At dusk, Shopkeeper Liu sent Liu Mang to walk Yang Ge home.
Along the way, Liu Mang kept looking over his shoulder.
Puzzled, Yang Ge asked, "What are you looking for?"
Liu Mang said, "The soldiers on night patrol."
Yang Ge smiled. "Don't bother. If the night patrol could come looking for trouble with me, Fang Ke might as well go home and herd sheep."
Liu Mang clicked his tongue. "I figured no night patrol would dare meddle in your affairs, but I still wanted to see. No wonder they say it's easy to be an official when you have someone at court. You've only just come back, haven't even shown your face, and someone's already taken the initiative to smooth everything out for you. What a life... tsk!"
Yang Ge glanced at him and smiled. "Jealous?"
"If I said I wasn't, would you believe me?"
"I paid for it with my life. Still jealous?"
Liu Mang thought it over, then nodded. "Fair point..."
Yang Ge led Erhei and Little Yellow a little farther before adding, "Life has a shore, but the road stretches without end. You could say every choice is right, or that every choice is wrong. But what matters most is living in the present and finding happiness in what you have. You can't keep eating from your bowl while eyeing the pot, envying the distant rivers and lakes when you're at the Imperial Court, then envying the lofty halls of power when you're out in the martial world... People like that find it hard to live their own lives well."
Liu Mang glanced at him and teased, "What, giving your big brother a warning?"
Yang Ge smiled. "Not really. If you truly wanted to try your luck at the Imperial Court, I'd support you. It's just