Chapter 142 Candied Fruit: Can she kill me?

Taking advantage of Ajiu's distraction, Wanqixi snatched the item from his hand, shook it, and said, "The Emperor kept you here just to reward you with these? They must be good things."

Ajiu clasped her hands in a fist salute to him, "Young Master Lu, if you like it, you may take it."

“Young Master Lu?” Wan Qixi grinned. “Many years have passed, and apart from A Jing, you are the first person to call me Young Master Lu.”

Ajiu took a few steps back and whispered, "What did you two do to block me today? Grand Preceptor, we just met a while ago."

Cui Jin half-closed her one eye. "He's the one who wants to see you."

Ajiu glanced at Wanqixi. Although she already knew his true identity, it still felt a little awkward to call him "Young Master Lu." "You want to see me?"

Wanqi Xi nodded and said, "I'm a little curious. During the sword test before the Emperor today, why were your friends so frightened when they saw Wushuang? I saw Pei Yuan almost faint. How could Wushuang make Xingguo Fang act like they'd seen a ghost?"

"You know Wushuang?" Ajiu looked Wanqixi up and down, clearly unable to connect this Western Region wanderer with the young master of Tianhu Workshop.

Wanqi Xi's expression suddenly became somewhat unnatural. He turned away from Ajiu's gaze and said, "Have you forgotten what kind of business I'm in? I've dealt with Miss Wushuang before when delivering iron ore to the inner workshop. She's otherworldly and unforgettable." Wanqi Xi turned to look at Ajiu, "But she's not like those hotheads from Xingguo Ward who behaved improperly before the Emperor. Are they tired of living?"

Ajiu calmly said, "Female swordsmen are rare in the world. Wushuang's swordsmanship is superb, and her sinister aura is like that of a mountain spirit. These few people live deep in Canglang Island and have never seen much of the world. They were already nervous when performing in front of the emperor, and then they were amazed by Wushuang. It is not surprising that they lost their composure for a moment."

"Is that all?" Wan Qixi clearly did not believe Ajiu's explanation.

Ajiu weighed the sword in her hand. "What else can I do?" she said, then suddenly turned around and stared directly into Wanqixi's eyes. "You risked exposing your identity just to ask me this?"

Wan Qixi sniffed, "It's easy to toss and turn at night when you don't know something. As for your identity, the Imperial Advisor has already said we're all in the same boat. It was only a matter of time before I told you. The sooner you know, the better you'll know when we meet again, unlike that girl from the Guan family who was so disrespectful to me. Speaking of which, I'm actually her...eldest senior brother." Wan Qixi laughed and twirled the horizontal sword in his hand, "How about her father's old horizontal sword?"

—Guan Xiaotian's…sword. Ajiu reached out to take it, but Wanqixi deftly pulled it away. "You, Ajiu, for the sake of the Guan family girl, you first tried to silence her, and then you tried to take the sword? How capable do you think you are? Can you really take Mu Chenbi's place?" As she spoke, she threw the item in her hand back to Ajiu. "The old emperor still owes me the honey lychees. Take this junk."

Honeyed lychees? A-Jiu touched her bosom; Mu You had given her some candied fruit last time, which seemed to be the honeyed lychees Wan Qixi had mentioned. A-Jiu pulled out an oil paper package and handed it to Wan Qixi. Wan Qixi took it suspiciously, reluctantly opened it with a snort, and frowned as she looked at the unfamiliar candied fruit inside, asking, "What's this now?"

"These are honey lychees given to me by the Emperor," Ajiu said. "Since you're craving them, I'll give them to you."

Wanqi Xi stared blankly at his palm as a trembling oil paper package fell to the ground. Ajiu glanced at it coldly, then turned away, ignoring the two of them.

"Don't forget the New Year's Eve family dinner," Cui Jin called out to Ajiu's retreating figure. "The Emperor also requested Guan Ye's name."

Ajiu raised her sword and walked away. "I will follow the path you have paved. Don't try anything with Guan Ye. I may not be able to kill you two, but I am capable of fighting to the death. If you don't believe me, you are welcome to try."

"Tsk tsk." Wan Qixi clicked his tongue and looked back at Cui Jin. "With such a rebellious nature, will he still be at your mercy after he takes over the Azure Dragon position?"

