, right, laoxiong won. Here's a hundred taels.” He picked a silver yuanbao and pushed it to the front of the short and fat man. And then he picked thirty-two tiles and turned them over. After shuffling it for a while, he arranged the tiles, eight tiles in a row, four rows in total, neat and tidy rows of tiles. Lightly he pushed the rows of tiles to the middle of the table, and then he also pushed the large pile of money in front of him forward.

Wei Xiaobao had keen eyes; he could see a neat and tidy impression of the thirty-two tiles on the table. Although the impression was not as deep as the plum blossoms earlier, it was only a faint and barely visible imprint on the wood, but considering his movement was very light, apparently his martial art skill was not below that of the short and fat man's. As he pushed the tiles forward, most of the imprint was uncovered. In a glance Wei Xiaobao could see pair by pair of 'heaven', 'earth', and 'men' in a row. He knew the peasant was secretly playing tricks.

The short and fat man pushed two hundred taels toward the Heaven Gate as his stake. ”Throw the dice, throw the dice!” he called out. Turning toward Li Xihua and the old beggar he said, ”Quickly put your bet down, why are you so slow?”

Li Xihua laughed and said, ”Laoxiong is so impatient, why don't the two of you gamble?”

”Very well,” the short and fat man said. Turning to the old beggar he asked, ”Are you going to make a bet?”

The old beggar shook his head. ”I won't. Departing ten beats departing nine, this kind of Pai Jiu I don't know how to play.”

The short and fat man was angry. ”Are you saying I was wrong?” he asked.

”I said I don't know how to play,” the old beggar replied, ”I have never said you were wrong.”

”Damn it,” the short and fat man angrily cursed, ”You are all not a good thing. Hey, little baby, you are babbling nonsense in here, are you going to gamble or not?” Naturally the last question was directed toward Wei Xiaobao.

Wei Xiaobao laughed. ”Let me help the banker,” he said, ”Dage here, I want to form partnership with you to be the banker; can I?” While saying that, he took eight or nine small gold ingots from his pocket and put them on the table. The shiny gold was gleaming, it worth at least a thousand taels of silver.

”Alright,” the peasant said, ”Xiao Xiongdi has good fortune and good luck, we are guaranteed to win.”

The short and fat man angrily said, ”Are you saying I am guaranteed to lose?”

Wei Xiaobao laughed and said, ”If you are afraid of losing, you may bet a little less.”

The short and fat man was furious. ”I want to bet two hundred more taels,” he said, while taking two more yuanbao and put them on the Heaven Gate.

The peasant said, ”Xiao Xiongdi's luck in gambling is good; you throw the dice.”

”Alright!” Wei Xiaobao replied. Picking up the dice, he weighed it in his hands, and to his great delight, he found out that the dice were loaded with lead. He thought, ”Unexpectedly the dice in this gambling establishment also have this kind of secret.” At first he was afraid that he was a bit rusty, his hand was out of practice, but as soon as he picked the lead-loaded dice, he felt relieved instantly. His mouth mumbled, ”Spirit of Heaven, spirit of the Earth, the first spirit of gambling deity, Bodhisattva, little demon of the dice carrying the yuanbao, one by one enter in! Clear kill!” While his mouth was shouting, his fingers turned, he threw the dice into the bowl; as expected, he got seven dots. The Heaven Gate took the first set, the banker took the third set.

By looking at the impression on the table, Wei Xiaobao knew that the short and fat man had a 'four and six', and a 'tiger head' [i.e. five and six], valued at one dot, while his side got two pairs of 'earth' [i.e. double one]. ”Laoxiong,” he said to the peasant, ”I threw the dice, you look at the tiles. Win or lose, it is decided by the mandate of Heaven.”

The peasant picked the tiles, felt it with his fingers, and put it down on the table.

”Ha!” the short and fat man exclaimed as he flipped the 'four and six' tile. ”Ten dots,” he said, ”Wonderful!” And then with another 'Ha!' he flipped the 'tiger head' and said, ”One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven; eleven dots. Wonderful!” Reaching out, the opened up the banker's tiles and said, ”One, two, three, four; four dots altogether. My twenty-one dots eat your four dots. I win!”

Wei Xiaobao and the peasant looked at each other in dismay. The short and fat man said, ”Quickly pay!”

Wei Xiaobao said, ”More dots win, less dots lose, regardless of heaven or earth, pair or no pair, is that right?”

