Chapter 397 Play hard to get
Before dawn, the sun has not yet risen and the moon has already set. It is the darkest time of the day.

The candlelight on the table made a series of "sizzling" sounds, and gradually the oil ran out and the last ray of dim light was completely extinguished, and the study was plunged into darkness.

"squeak!"

With a slight sound, the door was slowly pushed open. Then, Xie Xuan, with a melancholy look on his face, walked into the room holding a candlestick.

He walked slowly and softly, without saying a word, and silently placed the candlestick on the desk. The halo gradually reflected Luo Tianjin's face.

He seemed to have aged a lot in an instant, his face was haggard, his beard was messy, and his eyes were filled with endless fatigue and sorrow. He was completely different from the majestic and dignified King of the North in the past.

In just over ten days, Luo Tianjin had been tortured by the pain in his heart and looked like neither a human nor a ghost. The wrinkles on his forehead and the gray hair on his temples seemed to have appeared overnight. His eyes, which used to be clear black and white, were now cloudy and lifeless. His spirit was weak, his spirit was decadent, and his body was thin. It seemed that only the last trace of a person's spirit and energy remained in him.

The three souls are completely lost and the seven spirits are halved. The changes in the person from the inside out are so great that it is unbelievable.

These days, Luo Tianjin never had a proper rest, never had a decent meal, and just sat in a daze day and night, feeling sad alone.

Xie Xuan saw it all and was anxious. But he knew that at this moment, even if he had a thousand words to say, it would be meaningless. Therefore, he could only quietly take care of the affairs of the mansion and do his best to save Luo Tianjin some worries.

"Master, I have prepared breakfast, please eat something!" Xie Xuan said softly, "Right now, the young master is in danger of death, the lady is seriously ill, and the young lady has been crying all day. If you also fall ill..."

"Let's find some doctors today to treat Xuan'er." Luo Tianjin's voice was weak and exhausted. "No matter what the cost, I want Xuan'er to be alive."

"Palace Master..." Xie Xuan said with a bitter look on his face, "During this period of time, we have invited many famous doctors, but they are all helpless against the young master's injuries. Now, if we hadn't used our true qi to prolong the young master's life every day, I'm afraid he would have died long ago... Alas! Excuse me for being blunt, the young master's palm pierced his Baihui acupoint, and all the tendons and veins in his body were broken. Even if the gods came down to earth, facing the young master's injuries, I'm afraid... there is no way to save him. We used our true qi to forcibly prolong the young master's life, but we could only barely save his last breath. In fact, the young master... is no longer here..."

"Even if Xuan'er has to be a living dead for the rest of his life, I will never give up." Luo Tianjin's voice was small, but his tone was extremely firm, "As long as he is still alive, there is hope for him to come back to life."

"Using our true Qi to extend the young master's life will consume a lot of internal energy. Although we can hold on for a while, it is definitely not a long-term solution." Xie Xuan pondered, "I suggest sending someone to Changbai Mountain to invite Granny Taohua. She is the best doctor in the world. If she treats the young master, there may be a glimmer of hope."

"Do as you wish!" Luo Tianjin said listlessly, "In any case, Xuan'er must not die."

"Yes."

"Bang, bang, bang!"

The sudden knock on the door made Xie Xuan alert and asked, "Who?"

"Master, Second Master, I am Su Tang."

"What's the matter?"

"Second Master is very smart. I used the method you taught me and finally found the traitor."

Hearing this, Luo Tianjin's expression suddenly changed. Seeing this, Xie Xuan hurriedly asked, "Who is it?"

"The owner of Jinmingyuan, Lao Jia."

"What about people?"

"Waiting outside the door."

Xie Xuan cast an inquiring look at Luo Tianjin, and seeing his gloomy face and cold eyes, he shouted loudly: "Bring him in!"

"Yes!"

As they were talking, the wounded Old Jia was taken into the room by Su Tang.

"Your Majesty!"

Su Tang kicked Lao Jia in the knee, causing him to lose his balance and fall to his knees with a thump.

