Chapter 14

Hou Muxin whispered, "Do you have any ideas?"

"This time, Xue Qingshan is going to deliver the message, which is an opportunity," Qin Yu chuckled. "Xue Qingshan won't bring many people, at most just one or two people with him."

Hou Muxin's eyes behind the mask turned, and he smiled lightly, "You mean to ambush and kill Xue Qingshan on the way?"

"Indeed, the Envoy is incredibly wise," Qin Yu whispered.

"No way!" Hou Muxin immediately shook his head. "It's not that we can't kill Xue Qingshan, but even if we do, it probably won't have any effect. If Xue Qingshan can't go, Lin Daier will still send someone else, or even go herself. There's no way to stop the negotiations with Jiaoming Hall!"

"The Envoy is mistaken," Qin Yu shook his head. "Killing Xue Qingshan isn't to stop the negotiations, but to make Lin Daier lose her will to negotiate." He paused and leaned in closer, "The Envoy has people from the Dao Sect. Have them pretend to be officials and ambush Xue Qingshan. Then we can set up a false trail to make Lin Daier think Jiaoming Hall sent people to kill him. This way, Lin Daier will believe Jiaoming Hall has no intention of negotiating, and the talks will naturally fall through. As long as the negotiations can't proceed, Lin Chonggu and Lu Tianyou won't be able to return!"

Hou Muxin pondered for a moment, "Don't underestimate Lin Daier. She is very meticulous and not easy to deceive. Killing Xue Qingshan isn't hard, but making Lin Daier believe he was killed by officials is another matter." He chuckled, "This woman is becoming more and more suspicious, and she is wary of me as well. So your plan is risky... Is there another way?"

Qin Yu's eyes turned, "Another way is to cut off the root, directly severing Lin Daier's resolve." He looked around to ensure no one was around, then lowered his voice, "To do this, we need to act on that Lady Jiao. Either we kill her outright, or... we secretly let her go!"

"Let her go?" Hou Muxin was taken aback.

"Letting her go means Lin Daier will lose her bargaining chip," Qin Yu stroked his chin. "Without her bargaining chip, Lin Daier won't be able to negotiate. This is her last chance. If she can't save Lin Chonggu this time, she probably won't be able to save him ever again."

Hou Muxin was silent for a moment, then pondered, "Let me think about it..." He knew that Qin Yu's two plans made sense, but for some reason, thinking of Lin Daier's beautiful yet cold eyes made him feel uneasy, hesitant to act rashly.

He really wanted to follow Qin Yu's plan, but he always felt that no matter what he did, Lin Daier's eyes would see through everything, making him hesitant to make a decision.

He raised his head and saw that the room where Lin Daier was still had a light on. He waved for Qin Yu to leave and stared at the room for a while. His eyes showed a strange expression, and he quietly approached the room in the dim light.

When he first entered the dilapidated temple, he personally had the room cleaned. The windows were already in poor condition, but he had them sealed with wooden boards, making the room seem secure. However, he deliberately left one window sealed with paper, and he had spent a lot of effort finding the right paper.

Now, standing in the dim light of the temple, his eyes gleamed with excitement. Not far ahead was the window sealed with paper, and the flickering light inside cast a beautiful silhouette on the paper.

The silhouette had an extremely graceful figure, with a prominent chest and a protruding buttock. Hou Muxin, looking at the shadow on the paper, felt his mouth dry and his hand slowly moved toward his lower body. His pupils dilated, and his breathing quickened.

As if driven by some unseen force, he stepped closer to the window. He saw the silhouette moving, clearly changing clothes. He stopped a few steps away from the window, hesitant to move forward, his eyes filled with both excitement and conflict, unsure whether to take another step.

But in an instant, his feet moved again, and he bent down, approaching the window. He crouched down, trying to control his rapid breathing, and slowly raised his body. His hand trembled as he reached out to poke a hole in the paper to peek inside.

Before his finger touched the paper, he heard a voice, "Where is it? Where is it?" It was Lin Daier's voice. Hou Muxin was startled, thinking she had discovered him, and wanted to flee. But his legs felt heavy, and he couldn't move, inwardly cursing his luck.

