Chapter 157 It feels like a lifetime ago
On the third day of the first lunar month, early in the morning, Liu Xunyi, who had been in a coma for two days and three nights, finally woke up slowly.

"Xunyi, you finally woke up!"

Lin Fangda's voice was the first to ring in Liu Xunyi's ears. Liu Xunyi, who had just woken up from a dream, felt his head was a mess, his consciousness was confused and blurred, and he stared blankly at Lin Fangda.

After being in a daze for a long time and trying hard to recall everything, Liu Xunyi suddenly widened his eyes and sat up. Before Lin Fangda could step forward to comfort him, Liu Xunyi grabbed Lin Fangda's arm and asked anxiously, "Brother, where is the young lady? How is she?"

“Don’t worry, don’t worry!” Lin Fangda knew that Liu Xunyi was still immersed in the fighting in Fengming Tower, so he quickly comforted her, “It’s over, everything is over, Ningyu is unharmed, you brought her back safely, don’t worry!”

Hearing this, Liu Xunyi's mood eased a little. He frowned and sorted out his thoughts again and again. He only remembered that he heard Luo Ningyu confess her feelings to him when he was half asleep and half awake. At that time, due to his weak body, he didn't have time to wake up and fell into a deep sleep again. Thinking about it now, Liu Xunyi just concluded that it should not be a dream.

Thinking of Luo Ningyu's tears, Liu Xunyi couldn't help but feel guilty. He grabbed Lin Fangda's wrist with his backhand and said anxiously: "Brother, I have something to tell you!"

"I also have something to tell you!" The smile on Lin Fang's face gradually faded, and a solemn look emerged between his brows.

"You speak first!" Liu Xunyi and Lin Fangda said almost in unison. Then they were both stunned at the same time, and then they spoke at the same time, "Ningyu she..."

"Please speak first, big brother. I'm listening." Liu Xunyi chuckled and leaned his weak body against the wall behind him. It was obvious that his body had not fully recovered yet.

Lin Fang laughed dryly twice and said, "Xun Yi, actually there is something that I have been wanting to ask you in person, but... it's just that it's about love, so it's hard to bring it up at the moment."

"You and I are brothers, there's no need to be like this, big brother!" Liu Xunyi said bluntly, "Big brother, do you want to ask me if I like Ning Yu?"

Hearing this, Lin Fangda was startled, and stared at Liu Xunyi nervously, and said with difficulty: "My dear brother, although I also like Ningyu, I will never compete with you for a woman, not to mention that the person Ningyu likes is..."

"Brother!" Before General Lin Fang could finish his words, Liu Xunyi said solemnly, "I don't like Ningyu. From the beginning to the end, I only regarded her as a friend, and there is absolutely no love between us. And brother, you should know that in my heart... there has always been a woman. So Ningyu... So Miss, I absolutely cannot accept her feelings, and I beg you to understand!"

"You don't like Ningyu?" Lin Fangda exclaimed in surprise, and subconsciously asked, "Why? Isn't Ningyu beautiful?" As soon as he said this, Lin Fangda immediately realized that he had said something wrong, and hurriedly explained, "I mean, Ningyu is such a good woman, how could you not like her? Is there any woman better than Ningyu in the world?"

Hearing this, Liu Xunyi couldn't help but smile bitterly and said, "Brother, do you know the saying that beauty is in the eyes of the beholder? That's how the young lady looks to you now. Even if she has a thousand or ten thousand faults, she is still flawless in your eyes."

"Brother, the woman you are talking about is not Bai Shuang from Su Shui Pavilion?" Lin Fangda asked suspiciously.

"Brother, what are you talking about?" Liu Xunyi shook his head and said, "I only have friendship with Miss Bai Shuang, not any affection between a son and a daughter. What's more..." At this point, Liu Xunyi suddenly remembered that Bai Shuang used him to steal the Jingfenghuayu Tu. He felt a little sorry and muttered to himself, "What's more, Bai Shuang and I have nothing to do with each other anymore."

Lin Fangda didn't care about Bai Shuang at this moment. His mind was full of what Liu Xunyi had just said. He was afraid that he had heard it wrong, so he asked again: "Xunyi, you just said that you don't like Ningyu, is that true?"

"It's absolutely true!" Liu Xunyi was about to raise his hand to swear, but was pulled back by Lin Fangda with a grin.

At this moment, Lin Fangda felt relieved and in a good mood. The haze that had been weighing on his heart disappeared. He laughed and said, "If that's the case, then Big Brother can continue to like her?"

"Of course!" Liu Xunyi was moved by Lin Fangda's simplicity and smiled faintly, "A gentleman loves a beautiful lady. Miss is a good girl, and big brother is a real hero. In my opinion, you two are a perfect match made in heaven."

