The Villain's Counterattack

"I am the King of Jiaodong. This military expedition did not have the permission of Your Majesty. It was a private action of the Jiaodong side. I just couldn't stand the short-sightedness of the Song court and wanted to give you a reminder. Now I am in Lin'an, without any soldiers or personal followers. If you capture me, you may be able to exchange me back to Zhoushan." Yang Kang rode his horse alone and followed the envoy of the Lin'an court back to Lin'an, then left a message at the foot of Lin'an city and left.

The envoy hesitated for a long time, but ultimately didn't have the courage to order the capture of this powerful prince, who was said to be a master of martial arts and had once defeated ten Jin generals. Even though he considered this young man, not even nineteen, more important than his status. He hurried to the palace with Yang Kang's previous instructions, ordering his men to follow quietly. If the emperor truly wanted to capture him, he could act later.

However, Yang Kang's martial arts skills were already top-notch, so how could ordinary people keep up with him? He disappeared in the blink of an eye. As for the war horses, he just borrowed them from the delegation and threw them directly to them. With his internal strength and lightness skills at this time, he could run three times faster than a thousand-mile horse.

When they arrived at the agreed place, they met Wanyan Honglie and Ouyang Feng. Ouyang Feng got some news about Yang Kang from his nephew. He knew that Yang Kang had fought against Hong Qigong and Huang Yaoshi and was not at a disadvantage. He was very curious about him, so the two took the opportunity to have a fight. Yang Kang's "Dragon Elephant Prajna Kung" had never stopped improving, and now he had a more refined control over his strength. He fought with Ouyang Feng for three hundred rounds without a clear winner, and then the two stopped.

Ouyang Feng, a martial arts master himself, was deeply impressed by Yang Kang's talent. However, the Dragon Elephant Prajnaparamita Sutra was not his cup of tea. Even when Yang Kang placed it before him, he only glanced at it briefly before losing interest. It was a true test of patience. Yang Kang's success, in addition to his extraordinary talent, was also due to the abundant nourishment of medicinal herbs. Ouyang Feng, himself a master of both poisons and medicines, naturally knew the drawbacks of this method. He was afraid that this kid would suffer greatly in the future.

"Mr. Ouyang is indeed an expert. Every medicine has its own side effects. I have already considered this consequence. However, the Mongols are growing stronger, and the Song Dynasty is resisting stubbornly. The country needs me to step forward, and I have the ability to do so. Even if it means suffering a little, I am fine. When you are young and healthy, you will inevitably get injured on the battlefield. The higher your martial arts skills, the fewer injuries you will suffer. It is better to bleed less and kill more enemies than to bleed more and die in battle with low martial arts skills." Yang Kang said nonchalantly, "I also know that my method is very destructive to the body, but if it were not for this, how could I have achieved what I have today?"

"Mr. Ouyang has been moving forward step by step, and is still making steady progress until now, but I have almost reached my limit. Unless I cultivate both inside and outside, and diligently study and practice the "Quanzhen Dao Ge" to resolve the ills in my body bit by bit, it will also take a lot of time to slowly recuperate. It will take more than ten or twenty years to recover, but I am recovering while destroying myself, which means the situation is destined to get worse and worse." Yang Kang misled Ouyang Feng step by step. They were equally good at using poison, but when it came to medicine, even ten Ouyang Fengs could not compare to Yang Kang, so he was able to deceive him.

The two of them talked happily about literature and martial arts. There was no ordinary person among the Five Great Masters of the World, and Ouyang Feng was no ordinary master. His martial arts were different from Hong Qigong's. They both benefited from the conversation, but Ouyang Feng was more inclined to internal strength training and martial arts moves, while Yang Kang was more inclined to physical training and fighting on the battlefield.

In Lin'an, Yang Kang still did his own thing, regardless of whether the Lin'an court would send people to arrest him or not. He ate whatever he wanted and played whatever he wanted, dressed as a scholar and walked around the city. However, no one associated him with the King of Jiaodong who was so powerful on the battlefield.

"Although Yue Fei and Han Shizhong are heroes, the emperor wanted to kill him and take away his military power, so Han and Yue had no choice but to obey. It can be seen that the power of the emperor is something that heroes cannot defy." In Cuiwei Pavilion on Feilai Peak, Yang Kang could not help but sigh. The end of a hero is bound to be tragic, but he has to be a rebellious hero in his lifetime and become a hero after his death.

