Chapter 940: Hard to tell the real from the fake
"Xie Xuan, do you dare to question the leader of the martial arts world?"

"I dare not. I am just speaking the truth."

Facing Xie Xuan, who was calm and composed and answered questions fluently, Ling Xiaoxiao's eyes quietly flashed with an intriguing gleam, and then she changed the subject and asked word by word: "Regardless of whether the news is true or false, if I insist that you send someone out...will you do it?"

"If Madam gives the order, how dare I disobey?" Xie Xuan's face changed slightly, pretending to be terrified, "If Madam has made up her mind, I will immediately arrange this matter."

Looking at Xie Xuan who was acting so serious, the aggressive Ling Xiaoxiao smiled and waved her hand, saying, "Don't be nervous. I was just joking with you just now."

"Are you kidding?" Seeing Ling Xiaoxiao's attitude changing from hot to cold, Xie Xuan's heart couldn't help but beat in fear, "Madam, what do you mean by that?"

"To be honest, Wudang sent Taoist priests Gu Ri and Gu Yue to find the traces of Liu Xunyi and Xunzhen in Changbai Mountain more than ten days ago, and secretly contacted masters from various sects to lay a net, step by step forcing the two unawares into a desperate situation." Ling Xiaoxiao explained calmly, while taking out a letter from her sleeve, and said proudly, "This is a secret letter my father just sent. Ning Luo, the 'Sword Master Disciple' of Kunlun Sect, intercepted a carrier pigeon in Xianzhou. It was a letter of help sent by Xunzhen to the young King Qin. Now, they have realized that they are trapped and can't escape. My father said in the letter that Liu Xunyi will be arrested before the end of the month, so let us prepare a hero invitation in advance. Once the good news comes, immediately send people to send invitations to various sects, inviting heroes from all over the world to gather in the Xianwang Mansion. At that time, my father will cut off Liu Xunyi's head in public to comfort Brother Jin's spirit in heaven."

"what?"

Xie Xuan was startled and hurriedly took the secret letter from Ling Xiaoxiao's hand. He quickly read it and recognized that the handwriting in the letter was indeed Qingfeng's. His face instantly became extremely solemn.

In order to prevent Ling Xiaoxiao from noticing the flaw, Xie Xuan had to act calmly and drink tea to hide his inner fear.

"After a year of tossing and turning, God finally paid off our hard work." Ling Xiaoxiao put away the secret letter slowly and reminded with a smile, "Prepare what needs to be prepared in advance, so as not to lose your composure when the time comes."

"Madam, what you said is absolutely true..."

"I'm leaving first. You can take care of the rest!"

After saying that, Ling Xiaoxiao left the study room with a beaming smile as Xie Xuan sent her off.

"boom!"

As soon as Ling Xiaoxiao left, Xie Xuan immediately closed the door. At the same time, the smile on his face froze instantly, replaced by a deep worry.

"How could this happen? How could this happen?"

Xie Xuan, with a frown on his face, paced back and forth like an ant on a hot pan.

"Is Qingfeng's news true or false?" Xie Xuan pondered over and over in his heart. "Last time, Qingfeng bluffed me, claiming that Xunyi would be captured within a month. This time... is it bluffing again? But why did they lie to me again and again? Could it be... that they have begun to suspect me? No! Last time, their ambush was mainly concentrated in the west. Fortunately, Xunzhen had promised in advance that he would never take Liu Xunyi to escape to the west, so I could ignore Qingfeng's "solemn promise". However, this time he got the news from Zhongli Mu, so he pointed his sword to the northeast, and ordered the heroes to fight to Changbai Mountain as the leader of the martial arts world. It doesn't seem like a show at all... What if the news is true, wouldn't Xunyi be surrounded by enemies? No! This matter concerns Xunyi's life and death, I can't take the risk... It's better to believe it than not! Xunyi and Xunzhen are isolated and helpless in the northeast. Once they are surrounded, they will surely die..."

