Qin Shi: I went astray in the Heavenly Sect

Chapter 163 The Truth About Chenjia Village, Xiaomeng's Questions
As night was drawing to a close, a commotion reached everyone's ears.

A troop of imperial guards stormed into the Wan Hua Lou and completely surrounded this renowned brothel in Daliang City.

Then a man in armor walked toward the fifth floor with a gloomy expression.

Inside the lobby, the guests and girls stood to one side, whispering among themselves.

"Why is General Li Qing here?"

"Why is this jinx here?"

"Shh! Are you out of your mind?!"

"I do not know!"

"Judging from this situation, something big must have happened!"

"Let's find a chance to slip away quickly!"

Ignoring the discussions in the lobby, Li Qing headed straight for the top floor of the Wan Hua Lou.

The heavy footsteps mirrored his mood until he pushed open the door to a room on the fifth floor.

The sight of the glaring blood in the room made the man, who had traversed the great beams, sway slightly. He managed to grab the door frame in time to avoid making a fool of himself.

The scene inside the room was somewhat gruesome. Only a complete corpse remained, that of a young girl. As for Li Xuan, only his head remained in the corner of the room, his eyes wide open in death.

After a long while, Li Qing finally recovered. He saw that the man's eyes were bloodshot and his voice was hoarse as he shouted, "Who is it?!"

"Who is it?!"

"If I don't kill you, I swear I'm not a human being!!"

In the Yuelai Inn across the street, in a room on the second floor, two young people stood by the window, quietly looking at the Wanhua Tower.

These two were Xiu Yuan and Xiao Meng, who had left the Wan Hua Lou earlier.

"Are you still going?"

Xiaomeng's guess was correct; Li Qing did indeed come this time, but he didn't come alone. He was accompanied by thousands of imperial guards, which made the girl hesitate a bit.

"Let's go!"

Xiu Yuan didn't say much, only two simple words.

Xiaomeng turned her head to look at the boy, and seeing that his expression remained unchanged and he did not seem to be swayed by emotions, she nodded.

The purpose of this trip to Daliang was to deal with her affairs; there's no reason to let this young man go alone.

"Senior brother, are you alright?"

Before leaving, Xiaomeng asked one more question.

Xiu Yuan shook his head. He had a bad feeling about this capital city. Compared with Handan in Zhao and Xinzheng in Han, it was more disorderly and chaotic. It was more like a huge martial arts world than a capital city.

Now all he wants to do is cut the Gordian knot and leave.

Was what Lord Xinling did back then really the right thing to do?

Xiu Yuan withdrew his gaze and looked at the silver-haired girl beside him, his eyes suddenly becoming incredibly deep.

Xiaomeng felt a tremor in her heart when she saw Xiuyuan's gaze. She knew very well that he was not asking about the matter of stealing the talisman to save Zhao, but about the impact of the matter.

The reason why the Great Liang Dynasty has fallen to its current state is ultimately due to the fact that Lord Xinling kept three thousand retainers back then.

"Everything has its yin and yang aspects. A thing can't only have a good side or only a bad side. Today's Daliang may well be a beacon on another path in the future. I was a bit deluded."

Before Xiaomeng could reply, Xiuyuan suddenly sighed again, a sense of coolness creeping into his heart.

Upon hearing this, Xiaomeng seemed to be deep in thought. Although her progress in comprehending the Dao was rapid, to be honest, she was still far inferior to Xiuyuan. As for the question Xiuyuan had just asked, she didn't know how to answer it for a moment. She was thinking that if Beimingzi were here, perhaps he could give this young man an answer.

However, upon hearing the other person's words again, she felt that her senior brother seemed to have had an epiphany, because she sensed that the aura emanating from him had returned to its usual tranquility and composure.

The next moment, Xiu Yuan grabbed the girl beside him and disappeared into the inn's room.

"Is General Li looking for me?"

On the fifth floor of the Wan Hua Lou, Li Qing's body suddenly trembled, and a somewhat ethereal voice rang in his heart.

Li Qing looked up abruptly and saw two young people, a boy and a girl, suddenly appear in the room.

Who are you?

Li Qing asked in a deep voice.

“I killed Li Xian, along with the seven guards here.”

The boy looked up, his eyes showing no sign of tension whatsoever, but his words were like adding fuel to the fire, instantly enraging the person in front of him.

"court death!!"

With a roar, Li Qing drew his long sword instantly and charged towards the boy like a tiger descending a mountain.

