Chapter 550: Unreconciled

October 5th, Prince Xian’s Palace.

At dusk, Liu Xunyi sat alone on the steps in front of the East Hall, looking at the red sun gradually setting in the west at the end of the sky. His eyes were dull and his expression was dazed. I wonder what he was thinking in his heart?
"Here!"

Suddenly, a large hand holding a palm-leaf fan stretched out in front of Liu Xunyi without warning, startling him and instantly regaining consciousness.

"Silver note!" Qin Ku waved the silver note in his hand and explained, "I left Tianxiang Tower in a hurry last time, so..."

"You've been so mysterious for half a month, and I can hardly see you." Liu Xunyi asked curiously, "Where have you been?"

"Gambling houses, brothels, restaurants, teahouses..."

As he spoke, Qin Ku stole a glance at Liu Xunyi's reaction, as if he was worried that he would blame him, so he took the initiative to attack him: "When you recruited me to join the group, you and I had an agreement in advance that no one could interfere with my eating, drinking and having fun, let alone restrict my preferences."

"Join the gang?" Liu Xunyi didn't know whether to laugh or cry, "Brother Qin, do you think the Xianwang Mansion is a bandit stronghold?"

"Do you want the banknote or not?" Qin Ku urged repeatedly to ease the embarrassment, "If you don't accept it, I might regret it."

"I didn't expect that even a stingy person would be willing to pay back." Liu Xunyi teased, "Could it be that you have been avoiding me these days because you are worried that I will ask you for a debt?"

"A gentleman loves money, but he gets it in a proper way." Qin Ku curled his lips and said, "I promised to treat everyone to a drink, how could I let you lose money?"

"Take it back! Otherwise, I can't afford to support you if you don't have money to buy land, marry and have children in the future."

Hearing this, Qin Ku was stunned at first, and then moved. He wanted to refuse, but then he thought that Liu Xunyi was not a hypocritical person, so there was no need for him to pretend, so he gave up in a hurry.

"Brother Qin, how is Luoyang?"

"Luoyang is well-deserved of its reputation for prosperity, and there are countless fun places." Qin Ku sat down next to Liu Xunyi and said with a wicked smile, "For example, Mingling Yayuan in the east of the city, the girls there are all very beautiful..."

"Ahem!" Liu Xunyi had no intention of discussing romance with Qin Ku, so she interrupted him and said, "What I mean is, if I let you stay in Luoyang City forever and no longer wander around like you used to, would you... be willing?"

Qin Ku seemed to hear something strange in Liu Xunyi's words, and asked back, "What do you mean?"

"Answer my question first!"

Liu Xunyi's behavior was out of character, which puzzled Qin Ku. Instead of answering, he asked, "If you can live in peace and stability, who would want to wander around?"

"You mean... are you willing to stay?" At this moment, Liu Xunyi's eyes flashed with an indescribable excitement.

"Am I not staying now?"

"Of course!" Liu Xunyi nodded repeatedly, and then rolled his eyes and said seriously: "Brother Qin, let's high-five and swear. No matter what happens in the future, you must stay by the side of the Palace Master and assist him wholeheartedly."

"Xun Yi, why are you talking so strangely today?" Qin Ku was puzzled and said hesitantly, "What good will it do you if I stay? Aren't you afraid that I will take away your position as the Black Handicapped Fan?"

"No need to fight for it, the position of Hei Zhishan will be yours sooner or later."

"What do you mean?"

"I..." Liu Xunyi was feeling melancholy and almost said something wrong, but seeing Qin Ku's curious face, he smiled jokingly and said perfunctorily, "I'm going to get married to the young lady soon, so the position of the Black Handicapped Fan will probably change hands."

"That's right!" Qin Ku smiled and said enviously, "People always strive for higher positions. Once you marry the young lady, you will be half the master of the Xianwang Mansion. Maybe... after three to five years, the entire Xianwang Mansion will obey you. Why would they care about a small fan?"

