Chapter 136: The Afterglow Of The Jianghu

Chapter 136 The Twilight of the Jianghu

Gusu returned with Tang Buqi, but Zhao Changhe rode his dark steed behind a massive convoy, while Tang Buqi hid in the carriage, drinking wine and feeding grapes to his young maid.

Zhao Changhe was envious yet couldn’t bear to watch without wanting to hit someone, so he kept his distance.

This nephew had left home for martial training in the jianghu, though Zhao Changhe had no idea why—at twenty-four, already married, ranked a mere 120th on the Hidden Dragon List, and only at the fourth level of the Mystic Gate—what was there left to train for?

Better to wait quietly until he turned twenty-five and dropped off the list, then manage some family business instead of hogging a spot.

In truth, Zhao Changhe could guess that Tang Buqi hadn’t reached the fourth level of the Mystic Gate at twenty-four; that would have made it nearly impossible to make the Hidden Dragon List. He must have gotten on the list much earlier, but had made little progress in recent years.

Success at a young age led to indulgence, and his family’s overprotection left him without real experience. No one outside dared trouble him. Such an environment easily led to stagnation or even regression—easy to imagine.

In fact, though the Tang family couldn’t match the Cui family, compared to others, they had a younger generation with Tang Wanzhuang on the Earth List and Tang Buqi on the Hidden Dragon List—a family with a continuous succession. Many families had no one on the lists at all, drifting further into decline without realizing it, wallowing in ancestral glory.

In a way, the Chaos Chronicle wasn’t without merit; it often served as a wake-up call: “Hey, no one from your family is on the list anymore.” Without that wretched book’s prodding, even the Tang and Cui families would likely have declined—it was a law.

Tang Buqi’s foundation was solid. If he could find the drive to work hard again, he still had great potential. This journey for training was probably for that purpose.

Anyway, though it was for training, he hadn’t even left home far—just reached Yangzhou—when he learned Zhao Changhe was heading to Gusu. After much thought, Tang Buqi decided to return, worried that if the matter truly involved Gusu, it might affect his family.

His excuse was that a guest had arrived and needed to be shown around, but in truth, he hadn’t even shown his face to Zhao Changhe the whole way. Wasn’t the young maid more enticing?

Zhao Changhe was furious, but he knew that in Gusu, he’d need the Tang family’s help, so he couldn’t beat him up. That bastard had found a chance to show off—what a miscalculation.

Maybe he should leave the group and go alone, to avoid getting annoyed by Tang Buqi’s antics.

Just as he thought this, a shadow flashed ahead, heading straight for Tang Buqi’s carriage.

Zhao Changhe spurred his horse, blade in hand, and galloped over, instinctively ready to help—no matter how mad he was at the guy, he had to admit he was still decent.

But he was too far away. By the time his horse reached the spot, the other had already burst out of the carriage, waving a bellyband and laughing: “The Tang young master’s bellyband—should fetch a nice price!”

Tang Buqi scrambled out of the carriage, clutching his pants in fury: “Ji Chengkong! I never offended you!”

“You’re a friend of Zhao Changhe and Wan Dongliu, aren’t you? I can’t mess with them, but I can mess with you!”

Tang Buqi: “?”

Zhao Changhe: “...”

Meeting Tang Buqi’s enraged gaze, Zhao Changhe silently drew his bow, and with a “swish,” an arrow pinned the tree trunk in front of Ji Chengkong.

Ji Chengkong broke out in a cold sweat and shouted angrily: “Zhao Changhe, do you want to make a mortal enemy of me?”

Zhao Changhe sighed helplessly: “Brother, that day, you were the one who courted death by groping me, and I just punched you back into the river. Even today, that arrow hit the tree trunk, not your head.”

Ji Chengkong flipped mid-air, landing lightly on the arrow, and said coldly: “I was groping a bellyband, not stabbing you with a dagger.”

“So neither of us wants to start a blood feud—can we settle this?” Zhao Changhe said. “Did Wan Dongliu tell you that I intended to have him release you that day?”

