Although frightened, Jirong hurriedly defended herself, "Big Brother Xueying, you really misunderstood. That time, it was one of my family's servants who killed that little beggar without my knowledge. I only found out later."
"In front of me, you don’t need to defend yourself," Dongbo Xueying's voice was icy cold, "I told you to stay away from my brother, and that’s an order!"
He only looked at the facts.
He didn’t listen to others' empty words, and according to the investigation by Longshan Tower, Jiwu Hai, Jirong, and their family were all very good at pretending.
"I..." Jirong wanted to say something but stopped, tears welling up in her eyes.
"You have three days," Dongbo Xueying turned and walked away, "If you can’t do it in three days, I will help you. But my method... will be more direct!"
At the age of eight, he started practicing spear techniques every day, and during this process, Dongbo Xueying had also collapsed and cried many times, but he persisted. This kind of training made his willpower incredibly formidable. How could a little girl like Jirong sway him with a few words? Even someone like Kong Youyue, Dongbo Xueying was only angry that she deceived his trust and affection! And he decisively cut off this relationship.
Dongbo Xueying was always straightforward and decisive in his actions. He was ruthless to himself and even more ruthless to his enemies!
"Yes," Jirong could only lower her head as she watched Dongbo Xueying's departing back.
She walked step by step toward Qing Shi's residence.
She was thinking, what should she do?
"Dongbo Xueying is very protective of his brother. I should try to get Qing Shi completely on my side, so that Dongbo Xueying will be wary?" Jirong thought, "No, Dongbo Xueying is a very decisive person! He won’t be restrained by such a small trick. He could easily hide it from his brother and secretly destroy our entire Ji family!"
"What should I do?"
"I haven’t found out what great wealth Dongbo Xueying’s parents left behind! I haven’t accomplished anything!" Jirong thought as she walked.
Relying on Qing Shi?
But in terms of affection, Qing Shi and his brother were probably closer! Even if he stood by her for a moment, he would ultimately stand by his brother.
"Damn, damn..." No matter how Jirong thought, she couldn’t come up with a way to stay by Qing Shi’s side.
Because Dongbo Xueying was directly 'forcing' her.
Dare you not comply?
He would directly eliminate you! The Crescent Blade Alliance once made all the nobles in Yishui City wary, but Dongbo Xueying destroyed it alone at the age of fifteen. He is now much more formidable than he was back then.
"I can only give up."
Jirong quickly made her decision.
...
"Jirong, you actually came to see me, I’m so happy. Sigh, you know, we caused a big trouble yesterday when we went out. My brother said I’m not allowed to leave the castle for three days, so I can’t go out to find you these three days," Qing Shi came out of the main building of the castle and walked alongside Jirong on a stone path inside the castle, narrating, "It’s not my brother’s fault, that dead noble clearly had a strong background! I didn’t intend to kill that young noble at the time, but I couldn’t control the large-scale spell precisely. Who would have thought that the young noble was so unlucky and was struck by lightning."
"It’s not your fault," Jirong comforted, "If we didn’t fight back, you would have died, and I would have been miserable. I really can’t imagine what would happen if I were kidnapped."
"No one can hurt you," Qing Shi held Jirong’s hand firmly, "I promise."
Jirong smiled but didn’t say anything.
"What’s wrong? Not in a good mood?" Qing Shi could sense his girlfriend’s mood and asked, "Is it because of the noble you killed yesterday? Don’t worry, my brother is handling everything and will definitely resolve the matter properly."
"It’s not that," Jirong said.
"Then what is it?" Qing Shi asked, "Speak up, maybe I can help."
"Qing Shi, let’s break up," Jirong said suddenly.
Qing Shi was stunned.
It felt like a bucket of cold water had been poured over his head, leaving him completely dazed.
"What kind of joke is this?" Qing Shi laughed, "This isn’t funny at all."
"It’s true, let’s break up," Jirong looked at Qing Shi.
Qing Shi looked into Jirong’s eyes and realized... this wasn’t a joke, it was real!
"Why?" Qing Shi couldn’t understand, "We were fine yesterday, and we were happy. Even though we had a conflict with that noble, what does that have to do with our relationship? Why are you suddenly breaking up?"
"I’ve fallen for someone else, is that not allowed?" Jirong said.
"What’s the real reason? Speak, tell me," Qing Shi stared at Jirong, somewhat anxious.
Jirong lowered her head.
Silence.
"Speak up," Qing Shi was almost driven mad by anxiety.
"Your brother is your most important family member, right?" Jirong said.
Qing Shi frowned.
He suddenly had a premonition.
"Your brother investigated some of my affairs. He thinks I’m not a good girl and that I’m not suitable for you. He has already given me an ultimatum to leave you," Jirong said.
Qing Shi was stunned.
"Your brother opposes it! Can you go against his wishes?" Jirong looked at him.
"I, I..." Qing Shi gritted his teeth, "I can’t be stopped from liking who I like."
"Don’t lie, don’t you know how close you and your brother are? You need your brother’s approval and blessing to like someone!" Jirong said.
