Chapter 682: Good and Evil

"I came to see you suddenly because I received a piece of news this morning and wanted to ask you something." Lord Qian said calmly, "Liu Xunyi went to Prince Rong's Mansion last night, and then the young prince went to Tianji Pavilion. What happened?"

Qin Wei was certain that it was Prince Rong who told Lord Qian what happened last night.

It seemed that what happened in Zhao Xie's courtyard last night did not escape Prince Rong's eyes.

"I was planning to find an opportunity to report this matter to you, my Lord. Actually, last night..."

Qin Wei did not dare to hide anything in front of Lord Qian. Before Lord Qian asked him questions one by one, he took the initiative to tell him everything that happened last night.

"So..." After listening to Qin Wei's story, even the calm Lord Qian couldn't help but feel a ripple in his heart. At the same time, the fishing rod in his hand trembled slightly. He hesitated and said, "Liu Xunyi already knows the whole story, and...he still refuses to give up on the princess?"

"Yes." Qin Wei answered truthfully, "Although Liu Xunyi said that he would not bother the princess again, his promise is questionable in the eyes of the Marquis and me."

"You have known Liu Xunyi for many years. If even you doubt Liu Xunyi's intentions..." Lord Qian pondered, "I thought the marriage was a foregone conclusion, but I didn't expect that there would still be complications when the time came."

Although Lord Qian did not say it explicitly, Qin Wei could clearly feel his anger about the matter, and even his dissatisfaction with himself, through his sarcastic tone.

The marriage was Qin Wei's first achievement for the Western Palace and the cornerstone of his future career. If successful, he would naturally rise to prominence in the future. But if it failed, not only would the marriage be ruined, but also Qin Wei's bright future.

Therefore, Qin Wei would never tolerate any mistake in this matter.

Seeing that Lord Qian was speaking in a bad way, Qin Wei's heart tightened immediately, his eyes suddenly changed, and he quickly promised: "Don't worry, Lord, I will definitely not let Liu Xunyi ruin the marriage plan."

"Oh?" Lord Qian was skeptical, and there was a hint of sarcasm in his words. "Now that Liu Xunyi has regained his freedom, with his ability, it is not impossible for him to sneak into the palace to meet the princess in private. What if the princess finds out that Liu Xunyi has never betrayed her and becomes stubborn, and acts like a 'chaste heroine' or 'would rather die than obey'? You know, the Mongolian bride-picking team is less than a hundred miles away from Lin'an City. If the scandal gets to their ears... you should know the consequences better than me."

"I understand!" Qin Wei nodded repeatedly. "This is a serious matter. I dare not speak nonsense. I will stop Liu Xunyi and the princess from having a 'rekindling' relationship at all costs."

"At any cost?" Lord Qian asked with interest, "Does it include getting rid of Liu Xunyi?"

"This……"

Lord Qian's words put Qin Wei, who was very confident in his words, into an awkward situation.

"Why? Are you hesitating?" Lord Qian asked suspiciously, "Can't bear to do it? Or are you afraid to do it?"

"Lord Qian, Liu Xunyi is very clear about the pros and cons of this matter. I don't think he will seek death and do those meaningless stupid things." Qin Wei was unwilling to answer Lord Qian's questioning directly, so he changed the subject.

"Don't be afraid of ten thousand, just be prepared for the worst!" Lord Qian said, "What if Liu Xunyi chooses to commit suicide? Knowing that there is no chance for him and the princess, he still does something meaningless and stupid. What will you do?"

"I..." Faced with Lord Qian's aggressive pressure, a layer of fine beads of sweat gradually appeared on Qin Wei's forehead.

"Women's kindness will eventually hurt others and themselves." Lord Qian suddenly turned around, staring at the helpless Qin Wei with his gleaming old eyes, and said word by word, "Qin Wei, I just want to ask you one question, which is more important, Liu Xunyi's life or your own future?"

"I..." Qin Wei was breathing rapidly, sweating profusely, stammering, and hesitant to speak.

"That's it!"

Suddenly, Master Qian showed disappointment, his tone became much colder than before, and he slowly waved his hand and said, "Go!"

"Mr. Qian, this humble man..."

"Don't worry! I will not give you any less of the benefits I deserve. I will not tell anyone about your secret help to the West Palace, so you don't have to worry about the East Palace and Zhao Yuan coming after you later." Lord Qian turned around, picked up the fishing rod again, and said calmly, "I was blinded for a moment and misjudged you. You and I have different paths and we cannot make plans together, so you don't have to come to see me again in the future."

"Master Qian..."

"No need to say more, you can go now." Lord Qian seemed unwilling to hear Qin Wei's voice again, and ordered impatiently, "Bai Jin, send Qin Shaobao away."

"As ordered!"

Bai Jin walked quickly to the panicked Qin Wei, pointed at the carriage, and said in a cold tone: "Qin Shaobao, please get in the carriage!"

"Do not……"

Seeing the opportunity that was about to be obtained slip away in vain, Qin Wei's mood suddenly sank to the bottom of the valley. He knelt down hurriedly, kowtowed to Lord Qian, and apologized: "Lord, please calm down. It is me who does not know the current situation! It is me who is blind! It is me who speaks without restraint..."

However, in the face of Qin Wei's pleading, Lord Qian remained unmoved and continued to fish, as if he could not hear Qin Wei's confession.

Seeing this, Bai Jin's eyes turned cold, and he stretched out his hand to grab Qin Wei's arm, pulling him, "Enough! Let's go!" "No!" Qin Wei struggled desperately, his body fell to the ground, his forehead buried in the mud, and shouted, "Please give me another chance! Please give me another chance..."

