Blood sedge

Chapter 1182 Threading the Needle (Part )

"I see!"

Xunzhen's answer made Liu Xunyi suddenly enlightened, and at the same time, he was more and more impressed by Hu Lie's methods: "No wonder Zhang Xiong's attitude changed drastically after seeing the Three Flames Golden Hoop Wolf Fang. He even put the matter of arresting me on hold. It turned out that he was busy meeting the prince's distinguished guest."

"All those who can be treated as guests of honor by Hu Lie are powerful and influential figures. Not to mention a small Luoyang lieutenant general, even Wang Dechen would have to show some respect." Having said this, Xunzhen looked around and added meaningfully, "But if Guo Xian saw this thing, he might not be as terrified as Zhang Xiong."

"Although I don't know the grudges behind them, I can sense that Guo Xian and Zhang Xiong have different positions. It seems that... Zhang Xiong is Hu Lie's man." Liu Xunyi carefully considered what Xunzhen said while repeatedly thinking about the current situation. Suddenly, he changed his mind and asked impatiently, "Then do you know who has obtained the Three Flame Golden Hoop Wolf Fang? Who is the person who is meeting with Zhang Xiong upstairs now?"

"Do you really think I'm an omniscient god?" Xunzhen couldn't help but roll his eyes at Liu Xunyi and said teasingly, "Master Liu has been successful in everything he does, why don't you check it yourself?"

"I followed him all the way here just to find out the truth." Liu Xunyi ignored Xunzhen's sarcasm and looked at the second floor absentmindedly, "You say... could it be Jin Fuyu who conspired with Zhang Xiong?"

"Jin Fuyu is the culprit who ambushed and killed Sui Zuo. Hu Lie wanted to burn him to death. How could he be treated as a distinguished guest?"

"Then... could it be someone related to Jin Fuyu?" Liu Xunyi was still unwilling to give in and continued to speculate, "Jin Fuyu is the mastermind behind the scenes, and this person is just a puppet he uses to deceive the world?"

"Unless Hu Lie is a fool with courage but no strategy, he would not be so stupid as to let others fool him." Xunzhen still shook his head. "The fact that he could come up with the strategy of 'ruling the Han with the Han' shows that he is very smart and cunning, far beyond the reach of ordinary heroes. Moreover, Hu Lie is the supreme commander of the Mongol southern expedition. He has already known the details of the court of the Song Dynasty and the various forces in the Central Plains martial arts world. The intelligence he can collect is far beyond what you and I can imagine."

"That makes sense." Liu Xunyi nodded slowly, not wanting to deny it. "Even if the person behind the scenes is not Jin Fuyu, it is no coincidence that he showed up at this juncture. I expect... he will most likely intervene in Sui Zuo's affairs and join forces with Zhang Xiong to deal with me."

"He might get involved in Sui Zuo's affairs, but he might not be able to deal with you." Xunzhen was a bystander and was much calmer and wiser than Liu Xunyi who was in the center of the vortex. "You know, Hu Lie's guest of honor does not mean he is a supporter of Hu Lie, let alone his subordinate. Maybe... this person has other plans."

"Since he is Hu Lie's distinguished guest and is mixed up with Zhang Xiong, no matter what he is plotting, it will be a trouble for me."

"You seem... a little too cautious." Xunzhen looked at Liu Xunyi, whose eyes were cold, and advised meaningfully, "Not everyone in this world is your enemy. Why do you have to be pessimistic?"

Liu Xunyi was startled when he heard this, and gradually realized that he was indeed being too picky. He couldn't help but smile bitterly and waved his hand to mock himself: "Once bitten by a snake, you will be afraid of ropes for ten years!"

Hearing Liu Xunyi's perfunctory response, Xunzhen hesitated to speak, thinking to himself: Although the narrow escape at Dragon Burial Pond has made your martial arts become more unfathomable, it has also made your character become... more obscure and difficult to understand.

"I have finished talking about the Three-Flame Golden Hoop Wolf Fang. My hand... have you clenched it tightly?" Xunzhen asked casually.

"Oh! Sorry..."

Liu Xunyi slowly loosened his grip, allowing Xunzhen's skin, as delicate as cream, to gently slide across his palm. As her skin slowly fell from his fingers, for some reason his heart also felt empty.

