Hunyuan Immortal Sect

Chapter 246 People’s hearts are fickle
Cheng Qian and Xu Ning worked together, one managed the affairs of the Alchemy Hall and the other managed the Qingfengfang shop. The two worked together to sell these privately refined Yuxiang Pills in the shop and split the profits 50-50.

If Song Xian was somewhat surprised that Cheng Qian was blinded by profit and withheld the raw materials of Yuxiang Dan and sold them privately to earn spirit stones, then he was heartbroken by Xu Ning's collusion.

He never thought that Xu Ning would do such a thing.

Although Cheng Qian is a senior member, he is still an outsider, while Xu Ning is a legitimate elder of the sect.

I remember that the group of people set out from Qingyun Sect, were robbed and killed on the way, and settled down in Laogufeng, Bianxia Town. They suffered so much hardship and were looked down upon by so many people.

At that time, there were only ten people left in the sect, including Song Xian. The Hunyuan Sect, which was once a small and destitute sect, has grown to two or three hundred people now, becoming the strongest force in Bianxi City except for the Luoyun Sect and the Kong family.

Xu Ning has always been loyal and hardworking, and has participated in countless life-and-death battles. How could he be in cahoots with Cheng Qian?

Besides, he is now the manager of Qingfengfang shop.

The predecessor to this position was Feng Yan, who is now the sect’s commerce manager and is responsible for all the sect’s business affairs.

The previous person to take the position was Jiang Zichen, who has now been promoted to Feng Yan's deputy, assisting Feng Yan in managing all the shops of the sect.

According to Song Xian's expectation, if Feng Yan was promoted or transferred again in the future, Jiang Zichen would be the head of commerce and Xu Ning would be his deputy, and they would take the positions in turn.

With his status and qualifications, why would he get involved in this with Cheng Qian for such a small profit?

If Song Xian didn't have Cheng Qian's signed confession in his hand, he would never have believed it.

……

In the brightly lit room, several people gathered together. The atmosphere was very subtle and the room was silent.

After listening to Zhong Wenyuan's report, Song Xian carefully read the petition signed and sealed by Cheng Qian, and was speechless for a moment.

The people below also had different expressions. Qi Xiaobai lowered his head with a guilty look on his face.

He was the one who recruited Cheng Qian into the sect and he was also his good friend. He never expected that he would do such a thing.

No matter what, as the head of the Alchemy Hall, he cannot escape blame. If he had not handed over all affairs to Cheng Qian, he would not have had the opportunity to do this.

This made him feel that he had let down Song Xian's trust and had harmed Cheng Qian.

Both Zhang Yi and Lu Yuan looked solemn. They had a good relationship with Xu Ning and had not expected to involve him.

Especially Zhang Yi, he was the one who took the initiative to report the matter after discovering it.

Zhong Wenyuan frowned, as it was he who strongly recommended Xu Ning to be the head of Qingfengfang.

Three years ago, Jiang Zichen returned to the sect and was promoted to deputy manager of the sect's shop. The position of Qingfengfang was vacant, and in order to prevent Feng Yan from recommending one of her own people to take the position, he strongly recommended Xu Ning. Now that this matter has arisen, he also feels it is difficult and does not know how to deal with it.

Xu Ning is an elder in the sect. They have been through thick and thin together. If he is punished severely, it will not look good from a public perspective. However, from a private perspective, the relationship between the two has always been good.

But the matter has been exposed and we cannot ignore it.

"Where is Cheng Qian now?" Song Xian read the confession over and over again, closed it, and sighed.

"In the reflection room, I have sent someone to watch over it." Zhong Wenyuan replied.

The so-called reflection room is actually a detention room. Disciples who have made mistakes in the sect are detained there. If the circumstances are serious, they will be taken to the prison cell.

"Don't let this matter leak out first. Call back Senior Brother Xu Ning immediately and send someone to Qingfengfang to investigate."

Zhong Wenyuan nodded, seeming to want to say something but stopping himself.

Song Xian knew what he was going to say, but ignored him. Instead, he looked at Qi Xiaobai and said, "Junior Brother Qi, you are responsible for the Alchemy Hall. You must ensure that this kind of thing does not happen again. Fortunately, Senior Brother Zhang Yi discovered it in time. Otherwise, it would have escalated and the consequences would have been even more serious."

"I have failed the Master's trust, and I am willing to accept the punishment."

"Father and son, brothers are not even that close. He is him, and you are you."

Qi Xiaobai opened his mouth, then closed it again. Finally, hesitantly, he spoke: "Master, I wonder how the sect plans to punish Junior Brother Cheng Qian?"

"This matter hasn't been fully clarified yet. Let's call Senior Brother Xu Ning back and investigate it thoroughly before we can discuss it. You all should go first!"

