"Let's go out for a drink."

"Let me rest for a while. I'm so tired."

"What are you busy with? Why are you so tired?"

"Going treasure hunting."

"Did you find it?"

"No, I worked for nothing."

"Oh." The man carrying the wine said softly and didn't say anything else.

Zhao Rong leaned back in his chair and took a deep breath. He glanced at Lin Wenruo, who was sitting upright with his back straight. At this moment, he was staring calmly at the wine jar on the table that he had brought and was still covered with wet black mud.

There was no conversation between the two for a while. Zhao Rong stood up, reached out and pushed a plate of neatly arranged osmanthus cake in front of the man who was in a daze, then went behind the screen in the house and prepared to change his clothes and go out.

"Try it, Su Xiaoxiao made it, it's a little sweet."

Lin Wenruo glanced at the osmanthus cake and nodded.

When Zhao Rong took off his headscarf, changed into a loose Confucian robe and returned to the table, he found that there was not a single piece of pastry missing from the plate.

Zhao Rong grabbed a piece with his right hand, held it with his left hand, put it into his mouth, chewed it and said, "Let's go."

The two men left the courtyard and, led by the man carrying the wine, headed west.

"Where are we going? Aren't we going through the main entrance?" Zhao Rong looked around and asked curiously.

The Lin’s Manor is very large, and he has never been to the west side.

There are no magnificent mansions or gorgeous towers as in other parts of the manor, but the place becomes more and more secluded as you walk further.

The two of them walked along the winding corridor, passing by pavilions hidden among lush trees and green waters. The sun shone on the ground and their footsteps echoed.

"I'm going to take Tzuyu to have some fun in Lanxi this afternoon. I promised Tzuyu when I first got here, but I've been putting it off until now. If I don't go now, I may never have the chance again."

Lin Wenruo turned around and chuckled, "Let's not go through the main entrance. There are too many visitors and it's easy to get away."

Zhao Rong nodded and raised his eyebrows when he heard this, knowing what he meant by there might be no chance.

Tomorrow is the debate between Confucianism and Taoism. When Zhao Rong passed the gate of Luojing this morning, he saw a long queue from afar. After finally squeezing into the city, he could feel that the flow of people coming and going on the street was several times more than usual, and he saw many people in strange costumes.

Now, the focus of the entire Zhongnan Kingdom and even several neighboring countries has gathered in Luojing. Countless Zhongnan people, hermit celebrities, and mountain monks have rushed to Luojing, looking forward to the Confucian and Taoist debate at the Sutra Platform on the top of Taibai Mountain tomorrow.

This highly anticipated conversation will completely change the destiny of Zhongnan Kingdom. Between the Confucian and Taoist parties, only one can legitimately stay in Zhongnan Kingdom.

And just when Zhao Rong returned to the manor, he found that there were many guests visiting. There was a constant stream of people and cars at the main entrance, and the servants were busy as hell.

"Wen Ruo, aren't you going to entertain the guests? I see quite a few people came to your house today."

The tall scholar who had facilitated the Zhongnan Grand Meeting tomorrow said calmly:

"They are just opportunists. When we needed their help a few days ago, they refused and disappeared. Now that the debate between Confucianism and Taoism is about to begin and the general trend is about to be determined, they have emerged one after another, betting on both sides. Maybe they will turn to the top of Taibai Mountain as soon as they leave Lanxi's house."

"These 'distinguished guests' are dispensable. Why bother with them? It's more important to accompany Tzuyu to drink and enjoy the scenery..."

Lin Wenruo suddenly stopped walking, paused speaking, and turned his head to look outside the corridor.

Zhao Rong followed his gaze and saw an open space in front of a pavilion near the water in a remote location on the left side of the corridor, with only a few trees standing there.

Lin Wenruo pursed her lips and said, "Tzuyu, wait a moment."

After saying this, the man carrying the wine walked towards the pavilion, his steps getting faster and faster. But when he got closer, he slowed down again. Finally, he stopped in front of a tree and looked up.

Zhao Rong put his hands behind his back, leaned against a beam, squinted his eyes and looked around. He saw the shape of the leaves and it seemed to be a ginkgo tree.