"You just like to bully me." Xunzhen rubbed her sore hands while scolding Liu Xunyi, who seemed to be in a trance, "If you do it again, I will cut off your claws!"

"I..." Liu Xunyi clenched his right hand in the air, and when he bent his arm and closed his hand, his thumb inadvertently twisted lightly between the joints of his index finger a few times, as if to calm his inner throbbing and hide his embarrassment.

"You are now a wealthy and powerful young prince, and you are also at such an energetic age." Xunzhen's beautiful eyes turned, and she wanted to tease Liu Xunyi, so she suggested in a sarcastic tone, "I can understand that you occasionally want to touch a woman's hand. Why not let Lord Xie arrange a marriage for you, so that you don't have to be distracted by love and lose control of yourself."

"What do you mean by being distracted by love and unable to control yourself?" Hearing Xunzhen's ridicule, Liu Xunyi really wanted to find a hole in the ground to crawl into, "Stop talking nonsense."

"You dare to say otherwise?"

Xunzhen raised his slightly reddish hand, and looked arrogantly at Liu Xunyi, who was at a loss and speechless like a child who had done something wrong, and a smug smile appeared on the corner of his mouth.

"It's fine for me, a grown man, but how can you, an unmarried woman, say such unreserved words?" Liu Xunyi knew she was in the wrong, so she could only refute in a voice as thin as a mosquito's silk, "How shameless."

"You are shameless for flirting with me, but I am just teasing you and you are being unrestrained?" Xunzhen retorted mercilessly, "Could it be that Master Liu dares to do something but not to take responsibility for it?"

"I……"

"I am not a Han Chinese woman, so I am not bound by those pedantic dogmas. You should be thankful that I am not a Han Chinese woman, otherwise I would definitely go to the government office and sue you."

Having said that, Xunzhen suddenly stood up, supported himself on the table with both hands, lightly raised his toes, and leaned forward with his upper body. Accompanied by a faint and intoxicating fragrance, a peerless and beautiful face slowly appeared in front of Liu Xunyi.

They were so close that they could feel the warmth of each other's breath, and their noses were almost touching.

"Xunzhen, you..."

"There are some things that I can say if you say them, and I can do if you do them."

Xunzhen looked so charming and spoke so sweetly that Liu Xunyi couldn't help but feel excited. At this moment, his heartbeat quickened and his breathing became rapid.

However, just when Liu Xunyi, whose mind was blank, was about to break through the last bit of rationality and do something beyond the rules regardless of the consequences, Xunzhen, who had been looking at her with seductive eyes, suddenly smiled slyly, and then quickly stood up as if his conspiracy had succeeded, and sat back in his original seat with satisfaction.

"You teasing me?"

"I learn it from you!"

Looking at Xunzhen who had an attitude of "what can you do to me", Liu Xunyi, who was secretly feeling lost, felt helpless and didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

"That's it!"

Having experienced Xunzhen's power, Liu Xunyi, who was convinced, did not dare to look him in the eye again, and said in a hurry: "You leave now, I need to meet the mysterious person upstairs."

"What? You still don't give up?" Xunzhen guessed Liu Xunyi's intention at once, "If you prove that this man is the same as Zhang Xiong, then he too..."

Xunzhen did not say it explicitly, but gently gestured at her neck with her hand.

"If that's the case, the people who came here must have been prepared." Seeing that Liu Xunyi didn't refute, Xunzhen couldn't help but be shocked and said hurriedly, "Maybe... they are waiting for you to fall into their trap." "Then I'm not afraid either!"

"you……"

"I've heard that you two are a pair of happy enemies. It's really interesting to see you today."

Just as Liu Xunyi and Xunzhen were expressing their opinions and neither of them was willing to give in, a burst of "chuckles" suddenly came from the side. Then, a girl with rosy cheeks, rosy face, willow eyebrows and bright eyes came closer with a smile.

"Who is this girl?" Liu Xunyi and Xunzhen were both confused when faced with the strange girl who suddenly appeared.

"I, the servant Chuntao, am here on the orders of my master to pass on a few words to Liu Xunyi."

