Chapter 6: East Palace Martial Arts Pavilion
Lin'an City, Tianji Pavilion.

Early in the morning, Zhao Yuan, the head of Tianji Pavilion, sat in the middle hall with a letter in his hand. He stroked his beard with satisfaction and nodded with a smile as he read it.

Although more than a decade has passed, Zhao Yuan's appearance has not changed much, he is still upright, dignified, elegant and handsome. Now he is over fifty years old, and has a more majestic aura than before.

"Good, well done!" Zhao Yuan put the letter down, nodded and smiled at Liu Xunyi and Qin Wei who were waiting in the hall, "Minister Jia wrote a letter to praise you two. Lord Jia has already told me in the letter what you did in Yanmen Pass. It's true, it's worth my cultivation of you two over the past ten years."

Liu Xunyi and Qin Wei were delighted to receive Zhao Yuan's praise. Qin Wei said hurriedly, "Your Excellency is overpraising us. We are just following orders."

Zhao Yuan nodded slightly, and then said, "But I wonder if you two can find out who is trying to harm Lord Jia?"

Hearing this, Liu Xunyi and Qin Wei were stunned. Liu Xunyi said, "Master Jia has been held captive by that gang of thieves for more than ten days. Didn't they tell Master Jia their purpose?"

Zhao Yuan looked hesitant and shook his head slowly, saying, "Master Jia didn't say a word about the thieves, so I think he is completely ignorant of it. What have you found out?"

Before Liu Xunyi could hesitate, Qin Wei spoke first, "They are a group of people from the Western Regions. The leader is a woman named... Xunzhen, and there is a man named... Abaolu."

"Xunzhen? Abaolu?" Zhao Yuan was obviously unfamiliar with these two names. He glanced at Liu Xunyi and said, "Xunyi, what about you?"

Liu Xunyi thought for a moment, then bowed and said, "My Lord, I have fought with three of them and found that they are masters from the Western Region's Jinlun Temple, Tianzang Peak, and Linglong Sea. As we all know, the three major sects in the Western Region have always been very self-righteous and usually have no contact with each other. Now someone can unite them into one, so this person must be extraordinary."

Qin Wei interrupted, "Brother Liu, are you talking about that woman who is not simple?"

"Not necessarily." Liu Xunyi shook his head and said, "That woman is still young. I'm afraid she doesn't have the ability to mobilize the masters of the three major sects in the Western Region. I guess there must be a mastermind behind them, and this mastermind is probably quite powerful in the Western Region."

Zhao Yuan nodded helplessly and said, "It's a pity that you failed to capture that woman and those Westerners alive, otherwise you would have been able to find out some reasons under torture." Zhao Yuan said this absent-mindedly, as if he suddenly thought of something.

"I admit my guilt!" Upon hearing this, Liu Xunyi and Qin Wei bowed down together.

Zhao Yuan waved his hand nonchalantly and said, "I don't blame you. I'm just worried that there are some unspeakable secrets."

"Your Majesty, are you talking about... Lord Jia?" Liu Xunyi was thoughtful and immediately realized the deep meaning of Zhao Yuan's words. Qin Wei, who was standing next to him, stared at Zhao Yuan with a pair of curious eyes, confused.

Zhao Yuan nodded and said, "Yes, those people from the Western Regions captured Minister Jia but neither asked for money nor killed him. They are obviously not ordinary bandits. I am wondering what their real purpose is..."

"Oh, right!" Qin Wei interrupted as if he suddenly remembered something, "The Tatars are also searching for Lord Jia's whereabouts at Yanmen Pass. At the Yanmen Inn, I saw with my own eyes a Tatar centurion holding Minister Jia's portrait and questioning him everywhere."

