Plan, without me?

The lights in the tent flickered as Wen Congren explained slowly, his voice neither hurried nor slow: "The barbarians on the grasslands are eyeing the southern border covetously, while the Southern Palace is in turmoil. Xiao Jingyuan didn't want to see Xiao Qiang fall into trouble, so he chose to strike first - a very correct decision."

Ren Xuan was still hesitant, frowning, "There are so many experts in the Nan Mansion. You only want one person to take action, and that person must be me?"

Wen Congren responded calmly: "As you said, Xiao Jingyuan has a very high prestige in the army. If a traitor suddenly appears for no reason, it will be very abrupt."

Ren Xuan tutted his words, a look of disgust on his face: "Am I a traitor?"

Wen Congren didn't answer immediately. He gave him a secretive look and said, "The general knows what he did in the Southern Palace."

He paused, a meaningful look in his eyes: "Ren Xuan. I don't know why, there are still many generals in this Nanfu who remember the old things."

As soon as these words were spoken, Ren Xuan shuddered.

He looked up suddenly: "Quite a lot, how much?!"

Back then, the Southern Prince's Palace was not a "peaceful withdrawal of the feudal system."

Anyone who dared to draw his sword against the Emperor's great cause of unification was doomed to fail. During the final reckoning, Ren Xuanguang oversaw the execution of no fewer than a hundred people—heads fell like leeks.

Wen Congren shook his head slowly: "Even Jamel Xiao doesn't know about this. The enemy is in the dark and I am in the light... Even if I put some ingredients in your meal-"

Ren Xuan couldn't hold it in any longer. "No, I was just following orders, okay? I was an official appointed by the imperial court and I was executing the sentence according to the law! If they have any grudges, they can go find Qin Shu!!"

Wen Congren said indifferently, "What's the point of you telling me?"

Ren Xuan: “…”

There was a brief silence in the tent.

Wen Congren paused, as if analyzing the pros and cons for him: "In my opinion, the barbarians are safer for you than the Southern Palace. In fact, as long as they think you are too close to Shi'an, Shi'an will not be safe."

Ren Xuan no longer hesitated. He stood up suddenly and said in a decisive voice, "Count me in. How many people are you planning to bring?"

Wen Congren was quite satisfied with his 'positive' attitude and continued, "We are defecting. It's the quality of the people that matters, not the quantity."

Ren Xuan hesitated for a moment and asked, "Take Lu Xiyun with you?"

Wen Congren shook his head, sighing, "I want to, too. But the thing on him hasn't been completely removed. He doesn't count."

Ren Xuan looked up at him: "Have you found a way?"

Wen Congren nodded. "I've already taught Shi'an the purification formation. Lu Xiyun's level of evil contamination requires continuous suppression for at least a month."

Ren Xuan tutted his words upon hearing this, his tone filled with undisguised annoyance. "There are so many formation masters in the camp, don't pick on Shi An every day. I just don't want Shi An to get too close to Lu Xiyun. If he gets too close to Lu Xiyun, he'll easily be targeted by that bastard Qin Shu."

Wen Congren looked up at him and asked instead of answering, "How many people do you want to know about Lu Xiyun's evil deeds?"

Ren Xuan was silent for a few breaths, and finally gave up the topic. He just raised his hand and pressed his brow, saying, "Why don't you wait for Lu Xiyun for a month? With him, the chances of winning will be much higher."

Wen Congren shook his head: "The next round of barbarian attacks will take less than a month. The people from the Southern Palace may also take less than a month to attack you."

Ren Xuan's eyes flickered, and he whispered, "We need to think about this matter carefully."

Wen Congren looked at him intently: "How long will it take?"

Ren Xuan raised an eyebrow: "How long will you give me?"

Wen Congren's eyes were as calm as water: "One night."

Ren Xuan tutted his words. This strong man was really impatient. “No, you’ve planned it all.”

——You don’t even include me in the plan?!

Wen Congren nodded without hesitation: "Yes."

He said, "We'll have a military meeting tomorrow morning. You take charge, and we'll handle the rest."

Ren Xuanping would never accept such a purely thug-like job. But the man before him was Lu Shian's savior.

