Chapter 67: Straight Talk
At noon, in an alley in the south of Huodu City, a furtive figure was hiding his head and showing his tail. From time to time, he would stick his head out to glance at the blacksmith shop across the street, but soon retract his head, as if he was afraid of being discovered.

Ever since Liu Xunyi came to Huodu, Feng Tianba has been secretly monitoring his every move.

Today, Feng Tianba followed Liu Xunyi all the way from Long'an Inn, running around the city like a headless fly, passing through the streets and alleys. In less than two hours, he wanted to visit every corner of Huodu one by one. This strange behavior made Feng Tianba extremely curious.

"Where does Liu Xunyi want to go?" Feng Tianba hid under the wall and speculated secretly, "He went to the grain store in the morning, and visited the money store, tea shop, silk shop and even the silver shop in the afternoon. Now he comes to this blacksmith shop to ask questions. What is his intention?" While Feng Tianba muttered to himself, he glanced at the blacksmith shop opposite from time to time, and the confusion on his face became more and more intense.

"Go to every store in the city one by one. Is he looking for something? Or is he secretly contacting his accomplices? It seems that I have to go in and ask later..."

When Feng Tianba subconsciously looked up again, Liu Xunyi, who was originally standing in the blacksmith shop, had disappeared without a trace. Feng Tianba was stunned for a moment, and a look of annoyance quickly emerged on his face.

"Damn it, did this guy discover me?"

Feng Tianba hurried out of the alley while mumbling, and ran to the street in a hurry to look around. After searching in vain, he could not help but curse angrily, and wanted to rush into the blacksmith shop to ask what was going on.

At this moment, a hand suddenly reached out from behind and gently placed on Feng Tianba's shoulder, startling him.

"Captain Feng, are you looking for me?"

Feng Tianba was already familiar with the voice behind him, it was Liu Xunyi. He sighed and turned around quickly, but before he could take a closer look, Liu Xunyi suddenly pulled Feng Tianba hard and dragged him into a secluded alley.

"You fucking..."

"Oh!"

Before Feng Tianba could curse, Liu Xunyi suddenly thrust his elbow horizontally and pressed Feng Tianba's sturdy body against the wall. Liu Xunyi didn't give Feng Tianba a chance to draw his sword. He pressed Feng Tianba's chest with his left elbow and swung out a half-cut of the silver sword with his right hand, pressing his throat tightly.

As long as Feng Tianba made the slightest movement, Liu Xunyi could kill him in an instant.

"Why are you following me?" Liu Xunyi stared at the panting Feng Tianba with a bad look and asked in a deep voice.

Feng Tianba subconsciously shrank his neck back and sneered in a low voice, "If you don't do anything wrong, you don't have to worry about ghosts knocking on your door. If you haven't done anything against the will of heaven and earth, why are you so scared?"

Liu Xunyi smiled disdainfully, and with his right hand, he put the tip of the sword closer to Feng Tianba's neck, and said with a half-smile: "Who is afraid now, me or you? Besides, why should I explain to you whether I have done anything wrong or not?"

Feng Tianba wanted to resist, but under Liu Xunyi's iron-hard left elbow, his body could only stick to the wall and couldn't move at all. After struggling for a while, Feng Tianba's face flushed and he scolded: "How dare you hold the imperial official hostage..."

"You'd better see clearly where this place is. If you die here, there might not even be anyone to collect your body." Liu Xunyi said sarcastically, "Tell me, why are you following me?"

Feng Tianba opened his eyes wide, glaring at Liu Xunyi fearlessly, and said in a deep voice: "You know what good things you have done, but you dare not take responsibility for them. What kind of man are you?"

"Feng Tianba!" Liu Xunyi shouted coldly, "I don't have time to beat around the bush with you. If you have something to say, you'd better speak directly!"

"Pingjiang Prefecture..." Feng Tianba was almost suffocated by the sword, so he had to compromise and said, "Master Zhou from Qingsifang in Pingjiang Prefecture... do you still remember him?"

Liu Xunyi frowned and asked, "So what?"

"He's dead!" Feng Tianba shouted, "Do you dare to say that you didn't do this?"

"what?"