”Why not?” the short and fat man said, ”How can more dots lose to less dots? Your four dots want to win against my twenty-one dots?”

”Alright,” Wei Xiaobao said, ”That's the rule.” He paid the short and fat man four small gold ingots, saying, ”Each gold ingot worth a hundred taels of silver. Place your bet.”

The short and fat man was very happy; he laughed and said, ”I still bet four hundred taels, if I bet more, I am afraid you will lose and become anxious.”

Wei Xiaobao looked at the tile imprint on the table, he threw five dots. The banker picked the tiles first, it was a pair of 'heaven' [i.e. double six]. The short and fat man got a 'long three' [i.e. double three] and a 'bench' [i.e. double two]. Both tiles combined, the number of dots was still less than one 'heaven' tile. He cursed under his breath, yet he had no choice but to pay. And then he bet four hundred taels again.

Three sets of hand later, the short and fat man lost everything, there was not a single tael left in front of him. His face was bulging deep red like a blood ball. His short and fat arms groped around his pocket, but he could not find anything that he could bet. Suddenly he pointed to Zhao Qixian, who was still lying on the floor, and said, ”This fellow worth several hundred taels, doesn't he? I bet him.” While saying that, he picked Zhao Qixian and put him on the table.

Zhao Qixian's acupoints were sealed, he could not move a hair. The old beggar suddenly said, ”Wait a minute, it was zaixia who caught these several Imperial Bodyguards, how could laoxiong take them as your bet?”

The short and fat man replied, ”I just want to borrow them, can I?”

”If you lost, how are you going to pay me back?” the old beggar asked.

The short and fat man was startled. ”I won't lose,” he said.

”Just in case laoxiong's luck is not good, and you lost?” the old beggar asked.

”That's easy,” the short and fat man said, ”Presently in the city of Liuzhou Imperial Bodyguards are indeed not a few; I'll just go grab some and pay you back.”

The old beggar nodded. ”That will work,” he said.

The short and fat man urged Wei Xiaobao, ”Quickly throw the dice.”

By this time the set of tiles had already been used up. Wei Xiaobao said to the peasant, ”Would laoxiong shuffle and arrange the tiles just like before?”

Without saying anything the peasant shuffled the thirty-two tiles back and forth on the surface of the table. After a while, he arranged the tiles in a square. Wei Xiaobao was startled; not only he did not see any new imprint on the table, even the previous imprint was also erased by him secretly exerting his internal energy while he was pushing and rubbing the tiles around; what's left was only faint traces of horizontal and vertical lines so that Wei Xiaobao could not distinguish the dots anymore.

If the short and stout man was still betting gold and silver, Wei Xiaobao would not mind too much, he would let the peasant gamble with him; who would win, who would lose, it had nothing to do with him. But right now, placed on the Heaven Gate as the bet was Zhao Qixian, while he could not shirk from being the banker. Since he would not know where the strong suit would be, loaded dice or not, it would be worthless.

”Since only two people gambling,” he said, ”Why must we play Pai Jiu? Won't it be better just to play dice? He who has more dots, win.”

The short and fat man shook his round head like a kettledrum, ”Laozi loves to play Pai Jiu,” he said.

”You don't understand Pai Jiu,” Wei Xiaobao said, ”What will you play?”

The short and fat man was furious; he grabbed Wei Xiaobao's chest, raised him up, and gave him a good shaking. ”Your granny,” he said, ”Are you saying I don't understand Pai Jiu?”

Being shaken randomly like this, the bones in Wei Xiaobao's body were crackling. Suddenly he heard someone behind him calling out, ”Let him go, you must not do that!” It was precisely Fat Toutuo's voice.

The short and fat man's right hand raised Wei Xiaobao high in the air. ”Uh, how can you be here?” he asked in surprise, ”Why can't I do this?”

They heard Lu Gaoxuan's voice replying, ”This is Wei … Wei Daren; he has a very special background, you must by all means not offend him. Quickly put him down.”

The short and fat man was delighted. ”He … he is Wei … Wei … damn it, he is Wei Xiaobao? Ha ha, wonderful, wonderful! I happen to be looking for him. Ha ha, finally I found him.” While saying that, he turned around and headed out toward the door, with his right hand still carrying Wei Xiaobao.

Both Fat Toutuo and Lu Gaoxuan barred his way. ”Shou Zunzhe [lit. thin revered master],” Lu Gaoxuan said, ”Since you already knew Wei Daren's background, why are you still this rude? Quickly put him down.”

