Cui Xiao clenched his right fist and pressed it against his chest.
Her eyes were red and teary, and she looked somewhat broken and vulnerable.
Qi Shan and Gu Chi both looked away.
Even when watching a colleague's antics, one must be mindful of boundaries. If you lose your composure and anger the other party, you might find yourself facing resentment and revenge without even realizing it. Qi Shan had finally managed to suppress Cui Xiao through Cui Hui, but if she didn't stop now, Cui Xiao would truly break off relations with her, and it would be the ruler who would suffer.
Cui Hui looked at Cui Xiao calmly and firmly.
Cui Xiao clutched his chest for a long time before he could recover.
The warmth of his tears was carried away by the air, leaving only a chill, a stark reminder of the cruel reality that his old ailment had flared up again. At this moment, Cui Xiao felt an urge to disappear into a crack in the ground—it was bad enough that he was so angry with his daughter, but to shed tears in front of his colleagues, including his long-time nemesis Qu Tan, was another one of them.
Upon realizing this, Choi Hyo wished he could die on the spot.
What's done is done, and what's done is done.
Cui Xiao had no way to kill him to silence him.
“If this is the choice between your mother and you, I will respect it. Don’t worry, I will not do what you don’t want me to do, nor will I make things difficult for Qi Yuanliang…” He firmly wiped away the tears on his face with a handkerchief and sneered, “Heh, Qi Yuanliang, or should I call you Qu Tan? You recognized my identity long ago, but you were able to hide it for so many years. I underestimated you.”
Qi Shan's heart, which had been hanging in suspense, finally settled down safely.
In a great mood, he naturally didn't mind this level of sarcasm.
He stood up and bowed to Cui Xiao, saying, "Shanxiao is very generous."
Cui Xiao flung his sleeve and sneered: "Magnanimous? In all my years, this is the first time I've heard someone praise me for being magnanimous. I don't need you to flatter me! I won't hold your past grudges against Ke Wu, but what about the future? There's still a long way to go! Qi Yuanliang, as long as I'm in the Censorate, you'd better be 'perfect' every day."
"Don't let me catch you doing anything wrong!"
"If it falls into my hands? Hmph, you'd better watch out."
He will definitely make Qi Yuanliang suffer!
Qi Shan: "..."
That sounds familiar.
It's a familiar phrase; Gu Chi had just made that statement not long ago.
Gu Chi nudged Qi Shan's arm and sent him a secret telepathic message: "Qi Yuanliang, you're incompatible with the Censorate."
He was warned by the Imperial Censor who drew his sword.
He was then warned by the second-in-command, who held real power.
Both the Imperial Censorate and the Censorate had their eyes on him.
Gu Chi: [Do you feel a sense of anxiety, like a thorn in your side?]
Qi Shan retorted irritably: "What's there to be anxious about? It's not like you're the only ones targeting me, and that's why the Censorate will stop impeaching me. Do you think you people from the Censorate can bring me down? As the saying goes, 'Many lice don't worry,' and I have more than just the two of you as enemies."
If he were afraid, why would he make enemies everywhere?
If it weren't for the sake of his lord's legacy, he would have killed Cui Xiao long ago!
Perhaps because Cui Xiao cooperated well, Cui Hui's attitude towards him improved considerably. He subtly inquired about his mother, and she was willing to answer. For Cui Xiao, his wife always came first, followed closely by his children. From Cui Hui's words, his children had all married and had children of their own over the years. Therefore, Cui Xiao's enthusiasm for his grandchildren, whom he had never met, was much less.
He was just routinely asking about the age, number, and gender of his grandchildren—given his relationship with his wife and children, it was uncertain whether he would ever see his grandchildren in his lifetime, and asking too much would only make him sad.
Knowing that her son and daughter-in-law are harmonious and her children are intelligent is enough.
"Your husband didn't come with you?"
He didn't overlook his daughter's travel-worn appearance, nor did he notice the thick calluses on her hands from hard work, guessing that her living conditions had been difficult and unstable over the years. While feeling sorry for her, he also took his anger out on his unfamiliar son-in-law.
