Chapter 971: People Are Hard to Predict

Di Hu listened, slightly startled, then wiped his mouth with his sleeve.

"Dead old Hei Yang... are you okay?" he asked stupidly. "Weren't you just saying you weren't going? Could it be that your face is scratched by Tian Hu? Are you going to seek revenge on him?"

"This is really difficult for me..." Hei Yang sighed. "In this plan, a normal person only needs to die once, but I might have to die twice."

"What...?" Di Hu chuckled awkwardly. "Dead old Hei Yang, don't try to play the hero here. If you have something important to do, just go ahead. That Tian Hu might have the upper hand over me a bit, but I can try to face him. Once the others have finished killing their counterpart Sheng Xiao, they can come help me."

After hearing this, Hei Yang instantly stood up, grabbed Di Hu by the collar, and slammed him hard against the wall. He looked extremely angry.

Di Hu hadn't expected this reaction from Hei Yang and just stared with wide eyes, not knowing what to do.

"Money-losing Tiger! Don't be a fool!" Hei Yang roared quietly. "How can you still not understand...? No one else is going to help you...!!"

"What... what do you mean...?" Di Hu blinked. "This is something we're all working together on... What's wrong with helping each other out?"

"There's no such thing as working together!" Hei Yang persisted, leaning in close to Di Hu and whispering, "Money-losing Tiger, if you really want to stay alive, then don't bother with that Tian Hu... Come with me when the time comes!"

"You..." Di Hu reached out and pushed Hei Yang away, looking displeased. "What are you up to? Does Yang Ge's word not count anymore?"

Hei Yang paused for a moment. "Money-losing Tiger... do you trust me?"

"I do!" Di Hu nodded.

"Then trust me and don't go!" Hei Yang said. "This plan wasn't even Yang Ge's idea—someone else wants to get you killed... Damn it, don't you have a daughter out there? Don't you want to see her?!"

"I..." Di Hu hesitated briefly, then caught the key point. "Wait, this plan wasn't Yang Ge's...?"

"It's Di Niu's adjusted plan," Hei Yang said. "There was never any counterpart killing—it's all fake!"

After hearing this, Di Hu's eyes trembled slightly. It took him several seconds before he slowly said, "What if it's real...?"

"What... what the hell do you mean 'what if'!" Hei Yang shouted angrily. "You're going to die! Do you even realize you're going to die?!"

"Hey..." Hearing this, Di Hu actually smiled sheepishly. "Old Hei... calm down, why are you getting so worked up?"

He pulled Hei Yang over to the side, dragged over two chairs, and sat down first.

"Even if this wasn't Yang Ge's idea..." Di Hu murmured, "I'll just ask you one question: If I go kill Tian Hu, is that beneficial to Yang Ge?"

"You..."

Hei Yang was stunned for a long time, then reached out and slapped Di Hu hard across the face.

Smack!

"You're the one calling me a hero... but look at yourself! How are you any better?!"

He looked even angrier than before, and Di Hu had never seen Hei Yang like this. Usually, even if he said he was mad, a couple of comforting words would calm him down, but this time, it didn't seem to work.

Di Hu, who had just been slapped, rubbed his face but still pulled Hei Yang to sit down. "Old Hei... Old Hei, just hear me out."

Hei Yang sat down with a stern expression, his face unusually serious.

"Old Hei... I'm not the sharpest, so help me think this through."

Hei Yang still didn't say anything.

"You say, if it weren't for Yang Ge... would we still be Di Ji right now?" Di Hu asked with a smile. "Or even... would we still be Sheng Xiao? So, our lives..."

"Don't try to fool me with your twisted logic..." Hei Yang gritted his teeth. "What kind of touching act are you putting on?"

"But that's the truth..."

"Bullshit! Let me ask you this... Isn't Yang Ge's whole reason for bringing you this far so you can stay alive?" Hei Yang said sharply. "Now you're acting all noble at the last moment—do you really think this self-sacrificing behavior will make Yang Ge happy?!"

"You..."

"I'll say it upfront," Hei Yang continued. "If Yang Ge himself told me, 'Let Money-losing Tiger die,' I'd agree without a second thought—even if it meant I had to do it myself... But as long as he doesn't say it, you can't die."

After listening, Di Hu started to feel anxious. "You dead old Hei... why are you being so stubborn? Can Yang Ge plan for every little twist and turn? This operation spans so much time—a single person's ulterior motive or a small incident could change everything..."

"So what?"

"So we have to take some initiative to share the burden for Yang Ge!" Di Hu said. "As his students, we understand him better than anyone. He'd let us make decisions on our own at key moments."

"This situation is completely different!" Hei Yang replied. "This plan involves too many people, and not everyone is as selfless as you. Everyone has their own agenda! Do you know that?! The hardest thing in the world to control is people! It's freaking 'people'!"

"It won't be that hard..." Di Hu said. "As long as everyone works together, we can..."

Hei Yang leaned forward again, grabbing Di Hu's collar once more. "Money-losing Tiger... do you know why Qin Shi Huang's 'unified weights and measures' is still praised today as something that benefited the people?!"

"What...?"

"It's just about standardizing all the units of measurement—something a single decree could handle—so why has it lasted through history?!"

"You... you know I don't have much education... I..."

"It's because there are too many people! Too many, do you understand?!" Hei Yang said fiercely. "Even in a company of just ten people, there are always two or three who don't get what the boss says. In a chat group of twenty, there are always five or six who miss the announcements... Now, scale that up to hundreds, thousands, or tens of thousands! How do you ensure a clear order is understood and carried out by everyone?! That's the terrifying thing about 'people'! 'People' are the creatures most likely to think they're smarter than they are!"

After hearing this, Di Hu fell silent.

He knew full well that the rebel team wasn't united, and Yang Ge's plan involved even more people than just this small group.

On such a large scale, if even one person backed out or misunderstood the plan, everything could fall apart.

"But... but that doesn't make sense, right...?" Di Hu asked.

"Money-losing Tiger, how much clearer do I have to be...?"

"No... I'm not arguing with you," Di Hu said. "Old Hei, the reason Yang Ge is Yang Ge is because he knows how to control 'people'."