Chapter Twenty-Eight: Boundless Heaven and Earth, Broad-minded Heart
Qi Kun turned around and looked at the person behind him. The next moment, he felt a strange sense of joy.
"Xue Cheyan," Qi Kun's face immediately lit up with a hearty smile, but he still looked at Xue Chang with a hint of annoyance, "Are you like a cat, walking without making a sound?"
"Why are you blaming me?" Xue Chang chuckled and spread his hands, his eyes filled with joy and emotion at the long-awaited reunion with his old friend. "You haven't said a word to me since you came to Jiangnan. Could it be that you've forgotten our old friendship?"
Cen Xun watched the two of them with a smile, then teased Xue Chang with a light laugh, "Master, I wonder who said earlier that they would personally wait for Mr. Qi at our house?"
"Isn't the first thing we need to do to join those strategists in persuading He Yuan?" Xue Chang smiled and put his arm around Qi Kun's back, leading him towards the table. "Alright, sit down first, let's not talk about this."
Bai Ming followed Xue Chang, then looked around and clasped his hands in a fist salute to Xue Chang, "Mr. Xue, please forgive my intrusion, but this place is crowded and noisy. Wouldn't it be inappropriate to discuss politics here..."
"General Bai, rest assured," Xue Chang turned around and waved to Bai Ming, "I have booked the entire top floor of this restaurant so that we can have a good talk today. I guarantee that no one will dare to eavesdrop."
"Oh?" Yang Xiao tilted her head and looked at Xue Chang. "When did you become so wealthy, sir?"
“What kind of talk is that?” Xue Chang smiled and looked at Yang Xiao. “A mere top floor of a restaurant only earns… three months’ salary.”
Qi Kun turned to look at Xue Chang, chuckled, and shook his head, "You really are willing to do that."
"It's been so long since I've seen you. I wouldn't hesitate to give up my salary for another six months."
Qi Kun looked at Xue Chang and teased, "We haven't even known each other for as long as you and Lingyu have. Why is it such a big deal to see me?"
Seeing Qi Kun's joking expression, Xue Chang couldn't help but cross his arms and laugh, "If you keep distancing yourself from me, I'll make it public that you fell from the tree before."
Qi Kun paused upon hearing this, then turned to look at Yang Xiaocen Xun, who seemed to know everything, and Bai Ming, who was standing there dumbfounded. He pointed at Xue Chang resentfully, "Among this group of people, only Zhao Qing didn't know. But you, you didn't give me any face at all."
Seeing this, Bai Ming quickly smiled and waved to Qi Kun, "It's alright, strategist, I don't know either."
Everyone burst into laughter at the sight. Xue Chang casually sat down and patted Qi Kun's shoulder. "True friends are hard to find. What does the closeness of our relationship have to do with how often we meet?" He smiled and looked up at Yang Xiao. "That's the principle. Lingyu taught me that."
Upon hearing this, Yang Xiao put down her teacup, pointing to herself in confusion, "Me? When did I talk to you, sir?"
Xue Chang looked at Yang Xiao, chuckled, and waved his hand, "Back when you first came to Jiangnan, you were holding a gun and starting to talk about how you got along so well with that young general you'd only met once..."
Yang Xiao was taken aback by his words, turned her head away awkwardly, and then looked at Xue Chang reproachfully, "Sir, no wonder you and Tongxi are master and disciple."
"Well, Lingyu," Xue Chang said with a smile, leaning on the table and looking at Yang Xiao with his chin in his hand, "Qi Gu Fan has gone south. Have you seen that young general since then?"
Yang Xiao smiled helplessly, looked up at Bai Ming, only to see him holding his mouth and nose with his hand, his eyes darting away from Yang Xiao's face to the teacup, absentmindedly staring at the steaming tea in front of him, but unable to hide the blush on his cheeks.
Yang Xiao smiled and tilted her head at him, "Isn't this what I'm doing sitting here?"
"Oh!" Xue Chang belatedly looked at Bai Ming, about to say something, but Qi Kun patted him on the shoulder, "That's enough for you."
