Chapter 140: New Year's Eve Change (Part )

Jiang Yiwei returned home secretly without alerting anyone. It was only after Xie Xuan secretly informed Luo Tianjin at the banquet that he left without making a sound.

Luo Tianjin secretly met with Jiang Yiwei in the study, and after listening to what Jiang Yiwei saw and heard during his trip to Jiangling, he immediately ordered Xie Xuan to secretly summon Ling Xiaoxiao, Deng Changchuan, Su Tang, and Lin Fangda to have a talk. Afterwards, Luo Tianjin explained the whole story to them and ordered Lin Fangda to call in Liu Xunyi for questioning.

The noise and bustle from the front yard could still be vaguely heard in the study, but the people in the room all had solemn expressions, and did not say a word. Each of them was thinking about something, and the atmosphere was quite depressing.

An hour later, Lin Fangda finally arrived with Liu Xunyi.

As soon as he entered the room, Liu Xunyi could clearly feel that the atmosphere was a bit subtle, but due to his identity and various suspicions about the unknown, although he was nervous, he still pretended to be calm and unperturbed on the surface.

"Greetings to the Lord and Madam! Greetings to Second Master Xie, Third Master Jiang, Fifth Master Deng! Greetings to Bai Zhishan!" Liu Xunyi greeted them one by one in a neither humble nor arrogant manner, and then stood in the middle of them under the guidance of Lin Fangda. Lin Fangda withdrew to the side with a worried look and sat down.

"Xunyi, did you have fun watching the fireworks with Yuer tonight?" Luo Tianjin spoke first. His voice was still calm and elegant, as if he was chatting with Liu Xunyi about family matters. There was no sound of weirdness in it.

"To reply to the Mansion Master, it's not bad!" Liu Xunyi calculated quickly in his mind, but answered without hesitation.

"Yeah!" Luo Tianjin nodded, as if smiling, and then said, "I remember you said you were from Jiangling. I wonder what you think of the fireworks feast on Luoyang's New Year's Eve compared to the New Year atmosphere in Jiangling?"

Hearing this, Liu Xunyi was shocked and thought to himself, "Finally, you're getting to the point." He smiled faintly and said modestly, "The New Year in Jiangling is also very lively, but in terms of prosperity and luxury, it can't compare to today's Luoyang."

"Really?" Jiang Yiwei suddenly interrupted. His eyes, as deeply sunken as a skull, stared at Liu Xunyi, as if he wanted to pierce through Liu Xunyi's heart with his eyes.

Jiang Yiwei said sarcastically, "I heard that Fan Humen was once very prosperous in Jiangling. At that time, Fan Humen cooked sheep and cattle all day long, and the disciples ate meat and drank wine with big mouthfuls. It can be said that they had cold food every morning and Lantern Festival every night. Isn't this better than the prosperity and luxury of Luoyang?"

Liu Xunyi knew that Jiang Yiwei had just returned from Jiangling and must be familiar with the local area. If he tried to make up some ambiguous anecdotes about Jiangling in front of him, he would be exposed soon.

Therefore, Liu Xunyi had to think again and again, and slowly said: "No matter how prosperous Fan Humen is, it is just a small corner, how can it be compared with the huge Luoyang City? The so-called Cold Food Festival every morning and Lantern Festival every night are just some empty words. Mr. Jiang San thinks too highly of Fan Humen. Haha..."

"Then what do you think the real Fan Humen should be like?" Jiang Yiwei asked aggressively.

"To put it nicely, they are a gang of green forest gangs. To put it bluntly... they are just a mob." Liu Xunyi pondered. This was not a random statement, but something he saw in the "history" submitted to the court by the Jiangling government.

Local governments report such matters almost every month, and most of them are insignificant trivial matters, so they are not deliberately kept secret.

As the Junior Guardian of the Tianji Pavilion in the East Palace, Liu Xunyi naturally had the opportunity to look through these records. Moreover, he had sneaked into the Xianwang Mansion under the secret order of the Prime Minister, so it was natural for him to look up the news about the "fake identity" at will.

"Since they are a mob, with your talent and martial arts, why are you willing to stay in Fan Humen?" Jiang Yiwei asked, "You joining Fan Humen is like a dragon swimming in shallow waters and a tiger falling into plains."

"At that time, I was still young and inexperienced. It was already very difficult for me to have the opportunity to learn martial arts from Zhao Tong. How could I dare to be picky?" Liu Xunyi acted according to the situation and spoke in a polite manner.

"How many years have you been learning martial arts from Zhao Tong? How many years have you been in Fan Humen?"

"I have been practicing martial arts for twelve years, and have been in Fan Humen for five years." Liu Xunyi had already prepared a story, so he could speak it easily without worrying about any mistakes. "After that, Fan Humen was cleared out by the government, and I had to flee Jiangling to protect myself."

"Since you are Zhao Tong's apprentice and have been in Fan Humen for five years, you should be familiar with everyone in Fan Humen, right?" Jiang Yiwei sneered, "I am increasingly confused about something, and I would like to ask you to explain it to me."

Hearing this, Liu Xunyi's heart sank. He suddenly realized that he had just said something wrong. He thought to himself, "Since Jiang Yiwei just came back from Jiangling, he must have found some people who were familiar with Fan Humen and asked about me. And I just said that I stayed in Fan Humen for five years. Isn't that just shooting myself in the foot?"