Faced with Qin Ku's teasing, Liu Xunyi did not refute, but just smiled faintly to hide his inner worries.

"Xun Yi, can I ask you a question that you shouldn't ask?" Qin Ku's tone gradually became a little nervous for some reason.

"what is the problem?"

"Maybe I shouldn't ask, but..."

"But we are friends, confidants, and brothers." Liu Xunyi continued, "Between you and me, you can talk as you please!"

Hearing this, Qin Ku couldn't help but raise an extremely unnatural smile, and hesitated, "Actually, I want to ask... are you really from Jiangling Fanhumen?"

With just these words, Liu Xunyi's heart tightened immediately, and a thousand thoughts flashed through his mind.

"Brother Qin, why do you ask that?" Liu Xunyi asked calmly.

"I...I..." Qin Ku was vague, hesitating over the word 'I' for a long time and unable to say anything further.

Liu Xunyi did not ask any further questions, but just stared at Qin Ku with deep eyes, as if trying to see through his heart.

"Actually, I..." Qin Ku deliberately avoided Liu Xunyi's gaze and stammered, "Actually, I have dealt with Jiangling Fan Humen before, and I have had a drink with Fan Humen's leader Zhao Tong..."

Qin Ku's words were like a sharp sword, like a rainstorm and a strong wind, which made Liu Xunyi's heart skip a beat. He was so shocked that he couldn't express it in words, and a sense of horror spread throughout his body.

Even so, Liu Xunyi appeared calm and composed on the surface, with no sign of any disturbance.

"But I have never seen you in Fan Humen, and Zhao Tong has never mentioned you..."

Qin Ku's every word was like a heavy hammer hitting Liu Xunyi's heart. "Really?"

However, facing Qin Ku's doubts, Liu Xunyi smiled slyly and said in a veiled manner, "The Fan Hu Sect was quite famous in Jiangling in the past, with many disciples under its command. It's not surprising that Brother Qin has never seen me, because I have no impression of Brother Qin either."

Liu Xunyi's words have some meaning of "returning favors as they are bestowed upon you".

Qin Ku was slightly stunned, and stared at Liu Xunyi for a long time. Suddenly, he smiled foolishly and scratched his head, saying, "That makes sense! That makes sense! Hehe..."

Seeing this, Liu Xunyi couldn't help but secretly breathe a sigh of relief. Through Qin Ku's reaction, he was certain in his heart that what Qin Ku just said was pure nonsense, and he had never dealt with Fan Humen.

But what puzzled Liu Xunyi was why Qin Ku lied to him and tested him for no reason?

"Brother Qin, you..."

"Xun Yi, let me ask you one more question." Qin Ku changed the subject and asked, "Have you ever offended anyone in the mansion?"

"This... where do I start?" At this moment, Liu Xunyi was completely confused, and looked at Qin Ku, who was acting so serious, with a look of astonishment, "Brother Qin, what exactly do you want to ask?"

"There is something... I hesitated for a long time, but after thinking it over, I still think I should tell you."

"What's the matter?"

"The reason why I suddenly left Tianxiang Tower that day." Qin Ku got straight to the point. "In fact, it was not that I disappeared for no reason, but... someone was looking for me."

"Someone is looking for you?" Liu Xunyi didn't understand what Qin Ku meant at all. He just felt that his words were incoherent and confusing. "What do you mean? Why do I feel more confused the more I listen?"

"Someone asked me to find out more about you and keep a close eye on your every move."

"This……"

Qin Ku's frankness made Liu Xunyi a little at a loss.

"I didn't refuse." Qin Ku said guiltily, "I was testing you just now because of this."

Liu Xunyi kept wondering in his heart, and nodded slowly: "I understand! That person must have promised you a big profit if he came to you."

"Wrong! Although I am greedy for money, I am not insatiable. For some things, I am willing to risk my life for a penny. But for some things, I will not do them even if you give me a mountain of gold. Betting out friends is one of them."

