Chapter 25: Silver Mask, Revealing Identity

Chapter 25: Silver Mask, Revealing Identity

The Beggar Gang elders still wanted to stop Ning Xishi from going into danger.

But Ming Hanche held a major leverage over Ning Xishi and kept issuing threats, giving him no chance to avoid the situation.

"Since he's revealing his itinerary, he must be trying to lure me in." Ning Xishi's neck was still wrapped in bandages, looking somewhat pitiful. He spread his hands and said, "If I don't go tomorrow, and he comes up with other underhanded tricks against me, what then?"

"Then we'll fight the Ming family to the death!" said the most hot-tempered elder.

"Fight? And then we and the Ming family tear each other apart, letting the imperial court take over the entire martial arts world without lifting a finger?" Ning Xishi countered.

He said it so nonchalantly.

It left everyone present stunned, including Tong Kehua who had been fiddling with her bottles and jars, for a brief moment.

Guardian Ye was the first to respond, saying, "Ming Hanche knows full well that none of us dare to escalate this, and since we're on his home turf now, that's why he's acting so brazenly."

Having said that, Guardian Ye glanced at the Young Chief, who seemed lost in thought with his eyes lowered, and thought that he really knew how to strike at their vulnerabilities.

Martial artists would gladly lay down their lives for loyalty, disregarding their own lives. But they placed great importance on legacy—if the imperial court were to crush the martial arts world, they'd be too ashamed to face their ancestors in the afterlife.

A direct confrontation between the two factions was absolutely out of the question. When the others went to see Ming Hanche, he simply said: "I want to see your Gang Leader."

And wouldn't engage with the Beggar Gang members any further.

That left only one option—Ning Xishi would have to show up in person.

Seeing everyone looking at him, waiting for him to continue, Ning Xishi curled his lips, his expression helpless, almost bitter: "Send a formal notice to the Ming family. The leader of the Jule Gang will personally pay a visit. As for the location... let's use the theater."

"Gang Leader!!!"

"Absolutely not!"

"Too dangerous."

Everyone was on the verge of panic, but only Guardian Ye, after thinking for a long while, said, "Let's do what the Gang Leader says."

Having spoken, before anyone else could object, she shot a sidelong glance at the others and asked, "Does anyone have a better idea?"

Tong Kehua chimed in as well: "Going in with our identities revealed is also a good idea—if that Ming dares to lay a finger on the Gang Leader, it means declaring war on the entire Beggar Gang."

Though the others still had reservations, since the most influential people in the gang had spoken, they had no choice but to comply.

As for the formal notice... Ning Xishi still had to trouble Guardian Ye to write it.

It wasn't that he was embarrassed by his messy handwriting—he was worried Xie Jingxing might recognize it.

After the notice was sent, a reply came back quickly: meet at the theater at the hour of Xu (7–9 PM).

Meanwhile, Ning Xishi also had people investigate the imperial envoy's whereabouts, and they reported that the envoy had gone to the prefect's office and hadn't left yet.

Ning Xishi had no idea what Xie Jingxing was planning, but given the extent of their acquaintance, it wasn't enough to warrant revealing his identity.

Seeing that Ning Xishi hadn't spoken for a while, the scout asked, "Gang Leader, should we keep watching the envoy?"

"Keep watching. Report back if anything happens."

"Yes."

·

At dusk, Ning Xishi headed to the theater with Guardian Ye and Tong Kehua.

They were spotted the moment they entered the main street—not only because the three were unfamiliar faces, but also because Ning Xishi, walking at the front, wore an exquisite, understated silver mask.

Anyone with even a hint of connections knew this was the symbol of the Beggar Gang Leader.

Since the Beggar Gang had been renamed the Jule Gang years ago, its leader rarely appeared in the martial arts world, and it was said that even when he did, he always wore this silver mask.

Rumor had it that the Beggar Gang Leader's identity was secret, backed by some tremendous background, and he wore the mask at all times to prevent others from uncovering his identity.

But rumors were just rumors after all. Now that they actually saw him, many people held their breath and even stepped back, afraid of provoking this formidable figure.

The incident at Juxian Tower on the first day of the month hadn't spread widely—people only knew that an assassin had attempted to kill the imperial envoy, causing him to fall into the water, though he managed to escape by luck.

But as for the assassin's identity, there were all sorts of theories.

Some said the assassin was the envoy's lover—since the assassin was rumored to be a woman—who tried to kill him out of love turned to hate.

Others said the assassin's entire family had been killed by the envoy, and this was a deliberate act of revenge.

Still others claimed the assassin was a mountain bandit who, knowing the envoy had come to suppress banditry, specifically targeted him to make a statement.

In short, opinions varied wildly, and everyone described the scene as if they'd witnessed it firsthand.

Only Ning Xishi knew that Ming Hanche had genuinely intended to kill him that day.

Had it not been for Ming Hanche's fear that 'Qiu Changyu' had a backup plan and fled Juxian Tower at the last moment, all his schemes would have come to nothing.

And indeed, as Ming Hanche had suspected, 'Qiu Changyu' had carried Qibu San (Seven-Step Powder) on him, which could indeed have knocked out a large group of people and allowed him to escape on his own.

Had he actually escaped, the Ming family's scheme to frame the assassin for attempting to murder the imperial envoy would have been confirmed.

Now, with Ning Xishi the 'assassin' still alive and 'Qiu Changyu' having escaped, the Ming family hadn't lost anything either. For the sake of peace in Ningzhou, all three parties had to sit down and continue negotiating a resolution.

