Chapter 718: Draining the Pond to Catch Fish (I)

May 7th, Jingjiang Prefecture.

Under the scorching sun, Song Yu led Lu Tingxiang and Sikong Zhu up the stairs. They walked on the winding and steep mountain road for about an hour before arriving at the Qingtian Pavilion on the top of Jiumo Cliff.

Last year, Xunzhen started a fire here, which reduced the magnificent Jinjianwu to ruins and left Jin Fuyu homeless. He had no choice but to settle in Hengshan Village.

At that time, Hengshan Village hid 100,000 soldiers and horses, which was the capital for Jin Fuyu to restore the Jin Kingdom. He wanted to wait for the Song and Mongolia to go to war, wait for an opportunity, and directly start his army from Hengshan Village to seize the world. However, unexpectedly, the war between Song and Mongolia was stopped because of the "marriage", which caught Jin Fuyu, who was ready to move, off guard.

In February of this year, the Song Dynasty court seemed to have sensed the secret of Hengshan Village and sent imperial envoys to conduct open and secret investigations.

In order to avoid alerting the enemy, Jin Fuyu had to change his strategy and hid 100,000 soldiers in batches in Yizhou, Wuzhou, Yongzhou, Shaozhou, Yuanzhou and other places. He led eight masters including Song Yu and Leng Yiyi and the original team of Jinjianwu back to Jingjiang Prefecture and rebuilt Jinjianwu at Jiumo Cliff. He wanted to take advantage of Luo Tianjin's escape to return to the martial arts world and make progress slowly.

"It has been less than three months since Master Jinwu returned to Jingjiang Prefecture, and he has managed to turn decay into magic and rebuild a ruin. Today's Jinjianwu is not only as good as it was in the past, but even better than before." Stepping into Qingtian Pavilion, Lu Tingxiang, with a smile on his face, bowed and greeted Jin Fuyu who was coming towards him, "Master Jinwu, how are you!"

In fact, the scale and grandeur of the Jinjianwu today cannot be compared with those of the past. But it is amazing that a magnificent red pavilion brothel was built on the top of a lonely peak surrounded by water on three sides within just three months.

"Three months may seem like a blink of an eye, but in fact, it's enough to turn the world upside down. Things are no longer the same as they used to be." Jin Fuyu said with a smile, "Luo Tianjin went from being at the height of his career to his death in less than three months. Even such a bizarre thing could happen, what else in the world is impossible?"

Hearing this, Jin Fuyu and Lu Tingxiang looked at each other meaningfully and then burst into laughter together.

"Master Jinwu is worthy of being Master Jinwu. I admire you!"

"Mr. Lu, thank you for your praise, please!"

After the greetings, Jin Fuyu and Lu Tingxiang held hands and walked towards the Qingtian Pavilion like brothers.

"Mi'er, pour tea for Master Lu!"

"Yes."

Ai Mi, who was waiting on the side, respectfully poured tea and water for Lu Tingxiang and Jin Fuyu, then burned a stove of incense. Finally, she retreated to a corner, gently stroked the zither, and played music to entertain Jin and Lu.

"The white dew stretches across the river, and the water gleams as if reaching the sky. Overlooking the Li River landscape from this spot is indeed a unique sight."

"The scenery of Jingjiang is different from that of the south of the Yangtze River. If you like it, you may stay in the dock for a few days."

"Master Jinwu's kindness is appreciated, but I have so many things to do at home. I don't know how much trouble will arise when Master Zhu and I are away for a few days. Hehe..."

After chatting for a while, Jin Fuyu personally picked up the teapot and refilled Lu Tingxiang's tea while pretending to be nonchalant and asked, "Mr. Lu has always been a busybody. You suddenly came to visit today... It shouldn't be just to reminisce about the past, right?"

Just these words made the smile on Lu Tingxiang's face pause slightly, and he turned his cautious gaze to Song Yu who was waiting on the side and Ai Mi who was playing the piano in the corner.

Jin Fuyu understood what he meant and said bluntly, "They are all people around Jin. Mr. Lu, you can say whatever you want."

"Since Master Jin is so straightforward, I will not beat around the bush!" Lu Tingxiang collected his thoughts and asked in a low voice, "Does Master Jin know about the marriage between Song and Meng?"

"Everyone in the world knows this."

"Did you know that the court had already sent the princess out of Lin'an six days ago?" Lu Tingxiang said, "And Liu Xunyi... is in the procession to send the princess off."

