Chapter 1111: The Heart of the Old Ministers (Part )

"Su Tang, just based on what you just said, I can execute you immediately!"

Facing Xie Xuan's cold gaze, Su Tang's face gradually turned pale. But even so, he still suppressed his inner tension and mustered up the courage to speak his mind: "If I had ulterior motives and was secretly cunning, I would never say such a rebellious and stupid thing. My sincere heart and sincere feelings are only for the prosperity of the Xianwang Mansion where I have served loyally, and only to repay the great kindness of the 'first mansion master' to me. If the second master thinks that I am judging others by my own standards and that my outspokenness is a malicious offense to the young master, you can punish me according to the family rules..."

"How dare you!" Looking at the righteous Su Tang, Xie Xuan was so angry that his face turned blue. He scolded him harshly, "Do you know what you are talking about? Do you remember that the young master spared your life yesterday? Not only do you doubt the young master's loyalty to the Xianwang Mansion, but you also use the 'former master' to defend yourself. You are totally out of your mind!"

"Second Master, please understand! It's not that I don't trust the young master, I just don't trust Patriarch Teng and Valley Master Xiao..."

"What's the difference? Are you going to force them to sever their mother-son relationship?" Xie Xuan interrupted Su Tang's defense without any hesitation. "You know that mother and son are connected by heart, and blood is thicker than water. What's the point of saying all this nonsense now?"

"It's useful! Of course it's useful! At least... we can make plans early."

"Make plans early? Humph! I guess this is the real purpose of your 'nonsense' today, right?" Xie Xuan laughed angrily, "Now that things have come to this, there is no need for you to beat around the bush, just speak frankly!"

Xie Xuan's attitude was still indignant, but Su Tang heard a hint of curiosity in his "disdainful" tone, so he rolled his eyes and suggested in a low voice: "I think that for the long-term stability of the Xianwang Mansion and the disciples in the mansion, we should not hand over the Xianwang Mansion to the young master too early. In the future,... the second master should continue to serve as the lord of the Xianwang Mansion, control the power of life and death, and preside over all matters. Only in this way can the Xianwang Mansion maintain its independence and innocence in the situation of multiple parties joining forces, and occupy a place in the bloody world. Only in this way can the heroes of the world be convinced of the revival of the Xianwang Mansion, and the disciples in the mansion can rest assured in the future..."

"Bastard thing!"

Xie Xuan, who had seen the truth, was furious. His right hand stretched out like lightning, and his five fingers, like steel bars, tightly grasped Su Tang's throat. He said angrily, "How dare you, a man with such a ruthless heart, instigate me to steal the position of the Palace Master? If I had known this would happen, I should have let you be buried with Qingfeng yesterday, so that you would not have been so evil and deceived the people with your lies!"

The sudden change not only made Su Tang, who was caught off guard, panic-stricken, but also made Luo Qi and a group of disciples from the Xianwang Mansion nearby terrified.

"Second Master... spare my life..."

Watching Su Tang's cheeks turn from red to purple under Xie Xuan's grip, his facial features twisted into a ball in pain, and trying his best to squeeze out a whimper for mercy from his throat, the flustered Luo Qi turned pale with fear, and hurriedly pleaded for him: "Second Master, although Su Zhishan's words were rash, he is absolutely loyal to the Xianwang Mansion, to the young master, and to you, Second Master. What he just said was also for the future and destiny of the Xianwang Mansion. He didn't want the foundation that the 'first master' had worked so hard to build to be handed over to others. I hope Second Master will understand..."

"Luo Qi, do you have any intention of being disloyal to the young master?"

Xie Xuan shouted, frightening Luo Qi so much that his heart trembled. A layer of fine beads of sweat instantly appeared on his wrinkled forehead. He swore in panic: "I swear to heaven, if we have the slightest rebellious heart towards the young master, let us be struck by lightning and die miserably!"

"Second Master, I... just proposed to postpone the handover of power, I didn't say I wouldn't hand it over..."

"I beg you to show mercy, Lord! Su Zhishan... is about to be strangled to death by you!"

Under Su Tang's strong defense and the desperate pleas of the disciples around him, the furious Xie Xuan hesitated again and again, and finally his eyes relaxed, and slowly loosened his five fingers like eagle claws, allowing the dying Su Tang to feel the freedom of breathing again. "Second Master, calm down!" Seeing that Su Tang had escaped, Luo Qi felt relieved and reminded him tactfully, "Think about it, the status of the Xianwang Mansion in the martial arts world was so respected in the past. But since the murder of the 'first master', the Xianwang Mansion has been going from bad to worse. In the past two years, if it weren't for the second master's hard work to support it, I'm afraid that the Xianwang Mansion would have been swallowed up by the covetous tyrants. As the 'elders' of the Xianwang Mansion, we really don't want to see the Xianwang Mansion just escape from the tiger's den and fall into the wolf's den again."

"This……"

"Second Master!"

Su Tang, who had escaped death, was still in shock. He stretched out his hands and grabbed Xie Xuan's arm tightly, and solemnly explained to him with emotion and reason: "Our loyalty to the 'first master' is witnessed by heaven and earth, and the sun and the moon can testify. As Bai Zhishan and Qing Zhishan of the Xianwang Mansion, we have followed the 'first master' and the second master through ups and downs, and we know how important a shrewd, capable, experienced and sophisticated 'master' is to a sect. The current young master is capable but not shrewd, and experienced but not mature. Although he has experienced the warmth and coldness of human nature and seen through the world, Although he is a cold-blooded person, he is still a person of old habits. He always emphasizes the distinction between gratitude and resentment, right and wrong, and always goes against the trend of the martial arts world in the name of "family and country". He insists on doing things his own way regardless of the consequences. Such a person is frustrated everywhere even in the officialdom, let alone in the martial arts world? In the past, when the "previous master" was alive, he had repeatedly disobeyed orders. Now, if all the power of the Xianwang Mansion is handed over to him, won't he be more reckless without anyone to restrain him? If Master Xiao and Chief Teng really have "evil intentions", the future of the Xianwang Mansion... is simply unimaginable."

