son, don't mess around

In the evening, the banquet ended.

Zhao Xi's appearance made today's party more lively, and the little incident that happened during the party did not attract too many people's attention.

Hu Yao, who was supposed to be the protagonist of today's party, was gradually marginalized after the appearance of Zhao Xi.

Although Zhao Xi left, she was still surrounded by those admiring sons of wealthy families who continued to flatter her tirelessly.

But in Hu Yao's eyes, all these flattery had become hypocritical sarcasm.

The appearance of Zhao Xi made the adjectives that were originally used to describe her seem false. She could only force herself to maintain a forced smile, and finally left early due to physical discomfort.

"Clap!"

The teacup fell to the ground, making a shattering sound.

Hu Mansion, backyard.

In the room, Hu Yao, who had just returned home, angrily swept the teacup on the table to the ground, venting his resentment.

Her face was gloomy and her eyes were cold, completely devoid of the gentleness she showed in front of others.

Those eyes were full of resentment, as if they wanted to eat people.

"Zhao Xi!"

She gritted her teeth, and when she looked up, her eyes were full of jealousy and unwillingness.

Outside the door, the maids knelt in a row, with their heads lowered, not daring to breathe.

When their young lady got angry, she would often take it out on them. At this moment, they were all very cautious and didn't dare to speak.

Hu Yao seemed to be feeling aggrieved and kept throwing things in the room to vent her anger.

She had completely lost face at today's party.

Even though no one mentioned it, she always felt that those people looked at her with irony.

Who is the most talented woman in Beijing?

The so-called flattery was still burning on her face.

Naturally, Hu Yao blamed all of this on that woman.

Why did she show up today?

Did she come here to cause trouble on purpose?

Why does she dare to humiliate and ignore me?

When Hu Yao was full of resentment, she couldn't help but tremble when she thought about how she had smiled today but was ruthlessly ignored by that woman.

Angry.

She was so angry that she was shouting and cursing in the room, smashing things to vent her emotions.

The backyard was filled with distorted curse words.

All this is in stark contrast to the eldest daughter of the Hu family, who is gentle and kind in front of others and even speaks in a very low voice.

At this moment, a figure appeared silently under the eaves.

"Li, Master Li."

The maid at the door spoke cautiously.

The visitor waved his hand, signaling the maids to go down first.

Then he walked to the door, and as he approached, he heard a resentful voice coming from the room.

"Zhao Xi, I'm not done with you!"

"One day, I will return today's shame to you!"

Hearing this angry voice, the visitor frowned slightly, but said nothing and walked into the room.

At this moment, Hu Yao in the room was going crazy. Suddenly, he heard someone coming outside the door and yelled angrily: "Who let you in?!"

When he turned back, his eyes happened to fall on the person who came. First his eyes turned cold, and then his eyes turned cold: "What are you doing here?!"

"Come and see you."

The visitor spoke softly, picking up the teapot that had fallen to the ground but was not completely broken: "Why are you so angry?"

"Li Qianlin, are you here to make fun of me too?!"

Hu Yao stared at him coldly, gritting her teeth.

"How could I laugh at you?"

Li Qianlin said lightly.

"Then why didn't you speak up for me today and just watch that woman humiliate me?!"

Hu Yao's face turned ashen and twisted as she stared at him.

Li Qianlin was clearly present at today's party, but he did not stand up.

Li Qianlin looked calm: "How about I stand up? Like you? Being ignored by Miss Zhao?"

"Forget about it. In their eyes, they don't even take us seriously. As for humiliating us, that's even more impossible."

Li Qianlin glanced at Hu Yao, who had a gloomy face, and said, "His father is the prime minister of the Zhao Dynasty. Who are we?"

It would have been fine if she hadn't said this, but once she did, Hu Yao's expression became even uglier: "Li Qianlin, what do you mean?!"

"Which side are you on?"

"I'm neither."

Li Qianlin sighed softly: "I'm just telling the truth."

If someone else had said this, Hu Yao would have probably been furious.

She stared at Li Qianlin with a gloomy face for a while, then sneered: "Li Qianlin, Li Qianlin, when did you become like this?"

"I used to think you were a bit more of a man, but I didn't expect that after going to Linjiang City, you turned into a rat in the gutter, only able to hide and move?"

"What? Did your brain get damaged when you were slapped in the face by that Prince Lin in public?!"

After these words were spoken, Li Qianlin's expression changed slightly.

Obviously Hu Yao touched his sore spot.

