Reduced to this state, Mr. Ge had been left with nothing but despair. But when Xu Yi asked him that question, a thought stirred in his mind, and suddenly the way forward opened up.
After a moment's thought, he said, "If my guess is right, Your Excellency would rather settle this peacefully?"
Xu Yi laughed. "Now that I have the upper hand, why would I ask for peace?"
Mr. Ge knew Xu Yi was testing him. So he stopped holding back. "When all is said and done, Brother Xu was forced into opposing the Black Lotus Cult. Now that the Black Lotus Cult under Brother Xu's jurisdiction has disappeared, the fundamental conflict is gone. There's no need to fight the Black Lotus Cult to the bitter end. Besides, speaking honestly, does Brother Xu truly believe the Black Lotus Cult is an evil cult?"
"An evil cult is one that lays waste to the people and brings disaster upon the world. But the Black Lotus Cult merely gathers followers and earns their faith. How is that any different from the government offices of the various prefectures and subordinate territories? What's more, to earn the people's trust, the Black Lotus Cult often aids the poor and orphaned, and punishes the wicked. It has more human warmth than those officials who do nothing but harvest the people's wish-clouds when the time comes, without a care for their lives."
"Brother Xu is a man who treasures old ties, willing to keep useless old acquaintances like Cheng Yan and Zhong Wu by his side and give them important roles. I believe you're a man with a heart, too. So I'll venture to guess that deep down, Brother Xu doesn't truly hate or resent the Black Lotus Cult. You were forced to oppose it only because