Yefutidaolu

Chapter 285 Self-Saving? Harming Others?
Under the cover of darkness, protected by the assassin from Yan Pavilion, Yang Ling kept a close eye on Gao Jian.

Just now, Gao Jian asked an expected question.

Therefore, Yang Ling gave the expected answer, saying, "Of course, but it's better than the aristocratic families and the Taotie tribe taking action."

This is the truth.

Yang Ling only takes what is 'necessary'. He wants to protect so many people in Liangzhou, so naturally, he has to give something in return. How can the people expect to have a savior arrive without giving anything in return?
They have to fight alongside Yang Ling and support him together.

But at this moment, Gao Jian said, "I cannot let you collect it yourself."

"If we don't levy taxes, where will the money come from?" Yang Ling countered.

“I’ll give it to you,” Gao Jian said.

Yang Ling took a deep breath.

He truly lives up to his reputation as a big shot from the capital, casually handing over millions of dollars.
But he still sneered and said to Gao Jian, "I think I understand now. You are indeed not one of us. You think you are a savior, and you expect to save everyone by yourself. But have you ever thought that you can't save anyone like this? You are just indulging in self-satisfaction."

"God helps those who help themselves. Whether it's us or these people, in the end we can only rely on ourselves. You can save them for a while, but you can't save them forever."

Yang Ling looked at Gao Jian with a serious expression and pointed at him, saying, "You can't save anyone like this."

Gao Jian rubbed his temples, amused. "Why make excuses for yourself? If you can't save people, you can't save them. Why insist that the people you're trying to save need to help themselves?"

"An excuse? You think what I said is an excuse?" Yang Ling frowned and said to Gao Jian in disbelief, "Can you save them for the rest of their lives? They have to do it themselves."

Gao Jian shook his head and replied, "Of course they will save themselves, but only after everything has settled down, instead of forcing the baby to fight the tiger and then calling it 'self-help'."

"This isn't self-help; it's just that you can't handle the responsibility, so you have to let them take it on."

"Making these ordinary people contribute millions of dollars—isn't this so-called self-help just draining them of their very essence? How can they possibly stand up again after this?"

Yang Ling remained silent, but it was clear that he did not agree with Gao Jian's statement or his actions.

Although both were dissatisfied with the current situation of the people, their approaches were ultimately different.

That's what happens when people walk different paths.

However, Yang Ling still asked, "So what are you planning to do? Are you really going to take out a million gold coins?"

As he said this, the silent assassin from Yan Pavilion couldn't help but glance at Gao Jian.

Even for aristocratic families, a million gold coins in cash is not something they can easily come up with.

For large, established families, they may have a lot of money, often millions or tens of millions of taels of gold, which sounds like a lot, but most of that is assets.

It refers to industries such as formations, magical artifacts, mines, and forests, not cash. Such a large sum of cash would require even a bank to scrape together to come up with it.

"What else would I need so much money for? You can take these first." Gao Jian didn't stand on ceremony. He took out the gold notes worth about 100,000 gold coins that he had previously seized from Xue Haijun, rolled them up, and threw them over.

This thing is useless to me, and exchanging it at a merchant's shop in the Netherworld isn't a good solution either. Since things are already like this, I might as well give it to him.

"Over a hundred thousand...you just gave it to me like that?" Yang Ling took the items, opened them, and looked at the gold notes in front of him with some shock.

Tens of thousands of gold coins—what an enormous sum! Even a powerful expert at the seventh realm probably wouldn't have that much wealth in their entire fortune. Yet Gao Jian just tossed it over like that, treating money as nothing. Such magnanimity is astonishing, even if he doesn't approve of Gao Jian's actions.

Is there really someone in this world who sees money as dirt?

He had met many righteous men and chivalrous figures, including many generous individuals who would casually spend hundreds of gold coins as if it were nothing, claiming they were not burdened by money.

But if those people really gave them tens of thousands, or even hundreds of thousands of gold coins, how many of them could resist?
The person in front of him not only held back, but actually just casually tossed it to him?
"Lord Gao, aren't you afraid... I'll run away with the money?" Yang Ling held the gold note, feeling a burning sensation in his palm. The slight contempt he had felt for Gao Jian earlier because of their differing views vanished at this moment.

With golden shackles around his neck and jade ropes binding his body, surrounded by countless joyful sights, who would be willing to purify their heart and reduce their desires, and see through the illusions of the world? If there really were such a person, he would be a saint. I never expected to actually meet a saint today, and this saint actually just threw all this money at him to deal with, as if he wasn't worried at all that he would run away with the money.

