The frail counselor you said, you fight against three heroes alone?

Xi Yu, dressed in a black robe, with an upright posture and a stern face, entered a dilapidated temple accompanied by secret guards.

Although it is a dilapidated temple, the yard is spacious, overgrown with weeds, and exudes a sense of desolation.

The impostor was seen lying lifeless in the middle of the yard, apparently having been knocked unconscious by the secret guards.

Xi Yu walked to the side of the impostor with steady steps, his eyes showing a trace of disdain, raised his leg and kicked him, snorting coldly: "Humph, this old man doesn't know how to live or die!"

Then, he turned to look at the secret guard and ordered, "Wake him up. I want to see who is instructing him."

The secret guard responded respectfully, quickly glanced around, and saw a water tank in front of him.

He walked quickly, scooped up a bucket of water, walked up to the impostor, and splashed the water on his face without hesitation.

The impostor shuddered violently at the shock of the cold water and slowly woke up.

His eyes were confused and before he fully woke up, he felt a sharp gaze staring at him.

Xi Yu crossed his arms, looked down at him, and said coldly: "Tell me, who sent you here? If you tell the truth, maybe I can spare your life."

The impostor trembled, and a trace of fear flashed in his eyes, but he still pretended to be calm and stammered back: "I... I don't know what you are talking about."

Xi Yu laughed in anger, with a cold light flashing in his eyes: "It seems that you don't want to drink the wine! Well, since you are so ungrateful, don't blame me for being rude!"

As he said this, he winked at the secret guard, who understood what he meant. He stepped forward, grabbed the collar of the impostor, lifted him up, and said viciously, "Old man, don't refuse a toast and drink a forfeit. Our master's patience is limited!"

The impostor's body was shaking constantly, his face turned pale, but he still said stubbornly: "I... am just a monk, I have done nothing bad. You have caught the wrong person!"

Xi Yu sneered, his eyes swept across the impostor's face like a knife, and said: "You still dare to be stubborn at this time. It seems that you will not tell the truth unless I give you a taste of pain."

As soon as he finished speaking, the secret guard raised his fist and hit the impostor hard in the abdomen.

"Ah!" The impostor screamed, bent over in pain, and beads of sweat rolled down his forehead.

At this time, Xi Yu spoke again, his voice icy cold: "This is your last chance, will you tell me or not?"

The impostor was breathing heavily, his eyes filled with fear and hesitation, and he was struggling fiercely in his heart.

Xi Yu snorted coldly and said sternly: "Secret Guard, punish me severely!"

The secret guard received the order and suddenly stretched out his strong palm and grabbed the impostor's neck tightly. The force on his hand continued to increase, and the impostor immediately felt difficulty breathing, and his face turned from pale to blue.

"Ahem... I'll tell you, I'll tell you!" The impostor was in so much pain that he was at a loss, unable to endure the torture any longer, and shouted anxiously.

"Hurry up and tell me!" Xi Yu glared at him.

The impostor gasped for breath and said with difficulty: "Actually, Master Changsheng and I are twins, so I thought of impersonating him..."

Xi Yu was stunned when he heard this. Obviously he didn't expect this to be the case. He frowned and fell into deep thought.

Then, the impostor's expression became listless, and he no longer had the stubbornness he had before. He hung his head and said with a trembling voice: "I will tell the truth. I really won't hurt anyone again. I pretended to be him just to get some money. I didn't cheat many people."

After hearing this, Xi Yu's anger subsided a little, but he still said gloomily: "Humph, just for this little money, you dare to do such a thing! Do you know how much trouble this will cause?"

The impostor replied timidly: "I know I was wrong, please forgive me, I promise I will never do it again."

Then, Xi Yu frowned and turned to ask the secret guard: "Where is that old woman?"

The secret guard quickly bowed and replied: "My lord, I put her in another room."

Xi Yu nodded slightly, waved his hand and said, "You step back first and go wake up the old woman."

