Mistakenly Connected to the Jade Flower Branch

Ji Kongming took out his token and held it up in his hand: "Brothers, the old leader treated me well, but I also risked my life for the Great River Gang. I can say that I have done right by heaven and earth, and I have lived up to the old leader's expectations. Over the years, I have been devoted to Yao Mei, and all the brothers have seen it. Now that the old leader has passed away and Yao Mei is married, I have no more attachment to the Great River Gang."

Ji Kongming slammed the token in his hand down heavily, making a crisp clang: "From today onwards, I have nothing to do with the Dahe Gang."

The token struck Nianyao like a hammer blow, echoing in her mind. She instinctively jumped in fright: "Brother Kongming..."

Ji Kongming continued, "Today I leave the Great River Gang and will have nothing to do with it anymore. Brothers in the gang, if any of you are willing to follow me, you can put down your tokens and come with me. I promise Heaven that if I have a bowl of rice to eat, I will never let you drink porridge."

Is this a sign that they're starting a new group? The gang members looked at each other, bewildered.

Nianyao forced herself not to cry. After her father died, she succeeded to the position of gang leader. All the ship captains were higher-ranking than her, and many people were waiting to see the young girl make a fool of herself. She hadn't cried then, so how could she cry now?

Ji Kongming said, "Brothers, I'm going to count down from ten and then I'm leaving. Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three..."

Ji Kongming counted to three, and finally someone put down their token and walked towards him. Once one person did, two more followed, and soon half the people had thrown down their tokens and walked towards Ji Kongming.

Ji Kongming turned to Qin Jiu: "Uncle Jiu, no, Brother Jiu, if you come with me, I will share half of my wealth with you."

Qin Jiu slowly walked towards Ji Kongming. Nian Yao bit her lip tightly, trying not to cry out. The wavering brothers immediately became restless.

There are many older and more experienced ship owners, but among the uncles on Chongming Island, besides Xu Lai from Liulin, there is only Qin Jiu.

Nanfei laughed heartily: "When the tree falls, the monkeys scatter. Chief Xue, it seems your little tree can't support a big monkey. How about this, Ji Kongming, the young master and I will leave, you stay. Since the old chief won't allow divorce, then the young master can divorce his wife?"

Ji Kongming asked, "Can you make that decision?"

Nanfei turned to ask, "Young master, how is it?"

Luo An then turned his gaze to the scene. Before he could even nod, Qin Jiu reached out and picked up Ji Kongming's token to stop him, saying, "Young Master, I was the one who officiated your wedding to the Gang Leader. This is Qin Jiu's first time officiating a wedding. Although I don't expect you two to last forever, you can't just break up before a month is up. Don't I have any dignity?"

Nanfei said, "Ninth Brother, you only have a beard, not face."

Qin Jiu had no time for teasing. He walked over to Nian Yao and placed his hand on her shoulder. Nian Yao's stiff body instantly relaxed: "Brother Kongming..."

Ji Kongming interrupted her: "The brothers on Chongming Island are the elite of the Great River Gang, and they are bound to achieve great things. I swear to God that I will live and die with the brothers who respect me, and share wealth and honor."

As soon as he finished speaking, the token that Hongsong had been clutching fell to the ground. He lowered his head and walked towards Ji Kongming, his back to Nianyao, not daring to turn around.

Cedar called out, "Red..."

Ji Kongming said, "You have no right to speak in front of me."

Ji Kongming's voice was filled with resentment. Nianyao seemed to be provoked by him and blurted out, "Brother Kongming, I know you're angry, so I'm waiting for you to come back here."

Nanfei scoffed.

Nianyao strode to the sparse crowd and faced Ji Kongming and his brothers behind him: "Kongming is right. The brothers on Chongming Island are all elites carefully selected from the headquarters of various ships. Even if you leave with Kongming, Chongming Island will always be open to you. I will wait here for Kongming to come back, and I will also wait for you to come back."

Nianyao's tone was firm and resolute, yet she showed no intention of trying to persuade her to stay.

Ji Kongming sneered: "Chief, I will come back, we will all come back. But now, I must leave, we must leave."

Ji Kongming led all his brothers to the dock and boarded the Pangu.

Nianyao lost her earlier momentum and stared blankly in the direction where the Pangu ship had gone, looking weak and pitiful like an abandoned little animal.

Her father died, and she felt as if the sun had set and half the sky had collapsed. But at least there was Ji Kongming, and she firmly believed that Ji Kongming would help her hold up the other half of the sky.

Ji Kongming, he's been by Nianyao's side ever since she could remember. But now he's gone, without even turning back. Her world has collapsed.

Qin Jiu said, "Brothers, let's all disperse."

The brothers behind Nianyao quickly dispersed. Xuesong Jingsong looked at her retreating figure, wanting to say a few words of comfort, but not knowing what to say, he could only bend down to collect the tokens scattered on the ground and retreat.

Xu Lai walked over and said, "Chief, if you have no interest in this position, why not give it to him?"

Liu Lin lowered his eyes and recalled what the old gang leader had said: "Xu Lai was originally a guard in the Eastern Yang Imperial Guard, so be careful."

Nianyao and Qin Jiu both stared at Xu Lai, and even Nan Fei was somewhat surprised.

Xu Lai said, "Ji Kongming is capable and can command respect. If he can take most of the brothers on the island, he can take at least half of the ship captains. The Great River Gang will definitely split. If you give him the position of gang leader, at least the Great River Gang will not fall apart. He just left. If you go after him and give him face, he will be willing to come back."

The Pangu Ship was nowhere to be seen on the vast river. Nianyao shook her head and turned to walk towards Anshun Hall. Her pride wouldn't allow her to chase after someone who had abandoned her without even looking back, not even Ji Kongming.

Her steps were a little unsteady; she stumbled as she went up the steps but managed to grab a pillar to avoid falling. She could feel the gazes behind her, but dared not and could not turn around, and walked straight in.

Anshun Hall used to be where her father handled gang affairs, and now it's where she handles them. Nianyao slumped into a large chair and looked up to see her father's sword displayed on the antique shelf against the wall.

She murmured, "Father, if I had married Kongming, would things have turned out differently? He wouldn't have left, and all the brothers would still be together."

The room was silent. Her father was in heaven with her mother and would never respond to her again.

She didn't know how long she had been sitting when sunlight streamed in through the window, falling on the sword and reflecting in Nianyao's eyes. Nianyao seemed to wake up suddenly; she got up and picked up the sword. The sword was heavy, and the hilt bore the inscription "Bestowed by Imperial Decree."

Her sword was very light; her father had specially forged it for her. Ever since her father passed away and she took over as the gang leader, she knew she was no longer qualified to wield that light sword. She was her father's daughter; how could she be so pathetic? She couldn't even lift her father's sword.

When Nianyao walked out of the room, only Liu Lin was still standing in the courtyard.

Nianyao said, "Uncle Liu, come here!"

Liu Lin watched as she wielded the old gang leader's sword. Although it wasn't as imposing as usual, she no longer showed the timidity and dejection she had just displayed.

Liu Lin immediately smiled and said, "Come on, Uncle Liu will teach you a few tricks."

Nianyao was no match for Liulin, and she attacked recklessly. Liulin occasionally offered her pointers. Their sword practice lasted for an hour. Finally, Nianyao abandoned her sword and lay sprawled on the ground, completely disregarding her appearance.