Chapter 136 Negotiation

Xie Xing tightened his grip on the teacup, and his expression turned grim.

Wan Qiqi, however, looked quite content, listening with great interest, as if she were genuinely there to listen to a story.

At this moment, Xie Xing could no longer ignore this dangerous woman.

Rumor has it that Wan Qiqi has a violent temper, is estranged from relatives and friends, and is disliked by her family. She would start cursing after only a few words.

The woman before him was wise, composed, and eloquent; even in coarse clothes, her elegance could not be concealed.

This kind of woman made it impossible for him to associate her with the rumored Wan Qiqi.

Even if someone did change their personality after falling into the water, it couldn't happen so quickly!

Wan Qiqi appeared to be listening, but in reality, she was sensing the changes in Xie Xing's emotions.

She now feels that she stands out too much and that it might arouse suspicion.

The villagers of Lotus Village are simple-minded and don't overthink things, but Xie Xing is a man who has traveled the martial world and is very knowledgeable. If he has any doubts, he will investigate.

If that's the case, then her chances are slim!

"Who exactly are you? What is your purpose in impersonating Chen Wanshi?"

Xie Xing's cold voice echoed in Wan Qiqi's ears, like a thorn piercing her heart.

But she knew she couldn't panic at this moment. She had to firmly believe that she was Wan Qiqi, and that she was Wan Qiqi all along!

Wan Qiqi turned her head, looking at Xie Xing with a slightly confused expression, "What are you doing? What are you pretending for?"

Her expression was so natural, without a single flaw, that Xie Xing began to doubt his own intuition.

Xie Xing questioned again: "Who exactly are you?"

Wan Qiqi stared at him for a long time, then finally smiled and said, "Uncle-Master Xie, I admit that I deliberately led you here and had the storyteller tell these stories so that I would ask for your help. If you don't want to help, just say so. Why say such strange things?"

Her reaction was so natural that no one could find fault with it, and Xie Xing even felt that he was really wrong! After all, he also knew that there was a person whose rumors were completely different from reality, and that most rumors were maliciously vilified or deliberately spread.

Perhaps Wan Qiqi herself wasn't as vicious and wicked as the rumors suggested!

Xie Xingcai returned to the main topic, coldly saying, "Aren't you afraid of going to jail for slandering the Xie family?"

Seeing this, Wan Qiqi finally breathed a sigh of relief and asked in return, "Didn't the young master's reaction already tell me whether it was slander or not?"

Xie Xing took a sip of tea, beckoned to the waiter, and tossed him a silver ingot, saying, "Tell the storyteller to change the story."

The waiter took a bite of the silver, then wiped it with a cloth from his shoulder, a bright smile spreading across his face. "Alright, sir, what kind of thing would you like to hear? I'll arrange it for you right away!"

Xie Xing waved his hand, "Just find someone else, and make sure he never tells this story again!"

The waiter was naturally very happy to oblige. This was originally a story that a customer had paid for to tell the sir, and he hadn't planned to repeat it a second time. Now that he had a silver ingot for free, how could he not be happy? He immediately ran downstairs to change the story.

Wan Qiqi felt a pang of heartache seeing the gleaming silver being taken away by the shop assistant; that was several months' tuition fee, yet Xie Xing had given it away without batting an eye!

She is now considered to be from a moderately wealthy family in the village, but compared to Young Master Xie in front of her, she is practically dirt poor!

Xie Xing didn't care about any of that. He took another sip of tea and asked, "You're willing to offend the Xie family to help this person. Is he a relative of yours?"

"no."

Wan Qiqi's attitude was somewhat perfunctory, her gaze still lingering on the waiter who had taken the silver.

When Xie Xing saw this, he felt that this was more like Wan Qiqi, like a village woman whose eyes would light up when she looked at silver.

Then, noticing her reply and seeing her nonchalant attitude, he said with some displeasure, "Since Miss Wan is not in the mood to talk business, I shall take my leave."

“Hey, don’t…” Wan Qiqi immediately looked away, sat up straight, and said sincerely, “She is a villager from my village and a friend. I owe her a favor to her deceased mother and I also promised to take care of her. I can’t go back on my word.”

Xie Xing didn't get up even after being told to leave, and continued to leisurely drink his tea. Only after the other party finished speaking did he get back to the point of conversation, "For this, you're willing to offend the Xie family?"

"We already have the Tang family and the magistrate, what difference does one more make?" Wan Qiqi took a small sip of tea, frowned at the bitterness, put down the cup, and refused to touch it again. She continued, "Besides, who said I've offended the Xie family?"

Xie Xing shook his head as he observed her subtle movements and expressions. She was indeed a country bumpkin. This was the best tea in the teahouse, yet she rejected it so disdainfully. What a waste of tea!

He tapped his fingers lightly on the table twice. "How did you know about the Xie family?"

“What you said yesterday, the servants’ gossip, and Dong’er’s behavior—do they all reveal this?” Wan Qiqi rested her chin on her hand on the table and said, “There’s no such thing as being a wife-killer. It’s just that some people with ulterior motives are trying to stir up trouble and spread rumors!”

Xie Xing showed his appreciation. There aren't many people who can think things through so clearly, and Wan Qiqi is one of the few he has ever met.

The indifference in his eyes softened slightly. "From what you've said, she was sold to our family by her father. You were able to help her this time, preventing her from becoming a sacrifice after marrying into our family, but what about next time? Are you going to help her every time?"

Xie Xing's words touched on Wan Qiqi's main concern. It wasn't difficult to escape being sold this time; she already had a plan. However, it was legal for a father to sell his daughter. Even if she escaped this time, there would be another. As long as Lin Zhaodi was still Lin Youtian's daughter, she couldn't escape the fate of being sold.

However, Wan Qiqi couldn't think of a good way to make Lin Youtian see Lin Zhaodi's value and keep her at home in a short time.

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