Even Mu Aotie was startled by Yu Qing’s loud shout. Weren’t they supposed to keep a low profile? Why was he openly shouting about being a disciple of the Longguang Sect?
Xiao Changdao and Wu Ronggui, who appeared at the door, felt secretly uneasy. They had previously chatted with Chan Shaoting, saying they had introduced him to Yu Qing and the others, but those people seemed to think their status as Longguang Sect disciples was so great that they looked down on Chan Shaoting a bit.
They could say that because they had indeed noticed that Yu Qing and the others did not care much for Chan Shaoting. It was just that the words coming from their mouths had a slightly different flavour.
The two of them really did not expect Yu Qing to suddenly take the initiative to visit, and were a bit worried about being exposed.
Fortunately, Chan Shaoting only showed his face and took a look. A look of disgust immediately appeared in his eyes. He was somewhat influenced by the words of Xiao and Wu. He turned around on the spot at the railing and went into the room, while simultaneously giving a glance to Zhao Qing beside him.
So Zhao Qing immediately shouted down, “What do you want with our Young Master Chan?”
Yu Qing was just wondering which of the two upstairs was Chan Shaoting. He immediately understood it was the one who went back into the room, and cheerfully said, “I have long admired your name and have come to visit!”
Zhao Qing did not fall for this and said coldly, “Young Master Chan is busy with something right now and has no time.”
Xiao Changdao and Wu Ronggui exchanged a glance, both secretly breathing a sigh of relief.
Yu Qing was slightly stunned. He had just shown his face, how could he have no time now? Not even saying a single word was too rude, it was simply arrogant and ignored everyone.
He immediately categorised Chan Shaoting into the same type as Long Xingyun. He did not know if it was because of his own limited experience, but he found that these young masters from great families were all the same. Every single one of them displayed their personal likes and dislikes so obviously, as if there was no need to hide it at all, or they disdained to hide it. But, was the Longguang Sect weak?
Xiao Changdao stepped down the stairs and persuaded with a smile, “Brother Zhang, Young Master Chan is busy, it is better not to disturb him.”
Yu Qing looked at the situation on the scene. Since the other party was unwilling to see them, he could not force it, and could only give up for the time being.
Despite being snubbed, he still politely took his leave.
It was nearing dusk when Nan Zhu and Baili Xin finally returned.
According to Nan Zhu, they had not gained much either. The Kunling Mountain area was too vast, and they failed to find out where the prisoners were kept. They could only feel out the surrounding terrain first, and once there was an opportunity, sneak out to investigate.
As soon as he heard about risking sneaking out of this area to investigate, Yu Qing immediately expressed his opposition. “Kunling Mountain is heavily guarded at this time. It is very difficult to sneak out to investigate without being discovered. I oppose doing this, and we cannot possibly take such a risk.”
Baili Xin immediately said in a deep voice, “You promised to help me find my senior martial brother. Are you going to break your word?”
Yu Qing waved his hand. “Breaking our word is out of the question. I just disagree with your method. Breaking through the blockade and running around inside Kunling Mountain is absolutely unacceptable. Relying on the few of us to investigate in such a large area is not a solution either. We still need to approach it from another angle.”
Baili Xin pressed, “From what angle?”
Yu Qing said, “Kunling Mountain disciples! They are insiders of Kunling Mountain and can move around freely. Find a way to find a suitable Kunling Mountain disciple to grease the wheels. When it comes to gathering information, it will be much more convenient for us than doing it ourselves, countless times better than blindly searching on our own.”
Hearing this, Baili Xin was silent for a good while. Her gaze paused on Mu Aotie for a moment, and she asked, “What situation have you two investigated?”
What could the two of them investigate? Naturally, they had gained nothing either. They roughly repeated Nan Zhu’s account. The situation was similar, looking helpless and powerless.
However, taking advantage of Baili Xin’s inattention, Yu Qing hinted Nan Zhu to go upstairs again, and secretly gave instructions. “Old Seven, do not lose your head. Remember what we came here to do. Regarding her matter, whether it is true or false, you must find a way to delay it.”
Nan Zhu understood his meaning. Only by dragging it out and not resolving it could they continue to stay at Kunling Mountain, and have time to continue with their original purpose. He cheerfully patted Yu Qing’s shoulder. “Rest assured, I am clearer about this than you.”
