Chapter 77: Stubborn to the End

In business, especially large-scale ventures, it is exceedingly rare for anyone to be unaffiliated, and to think someone might make a move on warhorses—just like a military contractor in later times—Shen Shi would never believe for a moment that such a person lacked powerful backing.

Yet, the news Gongsun Ce brought was precisely this.

Gongsun Ce said, “This Zhao Xue was originally with the Prince of Jin’s household, but he is hopelessly addicted to gambling. Before long, the Prince found out and expelled him. He’s merely trading on the connections he once had, and now he’s in the business of dealing warhorses.”

Gongsun Ce explained this to the Shen family to ease their concerns.

“A scoundrel!” Shen Liang believed him, and, empathizing, muttered a curse.

Recently, he too had found himself saddled with such a “scoundrel,” arranged by Shen Shi’s mother. Ostensibly, the person was there to serve him, but in reality, they were there to keep track of his comings and goings. As soon as work was over, he was expected to return home. In this respect, even with a job, he could not escape his mother’s grip.

Shen Liang and his wife trusted Gongsun Ce’s explanation, as did the old matriarch. Shen Shi, however, remained silent.

It was Shen Shi who saw Gongsun Ce out when he left.

“Does Zhao Xue truly have no one backing him?”

...

“He truly asked that?”

Upon returning to the county office, Gongsun Ce reported every detail of his visit.

“Yes, my lord. He said that in matters such as these, it’s impossible for there not to be someone pulling the strings.”

Bao Zheng pondered for a moment. “I did not expect someone so young to see so deeply.”

“My lord, is there truly someone behind all of this?” Gongsun Ce was startled—this was news even to him.

After a moment’s thought, Bao Zheng produced four letters. They were from friends at court, all concerning this very batch of warhorses. “Read these. The letters say someone is targeting these horses and urge this county to follow the trail and uncover the mastermind.”

“So there really is someone behind it all.” After reading the letters and hearing Bao Zheng’s confirmation, Gongsun Ce immediately made for the door.

“Master Gongsun, where are you off to?” Bao Zheng asked.

“To warn the Shen family to be on their guard,” Gongsun Ce replied as a matter of course.

Bao Zheng nodded at first, then added, “It is right to warn them, but I intend to use this shipment of horses to investigate the state of the Song dynasty’s horse farms.”

“My lord, are you serious?” Gongsun Ce asked in surprise.

“Yes. I understand the gravity and far-reaching consequences of this matter, but precisely because of that, I do not wish to alert them just yet. I was sent here by imperial command to serve, and I must do my duty for the emperor.”

“My lord!”

...

Elsewhere, at the Shen estate.

“How dare they covet the horses of the Shen family? I’ll break their legs myself!”

Learning that someone had designs on their warhorses, Shen Liang gathered his retainers and armed them, ready for a serious confrontation.

Bao Zheng assumed that by keeping things secret, the Shen family would do nothing; he believed they were merely horse breeders, nothing more. As for deeper involvement, unlike Gongsun Ce, the Shen family did not enjoy Bao Zheng’s trust.

Bao Zheng admired Shen Shi’s martial prowess, but that did not mean he trusted him. The two were not the same.

But Bao Zheng did not understand what warhorses meant to a true warrior. For such men, their horses are like a second life; anyone who dared to threaten their steeds would never be forgiven.

“My, my, the master is going all out this time!” Baniang laughed, seeing Shen Liang distributing weapons.

Everything within Shen Shi’s wing of the house was under his own control. The addition of a new resident—an attractive woman—was not only unopposed by the old matriarch and Shen Shi’s mother, but even welcomed. Should this woman become pregnant, it would be even better.

Baniang was keenly aware of this, which emboldened her to behave with increasing freedom.

“A calamity! This is a disaster!” she murmured anxiously when Shen Shi did not respond.

She frowned, clearly uneasy. “Will this be a minor misfortune, or a great catastrophe?” Her voice was full of worry. “Young master, aren’t you at all concerned?”

“Me? There’s nothing to worry about. My teachers were the Ten Disciples of Xuanyuan; I slay both men and their karma. Heaven and earth are impartial, treating all creatures as straw dogs,” Shen Shi replied casually.

“Damn that Human Sect!”

This was not the first time she had been left speechless, yet she was powerless. The doctrines she had learned—good and evil, right and wrong—had no effect on Shen Shi. For instance, in response to “Heaven and earth are impartial, treating all creatures as straw dogs,” Shen Shi explained that heaven and earth are neither benevolent nor cruel; they treat all things equally. If one cannot transcend the mundane, there is little difference between a person and a straw dog.

How could this be? Are humans and demons not natural enemies? Are humans not supposed to hate and fear demons?

Though she had not been with Shen Shi long, her worldview had already begun to collapse.

Why did her sisters absorb the essence of talented humans? At first, it was to understand the teachings of the Dao. But later, it was resentment—resentment that humans looked down on demons, which drove her to become a “dragon.”

But after meeting Shen Shi, everything she thought she understood was upended.

It turned out that the Human Sect’s doctrine held that there was no difference between humans and demons.

What was this? It was as if all her deeply held beliefs—their own persecution complex—were being overturned. Weren’t humans supposed to hunt them relentlessly?

Could it be that all along, it was only their own assumptions? Had they harmed others simply because of their own prejudices?

No! Impossible! It was humanity’s fault, not theirs.

...

Though Baniang forced herself to hold onto the belief that humans and demons were fundamentally different, her worldview was indeed shifting, even if she was not ready to admit it.

Unable to accept this, she blurted, “Don’t be so pleased with yourself. So what if you studied under the Ten Disciples of Xuanyuan! Even your father still—” She caught herself before mentioning the matter of the stolen texts. According to the Human Sect’s teachings, stealing texts was not theft, but fate.

If “humans and demons are distinct,” then a demon stealing the Human Sect’s heritage would be a point of pride. Yet the Human Sect’s teachings drew the line between immortals and straw dogs.

Shen Shi looked at her. Realizing her slip, Baniang quickly changed the subject, “Warhorses are no trivial matter. This could even be a struggle for succession.”

“You know about the struggle for succession?” Shen Shi laughed.

It was indeed amusing. Baniang and her kind had always believed that humans would never rest until they exterminated demons. Taoists were demon slayers. Thus, anything they did to humans was justified—it was the fault of heaven and earth’s lack of benevolence.

But with Shen Shi, she suddenly found her understanding was wrong. “Heaven and earth are impartial” did not mean “heaven and earth are unjust,” but that “heaven and earth are supremely fair, treating all equally.”

Eight centuries of beliefs and values were shattered in an instant. She had already suffered a mental breakdown once.

Fortunately, her fate was not to perish. The Shen family’s rising fortune had saved her, as the saying goes: when fortune arrives, all forces of nature align, allowing her to escape calamity.

But eight hundred years of habit would not change overnight, even after a breakdown.

“Of course I know. The human race is favored by heaven…”

See? In her heart, she already acknowledged the equality of all beings, yet as soon as she spoke, it was “the human race is especially blessed,” and her expression said as much—humans had been granted extraordinary favor.

It was like the saying, “a dead duck’s beak is hard”—stubborn to the end, perfectly describing her. A duck’s beak is always hard, even after it dies. Whether steamed, fried, stir-fried, or stewed, the beak remains tough and unyielding.