The fat and short man said, ”Even if Jiaozhu is here personally, I would still not letting him go. Unless he gives me the antidote.”

”Don't make a scene,” Fat Toutuo said, ”You did not take the leopard … that pill, what do you need the antidote for?”

”Humph,” the short and fat man replied, ”You don't understand anything. Quickly get out of the way, don't blame me for being impolite to you.”

With his body hanging in the air, Wei Xiaobao heard the exchange between these three people, he mused, ”So this short and fat man is actually Fat Toutuo's Shixiong, Thin Toutuo. No wonder he is unusually fat, and amusingly short.”

At the Palace of Compassionate and Peaceful the other day, there was a big-meatball-like freak hiding inside the fake Empress Dowager's quilt, who was then ran out stark naked while carrying her out of the Palace. Afterwards Wei Xiaobao inquired of Fat Toutuo and Lu Gaoxuan, and found out that it was Fat Toutuo's martial brother Thin Toutuo. It was because that day he was running away so fast that Wei Xiaobao did not see his appearance clearly, so much so that although he had been gambling with him for half a day, he had not recognized him.

Wei Xiaobao's mind was churning, ”Fat Toutuo once said that in the past he and his Shixiong, Thin Toutuo, two men, were sent on a mission overseas by Jiaozhu, and were unable to return within the appointed time, to such an extent that the leopard embryo tendon-altering pill they took flared up. Fat Toutuo became tall and thin, while thin Toutuo became short and fat. By this time the two of them have already taken the antidote, yet their original stature did not return. So why would this short and fat man want the antidote? Ah, right, the poison of the leopard embryo tendon-altering pill in the old wh0re fake Empress Dowager's body has not been neutralized. This Thin Toutuo slept with her under the same quilt, obviously they are lovers.” He said in a loud voice, ”You want the leopard embryo tendon-altering pill antidote, yet you still have not put me down?”

As soon as Thin Toutuo heard the five characters 'leopard embryo tendon-altering pill', his entire fat body immediately shivered. Bending his right arm, he put Wei Xiaobao down, stretched out his left hand and said, ”Bring it out quickly.”

”You are so rude to me, humph, humph! What did you just say to me?” Wei Xiaobao said.

Thin Toutuo suddenly leaped forward, pressed his left hand on Wei Xiaobao's back, and shouted, ”Bring the antidote out quickly.” The point his fat left hand pressed on was precisely the 'Da Chui' [big hammer/spine] acupoint. If he exerted a bit of strength in his palm, Wei Xiaobao's heart arteries would be shaken and would break immediately.

Fat Toutuo and Lu Gaoxuan called out together, ”You must not do that!”

Their voice had not disappeared, three palms already landed on Thin Toutuo's body. The old beggar's palm rested on the 'bai hui' [hundred meeting] acupoint of the crown of his head. Li Xihua's palm was pressing on the 'yu zhen' [jade pillow] acupoint on the back of his head. The peasant's palm was actually pushing on his face, the forefinger and middle finger were pressing above his eyelid. The 'bai hui' and 'yu zhen' were two vital acupoints on a human's body, plus if the farmer exerted slightly more strength onto his fingers, he would be able to dig the Thin Toutuo's eyeballs out. Thin Toutuo, however, was really too short; compared to Wei Xiaobao, he was still half a head shorter, so that when the three of them made their moves together, they had to target his round head, because they could not conveniently reach the vital acupoints on his chest or back.

When Fat Toutuo and Lu Gaoxuan saw the way the three men move, they knew that these three were martial art experts. If the three of them exerted their strength simultaneously, perhaps Thin Toutuo's fat head would be immediately crushed to pulp. ”You must not do that!” they cried out together.

”Short and fat,” the old beggar said, ”Quickly let him go.”

”As soon as he give me the antidote, I'll let him go,” Thin Toutuo replied.

The old beggar said, ”If you don't let go, I'll exert my strength!”

Thin Toutuo said, ”If I have to die anyway, we'll perish together …” Suddenly, Fat Toutuo's right palm moved toward the old beggar's flank, while Lu Gaoxuan's palm went toward the back of Li Xihua's neck.

Fat and Lu, two people, were standing really closed behind them. They were wearing the uniform of Valiant Cavalry Sergeant. Although from the earlier exchange the old beggar and Li Xihua knew that these two men were acquainted with Thin Toutuo, they had never expected that these two people's martial art skill was extremely superior. In just one move they already fell under their control.

