Chapter 841: Appearance and Departure
Upon learning the news that Liu Xunyi had returned, Qin Wei suddenly got up from the bed.

However, when Lan Qi carefully put the cloak on him, Qin Wei, who was in full swing, suddenly stopped and then slowly sat back on the bed.

Looking at Qin Wei who seemed to be deep in thought, Lan Qi and the other two looked at each other, and no one dared to ask rashly.

"Where is Lord Liu now?" After a moment of silence, Qin Wei asked the person outside the door, "Is there anything unusual?"

"Master Liu has returned to his room to rest. He seems a little tired, but otherwise... there is nothing unusual."

"Go back to your room and rest?" Qin Wei frowned, half believing and half doubting, "Are you sure?"

"I saw Lord Liu return to his room with my own eyes."

"Oh!" Qin Wei slowly took off his cloak and muttered to himself, "Maybe... I'm overthinking."

"My Lord, why don't you call Chu Mao over to ask him what's going on?"

"That's right!" Qin Wei suddenly realized what was happening after hearing Tu Long's whispered reminder. He hurriedly asked, "Where is Chu Mao?"

"Reporting to the Marquis, Chu Mao has not returned yet."

"what?"

The answer from outside the door made Qin Wei's heart, which had just settled down, hang in the balance again, and his expression became uncertain.

"Didn't Chu Mao come back with Lord Liu?" Seeing Qin Wei deep in thought, Tu Long took the initiative to ask outside the door.

"No."

"This……"

Upon learning that Chu Mao's whereabouts were unknown, Tu Long and Tu Hu could not help but cast anxious glances at Qin Wei, who was in a serious mood.

"My Lord, look..."

"If something is out of the ordinary, there must be something fishy going on. Send someone to look for him immediately. Even if you have to dig up the ground in Lin'an City, you must find Chu Mao!"

Qin Wei hurriedly stood up, snatched the cloak from Lan Qi's hand, and while giving orders to Tulong and Tuhu, he strode towards the door.

Lan Qi was startled at first, then looked disappointed, and complained: "My Lord, where are you going?"

"Go find Liu Xunyi."

"It's getting late, maybe they've already gone to bed..."

"No! He must be waiting for me."

Before he could finish his words, the upset Qin Wei rushed out of the door, followed closely by Tulong and Tuhu.

In the blink of an eye, the golden wind and jade dew, the dream of a happy time turned into a lonely phoenix, the pillow was cold, the quilt was chilly, and Lan Qi was the only one left in the room.

……

"Bang, bang, bang!"

"Brother Liu, are you asleep?"

A low knock on the door sounded in the dim and quiet courtyard, lighting up the candle that had just been extinguished in the room.

"squeak!"

With a slight sound, the door opened. Liu Xunyi, with disheveled hair and plain clothes, slowly appeared in front of Qin Wei, who was smiling.

Looking at Liu Xunyi with a melancholy look in his eyes, Qin Wei's smile became brighter and brighter, and he asked with concern: "Did I disturb your rest?"

"I tossed and turned in bed, unable to fall asleep." Liu Xunyi replied meaningfully, "You came... just in time."

“Guess what I brought?”

"No need to guess, I can smell the aroma of wine before the door is opened."

"Ha ha……"

Accompanied by a hearty laugh, Qin Wei stuffed a pot of wine hidden in his cloak into Liu Xunyi's hand.

"This is nectar, a fine wine presented to the imperial palace. You and I would have loved it in the past."

Qin Wei came in uninvited, very casually, sitting on the bed leisurely, supporting the edge of the bed with his left hand, and reaching into Liu Xunyi's quilt with his right hand without leaving a trace, crossing his legs, and said with a smile: "In the past, we looked forward to tasting the fine wine collected by the Marquis every day, but we could never drink it. Now, fine wine is inexhaustible, but I have lost interest in it. I feel that it is not as delicious as the grain wine we drank secretly in the past. Brother Liu, don't you think it's strange?"

"You have been in a high position for only a few months, but you have already begun to think about returning to basics. Just imagine what the mood of those military ministers who have been in office for years or even decades is like?" Liu Xunyi put the wine pot on the table without any intention of tasting it.

"Return to nature, that's a good idea!" Qin Wei nodded seriously, "Maybe I was born with a humble fate, I can't enjoy those delicacies, I can only eat coarse food."

"Brother Qin, be content with what you have." Liu Xunyi stared at Qin Wei who was talking eloquently, his heart in a mess, "In fact, with your current status, you can bring honor to your family, give your wife and children a title, and there is no need to strive for fame and fortune..."

"Ha ha……"

Faced with Liu Xunyi's "heartfelt words", Qin Wei suddenly burst into laughter. He laughed so hard that he fell backwards, tears welled up in his eyes, and he even rolled back and forth on Liu Xunyi's bed. "You really haven't changed at all, you think everything is so simple." Qin Wei said frankly, "In fact, what I really want to say is not the quality of the wine, but the closeness of people."

"What do you mean?"

"No matter how good the wine is, if it meets people who don't agree with it, it's just a pot of horse urine that's hard to swallow." Qin Wei's smile gradually faded, and he explained seriously, "On the contrary, if you meet like-minded friends, even a jar of water can be drunk heartily. And you are my confidant brother, the one who can make me feel like drinking sweet rain."

Qin Wei's words were like a sharp arrow, instantly piercing Liu Xunyi's heart and making him even more conflicted.

"If I drink this nectar by myself, it certainly won't taste as good as the grain wine we secretly drank together." Qin Wei said as he stood up and walked towards Liu Xunyi, "But if we drink it together, I believe it will taste better and more mellow than all the wines you and I have tasted. Not only that, I firmly believe that there are better wines in the world, just waiting for you and me to taste them one by one."

