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Chapter 357: Plan First, Act Later

Hualian Hot Mountain Springs Villa.

Gu Cheng could not sleep the entire night, constantly pacing the room with Xiao Wuji. To them, the news from yesterday was just too earth-shattering. They were not able to fully digest it despite the entire night. Gu Cheng mumbled non-stop, “How could things be like this!!”

“That youth named Si Jin, if he really was a grand master, it would explain everything.” It made good sense too! Xiao Wuji took another sip of the cooled tea.

He frowned.

He got up, carrying the teapot as he walked to the door. The young male servant who was guarding the door yawned a few times but hurriedly stood properly when he heard the creaking of the door opening.

Xiao Wuji passed the teapot to the servant’s hand.

The young servant quickly ran to the kitchen to brew more tea.

When Xiao Wuji entered, he heard Gu Cheng sigh. “Explain what? Tell me then! This situation is honestly somewhat embarrassing!” After a pause, Gu Cheng’s expression turned gloomy. He asked Xiao Wuji, “Do you think the grand masters from Eastern Ling and Southern Ming will be able to beat Si Jin if they were to come?”

“That child is just about 10 years old…” So, even if he was a grand master, he could definitely be killed with their cooperation! Xiao Wuji could not help but think this.

“From the news outside, he’s some hundred years old and has rejuvenated to a young age… He’s even saying Qi Qingyao’s children are his.” This was the most crucial point.

Gu Cheng cradled his forehead.

“These are unfounded statements. I think they likely spread the news to protect her,” Xiao Wuji explained. “The point of the current situation is that if Si Jin is one of her’s, is the cooperation of two grand masters still needed to kill him?” After all, Qi Qingyao looked too much like Mo Yang. If they were really related, Qi Qingyao would also be considered a person of Eastern Ling. Si Jin was hers and, all in all, that would make him someone of Eastern Ling’s too…right?

Gu Cheng noticed his expression and knew what he was thinking. He then said, “Si Jin is a grand master of Northern Liang, you better not overthink this. He needs to be killed. To ensure that Northern Liang’s power is the weakest! We need to seek a balance between the great nations.”

Xiao Wuji said seriously, “If Si Jin is really close to her, I’m afraid she will hate us if we were to kill Si Jin.” What would they tell Mo Yang then?

Gu Cheng contemplated for a moment and said, “We only wanted to help her because she looks like Mo Yang anyway. Don’t overcomplicate it, it’s all about the big picture.”

Xiao Wuji said nothing.

After Gu Cheng said that, a moment passed, before he murmured, “Shanshan is going to be sad.” His sister really liked Qi Qingyao!

“…” Xiao Wuji frowned. He thought to himself that maybe they could solve this issue by buying that girl some roasted chicken when they get back.

…

…

Jiang Yeqian woke up after 8 hours. Zhao Xin came in to inform that the State Preceptor who was next door had also woken up. Jiang Yeqian could not really move and could only let someone support him up into a chair before they lifted the chair and brought him next door.

After the servants left, Jiang Yeqian looked at Li Ruoxuan who was laying in bed silently, not turning his head to look at him.

Jiang Yeqian glanced at the gauze that covered his one eye and the bandages on his head.

He asked half-mockingly, “How does it feel to be blind in one eye?”

After a good while.

The man on the bed simply answered, “It’s still alright.”

His head remained unmoving as before; he did not even turn his face over. He was still looking at the beams and curtains of the bed, his thoughts elsewhere.

Jiang Yeqian knew that he was definitely feeling conflicted about the fact that he was blind in one eye. However, there was no time for sorrow or sentimentalism so he immediately spoke about the main issue. “Zhu Shen probably told you about everything.”

“He has.” Li Ruoxuan’s tone was indifferent; no emotions could be discerned from it.

Jiang Yeqian asked, “So what thoughts do you have about it?”

Li Ruoxuan asked, “Has he…appeared?”

If he had asked this incoherent question to someone else, they definitely would not have been able to understand him.

Jiang Yeqian did, however.

He was referring to Si Jin.

Jiang Yeqian said, “Not yet.”

Li Ruoxuan finally turned his head and looked at Jiang Yeqian who was seated in the chair, looking very feeble. He asked, “His injuries were likely not that serious, so why hasn’t he appeared after so long?”

Jiang Yeqian tried to shrug his shoulders but accidentally touched on the internal injury of his chest. He could not stop the twitch at the corners of his mouth. He said, “A person who has been hiding his identity was suddenly exposed by you and me. This news was then passed out by Pei Fengtang. I am afraid the emperor would have received news of this by now as well. I’d understand if he doesn’t wish to reveal himself.”

“Does he not care whether Qi Qingyao lives or dies?” Li Ruoxuan asked, his tone odd.

Jiang Yeqian, “…”

The atmosphere fell into a subtle silence.

Jiang Yeqian thought, what was this guy scheming now? Was he possibly thinking…

The moment he thought about that possibility, he became very perturbed. He said, “If those two grand masters were to come and join hands to kill him, I’m afraid we won’t be able to stop them when the time comes.”

