Blood sedge

Chapter 1176 Drawing a Clear Boundary
"As a person, you must know yourself. As an official, you must know how to judge the situation. There are many ways to eliminate dissidents, such as taking advantage of loopholes, setting traps, and tripping people up, but you can't overturn the table. What kind of person is General Wang? In order to regain power in Luoyang City, he took advantage of the situation instead of directly attacking me. This is enough to give you a glimpse of his character."

"Your Excellency is teaching me a lesson. I was just talking nonsense!" Hu Jin couldn't help but feel scared when he thought about how his whole family almost lost their lives because of a wrong word. "I... I was just angry at Zhang Xiong for repeatedly committing crimes and disobeying Your Excellency, so I..."

"How could I not know your loyalty? But what you just said is a taboo, don't mention it again in the future." Guo Xian waved his hand lightly, "Although we have long surrendered to Mongolia, Han people are Han people after all, and there is always a layer of separation in the Khan's heart."

"Your Excellency's words are so inspiring, I will remember them till my death!" Hu Jin wiped the sweat from his forehead with his sleeves and carefully passed the message to Guo Xian, "But...if Zhang Xiong and the Xianwang Mansion really fall out, with the current reputation and strength of the Xianwang Mansion, they will definitely not let it go. Although Zhang Xiong is arbitrary, he is the lieutenant general of the general's mansion after all, and his every word and action represents Your Excellency. If we anger Liu Xunyi and Xie Xuan, these lawless lunatics, and they really come to our door, how will we end it? Could it be... that we really fight them to the death?"

"You overestimate yourself. If we fight, we will die and they will live. How can these drunkards in the mansion who eat all day long be a match for those people in the martial arts world?" Guo Xian laughed at himself helplessly, "Over the years, Liu Xunyi has made countless enemies in Song and Mongolia, and in the black and white worlds. Not to mention that the Song Dynasty court and the Central Plains martial arts world are helpless against him, even the arrogant Yan Wuji and the arrogant Long Yu have also been repeatedly defeated by him. Such a rare figure must have the ability to turn the tide, how can we match him?"

"That……"

"Alas! I thought Luoyang City was far away from the war, and being in charge here would be a good job with a leisurely life, but I didn't expect that there would be internal and external troubles, and there would be so many troubles." Thinking of the current situation, Guo Xian couldn't help sighing again, "Jin Fuyu is also hateful. He sent Sui Zuo's body to Danfeng Garden with great fanfare, causing a sensation in the city, and everyone in the city knew about it. Zhang Xiong took advantage of this to make trouble, and I couldn't even find a reason to shirk responsibility... Now Zhang Xiong is making trouble under the banner of the General's Mansion, and he is determined to offend Liu Xunyi. I guess Liu Xunyi is not an easy person to deal with, and he will definitely not swallow his anger. It's difficult! It's really a dilemma! I really don't want to wade into this muddy water..."

"Not only does your Excellency not want to wade into this muddy water, I also don't want to be dragged into this storm for no reason."

Just when Guo Xian, who was upset, and Hu Jin, who was scratching his head, were at a loss, a cold voice suddenly came from outside the door, and their faces changed immediately in shock.

Then, the two tightly closed doors creaked open a gap, and a blurry black shadow flashed in like a ghost, and appeared in front of Guo and Hu in the blink of an eye.

"You...you are Liu Xunyi?"

As Hu Jin exclaimed in disbelief, Guo Xian was caught off guard and fell off the stool to the ground.

Although Guo Xian expected that Liu Xunyi would not sit still and wait for death, he never expected that his actions would be so swift, and he never expected that he would meet him in this way.

At this time, Guo and Hu just stared at Liu Xunyi, whom they were "thinking about" with fear in their eyes. Except for Hu Jingang's exclamation, they could not make any other sound.

It’s not that they don’t want to call anyone, but that they don’t dare.

After all, Liu Xunyi could appear in front of them without anyone noticing, which was enough to prove that the guards of the general's mansion were nothing in front of him. Calling for help rashly would not only fail to escape from danger, but would put oneself in greater danger.

Looking at Liu Xunyi again, he seemed to be thinner than before the retreat. Although his injuries had healed, his face was no longer rosy, but rather a little pale.

However, the biggest change compared to the past was not his physical appearance, but the gloomy meaning hidden in the depths of his eyes, and the coldness emanating from the inside out.

Compared with the past, it seems that there is less heroic spirit and more decadence, less passion and more restraint, less enthusiasm and more coldness.

If he always brought people a warm feeling like a spring breeze in the past, he now exudes a coldness that keeps people away.

This change is not superficial, but hidden deep inside. Although it is hard to explain, it is real and true. It may be a movement, a word, an expression, or a look. Sometimes it is so subtle that it is hard to notice, and sometimes it is so strong that it is daunting.

No one knows what kind of mental journey Liu Xunyi has gone through in the past month, and no one knows what he is thinking about in the dead of night.
Yun Zhuiyue's deception, Jin Fuyu's cunning, Xiao Zhirou's concern...even Qin Wei's death, it seems that he didn't cause too much emotional waves. At least in the eyes of Tang Afu and Pan Yuyin, Liu Xunyi became more and more indifferent, more and more taciturn, and even a little scary.

