Jianghu Qimen Lu

Chapter 80 Eliminating Wushan

Women always value love above all else, and once their love turns sour, they seem to be possessed, their nature drastically changed! Seeing her fighting so desperately, Bai Shandian couldn't bear to truly fight her, so he used the Shaolin Vajra Palm to grab her pulse point, strangle her throat, and lock her hands behind her back, pinning her down! Even so, his face was scratched open several more times! Old wounds and new wounds, layer upon layer, had completely disfigured this handsome young man!

Seeing how ruthlessly he struck, Xiang Quan struggled several times but couldn't break free. In front of so many soldiers and outsiders like Qi Caiyun, she was enraged and cursed, "Bai Shandian, if you have the guts, write me a letter of divorce right now! Otherwise, I'll never forgive you, even if I die!" As she spoke, she began to sob. Seeing her so pitiful and helpless, Bai Shandian released her. Unexpectedly, in her overwhelming grief, Xiang Quan, in a moment of despair, lunged forward and rammed her head against the wall! Luckily, Bai Shandian reacted quickly, leaping forward and embracing his wife from behind, his voice trembling as he asked, "Quan'er, what...what are you doing?"

Xiang Quan struggled against the wall, shouting, "Don't worry about me! Let me die! You've already changed your mind, why bother with my life or death? After I die, you and Hong Yue can live happily ever after, wouldn't that be wonderful?" Bai Shandian held her tightly, afraid that if he lost his grip, she would escape, and they would be separated forever, never to see each other again! In his desperation, tears welled up in his eyes, and his heart ached. He choked out, "Quan'er, I swear to God, I will only love you from now on! In fact, no one in this world is more important than you! You are my closest person! Think about our Bai and Xiang families, our loved ones have passed away one after another, leaving only the two of us and our two children. If we continue to fight, it won't do the children any good! How will they live in the future?"

Xiang Quan stopped struggling, collapsing weakly into his arms, utterly exhausted. She sobbed feebly, "Bai Shandian, I don't believe you anymore, I don't believe you at all! The tragic deaths of my father and mother are all your doing! Now, my Xiang family is ruined by you—some arrested, some dead, our home destroyed! In this terrible time, I never imagined you'd be living so comfortably, even hooking up with a prostitute! You…you're trying to force me to my death! Bai Shandian, you never truly loved me from the beginning. You were just a pawn in Qianlong's hands, carefully planted in our Xiang family to find out the whereabouts of the 'Complete Book of Jianghu'! Alas, I, Xiang Quan, was blind all my life to have taken a government lackey like you as my husband! I will die with my eyes open! My death is nothing to regret, but my poor children will suffer! Waaah—" As she spoke, she couldn't help but burst into tears.

Seeing her so heartbroken, Bai Shandian felt a pang of pain in his heart and couldn't help but comfort her, "Quan'er, don't cry. Letting so many people laugh at you like this is unacceptable." Xiang Quan suddenly broke free from his embrace, jumped up, and yelled, "Laugh at me? If you're afraid of being laughed at, why do such a shameful thing?!" Bai Shandian looked helpless and pitifully said, "Hong Yueliang and I are truly innocent! There's really nothing between us! Quan'er, don't overthink it!" Xiang Quan sighed deeply and said painfully, "Don't try to explain yourself anymore." "I will never trust you again! Write me a letter of divorce in front of so many people today, and I'll be free! From now on, I'll raise my two children alone. No matter how hard or difficult things get, I'll never come to you, Lord Bai! You'll be so free on your own! You can do whatever you want, and it has nothing to do with my Xiang Quan anymore! Hurry up, Lord Bai, have the servants from the Hong family bring pen, ink, and paper. Start writing the letter of divorce!" A hush fell over the room. In this critical moment, not a single person stepped forward to mediate. Judging from the sidelong glances, most people thought that the couple's outburst at the General's mansion was a deliberate insult to Hong Yue Liang, showing arrogance and disrespect, truly a disgrace to civility!

