Chapter 963: The Fake Appears True
"Huan'er, you go down first."

"Yes, ma'am."

Ling Xiaoxiao gave an order, and the maid hurriedly put the wooden comb in her hand into the box. She walked out the door with her head lowered, and happened to meet Xie Xuan who pushed the door open.

"Meet the Palace Master!"

"kindness."

Looking at the timid maid, Xie Xuan vaguely agreed, and his eyes swept over her with deep meaning. He walked straight to Ling Xiaoxiao and Yan Bugui in front of the dressing table without stopping.

"Meet the Palace Master."

"Meet Madam!"

This scene was quite interesting. When Yan Bugui bowed to Xie Xuan with a forced smile, Xie Xuan bowed respectfully to Ling Xiaoxiao without even looking away.

Ling Xiaoxiao's indifference to Xie Xuan had already made the scene very awkward. Xie Xuan did something even more outrageous, blatantly ignoring Yan Bugui's existence. The three people's very different reactions gradually made the atmosphere in the room become subtle and depressing.

"Xie Xuan, what did you just say?" Ling Xiaoxiao fiddled with the rouge and powder on the table with interest, pretending to be confused even though she knew the truth.

Knowing that Ling Xiaoxiao heard everything he said outside the door, Xie Xuan felt a sinking sensation in his heart when he saw that her reaction was not as strong as he had imagined, even... a little frighteningly calm.

"A bad start" made Xie Xuan nervous. He became more respectful to Ling Xiaoxiao and more cautious in his words, for fear that he would be careless and give others an advantage.

"Madam, I just said... that I have found out some news about Liu Xunyi." Xie Xuan answered while carefully observing Ling Xiaoxiao's reaction.

At the same time, Yan Bugui, who was standing aside, was also staring at the changes in Xie Xuan's expression.

"Oh!"

Ling Xiaoxiao remained calm as usual, concentrating on inserting a jade hairpin into her hair. She asked absentmindedly, "Where did you get the information from?"

"Master Gan of the Gan family in Luzhou and the mansion owner are close friends regardless of age. Ever since the mansion owner was... killed by Liu Xunyi, Master Gan lost his soulmate, so he turned his grief and anger into strength. No matter how many setbacks they experienced during this period, the Gan family never gave up hunting down Liu Xunyi." Xie Xuan spoke his well-thought-out speech, "God will not let down those who work hard. The heroes of the world have been searching for Liu Xunyi for a year, but the Gan family accidentally discovered clues."

"Luzhou Gan family?" Ling Xiaoxiao stopped what she was doing, frowned slightly, and asked suspiciously, "I remember that Mr. Gan was clearly your old friend for many years. When did he become a close friend of Brother Jin?"

"Mr. Gan and I are friends because they want to get close to the mansion master," Xie Xuan said modestly. "If the mansion master hadn't taken care of the Gan family, the title of 'the first family in Luzhou' would have been changed more than ten years ago. Therefore, the mansion master has been very kind to Mr. Gan, and it is only natural for Mr. Gan to repay the kindness."

"So, it was the Gan family who discovered Liu Xunyi's whereabouts and sent someone to inform you?"

"Exactly."

"Strange!" Yan Bugui interrupted doubtfully, "The Gan family of Luzhou knew that Liu Xunyi was the public enemy of the martial arts world. When they found the whereabouts of the traitor, why didn't they report it to the leader of the martial arts world immediately, but told you instead? Even though Luoyang and Luzhou are neighbors, they should have come to the mansion to ask to see the lady, so why..."

"First, Madam just said that Master Gan and I have a close relationship. Second, the Gan family alone is far from being able to compete head-on with Liu Xunyi, Xunzhen and a group of Western Region masters, but Master Gan is afraid that Liu Xunyi will escape to another place, so he hopes that we can send out masters as soon as possible. As for the third..." Having said this, Xie Xuan glanced at Ling Xiaoxiao who was deep in thought and said bitterly, "Although everyone in the Xianwang Mansion respects Madam as the master, in name... I am the master of the Xianwang Mansion."

