A few days later, at Gubai Crossing.
As evening descended, the sun sank below the horizon, and a layer of dim gloom gradually enveloped the land.
This darkness was exactly what Chuǎng Wang needed.
He did not wish to implicate his relatives, so he dared to meet them only under the cover of shadows.
His main army had been deliberately left twenty li to the south.
Using a flimsy excuse, he ordered the rebel forces to halt. After that, he changed his appearance, and with only two of his most trusted personal guards, quietly slipped out of camp and headed toward the agreed meeting place.
On the other side, the people from Gao Family Village had already received word.
They arrived at Gubai Crossing aboard a long cargo boat and had been waiting there for quite some time.
Chuǎng Wang approached the large vessel by the river slowly, step by step.
Before he could even draw close, a rough and honest voice rang out from the deck.
"Sneaking up on our boat. What are you trying to do?"
The moment Chuǎng Wang heard that voice, his whole body shuddered.
"Is that… Chuwu?"
"Huh?"
With a sudden movement, a tall and sturdy figure leapt down from the boat. It was Gao Chuwu.
"You're… Uncle Yingxiang!"
Gao Chuwu turned his head and shouted loudly toward the boat, "Uncle Yingxiang is here. Come out, all of you, come out!"
From within the longboat's superstructure, people poured out one after another.
Gao Yiye rushed forward. "Second Uncle!"
The moment she spoke, her eyes instantly reddened with tears.
Gao Yingxiang was equally overjoyed. "Yiye!"
Gao Yiye took two quick steps forward, intending to throw herself into his arms. But midway, she suddenly remembered that she was no longer a child, and such behavior was no longer appropriate for her age.
She stopped herself with effort.
Gao Yingxiang asked, his face full of joy, "Where is your mother?"
Gao Yiye shook her head. "Mother passed away," she said softly. "She was killed by mountain bandits."
Gao Yingxiang froze on the spot.
The Village Chief stepped out from behind them. "Alas," he said, "after you left, the drought worsened with each passing day. One day, mountain bandits raided the village. Your mother… she then…"
The words trailed off.
A heavy silence settled over the group.
Gao Laba walked over and patted Gao Yingxiang on the shoulder. "Yingxiang, you've really made something of yourself, haven't you? If we hadn't seen the Gaojia News, we wouldn't have even known you'd become Chuǎng Wang."
"News?" Gao Yingxiang looked utterly confused.
Gao Yiyi came up from behind, gave him a silent punch on the shoulder, then stepped back without a word.
Gao Sanniang followed. She looked him up and down, then spoke with a strange tone. "Back then, when you beat up an official and ran away, everyone said you were a hero. Who would have thought you'd end up becoming a bandit? Alas, you're not the Yingxiang I once knew."
Gao Yingxiang was stunned.
Gao Sanwa sighed, but said nothing.
Gao Yingxiang's gaze slowly swept across everyone present. Each face was deeply familiar, yet after more than ten years, they also felt faintly strange.
"Are you all… doing well?" he asked. "These past years of chaos and warfare, I was always worried about Gao Family Village. I never expected you'd all be living so well. Only my sister in law…"
"Qingwa also died at the hands of mountain bandits," the Village Chief said calmly. "Didn't you notice? Your closest friend, Qingwa, isn't here."
Gao Yingxiang staggered as if struck.
The Village Chief's expression suddenly turned solemn. "We arranged this meeting today because we need to talk to you about this 'banditry' of yours."
Gao Yingxiang straightened his posture. "Uncle, please speak plainly."
The Village Chief did not mince words. "Stop being a bandit. Give it up."
"Huh?" Gao Yingxiang blinked.
He truly had not expected the Village Chief to open with that.
"Uncle," Gao Yingxiang said urgently, "I'm no ordinary bandit anymore. I'm a king. I'm Chuǎng Wang, famous throughout the land. I command hundreds of thousands of troops. I have the power to seize the realm. Once I march into Yanjing, kill that dog emperor, and take the throne myself, I'll make you Imperial Preceptor, Yiye a princess, and Chuwu a great general…"
"Shut up!" the Village Chief roared.
"What king? A self proclaimed king? How are your actions any different from the mountain bandits who killed your sister in law and Qingwa? What you are doing now is killing other people's sisters in law, killing other people's closest friends. And you still dare to call yourself a king?"
Gao Yingxiang argued back, "No. I'm not a bandit. I'm leading an uprising. I'm doing what is righteous. I never intentionally killed anyone's sister in law or closest friend. I… those who died, they were just… just…"
He faltered, unable to find the words.
At that moment, Li Daoxuan's voice sounded from within the crowd of Gao Family Village.
"Isn't it simply that an uprising is not child's play? Bloodshed and sacrifice are unavoidable, right? Some collateral damage is inevitable. As long as you are ultimately right, as long as you can establish a brand new nation, then those people died for a worthy cause, didn't they?"
"Yes, yes, exactly. That's what I mean." Gao Yingxiang agreed without hesitation. Then he suddenly realized something was wrong. "Huh? Who are you? You're not from Gao Family Village, are you?"
Li Daoxuan replied calmly, "Just a passerby, offering a casual comment. Don't mind me. Please continue."
Gao Yingxiang's anger flared, and he wanted to lash out. But when he saw that no one from Gao Family Village, including the Village Chief, objected to Li Daoxuan's interruption, he found it hard to vent his rage.
Suppressing it, he continued speaking to the Village Chief and Gao Yiye.
"Just a few days ago, I completely crushed the imperial army at Huashi Town. Even the Supreme Commander of the Five Provinces, Lu Xiangheng, was no match for me. We also defeated the Guanning Iron Cavalry and severely wounded Cao Wenzhao."
The more he spoke, the more agitated he became.
"Uncle. Yiye. Believe me. What I'm doing is righteous. I am overthrowing corrupt officials who oppress and torment the people. Once all the evil officials are killed, the world will naturally be at peace, and everyone will live happily."
This time, Li Daoxuan remained silent.
But Gao Sanwa spoke up.
"Uncle Yingxiang, if all the officials are killed, who will govern the land?"
Gao Yingxiang sneered. "Who needs governance? No one needs to govern. If no one governs, everyone can live happily without paying taxes."
Gao Sanwa countered, "If no one governs, then when people murder, steal, rob, or assault innocent young women, who will deal with them?"
Gao Yingxiang paused, clearly startled. "This…"
Gao Sanwa pressed on. "If no one governs, who will repair broken roads? Who will mend breached river dikes? And when the Manchu invaders come, who will stand against them?"
Gao Yingxiang said stiffly, "Sanwa, you've grown up. You've become quite capable. You even dare to talk back to your uncle now."
Gao Sanwa stuck out his tongue. "The river shifts course every thirty years, so don't underestimate a youth in his poverty. Uncle Yingxiang, I've grown up, and I understand many things now. You can't look down on me anymore."
Only then did Gao Yingxiang suddenly realize something.
It was not just Gao Sanwa.
All the people from Gao Family Village carried a completely different air now.
In the past, they had been timid villagers, confined to a remote mountain settlement, ignorant of the wider world. But now, they were full of vigor and spirit. Their expressions were confident and composed.
Compared to them, his own decade of wandering the land felt strangely insufficient to establish authority.
He wished they had never seen the world, and would simply listen to him as before.
The Village Chief spoke again.
"Give it up. Come back with us to Gao Family Village. If you stop now, it will count as voluntary surrender, and you will not be sentenced to death. But if you continue…"
He raised his finger and pointed toward the sky.
"He will not spare you."