So, he sighed, waved his hands, and said helplessly as if accepting his fate: "Alright... Great Military Advisor, my life is in your hands, so you should plan carefully."

Ren Xuan reminded him, "By the way, be careful of Lu Xiyun. I don't believe that guy can stay calm for a month."

Wen Congren nodded: "I will take care of it."

Ren Xuan laughed, as if he had just heard a joke, and shook his head slowly: "Don't, don't deal with it——"

He leaned forward a few inches: "For things like this, you have to do it in a seemingly plausible way."

Wen Congren raised his eyebrows: "General, could you please explain more clearly?"

Ren Xuan leaned closer, lowering his voice, his tone like a seasoned veteran: "Aren't you planning on not reporting it? But you have to act like Qin Shu is questioning you and forcing you every day—you try your best, you resist, you're caught in a dilemma. When Lu Xiyun sees this, his heart softens, thinking that if you're resisting for him again, he'll cooperate with you."

He paused, then whispered, "Lord Wen, I'm saying this because I consider you one of my own. Qin Shu never lets anyone other than his confidants touch Lu Xiyun's affairs. Lu Xiyun is willing to let you interfere in his affairs, and Qin Shu likes you. You've already stepped half a foot into the core circle - this promotion is much faster than seniority."

——Now you understand why you couldn’t get promoted in your previous life?

Wen Congren gave Ren Xuan a complicated look: "You really are experienced...you've done a lot of work, right?"

···

Morning, Southern Palace.

The commander-in-chief held a military meeting and all the generals gathered together, but there was an unexpected guest.

Wen Congren is not an official of the Nan Mansion, so logically speaking, he should not be here.

As the generals looked at each other, Xiao Jingyuan spoke first: "Lord Wen has stayed in the barbarian land for many years and has close relations with the foreign races. Now, as soon as he returned north, the barbarian army attacked the city."

His voice was calm, but every word was cold: "Master Wen, shouldn't you give everyone an explanation?"

As soon as these words came out, the tent fell into a dead silence. Xiao Jingyuan pointed out that Wen Congren was a spy planted by the barbarians in the army.

All the generals looked at Wen Congren.

Wen Congren's expression remained unchanged, he just raised his eyelids and said, "Oh?"

His tone was as calm as if he was discussing a prescription: "Master Xiao suspects me, do you have any evidence?"

Xiao Jingyuan sneered: "Why do you need proof? You have been in and out of the inner circle of the barbarians, and even Yao Qi has been polite to you. Do you really think that others dare not ask a question——"

Before he could finish his words, a long knife fell on the table with a clang.

Ren Xuan slowly stood up: "Without any evidence, what do you want to do, sir?"

Xiao Jingyuan frowned slightly: "General Ren, this is a military discussion, which concerns the survival of the Southern Palace. Even if it is just a suspicion, it should be taken seriously."

Ren Xuan narrowed his eyes, then suddenly smiled, his tone suddenly cold: "If you put it this way - Sir Xiao led the evil soldiers a few days ago and deliberately put us in danger. Shouldn't he also clear himself?"

The whole audience was in an uproar.

Suddenly, a general stood up and shouted angrily: "How dare you! How dare you talk like that!!"

Many people echoed in agreement: "This is the Southern Army meeting! It's not your turn as an outsider to interrupt!!"

Ren Xuan smiled playfully and stopped talking. The next moment, he flashed and pressed his palm on Xiao Jingyuan's shoulder in full view of everyone.

Several vital points were sealed, and Xiao Jingyuan's face turned pale in an instant.

A general from the Southern Palace exclaimed, his hand already on his sword: "Come here——"

Just as he was about to move, he was stopped by Ren Xuan's glance. Ren Xuan was too close, there was no threat, it was more effective than this.

“I said—” Ren Xuan patted Jamel Xiao’s shoulder slowly, and said in a light tone: “Master Xiao should clear himself.”

The generals did not dare to move forward for a while.

Wen Congren leaned aside, brushing off the dust from his sleeves with his hand, and said calmly, "Master Xiao anticipated the enemy's moves. I admire you."

He smiled and said calmly, "However, my lord, please know that your head is worth a thousand gold in the barbarian tribe."