That’s right, that time in Linjiang City when he was slapped in the face by Lin Jiangnian in public became a shadow that he would never get rid of for the rest of his life.

This incident has always been with him and has become a lifelong shame for him.

It had been so long, and he thought he had forgotten it, but Hu Yao's words reminded him of the humiliation.

"Hu Yao!"

Li Qianlin's eyes turned slightly colder: "You want to die, but no one is willing to accompany you."

"I know you are jealous of Zhao Xi, but you don't really think you can compare to her, do you?"

These words undoubtedly touched Hu Yao's sore spot. She instantly lost her guard and her face twisted: "How am I not as good as her?!"

"Besides having a good father, what else does she have?"

"If her father wasn't the prime minister of the Zhao Dynasty, why would everyone be so focused on her? Does she really think she's a gifted girl?!"

"How am I worse than her?!"

Li Qianlin's eyes were full of sarcasm and he was too lazy to speak again.

He could never wake up someone who was pretending to be asleep, let alone someone who was so confident and blindly inflated in himself.

"I'm not here to argue with you. If you weren't my cousin, I wouldn't bother to remind you."

Li Qianlin glanced at her and said, "The world is in chaos now, and the structure of the court will undergo earth-shaking changes. At this critical juncture, your father doesn't want anything to happen."

"Especially now, there are rumors in the court that the emperor is seriously ill and his health is getting worse. The situation in the court is now controlled by Prime Minister Zhao, who has tremendous power. It is no exaggeration to say that if the emperor really dies one day, Prime Minister Zhao is qualified to decide the next emperor."

"At this critical moment, if you offend Prime Minister Zhao, it will be tantamount to dragging your Hu family into the abyss. If something happens at that time, don't blame me for not reminding you."

Hu Yao's face became even uglier.

She was so humiliated today and lost all her face. Now, Li Qianlin's words made her feel even more humiliated.

"So, what you mean is that I have to watch helplessly as I am humiliated by that woman and swallow my anger?"

"And I have to endure it and let her ride on my head and show off her power?!"

Hu Yao's voice was filled with anger.

Li Qianlin looked at Hu Yao who was very emotional in front of him and knew that she would not listen.

His cousin was too proud and too sensitive. She had been jealous of Zhao Xi all these years, always trying to compare herself with him in everything. Over time, she developed a distorted view of herself.

"Li Qianlin, do you like her? Why do you come to me to defend her?!"

Hu Yao stared at Li Qianlin with an extremely unfriendly look.

"Like?!" Hearing this, Li Qianlin didn't know what he was thinking about, and a strange look appeared on his face: "So what if she likes him? Aren't there enough people in Beijing who like her?"

"But so what?"

Who in the capital would not have some admiration for the most talented woman in the capital?

Just, that's all.

Thinking of this, Li Qianlin glanced at her again: "Don't blame me for not reminding you, Zhao Xi was very close to Lin Jiangnian, there must be some relationship between the two!"

"If anything happens to her, no one will be able to protect you."

When these words came out, Hu Yao was shocked, and a trace of surprise flashed in his eyes: "What did you say?!"

"That woman is having an affair with Lin Jiangnian?!"

Li Qianlin did not answer. He did not know the answer, but he had heard such rumors.

"You really are scared by Lin Jiangnian's beating. Now that you are like this, are you still a man?"

Hu Yao's eyes were filled with sarcasm: "A prince who has long left the capital has scared you like this?"

Li Qianlin had a blank expression on his face and was too lazy to explain any more to this woman.

If you haven't experienced it, you have no idea how crazy that guy is, let alone how cruel his methods are.

In the past, Li Qianlin didn’t believe it either.

As a result, there was the unforgettable lesson in Linjiang City.

And then, what happened?

That man came to the capital and turned the entire city upside down.

His former friends, such as Song Jue, Zhou Huiguang, Gao Wenyang and the like, were all his former friends in the capital, with whom he had a deep friendship.

But now?

He is the only one alive!

The rest of the people were all dead.

In some cases, even the entire family was not spared.

The entire family was executed and no one survived.

How could such a tragic price not make Li Qianlin tremble in fear and feel extremely fortunate at the same time?
Fortunately, he is still alive.

Fortunately, he did not offend Prince Lin to death at the beginning!

In the end, he saved his life.

After experiencing such a life-and-death storm, Li Qianlin finally came to his senses. The waters of the capital were too deep for him to control, and he would never intervene again.

