Chapter 608: Troubles on the Flat Earth
After entering Danfeng Garden, Qin Wei led Liu Xunyi and others to Zhuyin Pavilion on the shore of Ningcui Lake.

Zhuyin Pavilion is a two-story building, surrounded by water on one side, overlooking the lake pavilion. The other three sides are planted with many green bamboos, and there is only a winding path leading directly to the quiet place. From a distance, it seems to be hidden in the bamboo forest, so it is named "Zhuyin Pavilion".

There are four pavilions in the east, west, south and north of Ningcui Lake, including Zhuyin Pavilion in the south, Meishuang Pavilion in the north, Lanzhi Pavilion in the east and Jutian Pavilion in the west. They are "plum, orchid, bamboo and chrysanthemum", which symbolizes the gentleman's qualities of pride, seclusion, firmness and indifference.

Under Qin Wei's hospitality, a table of fine wine and delicious food was laid out. Liu Xunyi and others were not shy and took their seats to enjoy the meal.

After all, this is Shen Dongshan's territory, and no one is expected to go wrong, so everyone is not too prepared.

After a while, a captain with a golden sword hurried up to the Bamboo Hidden Pavilion and reported to Qin Wei, who was toasting with the others, "Sir Qin, the Marquis invites you and Liu Zhishan to have a chat at the pavilion in the center of the lake."

Hearing this, Luo Ningyu and the others were stunned. The noise stopped instantly, and everyone put down their bowls and chopsticks, looking at Qin Wei with confusion on their faces.

“Haha…” Qin Wei remained calm, waved his hand to dismiss the Golden Sword Captain, then wiped the oil stains from his mouth with a handkerchief, stood up, bowed to Liu Xunyi, and said with a smile: “Liu Zhishan, look…”

"We came here presumptuously, so we should pay our respects to Lord Zhao first, and then eat and drink." Liu Xunyi pretended to be regretful and apologized repeatedly, "I was negligent! I was negligent!"

"Liu Zhishan, there's no need to be so polite. It's not too late to follow me to the pavilion in the middle of the lake."

"Exactly! Exactly!"

Luo Ningyu frowned slightly and said hurriedly: "You haven't eaten yet, why rush..."

"Don't lose your manners." Liu Xunyi interrupted, "We are from the Xianwang Mansion, and we must not lose face for the leader of the martial arts world when we go out."

"That's right." Luo Ningyu pondered, "Then I'll go with you!"

Hearing this, Qin Wei's eyes suddenly flashed with nervousness. Liu Xunyi shook his head calmly and said, "When you enter the house, you are a guest. You should follow the host's wishes. How can you act arbitrarily?"

"Then...be careful."

"rest assured!"

Leaving a relaxed smile, Liu Xunyi followed Qin Wei and quickly went downstairs.

A moment later, the two of them climbed up to the pavilion in the middle of the lake.

At this time, Zhao Yuan was standing alone in the pavilion, with a solemn expression and deep eyes, as if he was thinking about something, or as if he was out of his mind.

There was a cup of tea on the stone table, and under the cup was a crumpled letter.

Seeing this scene, Liu Xunyi became even more confused.

"Meet the Marquis..."

"No need to be formal!"

Zhao Yuan suddenly came to his senses, turned around and pointed to the table, saying casually, "Sit down and talk."

"Thank you, Lord Marquis!"

Although he didn't know what had happened, Liu Xunyi's intuition told him that Zhao Yuan was acting out of character today.

After a slight hesitation, Liu Xunyi slowly sat down and looked at Zhao Yuan, who was full of worry, with nervous eyes. He had thousands of questions in his mind, but he didn't know where to start.

"Xun Yi, I am in a hurry to find you. Will this arouse Luo Tianjin's suspicion?"

"Don't worry, Lord Marquis. Brother Qin found me at Xiangyun Silk Shop, so it won't arouse Luo Tianjin's suspicion." Liu Xunyi answered truthfully.

"That's good."

Zhao Yuan's tone was very low, as if he didn't care at all about whether he had aroused Luo Tianjin's suspicion. He just asked casually.

"My Lord is in a hurry to find me... I wonder why?" Liu Xunyi boldly probed, "Is it because of what happened last time in the Xianwang Mansion..."

"There is something I want to ask you." Zhao Yuan turned a deaf ear to Liu Xunyi's words, as if he had been immersed in his own meditation. He asked quietly, "After Luo Tianjin became the leader of the martial arts world, what are his plans for the next step?"

"This..." Liu Xunyi was stunned and asked, "What do you mean, Lord?"

"I have received news that Luo Tianjin has made a series of moves in the Central Plains martial arts world, including registering people, distributing tokens, nominating deputy leaders, and promoting the 'clan level'. What exactly does he want to do?"

Liu Xunyi secretly smacked his lips, and at the same time quickly guessed Zhao Yuan's thoughts in his heart, and guessed: "I think Luo Tianjin's move is probably to sit in the position of the leader of the martial arts world forever."

"Luo Tianjin's series of actions are completely different from the former Jianghu tyrants." Zhao Yuan shook his head and said, "Making a list and distributing tokens, his actions... are very similar to the style of the government."

"hiss!"

Liu Xunyi took a breath and said suspiciously: "What the Marquis means is..."

"There are also Yeluqin and Xunzhen." Zhao Yuan still ignored Liu Xunyi's reaction and spoke again, "They have been entangled with Luo Tianjin. What is the reason?"

