Chapter 151: Sima Ge's Determination

A wooden table was shattered by Sima Ge. Xiao Zhi had never seen him so furious before; the initial panic and unease suddenly erupted into tears.

To avoid being branded as a deserter by Sima Ge, Xiao Zhi had deliberately stained his clothes with some red so as not to lose face in front of his master.

Sima Ge roared, "Huang Changjun! He goes too far! When he wanted money, I gave him money! When he wanted lumber, I gave him lumber, and I even went to help him renovate his shabby house. Never did I expect him to take human lives with such utter disregard!"

With that, he smashed his fist against the wall again, his sturdy fist punching a direct hole through the wooden partition. Two other disciples stood nearby, weeping bitterly. Seeing this, Xiao Zhi began to cry even louder.

Xiao Zhi sobbed, "I never imagined that monster would actually send men over to slaughter them. Two of our brothers were ambushed and killed, their bodies left exposed in the horse market in broad daylight..."

Sima Ge shouted, "Bastard! Why did they ambush my disciples? On what grounds?!"

Sima Ge's anger had reached its absolute limit, beyond which no further rage could grow. The disciples standing nearby were already clenching their fists and rolling up their sleeves.

"We must avenge them! We cannot let them die in vain without knowing why!"

Hearing these words, Sima Ge's expression underwent a subtle, conflicting reversal—a mix of hesitation, doubt, and inexplicable melancholy.

At that moment, Xiao Zhi finally understood Sima Ge's mindset. It turned out this was precisely why Sima Ge had repeatedly rejected his invitations before.

"All of you, calm down. Master Sima is already in so much pain. Huang Changjun's influence is so vast, and he hasn't been the local bully of our street for just a day or two. If our household alone rushes in, wouldn't that be like throwing eggs at a rock? We've already lost two brothers; we can't afford to be wiped out entirely!"

Another disciple, showing no fear of death, stepped forward and sharply rebuked him.

"On the very first day, Master taught us that virtue must precede the pursuit of skill. Have you forgotten all of that? Yet here you are saying such things! To think you previously came with such burning passion to recruit us into some rebel army! You're nothing more than a coward who clings to life and fears death!"

The anger of the two disciples was thoroughly stirred up, which fit Xiao Zhi's intentions perfectly. Sacrificing a little bit of his own pride was of no great consequence if it meant successfully luring several people to stand unwaveringly by Luo Gan's side. As for Sima Ge, he had always been a figure of great respect and virtue in the workshop district. The reason several families had initially refused to submit to Huang Changjun was precisely because Sima Ge's prestige had prevented them from having their way.

As for why Sima Ge was later bullied by Huang Changjun to such an extent, Xiao Zhi had learned about it from a deceased carpenter. Sima Ge once had a young son who had been spoiled rotten since childhood. The boy possessed an extraordinary talent for craftsmanship and, from a very young age, would follow Sima Ge to make various artifacts. However, his temperament was exceptionally eccentric; he inherited Sima Ge's bad temper, constantly stirring up trouble everywhere and never giving his family a moment of peace.

Sure enough, disaster struck eventually. One day, young Sima beat a man to death, who turned out to be none other than a retainer under Huang Changjun. The reason was quite simple: young Sima, fearing neither heaven nor earth, was drinking in a tavern when he heard a neighboring retainer loudly boasting that Master Sima's craftsmanship was utterly atrocious. This instantly enraged him, and the two engaged in a fierce brawl that resulted in the retainer's death.

Sima Ge sensed that the situation was dire the moment he heard the news, and immediately gathered his men to rush to the scene. However, he arrived a step too late, as young Sima had already been taken away by Huang Changjun.

The other party's demand was very simple: Sima Ge had to kneel and submit to Huang Changjun's control, and that would be the end of it. The people of the surrounding workshop district jointly petitioned to resist to the very end. Sima Ge himself felt that young Sima had done nothing wrong and that private lynching should not be used to settle the matter. He originally intended to report the case to the authorities, but upon hearing that going to the officials would bring more misfortune than good, he dropped the idea.

That night, Sima Ge received a "little gift" sent from Huang Changjun's side—a bloody, mangled finger, which left Sima Ge panic-stricken and horrified. He had clearly perceived Huang Changjun's firm determination to make Sima Ge submit completely.

The next day, a crowd gathered at the entrance of Huang Changjun's tavern, armed with eggs and rotten vegetables, shouting curses at Huang Changjun. Only Huang Changjun remained calm and composed, looking with triumph at the expression of Sima Ge at the front of the crowd.

Huang Changjun asked, "What is it? Is there something Master Sima has not yet told me?"

Sima Ge remained silent, holding back his breath.

Huang Changjun continued, "Oh! So you didn't come to say anything. Then what is Master Sima planning to do? That's easily settled, easily settled! I'll count to three! If nothing happens by then, you won't have another chance."

Under the relentless pressure from his opponent, Sima Ge finally chose to kneel in the crowd, apologizing to Huang Changjun. The opponent burst into a triumphant laugh that chilled the hearts of everyone present.

Everyone felt a sense of shame over Sima Ge's kneel. The so-called uprising completely lost its justification because of this act. The people gradually dispersed, their mouths filled with curses against Sima Ge, and his prestige was gone forever.

In the end, young Sima was indeed released, but his fingers were ruined to the point where he could no longer practice carpentry. Shunned and ostracized everywhere within the city of Chang'an, he lost his former swagger, and his old father could no longer shield him. Filled with despair and desolation, young Sima attempted to end his life several times. Finally, a hardened Sima Ge sent young Sima away from the city of Chang'an, dispatching guards to protect him as he grew up. That departure lasted more than a decade, and the father and son never saw each other again.

This was the reason behind Sima Ge's current desolation. Only people from afar came to visit him out of admiration, but no old customers within Chang'an city cared to patronize him anymore. His relationship with neighboring shopkeepers was exceptionally awkward, and no one was willing to pay for his reputation. What remained were only cowardice, disdainful accusations, and even people blaming Sima Ge for why everyone was being bullied by Huang Changjun today.

When Xiao Zhi heard this story, he began to mourn for Sima Ge. In times of adversity, whatever a father does is deemed wrong, yet in the end, he sacrificed his own dignity to save his child, only to be spurned by others who believed he had harmed their collective interests. Isn't this precisely why people gather together? They assemble because of shared interests, and they part ways—even fighting to the death—because of those very interests.

Sima Ge finally made up his mind, kicking over the last remaining table in the room.

"I, Sima Ge, will never again submit to any Huang Changjun or green dog-head! If anyone dares to stop me, they shall share the exact same fate as this table!"

Perhaps because Sima Ge was old and frail, although he managed to kick the table over, it was painfully obvious that his own foot was hurting terribly. At the very least, he succeeded in overturning the table, allowing the matter to proceed.

Luo Gan was quite satisfied with the news brought back by Xiao Zhi, who realized that Luo Gan's intelligence-gathering capabilities were precise to such an astonishing degree.

"Brother Luo, tell me honestly, was all of this planned by you from the very beginning?"

For the first time, a trace of fear toward Luo Gan appeared in Xiao Zhi's eyes, causing Luo Gan to hesitate slightly.

"I knew Master Sima was once the most prestigious figure in Chang'an city. If he joined us, it would undoubtedly be a tremendous help, which is why I had you recruit him. As for everything that happened afterward, it far exceeded both your expectations and mine..."