In essence, the Ming family was powerful and held great prestige in the martial arts world. If they were truly 'forced into rebellion' and carved out Ningzhou as their own territory, the imperial court would have to go to great lengths—at great cost—to subdue them.

The court certainly wanted to maintain peace and stability across all prefectures.

Therefore, even though 'Qiu Changyu' had nearly been killed by the Ming family at Juxian Tower, the matter still couldn't be publicized.

Everything came back to the old saying—falling out helps no one.

Ning Xishi himself had no grand ambitions. Had the Ming family not been clinging to the leverage of his identity and trying to drag him into the mire, he wouldn't have wanted to wade into this mess at all.

So, for the safety of his entire family, he had no choice but to face the meeting alone.

Dusk was approaching, the sky turning a dark blue, making the withered willows by the road look especially forlorn.

Ning Xishi led the two through the normally busy antique street to the theater at its end.

Eight guards stood watch outside the theater.

Ning Xishi took a quick look and noticed that compared to the previous day, each group now consisted of at least four to six guards—it seemed they didn't want a repeat of the earlier infiltration.

As Ning Xishi stepped inside, the guards immediately blocked their path with crossed blades, the steel glinting coldly.

Guardian Ye's expression shifted, and she drew her own weapon: "What's the meaning of this?"

The guards beside them all drew their blades, instantly surrounding Guardian Ye and Tong Kehua.

The one at the front said, "Our master has instructed that this opera house is a place for listening to music, and only the Gang Leader may enter alone."

Ning Xishi was almost amused into anger: "So the dignified Guardian of the Jule Gang isn't good enough to listen to a few tunes?"

"At other times, the opera house welcomes both of you. But today, our master has given orders, and we ask for your understanding."

Ning Xishi turned to glance at the opera house, from which a faint tune drifted out, with a mournful, sorrowful feel to it.

He said, "Fine, I'll go in alone. You all wait here."

"Gang Leader!" Guardian Ye had figured they'd be split up, but didn't think they'd be this brazen—not even giving them a chance to step inside.

But Ning Xishi's gaze landed on the low bridge across the way, where some guests were still coming and going.

He asked, "What, your Old Master Ming didn't book the whole place out?"

"Those are regulars. Besides, our master says one or two people listening to tunes is boring—more folks make it livelier. The opera house is a business, after all, and needs its customers."

Ning Xishi recalled the intelligence from yesterday: besides serving as a venue for music and opera, the big backyard of this place was a brothel with both male and female escorts—Ming Hanche's way of winning people over.

For those in the martial world, intimidation could make people submit, but winning them over and treating them well was what really earned loyalty.

Thus, anyone who could afford a night of fun here either had serious martial skills or deep pockets—all of them Ming family guests.

Ning Xishi gave a bitter smile. This old geezer Ming Hanche really thought he had him by the short hairs, didn't he? Like he'd never get out from under it?

Thinking about it, yeah, that was the case—he couldn't beat the old man in a fight, and his identity, that lifeline, was still in the other guy's hands...

The road will open up when you get there. Ning Xishi turned and stepped directly up the stairs.

The young man cut a dashing, free-spirited figure. His back looked a bit thin, but it could already carry the weight of huge schemes and plots.

Watching Ning Xishi like this, Tong Kehua muttered quietly to herself, "Can't even grab his chubby cheeks like I used to when he was a kid."

Seriously, why'd the little brat have to grow up so damn fast?

She'd heard he'd even gotten hitched, and back then he'd told them not to crash the wedding... He always carried everything himself.

As Ning Xishi climbed the steps, a super familiar figure caught the corner of his eye—someone crossing the low bridge in the distance, looked like... Xie Jingxing.

The guards over there stopped him, seemed to be checking his waist token.

Ning Xishi didn't linger and stepped through the opera house's main gate.

He thought: yesterday, Xie Jingxing flashed his identity to get in while he played the spy; today, the roles were flipped—he was going to see Ming Hanche while Xie Jingxing played spy.

Ugh, he'd still have to dodge Xie Jingxing. The Jule Gang leader gig had to stay under wraps.

Otherwise, if Xie Jingxing found out, forget Ming Hanche—he'd just haul ass back to the capital and grab his parents to run.

Just picturing that made Ning Xishi shudder. His dad would definitely break his legs.

The second he stepped inside the opera house, Ning Xishi was blown away by how fancy it was. In front of him was a stage about ten zhang wide, shaped like a lotus flower, with sheer silk drapes hanging down from the four-story ceiling, giving the stage a dreamy, misty vibe.

The whole place was lit up bright, with a lamp stand at every step, each one watched over by a plainly dressed maid whose job was to tend the oil.

As Ning Xishi walked past them, he could tell every single one had martial arts training.

A question he'd never thought of before suddenly popped into his head—what the hell was Ming Hanche up to, training all these martial servants and making so many connections? What was his endgame?

The word "rebellion" even popped into his head out of nowhere.

And he got goosebumps all over right then and there.

Sure, the current emperor was useless, doing whatever it took to hold onto power, but the realm was still pretty peaceful.

Sure, disasters hit here and there, but they sent capable officials to manage things and allocated the money as needed.

This wasn't some dynasty in its death throes, with wars breaking out everywhere and common folks grabbing whatever they could to rise up. So for Ming Hanche to rebel now—was he out of his damn mind?

==========Author's Note:==========

Chapter 1