"Mongols?" Zhao Yuan thought about it for a moment and figured out the reason. He snorted coldly, "I'm afraid they also got the news about Minister Jia's disappearance, so they set up ambushes everywhere to try to find Minister Jia, and then use him to do some evil things that are not good for our Song Dynasty. The Mongolian Khan has long coveted our Song Dynasty. We promised to return our Song Dynasty intact after joining forces to destroy the Jin Dynasty, but I didn't expect them to go back on their word. Not only did they invade the northern territory, but they also wanted to wait for an opportunity to go south and completely annex our Song Dynasty. It's really shameless and abominable."

Qin Wei echoed, "Lord Jia is an important official of the Song Dynasty. Even if they do nothing after finding Lord Jia and just kill him, it is tantamount to cutting off a pillar of the Song Dynasty. Now I think these Tatars are really sinister and must be guarded against."

Zhao Yuan couldn't help but feel upset when he thought of this. He looked tired and waved his hand, saying, "Anyway, you did a good job at Yanmen Pass. You will be rewarded later. You can leave now."

Qin Wei originally wanted to show off his feat of escaping death in front of Zhao Yuan, but Liu Xunyi tactfully pulled him out of the main hall quickly.

"Brother Liu, there is something I have always been curious about. Can you explain it to me?"

After leaving the main hall, Qin Wei kept asking Liu Xunyi questions. Liu Xunyi was even more straightforward and shook his head and said, "I know what you want to ask. No need to ask, I won't answer." "With your martial arts, you should be able to deal with that woman and the three Western Regions people, but why did you not even fight..."

"Didn't I tell you not to ask?" Liu Xunyi turned around and replied solemnly, "You wouldn't understand even if I told you."

"I don't understand?" Qin Wei was furious when he heard this. He grabbed Liu Xunyi's arm and asked unwillingly, "We grew up together wearing open-crotch pants. We have never been apart for so many years. We have been good brothers for half our lives. What can you say that I don't understand? This is not the first time you have shown mercy to outsiders. What's the reason?"

Liu Xunyi looked at Qin Wei, who had a serious face, shook his head and smiled bitterly, saying, "Most people in the martial arts world are heroes and brave men, generous and righteous people. Moreover, they did not hurt Lord Jia at all along the way. We don't know their real purpose. No one can say whether they are good or evil, enemies or friends. Do you understand what I mean?"

"I don't understand!" Qin Wei shook his head like a rattle, "Why can't you kill them? You are an official, they are thieves, isn't it your fault to kill them?"

Liu Xunyi pursed his lips lightly, frowned slightly, and asked, "Our mission is to rescue Lord Jia, not to kill those people from the Western Regions. It is enough for you and I to do our duty. Why should we rush for quick success? Besides, there is a saying that goes, "Forgive others when you can. What good will it do for you and me if we make too many enemies?"

Qin Wei thought for a moment, shook his head firmly and said, "Brother Liu, I am different from you. I don't have such a good talent as you. When you were a child, you took dry food and water into the martial arts book collection building and read it for several months without coming out, because you could understand it and learn quickly. You could master fists, kicks, swords and knives at a glance without a teacher. So after you passed the test at the age of sixteen, you almost never worked as a lieutenant of the Golden Sword. You were directly ranked among the top ten young guards and never fell down. But I am different. I am born stupid. Even if you patiently taught me, I was only eighteen years old when I first sat on the position of young guard. As a result, I was squeezed out the next year. I came out, and I couldn't get in no matter how hard I tried in the following year. It was not until this year that you accompanied me in hard training for several months that I was lucky enough to return to the ranks of Shao Bao. So now I cherish it even more. I will not allow myself to make any mistakes in the tasks assigned by the Marquis. Only in this way can I attract the attention of the Marquis. You said to forgive others when you can, but I don't understand, because when I was a lieutenant of the Golden Sword, everyone was trying hard to squeeze up. In which year did no one die in the martial arts competition because of being soft-hearted? Everyone fought to the last breath. At that time, if you were kind-hearted, you would only be killed by others. If I forgive others, how can others forgive me? "

"Brother Qin, why do you have to live such a hard life?" Liu Xunyi sighed, "Do you still remember when Xinglin Village was in trouble and we wandered around begging? At that time, we were satisfied with just a bowl of porridge to drink, and being able to survive was a blessing from God. Now we have more and more, but we are becoming less and less satisfied."