"But……"

"That makes sense. There's no need to argue!" Ling Xiaoxiao waved her hand to interrupt the indignant Yan Bugui. Her gleaming eyes stared at the unyielding Xie Xuan in the bronze mirror and asked quietly, "Where did they say Liu Xunyi is?"

"They only said that they found the whereabouts of Liu Xunyi and Xunzhen in the Daming Prefecture area. As for the rest... they don't know either." Xie Xuan was embarrassed. "After all, Liu Xunyi and Xunzhen are extremely cautious. The Gan family disciples dare not keep a close eye on them, lest they alert the enemy and cause harm to themselves and others."

"They are smart. If they follow too closely, they will sooner or later follow the footsteps of Kongtong disciples." Ling Xiaoxiao said with a smile, "But... they are cautious in their actions, so how can they guarantee the reliability of the information?"

"That's right!" Yan Bugui quickly agreed, "Even the news about the Kongtong Sect would have leaks, so the Gan family... I'm afraid they are just making groundless accusations. I don't believe that all the major sects in the Central Plains martial arts world combined are not as good as a small Luzhou Gan family?"

"Madam's suspicion is not without reason. But things like searching for traces... have nothing to do with the size of the sect, nor with the level of strength." Xie Xuan pondered, "This kind of thing depends half on skill and the other half on luck, both are indispensable. Maybe... the Gan family is lucky, and the blind cat encounters a dead mouse." "From what you implied... it seems that you believe their news?" Ling Xiaoxiao asked instead of answering.

"In my humble opinion... since no one can find any trace of Liu Xunyi right now, we should try our best to find any clues with the attitude of 'better to believe it than not to believe it'." Xie Xuan answered seriously, "After all, a try will only waste some time, manpower and energy, which is better than waiting for something to happen and sitting at home anxiously."

Xie Xuan's words seemed to hit Ling Xiaoxiao's soft spot, causing her eyes to change. She slowly turned around, looking up and down at Xie Xuan who was speaking righteously with a meaningful gaze, and asked in a sarcastic tone: "Could it be that the sun rises from the west today? You have always been uninterested in hunting down Liu Xunyi. Even if we told you the clues, you were perfunctory. You have never been as dedicated as you are today, and you have never said such an impressive "truth" as "It is better to believe it than not to believe it". What? The news from Kongtong Sect is a "smokescreen", and the news from the Gan family in Luzhou is the real clue?"

"This..." Facing Ling Xiaoxiao who was waiting for an opportunity to test him, Xie Xuan showed panic on his face and hurriedly bowed his hands to apologize, "In the past, I was self-righteous and disdained to bully the few with the majority and the weak with the strong. But now, I see that the leader of Qingfeng and his martial arts colleagues have been frustrated again and again, and Liu Xunyi and Xunzhen have been in danger again and again. Their arrogance has become more and more arrogant, and has gradually threatened the prestige of the Xianwang Mansion in the martial arts world. I can't stand it anymore. Therefore..."

"I've said it before, 'With your ability, as long as you try your best, nothing in the world can stump you.'" Ling Xiaoxiao's expression changed quickly. She was just accusing Xie Xuan of something with a smile on her face, but now she was satisfied. She looked at Xie Xuan with eyes full of praise, "You didn't try your best in the past, so Liu Xunyi is still at large. Now you used a little trick and found out his flaws immediately. Don't talk about good or bad luck, it's clearly you, Xie Xuan, who have the ability."

"Thank you for your praise, Madam. I am unworthy of it." Xie Xuan remained calm regardless of praise or criticism. He continued to watch his eyes from his nose, his nose from his mouth, and his mouth from his heart, not giving Ling Xiaoxiao and Yan Bugui any room to peek into his heart.

"I don't believe the news from the Gan family in Luzhou, but I was deeply moved by your words 'It's better to believe it than not to believe it'." Ling Xiaoxiao said, "Although I don't hold out much hope, I don't want to dampen your spirit. I agree to give it a try, but I don't know what to do next?"

