Literary Master 1983

Chapter 184 Qi Shaoshang's Final End
Ever since Cha Liangyong stopped writing and devoted himself to politics, he is no longer responsible for the specific affairs of Ming Pao, but since he said so, everyone should of course listen to him.

Everyone came into the conference room, and because there were too many people and too few seats, most people stood.

After scanning these people, Zha Liangyong made an opening statement:

"We, the dozens of people at Ming Pao, are the elites of the newspaper industry in Hong Kong today!"

"I read many newspapers and wrote about yesterday's interview, which was very useful for my criticism!"

"Only our Ming Pao did not... I am very disappointed, and I also want to know what everyone thinks of my performance yesterday!"

Cha Liangyong's voice fell on everyone's mind, but no one took the lead, and everyone didn't know what Cha Liangyong's attitude was at the moment. If he expressed the wrong intention, it would be troublesome.

Then, Cha Liangyong sighed and began to read out the criticisms of him in the newspapers:
"What did the Oriental Times write? They said that Zha Liangyong showed his naivety in politics and that politics is not a martial arts arena! The Ta Kung Pao said that I was blinded by a single leaf and did not see Mount Tai. It was even more rude. After reading it, I realized that they were scolding me for not communicating with the mainland. They were right!"

"The Sing Tao Daily was particularly critical, saying that I was not well prepared and was too eager to take office."

"And Wen Wei Po, inspired by Yu Qie, blasted the British Hong Kong government for persecuting Hong Kong compatriots, and even told the Governor to go back to his hometown in England. The mass migration of 50,000 lower-class Hong Kong people should not be decided by the white government... They didn't criticize me, but they were actually criticizing me!"

Cha Liangyong raised his head and said:
"Now do you think they are right?"

Those who were asked by him all shrank their necks and lowered their heads: Damn, who dares to answer this!
"Dong Qiao, what do you think?"

Dong Qiao, editor of Hong Kong Place Names, said: "I don't have a deep understanding of this matter, so I'll let Zhang Jianbo answer it."

Zhang Jianbo was a business manager. He rolled his eyes at Dong Qiao and said, "The most urgent task is to reduce the impact! Let me give you an example. Unforgettable Tonight is very popular in some southern provinces of the mainland. They can directly receive satellite channels. Some special episodes with Hong Kong stars were burned into pirated copies and introduced into the mainland. Their college students all watched it..."

"But!" Zhang Jianbo said, "People in mainland China don't understand the standards of our Hong Kong shows. We quarrel every day. We talk about how many lovers we have had and how many times we have been lovers. But mainland China is very serious. In the eyes of Hong Kong people, this show is Mr. Cha's inconsiderateness and he can't argue with Yu Qie!"

"From the perspective of mainlanders, that's a lot of thinking, and it's very big. We should take away TVB's videotapes and try to prevent the programs from being circulated in mainland China..."

If you can’t win in actual combat, take away the videotape?
What kind of evil martial art is this?

Cha Liangyong felt terrible. He shook his head and said, "You are all wrong!"

"Kowloon Walled City is right under the noses of Hong Kong people, but most people don't know as much as a mainland writer... It shows that once something happens, the truth cannot be stopped. I think we should apologize in the newspaper and then stop touching this thing."

Everyone was stunned. They didn't expect that after Cha Liangyong spent the whole night thinking about it, the way to break the impasse was to apologize.

Absolutely not!
Dong Qiao said: "It's not to the point of an apology yet. It's just a literary interview... Although we talked about the demolition of Kowloon Walled City, if we apologize, wouldn't that raise the stakes?"

Cha Liangyong said, "It's over now that I've apologized. I won't touch on this topic again."

"What?"

Dong Qiao was confused.

Weren't you the one who started the debate first?
Cha Liangyong said, "I went back last night and thought about what Yu Qie said. He had some truth in his words. No, it was very true... I think I made several big mistakes!"

Then, Cha Liangyong explained one by one:

"First, it is always harder to do practical things than to criticize. He is the one who criticizes, and I happen to be the one who does things. We have different roles, and I will never win the argument!"

"Secondly, he said that the current situation in Hong Kong is not suitable for immediate demolition because I have no real power... I cannot be responsible for the bad results of things, so I am not qualified to take responsibility, so I have no power."

"Third, I observed a phenomenon..."