He knew Lin Daier's temper. If she caught him peeping, she wouldn't care that he was an Envoy and would surely kill him.

Soon, he heard a "bang" from inside, followed by hurried footsteps moving away. After a moment, the room was quiet again. Hou Muxin, hearing no more sounds, slowly stood up. The silhouette on the paper was gone, and Lin Daier didn't come to confront him. He breathed a sigh of relief, knowing she hadn't discovered him.

...

...

Lin Daier changed into a milky white dress, looking even more beautiful and alluring. However, she still wore a black veil over her face. She hurriedly walked to the stone room where Chu Huan and others were held, holding an unsheathed large knife. The two bandits guarding the room saw her and straightened up. One of them said, "Sister Daier, everything is fine here. Don't worry, we won't be careless."

Lin Daier nodded, her eyes showing anxiety, and ordered, "Open the door quickly!"

The bandits, not knowing why she wanted to open the door at this late hour, didn't dare to ask. One of them pulled the bolt, and Lin Daier ordered, "Bring a torch and come in with me!"

The ancient temple was especially quiet at night, and it was pitch black. The two bandits lit torches and placed them nearby. Hearing Lin Daier's order, they didn't dare to hesitate. One of them picked up a torch and followed her into the stone room.

Chu Huan, leaning against the wall, heard footsteps and then Lin Daier's voice. He squinted his eyes, a strange smile appearing on his lips.

The torchlight illuminated the stone room, making everything visible. Chu Huan didn't look at the newcomers but instead looked around the room. He noticed that the room was very small, with stone walls on all sides and no windows. The captives were scattered around, and including Lady Jiao, about five or six people were sound asleep. Wei Tianqing was leaning against the wall diagonally opposite.

Chu Huan vaguely thought that this room might have been used by the ancient temple's monks for meditation.

Thinking of Su Linlang, he turned his head and saw that she was still wearing a hood, her clothes slightly disheveled but sitting calmly beside him.

Lin Daier entered the room, scanned it, and saw Chu Huan. She gritted her teeth and quickly approached, her face cold. With a "clang," she drew her large knife, pointing the blade at Chu Huan's throat, and coldly asked, "Where is it?"

Chu Huan raised his eyebrows and frowned, "What thing?"

"Are you still pretending to be confused?" Lin Daier's eyes showed anger. "If you don't hand it over, I'll kill you!"

Chu Huan sighed, "I am but a fish on your chopping block. If you want to kill me, just do it. Why look for excuses? You want me to hand over something, but I don't even know what you're talking about. What do you want me to hand over? Isn't it just my life? Come, take it!"

Lin Daier, both angry and anxious, withdrew her knife, stepped back, and took the torch from one of the bandits. "Search him, don't miss a single spot!"

The two bandits didn't hesitate and immediately started searching Chu Huan. Chu Huan's clothes were thin and tattered. The bandits quickly searched him from head to toe but found nothing, not even the dagger Wei Tianqing had given him on the boat.

"Nothing!" The bandit stood up and asked Lin Daier, "Da... What are we looking for?"

Lin Daier didn't answer, stepped forward, and stared into Chu Huan's eyes. She saw his calm, slightly spiritual eyes and coldly asked, "You... You really didn't hide it?"

Chu Huan sighed, "I've been searched. What could I have hidden?" His eyes showed a strange expression, and he asked, "What are you looking for?"

Lin Daier's eyes were full of anger. She stomped her foot and turned to leave. The two bandits quickly followed, and the door of the stone room creaked shut.

Chu Huan waited until Lin Daier left, then breathed a sigh of relief. He sat up straight, and in the darkness, no one noticed that his bound hands were now free. He shook off the cowhide ropes and leaned close to Su Linlang's ear, whispering, "Thank you for your help earlier!" He reached behind Su Linlang and retrieved two items: the sharp dagger Wei Tianqing had given him and a piece of jade he had taken from Lin Daier's chest during their struggle in the river. The jade was slightly smaller than an egg, smooth and warm.

Chu Huan knew that Lin Daier's urgent search was likely for this piece of jade, but he didn't know its purpose or why Lin Daier carried it with her, and why its loss made her so anxious.