"Oh?" Jin Fuyu pretended to be confused and asked back, "Is there such a thing?"

"I came here today to ask Master Jinwu for a sincere confession." Lu Tingxiang cautiously probed, "If Master Jinwu is willing to tell me, you can be frank. If you are not willing to tell me, I will not force you."

"Mr. Lu, please tell me." Jin Fuyu remained calm and continued to drink his tea calmly.

"May I ask Master Jinwu, are you interested in Liu Xunyi...your Jinjianwu?" When Lu Tingxiang asked this question, his pair of bright eyes stared at Jin Fuyu, afraid to miss any subtle expression on his face.

"Interest?" Jin Fuyu put down his teacup and asked in a confused tone, "I wonder what Mr. Lu means by 'interest'..."

"Master Jin, why do you ask even though you already know the answer?" Lu Tingxiang's tone sounded slightly dissatisfied. "When the incident in Luoyang City happened, I immediately sent people to Hengshan Village to tell Master Jin everything I knew. Does Master Jin still doubt my sincerity?"

"Of course not!" Jin Fuyu explained, "I have kept this matter in mind and am still grateful for Mr. Lu's kindness. I just don't understand why Mr. Lu has such doubts, so..."

At this point, Jin Fuyu seemed to sense Lu Tingxiang's inner displeasure, so he changed the subject and said frankly: "To be honest, Jin is quite interested in Liu Xunyi, but... I dare not act rashly."

"Why?"

"Everyone knows that the bride's escort team is protected day and night by elite soldiers from the Song and Mongolia countries. I am ashamed that I am powerless."

Lu Tingxiang retorted: "The soldiers and horses that escorted the bride only had a few thousand men, and the Jinwu Master had 100,000 soldiers at his disposal, so how can he be powerless?"

"When I say we have the will but not the strength, I'm not referring to the thousand-plus soldiers who are escorting the bride, but the people behind them. Imagine if I attacked Liu Xunyi and disturbed the Mongolian princess, would the Song court and the Mongols let me go? A thousand-plus soldiers are nothing to be afraid of, but if I offend both the Song and Mongolia countries at the same time because of a little Liu Xunyi, wouldn't that be more trouble than gain?"

Seeing Lu Tingxiang looking thoughtful, Song Yu took the opportunity to interrupt: "In fact, it is not only our Jinjianwu who is hesitant, but other martial arts sects are also wary. Killing Liu Xunyi can certainly gain a lot of benefits, but it also depends on how much you pay. If the price you pay far exceeds the benefits, it is undoubtedly a losing deal, and no one will do it. Mr. Lu, does the Lu Mansion in Jiangnan dare to be an enemy of Song and Mongolia?" "This..."

"Even if we want to kill Liu Xunyi, we have to kill him on his way back." To avoid embarrassing Lu Tingxiang, Jin Fuyu took the initiative to smooth things over. "By then, if Mr. Lu is also interested in Liu Xunyi, Jin Jianwu is willing to join forces with the Jiangnan Lu Mansion."

Jin Fuyu's words made Lu Tingxiang's eyes change quietly, and an indescribable complex look flashed between his brows.

"If our two families join forces to deal with Liu Xunyi, then..." Si Kongzhu said quietly, "Who will join forces with whom? In other words, after killing Liu Xunyi, who should go to Qingfeng and Ling Xiaoxiao to claim the reward?"

"Since we are joining forces, the benefits gained should be shared equally."

"The gold, silver, and land can be divided equally, and even the martial arts secrets promised by the Xianwang Mansion can be shared between the two families. But..." Sikong Zhu hesitated, with an aggressive gleam in his eyes, "But how should the position of the deputy leader of the martial arts world and the power to command heroes all over the world be divided equally?"

"What do you mean?" Seeing Sikong Zhu's persistence, Song Yu could not help but feel dissatisfied and asked in a bad tone, "You two have come from afar, are you here just to discuss these things with us? Don't forget that Liu Xunyi is still alive and well. Even if we join forces, we may not be able to kill him successfully. After all, the thing that we have been thinking about day and night is also coveted by other martial arts sects. No one knows who will get it. Therefore, it is meaningless for us to argue here today about something that we have not yet obtained."

"Well said!" Lu Tingxiang praised, "Brother Song hit the nail on the head. This is the clearest statement."

"This……"

Being praised by Lu Tingxiang for no reason, Song Yu was stunned and confused. He quickly cast a suspicious look at Jin Fuyu standing beside him.