"This……"

"I beg you to put the overall situation first and not hand over the power of the Xianwang Mansion to the young master for three to five years. When he is more mature, more cautious, has a deeper affection for the Xianwang Mansion, and is more determined to inherit his father's business... when he is not disturbed by 'outsiders' or affected by other things, and truly ties his own fate to the fate of the Xianwang Mansion... then it will not be too late to abdicate and let the young master take over."

"Su Tang, Luo Qi, are you... forcing me to do something unkind and unjust?" Xie Xuan looked at the two people who were making such a strong argument with complicated eyes. His tone was no longer as cruel as before, but became a little bitter. "Although your worries are not unreasonable, Xunyi is the flesh and blood of the Northern Xian King after all, and the legitimate heir to the Xian King's Mansion. I, Xie, have been entrusted with the care of the 'previous master', so I should assist him with all my wisdom and loyalty. How dare I harbor any ulterior motives?"

"Second Master, you are wrong! Not handing over power is not out of disloyalty, but out of a public spirit. Even if Patriarch Teng and Valley Master Xiao did not have such concerns, we still believe that the young master is not qualified for the important task of 'head of the family'. After all, the young master is still young, and his qualifications, prestige, and experience in the martial arts world are all lacking. He is simply unable to save the family foundation that is riddled with holes, unable to cope with the crisis-ridden chaos in the martial arts world, and unable to take into account the intricate human relationships..."

"Xunyi is young, but being young does not only mean being immature and inconsiderate. It also means being high-spirited and having a bright future." Xie Xuan slowly pushed away Su Tang's hand and recalled, "Looking back to the past, when I followed the Northern Sage King to 'conquer the world', I was younger than Xunyi. When Jin Fuyu became famous, he was not much different from Xunyi. Yun Zhuiyue took over Longxiang Mountain and Xiao Zhirou founded Jueqing Valley at the same age. Now, Lu Tingxiang is in charge of the Jiangnan Lu Mansion and Qin Ku owns the Hexi Qin Family, but they are only in their thirties. Whether it is a young hero or a late bloomer, success or failure is not determined by seniority or prestige, but by real talent and knowledge."

"Second Master is right, but... starting a business is different from maintaining one. It is difficult for the young master to transform from a eccentric 'lonely man' to a 'head of a family' with great power overnight, no matter his thoughts, mind, scheming, knowledge... all of which are perfect and watertight in a short period of time." Luo Qi pondered, "It is rare to find a genius like the Northern Sage King in hundreds of years. It goes without saying that Jin Fuyu can become famous at a young age with the blessing of the Jin royal family. Master Xiao was fortunate to meet Granny Taohua and receive the generous teachings of Senior Ye Tong, the 'first master in the world' at that time. This kind of once-in-a-million opportunity is really hard to come by. Saint Master Yu Yun... All the Saint Masters of Longxiang Mountain have to go through the "three changes" and endure tortures that are far beyond what ordinary people can endure. It is extremely difficult to survive, and becoming neither human nor ghost in the second half of life is a painful price that must be paid. The above people were able to succeed at a young age, and their real talents and knowledge only accounted for half, and the other half relied on luck. As for Lu Tingxiang... He has been taught by Lu Chongyang since he was a child, and has been influenced by him for more than 20 years. However, when he first succeeded to the position of the head of the family, he was still stretched and embarrassed. In comparison, Qin Ku is even worse. Since he took over the Hexi Qin family, troubles have repeatedly arisen within the family. To this day, the Qin family is still changing their minds and harboring their own ulterior motives..."

"Stop talking!" The confused Xie Xuan waved his hand and immediately interrupted Su Tang and Luo Qi who were singing the same tune, and said righteously, "I have seen through your thoughts. Considering your loyalty and your years of hard work for the Xianwang Mansion, I can pretend that what happened today... didn't happen. But I hope that from now on you will stop talking about Xunyi behind my back, and don't interfere in the overall situation in a self-righteous way."

"Second Master..."

"The current situation is far more complicated than you can imagine. Let Xunyi preside over the overall situation of Xianwang Mansion is our only way to keep him. Otherwise, not to mention that the revitalization of Xianwang Mansion will be completely shattered, even if it is reduced to its original state, it will only take a word from Master Xiao and Chief Teng." Xie Xuan waved his hands impatiently, "If we can't even get over the current difficulties, how can we talk about three to five years? How can we talk about long-term stability? Therefore, the power of Xianwang Mansion must... and must be handed over to Xunyi as soon as possible. The longer this matter is delayed, the more variables there will be, and the more uneasy I will be. As for you..."

At this point, Xie Xuan looked at Su and Luo, and a hint of contemplation flashed across his eyes. He said meaningfully, "In terms of the facts, in terms of the standpoint and attitude of distinguishing right from wrong and weighing the importance, you two are more... rational than Murong Bai and Deng Quan, but sometimes you are not thoughtful and act rashly. Therefore, as long as you can set your heart right, not follow the tide, not change your rudder, and not go with the flow, sooner or later you will have the opportunity to realize your ambitions."

……

(End of this chapter)