Just as Liu Xunyi was secretly blaming himself, he changed his mind and thought again: "Fan Humen has disappeared for several years. The three leaders have long been beheaded by the government, and the other disciples have also scattered, most of them have left Jiangling. In addition, it has been a long time, it is unlikely that it would be such a coincidence that Jiang Yiwei found out the truth. Even if he really finds out some information, I can use my eloquence to shirk responsibility. Anyway, no one has any evidence, so whoever says it sounds convincing should be listened to? It doesn't matter whether others believe it or not, the most important thing is to make Luo Tianjin believe it."

Thinking of this, Liu Xunyi suddenly felt a little bolder and said bluntly: "I don't know what is wrong with Mr. Jiang San? Please tell me." "I happened to pass by Jiangling Mansion a few days ago, and asked about you. I wanted to see if you have any relatives in Jiangling so that I could take some small gifts and visit them." Jiang Yiwei smiled, "But I never expected that after I walked around Jiangling Mansion, no one had heard of your name, Liu Xunyi. I wonder why?"

Liu Xunyi smiled confidently and said, "First, I am an orphan. I have no father or mother, no relatives or friends. Although I was born in Jiangling, I have no relatives or friends. Second, Fan Humen has been destroyed for many years, and people have long forgotten it. I think except for the three heads of Fan Humen, who may still be remembered by a few people, I am afraid that no one can remember the other disciples. Third, Fan Humen was purged because it offended the government. This matter was a sensation. Everyone was afraid to avoid it and distanced themselves from Fan Humen. They didn't even want to be involved in any connection, fearing that they would be implicated. Therefore, even if someone still remembers me, I am afraid they dare not admit it. What if I am accidentally arrested by the government as a remnant of Fan Humen, wouldn't it be unfair? Just ask ordinary people, who dares to wade into this muddy water?"

Jiang Yiwei didn't expect Liu Xunyi to be so eloquent. His face darkened and he said coldly, "Even if you have a hundred excuses, is there no one in the huge Jiangling Mansion who can remember you? Or... are you not from Jiangling at all?"

"Master Jiang San said something very true." Liu Xunyi nodded, "That is 'Jiangling Prefecture is so big'. Jiangling Prefecture is so big, and I was just an unknown young man back then, how could I be remembered by others? Moreover, how can Master Jiang San guarantee that you will be able to ask everyone when you pass through Jiangling this time? Maybe someone really remembers me, but Master Jiang San didn't find him, it's not impossible. After all, Jiangling Prefecture is so big and the population is so large that even the court can hardly count it accurately, let alone Master Jiang San alone?"

"You..." Jiang Yiwei was displeased by Liu Xunyi's eloquence and said coldly, "What you said is just relying on your eloquence."

"I have no intention of offending Third Master Jiang." Seeing this, Liu Xunyi hurriedly bowed and apologized, "But I really can't understand why Third Master Jiang is so interested in my background? He even went all the way to Jiangling to find out." Liu Xunyi pretended to be innocent and pitiful, pretending to be unaware of everything, and said aggrievedly, "I don't understand even more, whether I am from Jiangling Fanhumen, what difference does it make to Third Master Jiang?"

"Liu Xunyi, you don't have to interrogate Jiang Yiwei." Ling Xiaoxiao suddenly said, "I might as well tell you the truth. It was actually the Palace Master who ordered Jiang Yiwei to check your background."

"Oh?" Liu Xunyi pretended to be surprised and turned to ask Luo Tianjin, "I wonder what the Palace Master's intention is?"

Luo Tianjin had just been listening silently to the argument between Liu Xunyi and Jiang Yiwei. Now that the truth had been revealed, he simply admitted it generously and said bluntly, "Because I want to know, how many things are you hiding from me?"

Liu Xunyi was stunned, and quickly figured out what Luo Tianjin meant by that. He asked tentatively, "What do you mean by that? What have I ever hidden from you?"

"It's not concealment." Luo Tianjin's tone suddenly became heavier, and a frightening cold light suddenly burst out of his eyes when he looked at Liu Xunyi, "It's deception!"

"This……"

"look by youself!"

Without waiting for Liu Xunyi to speak, Luo Tianjin suddenly threw a scroll on the desk in front of Liu Xunyi.

It was the painting of the wind and rain that Liu Xunyi brought back from the Western Regions.

This matter was completely beyond Liu Xunyi's expectations. He was shocked and quickly picked up the picture. He asked in surprise, "Master, what does this mean? Could it be... Could it be that this picture..."

"Do you recognize this picture?" Xie Xuan asked in a deep voice.

"It's the picture of the wind and rain that I presented to the mansion lord." Liu Xunyi nodded quickly.

Xie Xuan snorted coldly, then threw another picture over and asked, "Then take a look at this one?"

Liu Xunyi compared the two pictures carefully and found that they were exactly the same. After thinking about it, he still didn't understand what Luo Tianjin meant, and he couldn't help but look anxious.

"The second one is the one you brought back from the Western Regions." Luo Tianjin suddenly slammed the table and said angrily, "And the first one was bought by Wang Xutong from the south, and he clearly told me that it was a fake. What surprised me most was that the original painting you brought back with so much difficulty was exactly the same as the fake painting Wang Xutong bought! How do you explain this to me?"

As soon as Luo Tianjin said this, Liu Xunyi's face instantly turned extremely ugly.

……

(End of this chapter)