The secret guard responded and turned and left.

After a while, the old woman was brought out by the secret guards.

As soon as the old woman woke up, she saw the secret guard with her eyes wide open and started cursing: "You worthless guy! How dare you do this to an old woman like me!"

Facing the old woman's angry scolding, the secret guard's face darkened and he scolded: "Old woman, stop talking nonsense!"

The old woman was not afraid at all and continued to yell, "Humph, you are so heartless. You will be punished for bullying an old woman like me!"

At this time, Xi Yu walked up, looked at the old woman with scrutiny, and said coldly: "Old woman, be quiet, or you will be in trouble."

The old woman panted, glared at Xi Yu fiercely, and shouted: "What do you want? I haven't done anything bad!"

The secret guard frowned and said seriously: "Old woman, I'm doing this for your own good! That old monk is a liar, and now he has admitted it. If you don't believe it, forget it!" After that, he turned around and was about to leave.

When the old woman heard this, she showed a half-believing and half-doubting expression on her face. After hesitating for a moment, she hurriedly followed the secret guard, muttering, "Wait, wait, I want to hear what's going on."

The old woman hurried to the impostor, her eyes full of confusion and expectation.

Xi Yu had no expression on his face and said coldly: "Tell me your crime again!"

The impostor shrank back and timidly repeated, "I have no ability to revive the dead. I am just trying to cheat people out of their money."

The old woman was shocked when she heard this. The expression on her face changed from surprise to anger. She cursed: "You damn liar, you dare to deceive me!"

As he said this, he raised the cane in his hand and hit the impostor hard.

Since Xi Yu was there, the impostor didn't dare to move at all and could only endure the beatings and scoldings from the old woman.

The old woman beat with all her might for a long time, and finally stopped when she was tired.

Her body went limp, she sat on the ground, and suddenly burst into tears: "So, my poor son is really hopeless?"

The crying was so sad and moving.

Xi Yu looked at the grief-stricken old woman, and a trace of pity rose in his heart, but his face remained stern, and he said: "Things have come to this point, you should also face the reality."

The old woman raised her tearful face, her eyes filled with despair and helplessness, and murmured to herself: "My poor son, I was hoping to save you, but now how can I live?"

At this time, the secret guard said softly: "Old man, don't be too sad, take care of your health."

The old woman seemed not to hear it and was still immersed in the great pain of losing her son. Her cries echoed in the dilapidated temple for a long time.

After a long while, the old woman's crying gradually subsided. She wiped her tears with her sleeve and said in a hoarse voice: "It's all my fault. I was desperate and tried all kinds of medical treatments, so I fell for this swindler's trick."

Xi Yu sighed slightly and said, "Every failure makes you wiser. Don't trust these charlatans anymore."

The old woman nodded with empty eyes, slowly stood up, and swayed a few times, as if she had aged ten years in an instant.

Seeing this, the secret guard rushed forward to support the old woman and said, "Old lady, please slow down."

The old woman waved her hands and said weakly, "Forget it, forget it, it's all fate."

After saying this, she staggered slowly out of the temple.

When the impostor saw the old woman leaving, he hurriedly said, "I have confessed all my crimes, can you let me go?"

Hearing this, Xi Yu sneered and said, "Let you go? You wish! A liar like you must be paraded through the streets to let everyone know your true face!"

When the impostor heard this, he was shocked and fell to his knees, kowtowed and begged for mercy: "Please forgive me, I won't dare to do it again!"

Xi Yu was not moved at all, with his arms folded across his chest, his expression grim. Seeing that his plea for mercy was fruitless, the impostor boldly asked, "Sir, who are you? Why are you doing this to me?"

Xi Yu snorted coldly, took out a token from his pocket, flashed it in front of the impostor's eyes, and said majestically: "Open your dog eyes and look, I am the prime minister!"