Finally, Hongchen stepped forward and roared, "Lord Bai, if you two are having a divorce, go back to the Xiang residence! Don't make a scene here, okay? I beg you both!" The General's wife also looked disgusted and muttered, "Such a grown woman, isn't she ashamed? What a disgrace!" Xiangquan heard this but was powerless to argue. She stomped her foot angrily and stormed out! Bai Shandian was afraid she might die, so he rushed forward to chase after her, but was blocked by Qicaiyun, who said in a sinister tone, "Lord Bai, hand over the 'Complete Guide to the Martial World,' and I'll let you go!" Bai Shandian was both angry and anxious. With a clang, he drew his imperial sword and swiftly thrust it over a dozen times, each strike vicious and deadly. He was furious that Qicaiyun was like glue, impossible to shake off, and even more afraid that his wife might do something rash, leaving him with endless regret! So he used deadly force! I want to defeat him in one fell swoop and escape his control as soon as possible!

Unexpectedly, Qi Caiyun vanished in a flash! Fearing he might sneak up behind and attack again, Bai Shandian twisted his sword hilt with his right hand, instantly creating a gleaming sword shadow that protected his entire body. After a while, Qi Caiyun didn't reappear, so Bai Shandian stopped and rushed towards the gate. Reaching the gate, he saw only the Eight Banners soldiers lined up and moving about; Xiang Quan was nowhere to be seen. He called over a captain and questioned him, who reported, "Just now, your lady left the General's Mansion and headed west!" Bai Shandian guessed that Xiang Quan might have gone to the residence of the Zhejiang Governor Zhang Kuang to see her children. He quickly gathered a squad of about five hundred Eight Banners soldiers, led by the captain, and set off westward in pursuit.

Upon arriving at the Governor's Mansion, they found only his lively children playing happily with the Governor's son; there was no sign of Xiang Quan! Inquiries with the residents revealed that they had also never seen him. Zhang Kuang, dressed impeccably, emerged from the main hall to greet the guests. Bai Shandian ordered the Eight Banners soldiers, led by the sergeant, to continue searching for Xiang Quan along the route, instructing them to return on horseback with immediate reports of any news. The sergeant responded with a curt "Yes, sir!" and led his troops on a city-wide search.

"What happened, Lord Bai?" Governor Zhang asked cautiously. Bai Shandian sighed and briefly explained what had happened. Zhang Kuang was shocked and immediately jumped up: "The Emperor is trapped in Yue Wang Temple! The Mo Qing Society has some nerve, daring to do something so outrageous! Lord Bai, you did the right thing. The Mo Qing Society's leader, Chou Tiao, cannot be let go. This is actually the Emperor's original intention! If we let the tiger return to the mountain, the Emperor's situation will be even worse, and he will be in danger! Do you know what the Mo Qing Society's goal is? To overthrow the Qing Dynasty and restore the Ming Dynasty. They always want to kill the current Emperor!" Bai Shandian nodded and sighed: "I understand these implications perfectly well. The problem is that there is also Qi Caiyun secretly overseeing everything! Our first task is to remove this obstacle before we can send troops to rescue the Emperor." Zhang Kuang scratched his head: "Even the usually resourceful Lord Bai is helpless in this situation. What can I, a mere warrior, do?"

Bai Shandian thought for a moment and said, "Here's what we'll do. You immediately lead a group of two thousand elite Green Standard Army soldiers to surround Yue Fei Temple! Then the two of us will go out together and negotiate with the Mo Qing Society to get them to release the Emperor. We'll act according to the situation. If they release him, all will be well; if they insist on not releasing him, kill them without mercy! As for the mysterious Seven-Colored Cloud, we'll keep an eye on it and be careful at all times!" Zhang Kuang nodded repeatedly and said, "This plan is excellent. We have no choice but to do it this way for now!" The two of them immediately set off, mobilizing their troops. To facilitate the operation, they also brought along a red-coated cannon and marched in a grand procession towards Yue Fei Temple.

Upon arriving, the Green Standard Army dispersed, surrounding Yue Fei Temple in layers, like an iron barrel. They mounted cannons at the main gate, loaded shells, and prepared to fire, ready to bombard the temple at any moment! This terrified the monks inside. Led by the abbot, they rushed out in a panic, kneeling before the temple gate with a thud. The elderly abbot, his hair and beard white, clasped his hands together and said, "Amitabha Buddha, may I ask you two officials, what has happened to our temple? Why have so many soldiers surrounded it and are threatening to bomb it, thus offending the deities within?"