Qin Wei's expression darkened when he heard Liu Xunyi talking about his childhood. It was obvious that he still remembered the tragic fate.

"Brother Qin, do you know why I like those people from the martial arts world? It's because most of them can live freely and happily. There are too many fame, wealth and right and wrong in the government. We are martial artists. When it comes to intrigue, we are definitely not their opponents. Besides, what can you do even if you fight for something? Sooner or later, it will be snatched away by others." Liu Xunyi sighed.

Liu Xunyi's words made Qin Wei look a little disappointed. He whispered, "Brother Liu, I'm not blaming you. I didn't want to steal your credit in front of the Marquis just now. I just..."

Before Qin Wei could finish his words, Liu Xunyi had already put his hand on Qin Wei's shoulder and said with a smile: "You and I are good brothers who share life and death. I understand some things without saying them. In the past, we entered Tianji Pavilion together, read and learned to read together, practiced horse fighting together... The Marquis is not only our elder, but also our reborn parents. It is human nature for you to want to behave better in front of your parents. I understand. And you are really a little self-deprecating. Who said you were born dull? You set up an ambush in Yanmen Inn in advance, and used the innkeepers to anesthetize the Western Regions people. These are enough to prove that you are talented and smart. It is not a shame that you were ranked among the top ten young guards at the age of 18. The Tianji Pavilion is full of masters who have been through the test of life and death. You can stand out among these people. Aren't you still a hero? If you are still not satisfied, it can only be because of me..."

"Brother Liu, please don't misunderstand me! I have no intention of being jealous of you. If one day my position in the Marquis' heart can be half as high as yours, I, Qin Wei, will be satisfied in this life." Qin Wei was moved, and tears welled up in his eyes as he explained, "For so many years, I have always regarded you as my only relative in the world, and of course Yu'er...if she is still alive..."

When the word "Yu'er" was mentioned, the smile on Liu Xunyi's face froze, and a deep sadness surged into his heart uncontrollably.

Over the years, Liu Xunyi has never given up looking for Liu Xunyu's whereabouts, but Liu Xunyu seems to have disappeared without a trace, and there has been no news at all.

The world is vast, the sea of ​​people is vast, and Liu Xunyi, who had been searching for a long time without success, gradually began to accept the reality. In the past two years, he rarely mentioned anything about his sister to anyone, and just searched silently. Many people in Tianji Pavilion knew that Liu Xunyi liked to inquire about people and things in the world of martial arts. They only thought that he liked martial arts and martial arts of various schools, but few people knew that there was another reason for him to do so, that is, he wanted to find out the whereabouts of his sister in the world of martial arts.

After thinking about it, Liu Xunyi let out a long breath to refresh himself. He reached out to wipe away the tears from the corners of Qin Wei's eyes and said with a carefree smile: "Don't mention the past, otherwise it will only increase sadness. You'd better practice martial arts quickly, otherwise when the Golden Sword Captain challenges you again at the martial arts meeting next year, you will be in a hurry again, haha..."

Hearing Liu Xunyi's words, Qin Wei burst into laughter, punched Liu Xunyi's chest hard, and said, "Brother Liu, we will be good brothers forever!"

"The same goes for the next life." Liu Xunyi said with a smile, "So good brother, don't force me to kill those people I don't want to kill anymore. As long as they are not extremely evil, they will not be punished with death. You should know that I have lived a very simple life in this life, which is..."

"I know. This is no longer a secret in Tianji Pavilion." Before Liu Xunyi could finish his words, Qin Wei interrupted with a smirk, "The lifelong wish of Liu Xunyi, the young protector of Tianji Pavilion, besides finding his sister, is to read all the martial arts books in the world and marry Princess Xinde of the Song Dynasty! Haha..."

……

(End of this chapter)