When the impostor looked up, he was immediately startled, his face turned pale, and his whole body trembled like a sieve.

This time, he no longer dared to disobey, and replied submissively: "I am blind and do not know the great man. I will obey the Prime Minister's orders in everything."

Xi Yu's eyes were sharp, and he turned to the secret guard and said, "Take him to the county government office and have him paraded through the streets to serve as a warning to others!"

The secret guard bowed and replied, "Yes, sir!" Then he escorted the impostor towards the county government office.

When the county government learned that this was the prime minister's order, they dared not disobey it and immediately arranged the parade in a swift and decisive manner.

Soon, the parade began.

The impostor was wearing shackles and tearfully recounting his crimes on the street.

Many people gathered around, pointing and talking.

"Oh, it turns out it's not real, it's just a person who looks similar. How dare he perform such a scam? It's outrageous!" An old man was so angry that he blew his beard and glared.

"That's right, I almost got fooled by him, all thanks to the Prime Minister's keen observation!" a young man echoed.

In the crowd, a sister-in-law shook her head and sighed, "This liar is too abominable. He almost made everyone happy for nothing."

The child next to him pulled at the adult's clothes and asked timidly, "Will there be such liars in the future?"

Everyone was talking at once, full of anger and condemnation of the impostor's behavior.

At this time, a man who looked like a scholar stood up and said loudly: "Thanks to the Prime Minister this time, we must open our eyes in the future and not be easily fooled again!"

Everyone nodded in agreement, the parade continued on, and the confessions of the impostors echoed in the streets.

As for Xi Yu, after dealing with the parade, he returned to the temple.

He found the little monk and told him the whole story.

The young monk put his hands together and said, "Amitabha, I have heard Master Changsheng mention that he has a twin brother before, but I never expected something like this to happen."

Xi Yu frowned slightly and said, "To prevent such things from happening again in the future, I hope to post a notice at the entrance of the temple to make this matter public so that more people will know about it and avoid being deceived."

The little monk nodded in agreement and said, "What you said is absolutely right, and this is a very reasonable move."

Xi Yu's eyes were firm, and he continued, "This matter needs to be handled as soon as possible to prevent innocent people from being deceived again."

The young monk replied, "Don't worry, I will prepare the pen, ink, paper and inkstone to write the notice."

After a while, the young monk prepared everything he needed and began to write the announcement carefully.

Xi Yu paced aside, thinking about what else needed more reminders.

After the little monk finished writing the announcement, Xi Yu checked it carefully and said, "Not bad, just post it like this."

The young monk took the notice, walked quickly to the entrance of the temple, and posted it in a conspicuous place.

Then, Xi Yu looked a little anxious, and asked hurriedly: "Has Master Changsheng woken up?"

The young monk bowed slightly and said hastily, "Don't worry, sir. I'll go to the inner room to check it out right away." After that, the young monk turned around and hurriedly went into the inner room.

Xi Yu paced back and forth outside, frowning, secretly thinking about how to start the conversation when he met Master Changsheng later.

After a long time, the little monk finally came out.

With a hint of joy on his face, he put his hands together and said, "Donor, the master has woken up and wants you to come in."

When Xi Yu heard what the little monk said, a happy smile suddenly appeared on his face. He quickened his pace and couldn't wait to enter the Zen room.

As soon as I entered the Zen room, I saw a kind-looking master sitting upright on a cushion. His appearance was indeed similar to that of the impostor.

Xi Yu did not dare to be negligent, and immediately bowed respectfully, saying: "Master, I am the Prime Minister Xi Yu. I am sorry for the offense today, I hope you will forgive me."

When the master heard Xi Yu reveal his identity, he was stunned at first, and a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes, but that surprise was fleeting, and he soon returned to his usual calmness and composure.

Xi Yu did not dare to pause for even a second, and hurriedly recounted in detail how the impostor cheated, how he discovered the fraud, and the subsequent punishment measures.