This time it was Zhang Jianbo who asked: "What phenomenon?"

Cha Liangyong said: "Wen Wei Po is not the only one to sharply criticize the Hong Kong British government! The New Evening News, Commercial Daily, and Jingbao all said so. In 1967, these newspapers also criticized the Hong Kong British government in this way. Then the writer and the person in charge of the printing factory were charged with 21 counts and sentenced to a total of 9 years in prison for each crime. He eventually served two years in prison..."

"It's not like that now. As far as I know, no one was arrested this time, let alone sentenced to jail. Yu Qie himself has become a celebrity in Hong Kong, and several universities have invited him to visit. It can be seen that today is not 20 years ago, and British Hong Kong is not the same as before..."

At this point, Zha Liangyong suddenly said loudly: "From the emotional and practical point of view of the people, no one supports me. How can I be a bad guy? Stop it. Everyone outside supports Yu Qie."

No one said a word, just remained silent.

Therefore, Cha Liangyong's apology was published in the subsequent Ming Pao, and it was written simply: "I, Cha Liangyong, have not fully understood the events of the previous interview on the program. I apologize to Mr. Yu for his rather unwarranted comments. I am even more sorry to the residents of Kowloon Walled City... The complexity and difficulty of the truth have exceeded my imagination."

"Ming Pao is still a fact-oriented newspaper with a neutral stance. This is due to Cha Liangyong himself."

Cha Liangyong apologized!

Mr. Cha, a master of martial arts novels, actually apologized for a previous editorial. Historically, Mr. Cha Liangyong's apologies mostly came after his personality changed in his later years, but before that, he did not apologize much.

Today his apology surprised many Hong Kong citizens because it was published on the front page.

This issue of Ming Pao was very popular and was quickly sold out throughout the city. Many people who bought it discovered that the ending of Against the Current was also published in it.

According to Wen Ruian's writing style, Qi Shaoshang is obviously a tragic character. In the original plot, he has rejected his beloved and looks disheartened. However, in the final chapter, readers find that Qi Shaoshang suddenly realizes the magical power and defeats his opponent Gu Xichao easily in the duel.

No, it was simply defeated several times.

Damn, how can I cheat?

This is not how Wen Ruian writes.

The traitor Gu Xichao had one arm cut off by Qi Shaoshang's beauty. Soon after he ran away, he met Qi Shaoshang, who also had only one arm left. Qi Shaoshang helped him detoxify, gave him weapons, and dueled with him.

Gu Xichao originally thought that he could get a few moves in return, and in his heart he laughed at Qi Shaoshang for being pedantic.

Qi Shaoshang, however, used "a sword technique that had never been seen before, which could kill people invisibly from a distance, accompanied by a sharp whooshing sound"! Instantly, Gu Xichao burst into blood and knelt down under the broken flagpole of Lianyun Village. His blue shirt was soaked in blood and turned into a dark iron color. The tip of Qi Shaoshang's sword was three inches from his throat.

"You lose." Qi Shaoshang's smile was colder than Ni Shui Han's. "Would you rather kneel down and delay your death for a while, or stand and die immediately?"

Gu Xichao said: "Either you give me a quick death or let me go."

"You don't have time, Gu Xichao, you have to keep track of time when speaking."

"Then why did you save me?"

"To calm my anger!"

Qi Shaoshang shook off his sleeves, revealing several land deeds, teahouses in Beijing, Jinling Escort Agency, Lingnan Salt Gang... all of which were collateral for the sects that Qi Shaoshang secretly saved. He also threw a golden lock to Gu Xichao, which fell to the ground with a clang. Gu Xichao glanced at it and saw the lock core engraved with the words "天下布武".

"Three hundred and sixty-five bandits and seventy-two land and water ports are setting fire at the same time!" Qi Shaoshang said, "In this martial arts world, the imperial court can't kill them all! Starting with you, the blood debt owed to Lianyun Village must be cleared!"

"If you kill me, what will you do? You will die too."

"I want to teach and pass down my martial arts. When I die, my son will continue, and my grandson will continue... My descendants will be endless, Lianyun Village will exist forever, and I will be immortal."

After saying this, Qi Shaoshang let out the pent-up anger in his chest, no longer lingered, stabbed Gu Xichao in the throat with a sword, and rode away on his horse.

"Against the Cold Current" ended in this way.

(End of this chapter)