Cui Jin shook out his black robe. “Whether he is under my control or not is not important. What is important is that the person on the Azure Dragon throne is no longer Mu You’s flesh and blood. His luck is almost exhausted. He is old and frail. His offspring are not worthy to sit on that dragon throne. I will tell him when he is dying that the treasure he is so eager to make up for is just the most lowly beggar under Cangshan Mountain. Even a beggar can embark on the road to becoming an emperor. What does it matter if he has gone to great lengths to obtain it? It is nothing but the biggest joke in history.”

Wan Qixi looked at Cui Jin's grief-stricken face with suspicion. "Tianhufang's request is to reopen the Blood Crossbow Case and clear everyone's name. Why is your hatred directed at Mu You? He was nothing more than a bystander to my sister and Tianhufang; his hands were not stained with the Lu family's blood... Sometimes I wonder, did you help me to clear Tianhufang's name, or... because of your jealousy and hatred towards Mu You..."

"I'm jealous of him?" Cui Jin's single eye gleamed menacingly.

Wan Qixi continued, "During the suppression of the rebellion at Xiguan, Mu You nearly died at Eagle's Ridge Pass. He returned to the capital covered in wounds, and also..." Wan Qixi closed his eyes, "...the wanted posters held at the city gates...did not include my sister's name or portrait..."

Cui Jin laughed loudly, "Young Master, you're almost thirty years old, do you really think Mu You is so devoted to the Eldest Miss that you're going to spare her life?"

Wan Qixi looked at the fallen honey lychees. Mu You gave Ajiu honey lychees... He still remembered his promise to his sister and to himself. He said he would bring Lu Xiaojun the most delicious honey lychees. Lu Xiaojun did not live to see them, but he still remembered to leave them for Ajiu... How could such affection not be profound?

Following Wan Qixi's gaze, Cui Jin stomped on the honeyed lychee, crushing it into a paste. "Only the most hypocritical man would claim to be deeply affectionate, harboring the hope of reliving the past. If he truly loved Miss, he would have done everything in his power to overturn the verdict against Tianhufang and clear the Lu family's name. But he didn't. He accepted the throne with a clear conscience, and on the day of his coronation, he made Chen Yu his empress. What use is a Cheng'en Palace? The sword remains, but the person is gone. Who wants his worthless imperial favor! If Miss were still alive, she would only kill him with one sword to avenge the entire Lu family. He did it, and it could only have been him!"

"You keep insisting that Mu You was responsible for the bloody crossbow incident," Wan Qixi said. "What evidence do you have?"

"You're convinced Guan Xiaotian did it, but what evidence do you have?" Cui Jin sneered. "Is it just because Guan Xiaotian escaped alive? Mu You not only survived, but also reaped all the benefits. He's even more suspicious than Guan Xiaotian. You killed Guan Xiaotian just because he didn't die, but you're being lenient with Mu You. What? You've been blinded by his kindness? Do you really think he's your brother-in-law?"

"You killed Guan Xiaotian just because he wasn't dead..." Wan Qixi was suddenly touched on a sore spot and turned away, no longer speaking.

"You were able to kill Guan Xiaotian, so why didn't you eliminate Guan Ye completely?" Cui Jin noticed Wan Qixi's barely concealed panic. "If one day Guan Ye finds out that her father died at your hands... knowing that girl's personality," Cui Jin chuckled, "she will definitely fight tooth and nail to kill you."

Wan Qixi braced himself against the horizontal sword in his hand, "Can she kill me?"

“Don’t underestimate her.” Cui Jin warned sharply, “Today, when she presented the sword to the Emperor, even the Emperor was impressed by her. Her forging skills are comparable to three thousand Mauser rifles. Nowadays, Xingguo Workshop can only rely on Guan Ye, apart from a few junior swordsmen. Now that Ajiu has appeared, everyone in Xingguo Workshop knows the truth. It’s time… to get rid of her.”

Wan Qixi's brow furrowed in surprise. "You want to eliminate everyone in Xingguo Ward?"

Cui Jin's face revealed a terrifying expression. "Not only Xingguo Ward, but also Canglang Island. Ajiu has been on the island for years. They all know the origins of Ajiu and the other boys. Since they are in the know, we can only eliminate them all."