Liu Xunyi was shocked. The sudden news made his mind a mess. After thinking about it, he still couldn't understand the ins and outs of it. First, he didn't understand why Master Zhou died. Second, he didn't understand what the relationship was between Master Zhou's death and Feng Tianba. Third, he didn't understand what this matter had to do with himself.

"What do you mean?" Liu Xunyi asked in confusion, "Do you suspect that I killed Mr. Zhou?"

"It's not that I doubt you, it's that the evidence is irrefutable. At least a dozen of the guys at Qingsi Workshop saw you injuring someone, and Mr. Zhou died the same night he saw you. Do you think there could be such a coincidence in the world? Who else could it be if not you who killed him?"

"This is absolute nonsense! How can you conclude that I am the murderer based on speculation alone?" Liu Xunyi was furious.

"If you have a clear conscience, then come back to Pingjiang Prefecture with me and explain it clearly!" Feng Tianba said provocatively.

Liu Xunyi was about to speak but stopped talking. After a moment's thought, he realized that something was wrong and asked in confusion, "What does this have to do with you? You are the captain of the Quanzhou camp. Mr. Zhou was killed. Even if there is an investigation, it should be the Pingjiang government office. Why are you, a captain of the Quanzhou camp, getting involved?"

"Hmph!" When this matter was mentioned, Feng Tianba's eyes suddenly flashed with resentment, and he said indignantly, "This matter is all thanks to you. If you were willing to go back with me in Quanzhou that night to expose Lu Tingxiang's guilt, how could I be demoted and transferred far away?" "Demoted and transferred far away?" Liu Xunyi was stunned, but he quickly figured out the reason behind it and chuckled, "It seems that this is Lu Tingxiang's intention. I warned you a long time ago that you must not offend him. Not only can you not afford to offend the Jiangnan Lu Mansion, but it will also drag you down. You didn't believe it at the time, but do you believe it now?"

"Damn it, they are all birds of a feather!" Feng Tianba cursed, "The governor and the prefect have all accepted Lu Tingxiang's favor and teamed up to deal with me."

Liu Xunyi sneered, "You think too highly of yourself. You still have a job today, which is already a special favor from Lu Tingxiang. If he really wanted to deal with you, do you think you can still stand here safely today..." At this point, Liu Xunyi's voice suddenly paused, and then a thought that made him feel cold in his heart emerged involuntarily in his mind. He slowly let go of Feng Tianba, and muttered to himself thoughtfully: "Could it be... I understand..."

"What do you understand?" Feng Tianba stared at Liu Xunyi suspiciously. He knew that he was no match for Liu Xunyi, so he did not act rashly after regaining his freedom.

"Mr. Zhou was killed, I was suspected, you were demoted and transferred far away, and Bai Shuang appeared in Huodu. These are not coincidences. They were all arranged by Lu Tingxiang." Liu Xunyi frowned and pondered, "I finally know why Bai Shuang appeared in Huodu. Lu Tingxiang ordered her to come. In other words, Lu Tingxiang actually knew that the Jingfenghuayutu was in Huodu a long time ago."

"What do you mean?" Feng Tianba looked at Liu Xunyi in confusion. Although he didn't quite understand what Liu Xunyi was talking about, he subconsciously asked, "How did Lu Tingxiang know?"

"Master Zhou from Qingsifang." Liu Xunyi understood more and more as he thought about it, and said softly, "Lu Tingxiang once sent someone to follow me. After I met Master Zhou, the people from the Lu Mansion must have asked him about the matter. So Lu Tingxiang knew that the man in black was wearing Qingsi armor, and he must have thought that this matter was related to Tianshan Yulong Palace. The people from the Lu Mansion killed Master Zhou and put the blame on me. After that, Lu Tingxiang arranged for you to investigate the matter at the Pingjiang Prefecture Yamen. He knew that you had a strong temper, and he would never give up until the truth was found out. That's why Lu Tingxiang deliberately arranged for you to come to Huodu, just to cause trouble for me..."

"Wait." Feng Tianba frowned slightly, pursed his lips, and asked doubtfully, "You mean... Lu Tingxiang framed you? You didn't kill Mr. Zhou? Even my demotion was deliberately arranged by Lu Tingxiang to deal with you?"

