Zhou Ji sat on the ground, dejected, and gave a sad smile. "Actually, I thought of another way at first. You and Su Jinxia have feelings for each other. Perhaps you could ask Su Jinxia for some Liuli blood. Su Jinxia would agree. If I asked you, you would definitely agree for the sake of our brotherhood. But I know your pride. How could I bear to make you compromise and bow down to Su Jinxia? I had no other choice, so I was repeatedly bewitched by Nie Qingyi to deal with Su Jinxia."

“I know those schemes weren’t exactly honorable, so I didn’t dare let you know and only dared to carry them out in secret. But in the end, if it weren’t for your involvement, it would be perfectly legitimate for me to deal with Su Jinxia, ​​since she’s the enemy! Even if the whole world knew what I was doing, what could they say about me? There are too many such tactics in warfare.”

"As the commander-in-chief of our army, you have always been thinking of Su Jinxia's interests. Do you dare to say that from the beginning to now, all your strategies have been completely selfless?"

Zhou Ji looked directly at Shen Qianxue, who remained silent, which Zhou Ji took as tacit agreement.

"Have I said anything about any of this? Do whatever you want, when have I ever stopped you!"

Zhou Ji's journey from recounting his unfortunate past, to his own difficulties, to his clever defense, and finally to turning his attention to Shen Qianxue and blaming her, was a smooth and seamless process. If someone with a weak mind were to do this, they would begin to blame themselves and might even wonder if they were wrong.

But Shen Qianxue had been struggling with this for too long, and he finally realized one thing: he and Zhou Ji were not on the same path!

Just as Yang Jiaoruo said, her methods were nothing special on the battlefield. There were far more people and methods than her, so she didn't think she was wrong.

Similarly, Zhou Ji was the same; he was willing to sacrifice many things in order to survive and to get ahead.

In the past, with Shen Qianxue paving the way for Zhou Ji, he didn't need to do anything; Shen Qianxue could pave the way for him. He only needed to be a virtuous ruler.

However, Shen Qianxue was unable to follow Zhou Ji's orders and did not serve him, so Zhou Ji had to take matters into his own hands, revealing his true character.

No matter how Zhou Ji tried to explain himself, his standing in Shen Qianxue's heart had plummeted.

Shen Qianxue sighed softly, calming himself down. He bowed slightly to Zhou Ji, "We have been brothers for many years. I am unwilling to completely break ties with you, so let's end it here. We are not on the same path, so please go your own way from now on, Your Highness. My Phoenix Pavilion will no longer participate in the struggle for power."

Zhou Ji's heart skipped a beat, and he looked at Shen Qianxue in disbelief. "What? You're leaving?"

Shen Qianxue nodded slightly, her expression distant.

Zhou Ji excitedly stood up and stepped forward, "Have you forgotten? Your father's dying wish was for us to work together on a great cause!"

Shen Qianxue gently raised her eyes, "If Father knew you were this kind of person, would he still have taken you in as his godson?"

Zhou Ji was struck dumb, staggering back two steps, heartbroken, "In Qianxue's heart, am I no longer worthy to be your brother?"

Zhou Ji knew that his actions would anger Shen Qianxue after they were exposed, but he did not expect Shen Qianxue to be so resolute. Without Shen Qianxue, how could he conquer the world?

Shen Qianxue felt a pang of heartache when he saw Zhou Ji's pained and self-reproachful expression. However, he knew that Zhou Ji was no longer on his side, and continuing to entangle with him would only make him sink deeper and lose sight of everything.

Shen Qianxue turned around, leaving behind a soft sentence: "You, take care of yourself."

The phrase "Take care of yourself" revealed Shen Qianxue's true feelings. He would not forgive Zhou Ji for the harm he had caused Mai Zizi, nor would he condone his ruthless methods in achieving his goals.

Zhou Ji was no longer the wise king in Shen Qianxue's heart who cared for the people, treated scholars with respect, and was frugal and diligent.

In fact, driven by his ever-expanding desires, Zhou Ji had already revealed too many flaws.

Fearing that Shen Qianxue would become too powerful, Zhou Ji secretly contacted officials and generals, using the relationship between Shen Qianxue and Su Jinxia to intensify the conflict between them and Shen Qianxue, causing some people to have reservations about her.

Those who get too close to Shen Qianxue, or those who are valued by Shen Qianxue, will be openly or secretly belittled by Zhou Ji and dare not stand out.

Because of the lack of unity between superiors and subordinates, many of Shen Qianxue's measures could not be effectively implemented.

This goes against the principles of valuing talent and treating scholars with respect.

Shen Qianxue knew the principle of "great merit overshadows the master," so she didn't say much.

As Zhou Ji's health deteriorated, he also became increasingly greedy for wealth and luxury. His carriage was built at great expense, resembling a palace. His daily life required meticulous care from several physicians and countless servants, and he would be reprimanded and punished for the slightest mistake.

The hardships of serving in the army caused Zhou Ji's heart ailment to be difficult to cure. Shen Qianxue not only could not say anything about it, but also had to find the best medicine for him and arrange the most appropriate itinerary to prevent his condition from worsening.

Little did they know that this was contrary to the principles of thrift and diligence.

Zhou Ji is determined to fight the Ji army. To this day, he only believes that Shen Qianxue is unwilling to send troops because she has selfish motives towards Su Jin. He has never considered how to act in the best interests of the people.

Zhou Ji has forgotten his original intention: to speak out for the people.

The exposure of the Mai Zizi incident and the Yang Jiaoruo incident was actually just the last straw that broke the camel's back, causing Shen Qianxue to completely lose faith in Zhou Ji.

After Shen Qianxue left, she gave the order to have the disciples of Phoenix Pavilion completely withdraw from the army!

Su Jinxia was not surprised when she learned of this news.

Shen Qianxue could not kill Zhou Ji, nor was she willing to continue serving him; leaving was the best option.

According to Su Jinxia's original plan, without Shen Qianxue, the Ji army would be no match for them, and the unification of the world would be only a matter of time. With Han Qing and Zhou Lin, they would be able to achieve great things.

As for Zhou Ji, Su Jinxia will find an opportunity to personally kill him. Even if it costs her life, Su Jinxia will take Zhou Ji with her. In this way, Su Jinxia can retire successfully and die without regrets.

But unexpectedly, a two-colored mushroom appeared out of nowhere!

With the two-colored mushroom, Zhou Ji would never let Shen Qianxue off easily...

Su Jin had gone to great lengths and made elaborate plans all to separate Shen Qianxue from him as soon as possible, so as to avoid the tragedy of him being deceived and dying miserably in his previous life.

Su Jinxia only hoped that after her death, Shen Qianxue could let go of everything and live a peaceful life for the rest of her days.

But it seems that Shen Qianxue has not yet escaped this predicament.

Su Jinxia held her head, feeling utterly overwhelmed.

"Someone come here," Su Jin called out softly.

The disciples of the Liuli Society entered and received orders.

Su Jin asked with a stern face, "Where did Nie Qingyi go?"

"As you predicted, she has returned to Ji City. I see that she is still ambitious and is thinking of going to find the Prince of Ji to plot against you."

Su Jinxia chuckled softly. She knew Nie Qingyi all too well. The deeper the humiliation she suffered, the deeper her hatred grew. As long as she had a breath left, she would not let Su Jinxia off easily.

Su Jin's eyes flashed with light. She decided to let Nie Qingyi live for a couple more days; she was still of some use.