Thinking of this, Xie Xuan could no longer suppress his inner anxiety, and rushed to the desk, hurriedly spread out the paper and inkstone, and wrote furiously. In a blink of an eye, he wrote more than a hundred words, clearly describing the situation of Liu Xunyi and Xunzhen.

After receiving the letter, he put it in an envelope, dripped some wax on it, and then wrote a line of small characters in a flamboyant style on the envelope: "From the young Prince of Qin himself."

At the moment, Xie Xuan was helpless and unable to take action, so he could only pin his hopes on the young King of Qin. Although it might be too late, it was better than waiting to die.

Xie Xuan, worried beyond belief, hurriedly stood up, stuffed the secret letter into his arms, and strode towards the door.

"squeak!"

However, the moment Xie Xuan opened the door, Luo Ningyu's thin and depressed face suddenly appeared, and Xie Xuan, who was caught off guard, was frightened and trembled. He subconsciously protected the secret letter in his arms with both hands and took two steps back.

"Ning... Ning Yu, you haven't recovered from your serious illness yet. Why are you coming here instead of resting in your room?"

Looking at Luo Ningyu, who was depressed and pale, Xie Xuan couldn't help but feel a deep sadness and pity in his heart.

Thinking back to the past, how high-spirited and energetic was Luo Ningyu? How carefree was she? How beautiful and charming was she? How clever and eccentric was she? Now look at her now. Where is the shadow of a "young lady"? She seems to have been tortured by the sufferings that followed one after another. She is no longer human or ghost, and is almost dead, showing a sad and desolate look.

What Xie Xuan knew was that Liu Xunyi's betrayal and Luo Tianjin's death had caused Luo Ningyu to be so heartbroken that she fell seriously ill.

But what he didn't know was that Luo Ningyu, who had not yet recovered, had accidentally overheard the conversation between Qingfeng and Ling Xiaoxiao, which had dealt a heavy blow to her body and mind. Unable to withstand the continuous blows, she not only had her old illness not healed, but also had a new one. She was still weak and had no luck since her illness.

"It's cold outside, come in!"

In the cold winter, Luo Ningyu was wearing only a single layer of clothing, her face was blue and she was shivering from the cold. Xie Xuan, who had gradually come to his senses, was furious, and quickly took off his cloak, and impatiently put it on Luo Ningyu, wrapping her petite and thin body tightly, and at the same time led her into the study.

"Who is on duty today?" Xie Xuan handed a cup of steaming hot tea to Luo Ningyu and asked with a gloomy face, "You are weak, but they allowed you to go out alone? And... their clothes are so thin, what do they do for a living? I will peel off their skins!"

"Uncle Xie, don't blame the servants. I sneaked out on my own." After two sips of hot tea, Luo Ningyu's almost frozen body gradually regained some softness, and her pale face slowly turned a little rosy. "I heard... Mom just came here, so I came to see." "This..." Xie Xuan seemed to not understand what Luo Ningyu meant, and said unhappily, "What does this have to do with you? Why don't you just focus on recuperating?"

"Uncle Xie, why did mother look for you?" Luo Ningyu turned a deaf ear to Xie Xuan's reproach, holding the teacup tightly with both hands to keep warm, and asked tremblingly, "What did mother say to you?"

Xie Xuan frowned, and while pushing the heater closer to Luo Ningyu, he answered in a half-understanding tone: "Ningyu, you have never cared about trivial matters in the mansion. What happened recently? In the past month, almost every time I met with my wife, you would come to ask questions and say some inexplicable things. I watched you grow up, and I know your temper very well. You must have your reasons for doing this. I just don't know... are you willing to tell me?"

Hearing this, Luo Ningyu's eyes darkened and she lowered her head silently. No matter how Xie Xuan asked, she refused to say another word.

"Ningyu, are you... still worried about Liu Xunyi?" Xie Xuan asked with complicated thoughts, "Every time you come to see me, do you want to find out about Liu Xunyi?"