Therefore, even though he was present at the party today, he just watched silently from the sidelines and had no intention of getting involved.

Only by keeping a low profile can you survive.

This is the truth that Li Qianlin realized at the cost of the lives of several of his good friends.

But unfortunately, the cousin in front of him didn't seem to believe it.

Li Qianlin was just giving her a kind reminder. Since she didn't believe it, he wouldn't try to persuade her further and turned around to leave.

"So what if he is the prince of Lin?!"

Hu Yao sneered: "I thought he really had three heads and six arms? But this time, didn't he almost die in Jiangnan?"

"What a pity! It was just a little bit short!"

Hearing this, Li Qianlin suddenly stopped and turned back to stare at her: "What did you say?!"

Li Qianlin's face changed slightly, and he stared at her intently: "You participated in this assassination?!"

The assassination of Prince Lin in Jiangnan had naturally spread to the capital a long time ago. It was not a secret matter and many people knew about it.

But Li Qianlin knew his cousin, and when he heard her tone, he immediately realized that something was wrong.

Does she know something?
Hu Yao did not explain these, but sneered: "What Prince Lin, he only has one life. As for that Prime Minister Zhao, haha, now it is hard to say who will be the ruler of the world in the end."

"Once she loses the halo of being the daughter of Prime Minister Zhao, what will she have left?"

"Li Qianlin, just wait and see, I will definitely take revenge this time!"

"Then you'll see how I deal with her!"

"..."

At the door, Li Qianlin looked at Hu Yao, who had a distorted expression, eyes full of resentment, and looked like a madman, and felt a chill in his heart.

His cousin has become so obsessed that she has become a madman.

If she really insisted on dealing with Zhao Xi, the consequences would be disastrous.

Also, Li Qianlin felt a chill in his heart.

He had heard about the assassination in Jiangnan. He heard that Prince Lin was almost killed and his life was hanging by a thread. Now his life or death is unknown.

But there is a high probability that he is not dead!

If he was really dead, I'm afraid the Linwang Palace in the south would not be so quiet.

But the Lin Wang Mansion will definitely not let this assassination go. If Hu Yao is really related to this assassination...

At this moment, Li Qianlin's eyes were full of fear and indifference, as well as a sense of uneasiness rising from the bottom of his heart.

If it is really related, many people will probably die this time.

Thinking of this, Li Qianlin said nothing more. Finally, he looked at Hu Yao coldly, turned around and left without looking back.

……

It's getting dark.

In the capital, the streets are brightly lit.

Although it was a little quieter than before, there were still many people on the streets. This prosperous capital was still lively when it should be lively.

But in comparison, it seems that everyone is preoccupied.

Xu Zhongshan was walking alone on the street, heading back.

He almost got into trouble at today's party. If it weren't for Miss Zhao who came to his rescue, he would have had a hard time getting out.

Thinking of this, Xu Zhongshan showed a bit of unwillingness on his face and secretly clenched his fists.

His Xu family has now fallen to this point. One wrong step has led to all the wrong steps.

But being in the vortex of the capital, no matter how low-key he is, there will always be a day when he will get into trouble. Given the situation of the Xu family, who knows when it will happen...

You can't always wait for others to help you, right?

Thinking of this, Xu Zhongshan's eyes became even more gloomy.

Unfortunately, he couldn't change any of this.

He had practiced martial arts since he was young, and like his elder brother, he wanted to join the army to serve the country and revitalize the Xu family. Unfortunately, things did not go as he wished, and even now, their Xu family is under house arrest in the capital.

And he was equally depressed.

There is a kind of melancholy that comes from having a lot of talent but nowhere to display it.

Just as Xu Zhongshan was walking down the street in a depressed mood, a dark shadow suddenly blocked his way silently.

"Who?!"

Xu Zhongshan suddenly raised his head alertly, his whole body tensed up in an instant, and he was ready to attack.

"Xu Zhongshan, my prince wants to see you."

"Your Highness?!"

Xu Zhongshan was stunned. Whose prince is this?

Who can call himself His Royal Highness? Could it be a prince in the imperial city?

"Who is your Highness?!"

Xu Zhongshan's eyes remained alert.

The man in black didn't explain much, just looked up.

Xu Zhongshan followed his gaze to the restaurant outside the wall and a familiar figure appeared by the window on the third floor.

Xu Zhongshan was stunned at first, then his face turned over with joy.

"Brother-in-law?!"

"..." (End of this chapter)