Ji Chengkong hesitated. When Wan Dongliu let him go, he had indeed mentioned Zhao Changhe, even saying the release was because of Zhao’s request. Ji Chengkong hadn’t believed it, thinking Wan Dongliu was afraid of his Thief Sect and just made an excuse to save face.

But now Zhao Changhe himself said the same thing—it matched, so maybe it wasn’t just a random excuse.

In truth, it was half and half. Zhao Changhe had indeed put in a good word that day, but the later release was really because Wan Dongliu feared the Thief Sect.

He asked hesitantly: “I don’t know you, and as you said, I was the one who provoked you first. Why would you speak up for me?”

Zhao Changhe replied: “First, because I’m new here and can’t tell good from evil—maybe you’re the good guy and Wan Dongliu the villain. And second, if I said I’m very interested in all kinds of extraordinary people and want to befriend them, would you find that hard to believe?”

Ji Chengkong was even more surprised, pointing at his own nose: “Me? A thief? Extraordinary?”

Zhao Changhe smiled and said nothing.

In the real world, meeting a thief would only make you want to beat him to death, especially if he’d touched you.

But in a martial arts fantasy world, the standards seemed to shift subtly.

The Night Thief who leaves fragrance behind still existed; the Flying Dragon Hand was still there. In many stories, thief kings and bandit saints weren’t usually villains—they had their own charm, making him feel they were different from the thieves he knew in reality.

Even though deep down he knew most were probably the same...

But this Ji Chengkong was indeed interesting—like this bellyband theft; you could call him a fun person, right?

Seeing Zhao Changhe’s attitude, Ji Chengkong was genuinely surprised and laughed heartily: “Interesting, interesting. I never thought the Bloodthirsty Shura was like this. Our grudge is settled—I’ll buy you a drink sometime!”

With that, he flicked his wrist, and the bellyband spun back through the air. While Tang Buqi grabbed for it, Ji Chengkong vanished in a few leaps.

His lightness skill was truly formidable. If Zhao Changhe hadn’t blocked him that day, it seemed Wan Dongliu might not have caught him.

Tang Buqi caught the bellyband gloomily and scowled: “Just because I ignored you the whole way, you have to buddy up with a bellyband thief?”

Zhao Changhe retorted: “Even if I joined in, could we catch him? Wan Dongliu didn’t want to make mortal enemies of that crew—they come and go like shadows, a headache for anyone. What’s wrong with settling a grudge?”

“Well said, very reasonable.” Tang Buqi said flatly: “But I had no quarrel with him—how did that bellyband end up on me?”

“...” Zhao Changhe turned his head: “Wan Dongliu kept him locked up for so long, and you’re pretty close with Wan Dongliu.”

“So it has nothing to do with you, right?” Tang Buqi sneered: “I don’t care what your relationship is with the Demon Suppression Bureau, but I should warn you—Ji Chengkong and his master Ye Wuzong are both wanted by the Bureau. Still want to befriend extraordinary people?”

Zhao Changhe: “...”

“Whatever these thieves’ intentions might be, maybe they have noble goals... but officials and thieves—you have to pick a side.” Tang Buqi grew serious: “The same goes for heroes. You think you’re in the middle? To officials, you’re no different from a thief; to thieves, you’re a meddler.”

Zhao Changhe stared at him in shock. Was this really Tang Buqi? Not Tang Wanzhuang in disguise?

Tang Buqi said calmly: “In storybooks, everyone admires great heroes, but look at the jianghu today—among the young, only Yue Hongling is known as a hero. Why is her sword intent the sunset glow? Because that is the last twilight of the jianghu.”

Zhao Changhe looked at him in surprise for a long moment, then suddenly laughed: “When the prefect was assassinated, why did you say there was no need to investigate the real culprit, since he was a righteous man anyway?”

Tang Buqi was taken aback and fell silent.

Zhao Changhe patted his shoulder: “The hero has always been here. You are one.”

He rode forward leisurely for a while, then suddenly laughed: “Next time, don’t say such serious things—it doesn’t suit you. Coming from your mouth, it throws me off.”

“Damn it.” Tang Buqi angrily tossed the bellyband back into the carriage, then stuck his head out and shouted: “Don’t ride so far from the group alone. Come have a drink.”