"It's very likely." Liu Xunyi nodded, and then said to himself, "But why did Lu Tingxiang send you to trouble me, and at the same time let Bai Shuang come to find me? What is Bai Shuang's intention in looking for me?"

"You..." Feng Tianba looked Liu Xunyi up and down, and said with a smile, "Are you overestimating yourself? With the power of the Jiangnan Lu Mansion, it would be easy to deal with you. Why go to such great lengths?"

Feng Tianba's words awakened Liu Xunyi from his dream. After a moment's thought, he suddenly realized and nodded, "Yes, the reason why Lu Tingxiang didn't kill me directly was that he wanted to use me to help him find the Jingfenghuayu Tu. He sent you to capture me so that I would be in trouble and Bai Shuang would have the opportunity to take the map. Lu Tingxiang is so sinister that he even called himself the 'No. 1 Gentleman in the Martial Arts World'. How can a gentleman do such a trick? It's a pity that although Master Zhou of Qingsifang was not killed by me directly, he died because of me... Alas!" When mentioning Master Zhou, Liu Xunyi couldn't help but have a hint of guilt in his eyes.

After all, if Liu Xunyi didn't go to find Master Zhou, the people in the Lu Mansion would not have the chance to kill him.

Feng Tianba stared at Liu Xunyi with his tiger eyes without blinking, taking in Liu Xunyi's every move and every word. When Liu Xunyi cast a complicated gaze at Feng Tianba again, a rare hint of hesitation appeared on his face.

"Do you believe what I just said?" Liu Xunyi said frankly, "I didn't kill Mr. Zhou."

"Although you only have one side of the story..." Feng Tianba said slowly and hesitantly, "But I did see the woman named Bai Shuang in Longfu Inn. As Lu Tingxiang's woman, it is indeed unusual for her to suddenly appear in Huodu. So I am willing to believe 70% of what you said."

"Thank you..."

"But I am the chief constable in the Pingjiang government office after all. It is not up to me to decide whether you are guilty or not. I have traveled all the way to Huodu this time on orders to arrest you. The reason I have been reluctant to take action is that I want to find out whether you have any accomplices. Now that you and I have broken this window paper, come back with me. Everything will be judged impartially when we get to the government office." Feng Tianba's tone was much softer than before, but his attitude was still firm.

Liu Xunyi knew Feng Tianba's personality very well, so he was not angry and smiled lightly: "You should know my answer."

"Then are you forcing me to do it?" Feng Tianba touched the hilt of the knife with his right hand, and his tone began to become serious.

"There's no rush." ​​Liu Xunyi shook his head and said, "I can have a good fight with you if there's a chance, but not today."

"What do you mean?"

"In fact, I already knew that you were following me secretly, but I am not here to cause trouble for you today. I am here to save your life." Liu Xunyi said seriously, "You must leave Huodu before sunset tomorrow, otherwise someone will kill you."

"Hiss!" Feng Tianba was startled when he heard this and asked suspiciously, "Are you kidding me?"

"Feng Tianba, you might as well think carefully about when I have lied to you in the few times we have met? When have I not said something from the bottom of my heart?" Liu Xunyi said, "I respect you as a man, so I don't want you to die in vain in Huodu! I can promise you now that I will find you after I finish what I need to do in Huodu. At that time, I will give you a chance to fight with me. If you have the ability to defeat me, I will go back to the government office with you. How about it? Today, I will ask you for a favor."

"Really?" Feng Tianba still had concerns, but now he no longer regarded Liu Xunyi as a cunning person.

"A gentleman's word is as good as a whip to a fast horse!" Liu Xunyi promised.

"So what big thing do you want to do in Huodu?" Feng Tianba couldn't help but ask out of curiosity, "Does it have anything to do with Lu Tingxiang?"

Liu Xunyi smiled bitterly and shook his head, saying, "Your own affairs are a mess, why do you care about mine? Anyway, you must leave Huodu before dark tomorrow." After that, Liu Xunyi turned and walked out of the alley, and suddenly stopped at the entrance of the alley. Without looking back, he whispered, "I have no intention of threatening you. I just want to advise you that the government and the underworld should go their separate ways and not interfere with each other. Don't continue to follow me for the next two days, otherwise I'm afraid you will get into trouble and eventually not be able to leave Huodu alive."

……

(End of this chapter)