After he finished speaking, he looked a little nervous and said apologetically: "Master, this happened suddenly and the situation was urgent. I handled it this way without your consent. I am really terrified. I hope you will not blame me."

Upon hearing this, Master Changsheng could not help but sigh deeply, his face full of helplessness and grief, and he slowly said: "Alas, I really did not expect that my brother would do such an unjust thing. But benefactor, you are right, such evil people should be punished, you don't have to feel bad."

After hearing what the master said, Xi Yu felt a little less guilty and said, "Master, you are so reasonable, which is really admirable. But since this matter is related to the master, it is inevitable that it will cause you trouble."

Master Changsheng shook his head slightly, clasped his hands together and said, "Donor, you worry too much. My brother committed such a mistake, and I am also responsible for not teaching him properly. Now that he can receive the punishment he deserves, it can be regarded as the price he has paid for his evil deeds. I only hope that he can mend his ways."

Xi Yu nodded and said, "Master is compassionate. I hope he can understand your painstaking efforts."

Master Changsheng asked with a gentle look, "Donor, I am really curious about why you came here this time?"

After hearing this, Xi Yu first lowered his head slightly, then let out a long sigh. An awkward and embarrassed blush instantly appeared on his face, and his eyes became evasive, as if he had something unspeakable to hide.

Master Changsheng put his hands together, his smile still peaceful and kind, and said slowly: "Don't worry, benefactor, just tell me honestly, there is no harm in saying it."

Xi Yu hesitated for a moment, and finally mustered up the courage to say: "Master, to be honest, I have been thinking about my son's problem. Now that the emperor has passed away, there is someone to inherit the throne, but as the prime minister, once I pass away, I cannot guarantee that my son will continue to enjoy a high position and generous salary. Every time I think of this, I feel extremely unbalanced."

After saying this, he frowned, his face full of anxiety and unwillingness.

Master Changsheng nodded slightly, his eyes full of understanding and compassion, and he slowly said: "Donor, officials should serve the public, not just their own children and grandchildren. If you have this thought, I'm afraid the demon in your heart has already been born."

Xi Yu trembled, a trace of panic flashed in his eyes, and he defended himself: "Master, I have devoted my life to the court, so can't I find a good future for my son?"

Master Changsheng shook his head and said, "Donor, fame, wealth and honor are like clouds and smoke, and cannot be forced. If you insist on them, you will end up hurting others and yourself."

Xi Yu remained silent and fell into deep thought.

After a while, Xi Yu's face gradually showed a trace of shame. He slowly began to reflect on himself: "Master, after your advice, I have reflected for a long time. Throughout history, how many people can truly serve the people wholeheartedly? Although I often claim to seek the welfare of the people, in the end, I still have such selfish thoughts."

As he spoke, he shook his head helplessly, his expression full of regret.

Master Changsheng smiled and said, "It is a great blessing for the donor to have such an awakening."

Xi Yu then said: "Master, I hope you can give me some more advice. I continue to discuss this issue with you. I feel that I understand a lot more, but there are still many confusions that remain unsolved." He looked at Master Changsheng earnestly, full of anticipation.

The two continued their heated discussion, Xi Yu sometimes frowned in thought, and sometimes nodded in sudden enlightenment.

Finally, Xi Yu let out a long sigh and said with emotion: "Master, after communicating with you, I really understand a lot now. In fact, there is no need to be so persistent. We can talk about the future later."

If you think about it carefully, you have traveled through time and space, so what’s the point in worrying so much in this strange era?
A relieved smile appeared on his face, as if a huge stone in his heart had been lifted off his shoulders.

Master Changsheng clasped his hands together, smiled and said, "It is a blessing that the donor can be so insightful."

Xi Yu stood up, bowed deeply to Master Changsheng, and said: "Master, today's conversation with you has enlightened me. From now on, I will be more open-minded and no longer be troubled by these troubles." (End of this chapter)