But that was all. The boy gently exhaled a breath of stale air, and an aura instantly filled the entire fifth floor.

Feeling the sword tip being forcibly suspended in mid-air, unable to advance an inch, Li Qing's face darkened. He was about to order his men to dismember the somewhat strange young man in front of him when, to his astonishment, he discovered that not only was his sword unable to advance, but he had also lost control of his body.

The boy stood to the side, his tone remaining largely unchanged.

"I have a question for the general. Does the general still remember Chenjia Village in Guancheng a year ago?"

Upon hearing the names of Guancheng and Chenjia Village, the already promoted general's expression suddenly changed, and his eyes became somewhat evasive.

"It seems this matter is indeed related to the general."

The boy was very perceptive and noticed the changes in Li Qing's expression. He then waved his right hand and released his control over Li Qing's head.

"Consort Liang is my elder sister. You dare to touch me? Aren't you afraid of being hunted down and killed by the Wei Kingdom?"

This was Li Qing's first sentence; at this point, he didn't even mention his son anymore.

The boy sighed.

"General, it would be better not to do such futile work. Since your son has been killed, I am now mortal enemies with you. I have never expected you to forgive and forget. If you insist on not cooperating, I would not mind adding another soul to the road to the underworld sooner."

Upon hearing this, Li Qing's heart skipped a beat.

This tried-and-true method failed for the first time, but what the other party said made sense. They didn't even seem to have the slightest hope for reconciliation, so any threats seemed pointless. "What do you want?"

"If you kill me, you'll never know anything about Chenjia Village again!!"

Soon, Li Qing realized his predicament and changed his excuse, threatening him again.

The young man shook his head.

"I have come to Daliang today only to settle the matter of cause and effect. Your cooperation is one thing, your non-cooperation is another, but in the end I will know what I want to know. I advise you not to ask for trouble."

Li Qing snorted coldly and then shut his mouth.

The silver-haired girl standing to the side narrowed her eyes upon seeing this scene. She had considered many possibilities, but this was one she had never imagined before.

Just then, a voice mixed with strange fluctuations entered the ears of the Wei general in front of him. Then, as if hypnotized, the general began to spill the beans, telling the whole story of what happened back then.

Hearing the information the other party kept revealing, the girl was stunned. What was going on?
"Senior brother..."

Xiaomeng then turned around and looked over, her eyes showing a hint of wariness. In her eyes, Xiu Yuan's methods were indeed quite strange.

"It's just some soul-shifting technique!"

Seeing Xiaomeng's expression, Xiuyuan seemed to have guessed something. After all, the last time he showed this method to Jingni, who was also Nishang, the other party also had that look of disbelief. So he thought for a moment and explained.

"Does the Xinzhai (Heart Fasting) contain such a technique?"

Xiaomeng was somewhat surprised and uncertain, after all, in her view, this method was completely different from Taoist techniques.

"There was a scroll of Dream-Sleeping Heart Techniques that involved a simple soul-shifting technique. When I saw it, I just glanced at it and memorized it!"

Upon hearing the words "Womeng Xin Gong" (卧梦心功), Xiaomeng frowned. Judging from the name of the technique, it did indeed have Taoist influences. Then, the girl seemed to think of something and shook her head. Techniques are neither good nor evil to an individual; they are good when used for good and evil when used for evil.

Moreover, Xiu Yuan used this technique not for any other reason, but simply to find out the truth of what happened back then.

Then the girl patiently listened quietly.

"Grand Minister Wei Yong colluded with the Luo Wang (Net of Heaven) to assassinate the previous leader of the Pi Jia Men (Armored Armored Gate), intending to control Wei's most elite troops—the Wei Wu Zu (Wei Warriors). However, Ximen Dian emerged out of nowhere, took over the Pi Jia Men, and then became the new commander of the Wei Wu Zu, which thwarted Wei Yong's scheme."

"Later, Wei Yong persuaded the King of Wei to send Ximen Dian to Hexi, forbidding him from returning to Daliang without imperial decree. He wanted to use the power of Qin to get rid of this thorn in his side. However, the Wei Wuzu were so powerful that they managed to hold off the fierce Qin army. Hexi became an insurmountable barrier for Wei, and since Qin attacked Wei, Wei had been unable to cross it."

After Li Qing was controlled by Xiu Yuan's soul-shifting technique, he was like a walking corpse, and even his tone of voice became unresponsive.