Song Xian waved his hand. He had not yet decided how to deal with the two men. Both of them were veterans, especially Xu Ning, who had a good relationship with people in the sect. There would definitely be many people pleading for mercy.

If the punishment is too severe, it seems inhumane; if the punishment is too light, it will be difficult to convince the public and explain to the disciples of the sect. More importantly, if the punishment is not severe, the sect's atmosphere will be difficult to control, and there will inevitably be people who will follow suit.

Several people responded and left, only Zhong Wenyuan stayed.

"Brother Wenyuan, do you have anything else to say?"

"Master, I would like to say a few more words about Junior Brother Xu Ning."

"Okay!" Song Xian knew that Zhong Wenyuan would definitely plead for him.

"Junior Brother Xu has followed us all the way from Qingyun Sect. Over the years, he's made considerable contributions, not to mention the hard work. If he's truly involved, I hope to give him a lighter sentence. He may have just been confused for a moment. As the saying goes, to err is human, and this is his first offense. If he sincerely repents, he can be given another chance."

"Although he made a mistake, I believe he is still loyal to the sect. He never left the sect even when it was in such a difficult situation. We can't erase his achievements and punish him with one blow just because he made a mistake. This will chill the hearts of the sect's disciples."

"Giving him a chance also shows that the sect is magnanimous and treats success with kindness. I believe that after this lesson, he will learn from it and become stronger after knowing his shame."

"In the future, we just need to strengthen management and supervision to prevent such incidents from happening again."

Song Xian nodded and said, "I will consider it carefully. We will discuss it after the matter is thoroughly investigated. Brother Wenyuan, go and have a rest!"

Zhong Wenyuan said nothing more, stood up and left. Looking at his departing back, Song Xian fell into deep thought.

After Xu Ning was recalled to the sect, he explained the problem without much effort.

This is not a crime of treason. With his qualifications and merits, I believe the sect will give him a decent treatment as long as it is not a particularly serious crime. In addition, with Cheng Qian's confession, it is useless for him to quibble.

According to his account, in the past two years, he secretly sold more than a thousand Yuxiang Pills at the Qingfengfang shop, with a value of ten thousand spirit stones, and received nearly five thousand spirit stones.

"Junior Brother Xu Ning expressed remorse and was very sorry for his behavior. He said that he did it because he was confused for a moment. He took the initiative to cooperate and explained all the problems. He was also willing to hand over the proceeds from the private sale of Yuxiang Dan." In the brightly lit room, Zhong Wenyuan handed the confession signed by Xu Ning to Song Xian.

In fact, before the interrogation, he had secretly sent someone to inform Xu Ning, and told him that as long as he confessed everything during the interrogation and handed over the spirit stones he had obtained in violation of the sect's rules, he would do his utmost to protect him. So Xu Ning quickly and clearly explained everything, including how Cheng Qian had conspired with him, and which disciples were involved.

Song Xian took the file, read it through, and nodded calmly: "I understand."

"Master, the matter has been investigated, but I don't know how to deal with it?"

"Brother Wenyuan, what do you think is the appropriate way to deal with this?"

"Since Junior Brother Xu is willing to return the proceeds from the illegal sale of the Jade Fragrance Pill, I believe he should be given a lighter sentence. After all, he is an elder of the sect and has made many contributions to the sect. Six months of solitary confinement and a year's salary deduction will not only not discourage the other disciples, but also provide an explanation to everyone."

"What about Cheng Qian and the others?"

"As long as they are willing to hand over what they have gained, they can be given a lighter punishment. Cheng Qian, as the mastermind, will be put in solitary confinement for one year and fined two years' salary. The other disciples with less serious offenses will be imprisoned for a few months and fined half a year's salary as a sufficient punishment." Zhong Wenyuan said.

Just because Xu Ning was involved, he had to give Cheng Qian a lighter sentence as well. This was because the two were accomplices and it was impossible for one to be given a light punishment while the other was given a heavy punishment.

"Let me think about it. I plan to hold a meeting tomorrow and listen to the opinions of all the brothers and sisters before making a final decision. Brother Wenyuan, please go back first!"

"Yes." Zhong Wenyuan responded and left.

Song Xian also returned to the mansion. Inside the house, Su Zhirou was already waiting for him. Seeing him return, she looked a little strange and went to greet him and asked, "What's wrong, husband?"

"It's nothing. Senior Brother Xu Ning has been brought back and explained the problem. When I think about the little things that happened when I went from Qingyun Sect to Guzi Peak, I feel really bad." Song Xian took her hand and sat down.

"I was just about to tell my husband about this! If he's troubled, don't get involved, to avoid being talked about behind his back. This is a thankless task. If you punish him too harshly, people will say you're heartless, even an elder of the sect like Xu Ning shows no mercy. If you punish him too lightly, people will accuse you of favoritism. Let's just leave this matter entirely to Zhong Wenyuan."

