Some people sighed, and others, seeing this, also got up and left. The remaining tea drinkers turned to the other side, and one by one, no one paid any more attention to the old storyteller who was spouting nonsense.

The old storyteller wasn't annoyed. He glanced at Xiang beside him, knowing his time was almost up, so he smiled and bowed to everyone before slowly packing up his things.

Just as he was packing his things, a hand suddenly reached out from the side and gently placed a silver ingot on his table.

The old storyteller paused for a moment, looked up at the handsome young man with outstanding bearing, then smiled, cupped his hands in a respectful bow, and said politely, "Thank you, sir."

"You're welcome."

The young man paused, then smiled and asked, "How did you arrive at your conclusion?"

The old storyteller looked surprised, seemingly not expecting that the young man in front of him would actually believe his words.

Then, as if he had thought of something, he carefully looked the black-clad swordsman up and down, finally focusing his gaze on the swordsman's hand wrapped in black cloth. His face showed a strange mix of excitement and unease, but he still managed to bow again with great restraint and said, "What I am about to say may be somewhat disrespectful, so please keep it a secret for me, Master Song."

"Don't worry, go ahead."

Song Chenye nodded slightly, not surprised that the other party recognized him.

"The current emperor is young and mature, and his methods are swift and decisive. Moreover, the borders are peaceful and the people are prosperous. If he were to become too powerful in the martial arts world, it might bring disaster upon him."

In just a few short sentences, the old storyteller summarized almost everything he could see and guess.

Song Chenye exclaimed in amazement, "Sir, you are very perceptive."

"Haha, these are just some old jokes of mine, don't take them seriously, Master Song, please forgive my rudeness."

As he spoke, the old storyteller bowed again.

Song Chenye did not accept the offer, but instead stepped aside and said helplessly, "There's no need to be so formal."

"Perhaps Master Song has forgotten, but you deserve my deepest respect."

The old storyteller lowered his head and began to speak earnestly.

But no one answered for a long time.

The old storyteller looked up and realized that the black-clad swordsman who had been standing in front of him was gone.

He smiled in admiration and continued tidying up his things.

Outside the teahouse, a young swordsman mounted his horse and slowly rode out of the city.

His gaze fell on both sides of the street, admiring the peace and prosperity of the era, and he suddenly chuckled softly.

The martial arts world was not under the control of the imperial court, and they even created a martial arts alliance leader who commanded a large following and enjoyed great prestige. This had long been a thorn in the side of the person in charge.

Luring him in by taking advantage of the power of Qianye Manor, tacitly allowing him to wipe out the leading families and sects in the martial arts world, and using his revenge to vacate the position of the leader of the martial arts alliance, isn't that also a ruthless tactic of that person?

But it doesn't matter. He and that person had never met before, and from beginning to end, they were just using each other.

Song Chenye silently tightened the binding of his Xianyun sword, making sure it didn't reveal any obvious markings, then rode his horse slowly along the street, gradually disappearing into the distance...

That's fine.

From that time on, Song Chenye was no more.