After Chuntao revealed his identity, Liu Xunyi immediately became alert and asked in a deep voice, "Who is your young master?"

Hearing this, Chuntao did not rush to answer, but cast her gaze at Xunzhen who was standing beside her, took out a cold stone jade pendant from her sleeve, and handed it to her respectfully.

"Is this... my brother's jade pendant?" With just one glance, Xunzhen recognized that the owner of the jade pendant was Wu Shuang.

"Brother Wu?" Xunzhen's answer surprised Liu Xunyi. His wariness towards Chuntao instantly disappeared. He asked in surprise, "Is your son Wu Shuang?" While speaking, he did not forget to glance at Xunzhen, as if asking her for confirmation.

"Exactly."

"I don't think I've seen you before?" Xunzhen looked Chuntao up and down doubtfully, "Which mansion are you from?"

"I was rescued by you in Huashan, and I am not a maid serving in the mansion." Chun Tao replied, "It is normal that the young lady does not recognize me."

"Why should I trust you?"

"Miss, do you still remember the fun of climbing up the beams and stealing perfumes with me when you were children?" Chuntao asked Liu Xunyi, "Young Master Liu, do you still remember who got the Qingsi Armor from the Jade Dragon Palace in Tianshan Mountain?"

"This……"

Both of the things Chuntao said are rarely known, which shows that Wu Shuang trusts her very much.

"Are you really my brother's maid?" Xunzhen looked at Chuntao in surprise and said jokingly, "My brother is so lucky. It hasn't been long since he has had another little beauty by his side."

"again?"

Xunzhen's teasing shocked Liu Xunyi, and he kept asking impatiently, "What do you mean by having good fortune? What does this 'again' mean?"

"Why? Didn't he mention it to you?" Xunzhen asked back, pretending to be innocent. "Everyone in his house, from the housekeeper to the servants, is a beautiful lady. Even the guards are female."

"This……"

"Oh! That's right!" Before the stunned Liu Xunyi could respond, Xunzhen put on an innocent look and reminded him seriously, "Your sister is in love with him. If she enters the mansion... she will be ranked around 50th in terms of seniority."

Xunzhen's murder was so heartbreaking that Liu Xunyi's mood fluctuated greatly, and his face changed color all the time, which was indescribably exciting.

"Where is my brother? He hasn't shown up since the anti-traitor meeting." Xunzhen suppressed his smile, deliberately ignored Liu Xunyi who was speechless, and asked Chuntao about Wu Shuang's whereabouts.

"Don't worry, young lady. The young master has been in Luoyang City and everything is fine."

"What did your brother ask you to tell Liu Xunyi?"

"The young master said that he already has a plan to deal with Sui Zuo's matter. Please don't do anything, young master Liu. Just wait for good news."

"what?"

Chuntao's words shocked the worried Liu Xunyi and the complacent Xunzhen, and they no longer cared about making jokes.

"Brother Wu, do you have a plan to deal with this?" Liu Xunyi's face changed slightly. He looked at Xunzhen, who was bewildered, in disbelief, and said hesitantly, "Could it be that... the owner of the three-flame golden hoop wolf fang is Brother Wu?"

"Impossible!" Although Xunzhen denied it very straightforwardly, the current situation made her tone sound unresolute, "No way... How could my brother be associated with Hu Lie?"

"Miss Chuntao, is Brother Wu... on the second floor now?"

"My master is not in the Donghai Teahouse." Chuntao rejected Liu Xunyi's attempt.

"Then who met Zhang Xiong upstairs was..."

"I don't know who Zhang Xiong is, nor do I know who is upstairs. I only know that the young master is not in the East Sea Tea House."

"This……"

The successive changes and confusing situations made Liu Xunyi and Xunzhen, who were already confused, feel even more confused.

"Zhang Xiong, Three Flames Golden Hoop Wolf Fang, Brother Wu... and the mysterious person upstairs? Either they don't show up, or they show up together. They seem to be unrelated, but they are connected by the same thing... If it's a coincidence, I would rather die than believe it." Too many surprises and unknowns made Liu Xunyi confused. He vaguely realized that he seemed to have fallen into a dilemma without knowing it, so he didn't dare to act rashly. "What kind of chess game is behind all this? Who is playing chess?"

……