Chapter 60: Killing Kublai Khan

Gu Qing and his group descended the mountain; in this great battle, three of the Five Greats had come, and Ouyang Feng’s poison had played a decisive role—ambushing and encircling the camp had ended in a resounding victory. As Gu Qing and the others headed toward Xiangyang, the surrounding forces were withdrawing, and every martial artist and Song soldier rejoiced in their triumph.

They had all endured years of Mongol oppression, and today, with minimal losses, they had won a great victory; each one was brimming with pride.

Yet there were still Mongol troops nearby; Guo Jing feared that a deep pursuit might trigger an ambush, so once victory was assured, he ordered the retreat.

Xiao Xiangzi, escorted by Wanyan Ping and Yelu Yan, had arrived in Xiangyang, where martial artists took custody of him first, pending interrogation later.

After Xiao Xiangzi was handed over, the credit naturally went to Yang Guo.

“This is one of the Mongols’ top experts—Yang Brother, your merit is considerable!”

Guo Jing often took Yang Guo around; most martial artists in Xiangyang knew him and understood he would become Guo Jing’s son-in-law. Seeing Yang Guo’s heroic bearing, they all praised him, regarding him as a new-generation hero.

Yang Guo exchanged polite words with these martial artists, yet his face showed no joy.

After recording the merit, Yang Guo turned and saw Guo Fu’s hostile expression.

“You’ve achieved such great merit—why aren’t you happy?”

Guo Fu demanded.

“I…”

Yang Guo fell silent; Huang Yaoshi’s strike on the stone had left him utterly miserable—he hadn’t even done anything.

“Don’t think I don’t know what you’re thinking.”

Guo Fu said angrily.

In the past, Guo Fu’s temper would have made her quarrel with Yang Guo on the spot, but the journey back from the mountains had cooled her. She had carefully observed Wanyan Ping and Lu Wushuang, realizing both were exceptionally beautiful—and this stirred her sense of threat. Now, though angry, her voice was low; to Yang Guo, this mix of pout and fury was especially alluring.

“I never expected anything.”

Yang Guo wanted to explain, but felt he couldn’t; he changed the subject instead: “I’m thinking about matters of state.”

Once the topic rose to this level, Guo Fu struggled to keep up.

At that moment, Gu Qing walked over, patted Yang Guo’s shoulder, and said: “Next time you can’t summon the palm technique, think more of the Song Dynasty—see if you can trigger it.”

If this Dark Soul-Consuming Palm evolved into a divine palm born of concern for the nation, Yang Guo would naturally be able to use it with every gesture.

Gu Qing’s intention was good.

But it instantly reminded Guo Fu of Yang Guo’s palm use, and she pressed him for an explanation.

Yang Guo glared at Gu Qing… Why him?!

Huang Yaoshi’s maneuver had allowed Gu Qing to win the beauty, while Yang Guo had been unfairly blamed—since descending the mountain, he had been brooding over this.

At this moment, Gu Qing walked to Xiaolongnu and Cheng Ying’s side. Since descending the mountain, the three had felt some awkwardness; Xiaolongnu and Cheng Ying exchanged only a few words before falling silent again. All three were inexperienced in managing a three-person household.

The events on the mountain had forced Gu Qing to slightly uphold his own image, so between the two women, he held back. Hearing Wu Dunru’s message, he bid farewell to Xiaolongnu and Cheng Ying, then headed toward Xiangyang’s government offices.

On the way, Wu Dunru recounted how, during the raid, Guo Jing had captured Kublai Khan and negotiated a treaty requiring the Mongols to withdraw and pay reparations.

“Kublai Khan is awake?”

Gu Qing asked Wu Dunru after hearing this.

He had given Kublai Khan jade bee needles—he was deeply poisoned, and without an antidote, how could he possibly sign a treaty with the Song?

“The jade bee needle’s poison should have a time limit,” Wu Dunru said.

“Mistress said it’s like being stung by a bee—if you don’t die, even without ointment, you’ll recover after a while. The jade bee needle should be the same. It’s been many days since you poisoned Kublai Khan; the toxin must have weakened, and his body has improved.”

“Hodu, whom you poisoned earlier, fled on horseback during the encirclement.”

Gu Qing nodded. The jade bee needles were indeed forged from venomous stings of the Ancient Tomb Sect’s jade bees—a kind of bee venom. If it could gradually heal, he had nothing to say.

Next time he met Hodu, he’d kill him.

“Where is Kublai Khan?”

Gu Qing asked. “Should we hand him over to the court?”

The current Song emperor is Lizong; he performed well early on, but in his later years, Jia Sidao dominated the court and grew negligent. After his death, tomb robbers would dig him up and turn his skull into a wine cup, making Emperor Lizong’s disgrace eternal.

At this stage, both Xiangyang’s defenders and the martial artists all needed the Southern Song court’s grain and currency support.

Handing Kublai Khan over to the court would aid Xiangyang’s development.

“Master let him go,” Wu Dunru said.

Kublai Khan was the son of Toor; Guo Jing had been close to Toor in his youth. When he captured Kublai Khan and saw his face, it reminded him of Toor alive—and he softened. After Kublai Khan agreed to all conditions, Guo Jing released him.

Guo Jing also believed Kublai Khan would honor the agreement.

Gu Qing’s expression didn’t change; he merely nodded.

Gu Qing’s expression didn’t change; he merely nodded.

Kublai Khan sat beneath a lamp, studying a map. This defeat at Xiangyang had scattered his top experts, leaving him disheartened—but as a true ruler, he quickly recovered. Gazing at the map, he murmured: “There will come a time when the wind breaks the waves…”

Though Mongol by birth, Kublai Khan, under the Great Khan’s orders, governed Han territories, sought out Han scholars, accepted Confucian advice, revered Confucius, and spoke fluently of Han culture.

Just as he was halfway through his recitation, Kublai Khan suddenly fell silent, noticing Gu Qing—who had inexplicably appeared in the room.

And just as he was halfway through his recitation, Kublai suddenly fell silent and turned to look at the room—where Gu Qing had inexplicably appeared.

Kublai Khan, though startled, remained composed, bowing respectfully to Gu Qing: “Master Gu, why come at this late hour? Is there something to add to our treaty?”

Gu Qing exhaled slowly, looked at Kublai Khan, and said: “Do you know that tonight was supposed to be my wedding night?”

Kublai Khan didn’t understand why Gu Qing brought this up, but bowed and invited him to speak.

“I abandoned my wedding night just to come kill you!”

Gu Qing said coldly, staring at Kublai Khan.

Guo Jing had his reasons; Gu Qing had his own.

From a people’s historical view, killing Kublai Khan would only make another Kublai Khan rise to do what Kublai Khan was meant to do—so assassinating such a figure had little impact.

But Gu Qing wanted to see whether the next emerging leader could do as well as Kublai Khan.

In The Legend of the Condor Heroes, there’s always been an assumption: if Qiu Chuji had never passed through Niujia Village, and Temujin had never risen, Mongolia would still be fractured. Gu Qing wanted to know: if Kublai Khan were removed, could the Yuan Dynasty still be founded?

As Kublai Khan stood bewildered, Gu Qing tightened the rope and hanged him from the beam.

This was yesterday’s

This is yesterday's

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(End of Chapter)