Afterwards, the four of them left the small building and went to the canteen at the foot of the mountain. There was free food and drink there, supplied twice a day. Spiritual rice was plentiful. Kunling Mountain lacked nothing more than spiritual rice.
Of course, Yu Qing still wanted to find a legitimate opportunity to accidentally run into Chan Shaoting, but none of the next door neighbours came.
The few of them could only have a full meal themselves, and then slowly stroll back to spend their first night at Kunling Mountain.
The next day, around mid morning, Yu Qing was at the railing upstairs, staring at the small building next door and pondering something, when he noticed three Kunling Mountain disciples coming up from the foot of the mountain. He only recognised Wu Tian, who was following behind.
Wu Tian was obviously leading the way, being extremely respectful to the delicate middle aged man at the front. When they reached the mountaintop, he pointed to Yu Qing and the others’ residence.
Seeing this, Yu Qing and the others soon showed up as well, meeting the visitors outside the door.
“Uncle Master Zhan, they are the Longguang Sect disciples. You four, this is our Uncle Master Zhan Yunqi, who has come to find you on the orders of the sect.”
Wu Tian introduced both sides, and Yu Qing and the others naturally hurried to cup their hands and pay their respects.
Zhan Yunqi was not only delicate in appearance but also gentle and elegant in his manners. He raised his hand to gesture, “It is not convenient to talk outside. Let us go inside.”
So the crowd entered one after another. Without taking seats in the hall, Zhan Yunqi directly took out a letter and handed it to Baili Xin. “The Longguang Sect sent two letters. One is for our Kunling Mountain, and the other is to be forwarded to you. Please inspect it.”
The meaning was to let Baili Xin check it herself, indicating that Kunling Mountain had not peeked.
The three martial brothers, Yu Qing and the others, were somewhat surprised, not knowing what it meant for the Longguang Sect to suddenly send letters to Kunling Mountain and Baili Xin.
After inspecting the letter, Baili Xin opened it to read it on the spot. Very quickly, her face changed in a flash, and her hand holding the letter fell dejectedly.
Only then did Zhan Yunqi sweep his gaze over the four supposed Longguang Sect disciples and say, “Our sect’s seniors also have some friendship with the Longguang Sect. After receiving the letters, the seniors did not expect your sect’s attitude to be so intense. Although we feel regret, it is ultimately your sect’s internal matter, so we cannot say much.
“However, we still need to inform you all in person. Your sect sent a message to inform us that you came to participate in the Chaoyang Assembly without permission. In view of this, the Longguang Sect has expelled you from the sect. From now on, anything that happens to you has nothing to do with the Longguang Sect.”
As soon as these words were spoken, Wu Tian, who was accompanying them, also felt surprised.
Baili Xin’s face was quite gloomy. At a glance, it was not faked. She was truly deeply saddened.
The three martial brothers, Yu Qing and the others, were extremely shocked. Yu Qing, in particular, simply reached out and snatched the letter from Baili Xin’s hand, quickly opening it to read. Nan Zhu and Mu Aotie crowded around the left and right to watch together.
The letter informed Baili Xin that they had received her message. It said she did not need to worry about her captured senior martial brother anymore. They had already used military connections, and there was no problem getting him out. It told her not to cause any more trouble. The sect would naturally deal with her senior martial brother. As for her, for ignoring sect rules and participating in the Chaoyang Assembly without permission, she was immediately expelled from the Longguang Sect. She should take care of herself in the future, and have no more connection with the Longguang Sect.
The three martial brothers looked at each other, discovering that the private letter written to Baili Xin did not mention the three of them at all.
Seeing that they had all read the letter, Zhan Yunqi continued, “Your sect’s intention is to have Kunling Mountain expel you from the assembly. According to the friendship between our sect’s seniors and the Longguang Sect, we should give this face. However, according to the rules of the assembly, it is unreasonable. We can only discuss the matter on its own merits.
“So I have come here to make it clear to you on behalf of Kunling Mountain. The Longguang Sect has issued a formal notice to Kunling Mountain. Since you have already been expelled from the sect by the Longguang Sect, if you continue to attend the assembly under the title of Longguang Sect disciples, we will naturally expel you from the assembly. If you still want to stay and participate, you can no longer use the identity of Longguang Sect disciples.”