"Eh!" Lin Fangda's face turned red. He wanted to be modest, but he couldn't hold back his inner joy. He could only wave his hands and said, "Brother is just a reckless man. How can he be worthy of Ningyu? I never dared to hope that Ningyu would like me. As long as I can always stay with her like this, it's enough."

"If the lady chooses big brother as her life partner, she can be truly happy for the rest of her life." Liu Xunyi said sincerely.

The two brothers had a frank conversation, and the previous estrangement disappeared without a trace. Especially Lin Fangda, he felt very relaxed at the moment, and his words and actions were full of excitement.

"Oh, right." Liu Xunyi changed the subject and asked, "I offended Wang Qingshu in Fengming Tower, and killed so many people from the Golden Sword Sect. The General's Mansion will definitely not let this go. Will Wang Xutong come to cause trouble?"

"You don't have to worry, they will never cause trouble again." Lin Fangda smiled proudly.

"Why?"

"Because they are all dead. And the dead won't cause trouble!"

Before Lin Fang could speak, Luo Tianjin's voice suddenly came into the room. Then, Luo Tianjin walked slowly into the room with Ling Xiaoxiao, Luo Ningyu, Luo Hongxuan, Xie Xuan, and Jiang Yiwei.

Seeing this, Liu Xunyi wanted to stand up and salute, but Luo Tianjin waved his hand to stop him.

When Liu Xunyi's eyes met with Luo Ningyu, who was following Ling Xiaoxiao, inadvertently, a strange look flashed across their faces at the same time. Liu Xunyi was embarrassed, while Luo Ningyu was indescribably complicated. The two of them separated their eyes as soon as they met, as if they were deliberately avoiding each other.

"Just now the Palace Master said that they are all dead?" Liu Xunyi's expression became serious and he asked hurriedly, "What does this mean?"

"Last night, a group of Song Dynasty righteous soldiers suddenly appeared in Luoyang City, attacked the general's mansion, killed everyone in the mansion, and finally set a fire, burning the government office and their bodies." Luo Tianjin sat next to Liu Xunyi and smiled calmly, "This is good, it saves me a lot of trouble."

"How could such a thing happen?" Liu Xunyi never expected that in just two days of his coma, Luoyang City would undergo earth-shaking changes. He looked at Luo Tianjin suspiciously. Although he suspected that this matter was related to Luo Tianjin, he did not ask directly.

"Yes!" Luo Tianjin pretended to be regretful and smiled helplessly, "This morning I sent people to Helin to inform the Mongolian court of Wang Xutong's death. I believe that it won't be long before Luoyang City will have a new general."

"Hiss!" Liu Xunyi was secretly surprised by these words. He felt that something was wrong and that it must be related to Luo Tianjin. He was even more impressed by Luo Tianjin's cruelty. He had just slaughtered the general's mansion and then pretended to be a good person to deliver a letter to the Mongolian court. It was like the thief crying "Catch the thief". But he had to admit that Luo Tianjin was really experienced in this matter. "Xunyi, how is your injury?" Xie Xuan suddenly asked, "Can you get out of bed and move around?"

Liu Xunyi stretched his muscles a little and said with a nonchalant smile: "It's okay, just some superficial injuries!"

"That's good!" Ling Xiaoxiao spoke calmly. Judging from her tone, she seemed to still be resentful of Liu Xunyi. "Yesterday, a disciple sent back a message saying that Cheng Qiu would be able to arrive in Luoyang City before noon today. Since you can get out of bed and move around, you should quickly get ready and go meet this old friend later!"

If Ling Xiaoxiao hadn't reminded him, Liu Xunyi would have even forgotten about Cheng Qiu. At this moment, he suddenly remembered, and his originally happy mood was suddenly weighed down by a huge stone. His expression also darkened, and he nodded slowly and unnaturally, and replied absentmindedly: "I know..."

"No matter what, you saved Ningyu's life, and you didn't disappoint me on New Year's Eve." Luo Tianjin looked at Liu Xunyi with satisfaction and said with a smile, "Today I am not here to see you as the King of the North, but as an ordinary father, to thank you for bringing my daughter back safely."

After saying that, Luo Tianjin waved his hand to signal Luo Hongxuan to present a wooden box. He opened the wooden box himself and saw a golden light flashing inside, which turned out to be dozens of valuable gold ingots.

"I absolutely wouldn't dare to do that!" Liu Xunyi waved his hands and said, "The young lady was kidnapped by Wang Qingshu because of me, how dare I accept these things? Please take them back quickly, Lord, and don't embarrass me."

"Liu Xunyi." Luo Tianjin's expression suddenly straightened up, and he stared at Liu Xunyi with deep eyes, and said faintly, "You are going to meet Cheng Qiu soon, do you have anything to say to me?"

Being questioned so seriously by Luo Tianjin, Liu Xunyi was suddenly shocked. Thousands of thoughts flashed through his mind in an instant, and he didn't know how to respond for a moment.

