A Clash of Gods - Chapter 28
Chapter 28 Reward
Xiao Guang managed to sit up and studied Yang Ning for a while before saying, “Do you think we are friends?”
Yang Ning simply sat across from Xiao Guang and said seriously, “It depends on your act. If you remain your loyalty and seek ways to return my kindness, of course I will treat you as my friend. But if you want to burn the bridge after crossing it, I will doubt your moral quality and I’d better not make friends with you.”
Xiao Guang smiled and said, “So, it’s not easy to make friends with…with you?” After a cough, he raised his hand to cover his mouth.
“It’s up to you to decide whether it is easy or not,” Yang Ning smiled and said, “You can sit up now, so it seems that your life has been spared. I have no time to lose. You can just tell me whether you will repay me or not.”
Yang Ning was very clear that he needed a lot of money if he continued to seek Xiaodie. Otherwise, the journey would be difficult.
The silver he got when he killed Xiao Yishui had run out. Although he also got a money bag from the God of Wood, there was not much silver in the money bag of the old guy and could not last long.
He also thought that he could buy a horse on the way if there was no other choice. Although he did not know how much silver a horse would cost, he knew that it would never be cheap to buy a horse in the Chu Country.
Yang Ning killed Xiao Yishui and the God of Wood unwittingly. He didn’t want to become a robber who killed people and stole silver.
Yang Ning thought Xiao Guang would make excuses. But Xiao Guang nodded his head slightly, saying, “You saved my life. Of course, I will give you some rewards.”
“Good brother!” Yang Ning was all smiles, clapping his hands and laughing, “I know you are a virtuous person at the first glance.”
Xiao Guang said, “But hundreds of pieces of silver…” But before he could finish his words, Yang Ning was afraid that he had asked for too much silver, hurriedly interrupting, “If you think that’s too much, we can settle it through discussion. Since you are good-natured, I can also be reasonable.”
“You misunderstood me,” Xiao Guang shook his head and said, “I mean, hundreds of pieces of silver is not enough to repay your life-saving grace. Is it possible that my life worth only hundreds of pieces of silver?”
Yang Ning was surprised, thinking that there would be such a sucker this year. He tried to make his tone gentle, “Then, do you mean…?”
“At least this number!” Xiao Guang raised one hand and opened his five fingers, “Five hundred pieces of gold!”
Yang Ning got excited and shouted, “Good brother, you are so loyal. Xiao Guang, I didn’t misjudge you…” Speaking of this, he stopped suddenly and looked at Xiao Guang up and down suspiciously. Then his face fell, and he sneered, “Xiao Guang, I will wait and see how you take out five hundred pieces of gold.”
Five hundred pieces of gold certainly was not a small amount of money. He didn’t think that Xiao Guang could take out five hundred pieces of gold even if he took off his underwear.
Xiao Guang frowned, “You can speak politely. Five hundred pieces of gold is not a large amount of money for me. Since I have promised you, I will not owe you a penny.”
Yang Ning thought that the guy even kept a straight face when he was bragging. Five hundred pieces of gold was not a big amount of money for him? He was really a braggart. Seeing that he was grim-faced and didn’t seem to tell a lie, Yang Ning went over and asked with doubt, “Do you really have five hundred pieces of gold? I am not greedy. You can just give me one hundred pieces of gold.”
“My words are stable as mountains. I will never go back on my words.” Xiao Guang raised his hand and pressed it against his head. He still looked very weak. “Five hundred pieces of gold will be given to you in full. When I arrive in the capital, I will give the gold to you.”
It was until now that Yang Ning came to understand his meaning, and he said angrily, “The gold you said can only be taken out in the capital?”
Xiao Guang said, “Do you think I can take it out now?”
“You can’t give me the money now, and you still talk a load of garbage,” Yang Ning showed a long face and said, “Xiao Guang, you are not old, but you are quite good at bragging, and your skill in bragging is even proficient than mine. When you open your mouth, you can easily promise to give me five hundred pieces of gold. And you even ask me to go to the capital to get it? Do you think I am a fool? I can see through your thought at a glance.”
“Oh?” Xiao Guang seemed quite calm, “What thought?”
Yang Ning pointed to Xiao Guang’s nose and said, “You want to go to the capital, but you are alone and fearful. So you want me to protect you and send you to the capital, don’t you? You think I will not hesitate to take you to the capital for five hundred pieces of gold and serve you as a free escort along the way.” He snorted and pointed to his own face, “Look at me. Do I look greedy for money?”
Xiao Guang stretched out a finger and pushed Yang Ning’s finger at his nose away. Without rebutting, he nodded and said, “You are right. I do want you to follow me to the capital.”
“Dispel your thought as soon as possible.” It turned out that the five hundred pieces of gold was a castle in the sky. This made Yang Ning dissatisfied. “Unluckily for me, I will learn from my fall. It’s okay for me to profit at others’ expense. But I will never let others take advantage of me.” He got up, turned around, and left. “You go your way, and I’ll go mine. We shall part now, and I hope that we won’t see each other again.”
He knew that Xiao Guang was a scourge at first glance. Yesterday, he was on the verge of death, and Yang Ning couldn’t bear to see him die on the road, so he saved his life. But now this guy seemed to have escaped from the death and he still wanted to draw Yang Ning into the trouble, so it was absolutely impossible for Yang Ning to grant his request.
Yang Ning didn’t forget those weird Mysterious Flying Cicada Ninjas from the East Sea. Who knows if this gang of men was still looking for Xiao Guang? If they were found by the group of people, he would be implicated in the trouble.
