Chapter 194 Disparity in status

Yang Ning’s expression greatly changed. He got up, looked around, and hurriedly ran to the door, rushed to the outside and checked. It was silent all around with no trace of other people, even the young eunuch who had served tea just now was also gone. He then closed the door, turned back, and said angrily, “How dare you slander… me, a marquis? Do you know you are slandering? You are slandering me.”

Xiao Guang instead was rather calm and by now had stood up straight.

Last time Yang saw Xiao Guang, this young eunuch was in the time of distress, looking bad, but now his face slightly blushed, clear and handsome. His eyeballs moved, laughing, “You really don’t know me? Don’t forget I still owe you 500 taels of gold, you no longer want it?”

Yang Ning thought, “Not to mention 500 taels of gold, I would want even 50 taels of old. But accepting your gold is to admit that I’m the fake Marquis of Honor.” What’s more, this young eunuch didn’t look like he had 500 taels of gold, so he walked up with a sullen face and said in a low voice, “What gold, don’t talk nonsense. I don’t know it. By the way, I warn you, I am the Marquis of Honor. If you slander me, you’ll get the taste of your own medicine.” He gave Xiao Guang a fierce glare.

Xiao Guang sighed, “So you are a cynical person. I have misjudged you. You cheated His Majesty, I will definitely expose you to him.” After saying that, he was about to leave. Yang Ning grabbed his arm and laughed, “What’s the hurry. Come, sit down and let’s talk.”

Xiao Guang looked at Yang Ning and asked, “Did you admit it?”

“Admit what?”

“That you are the fake Marquis of Honor?” Xiao Guang said.

Yang Ning stomped his foot and lowered his voice, “Can you keep your voice down? If someone really hear you, do you want to see me get killed? I mean Xiao Guang, so you are a eunuch.”

Seeing Yang Ning admit it, Xiao Guang laughed, “I recognized you right away, and you were still pretending in front of me.”

Yang Ning knew very well that if Xiao Guang really revealed his fake identity, no matter if others would believe it immediately, he was afraid it would incur an investigation since this was a big deal. The main problem was that he could talk his way out of it on many things when people didn’t suspect him. But if they really suspected that he was a fake, sooner or later he would be revealed on many unplausible things.

Now the only person who knew about his fake identity was Xiao Guang, the young eunuch. As long as the young eunuch was handled, things would be much easier.

At least, at least first coax Xiao Guang, so that Xiao Guang does not immediately reveal his identity so to leave time for his own escape.

Yang Ning reached out and said, “Five hundred taels of gold, give it to me. We agreed you immediately give it to me the moment I arrived in the capital. As a man, you must keep your word.”

“I would keep my word,” Xiao Guang smilingly said, “But first tell me, how did you become the Marquis of Honor? No, it should be how did you become the Heir of Marquis of Honor in the first place?”

Yang Ning knew that he couldn’t hide it from him, and after thinking for a while, he finally told what happened after Xiao Guang left that day.

After Xiao Guang heard it, he was greatly surprised and said in horror, “You mean the… the real Qi Ning looked exactly like you? There are still such strange things in the world?”

“The world is so big that there is nothing strange.” Yang Ning laughed bitterly, “It was also by mistake that I was bumped into by the people of the Mansion of Marquis at that time. Do you think if I told them that I was not Qi Ning, yet I was wearing his clothes, how possibly could I explain it? Maybe they would think that I killed the Prince of Honor. Of course they then would kill me.”

Xiao Guang nodded slightly and said, “In that case, you were really driven to do this and forced step by step to the position of the Heir of Marquis of Honor.” He then laughed and said, “You lucky dog, turning from a vagrant with no food or clothing to the Heir of Marquis of Honor in a flash. It is really something.” He sat down on a chair and asked, “Right, let me ask you. You impersonated the Heir of Marquis of Honor, didn’t the people of the Mansion of Marquis find out? Even if you look alike, there are always some differences in your usual speech and behavior, right? The people of the Mansion of Marquis of Honor are not stupid, can you fool them?”

Yang Ning laughed, “You are in the palace, so you don’t know. The original Heir of Marquis of Honor’s brain…” Pointed to his temples, he said, “He was not a clever man and did dumb things. The people in the Mansion of Marquis of Honor had been bothered by this.”

Xiao Guang clapped his hands and laughed, “I understood, you suddenly became smart after you returned to the Mansion. They only thought that the Heir of Marquis of Honor became normal because of the stimuli. Since you became smart, it was only justified that your speech and behavior was different from before.” Thinking this was really unbelievable, he couldn’t help but laugh again.

Yang Ning frowned and whispered, “Don’t laugh in case others hear you.” Eyes rolling, he laughed, “Xiao Guang, let me ask you something?”

Xiao Guang said, “What?”

“Well…” Yang Ning took a look at Xiao Guang’s crotch. He was about to ask, but at the thought of something, he finally said, “Nothing. By the way, when did you get into the palace? Heh, by the way, the last time I saw the old man with the sword. Is he your master?”