Cui Hui said, "My daughter has divorced him."
Cui Xiao paused for a moment, then raised his voice: "Divorced?"
He roared, "What's his name? Where's his ancestral home? Where does he live? Who does he think he is, to demand a divorce from you? You bore him two sons and a daughter, and he divorced you, leaving you to wander the streets? Is that bastard dead or alive now?"
Even if they separate, it will be a complete break between his daughter and him.
Divorce?
That's really giving this man too much credit.
Cui Xiao's face showed undisguised murderous intent.
Gu Chi was speechless.
This murderous intent wasn't just for show; it was real. Cui Xiao genuinely intended to kill! I've known Cui Xiao for quite some time now, but this is the first time I've seen him act like such a ruthless bandit.
Hehehe, isn't he a ruthless bandit?
Cui Xiao was taken in by his father-in-law as a child son-in-law and raised in a bandit stronghold. Just because he doesn't have the air of a bandit doesn't mean he's a good person. He's capable of killing his son-in-law on a whim.
Cui Hui said, "He should still be alive."
Cui Xiao sneered, "That's good, he's doomed."
What could possibly betray his daughter?
Cui Xiao asked again, "What wrong thing did he do?"
Cui Hui said, "It's nothing, I just felt guilty towards his ex-wife, so I helped her out by giving her money and food..."
When she first discovered her ex-husband was in contact with his ex-wife, she assumed they were still entangled and had rekindled their old flame, since their separation wasn't due to incompatibility. They were separated at the height of their relationship, so it was normal that they couldn't forget each other.
I only found out the truth after making inquiries.
Although the two had contact, they primarily collaborated.
The husband's family was happy to see this collaboration happen, and the parents-in-law secretly hoped that their son and his former daughter-in-law could rekindle their relationship.
Cui Hui found this laughable. They were the ones who cruelly separated the couple back then, and now they're the ones trying to reunite them for profit—they've truly treated their son like a prostitute. What is their son doing going back to her now? Becoming her unofficial male concubine?
Upon hearing this, Cui Xiao's anger flared even more, and he couldn't suppress it.
Tears streamed down his face: "Ex-wife? And a slut at that?"
One word was enough to make Cui Hui's expression crack.
Qi Shan and Gu Chi were completely stunned.
Cui Hui forced himself to say, "Father!"
Practice makes perfect, and Cui Xiao was now able to calmly wipe away his tears, asking with composure as he wept, "Don't protect this bastard. Tell me, who he is, and what his name is. If you don't tell me, I have plenty of ways to find out. If you tell me now, we can discuss how many people in his family will die. But if you let me investigate myself, not even a dog in his family will be spared!"
Cui Hui: "..."
Perhaps it was a mistake for her to come to see her father.
Cui Hui struggled: "Your grandchildren are still at his house. Even for the sake of the children, there's no need to make such a big fuss."
She and her ex-husband divorced peacefully and amicably.
Let's just avoid contact in the future; there's no need to make enemies again.
"Of course we should bring back the Cui family's offspring." Cui Xiao had just met with a tough customer from Qi Shan and was looking for a way to vent his anger.
Seeing that struggling was futile, Cui Hui simply gave in.
Anyway, her ex-husband's family isn't so easy to deal with.
Coincidentally, her ex-husband also had the surname Cui.
A minor branch that separated from the main branch of the Cui family a hundred years ago.
After migrating, the clan spread throughout the southwest, and through the concerted efforts of its members, this branch of the Cui family maintained a continuous upward trend of development. They became one of the largest and most prominent families in the southwest.
The three of them, Qi Shan and his companions, showed varying degrees of shock in their eyes.
Gu Chi was the least shocked, followed by Qi Shan.
Qi Shan had been puzzled before. Even if Cui Hui had changed her identity through her ex-husband's efforts, she should have left some clues. But instead, she "vanished into thin air" and "disappeared without a trace," the ending was too clean. It turned out that her husband's family was no ordinary family. As far as he knew, the current head of the Cui family had also joined the Southwest Branch of the Pantheon... How interesting!