"What's wrong? You won't even let me speak with General Bai?" Xue Chang turned to Qi Kun with a smile, crossed his arms, leaned back in his chair, and then tactfully changed the subject, letting out a long sigh of emotion, "I really didn't expect you to appear and help Lord Zhongli. What, can't stand this chaotic world anymore?"
Qi Kun sighed softly and shook his head. "The world is in chaos, and it is not easy to find a wise ruler. I have always had the heart to save the world, and besides, the people under my lord are like family, and Lingyu trusts him completely. What reason do I have not to go?"
Xue Chang smiled and clinked glasses with him, "With Lingyu and Zhaoqing joining us, Zhongli An has become even stronger. Now that you are going there, Lord Lun Hong has gained another sharp weapon."
“I have met a wise ruler, and I have no regrets in this life,” Qi Kun said, downing the wine in his cup in one gulp. “And what about you? You’re still helping He Yuan? I don’t believe it.”
Xue Chang smiled and looked at Qi Kun. "Don't believe me? Why ask?" He leaned over to pour Qi Kun a cup of wine. "Jiangnan is in chaos. Making an alliance with them is as difficult as climbing to heaven." He put down the wine pot and looked up at Qi Kun. "You said you came to find He Yuan, but tell me the truth, your and Ling Yu's purpose in coming here is actually to find me, isn't it?"
Qi Kun smiled, put down his cup, leaned on the table, and looked up at Xue Chang. "I've given you all my trust. Are you coming or not?"
Upon hearing this, Xue Chang laughed heartily and leaned back in his seat. "You clearly didn't give me any choice." After laughing, he nodded approvingly to Yang Xiao and Bai Ming. "Today's battle was indeed brilliant. Lingyu shattered He Yuan's self-deceiving facade layer by layer. Zhao Qing was majestic and protected Lingyu all the way, suppressing the group of strategists around He Yuan so much that they didn't dare to move."
Before Bai Ming could even offer a humble reply, Cen Xun turned to Xue Chang and teased, "Master, why do you only praise them and not me?"
Qi Kun smiled and rolled his eyes at Xue Chang. "If it weren't for Tong Xi's plan last night, we'd probably still be trying to persuade He Yuan. Unlike some people, who didn't even come to discuss things last night, and now all they do is squat there drinking tea."
"What kind of talk is that?" Xue Chang waved his hand with a smile. "How could I not guess Tongxi's plan? Before you went to He Yuan, I laid out this whole scheme step by step, just waiting for you all to show your skills today." He turned to look at Yang Xiao as he spoke. "I thought it would take you two or three days to persuade him, but I didn't expect you to get it done so quickly."
Yang Xiao smiled and nodded, then glanced at Cen Xun beside her, "By the way, Tongxi, now that things are over, shouldn't you talk about the hidden forces in Jiangnan that you mentioned earlier?"
Cen Xun chuckled and shook his head. "They're not stable right now, and it's always been Master who's been in contact with them. Why don't we let him explain it to everyone directly?"
"What's the rush?" Xue Chang shook his head with a smile. "We've finally finished the mission. We have some free time tomorrow, why don't we go out for a walk?"
"Oh?" Yang Xiao glanced at Xue Chang, then smiled at Qi Kun and teased, "Master, are you going to climb a tree like our lord?"
Before he could finish speaking, Qi Kun raised his hand and lightly patted Yang Xiao's head. "When has the lord ever climbed a tree? Be careful, or I'll have the lord dock your salary when we get back."
“Climbing a tree isn’t out of the question…” Xue Chang teased Qi Kun with a smile in his eyes, but when he turned around, he met Qi Kun’s piercing gaze.
He smiled knowingly and waved his hand, "Alright, alright, let's get serious." He leaned on the table and looked at Yang Xiao, "Lingyu, do you still remember Lingyue Pavilion?"
Upon hearing this, Yang Xiao immediately perked up. "How could I not remember? Could it be that you've been in contact with them all along?" She leaned forward on the table and looked at Xue Chang. "How is the Pavilion Master? Where is Junior Sister?"