"Behind them is the Young Qin King. I think the Young Qin King wants to use Luo Tianjin's power to recover Western Liao." Liu Xunyi spoke his true thoughts. He never thought of hiding anything in front of Zhao Yuan. "Yes!" This answer made Zhao Yuan quite satisfied. He nodded and said, "Luo Tianjin and the Young Qin King are both profit-seeking people. The cooperation between them should be based on mutual benefit. You said that the Young Qin King used Luo Tianjin's power to recover Western Liao. This matter is very much in my opinion. However, I want to know what Luo Tianjin used the Young Qin King for?"

"This..." Faced with Zhao Yuan's questioning, Liu Xunyi was speechless and said ashamedly, "I am also curious, but I haven't found out the truth yet..."

"Haven't you figured out the truth yet, or do you not want to tell me?" Suddenly, Zhao Yuan's face darkened, and his tone became cold as ice, and he left no room for doubt.

Liu Xunyi was horrified and asked hurriedly, "What do you mean, Lord? If I knew the truth, how dare I not tell you, Lord?"

"Luo Tianjin is a powerful figure in the martial arts world, and his daughter is as beautiful as a flower. She is proficient in playing the piano, chess, calligraphy, painting, swords, spears, and halberds. Now they appreciate you very much. Could it be that... you are really not moved at all?"

Hearing this, Liu Xunyi was filled with shame and indignation. He suddenly stood up and said righteously, "If you think I am a traitor, just kill me with a knife!"

"Brother Liu, please calm down. The Marquis doesn't mean that." Qin Wei hurriedly tried to smooth things over. "The Marquis treats you as his own son. How could he not trust you?"

"Sit down first!"

Zhao Yuan stared at Liu Xunyi expressionlessly and said in a deep voice: "I was just saying this casually, why are you making such a fuss?"

"I am loyal to you, Lord. Heaven and earth are my witnesses, and the sun and moon are my mirrors. If I betray you in the slightest, I will be struck by lightning and punished by heaven and earth!"

Liu Xunyi swore an oath to heaven. His sincere attitude, solemn words and vicious oath were by no means pretense.

"You really don't know anything about Luo Tianjin's conspiracy?" Zhao Yuan looked at Liu Xunyi closely with his shrewd old eyes and said slowly, "I thought you were his future son-in-law and he would tell you everything. Now it seems that he still doesn't completely trust you."

"What do you mean?" Liu Xunyi was confused and had no idea what Zhao Yuan meant.

"Read it for yourself!" Zhao Yuan moved the teacup away and pushed the letter in front of Liu Xunyi.

With full of curiosity, Liu Xunyi hastily read it. In an instant, his confused face was filled with shock, his eyes were wide open, his hands were shaking, and he looked unbelievably frightened.

"This...this...this..."

He opened his mouth several times but was unable to utter a complete sentence.

Zhao Yuan carefully observed Liu Xunyi's reaction. Seeing that he held his breath, covered his face with paleness, and did not seem to be faking it at all, the doubts in his heart gradually eased a little.

"As Luo Tianjin's future son-in-law and his confidant, you were totally unaware of his rebellion." Zhao Yuan said with a hint of meaning, "For such a big event, there must be no signs of trouble in the Xianwang Mansion. You are by his side all day, but you are not as well-informed as I am. Is Luo Tianjin too cautious? Or are you too careless?"

"This……"

Liu Xunyi was so surprised that he couldn't close his mouth and couldn't recover for a while.

"Now, how do you feel?"

"May I ask, Lord Marquis...what are your plans?" Liu Xunyi summoned up the courage to ask, "Also, where did this letter come from? Is the content of the letter true or false?"

"This is exactly why I'm in a hurry to find you." Zhao Yuan said, "If the content is true, the court will not continue to recruit Luo Tianjin. The emperor has no tolerance for treason, so Luo Tianjin's fate will be only one, and his entire family will be executed."

Zhao Yuan's words were like a sharp sword, piercing Liu Xunyi's heart, causing him to tremble and become more and more confused.

"But if this letter is false, then someone is deliberately trying to destroy the relationship between the court and Luo Tianjin." Zhao Yuan added, "In this case, the person who is obstructing this is the biggest obstacle to this recruitment, so we must not let him stay."

Liu Xunyi was in a state of confusion and panic, and asked anxiously, "Where did this letter come from?"

Zhao Yuan said nothing, but took out the envelope from his arms. Liu Xunyi looked at it carefully, and saw the three beautiful characters "Ling Xiaoxiao" written in a flamboyant style.

"hiss!"

Seeing this scene, Liu Xunyi's heart was hit hard again, and he asked in astonishment: "Madam?"

"Yes!" Zhao Yuan said with a half-smile, "The person who exposed Luo Tianjin's rebellion was his wife, Ling Xiaoxiao."

"This... How is this possible?" Liu Xunyi couldn't believe it and shook his head repeatedly, "Absolutely impossible..."

"I also think there is something fishy about this." Zhao Yuan said, "It's just that you doubt the authenticity of this letter, while I doubt whether this letter was written by Ling Xiaoxiao."

"What do you mean?" Liu Xunyi's face suddenly changed, and he said in surprise, "Could it be that this letter came from Ling Xiaoxiao, and the Marquis believed the contents of it..."

"Although I'm not completely sure, I'm at least 70% sure." Zhao Yuan said in a secretive manner, "This matter is of great importance. It not only concerns Luo Tianjin's innocence, but also the war and peace plans of the emperor and the court. Therefore, this time, I want to verify the authenticity myself!"

"Personally verify?" Liu Xunyi looked confused. "The Marquis means..."

"Luo Tianjin's eyes and ears are everywhere in the Xianwang Mansion. No matter what happens, it is impossible to hide it from him." Zhao Yuan thought, "Therefore, I order you to find a chance to lure Ling Xiaoxiao out of the mansion and arrange for me to meet her alone!"

……

(End of this chapter)