"If you have anything to say..." Luo Tianjin, under the gaze of Lin Fangda and others, stared straight into Liu Xunyi's eyes, and said word by word, "It's not too late for you to tell me now. Even if you are not from Jiangling Fanhumen at all, or even if you are sent by a heretic to assassinate me, as long as you tell me honestly now, I can forgive you! With so many people here today, I will give you a chance. As long as you tell me and sincerely pledge allegiance to me afterwards, I will let you stay in the mansion and entrust you with important tasks!"

Luo Tianjin's words obviously surprised Ling Xiaoxiao. She never expected that her husband would be so kind to Liu Xunyi.

"Mansion Master..." Liu Xunyi was extremely uneasy and mentally on the verge of collapse under the pressure of Luo Tianjin's gaze. He really wanted to tell Luo Tianjin everything. Maybe Luo Tianjin could resolve their differences with the Song Dynasty court because of him. In this way, wouldn't he have accomplished his mission?

But the remaining trace of rationality reminded Liu Xunyi that his childish ideas were nothing but fantasy and Luo Tianjin was definitely not as simple as he imagined.

"Xun Yi, just say whatever you want to say!" Lin Fangda urged, "The Palace Master is a man of his word. He said he would not pursue the past, and he will definitely not pursue it. He can even forgive you for assassinating him, so what else can't you say?"

"Liu Xunyi!" Xie Xuan suddenly spoke, his tone was cold, even a little murderous, "If you don't tell me now, you won't have a chance to explain when Cheng Qiu arrives in a moment. If Cheng Qiu's story is different from yours, I will kill you on the spot. Even the Palace Master won't be able to save you then. You have to think it through!"

Hearing this, Liu Xunyi's heart sank again. He knew that if Cheng Qiu arrived, he would be dead. But his years of experience and intuition in Tianji Pavilion told him that many things should not be compromised before the last moment, otherwise even the last chance of counterattack would be ruined.

"Liu Xunyi!" Luo Tianjin's eyes were like lightning, and he asked with each word being sonorous, "What other secrets are you hiding from me?"

"I..." Liu Xunyi struggled internally. His forehead was instantly covered with fine beads of sweat. His already weak body was even more shaky at this moment. Under Luo Tianjin's pressure, Liu Xunyi swallowed hard. The room was suddenly shrouded in a terrifying and depressing atmosphere, making everyone present feel a little breathless.

After an unknown amount of silence, Liu Xunyi slowly raised his head, staring at the expressionless Luo Tianjin, and spoke slowly with trembling lips, "No...no...I have nothing to hide from the Palace Master. Heaven and earth are my witnesses, and the sun and the moon are my witnesses. I am willing to confront Cheng Qiu face to face later. If any of my words are false, I am willing to die, without a second thought!"

Having said this, Liu Xunyi's back was completely soaked with sweat.

"have a good rest!"

Luo Tianjin looked at Liu Xunyi deeply, and then hurriedly threw down a word, and led everyone to quickly leave the room, leaving only Lin Fangda with a stunned look in his eyes and Liu Xunyi with a pale face.

After Luo Tianjin and the others returned to the study, Ling Xiaoxiao could no longer hold back her doubts and asked, "Brother Jin, what was your intention in asking him that just now? Why not wait for Cheng Qiu to arrive and let the two of them confront each other face to face?"

"Cheng Qiu will never come!" Luo Tianjin sighed weakly, then waved at Jiang Yiwei.

Under the puzzled gazes of Ling Xiaoxiao, Luo Hongxuan and others, Jiang Yiwei showed a bitter expression and slowly explained: "A disciple did send back a message last night, but it was not that Cheng Qiu was about to arrive, but..."

"And what?" Ling Xiaoxiao asked impatiently.

"But our people were escorting Cheng Qiu back to Luoyang. When they reached the Broken Halberd Valley, they suddenly encountered a group of bandits of unknown origin. In the melee, Cheng Qiu was... killed by them!"

"What?" Jiang Yiwei's words caused an uproar in the study.

"So the Palace Master and Second Brother Xie were just lying about what Liu Xunyi said just now." Jiang Yiwei smiled bitterly, "It's just that..."

Before Jiang Yiwei could finish his words, Luo Tianjin continued, "It's just that Liu Xunyi is more patient than I thought. He didn't give in even after I tested him like this. If what he said is not the truth, then the real purpose of this boy approaching me must be more important than taking my life."

"In that case, why don't we get rid of it as soon as possible?" Ling Xiaoxiao asked puzzledly.

"Because compared to him lying for other purposes, I would rather believe that he didn't lie to me!" Luo Tianjin said slowly with a complicated look, "What's more, Yu'er is deeply in love with him. If we kill him...what will happen to Yu'er?"

……

(End of this chapter)