Qing Shi panicked.
If his brother completely opposed it, what should he do?
"There must be some misunderstanding. Why is he stopping it? You said he investigated your affairs and thinks you’re not a good girl? What exactly happened?" Qing Shi asked, "There must be a misunderstanding."
Jirong sneered, "When I was ten, I was still very young, playing in Yishui City with my servants. A little beggar bumped into me and dirtied my beautiful clothes. I was naturally unhappy, feeling dirty, and went home with a gloomy face! After I left, one of my servants beat up that little beggar, and it’s said that he later died. I was very sad when I found out, but it was too late to change anything."
"But your brother thinks I ordered the servant to do it, thinking I was so heartless at ten and not a good person," Jirong had tears in her eyes, "What can I do? And I came to Xueshi Mountain to study under Master Bai Yuanzhi when I was eleven! I’ve lived in Xueshi Mountain for so many years. Don’t you know what kind of person I am?"
"But your brother thinks I’m not a good girl and has ordered me to leave you," Jirong said softly, "Your brother was the top expert in Yishui City when he was young, and now he’s even more formidable. I don’t dare to offend your brother, and our Ji family can’t afford to offend him, so... we can only break up."
Qing Shi was anxious, "How could this happen? How could my brother do this?"
If Dongbo Xueying opposed it, the Ji family would definitely back down.
"I’ll go find my brother!" Qing Shi said, "Wait for me, I’ll definitely convince him."
"It’s no use," Jirong shook her head.
"Wait for me here."
Dongbo Qing Shi turned and ran toward the training ground.
...
Inside the training ground.
Qing Shi burst in, and inside, Dongbo Xueying, dressed in black, was practicing spear techniques, his spear shadow surrounded by snowflakes, appearing ethereal and unpredictable, lacking the previous explosive momentum, instead seeming to merge with the heavens and earth.
"Brother," Qing Shi couldn’t wait and called out directly.
Swish.
The spear shadow dissipated, Dongbo Xueying stopped, put away his spear, and turned to smile at his brother, "It’s Qing Shi, what’s up?"
In front of his brother, Qing Shi’s confidence waned, and after hesitating, he gritted his teeth, "Brother, did you make Jirong leave me?"
Dongbo Xueying was taken aback.
This Jirong seemed determined. He had given her three days to break up with his brother, but she had acted so decisively.
"Yes, it was me," Dongbo Xueying nodded.
"Why, why did you do this?" Qing Shi tried to suppress his anger, wanting to hear his brother’s explanation.
"She’s not suitable for you," Dongbo Xueying said.
"Not suitable? Just because she once caused a little beggar to die when she was young?" Qing Shi said.
Dongbo Xueying frowned but still said, "Because of a simple collision, she had a servant secretly and cruelly kill a young beggar. How old was she then? Such a character, is she suitable for you?"
"Haha, that’s ridiculous, Brother. She was only ten at the time. That was six years ago. How can you be sure what you investigated is true?" Qing Shi said, "The servant did it, and you said it was done secretly! How can you be sure it was Jirong’s order? Wasn’t it the servant acting on his own?"
"There are other pieces of evidence," Dongbo Xueying frowned, and with a flip of his hand, a dossier appeared in his hand. He flipped through it and pulled out a sheet of paper.
This sheet of paper was the final conclusion.
It was Longshan Tower’s suspicion that they were followers of an evil deity! This kind of information couldn’t be revealed to his brother. His brother was already emotionally agitated, and if he told Jirong, the Ji family would immediately become wary!
"Look, this is the intelligence Longshan Tower has on the Ji family. Read it and see if you think she’s suitable to be your wife," Dongbo Xueying handed the dossier to his brother.
Dongbo Qing Shi took it, suppressing his anger.
He carefully read through it.
Much of the content was what Jirong had already told him, such as being kicked out of the family by her uncle, temporarily staying with her mother’s family, and being bullied and looked down upon during her childhood. But there were also many things he didn’t know. For example, Jirong’s father, Ji Wu Hai, was actually the mastermind behind the downfall of his uncle’s family and his mother’s family, the Yan family. Many people from his uncle’s family and the Yan family died tragically, all pointing to Ji Wu Hai!
Dongbo Qing Shi himself felt some disgust toward this Ji Wu Hai.
"Finished reading," Qing Shi closed the dossier.
"How is it?" Dongbo Xueying asked.
"Not good," Dongbo Qing Shi said angrily, "The intelligence is detailed, but is it absolutely true? Even if it is, it’s Ji Wu Hai who is guilty! What does this have to do with Jirong? When they temporarily stayed with the Yan family, they were always bullied, and her father was always drinking and neglecting the family. Later, he woke up and went out to do business for a year before returning. Then he sent his daughter to study under the master! Jirong spent very little time with her father."
"Moreover,"
"Jirong really had a miserable life before she was ten. Her father returned with great wealth, and she lived a noble life for nearly a year before coming to study under the master," Dongbo Qing Shi said angrily, "She only lived a luxurious life for about a year. The rest of the time, she was either bullied or living the life of a mage. She is a very pitiful person, how could she be evil?"