Xiao Guang wanted to stand up, but when he managed to stand up halfway, he wobbled, raising his hand against his temple, and fell down. Yang Ning had walked a few steps when he heard the sound. He looked back and frowned.
“You…you wait a minute!” Xiao Guang said, “You said you still have urgent business. What is it?”
Yang Ning snorted and said, “What if I tell you? Do you think you can help me?”
“Maybe.” Xiao Guang pulled himself together. “I have a lot of powerful…powerful friends. If you have any difficulties, they may be able to help you even if I can’t.”
Yang Ning thought this guy was going to the capital, so he might live in the capital. His skin was tender and delicate. Obviously, he was born with a silver spoon in his mouth, enjoying wealth and honor. Maybe he really had a wide range of contacts.
Yang Ning had fallen behind the escort team for several days after those delays. The escort team might have already reached the capital if they were fast.
If he couldn’t catch up on the road, he could only go to the capital to find them. But he also knew that the capital was really a big city. If he only relied on himself to find a person in the capital, that would be like looking for a needle in a haystack. It was extremely difficult, and he had no time to lose. The faster he found Xiaodie, the better. Over time, Xiaodie could only be in a more dangerous plight.
But Yang Ning also knew that even if he really could rely on Xiao Guang’s connections to find Xiaodie in the capital, he shouldn’t reveal his demand.
“I can handle my own business,” Yang Ning pretended to be free and easy, “I can’t believe your words.”
Xiao Guang showed his anger and said, “I have been a man of my word since I was young. How dare you…you say that I will not keep my promise?”
“There are so many people in the world who never keep their promises,” Yang Ning shook his head and sighed, “When you are in trouble and need others to help you, you can make any promise. But when you really get to the capital, you will look down on me, because I am just a beggar. I am afraid that you will keep away from me. Your promise of giving me gold will turn into ashes, and I can’t get a penny from you.”
Xiao Guang snorted coldly, and said, “Are you a beggar? Your kung fu is very good and we can fight to a standoff. Are you a disciple of the Beggar Sect?”
Yang Ning secretly thought that although Xiao Guang’s kung fu was better than that of an averaged person, he was far from being a master. At least, compared to the God of Wood and the elder in brown robe, he was much worse. But this guy could guess that he was a disciple of the Beggar Sect in a short while, so it seemed that he also knew something about the world. He asked in reply, “You know the Beggar Sect?”
Xiao Guang said lightly, “The disciples of the Beggar Sect are all over the world, and it was split into northern and southern factions. How can I not know?”
“Northern and southern factions?” Yang Ning was stunned. Although he had some knowledge of the Beggar Sect, he really didn’t know that it was split into northern and southern factions.
Xiao Guang examined his words and observed his countenance, “Don’t you know that the Beggar Sect has long been split into northern and southern factions?” Suddenly, he laughed, “It seems that you are just a little beggar in the Beggar Sect.”
Yang Ning said sulkily, “You said that I am a disciple of the Beggar Sect, but I didn’t say that. Why do I need to know the information about the Beggar Sect?” But he couldn’t help but ask, “Why is the Beggar Sect split into northern and southern factions?”
Xiao Guang said, “I don’t know the detailed reasons. It seems that the Beggar Sect was split for electing a new General Leader a few decades ago…” He smiled, “It seems that you are not clear about the matters of the Beggar Sect. You are so young, and your kung fu is also pretty good. If you really were a disciple of the Beggar Sect, you should not be stifled.”
Yang Ning couldn’t help laughing, “No matter how outstanding I am, it’s useless to be just a beggar.”
“You don’t want to be a beggar?” Xiao Guang asked in reply, “I heard that there are Helm Leaders and the General Leader in the Beggar Sect. If you were to be a Helm Leader or even the General Leader one day, you would be very prestigious.”
“Bullshit,” Yang Ning couldn’t help but swear, “I heard that there are hundreds of thousands of disciples in the Beggar Sect. There are many people who want to be Helm Leaders, and those who want to be the General Leader are as many as drops in the ocean. Even if I really become a Helm Leader or the General Leader, what’s the good of leading a large group of beggars? Besides, if I really became the General Leader, I should watch out for the secret plots of my men who want to replace me every day and I might lose my life for being careless at any time,” He laughed, “In fact, the higher you stand, the great danger you are in. It’s better for me to live happily as an ordinary person.”
Xiao Guang froze for a while, and then nodded, “You are right.” He responded like an elder.
At this moment, they heard a shout outside, “My Lord, it seems that this is an ancestral temple. We can take a break here.”
The sound came in very suddenly. The expressions of Yang Ning and Xiao Guang changed at the same time. Xiao Guang struggled to get up, but he was too weak to stand on his feet.
Yang Ning stepped forward to support Xiao Guang and looked around. They could only hide behind the stone altar. He helped Xiao Guang walk lightly to the back of the stone altar. At this time, they heard an old voice, “We will have a rest here first. They can’t catch up for a while and we will leave when it’s dark.” The voice was not far from the entrance.
Yang Ning helped Xiao Guang to sit down behind the stone altar. Suddenly, he thought of the bonfire made last night, so he immediately went over. The embers of the bonfire could be seen clearly, so he pulled the hay on the ground to cover the embers instantly. It was really in a mess. Hearing the approaching footsteps, he placed two beams on the top of it, and then flashed to hide behind the stone altar.