Chapter 37: Section Two

Even a thunderbolt striking right before Huang Shi's eyes could not have shocked him more than Jin Qiude's words. His hand involuntarily kept drifting to his waist, gripping the hilt of his saber.

Jin Qiude acted as if he had seen nothing, standing rigidly upright, his right hand holding the torch high: "My lord, this subordinate presumes to guess at my lord's intentions. The guess is a long one, and this subordinate naturally dares not ask my lord to confirm right or wrong, but only begs my lord to hear this subordinate out."

Jin Qiude feared Huang Shi would misunderstand and think he was fishing for information, so he told Huang Shi there was no need to speak, only to listen to him alone:

Huang Shi's guard relaxed slightly: "Speak."

"Last time, when this subordinate brought up the matter of gift-giving, my lord suddenly flew into a rage and wanted to punish this subordinate. Afterward, this subordinate pondered it carefully and believed he had said nothing wrong to provoke such fury from my lord. Then my lord suddenly lavished favor upon this subordinate. This subordinate carefully observed my lord's attitude toward him, and it was clearly different from my lord's attitude toward the other personal guards — only my lord's trusted man Zhao Manxiong could compare. This subordinate was grateful but also somewhat puzzled. My lord's personal guards were all selected by Sun Degong. My lord treats the personal guards well but does not trust them; toward this subordinate and Zhao Manxiong, it is different."

There are truly no shortage of people around here skilled at reading expressions and gauging moods, Huang Shi thought. He could not help worrying whether the other personal guards had also noticed the things Jin Qiude was describing.

"So this subordinate suspected at the time that my lord was on guard against Sun Degong. That would explain everything perfectly. Later, when my lord arranged a marriage alliance with Sun Degong, this subordinate thought he had been overthinking. But after my lord secretly met with Miss Sun, this subordinate grew suspicious. Miss Sun is to be my lord's principal wife; such a clandestine meeting is surely something to be concealed if at all possible. Yet my lord did not mind Yang Luhuo revealing it — even deliberately allowed Yang Luhuo to let everyone know."

His scheme seen through, Huang Shi could not help exclaiming: "I did not allow Yang Luhuo to speak of my secret meeting with Miss Sun. When did I ever tell any of you that I met Miss Sun in secret?"

"My lord did not say so openly — only that my lord stood up for those three personal guards. But with a little questioning, who would not know that my lord met Miss Sun in secret? My lord has always treated us subordinates well. If Miss Sun marries into the household, her maidservant will in all likelihood become our second lady. For my lord to sling mud at his own wife and second lady without any reason — if there is no special cause behind it, this subordinate absolutely refuses to believe it."

Jin Qiude's words left Huang Shi speechless. Though fully armored in the pitch darkness before dawn, Huang Shi felt as if he stood stark naked under broad daylight.

"This subordinate believes there is only one explanation: my lord wanted the personal guards — and Sun Degong's spies planted among my lord's personal guards — to believe that the bond between my lord and the Sun family is unbreakable. Another important factor is that my lord may not have been certain the marriage alliance with Sun Degong would actually happen, so my lord did not care what anyone thought of Miss Sun. Deep in my lord's heart, he never cared in the first place."

"Are you not afraid you have guessed wrong?" Huang Shi asked hoarsely. That last piece of analysis from Jin Qiude was truly exquisite — it could even be called a probing of Huang Shi's subconscious.

"My lord is right. Regarding the matter of the secret meeting with Miss Sun, there was indeed another possibility: that Yang Luhuo had a loose tongue. That is why, before leaving Zhenwubao, this subordinate was still not fully convinced of this analysis. But then my lord chose this subordinate rather than Yang Luhuo to accompany him, and this subordinate no longer harbored the slightest doubt. If my lord truly trusted Yang Luhuo and had no rift whatsoever with Sun Degong, then today it should still have been Yang Luhuo accompanying my lord to see Grand Coordinator Xiong, because Grand Coordinator Xiong..."

