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Thread: Was Gwok Jing serious about executing Lo Yau Gerk if he failed to produce Wong Yung?

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    Moderator Ken Cheng's Avatar
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    Default Was Gwok Jing serious about executing Lo Yau Gerk if he failed to produce Wong Yung?

    Towards the end of LOCH, Gwok Jing, in his capacity as a commander in the Mongolian army, gave Beggar's Union Elder Lo Yau Gerk the order to find Wong Yung (who was then missing in action) and bring her to him. Gwok Jing made it clear to Elder Lo that if Lo failed in this mission, Gwok Jing would execute him.

    Do you think Gwok Jing seriously would have executed Elder Lo? That doesn't sound in-character for Gwok Jing. Naturally, he wanted to see Wong Yung badly, but it's not like Gwok Jing to kill a good man if that man failed to make it happen.

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    Member So Yen's Avatar
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    I think it was just an empty threat. I don't think he would actually do it. I mean, didn't he tried to get HR not to kill people without being rational?

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    Moderator Ken Cheng's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by So Yen View Post
    I think it was just an empty threat. I don't think he would actually do it. I mean, didn't he tried to get HR not to kill people without being rational?
    Making empty threats is just as uncharacteristic of Gwok Jing as threatening a good man on a very weak rationale. What Gwok Jing did to Lo Yau Gerk is borderline abuse of power and out-of-keeping with common sense notions of basic fairness...definitely conduct uncharacteristic of Gwok Jing.

    I think Jin Yong just had one of those moments when he was trying to force a plot point through even though it would necessitate a character behaving in a very out-of-character manner.

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    Moderator Ren Wo Xing's Avatar
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    Just a pressure move. As shown in the novel, Elder Lo knew where HR was (she was secretly instructing the Beggar Clan members), and Guo Jing realized this. He used this to pressure HR to show herself; he had no intention of actually carrying that out.
    Read the latest chapters of Coiling Dragon at Wuxia World!

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    Chapter 37 – Descending From the Sky:
    ?Lu Zhanglao, no matter what I want to meet with Miss Huang tomorrow
    evening,? Guo Jing said, ?I don?t care how you?d do it. Whether you come
    up with an idea yourself, or you ask others, but I want you to present
    me with a clever idea how I can see her. I give you until noon tomorrow.?

    Lu Youjiao was flabbergasted. ?Huang Bangzhu is not here, how can Sir
    meet with her??

    ?You have a divine wisdom, you should be able to think of something,?
    Guo Jing replied, ?If you can?t present a good idea by noon tomorrow, I
    am going to handle you according to the military law.? Being aware that
    he was speaking nonsense, Guo Jing was secretly amused.

    Lu Youjiao was about to reason when Guo Jing turned his head to tell his
    guard, ?Prepare a hundred soldiers to act as executioners tomorrow at
    noon.? His guard acknowledged with a loud voice.

    Lu Youjiao looked distressed; dejectedly he walked back to his tent.

    ....

    Guo Jing?s mind was filled with another kind of apprehension; he was
    wondering if his brute force method of forcing Huang Rong to show
    herself would actually make her hate him even more. What if Lu Youjiao
    had determined not to open his mouth? Certainly he could not behead him,
    could he?

    It was almost noon, with composed face Guo Jing sat in his tent; while
    on the either sides of the tent stood the executioners, waiting. Then
    the bugle sounded, announcing it was noon.

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    Moderator Ken Cheng's Avatar
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    That sounds like the Gwok Jing we know.

    What remains surprising, however, is that he thought of this idea himself. It's quite clever...in a way that Gwok Jing isn't known for being. Sophisticated coercion techniques and mind games aren't his forte.

    Perhaps conscious of this, TVB's scriptwriters in LOCH '82 let Tolui suggest this idea to Gwok Jing. It does sound more like something Tolui would think of than would Gwok Jing.

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    He'd been studying the Wumu manual for some time by this point, so he was acquainted with the art of deception in war. Later on, after Huang Rong had gone missing, Genghis Khan asked Guo Jing, Ogedei and Tolui for pointers. Ogedei and Tolui both suggested plans that were decent but flawed in some way. Guo Jing, without Huang Rong to advise him, came up with the same plan as did Genghis Khan.

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    It's a bit amusing because we know Huang Rong would know he was making an empty threat also, as she knows better than anybody he wouldn't go through with it.

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