"Who are you?" Xie Xuan slightly turned sideways to make it easier for Luo Tianjin to see Lao Jia's face. "Why are you secretly communicating with Di Mo? How long have you been colluding? Who is instructing you? What is your conspiracy?"

Facing Xie Xuan's aggressive questioning, Lao Jia smiled bitterly and shook his head, saying, "I'm going to die anyway. I don't know anything. Just kill me!"

"You may not be afraid of death, but I have a thousand ways to make you live a life worse than death!" Xie Xuan's face darkened, and his voice was frighteningly cold. "Di Mo committed a heinous capital crime, and you secretly colluded with him, which is also unforgivable."

Old Jia looked at Luo Tianjin and Xie Xuan with complicated eyes. For some reason, his body suddenly trembled, and his eyes became fierce, as if he had made up his mind.

"Whoosh!"

However, before Lao Jia could bite his tongue to commit suicide, Xie Xuan raised his finger into the air and immediately sealed his acupuncture points, making it impossible for him to die.

"Your life no longer belongs to you. You have no say over whether you live or die." At this point, Xie Xuan's tone suddenly darkened and he shouted angrily, "Tell me! Where is Di Mo? Who is the mastermind behind this?"

Facing the ferocious Xie Xuan, the immobile Old Jia gritted his teeth and showed an attitude of preferring death to surrender.

"Su Tang, chop off his fingers one by one..."

"Wait a minute!" Before Xie Xuan finished speaking, Luo Tianjin, who had been silent, suddenly spoke up: "I don't like to get entangled with others, and I don't like to beat around the bush with others. There are some things I will only say once, and you don't have to flatter me or disobey me. Life or death? You only have one chance to choose. Do you understand?"

Luo Tianjin's voice was calm, but it made Lao Jia's heart tighten suddenly. Xie Xuan unblocked his acupuncture points, and he subconsciously blurted out, "I understand."

"Well!" Luo Tianjin said, "My condition is that as long as you tell me the truth, I will let you go and reunite with your wife and children. If you insist on not doing it, I will not make it difficult for you. I will send you to the west immediately and never ask any more questions. How do you think?"

Hearing this, Lao Jia couldn't help but show a hint of hesitation. He frowned and his eyes wandered, as if he was very conflicted.

"As long as the green mountains remain, there will be no shortage of firewood." Xie Xuan reminded, "The world is treacherous and people's hearts are unpredictable. You should understand what I mean."

“This…” Old Jia’s eyes became more and more excited, and he said doubtfully, “If I tell you, will you really not kill me? Mansion Master Luo, I’m stupid, please don’t lie to me…”

"You are just a nobody. What right do you have for me to lie to you?" Luo Tianjin said impatiently, "If I say I won't kill you, then I will definitely not kill you. The premise is that you take the initiative to tell me everything."

"Okay!" Old Jia made up his mind and agreed happily, "I believe that the famous Northern Sage King will never lie to me..."

"Stop talking nonsense!" Su Tang urged, "Speak quickly!"

"It was Di Mo who bribed me in advance! He said that he would cause a big commotion in the Xianwang Mansion on the Dragon Boat Festival, and asked me to help him avoid being hunted down afterwards. To be honest, during the days when the Xianwang Mansion had an incident, you were looking for his whereabouts everywhere. At that time... he had been hiding in Jinming Garden and had not left Luoyang at all. I know that the most dangerous place is the safest. You all thought he would run as far as he could, so a large number of people and horses chased him outside the city, and no one thought that he had stayed in the city all the time."

Upon hearing this, Xie Xuan and Su Tang's faces changed at the same time, because they had realized that Lao Jia was lying.

However, before Xie Xuan could expose his true intentions, Luo Tianjin spoke first, "When did Di Mo leave the city? Where did he flee to?"

"This……"

"Now that things have come to this, I have no interest in the reason why you two colluded. Right now, I just want to find Di Mo and avenge my son." Luo Tianjin said, "So, tell me where Di Mo is, and you can leave."

"Are you serious?" Old Jia asked in surprise, "Aren't you afraid that I'm lying?"