Dongbo Xueying frowned.
According to Longshan Tower’s reasoning,
To earn great wealth? How easy is that? Longshan Tower believed that during the time the Ji family was bullied and looked down upon by the Yan family, they suffered greatly, and it was during that time that they became followers of an evil deity! And they were likely very fervent followers, gaining the trust of the higher-ups in the evil deity’s sect. With Ji Wu Hai’s business acumen, the evil deity’s forces began to help and support him, first sending him out to do business to have a legitimate reason to earn great wealth, and then returning.
But these were all deductions by Longshan Tower’s intelligence experts based on clues.
There was no sufficient evidence!
"She has been living in the Mage Tower with me. Do you not know what kind of person she is? Even if her father is a bad person, we can just ignore him. Is our Dongbo family afraid of a businessman?" Qing Shi said, "Brother, I don’t know about her father, but Jirong is absolutely innocent! She is the first girl I’ve liked, and probably the last. Don’t be so harsh, okay?"
Dongbo Xueying’s expression changed.
"Probably the last," this Jirong had really captivated his brother.
Dongbo Xueying said solemnly, "Qing Shi, the intelligence from Longshan Tower is highly credible. They only write it down if they are confident!"
"She has been living in the Mage Tower since she was young! Do you not know what kind of person she is?" Qing Shi said angrily.
"Mages are extremely intelligent people. Even young, don’t underestimate them," Dongbo Xueying said, having just been deceived by Kong Youyue.
"I trust her," Qing Shi said.
"Enough!" Dongbo Xueying said coldly, "You must break up, but I will give you three years. You must be apart for three years. I will have Mage Bai Yuanzhi send Jirong back home! Within three years, we will see the true nature of the Ji family. If Jirong is a good girl, I won’t stop you from being together after three years. But if her true nature is exposed, you will understand my thoughts then."
Dongbo Xueying believed that with Longshan Tower’s capabilities, if they suspected Ji Wu Hai, three years would be enough to uncover the truth.
And setting three years was also to avoid his brother’s resistance.
If he completely cut off his brother’s hope, given his feelings for Jirong, he might go mad.
"Three years?" Qing Shi’s eyes widened, "Three years? That’s too long, too long. You’re sending her away? Brother, how can you be so heartless? How can you do this to her? And you say we must break up? This is between Jirong and me, you can’t just decide for us?"
"You must break up!" Dongbo Xueying was angry that his brother couldn’t even bear three years. He absolutely couldn’t tolerate his brother being with a follower of an evil deity. If she was truly a follower, it would be pushing his brother into the abyss. Who knows what a follower of an evil deity might do? He would regret it if he didn’t act!
"You must break up," Dongbo Xueying said coldly.
"No!" Qing Shi was angry.
"No one can resist, you know. One word from me, and Mage Bai Yuanzhi will send Jirong away, and the Ji family will have to leave Yishui City," Dongbo Xueying said coldly, "So you have to listen, and you can’t act recklessly in this matter."
"You, you..."
Qing Shi felt the blood rush to his head, his eyes turned red, and his heart raced.
His brother indeed had the power to directly ruin his relationship with Jirong, and his strength was not enough to resist.
His voice trembled as he looked at Dongbo Xueying, his eyes making Dongbo Xueying shudder, and he growled hoarsely, "Brother, you’re my brother! I’ve always been proud of you since I was young. Even though I can’t remember my parents, I always thought I had the best brother in the world! But I was wrong, I never thought you would be such a person, you’ve really disappointed me, you’ve really, really disappointed me. I never thought my brother would be such a person."
"You’re just an arrogant fool!"
"You’ve really disappointed me!"
When the most important person in his life, the person he was willing to protect with his life, said these words to him,
Dongbo Xueying felt his heart constrict.
Was his brother disappointed in him as a brother?
"I never thought you would be such a person! I never thought my brother would be such a person!" Qing Shi’s face was already wet with tears, and he turned and ran out. At the door, Zong Ling was standing, clearly having heard the argument between the brothers.
Qing Shi, with tears streaming down his face, ran past Zong Ling.
...
Dongbo Xueying’s heart ached, his usually steady hands were trembling, and the muscles in his palms were twitching and hurting uncontrollably.
The heart really aches.
Really...
"I’ve always been proud of you!"
"But I was wrong!"
"I never thought you would be such a person! I never thought my brother would be such a person!"
His brother’s words echoed in his ears.
Dongbo Xueying’s breathing was erratic, and at that moment, Zong Ling walked over and asked, "Xueying?"
"Watch over Qing Shi. Remember, he absolutely cannot leave the castle for the next three days. If he really tries to leave and you can’t stop him, come tell me. I’ll stop him!" Dongbo Xueying said.
Zong Ling looked at Dongbo Xueying’s body.
In the past, when Dongbo Xueying stood there, he seemed like a mountain, a long spear, so steady and intimidating! That was the aura of a strong person.
But now, Dongbo Xueying’s back seemed to be bent, and that unshakable aura was gone, making him seem fragile?