He estimated that it would be difficult for them to digest this kind of thing in a short time, so he sighed and said, “This matter cannot be delayed. It must be handled according to the rules. Give an answer today. Think it through and tell Wu Tian. He will relay it to the sect.”
Having finished speaking, he nodded in greeting, which also served to appropriately avoid the guests’ embarrassment at this moment, and directly turned around and left.
The accompanying person also followed and left. Wu Tian, who had cupped his hands and bowed to see them off, stayed behind. Yu Qing and the others in the hall did not seem to be in the mood to see the guests off either.
Baili Xin was still immersed in her deep sorrow.
The three martial brothers did not know what to say either, looking at each other from time to time. Actually, at the beginning, the three of them had some doubts about whether Baili Xin was really a disciple of the Longguang Sect. Now that Kunling Mountain had come in person to endorse it, it should not be fake.
As for why the Longguang Sect punished Baili Xin so severely, it was probably because Baili Xin had actually forged the identity of a disciple of their sect for outsiders to participate in the Chaoyang Assembly. The nature was a bit egregious, and it probably caused the Longguang Sect to lose face. It was not hard to understand their move of not exposing their identities but still requesting Kunling Mountain to expel them from the assembly.
With an outsider present, it was not easy to speak. Yu Qing said to Wu Tian, “Brother Wu, please let us discuss it privately.”
Wu Tian could also understand their feelings. He nodded, but had to remind them, “Uncle Master Zhan said it cannot be delayed. You must give an answer today. I will wait for your answer at the foot of the mountain.”
Yu Qing cupped his hands and thanked him.
Only then did Wu Tian turn around and leave. As he walked, he shook his head, obviously feeling that the Longguang Sect’s punishment was somewhat too severe.
With no outsiders in the hall, Nan Zhu looked at Baili Xin’s state, his face full of reluctance to see her suffer. Feeling empathetic, he said, “Look at the mess this has become. Since your sect has connections to get people out, why did we have to go through all this trouble and end up like this?”
Baili Xin said gloomily, “I did not know my sect could easily get people out.”
Nan Zhu scratched his face and muttered, “What do we do now?”
He was asking Yu Qing and Mu Aotie, but Baili Xin showed a tragic smile and said, “Since my sect can rescue my senior martial brothers, there is no need for us to stay here anymore. Let us pack our things and leave.” She turned around and went back into the room.
The three of them, Yu Qing and the others, looked at each other speechlessly. What did this mean? Was it a wasted trip? They had worked so hard to get in, and they had not even found a clue about what they came to do, and they were just going to leave like this?
Naturally, the three of them were unwilling to leave easily. However, Baili Xin soon packed her things and came out. She put her quiver and bow back on her back and walked straight out.
Nan Zhu directly stepped sideways and stretched out his hand to block the main gate, stopping Baili Xin. They had just started getting close, and the first stroke of the character eight had not even been written yet. If they left Kunling Mountain now, could they still continue to be together? But in his haste, he did not know how to make a decision. After stopping her, he immediately shouted to Yu Qing, “Old Fifteen, what do we do? Are we really just going to leave like this?”
Yu Qing also walked over and asked Baili Xin, “If you go back now, can you make the Longguang Sect withdraw the order to expel you from the sect?”
Baili Xin said, “Since they have already issued a formal notice to Kunling Mountain, what is done cannot be undone. How could they withdraw the order?”
Yu Qing slightly shrugged. “Since you have already been expelled from the sect, and since you have already come to the Chaoyang Assembly, why rush to leave? This is a grand event held once every twenty years. Why not come and broaden your horizons? Besides, what does it mean to leave now? Does it count as us having participated, or not having participated?”
Nan Zhu hurriedly nodded and said, “That is right. It might be a once in a lifetime opportunity. We cannot waste it. We are already here, and we have spent tens of thousands of taels of silver. We cannot ask for a refund, can we? We have plenty of food and drink. What is wrong with staying and taking a look?”
Baili Xin said, “I am not in the mood. If you want to stay, you stay. I am leaving. Rest assured, I will not expose your identities.”