However, the meaning behind the other party's words still made the two people in front of them look complicated. The situation in Wei was the same as that in the other six states. If they hadn't heard it with their own ears, they probably wouldn't have imagined that the court struggle in Wei had evolved to this extent.

"Since the obstacle to controlling the Wei Wu soldiers is this Ximen Dian, why doesn't Wei Yong use the power of the Luo Wang to eliminate him?"

Seemingly recalling some fragments of his memory, Xiu Yuan rarely spoke up and asked a question.

Li Qing's gaze was unfocused as he spoke again, "It seems something happened. Ximen Dian was seriously injured and on the verge of death, but somehow he came back to life."

Upon hearing this, Xiu Yuan glanced at the other person, and seeing that there was nothing unusual about him, he looked away with some surprise.

Li Qing then continued, "About a year ago, Qin general Wang Ben attacked Hexi, but Ximen Dian was there, so the city could not be breached and the first battle was lost."

"Later, Qin's Luowang and Yingmiwei were dispatched at the same time, and they contacted me and Grand Minister Wei Yong, intending to use a plan to lure Ximen Dian away from Hexi. However, this plan was not effective, and Ximen Dian held firm in Hexi and did not leave."

Listening to Li Qing's description, Xiu Yuan shook his head slightly. He then looked at the girl beside him. The person who saved her back then should have been Zhang Han of the Shadow Guard. But based on the information Li Qing has revealed so far, the Shadow Guard may also be involved in the Chenjia Village case.

What benefits did Qin and Wei offer you?

If one were to ask again, "If someone were to do something, especially if they were to take risks, there would inevitably be a great reward."

"The heads of those two hundred Qin soldiers, and the position of commander of the Imperial Guard."

Upon hearing this answer, Xiaomeng suddenly laughed, but her laughter was cold.

"Is Chenjia Village the price that lured Ximen Dian away from Hexi?"

Li Qing's gaze wavered, as if this matter was not something honorable for him either.

Seeing this, Xiu Yuan formed a hand seal to reinforce the soul-shifting technique, and Li Qing nodded again.

"This was not actually done by those two hundred Qin soldiers. They were stopped by us before they even reached Chenjia Village. The one who did it was an assassin from the Luo Wang organization. The leader, according to my deputy general, Xu Di, is named Yan Ri."

Upon hearing this, Xiu Yuan raised an eyebrow. Yan Ri? He was familiar with that name. In Xinzheng, South Korea, he had killed a Yan Ri. If he wasn't mistaken, the Yan Ri he killed was the one who had stirred up a bloodbath in Chenjia Village.

Who is Xu Di?

Xiu Yuan noticed another person mentioned by Li Qing, the deputy general Xu Di.

"Xu Di was an inside agent planted in Wei by Luo Wang. He was able to make contact with Luo Wang thanks to Xu Di's considerable efforts."

After a while, Xiu Yuan spoke again and asked the core question of the matter.

Who ordered the events in Chenjia Village?

"It was a plan jointly set by Luo Wang, the Grand Marshal, and myself. Initially, the target wasn't clear; we just wanted to cause a ruckus in the vicinity. The calamity that befell Chenjia Village was merely a coincidence!"

At this point, the secrets of that year gradually surfaced. Xiu Yuan put his hands behind his back, a complex look appearing in his eyes.

It was another power struggle. Wei Yong, the Grand Minister of Works of Wei, and Li Qing, the city patrol general, even went so far as to collude with outsiders and invite trouble. However, Wei Yong's plan ultimately failed. Ximen Dian did not leave Hexi, nor did he successfully gain control of the Wei Wuzu.

As for Li Qing's side, they succeeded. With the heads of two hundred Qin soldiers, and perhaps some villagers from Chenjia Village, he successfully became the commander of the Imperial Guard.

As for the victims of this incident, namely the people of Chenjia Village, they probably will never know where this undeserved disaster came from until their deaths.

Of course, there is another force that is a bit strange, namely the Shadow Guard. What role do they play in this scheme to lure the tiger away from the mountain?

"Was the Chenjia Village massacre orchestrated by the Shadow Guard?"

Xiu Yuan glanced at the little girl who was standing silently to the side, and remembering her grudge with Zhang Han, the commander of the Shadow Guard, he asked her another question.

"The Shadow Guards are in charge of cleaning up the mess. As for whether they actually took action, I'm not sure."

After a long while, the girl raised her head.

The truth is always cruel; the swords that cut you, especially the knife from behind, are hard to forgive.

"Senior brother, what should I do?"

……

(End of this chapter)