However, Jin Fu Yu was fiddling with the teacup like an outsider. Facing Song Yu's confused gaze, he remained leisurely, smiling without saying a word.

"Master Jinwu, let's not talk about Liu Xunyi, let's just talk about the marriage between Song and Mongolia." Lu Tingxiang asked meaningfully, "The two countries are getting married and stopping the war to make peace. I wonder...what do you think about this?" After speaking, Lu Tingxiang did not forget to add, "I hope you can tell me frankly!"

"Haha..." Facing Lu Tingxiang who was looking forward to it, Jin Fuyu smiled and said jokingly, "Mr. Lu said at the beginning that we should speak directly and no one should beat around the bush. But after talking for a long time, you kept beating around the bush and refused to get straight to the point. This really confused me, and I don't know how to respond."

"Master Jinwu, I..."

"If Mr. Lu regards me as a friend, you might as well speak frankly, so as to save everyone from guessing." Jin Fuyu's expression changed and he said seriously, "Just speak frankly! What exactly does Mr. Lu want to say?"

After being exposed by Jin Fuyu, Lu Tingxiang was slightly stunned, and then he made up his mind and said boldly: "To be honest, I am very interested in the benefits promised by Qingfeng and Xianwang Mansion. This is a great opportunity to revitalize the Jiangnan Lu Mansion, so... I would like to ask Master Jinwu to lend me a hand."

"Keng!"

As soon as these words were spoken, Song Yu's face changed immediately. Even Ai Mi, who was sitting next to him playing the piano, subconsciously trembled her fingers, and a string broke. The Qingtian Pavilion instantly fell into silence.

"Mr. Lu, you..."

"shut up!"

Jin Fu Yu interrupted Song Yu's rebuttal without even turning his head. His deep eyes stared at Lu Tingxiang, who had a solemn expression, without blinking. The two looked at each other for a long time without saying a word.

"As the saying goes, 'Brothers should settle accounts clearly'. Although Master Lu and I have a close relationship, this is related to the fate of the sect... I have no choice but to be calculative." Jin Fuyu said with a half-smile, "I think... Master Lu should understand the principle of reciprocity."

"Of course." Lu Tingxiang stared back at Jin Fuyu and said calmly, "How dare I come to visit you empty-handed?"

"Oh?" Jin Fuyu's eyes lit up and he asked curiously, "I wonder how Mr. Lu plans to exchange gifts with me? As you know, Liu Xunyi is priceless right now..."

"The value of Liu Xunyi varies from person to person. To other heroes, Liu Xunyi may be a priceless treasure now, but to Master Jinwu, there are things in the world that are ten thousand times more precious than him."

Upon hearing this, Jin Fu Yu uttered a faint snort of laughter, as if he did not agree with Lu Tingxiang's remarks.

"It is said that in order to facilitate this marriage, the imperial court paid several years of tax silver as the princess's dowry, which persuaded the Mongols to withdraw their troops." Lu Tingxiang said calmly, "If you think about it carefully, the Song Dynasty court really suffered a huge loss from the marriage between Song and Mongolia."

Jin Fu Yu frowned, but did not ask any further questions.

"However, although the Song Dynasty lost the princess and money, it was not the one who suffered the most."

Looking at Lu Tingxiang who was so sure of what he said, Jin Fuyu's eyelids twitched slightly, and he asked in return: "Who has suffered the greatest loss?"

"you!"

Amid the different looks from Song Yu, Sikong Zhu, and Ai Mi, Lu Tingxiang suddenly stretched out his hand and pointed at Jin Fuyu.

"Me?" Jin Fuyu's smile gradually froze. "Why?"

"Because of the peace between Song and Mongolia, there is no hope for Jinwuzhu to restore his country!" Lu Tingxiang said word by word, "With Mongolia in the north and Song in the south, if you want to restore Jin, only 100,000 soldiers are far from enough, and the only chance is to provoke a war between Song and Mongolia, so that they will both suffer losses and you can reap the benefits. Now that Song and Mongolia are in peace, it is very likely that Jinwuzhu's lifelong wish will become a dream that can never be realized. Therefore, Jinwuzhu has suffered the greatest loss, and you are also the person in the world who least wants Song and Mongolia to make peace. I just said that for Jinwuzhu, there is something in the world that is ten thousand times more precious than Liu Xunyi, and that is your 'great cause of restoring the country'!"

……

(End of this chapter)