Being poked in the soft spot by Xie Xuan, Luo Ningyu's body couldn't help but tremble slightly. Unconsciously, her eyes turned red, and bean-sized tears fell into the cup, creating ripples in the tea.

Seeing this scene, Xie Xuan said secretly "As expected" and let out a sigh with mixed feelings.

Xie Xuan thought that Luo Ningyu was worried about Liu Xunyi because of her infatuation with him. Little did he know that Luo Ningyu already had other concerns in mind.

"Forget it!" Xie Xuan said bitterly, "I won't hide it from you. Madam came to me... because of Liu Xunyi. Your grandfather... has found Liu Xunyi's whereabouts and sent people to force him into a desperate situation. Madam asked me to prepare a hero invitation, inviting heroes from all over the world to gather in the Xianwang Mansion to witness Liu Xunyi's own evil deeds and avenge the lord of the mansion."

"Then...what does Second Uncle Xie plan to do?" Luo Ningyu looked at the troubled Xie Xuan with tears in her eyes.

"Ningyu, I know you can't let go of Liu Xunyi, but... things have come to this point, you can never be together again." Xie Xuan hesitated, trying to be as tactful as possible, "What's more, the leader and his wife of Qingfeng are determined to get her, I... can only obey their orders."

"Do you really want to kill Liu Xunyi?" Luo Ningyu asked meaningfully, "Do you really hate him to the core?"

"This……"

Faced with Luo Ningyu's questioning, Xie Xuan was stunned.

In fact, he had noticed something strange since Luo Ningyu entered the room, but he could not figure out the reason. At this moment, seeing Luo Ningyu's abnormal attitude, he felt even more strange.

"Of course I hate him, because he killed your father..."

"You're lying!" Before Xie Xuan could make any excuses, Luo Ningyu suddenly fixed her eyes and asked word by word, "In fact, Second Uncle Xie didn't want to kill Liu Xunyi at all. Not only did you not want to kill him, but you have been doing everything you can to protect him, right?"

"This……"

When Luo Ningyu revealed his secret, Xie Xuan felt as if his heart was being tightly grasped by someone, and his blood ran cold instantly. He was so nervous that he couldn't express it in words, and he was so shocked that he couldn't even describe it.

For a moment, he was panic-stricken and confused, stammering for a long time but not knowing how to respond.

"Uncle Xie, what are you hiding in your arms?"

Luo Ningyu's gaze was as sharp as a knife, causing Xie Xuan's mood to fluctuate again and again.

Until this moment, he gradually realized that he had been covering his chest with both hands when he was flustered. Unexpectedly, this action was seen by the careful Luo Ningyu, who noticed something.

"Ning Yu, I..."

"Uncle Xie, you all treat me like a little girl who knows nothing about the world. You refuse to tell me anything and just keep fooling me. Dad is like this, Mom is like this, Liu Xunyi is like this, and you are like this too." Luo Ningyu's eyes were filled with pity. "But I'm not a three-year-old child. I won't live innocently. I have flesh and blood and emotions. I know how to be nervous and afraid, and I know how to be sad and upset! Some things...if you can't hide them from me forever, then don't hide them from me..."

"Ning Yu..." Luo Ning's words came from the bottom of her heart, making Xie Xuan feel heartbroken.

"Uncle Xie, I only have one question for you today." Luo Ningyu wiped away her tears and said sincerely, "I hope you can remember my father's spirit in heaven... and tell me the truth. If you are only willing to tell me one truth in this life... I hope it is this one."

"Gululu!" As if frightened by Luo Ningyu's unprecedented momentum, even though Xie Xuan had been through many battles, he couldn't help but feel his palms sweating and his back chilled. He swallowed hard and asked anxiously, "What... do you want to ask?"

"Liu Xunyi... is he my half-brother?"

……

(End of this chapter)