“That’s right. What, you met my master?” Xiao Guang asked.

Yang Ning nodded, “Last time on the funeral, the palace sent that Eunuch Fan over, when your master also followed. I thought I made a mistake.” He now realized, thinking that the young eunuch’s master was certainly an old eunuch. Since Xiao Guang was a eunuch in the palace, his master was supposed to be an old eunuch in the palace.

But that day he saw the old eunuchs’ martial arts, which was really good. He secretly thought that there were certainly a lot of masters of martial arts around the emperor in the palace. It was nothing special that the old eunuch was good at martial arts. He just wondered the status of the old eunuch in the palace.

He knew that Eunuch Fan was the chief eunuch of the Secretary of Rites. Although only a eunuch, he was of high status among eunuchs and palace maids.

If it wasn’t for the Marquis of Honor, it wouldn’t have been necessary for Eunuch Fan to personally deliver the order.

Xiao Guang laughed, “My master was surrounded by the group of assassins. Luckily, he was great in martial arts and instead had no scruples without me by his side and killed a bloody way out, escaping a disaster.”

Yang Ning asked, “By the way, why did the assassins want to kill you? Do you have something that they must get?”

Xiao Guang just smiled and said, “They can’t get away after all.”

“Xiao Guang, speaking of this, you are a young eunuch in the palace. Why did you leave the palace and run so far away?” Yang Ning was a bit puzzled, “The Black Sword Camp even personally went out to rescue you, and how come?”

“Just think of me as having an important secret.” Xiao Guang smiled, walked to the desk, picked up a plate of snacks and held it in his hand, putting a piece of snack into his mouth, “What are you going to do next? Still keep on pretending? Or find a chance to slip away?”

Yang Ning was a little stunned when he saw him taking the snacks, thinking that this kid was really bold. Then he thought, this guy was on duty here. The snacks were probably sent by him. It was not difficult for him to make up for it later. He was already a little hungry and only didn’t take it for some scruples. Now that Xiao Guang, this little eunuch dared to take it, he directly went over and took another plate of snacks in his hands. Xiao Guang took a look, froze and then smiled.

Yang Ning took the snacks, sat on a chair and savored. Food in the palace was delicate after all. The snacks tasted really good. Yang Ning gobbled and consumed almost a half in a few minutes. He then looked up and said, “You don’t know, I could leave a long time ago if I wanted to sneak away. But many things have happened in the Mansion of Marquis. I can tell you this way, I’m afraid that the Mansion of Marquis of Honor will collapse if I leave now.”

Sitting face to face with Yang Ning, Xiao Guang asked curiously, “So serious? Or are you just bragging?”

“I’m not going to explain to you.” Yang Ning said while eating, “I mean Xiao Guang, we have shared happiness and woe. I even saved your life, you won’t really stir this up, right?”

“That depends on how you treat me.” Seeing Yang Ning seemed to be interested in the snacks, Xiao Guang got up and put the plate in his hand on Yang Ning’s side, then went back to sit down and said, “If you treat me well, I will help you hide this. But if you treat me badly, I will immediately expose it.”

Yang Ning said in sulk, “You know my temper. Threaten me, I won’t buy this.” After finishing the snacks in his own plate and picking up the plate Xiao Guang sent over, he then said, “But I am now the Marquis of Honor. Since I’m rich, I won’t forget you. There is no way I will maltreat you.”

“Oh?” Xiao Guang laughed, “You are a very loyal man though. How are you going to help me?”

“I see that you’re still of low status in the palace,” Yang Ning said, “I am the Marquis of Honor after all. I guess His Majesty show some respect to me and I can talk you up so that he’ll promote you just by saying you’re smart, intelligent and understanding. Right, Eunuch Fan and I get along quite well. He’s a generous man, I think. If I say nice things about you in front of him, wouldn’t your life be much better?”

Xiao Guang said, “You help me because you’re afraid that I will expose you?”

Yang Ning leaned back in his chair and said, “It’s not all like that. To be honest, you don’t repel me, and we’ve been in trouble together after all. I always remember old relationships. Since fate has brought us together again, I can’t leave you alone.” Although the snacks in the two plates was exquisite enough, it was not much. Yang Ning finished it in a few minutes, then put down the plate and continued, “Don’t worry, as long as I don’t leave, I will always take care of you. I may not make you prosperous, but your life should be better than now. We’re friends after all.”

Xiao Guang stared at Yang Ning and asked, “You are now the Marquis of Honor while I am just a little eunuch. With such a big disparity of status, you still recognize me as a friend?”

“Why not?” Yang Ning was stunned and asked, “A friend is a friend. As long as we get along well, why bother about status?” Putting on a smile, he said, “Xiao Guang, do you think you’re out of my league? Don’t worry about it, I’m also a fake.” He then frowned and said, “But His Majesty is really procrastinating. I’ve been waiting for a whole afternoon. It’s almost dark outside. Why hasn’t His Majesty summoned me? He is not playing a trick on me, right?”