"That's right, as long as a tyrant is in power and the government is in chaos, no matter how great a hero you are, it will be useless." Ouyang Feng didn't know what Yang Kang meant by that and responded with a comment, but it was just a discussion of the matter.

Upon hearing this, Wanyan Honglie said, "But if there is a wise ruler in power, with a great hero like Mr. Ouyang, we can realize our ambitions." Ever since Yang Kang's martial arts skills reached perfection and he demonstrated his prowess in the martial arts arena, defeating many generals of the Jin Dynasty, Wanyan Honglie has become more and more concerned about true masters, especially those at the level of the Five Greatest Masters in the World, who are like a stabilizing force.

"If we simply place our hopes on a wise ruler, it will only bring temporary prosperity. Without external pressure for a long time, coupled with the carefreeness of wielding immense power, we will lose our vigilance and become arrogant and extravagant. Environment is important, but so are laws." Yang Kang couldn't help but say, "It's very dangerous if the royal power loses its checks and balances. However, the royal power is so high and unshakable. If it can be shaken without demonstrating its majesty, this balance is truly difficult to strike."

"During the early years of Emperor Taizong of Tang, Li Shimin, the Heavenly Khan, many civil and military officials dared to speak out against him, even forcing him to accept them. This led to the Zhenguan Reign, when nations flocked to pay tribute. But in his later years, his prestige grew, and no one dared to remonstrate with him. He became stubborn and self-righteous, even resorting to elixirs in the hope of immortality. The Qin Emperor, Han Wudi, Tang Taizong, and Song Taizu all eventually turned to dust, seeking immortality before their deaths. Which of them didn't make mistakes in their later years?" Yang Kang sneered, "Young rulers are impulsive, and old ones are pedantic. Only the prime of life is most suitable."

Wanyan Honglie nodded repeatedly upon hearing this. His father was indeed old, and he was in his prime. What was Kang'er hinting at? This child really was always thinking about me and speaking for me.

The three of them left after chatting and laughing. Before leaving, Yang Kang left a short sentence in the pavilion with the Nine Yin Divine Claws: To be loyal to the country or to be loyal to the king, which is more important?

As they walked further away, Guo Jing and Huang Rong emerged from the flowers behind the pavilion. They couldn't help but look at each other, wondering why they suddenly appeared in Lin'an. Huang Rong's sharp eyes immediately spotted the line of words on the pavilion that were obviously new. "Brother Jing, look here."

Guo Jing was stunned when he saw the words, "Isn't it true that patriotism and loyalty to the emperor are the same?"

Huang Rong shook her head and said, "Yue Wumu was loyal to the emperor and patriotic, but he was killed by the emperor, which delayed his ability to serve his country. Loyalty to the emperor can sometimes be inconsistent with loyalty to the country. If Yue Wumu had insisted on the Northern Expedition to recover the lost territory, even if he had repelled the Jin soldiers, avenged his grievances, and brought back the Second Emperor, he would ultimately be just a hero, not a loyal minister, and would have been hated by the foolish emperor for his entire life. Because of the Second Emperor's return, he would no longer be able to rule as the young emperor."

Guo Jing was stunned when he heard this, "The bad guys are those capitulationist ministers like Qin Hui. The emperor just believed their slander. Even if Erzong comes back, how can he continue to be the emperor?" Even Guo Jing couldn't convince himself at this point.

Huang Rong noticed his distress and quickly changed the subject, saying, "Wanyan Honglie recruited Peng Lianhu and his gang to steal Yue Wumu's will. They've come here so unexpectedly, and the will might be in Lin'an. If he gets his hands on it, the people of the Great Song will suffer greatly."

As expected, upon hearing Wanyan Honglie's conspiracy, Guo Jing immediately became interested and said righteously: "We must not let him succeed." However, he completely forgot that all of them together were no match for Yang Kang and Ouyang Feng. After all, Hong Qigong was already seriously injured.

The two of them hurriedly chased after Yang Kang and others, and by accident they actually caught up with them. Then they set fire to Wanyan Honglie, which dampened his interest. Yang Kang became more and more contemptuous of Guo Jing and Huang Rong. They acted too recklessly and had no kindness to sympathize with ordinary people. How innocent these merchants were.

Forget it, I'll write it down in my little notebook and tell him everything one by one later to see if they recognize such great heroes.