Qin Wei seemed to be talking about wine, but in fact he was talking about people. He compared wealth, fame, and fortune to a pot of fine wine, and sharing the wine with Liu Xunyi was like sharing his glory with him.

After saying that, Qin Wei picked up the wine jug and poured it into the cup without thinking.

"and many more!"

Liu Xunyi reached out and covered the rim of the cup first, causing Qin Wei's movements to suddenly stop.

"It's too late!" Looking at Qin Wei who was full of suspicion, Liu Xunyi smiled faintly, "I drank too much, I'm afraid I'll be drunk forever."

"What's the joy of being awake? What's the pain of being drunk?" Qin Wei asked meaningfully, "If everyone is drunk, what's the point of you being awake alone?"

"No matter how drunk you are, it is still a dream. You are deceiving yourself and will wake up sooner or later." Liu Xunyi still did not raise his hand, and advised earnestly, "Brother Qin, I am worried that you will get drunk and lose your way... and forget your true nature."

Seeing Liu Xunyi's repeated refusal, Qin Wei couldn't help but flash a hint of disappointment in his eyes. He put the wine pot back on the table and asked with a half-smile, "You seem to be full of emotion, and it seems... you have drunk a lot of wine today. You came back so late, I guess you are drinking with a confidant. Little did you know, I was worried about you the whole night. Can you tell me what kind of 'confidant' is that makes you refuse to drink the wine of my good brother...?"

Looking at the smiling Qin Wei and listening to his secretive ridicule, Liu Xunyi suddenly felt that the man in front of him was so scheming, so shrewd and experienced, and had such hidden intentions, that every sentence and every word he said carried a different purpose, either making innuendos or being perfunctory.

Although Liu Xunyi is smart, he has never thought that one day he would compete with Qin Wei... in a battle of wits and courage.

Thinking of this, Liu Xunyi's mood became heavier, his eyes became dimmer, and his tone became sadder.

"Brother Qin, actually I met two old friends today." Liu Xunyi and Qin Wei looked into each other's eyes, without any reservations, showing their frankness, "They are not only my old friends, but also your old friends."

Hearing this, Qin Wei's expression suddenly changed, and his heart instantly rose to his throat. Although he pretended to be calm on the surface, his smile was very forced: "Really? Who did you see...?"

"Ding Chou, Qiu Han."

"hiss!"

Just these one sentence made Qin Wei feel like he was struck by a bolt from the blue, and all his thoughts turned blank in an instant.

For a moment, Qin Wei's expression was frozen and he was stunned, and he was unable to come back to his senses for a long time.

"Brother Qin, what's wrong with you?"

Seeing this scene, Liu Xunyi's heart sank immediately. At this moment, he was already secretly certain that Qiu Han and Ding Chou's accusations against Qin Wei today were not groundless, and Qin Wei was not as upright as he had expected.

Even so, Liu Xunyi still had a glimmer of hope. Qin Wei might have made a mistake, but he was just confused for a moment, it was just a small mistake, he would never murder Zhao Yuan, ambush and kill his fellow disciples, and he would never be hypocritical in front of him, smiling with a dagger hidden behind his smile.

"No...nothing..."

Qin Wei carefully observed Liu Xunyi's reaction. Seeing that he was calm and had no intention of accusing him, he gradually felt relieved. At the same time, he became even more confused. He smiled reluctantly and said, "They... How could they..."

"They were ambushed by a group of unidentified men in black outside the city, so they fled back to Lin'an."

"Oh!" Qin Wei calmed himself down while calculating the current situation. "What did they... tell you?"

"He just said some incomprehensible words. I couldn't understand him."

"What nonsense?" Qin Wei's throat moved slightly and he swallowed subconsciously.

"They said they didn't leave Tianji Pavilion on their own initiative, but... they had a conflict with you and were forced to leave. Qiu Han seemed to be very resentful of you and blamed you for not thoroughly investigating the cause of the Marquis' death. But Ding Chou didn't agree with Qiu Han's idea, saying that it was a done deal and it was useless to try. They didn't let me get involved in this matter, and didn't want to ruin my bright future..." Liu Xunyi's words were half true and half false, "The more I listened, the more confused I became. I couldn't find out the reason no matter how much I asked."

"This..." Qin Wei stared at Liu Xunyi's eyes and asked tentatively, "Is that all?"

"That's all." Liu Xunyi said sincerely, "Brother Qin, do you understand what they mean?"

"I don't understand." Qin Wei said firmly, "I didn't expect them to come back, and I didn't expect them to look for you..."

At this point, Qin Wei's eyes suddenly turned cold, and he asked in a deep voice: "Where are they?"

"What do you mean by that?"

"I..." Qin Wei suddenly realized that his expression was a bit cruel, so he quickly restrained it and showed a gentle smile, "I want to know if they are doing well now? If not, I hope to atone for my sins and recall them back to Tianji Pavilion. I was confused at the beginning and criticized my fellow disciples because of a little conflict. This matter... is my fault. I shouldn't have hidden it from you, and I shouldn't have been so petty with them."

"It is a great virtue to admit one's mistakes and correct them." Liu Xunyi looked at Qin Wei, who was making a solemn promise, with complicated eyes, and said with emotion, "After all, we are all brothers from the same sect, and we can discuss everything properly. To be honest, their current situation is very miserable, and they urgently need your help."

"Oh?" Qin Wei's eyes narrowed, and he asked cautiously, "Where are they?"

Looking at Qin Wei, whose mind was unpredictable, Liu Xunyi felt a trace of guilt and sadness in his heart, so he calmed down and answered directly: "They are worried about being hunted down, so now... they are hiding in the City God Temple and begging for food to survive."

……

(End of this chapter)