"Qin Wei, don't refuse my toast and drink the wine for punishment!"

Looking at Qin Wei who refused to leave, and then at Lord Qian who was unmoved, Bai Jin made up his mind, grabbed Qin Wei's shoulders tightly with both hands, and dragged him backwards with brute force.

"No! I can't leave!"

As if completely enraged by Bai Jin's repeated obstruction, Qin Wei suddenly shouted, flew up, flipped backwards in the air and kicked the unsuspecting Bai Jin hard.

"Oh!"

With a dull thud, Bai Jin was kicked several meters away by a powerful kick.

Looking at Qin Wei again, while breaking free from Bai Jin, he rushed behind Lord Qian again and knelt down to beg, "Please give me another chance..."

"Be bold!"

Bai Jin was furious. He quickly drew his sword and rushed towards Qin Wei with murderous intent.

"and many more!"

Before Bai Jin could get close, Lord Qian's calm voice sounded quietly, instantly breaking the tense atmosphere.

"Okay." After a long silence, Lord Qian said quietly, "I will give you one more chance."

"Thank you very much, sir! Thank you very much, sir!" Qin Wei felt relieved, his face showing ecstasy, and he kowtowed to Lord Qian like pounding garlic.

"Instead of thanking me, you should answer my question." Lord Qian said nonchalantly, "If Liu Xunyi..."

"If Liu Xunyi refuses to change his ways and remains stubborn, I, Qin Wei... will chop off his head with my own hands and give a satisfactory explanation to Prince Rong, the Privy Councilor and you, my Lord." Qin Wei gritted his teeth, every word was as sharp as a knife. Although he felt extremely reluctant, his tone was unquestionable.

"Good!" Lord Qian said with a smile, "I am very pleased that you are so loyal. It is worth my promotion."

"Thank you, sir." At this time, when Qin Wei heard the praise from Lord Qian again, the joy in his heart was far less intense than before, and there was even a hint of sadness and helplessness.

"Don't worry! I just said the worst possible outcome. I don't want you brothers to kill each other unless it's absolutely necessary." Lord Qian comforted him, "As the saying goes, 'Before you win, you should be prepared for the worst.' You should be prepared for the worst possible outcome in everything, so that you can be confident and foolproof."

"Your Excellency is right. I have learned a lot from your words."

"In fact, I admire Liu Xunyi quite a lot. It's a pity that he has martial arts skills, but he is confined to the Tianji Pavilion, doing some sneaky and trivial things for those corrupt scholars in the East Palace all day long. It is difficult for him to make achievements and serve the country with loyalty." Lord Qian changed the subject and said meaningfully, "A man of integrity should be upright and upright. If he cannot serve the country, wouldn't he be ashamed of the heaven, the earth, the emperor, his parents and his teachers?"

Hearing this, Qin Wei's eyes suddenly flashed with excitement, and he hurriedly asked, "Your Excellency means... you want Liu Xunyi to work for you?"

"Hey!" Lord Qian waved his hand and said, "You are not serving me, but the court and the emperor."

"I was wrong. I do serve the emperor." Qin Wei corrected him hastily. "What I meant was... Could it be that you are willing to help Liu Xunyi?"

"Liu Xunyi fought for the East Palace and faced many dangers. Now he is being hunted by those bandits because he offended them on a job for the East Palace." Lord Qian pretended to be regretful. "Even so, he is still not valued after returning to Lin'an. Instead, he is insulted and spurned by the people of the East Palace, and even ignored and placed under house arrest by Zhao Yuan. Such despicable behavior of crossing the river and abandoning the dog after the rabbit is dead will never happen, at least in the West Palace, the Privy Councilor and me. We have clear distinctions between merits and demerits, and rewards and punishments are orderly. This alone is enough to defeat those villains in the East Palace who only know how to gossip and stir up trouble."

"Your Excellency is wise!" Qin Wei showed a delighted expression and quickly replied, "To be honest, with Liu Xunyi's abilities, if he can find a place to serve the court, he will definitely make a difference."

"You too." Lord Qian said in a veiled manner, "Qin Wei, if you can convince Liu Xunyi to give up the princess and persuade him to join the West Palace, not only can you save his life, but you can also find him a bright future. Isn't that the best of both worlds? Now, the East Palace is declining, and the Tianji Pavilion is even more precarious. I don't know when it will disappear completely. If Liu Xunyi continues to stay in the Tianji Pavilion, even if he doesn't die today, he will capsize with the Prime Minister and Zhao Yuan in the future and fall into a place of no return."

"Yes!" Qin Wei seemed to be thinking about something. "Brothers should share happiness and difficulties. Now that I have been blessed by you and found a good backer, I certainly don't want my brothers to go bankrupt with the East Palace and Tianji Pavilion..."

"If you two brothers can come together and turn from evil to good, that would be the best outcome," Lord Qian pondered. "As for the worst outcome... it depends on whether you have the ability to stop Liu Xunyi from doing stupid things. I prefer to use courtesy before force. I can assure you that if you can convince Liu Xunyi to stop pestering the princess and join me, I will not let him be buried with the prime minister and Zhao Yuan, but will reserve a place for him in the court."

"Thank you, sir..."

"No need to thank me!" Suddenly, Lord Qian's tone sank and he said coldly, "But if he doesn't know how to deal with the current situation, I will never let him spoil the marriage plan, so I will kill him without a doubt. If you can't bear to do it then... you will die as well."

……

(End of this chapter)