Liu Xunyi stared blankly at Qin Ku who was acting so serious, and then became more and more confused. He asked blankly: "If that's the case, why did you agree..."

"I agreed, not because I want to spy on you for her, but... I want to test her intentions for you." Qin Kuyi said righteously, "You have only been in the mansion for two or three years, but you are highly regarded and have risen rapidly. It is inevitable that you will inadvertently provoke some jealousy and criticism. The Xianwang Mansion seems to be calm and harmonious, but in fact, it is turbulent and full of people. Even if you live under the same roof, you can't know a person's heart by knowing his face. For example, when Jiang Yiwei died suddenly, the mansion master was furious and vowed to investigate it to the end. Why did he suddenly change his mind later? Even hastily ended the matter? With the wisdom of the mansion master, can't he really detect the strangeness of the whole thing? I don't think so. The mansion master must be repairing the plank road in the open, and Chencang in secret. There must be a follow-up to Jiang Yiwei's matter. There is a saying that 'it is easy to dodge an open spear, but it is difficult to guard against an arrow from the dark'. Now you are in the heyday of the mansion. You are both Hei Zhishan and the mansion master's prospective son-in-law. Naturally, no one dares to confront you openly, but an arrow from the dark is often more deadly..."

"Wait!" Liu Xunyi was confused and interrupted, "Brother Qin, who is this 'she' you keep talking about?"

"Madam, Ling Xiaoxiao!"

"Madam?" Liu Xunyi was shocked and asked in astonishment, "Why?"

"I want to know why too." Qin Ku looked helpless and shook his head, "She claimed that she was thinking about her daughter's lifelong happiness, but in fact, she had other plans in mind."

"Could it be the Palace Master's intention..."

"Not likely." Qin Ku pondered, "If the mansion master still had doubts about you, he would not have betrothed the young lady to you. Moreover, with the mansion master's means, he has a thousand ways to test you, and there is no need to trouble the lady. And recalling the situation on that day, his posture did not look like he was "following the emperor's orders" openly, but more like he was sneaking around and plotting something bad."

"Plotting something bad? How... is this possible?"

Although Liu Xunyi knew that Ling Xiaoxiao had always had a prejudice against him, he did not seem to have any grudges against her. Luo Tianjin was present almost every time the two of them came into contact, so there was no possibility of any private grudges.

If that’s the case, why is Ling Xiaoxiao still holding on to me?

Liu Xunyi was very troubled by this. No matter how hard he thought, he still had no clue.

"Don't let your imagination run wild!" Qin Ku put his arm around Liu Xunyi's shoulders and consoled her, "Since she asked me to keep an eye on you, there must be something behind this. Instead of guessing, we might as well wait for her to reveal her true colors."

Qin Ku was brave but appeared timid, wise but appeared foolish, which made Liu Xunyi admire him sincerely. Thinking about his own situation, he couldn't help but feel bitter and forced a smile, "Brother Qin, thank you!"

"Who told you not to accept my banknotes? Just consider this information as what I sold to you." Qin Ku said with a smile, "As for the wine money at Tianxianglou, we'll settle it."

Hearing this, Liu Xunyi laughed out loud, and the haze in his heart disappeared in an instant. He then pulled Qin Ku up, strode towards the hall, and said excitedly: "Let's go and have a drink!"

"Who's going to pay for today's drinks?" Qin Ku yelled, "If you treat me, I'll drink Qionghua Lu. If I treat you, some rice wine will be fine... Hey, hey, hey! Liu Xunyi, it's okay for you and me to be arm in arm, but please don't touch me, I don't have a homosexual tendency..."

"Ha ha……"

The sun sets in the west, and the afterglow lingers on the beams. Amidst laughter and scolding, Liu Xunyi and Qin Ku drink and sing, and they are as close as brothers.

……

(End of this chapter)