Fat and Lu, two people, spoke at the same time, ”Everybody let go!”

The peasant suddenly removed his palm from Thin Toutuo's face, and swiftly moved both palms toward Fat and Lu, two people's backs. ”You two let go first,” he said.

”Ha ha,” Li Xihua laughed, ”This is fun! Interesting, interesting!” He removed his palm from Thin Toutuo, but quick as lightning the palm landed on the top of the peasant's head.

This way, Wei Xiaobao, Thin Toutuo, Li Xihua, Lu Gaoxuan, Fat Toutuo, the peasant and the old beggar, seven people were under the other's control, each one of them had his vital point under the other's palm. In that instant the seven of them were like clay figurines or wooden statues, nobody dared to make a reckless move. Wei Xiaobao was the only one being threatened, but did not threaten anybody else. He was also the only one who was fully aware of why his vital point was under someone else's control; it was an unfathomable mystery to the other six people.

”Zhang Kangnian!” Wei Xiaobao called out.

By this time, other than several casino workers huddled at the corner, only Zhang Kangnian remained inside the gambling establishment. ”Cha!” he replied. 'Shua!' he pulled his saber.

”Dog Imperial Bodyguard,” Thin Toutuo yelled, ”Come here if you have guts!”

Zhang Kangnian raised his yaodao saber; but afraid that this short and fat man might harm Wei Xiaobao, he did not dare to take even one step closer.

Wei Xiaobao was surrounded in the middle. He felt that in among the strange things that had happened to him in his entire life, nothing was more strange than this. ”Interesting, interesting!” he called out, ”Short and fat, kill me with one palm, it's not a big deal. You yourself will die, it's not a big deal. But you will never get the leopard embryo tendon-altering pill's antidote. That old lover of yours, the flesh of her entire body will rot piece by piece; she will have a rotten bald head first, and then …”

”Stop it!” Thin Toutuo shouted.

Wei Xiaobao laughed and said, ”Her face will rot, one by one her eyes, nose, ears will fall, the holes will appear …”

Right this moment, suddenly from the entrance of the hall someone said, ”In here!” And then someone else said, ”Seize them all!” Everybody turned their heads at the same time toward the entrance. Suddenly a white ray flashed; someone with a sword in his hand circled around them. They felt the vital points on their back, flank, waist, shoulder, slightly went numb, as their acupoints were sealed. In an instant, they all went down to the floor.

They saw three people were standing at the door. Wei Xiaobao was greatly delighted. ”Ah Ke,” he called out, ”You have finally come …” But as soon as the word 'come' came out of his mouth, his heart sank, and he stopped immediately. He saw two men standing by her side, on her left was Li Zicheng, on her right was the person he loathed the most in all his life, Zheng Keshuang. On the east was a man who had just put the sword back into its sheath, standing with arms akimbo, and a cold laugh on his face; it was none other than 'One Sword without Blood' Feng Xifan.

Thin Toutuo, the old beggar, Li Xihua, Fat Toutuo, Lu Gaoxuan and the peasant, six martial art masters had their hands threatening each other's vital points; this one did not dare to move, that one also did not dare to move. Suddenly another martial art master appeared, without expending the slightest effort he managed to paralyze them all; even Zhang Kangnian was also hit by the sword.

Thin Toutuo was sitting on the ground, but compared to when he was standing, he actually did not appear too much shorter. ”What kind of 'thing' are you?” he angrily shouted, ”You dare to seal laozi's 'yang guan' [positive pass] and 'shen tang' [divine hall] acupoints.”

With a cold laugh Feng Xifan said, ”Your martial art skill is not bad at all, unexpectedly you know which acupoints of yours are being sealed.”

Thin Toutuo angrily said, ”Quickly unseal laozi's acupoints, I'll fight you. What kind of damn hero are you, launching a sneak attack like that?”

Feng Xifan laughed, ”Are you a hero?” he said, ”Damn it, a hero who is lying on the floor, unable to move at all.”

Thin Toutuo angrily said, ”Laozi is sitting on the floor, not lying on the floor. Damn it, don't you have eyes?”

Feng Xifan raised his left foot and lightly pushed on Thin Toutuo's shoulder. Thin Toutuo fell face up. But the fat on his buttocks was unusually thick, the weight on his entire body was concentrated there, so that when he fell down, although he could not exert any strength, his body involuntarily sat back up.