However, on the other hand...
He remembered that the Cui clan was one of the "Five Surnames and Seven Noble Families," and a staunch believer in "family lineage." This branch in the Southwest Continent had branched off from the main branch, so it must have inherited some of the main family's flaws. What was this head of the family after, who went through all that pressure to marry Cui Hui? If it was true love, why did he so readily agree to a divorce? It couldn't be some kind of plot from Gu Chi's outrageous novels, could it?
Several key phrases popped into Qi Shan's mind.
The scumbag was oblivious to his own feelings, constantly thinking about his unrequited love while treating his wife, who had been by his side, like trash. He clearly loved her deeply, but his actions were incredibly hurtful. Only after his wife had accumulated enough disappointment and left heartbrokenly did the scumbag finally realize his mistake and repent.
Qi Shan thus suspected that Gu Chi was an inexperienced novice.
Love, like loyalty, cannot be hidden.
Gu Chi, who heard all the inner thoughts, was speechless.
The power of Cui Hui's ex-husband's family did not intimidate Cui Xiao at all.
He has plenty of patience to wait for his chance to strike.
Cui Hui added quietly, "Father, do you know who his first wife was? She is the current ruler of Qi. Now the Cui family and the Qi royal family are allies. If you want to touch the Cui family, you can't get around the Qi royal family."
The information revealed in just two short sentences is quite complex.
If it were anyone else, they would probably be curious why the first wife of the Cui family head was a man, but Qi Shan and the other two's superior was Shen Tang. After a moment of stunned silence, they realized what was happening and then sneered. Cui Xiao wiped away his tears and said, "Oh, I wondered who it was, but it turns out to be the Qi Kingdom from the southwest. Perfect, we can deal with them all at once."
This isn't just something said in anger; it's the truth.
When Shentang went to war with Beimo, several neighboring countries became restless.
Wu Xian's Gao Kingdom was the first to break off relations, and its southwestern neighbor also began to stir, making constant small moves, clearly poised to take action. Behind Gao Kingdom's series of shady actions, there were also forces working in the southwest.
Even without Cui Hui, the Southwest would still be dealt with.
The southwest has been dealt with, how could the Qi state be an exception?
Cui Hui: "..."
Her ex-husband's life seems to be in danger.
Oh well, let's just take it one step at a time.
Cui Xiao settled Cui Hui in.
He had finally reunited with his daughter, and even if there wasn't much father-daughter affection, it would be good to see her as much as possible. Cui Hui was assigned to Fugu City, the seat of the River Governor, which wasn't far from the main camp. After days of arduous travel, Cui Hui slept for a long time.
I woke up to find that dusk had fallen.
Hungry, and with little food at their temporary lodging, they were hungry.
She planned to go out for a walk to see if there was anything to eat.
Not far away, just across the street, is the night market.
"It's lively, isn't it? It used to be even more lively."
Qi Shan appeared not far away at some unknown time.
He noticed Cui Hui's confusion: "I used to live nearby."
Cui Hui's attention was still on his previous sentence.
Was it more lively before?
What a magnificent sight that was!
Because of the war outside, even the population of the capital city of Fugu had decreased considerably, but judging from the expressions of the pedestrians and merchants, there was no trace of anxiety or worry in their eyes. Cui Hui was starving, so Qi Shan treated her to a meal, and she ate her fill without any hesitation.
He wiped his mouth with a handkerchief, completely satisfied.
"This is a really nice place."
She wanted to say something more, but Qi Shan raised her hand to signal her to stop.
Cui Hui followed his gaze and looked over.
An ordinary commoner sat in the corner of the noodle shop.
"What's wrong?"
Qi Shan said, "He was looking at you just now."
(ノ￣▽￣)
On the second day of the Lunar New Year, we hosted relatives. The house was packed, and we drank until after 9 PM. My mushrooms started to feel the effects…
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