“There’s no need for a reason to believe in something like this. Since I’m going to believe you, there’s no need to be suspicious or doubtful. I’ve seen your divine will and know that you’re not that kind of person. Besides… if you really did do such a thing, you can’t escape it, so why should I worry?” Gao Jian smiled.

The armory that Yang Ling seized already contained weapons worth far more than a few hundred thousand gold coins. If you add the group of cultivators who risked their lives for him, the value would be much higher. Why would Yang Ling abandon his foundation for some money?
Besides, he was doing dangerous work where his life was hanging by a thread.

“In that case, I will accept it. However, Lord Gao, although this amount of over 100,000 gold is a lot, it is only a drop in the bucket. To build a fortress, at least one million gold is needed. Where do you plan to get the other 800,000 and 900,000 gold?”

"Use these you have for now. As for the rest, I have my own way of dealing with them." Gao Jian waved his hand and didn't say anything more.

"Alright, I won't ask any more questions. Since we're going to do it, let's see it through to the end. Sir, I'm risking my life to fight you, but we're not in the same boat. However, since you're willing to trust me, I won't say any more. Let's go."

“Okay, let’s go.” Takami nodded.

Since the two had already made their decision, there was no need to say anything more. They mounted their strange beasts and set off under the cover of night.

As for the assassin, he remained silent from beginning to end, and made no other moves except to save Yang Ling. However, after the two left, he put away his sword with some interest.

In the environment of the Divine Dynasty, there are mostly scheming and despicable people, but today, I actually ran into two of them.

The Yan and Zhao regions were once home to many generous and tragic heroes, but now, under the divine dynasty, they have gradually fallen into decadence, swept up by the ways of the world, and have lost their former chivalrous spirit.

This was true for the entire Divine Dynasty, and Liaodong was no exception.

But Liangzhou, this poor and remote place, is quite interesting. Today, I was entrusted to come and protect the Dharma, and I have truly witnessed a good show.

Since that's the case... let's take another look.

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And on the other side-

Gao Jian and Yang Ling had already set off. They traveled through the night, arriving at a village. By then, the sun had risen, and they were only about a thousand miles from Yongning, almost there.

So the two decided to stop on the road for a while, mainly because of Yang Ling.

Yang Ling's cultivation method requires him to meditate at sunrise and sunset every day, absorbing the sun's vital energy and the evening energy to refine his cultivation.

This practice is called "Sunbathing," and it is a method of replenishing Yang energy.

The reason it's called "facing the sun" is that you turn your back to the sun and let it shine on your back. In ancient times, people elegantly referred to sunbathing as "sunbathing with a heavy heart."

There are five meridians along the human spine, with the Governing Vessel (Du Mai) in the center. The Bladder Meridian of Foot Taiyang has two branches, making a total of four branches running left and right.

On both sides of the Du meridian.

The Governing Vessel (Du Mai) is the sea of ​​Yang meridians, governing all the Yang energy in the body. The "Examination of the Eight Extraordinary Meridians" states: "The Governing Vessel originates and runs along the back of the body. It is the governor of all Yang meridians, hence it is called the sea of ​​Yang meridians."

Therefore, there are the Ren and Du meridians, which are the Zi and Wu meridians of the human body. They are the way of the rise and fall of Yang fire and Yin talisman in alchemy, the place where Kan water and Li fire intersect, the source of primordial energy, and the source of true breath. If one can open these two meridians, then all meridians will be open.

The Governing Vessel connects the kidneys, heart, tongue, brain, eyes, throat, nose, and other parts of the body. At the same time, acupoints such as Mingmen, Dazhui, and Baihui are all connected by this Governing Vessel, making its importance self-evident.

Sunbathing the back in the sun is essentially utilizing the openings on the skin to absorb yang energy.

As the saying goes, "The greatest treasure of heaven is the sun; the greatest treasure of man is the true yang." The sun is the essence of the sun, and its light strengthens the yang energy of man, which is extremely beneficial. The yang energy in the human body is like the sun in the sky, providing warmth and resisting cold. When the yang energy is sufficient, the body is healthy and light. "Bathed in the warmth of the sun" can make the back feel slightly warm, and the whole body will feel comfortable.

This yang energy is effective in opening the Mingmen (Gate of Life), Dazhui (GV14), and Baihui (GV20) acupoints.