Xue Chang smiled and waved his hand, "As for them, you can go see for yourself tomorrow."
"Really?" Yang Xiao's eyes were filled with undisguised joy. She stood up excitedly, turned to look at Bai Ming, and tilted her head. "Together tomorrow?"
Bai Ming smiled and looked at Yang Xiao, nodding slightly. "It's my honor."
“Just now Lingyu said that Zhaoqing had helped her before, so that counts as helping Lingyue Pavilion,” Xue Chang nodded slightly. “If we go together, we can catch up with the Pavilion Master. As for Qi Gufan,” he smiled at Qi Kun, who was drinking tea beside him, and said, “I will invite you alone tomorrow to make up for my previous broken promise.”
Upon hearing this, Qi Kun lowered his teacup and nodded with a smile.
“Alright,” Cen Xun took a sip of tea, looked at Yang Xiaobai and Ming, “Then you two go, I’ll look into Yizhou some more…”
“Tongxi,” Xue Chang turned around and interrupted Cen Xun, his eyes full of understanding, “Ignoring him isn’t a good idea. Why don’t you take this opportunity tomorrow to talk to him and make things clear?”
Upon hearing this, Yang Xiao exchanged a glance with Qi Kun, then turned to look at Cen Xun, "Hmm? Tongxi, what's going on?"
“Alright,” Cen Xun shook his head helplessly, then looked up to meet Yang Xiao’s curious gaze. “You’ll know when you go tomorrow.”
Yang Xiao sighed softly and added some tea to her teacup. "Alright, alright, you two are keeping me in suspense." She drank a cup of hot tea and then looked up at Qi Kun. "By the way, Master, how exactly did you fall from the tree?"
Qi Kun chuckled upon hearing this. He glanced at Xue Chang with disdain, then looked back at Yang Xiao. "Didn't he tell you?"
Yang Xiao shook her head and smiled, "No, Mr. Xue only says half of what he means, as you know."
"Then I'll complete the other half of the sentence, how about it, Gu Fan?" Xue Chang slammed his wine cup on the table, leaned back in his chair, and smiled at Qi Kun.
Qi Kun, holding his cup, shook his head indifferently. "It's alright. This place is neither above nor below the earth, so what can't be said?"
Xue Chang smiled and poured himself a glass of wine, looking into Qi Kun's eyes as if he were gazing back at the peach orchard from four years ago.
“He,” Xue Chang looked at Qi Kun and leaned back with emotion, “was he perhaps troubled by the road ahead, or perhaps because Lingyu and Yannan had both left home, so he took advantage of the beautiful peach blossoms to hide among the peach blossoms and temporarily escape the affairs of the world.”
Qi Kun leaned against the table, propping his head up with a smile as he gazed at the wine in his glass, as if he had already let go of all worries. "The world is in chaos. To retreat into seclusion is to escape, but to leave the world is to find it difficult to find a wise ruler," he said with a self-deprecating laugh, shaking his head. "I fear that I cannot fully utilize what I have learned, and I fear even more that a single wrong decision could lead to the demise of my entire army. If I were to live a life of leisure and avoid the world, I would be ashamed before the world and ashamed of all the knowledge I have acquired throughout my life; if I were to volunteer to leave the world, I would find it difficult to shoulder such a heavy responsibility."
Upon hearing this, Xue Chang sighed with emotion, raised his hand and patted Qi Kun's shoulder, continuing his words, "Back then, I was traveling north, passing through the mountainous and winding land of Qingzhou, when I suddenly came across a paradise."
He chuckled and looked at Yang Xiao, "Lingyu should know that I crossed the river to the north alone at that time, without any relatives or friends by my side, and without any friends or acquaintances to guide me. My mind was filled with loneliness."
Yang Xiao nodded, frowning as she looked at Xue Chang, who was leaning back in his seat, laughing and chatting unrestrainedly. A sense of resonance welled up in her heart.
She chuckled and sighed, trying to shift her focus, "So, you put my master in a tree?"
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