"Stop." Huang Shi knew full well what Jin Qiude was about to say next. Xiong Tingbi's dissatisfaction with Sun Degong was already common knowledge throughout the Guangning army. Xiong Tingbi always said Sun Degong was a petty man. If Huang Shi intended to speak ill of someone behind their back to Xiong Tingbi, there was indeed a need to send away anyone unreliable.

Huang Shi scrutinized the man before him for a long, long time, feeling that he had truly underestimated the heroes of the realm. But since this man dared to speak these words, it at least proved he was not one of Sun Degong's plants. Huang Shi consoled himself with this thought, then cleared his throat and said:

"You have spoken well, very well. What you must do now is tell me why I should trust you. If you cannot give a reason, then draw your own blade and cut your own throat."

"My lord flatters me. This subordinate was able to see through my lord's arrangements because this subordinate never trusted my lord in the first place, and has always harbored doubts toward my lord."

These words struck Huang Shi like another thunderbolt before his eyes. Though he understood Jin Qiude's meaning, he still could scarcely believe it. The words that came out were hoarse and low, barely sounding like a living man's voice: "You are someone Sun Degong sent to spy on me?"

"Yes, my lord sees clearly. Sun Degong ordered this subordinate to monitor every suspicious action of my lord and the personal guards around him. What this subordinate said the other day was also arranged by Sun Degong, who ordered this subordinate to use it to gain my lord's trust."

"There should be more than just you as a spy." Huang Shi made his judgment.

"Certainly more than just this subordinate." Jin Qiude answered with absolute certainty.

Jin Qiude was only one spy; Sun Degong could not possibly have told him the names of the other spies. So Huang Shi did not intend to waste effort asking that question.

Huang Shi did not press Jin Qiude on whether he knew the other plants. This action had an unexpected consequence. Seeing that Huang Shi could make an accurate judgment in the instant after his shock, Jin Qiude could not help revealing a trace of admiration.

Huang Shi's conduct convinced Jin Qiude that his own judgment was sound. If Huang Shi had lacked confidence just now and felt compelled to confirm with another question, then Jin Qiude would have concluded that this man was nothing more than a tool, a ladder to be used for climbing upward.

"So you have already proven your loyalty right now. But why? Why would you betray Sun Degong, and why would you not betray me?"

"Because my lord is the most ambitious man this subordinate has ever seen, and my lord is also a rare man this subordinate has seen who can build something from nothing." Jin Qiude knew that even if he betrayed Huang Shi, Sun Degong would never make him a Company Commander.

Sun Degong was a hereditary military officer with no shortage of relatives, friends, and old acquaintances in his pocket; the people he promoted were mostly kin. Huang Shi, on the other hand, had not a single trusted confidant by his side. So Jin Qiude ultimately chose Huang Shi.

"My lord, this subordinate believes my lord's future is boundless, and that my lord will need countless running dogs to press forward valiantly on this glorious, thorny road. And this subordinate is confident his talents are far more than those of a mere spy. This subordinate is very capable and will certainly prove it to my lord; this subordinate will surely become my lord's most capable running dog."

Jin Qiude's fearsome ambition surged forth from his words, resonating with the surging ambition in Huang Shi's heart. The immense resonance between them made Huang Shi release his grip on his saber hilt, and this resonance finally made Huang Shi nod his head. The two ambitious men gazed at each other in the wilderness, each feeling the other's hunger and thirst for power.

"Your ambition—" Huang Shi paused mid-sentence, searching for the right words to describe it: "is deeply admirable."

"Indeed, ambition. The world considers ambition an ugly word, but my lord is no common man, and neither is this subordinate."

As the Bible says: only a devil can recognize a devil. Jin Qiude, who had been spying on Huang Shi in the shadows, was at last drawn in by the kindred aura of his target, and Huang Shi, in this moment, accepted this kindred spirit because of that very same attraction.

"You do not know the scale of my ambition — it is beyond your imagination."

"So long as it is to seize the realm, this subordinate will follow to the death!"