Zheng Keshuang laughed aloud and said, ”Ke Mei, look, don't you think this roly-poly toy is fun?”

Ah Ke smiled and said, ”It's very strange.”

Zheng Keshuang said, ”You wanted to find this little demon to take revenge, finally your cherished dream has arrived. Are we going to catch him and slowly control him, or just kill him with a stab of the sword?”

Wei Xiaobao was shocked; he thought, ”Little demon, these two characters can only mean me; could it be that Ah Ke is looking for me to take revenge? But I have never offended her.”

Clenching her teeth, Ah Ke said, ”As soon as I see this man, I get angry; I'll just kill him with a stab of the sword.” While saying that, 'shua!' she drew the sword and walked toward Wei Xiaobao.

”Don't kill him!” Thin Toutuo, Fat Toutuo, Lu Gaoxuan, the old beggar, Li Xihua, and Zhang Kangnian, six people shouted together.

”Shijie,” Wei Xiaobao said, ”I have never …”

”I am not your Shijie!” Ah Ke angrily said, ”Little demon, you are always thinking of harming me, of humiliating me!” Lifting her sword, she thrust it toward the pit of Wei Xiaobao's stomach.

Everybody cried out in alarm. But they saw the sword bounced back. Turned out Wei Xiaobao was wearing his treasured vest to protect his body, the sword was unable to penetrate.

Ah Ke was startled. ”Pierce his eyes!” Zheng Keshuang said.

”Right!” Ah Ke said. Raising her sword, she thrust it forward again.

Suddenly from the corner of the roof someone flew down and threw himself on Wei Xiaobao's body. The sword stabbed the person's shoulder. Holding Wei Xiaobao in his arms, the person brought him rolling toward the corner of the hall, away from the sword, while pulling the dagger from Wei Xiaobao's boot and held it in his hand. This person was also wearing Valiant Cavalry Sergeant uniform, his movement was nimble, his stature short and small, his face was covered in mud and dirt, hence his appearance was unclear.

Seeing he willingly took the sword on Wei Xiaobao's behalf, everybody thought, ”This person is very loyal.”

Feng Xifan drew his sword and slowly walked over. He shook his sword that it turned into a flower sword with more than a dozen petals. Suddenly there was a 'Ding!' the sword in Feng Xifan's hand was cut into two, while blood was gushing from the Valiant Cavalry Sergeant's shoulder. Turned out the person used Wei Xiaobao's dagger to break the sword in the opponent's hand; if not for the fact that Wei Xiaobao's dagger was incomparably sharp, perhaps by this time he was dead. With the sword stab from Ah Ke on his shoulder earlier, his shoulder suffered two sword wounds in a row.

Feng Xifan's countenance turned pale. ”Humph,” he snorted, and threw the broken sword to the floor. Temporarily he could not make up his mind; should he fetch another sword and attack again or not?

”Ha ha,” Wei Xiaobao called out, ”One Sword without Blood Feng Xifan, you stab a soldier under my command that he shed this much blood. Your title should be changed, you should be called 'Half Sword with Blood' Feng Xifan.”

With his left hand pressing on the wound on his shoulder, with his right hand the Valiant Cavalry Sergeant massaged the acupoints on Wei Xiaobao's chest and back, trying to unseal them.

Fat and Thin, two Toutuo, Lu Gaoxuan, Li Xihua, and the others were controlling each other when suddenly someone else launched a sneak attack and hence all of them had fallen into this plot, in their hearts they all were very dissatisfied. Hearing Wei Xiaobao, they all burst out laughing. The old beggar said in a loud voice, ”Half Sword with Blood Feng Xifan, marvelous, marvelous! Speaking about shameless people in the world, Sire can be considered number two.”

”Why is he considered number two?” Li Xihua asked, ”Would you care to advice?”

The old beggar said, ”Compared to Wu Sangui, this Half Sword with Blood's skill seems to be a bit lacking.”

They all burst out laughing. Li Xihua said, ”In my opinion, the difference is quite a lot.”

Feng Xifan had always been extremely proud of his martial art skill; hearing everybody was scoffing at him like that, he could not stop his entire body from trembling. If right now he picked another sword and attacked that Valiant Cavalry Sergeant, to injure him would be as easy as turning his hand over; but of course it would not be fitting to his status. Staring at the sergeant, he asked, ”What's your name? I won't take your life today, but next time you come into my hand, I will make you die a miserable and unspeakable death.”

The sergeant replied, ”I … I …” His voice was very tender and delicate.