Wan Qixi took a few steps back. Twenty years of torment had taken him to the brink of death. Not a day had passed that he did not yearn to return to Rongdu and clear his family's name. When he finally set foot on the land of Rongdu, he did not feel the ecstatic joy of seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. Instead, he felt an indescribable emotion.

—When Lu Xiaojun was seven years old, he fled Rongdu with his sister. That day, he was practicing swordsmanship at the family's forge. Master Guan forged a delicate short sword for him. Lu Xiaojun liked the sword very much, but why was the sword not sharpened? Without a sharpened sword, it was not easy to practice. Lu Xiaojun went to Guan Xiaotian, insisting that he sharpen his sword today. But Guan Xiaotian was not here today. He searched the whole neighborhood but could not find him. Uncle Deng said that he must have gone out drinking again.

Drinking? Lu Xiaojun wondered, why does Master Guan like drinking so much?

Uncle Deng stroked his white beard: "Forging iron requires strength, and drinking provides strength. The more wine your Master Guan drinks, the better he forges weapons. The weapons the court ordered to quell the rebellion have finally been completed on schedule, so a little wine won't hurt, it won't hurt at all."

Lu Xiaojun stuck out her tongue. "You always defend your apprentice. It's clearly Master Guan who's greedy for alcohol and always has to find someone to drink with."

Knowing she couldn't wait for Guan Xiaotian, Lu Xiaojun picked up a whetstone and began sharpening her short sword, mimicking the blacksmith's movements. Whether it was due to a lack of technique or insufficient strength, she saw no improvement after a long time. Lu Xiaojun stroked her beloved short sword, knowing she had to wait for Master Guan to return.

"Xiao Jun!"

"Sister?" Lu Xiaoyun hid the short sword under the whetstone. "You called me?"

"Come with your sister quickly." Lu Chaoge picked up her younger brother and walked out without looking back.

Lu Xiaojun struggled to reach for her sword, hiding it under the whetstone. She didn't want any of the impetuous sword servants to throw it away as scrap. It was hand-forged by Master Guan himself. If it were lost, her master would be furious, and she would never be able to get his craftsmanship back.

"Where are you going?" Lu Xiaojun kicked her legs, trying to run back to the foundry. "Sister, I'm going to get something. Wait for me, wait a minute."

Lu Chaoge held onto her brother's wrist tightly, refusing to let go. Lu Xiaojun was shocked to see his sister's pale face. Even if the sky fell, it would only be a loud crash for his sister. He had never seen his sister like this before.

“Once you lose something, you can’t take anything with you.” Lu Chaoge picked up her younger brother and shoved him into the carriage waiting outside the neighborhood.

"Ah Jing?" Lu Xiaojun recognized the driver. Ah Jing was dressed in short black clothes, with a bamboo hat covering most of his face, and Master Guan's large broadsword was at his feet. Even so, Lu Xiaojun recognized him at a glance. "Ah Jing, what happened? Where are we going?"

"Young Master, please don't ask any more questions. Just follow the young lady." A-Jing lowered the thick carriage curtain. "Young lady, isn't the brothel owner leaving?"

"Father can't leave."

Lu Xiaojun still remembered her sister's choked voice when she mentioned their father. She said, "Father can't leave." Why doesn't Father go with them? Lu Xiaojun wanted to ask, but she didn't dare. Inside and outside the neighborhood, her sister always had her word. She acted decisively, and everything she said was right. Her sister was always right. If she said Father couldn't leave, then Father... definitely couldn't leave.

"Gone?" A-Jing raised his whip, taking one last look at the plaque hanging high above Tianhu Workshop before leaving.

Lu Chaoge took a deep breath. "Before leaving the city, let's go to the Ma family first."

The Ma family? Lu Xiaojun in the car opened her mouth to ask, "You left in such a hurry, just to go to the Ma family? If I had known this, I would have been better off retrieving my sword first."

Ah Jing looked up at the sky and said, "It's getting late, things might change... I'm afraid we won't be able to get out."

“Go to the Ma family.” Lu Chaoge’s words left no room for doubt. “There are still some things I haven’t figured out, so I need to ask Old Master Ma.”