The strange silence lasted for an unknown amount of time. Seeing that Liu Xunyi had not yet made a move on him, Guo Xian's uneasy heart gradually settled down.

"Ahem! It...it turns out to be Brother Liu!" Guo Xian coughed twice, and while slowly getting up with the help of Hu Jin, he pretended to be calm and greeted Liu Xunyi, "I have always heard that Brother Liu is a hero, but I have never had the honor to meet him. This is the biggest regret of my life. However... although I know that Brother Liu is a leader among the young people in the martial arts world, I am still surprised to meet him today. Brother Liu is really different from what I imagined. I thought that Liu Xunyi, who is famous in the martial arts world, should be a tough guy with a leopard head, round eyes, a tiger back and bear waist, but unexpectedly...he is a young talent with a golden appearance and jade quality, and a dragon-like appearance." At the critical moment of life and death, the smooth and sophisticated Guo Xian used his eloquent tongue to the fullest, completely disregarding the dignity of General Luoyang, and flattered Liu Xunyi, a stranger.

First, he was afraid of Liu Xunyi. As the saying goes, "a person's reputation is like a tree's shadow", Liu Xunyi had a fierce reputation, Guo Xian wanted to avoid him, so how could he dare to put on airs in front of him?
Secondly, it was for his own immediate interests. The status of the Xianwang Mansion in Luoyang City was crucial. As the general of Luoyang, could Guo Xian eat a comfortable meal? Sleep peacefully? Or even enjoy wealth and glory? Liu Xunyi's attitude was crucial.

Unfortunately, the flowers are affectionate but the water is ruthless. Facing Guo Xian's enthusiastic compliments, Liu Xunyi ignored them and there was no trace of joy of being praised on her face.

"May I ask, Young Master Liu...how did you get into the General's Mansion?" Hu Jin bravely asked, "And how did you find this place?"

"Could it be that you regard me as a thief who climbs over walls, crosses courtyards, and goes from house to house?"

"I……"

"Absolutely not! A thief is only fit to do some sneaky and despicable things, how can he be compared with a magnanimous and upright gentleman like Brother Liu?" Facing Liu Xunyi's question, before Hu Jin could speak, Guo Xian had already answered, "Brother Liu, please don't misunderstand! What he meant was that with Brother Liu's status and position, how dare the General's Mansion neglect him? You should inform someone so that I can go out and greet him early."

Liu Xunyi's rhetorical question had an implicit meaning, implying that his abilities were far beyond those of ordinary thieves, and that he did not come here for such a trivial matter as stealing.

Guo Xian's explanation also has hidden meanings. He is implying that Liu Xunyi's ungentlemanly coming is not in line with his gentlemanly demeanor, and he is also reminding him not to do unjust things and tarnish his reputation as a gentleman.

"The General's Mansion sent people to Danfeng Garden to 'welcome' me early in the morning. I am flattered. How dare I not come quickly to listen to your teachings?"

When Liu Xunyi said this, Guo Xian said "As expected" in his heart and couldn't help but look at Hu Jin. There was a trace of resentment and sadness between their brows.

They resented the trouble-making Zhang Xiong, and worried about themselves who were in a dilemma.

"This... there may be some misunderstanding." Guo Xian's mind was quickly thinking of countermeasures, while trying to maintain a calm and composed appearance, "Zhang Xiong... he just..."

"Since you know my intention, there is no need for us to beat around the bush." ​​Liu Xunyi interrupted Guo Xian's hesitation without hesitation and said, "Sui Zuo's death has nothing to do with me or Prince Xian's Mansion. If you want to seek justice for Sui Zuo, you should seek revenge on Jin Fuyu."

"Regarding the death of General Sui Zuo... I have heard a little bit about it, and I know a little bit..."

"I came here only to inform you, sir, that I did not kill Sui Zuo, and I have no knowledge of the carriage."

"Well... of course I know..."

"If someone has ill intentions and wants to drag me down, I will have no choice but to protect myself. If innocent people are hurt, there is nothing I can do."

"This... I also know..."

Hearing this, Liu Xunyi frowned slightly and asked suspiciously, "Since you know everything, why did you send Zhang Xiong to Danfeng Garden to question us? Don't you think the situation in Luoyang City is not chaotic enough?"

"This... Alas!" Facing Liu Xunyi's questioning, Guo Xian was both ashamed and helpless, and explained with an embarrassed face, "As the saying goes, 'Don't air your dirty laundry in public.' But since Brother Liu has asked this, if I continue to hide it, it would be considered as deliberately shielding someone. To be honest, Zhang Xiong has always been undisciplined and repeatedly disobeyed orders. He has relied on the support of others behind him and has never taken me seriously. Since he came to Luoyang City, he has been looking for trouble almost every day, and most of his actions are his own initiative, and he never asks for my consent. Therefore, I didn't know that Zhang Xiong led people to Danfeng Garden to cause trouble. He didn't report to me or discuss everything he did this morning. He was completely overstepping his authority and acting arbitrarily!"

……