"Why did you get involved? Who interceded for you?"

Song Xian knew that someone must have found her, otherwise she would not have said these words, because she never cared about the affairs of the sect.

"Grandpa found me and told me that. I think it makes sense. What do you think, husband?"

Needless to say, this was another idea from someone in the sect who wanted to protect Xu Ning. They asked Old Man Hu to find Su Zhirou and whisper in his ear. This shows that the factional forces in the sect are already quite entrenched.

"Why aren't you talking, husband?" Su Zhirou squeezed into his arms.

"Don't use the beauty trap." Song Xian poked her forehead with his finger.

.........

In the dim room, Xu Ning sat alone, feeling quite anxious, pacing around the room constantly. The feeling of being imprisoned and restricted in freedom of movement was really terrible, especially being detained here and cut off from the outside world, which made him feel great pressure every moment.

Although he had many connections in the sect, and Zhong Wenyuan had clearly stated that he would do his best to help him achieve a good result, he was still worried because there was no news for a long time.

At this time, footsteps were heard outside. He immediately rushed to the door, then took two steps back, straightened the corners of his clothes, sat down upright, took two deep breaths, and put on a calm attitude.

The door opened, and Xu Ning was stunned when he saw the person coming. He quickly stood up and saluted respectfully: "Master."

The person who came was none other than Song Xian. There was no one behind him. He came alone quietly.

"Senior Brother Xu, please sit down! Let's have a good talk." Song Xian felt quite complicated and sighed slightly.

"I am a criminal, how can I sit opposite the master? If the master has anything to ask, I will tell him everything I know." Xu Ning looked ashamed.

Song Xian sat down across from him. "Brother Wenyuan has already given me your signed confession, but I'm worried there might be something fishy going on. Honestly, I can't believe it's you, so I came to talk to you in person. Brother Xu Ning, did you really collude with Cheng Qian to secretly sell the Jade Fragrance Pill worth ten thousand spirit stones?"

"I was confused for a moment, blinded by greed, please punish me, Master." Xu Ning stood there with his head down, like a child who had done something wrong.

"Why? You're a sect elder, one of the ten founders of the sect. Why would you do this? I've thought about this for a long time. Senior Brother Xu, tell me the truth. Is it because you feel unfairly treated, that as a sect elder you haven't been given the status you deserve, and that you're feeling aggrieved?"

Song Xian's voice was calm and composed, without any emotional ups and downs.

However, Xu Ning's body trembled slightly, as these words hit the nail on the head.

The reason why he conspired with Cheng Qian was because he felt unfair in his heart. He was one of the founders of the sect. From the small sect with ten people at the beginning to the large sect with two or three hundred people now, he thought he had made great contributions.

He made great contributions when the sect was in its most difficult and weakest time. When the sect was surviving in the gap between Qingyuan Sect and the Alliance of Loose Cultivators, he participated in every tough battle.

Why, why, until now he is still just a small boss of Qingfengfang.

Not to mention compared with Zhong Wenyuan and Lin Zixiang, his contribution is no less than that of Jiang Zichen, let alone Feng Yan and others.

Feng Yan is already the sect's commerce director, responsible for all the shops in the sect. Jiang Zichen has also become the sect's deputy commerce director, but he has to take over Jiang Zichen's job.

He refused to accept it. In terms of cultivation, seniority, and contribution, he was inferior to no one except Zhong Wenyuan and Lin Zixiang, but he was not even as good as Feng Yan and Jiang Zichen.

He even felt some resentment towards Song Xian in his heart. The sect was so weak back then, and everyone got about the same amount of spirit stones.

Now that the sect has grown stronger, its annual financial income is more than 200,000 spirit stones. Song Xian can get tens of thousands of spirit stones every year just from the share, while he can only get more than 1,000 spirit stones every year.

Everyone has contributed to the sect's current success, but now he gets less than a fraction of what Song Xian gets. How can this be possible?

Since the sect is unfair, then of course he has to seek more personal gain for himself. What's wrong with that?

The only mistake is that he is not the headmaster and has no say.

If he were the headmaster, with tens of thousands of spirit stones as dividends every year, he would certainly not do such a thing, and he would also be able to accuse others with a high-sounding reason.

Xu Ning wanted to roar out these words, but he held back in the end.

"I was wrong, Master."

"You have made great contributions to the sect, and I will never forget that. As for your punishment, I need to think it over carefully."

Seeing that he was unwilling to reveal his inner thoughts, Song Xian said no more and got up and left the room.

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PS: (I have a severe cold, so I’ll take a day off tomorrow.)
(End of this chapter)