"Madam's worries must be guarded against. This news is very likely to be groundless. Therefore, if we rashly alarm the leader of Qingfeng and rashly summon heroes from all over the world, what if we make another joke like the one at Changbai Mountain... From the leader of Qingfeng to Xie and the disciples of the Xianwang Mansion, we will all be ashamed and have no choice but to cut ourselves off from the world." Xie Xuan hesitated and pondered over and over again, "But if the news is true, with the caution of Liu Xunyi and Xunzhen, they must know that the Central Plains martial arts world has already laid a net, just waiting for them to fall into the cage. Therefore, I guess they will never dare to take risks alone, and there must be many masters from the Western Regions hiding around them."

"Dad and Wudang are in the spotlight right now. I don't know how many people in the world are waiting to see him make a fool of himself. Therefore, if you are not 100% sure, this matter... should not be made public, so as not to end up with a whimper and give people a reason to criticize you." Ling Xiaoxiao nodded with no objection, "Then... what do you think?"

"I think... it's hard to tell whether this is true or not. We should neither mobilize a large force to attract criticism nor be careless and miss the opportunity." Xie Xuan frowned and spoke intermittently, "Now, we only know that Liu Xunyi and Xunzhen appeared in Daming Mansion, but we don't know where they are going or where they will settle in the future. Therefore, ordinary mediocre people may not be able to do this job, so as not to lose more than they gain. It's best... to send some smart and capable masters, and the quality is more important than the quantity. After all, we have to secretly find out their whereabouts, and we have to judge the situation and make a decisive move to kill them. It's difficult for ordinary disciples to do both."

"That makes sense." Ling Xiaoxiao asked calmly, "Who do you think is suitable?"

"As far as the Xianwang Mansion is concerned, Murong Bai and Deng Quan are undoubtedly the best choices..."

"Murong Bai is not right. He was once ordered to go to Lin'an to hunt down Liu Xunyi, but he ended up feeling pity and returned empty-handed." Before Xie Xuan finished speaking, Ling Xiaoxiao waved her hand to refuse without hesitation, "Once unfaithful, you will never use him again. At least when it comes to hunting down Liu Xunyi, I am worried about Murong Bai."

"Then Deng Quan..."

"Although Deng Quan's relationship with Liu Xunyi is not as delicate as Murong Bai's, his martial arts skills are also slightly inferior. If I send him there, it is inevitable that he will be unable to do what he wants. I... am still worried."

"This..." Ling Xiaoxiao's repeated rejections made Xie Xuan panic and speechless, "According to Madam, I don't know..."

"I have a candidate in mind. He is smart, capable, experienced, and good at both literature and martial arts. He is also resourceful." Ling Xiaoxiao smiled mysteriously, "If this person is sent out, I believe he will be able to achieve immediate results and capture the enemy easily."

"Oh?" Xie Xuan raised his eyebrows and asked curiously, "Who is Madam talking about?"

"you!"

"Me?" Seeing Ling Xiaoxiao taking the initiative to assign the task to him, Xie Xuan was secretly happy that his plan had succeeded, but on the surface he pretended to be surprised and said hurriedly, "Madam, I am very grateful for your kindness. But I am busy with many things..."

"The affairs of the mansion can be left to others to take care of. If all else fails, I will take charge of the central hall." Ling Xiaoxiao smiled nonchalantly, "You are the one who got the information and gave the suggestion. Who else besides you can be competent to track down Liu Xunyi's whereabouts?"

"But……"

"Don't worry. I won't let you go alone. I will send some loyal and experienced helpers to serve you and assist you."

Hearing this, Xie Xuan's heart tightened, and he felt ominous. He said anxiously: "Madam is talking about..."

"Yan Bugui, you personally select some 'shrewd and good at fighting' fighters to accompany the 'house master'...to go to Luzhou to find out the truth."

……

(End of this chapter)