Li Ruoxuan nodded faintly.

His expression was unchanged.

“Even if Eastern Ling and Southern Ming had no opinions about this, we still need to wait for him to appear before we can say anything further.” The smile between his brows was deep but his tone was light. “That kid isn’t stupid, Qi Qingyao isn’t stupid. They will definitely not sit and wait to be killed. Or maybe someone else might even get counter-assaulted when they plot an assassination on him.”

“Huh?” Jiang Yeqian frowned.

Li Ruoxuan said defenselessly, “A grand master entering Qingzhou City wouldn’t simply reveal their whereabouts. If they came in secret to investigate Si Jin’s whereabouts, they definitely would not decide to work together considering their status as grand masters. They would only work together to get rid of him after they locate his whereabouts. That’s why, there is only one way if we want to go about this. That is we have to find one of the grand masters and have Si Jin kill them first! With only one grand master left and the other dead, only then will the other side slither back in defeat.”

Jiang Yeqian was also thinking the same. However… “I’m afraid Si Jin won’t die. But looking at what happened this last time, his combat experience seems to be lacking and he’s somewhat green. It would be best for us to lay a trap when the time comes, create a good array and lure the snake into the urn. That would reduce them to easy picking.”

“I will try to recover as soon as possible,” Li Ruoxuan said.

The two were intelligent people. Although they were enemies, they still held admiration for each other.

That was why their conversations were relaxed.

Jiang Yeqian pondered for a moment. Despite already knowing the answer somewhat, he asked Li Ruoxuan, “Say, why didn’t he kill us?”

“You and I are the two most powerful people under the emperor of Northern Liang. Killing us would throw Northern Liang into great chaos so he held his hands,” Li Ruoxuan answered.

“Hm.” It was the same as what he was thinking. However, he could not help feeling that Si Jin had not intended to hold his hand that night… Instead, it seemed like he was forced to. In what circumstance, however, would a grand master be forced to stay his hand?

What happened?

Li Ruoxuan continued, “I can’t quite move for now. Help me get my people to look into every crevice of Qingzhou City while I’m out in the open and he’s underground. Since this is our territory, we must absolutely seize the initiative.”

Jiang Yeqian grunted in agreement and then called for the servant to enter.

He asked him to take him away.

Back in his room resting, Jiang Yeqian thought to himself that he and Li Ruoxuan were now like walking corpses. However, there were enough guards in this residence that even if someone knew that they were injured, they would not dare simply make trouble.

Zhao Xin had already notified Bai Mei of this matter.

Presumably, Bai Mei had also notified the Xuanwu Pavilion. The Xuanwu Pavilion was usually in charge of assassinations. At this moment, a skilled person must have already been sent to protect this residence from nearby. As long as those who come are not powerful masters, their safety would not be a problem.

Jiang Yeqian glanced at the large pile of medicine on the table and immediately noted that some of the medicine bottles had the mark of the Wanhua Hall. Bai Mei must have gotten them from them!

Jiang Yeqian laid down in bed to recuperate once again. He kept thinking in his mind, ‘What did Li mean by what he said?’

What did he mean by, “Did he not care if Qi Qingyao lives or dies?”

The so-called plan first and then move.

…Could this be his defensive step?!

That if she did not show up, she would be turned into bait?

Jiang Yeqian’s forehead instantly locked tight.

He had no qualms about killing Si Jin, but he did not want to turn that woman into bait and become a tool of Li’s!

However, how was he going to tell Li Ruoxuan of this thought? If he were too direct, would he not just be allowing Li to misunderstand that he likes her…

Jiang Yeqian could not help but feel vexed…

…

…

It had been two days since Pei Fengtang and Lu Yan passed out the news.

Qi Qingyao did not leave her house.

She did not even sleep in late in the morning. After playing with the children, they sat in the study learning to read while she sat at the side, her cheek in hand as she pondered deeply. The moment she went into this state, hours passed.

After lunch that day.

Lu Yan called for the children to play hide and seek with the maids and said to Qi Qingyao that he had something to speak with her about privately.

After closing the door.

The threads on his chest had been removed and the remains of his injury had been left to slowly heal. The growth of new flesh would undoubtedly itch a little which was why he could not help but scratch his chest.

Then he said, “Qingzhou City is about to raise hell because of Si Jin, but unexpectedly this time, no one dared to knock on your door and ask you questions. At most, only spies were sent to keep an eye on the front and back doors.”

“…” Qi Qingyao kept silent, turning her head to look at him.

Laughing in spite of himself, Lu Yan said, “You have been unexpectedly quiet these two days.”

Qi Qingyao said, “There’s something, it’s quite complicated. I’ve thought about it for a long time but I can’t make head nor tail of it. It’s still a problem and I need your help to figure it out.”

“Let’s hear it,” said Lu Yan.

Qi Qingyao said measuredly, “Xiao Wuji came here the other day and told me something…”

Then she reiterated word for word to Lu Yan what Gu Shanshan told her the other day.