Luo Tianjin said quietly, "Although I am not talented, I never brag. If you dare to lie to me, you will be dead within ten days. Also, whether you tell me Di Mo's whereabouts or not, he will be dead within a month. Do you believe it?"

"This……"

Old Jia looked hesitant, thinking secretly in his heart: "Di Mo has offended Luo Tianjin. If Master Jin wants to protect him, he will be an enemy of Luo Tianjin... No! Master Jin will never break up with Luo Tianjin because of Di Mo. Di Mo caused Luo Hongxuan's life and death to be uncertain. It is a blood feud that cannot be resolved with just a few words. Now, Luo Tianjin has issued a hunting order. At this juncture, I am afraid no one dares to come forward to protect him. It seems... Di Mo is doomed... But, if I tell Di Mo's whereabouts, what should I do if Di Mo reveals Master Jin? If the matter is exposed, Master Jin will definitely vent his anger on me..."

"I'll only give you half an incense stick of time to think about it."

Luo Tianjin's voice frightened Old Jia, and he thought to himself, "Right now, Luo Tianjin hates Di Mo, so why should I be his scapegoat? Who knows, Di Mo won't reveal the identity of Master Jinwu, or maybe he doesn't even have the chance to reveal it and is killed by Luo Tianjin's people... If that's the case, I have at least a 50% chance of surviving... It's better to live a miserable life than to die a good death, so I can only take things one step at a time in the future... If I'm destined to be on the run, I can take my family with me, so that we can at least be reunited... Brother Di, Brother Di! You're already in prison, and you're doomed, so why not save your brother's life, and it can also be considered as accumulating some good karma for your next life..."

Thinking of this, Lao Jia's eyes suddenly became fierce, and he said bluntly: "Di Mo left Luoyang three days ago and went to Tangzhou disguised as a worker of Jinmingyuan. He wanted to pass through Tangzhou and wait for an opportunity to go south. As for where he was going... I really don't know."

"You can go now!" Luo Tianjin said expressionlessly.

"Master of the Palace..."

"Let him go!" Luo Tianjin ignored the dissuasion of Xie Xuan and Su Tang and said to himself, "Right now, I just want to find Di Mo."

"Thank you, Lord Luo! Thank you, Lord Luo!"

Old Jia, who had escaped from a desperate situation, felt relieved immediately. He no longer cared about his injuries and hurriedly bowed to Luo Tianjin repeatedly, then fled from the Prince Xian's Mansion.

Su Tang was confused and said, "Master, this man is a smooth talker who forgets his principles when he sees profit. I don't believe he dares to go against the Xianwang Mansion. There must be someone behind him, so why let him go?"

"He would rather bite his tongue and commit suicide than reveal the person behind the scenes. If we don't let him go, we will never know who the mastermind is." Luo Tianjin exhaled a breath of foul air and said lightly, "This man is not afraid of death, but he is attached to his wife and children. I guess his family has now become a hostage. Therefore, as long as we send someone to follow him secretly, the answer will be revealed."

Upon hearing this, Xie Xuan and Su Tang suddenly realized something and showed admiration on their faces.

"Palace Master, regarding Di Mo's situation in Tangzhou..."

"It should be true." Luo Tianjin said, "Although Lao Jia is cunning, which of his words is true? Which of his words is false? It can't be hidden from my eyes."

Xie Xuan was refreshed and said in a serious tone, "Di Mo is a traitor. His crimes are unforgivable. We must clean up the Xianwang Mansion. I wonder who the Mansion Master plans to send to Tangzhou?"

"What do you think?"

"Di Mo's arm was broken, and his martial arts skills are not as good as before, but after all, his foundation is still there. It would be difficult for ordinary disciples to accomplish anything." Xie Xuan pondered, "In my opinion, we can choose any one of the seven heroes, and he will definitely succeed immediately and avenge the lord and the young master."

"No!" Luo Tianjin shook his head slowly and said, "You have to stay in the mansion to help Xuan'er survive. You can't leave easily. I have a suitable candidate in mind for the trip to Tangzhou, and this mission... must be done by him."

"What the Palace Master said is..."

"The successor of Hei Zhishan, Liu Xunyi!"

……

(End of this chapter)