”Ah!” Wei Xiaobao cried out in surprise and delight, ”You are Shuang'er, my precious, good Shuang'er!” Reaching out, he removed her hat, her long hair fell down, draping over her shoulder. Wei Xiaobao embraced her waist with his left arm, and said, ”She is my little servant girl. Half Sword with Blood, you can't even defeat my little servant girl, yet you are still tooting your horn?”

Feng Xifan was extremely angry; he raised his left foot, 'Crash! Bang!' he kicked the gambling table in the middle of the hall, along with all the piles of coins and yuanbao, plus Zhao Qixian who was lying on the table. The table flew up and crashed onto the roof. Money and Pai Jiu tiles rained down on Thin Toutuo and the others' heads; they all cursing and yelling. Without saying anything Feng Xifan turned around and left.

Right this moment, two men walked side-by-side through the main gate. ”Get out of my way!” Feng Xifan shouted, and pushed with both hands. The two men blocked with their palms; as their two palms met Feng Xifan's two palms, the three of them made stifled grunts. The two men fell back several steps, their backs crashed heavily onto the wall. Feng Xifan swayed; he took a deep breath, and walked out in big strides. 'Wah!' the two men spurted out a mouthful of blood. Turned out they were Feng Jizhong and Priest Xuanzhen.

In quick steps Wei Xiaobao walked over to support Feng Jizhong, while asking Priest Xuanzhen, ”Daozhang [Taoist priest], are you alright?”

Xuanzhen coughed twice before answering, ”I am alright. Wei … Wei Daren alright?”

”Not bad,” Wei Xiaobao replied, as he turned his head to look at Feng Jizhong. Feng Jizhong nodded with a forced laugh. His martial art skill actually far surpassed Xuanzhen, but when exchanging palm strike just now, he happened to receive Feng Xifan's right palm, hence he received a lot stronger palm force, consequently, his injury was heavier than Xuanzhen.

”Wei Xiongdi,” Li Xihua said, ”In your Valiant Cavalry Regiment the number of capable persons is indeed not a few!” Turns out the clothes Feng Jizhong and Xuanzhen were wearing were also Valiant Cavalry Sergeant uniform.

”Ashamed, ashamed!” Wei Xiaobao replied. He heard more footsteps, Qian Laoben, Xu Tianchuan and Gao Yanchao, three people also walked in.

Seeing the increasing number of Wei Xiaobao's subordinates, Ah Ke signaled Li Zicheng and Zheng Keshuang with her eyes, she wanted to retreat.

Li Zicheng walked over to Wei Xiaobao, he stomped the monk staff in his hand heavily to the ground, and said in a stern voice, ”A real man clearly distinguish gratitude and grudges; the other day your Shifu did not kill me, today I will spare your life. From now on, if you cast a glance toward my daughter, speak a word to her, I will smash your body into mincemeat.”

Wei Xiaobao said, ”A real man gave his words, so what? The other day at the Three-Sage Nunnery you and your lover Chen Yuanyuan have already promised to give Ah Ke to me in marriage, could it be that you want to renege? You won't allow me to cast a glance toward my own wife, to speak a word to her, how can there be such a father-in-law in this world?”

Ah Ke was so mad that her face turned deep red. ”Father,” she said, ”Let's go. Don't talk rubbish with this kid! He … his dog mouth will never grow ivory, how can he speak anything good?”

”Very good!” Wei Xiaobao said, ”Finally you acknowledge him. This is your parents' order, are you going to obey or not?”

Li Zicheng was angry; raising his monk staff up, he shouted, ”Little , you haven't shut up?”

Qian Laoben and Xu Tianchuan charged forward immediately; two sabers went to chop Li Zicheng's back. Li Zicheng swung his monk staff backwards, 'Dang!' he parried the two sabers.

Gao Yanchao had already drawn his saber and held it across his chest, while he stood in front of Wei Xiaobao to protect him. He shouted, ”Li Zicheng, in the city of Kunming, who has saved your lives, father and daughter? Forget favors and violate justice, you have no sense of shame!”

In the past Li Zicheng ran amuck in the world, founded a dynasty and called himself the Emperor, nobody in the world did not know that. As soon as Gao Yanchao shouted his name, the old beggar, Thin Toutuo and the others cried out in alarm.

Li Xihua loudly said, ”You … you are Li Zicheng? You are unexpectedly not dead? Good, good, good!” His voice was filled with rage.