…

…

After Lu Yan listened to what she had to say, he was in a daze for quite a while. He already knew some things, for example, Qi Qingyao had said before that Xiao Wuji had wrongly recognized her as an acquaintance. However, now it was because she looked like that acquaintance that they had leaked some information to her.

This…

Somehow it did not really make sense.

Even if she did look alike, they could not possibly be thinking of dragging her to Eastern Ling.

They even talked about giving her a house.

They were not afraid of her leaking this out…

Lu Yan found this hard to comprehend. A thought suddenly burrowed into his mind—could it be that either Xiao Wuji or Gu Cheng had taken a fancy to her and so used the excuse of her looking like someone?

Was it just for a reasonable excuse?

Lu Yan opened his mouth and almost wanted to ask her directly about this possibility, but noticing her severe expression, he did not dare to ask that.

He could only say, “The purpose of these grand masters coming to Qingzhou City was initially to kill the mysterious grand master who had emerged here. It just so happened that that person is Si Jin. However, it may not be possible for them to kill him.”

“What do you mean?” Qi Qingyao asked.

“Firstly, Si Jin hasn’t appeared,” Lu Yan said calmly. “Secondly, it’s unlikely Si Jin would lose if he were to go up against a grand master alone—grand master to grand master.”

Qi Qingyao rolled her eyes and rubbed between her brows. She said, “You’re the one who came up with the nonsense that he’s hundreds of years old. He is actually an eighteen-year-old boy. Looking at the scene of the battle, there looked to be vestiges of explosions and some other weird things when he went up against the two old foxes Li Ruoxuan and Jiang Yeqian this time. I think those two snakes had set up some traps against him. Otherwise, how could a grand master have gotten injured against two rank-nines? Injured to the point he hasn’t come back in so long? From these two points alone, it can be concluded that while the boy may indeed be a grand master, he doesn’t have much experience with combat, he could even be considered an amateur! Considering this, if Si Jin were to face an experienced and astute grand master powerhouse alone, he would lose thoroughly!”

Lu Yan thought to himself that it made sense.

Qi Qingyao muttered, “I definitely do not want Si Jin to get injured again! That’s why I won’t let him cross paths with whatever grand master.” They would evade battle if they could!

It was not cowardice.

Instead…

Qi Qingzhu had already been killed by Li Ruoxuan.

Si Jin had been so good to her, she did not want anything to happen to him!

Lu Yan looked at her expression. After thinking for a moment, he said, “But what if things were to develop to the point where he has no choice but to take action?”

“Why do I feel like you mean something else with your words?” What did he mean by “no choice but to take action”?

Lu Yan pressed his thin lips tightly. Brows raised, he said, “Based on what I know about the State Preceptor and the Head Grand Secretariat, those two have been in the court for so many years and their schemes do not run the usual depth. grand masters from other nations had come to Qingzhou City this time and the State Preceptor would definitely try to find ways to kill one of them and divide their strength.”

“You’re that certain?” Qi Qingyao asked.

Lu Yan’s eyes were clear and bare as he said, “That’s because there are not many opportunities for a grand master to travel to other nations in this entire lifetime. This is equivalent to them actively giving us the opportunity to plot against and kill a grand master, which is equivalent to killing tens of thousands of Eastern Ling and Southern Ming’s special forces! And those two arrogant, shrewd, and scheming figures would never let go of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.” After a pause, he added in a low voice, “Even if there was enmity between them before, they would still cooperate with each other this time when faced with the bigger picture.”

“…” Just like how they cooperated to test Si Jin? Qi Qingyao sneered.

Lu Yan explained, “It’s impossible that the person from Capital City would come. Therefore, Si Jin is the weapon to kill grand masters. Those two will definitely not let go of the opportunity to use this weapon.”

“How will they use him if Si Jin doesn’t show up?” Qi Qingyao asked seriously.

Not show up? Lu Yan’s eyelids twitched. Voice low, he said slowly, “When the time comes, you will become bait.”

This was also what he was most worried about. In the larger scheme of things, any weak person would also become a tool worthy of use. While Jiang Yeqian might feel indebted to Qi Qingyao for saving him, what could he do? He was even willing to conceal the fact that he laid hands on Si Jin from Qi Qingyao… It was likely that the next time of use would be soon.

The State Preceptor would not let go of the opportunity to kill a grand master from another nation.

He would definitely do whatever it takes to prepare for it.

Considering the time, those two were likely awake now…

Who knows what those two old foxes would plan for this.

Lu Yan suddenly thought of something and called for Dong Jing.

When Dong Jing entered, Lu Yan informed him to look for more powerhouses to guard this house.

Dong Jing was stunned for a moment. They had already hired some rank eight powerhouses recently and he still wanted more?

Lu Yan said, “It’s hard to guard against everything! So, just in case!”

She was not the only chess piece, the three children might also become pawns during a critical moment.

They had to be well protected.

…

…