Just as the sun rose, the weather cleared and the wind subsided. Yang Ling sat down next to a village, resting and cultivating, collecting the yang energy of heaven and earth to channel into his Du meridian and Dazhui point.

Gao Jian watched the situation from the side, secretly calculating the circumstances and collecting yang energy. Was he preparing to condense his yang spirit?
However, Gao Jian was not interested in the other party's technique. Although the Sun-Bearing Spread was profound, it was not a secret method, but rather a common and useful method among the general public.

So he looked at that village again, the village near Yongning... what must it be like?
This observation lasted for more than an hour. Before Yang Ling finished his cultivation, a grand drama unfolded, truly making Gao Jian sigh at the unpredictability of the human world.

In that village before, everything was so peaceful and serene, but here, it's chaos and disorder.

The people living here were scheming and bickering at their doorsteps this morning, with sisters-in-law arguing endlessly. Today they're fighting over a field ridge, and tomorrow they'll be cursing each other over a pile of chicken droppings.

I knew it! How could every place be a peaceful village? There are plenty of villages where people are cursing and complaining. The village Yang Ling chose earlier was probably intentional, a test to see who he was.

However... it's fine to jump up and down cursing, to grab land and take advantage of others; it adds a touch of life. As long as it's not about eating the last of one's children and drowning them in a pig cage, one can just look at the brilliant ideas.

Moreover, this observation revealed something: today, there was a commotion at the entrance of the manor, as if someone had come to fetch a bride.

Gao Jian was also invited, and they said there would be a feast for him as he passed by, because it was the wedding of a local magistrate today, and the feast was very generous!
Gao Jian smiled and, not wanting to eat for free, paid a gift and went over for breakfast.

On the way, I learned that it was indeed a local magistrate from the county government getting married. It was a formal marriage, so it was a rare event, and everyone in the village came.

The woman who got married was a local girl named Zhou Hemiao.

As you can tell from the name, it was given by a farmer.

Gao Jian listened to the aunts and other women around him bragging and learned some things.

Like most girls in the countryside, Zhou Hemiao knows that men are born to farm, while women are born to accompany men in farming.

Her future life would probably consist of getting married and then being carried to another village to farm.

However, when she was sixteen, this girl followed her father, who sold grain, and pushed a small wheelbarrow to Yongning County.

That time, her thinking was completely overturned.

As she looked at the buildings of the county town getting closer and closer on the bumpy dirt road, she realized that there was another kind of settlement in the world besides villages, called a city.

As she wandered aimlessly through the various buildings and roads, pushing her small wheelbarrow, an idea came to her mind.

That is, she must marry a city man and move to the city in her lifetime.

Therefore, she rejected the arranged marriage and would go to the city every now and then, hoping to find a man in the city who would marry her, not as a concubine, but as his principal wife, so that she could be considered to have "entered the city".

Zhou Hemiao's realization of this dream was not without basis. In the village, she was the only one who stood out. Her father doted on her since she was a child and rarely let her do any work. She was fair-skinned and had a large bust, captivating countless men between the fields and the land.

Otherwise, her dream of living in the city would have been nothing but a pipe dream. After tireless searching, Zhou Hemiao's dream finally came true; she married a fat and ugly man from the county town.

The man lived in the county town and managed to get a job in the county government office using his family's traditional martial arts skills.

When Zhou Hemiao married her husband and became a resident of the county town, the whole village was abuzz. The girls were jealous of her, the women were jealous of her mother, and the men were jealous of her husband.

Gao Jian saw this very clearly. At the wedding ceremony, many people said to their daughters, "Look at them, learn from them." Zhou Hemiao's father, meanwhile, stood on the road outside the village leading to the city, so excited he didn't know what to do.

Soon, when his portly son-in-law appeared in the village, the farmer bowed and walked beside him, accompanying him to receive the envious glances of countless villagers, including the usually arrogant village chief, who now cautiously approached him to strike up a conversation.

The fat son-in-law sat down in the house, sitting upright in the main room, looking down on the prominent people in the village with an arrogant attitude.

Gao Jian was watching from the side, and some people were glancing at him, seemingly thinking that his clothes were very new and that he looked like a city person, and wanted to come up and talk to him.

Gao Jian then turned and left.

In front of him was Yang Ling's cultivation, and behind him was the village's wedding procession.

Both of these are part of the human world.

Let's go to Yongning area instead.

(End of this chapter)