Not long after, the man carrying the wine returned and met the young scholar who was waiting in the corridor. Then the two of them walked into a quiet path and left the Lin's manor.

The two of them were visiting Lanxi, which was once a royal garden seven hundred years ago.

Cross the Yuan Bridge, ride on the lotus boat, climb the Dai Rock, cross the Song Creek, climb the Cui Mountain, admire the Pear Pavilion, and visit the Sheng Valley.

As the sun began to set, the two of them enjoyed their trip and returned to the Lin's manor leisurely.

Zhao Rong and Lin Wenruo were discussing some matters for tomorrow on their way back. They were about to wave goodbye at a fork in the road, but suddenly, an unexpected person walked out from the side of the road.

…

Lin Qingxuan, along with his servants and followers, hurriedly returned to the Lin family manor from Luojing City. He sat alone in the carriage all the way in silence.

After nearly ten days of recuperation, his injuries have basically healed, but his face has not fully recovered from being tied up by the man in the Drunken Pavilion that day, and it is still a little swollen.

Inside the carriage, he closed the doors and windows, drew the curtains, and hid himself in the darkness. Except for the slight swaying of the large carriage, he was isolated from the outside world, as if this was the only way to hide the secret in his heart.

In the darkness, at this moment, his body was trembling slightly, and his slightly heavy breathing sounded in the darkness. His teeth, which had been clenched tightly, were now trembling a little, and his right hand was clenched into a fist.

He no longer had the smile and calmness he had in front of that woman not long ago.

Slowly, he opened his right fist and looked down.

Although it was pitch black in the car, I couldn't see anything.

But he knew through the slight pressure coming from his palms that it was there, lying quietly, covered with stains of his sweat.

Why did I accept it without knowing why?!

And the good friend who had tricked him into going to Fengqi Tower turned out to be a member of Chongxu Temple. He left his followers outside the door and entered the room, but the girl he saw was not the top girl he had ordered, but the woman who was waiting for him with a smile.

As the carriage bumped along, he was in a trance and once again recalled the words whispered in his ears by the woman he once regarded as a sister but now avoided.

He had recalled this countless times along the way.

He found the man he knew named Zhao Ziyu and tried to give him the medicine in the small porcelain bottle in his hand.

After the matter is accomplished, Chongxu Temple can forgive the sins of the Lanxi Lin family.

All the responsibilities for these daring acts will be borne by Lin Wenruo alone.

The Lanxi Lin family can also continue to stay in Zhongnan Kingdom.

By then, Chongxu Temple will support Lin Qingxuan as the new head of the Lanxi Lin family...

Lin Qingxuan's forehead was covered with sweat, but he didn't wipe it off. Instead, he licked his dry lips.

After he returned to Zhongnan Kingdom, he learned that his family, under the leadership of Lin Wenruo, had actually launched an attack on Chongxu Temple. He could not believe it.

Because of something that happened in his childhood, he has always been pessimistic about political reform, and the shadow of Chongxu Temple hangs over his heart.

In his opinion, the Chongxu Temple, which has stood on Mount Zhongnan for thousands of years, is not so easy to overthrow. You, Lin Wenruo, are simply a lunatic if you gamble with the lives of your entire family.

However, apart from being a direct descendant of the clan, he has no power at all and how can he decide the direction of the Lanxi Lin family?

Lin Qingxuan once again clenched the small porcelain bottle in his right hand, which contained the medicine that someone asked him to give to Zhao Ziyu. She said that the medicine would not work immediately and he could get away safely.

The man in the car raised his left hand and wiped the sweat off his face.

Damn it, why did I take the porcelain bottle from her at that time?

It's okay, it's okay, if I don't tell anyone, no one will leak it, he comforted himself.

Besides, I won’t do it myself, so what’s there to be afraid of?

But thinking like this, the woman's meaningful smile before she left appeared in my mind unconsciously again, and...

In the darkness as dense as water, the man reached out and touched his face, which was still swollen.

And that day in the Drunken Old Man Pavilion, the man who was actually his biological brother gave him the seven strings for a damned outsider.

The shame of that day is still vivid in my mind.

The man's eyes were dark and unclear.