Xiao Jingyuan sneered: "Master Wen is determined to be a dog for the barbarians?"

Wen Congren glanced at him with a half-smile, and said softly, "It was Master Xiao who first said that I was a spy."

The atmosphere in the tent suddenly turned cold, and the generals were shocked and angry.

The clear sounds of weapons being unsheathed rang out one after another: "Damn it! Wen Congren! Let go of Master Xiao."

"Ren Xuan!" A deputy general of the Southern Palace couldn't help but shout, "How dare you touch me again!"

Wen Congren had already made arrangements. He took out a jade box and threw it lightly. In an instant, green smoke filled the air and the generals felt dizzy.

Wen Congren said calmly, "The mist is not poisonous, it will only cause temporary disorientation. Please wait a moment, and you will regain consciousness once we leave."

Wen Congren threw out a hidden array talisman, and Ren Xuan picked up the restrained Xiao Jingyuan and threw him into the array.

In an instant, the three figures were swallowed up by the light array, leaving only astonishment in the tent.

Before the smoke cleared, someone rushed out of the tent, but found nothing.

The deputy general of the Southern Prefecture gritted his teeth and roared, "Order the horses to be prepared—Seal the Southern Road and inspect the Western Camp—"

"Stretch your crossbows. If you find any trace of Ren Xuan and Wen Congren, kill them on the spot!"

"Call the Shadow Falcon, patrol five miles away! Make sure you bring the master back!"

There were figures moving around and the sound of horses' hooves, and everyone realized that this was a long-planned raid and robbery.

···

At the north corner of the camp, a beam of light gradually shrank, and three figures appeared in the depths of the dense forest.

The two instigators who had been planning this for a long time, plus a thug, began to review the situation.

Ren Xuan let go of his hand, and Xiao Jingyuan fell to the ground in a mess, his blood vessels still tied, and he was covered in cold sweat.

Wen Congren put the formation talisman into his sleeve and looked towards the distant camp. "In half a minute, the south will be chasing us. Now that we have started, we must perform well. If we mess up the next scene, we will lose our lives."

Ren Xuan walked forward and pressed his palm on Xiao Jingyuan's back. Xiao Jingyuan groaned, and his acupoints were completely released. He slowly stood up, patted the dust on his body, and said coldly: "I think you two performed very well."

Ren Xuan had a deadpan expression on his face: "Don't interrupt, you are a prisoner now, can you act? If not, we will go back."

Jamel Xiao shrugged and stopped talking.

Ren Xuan pulled out a long, thin rope and said, "Put your hands behind your back."

Xiao Jingyuan snorted, but still did as he was told.

Ren Xuan tied up the 'prisoner' and looked at Wen Congren: "Okay, now everyone in Nan Prefecture believes you're a spy and I'm a traitor. What's next?"

Wen Congren looked at Xiao Jingyuan with a smile: "Next step? Of course, I will ensure that he can go back alive, otherwise, you and I will have trouble explaining it."

Xiao Jingyuan also laughed, with a hint of irritation: “Then it really is thankful for Master Wen.”

Ren Xuan looked at Wen Congren, then at Xiao Jingyuan. He always felt that he could not guess what these two people meant by each other.

...I'm the only one who's a pure thug, right?!

Wen Congren gave Ren Xuan a look, and Ren Xuan understood. He pressed Xiao Jingyuan down on a mossy stone and casually added a blood-sealing technique.

Jamel Xiao groaned.

Wen Congren half-knelt down, took out a few silver needles nimbly, and casually pierced his shoulder and neck veins. The needle tip turned slightly, and blood oozed out along the needle body, leaving several hideous bloodstains on the side of Xiao Jingyuan's fair neck.

Xiao Jingyuan took a breath and said, "Are you sure you are not holding a grudge for revenge?"

"Don't move." Wen Congren said, "If this thing misses the target, you'll die."

Xiao Jingyuan seemed to understand something and stopped moving obediently.

After the last needle was inserted, Wen Congren stood up and examined his "work": Xiao Jingyuan really looked like a severely tortured prisoner at this moment, with bloodstains, pale face, and weak breathing.

As the only person at the scene without a script, Ren Xuan only spoke tentatively: "So now, go find Yao Qi?"