After deceiving the villain, I was forced to love him.

Chapter 128 The Storyteller's Tale

After reading it, Baili Ce felt a sharp pain in his chest, difficulty breathing, and blurred vision. He felt like he was about to die!

"I..." She wanted to curse Lu Jian's ancestors for eighteen generations, but she was afraid that he wouldn't hear her and would react negatively.

"What is this...?" Qiu Jiang looked at her expression and then believed that she really didn't know.

"I am fine."

She wanted to go back to Dawei immediately and kick Lu Jian in the waist a few times.

Then shove his head into the chamber pot and make him drink it all!

That damned emperor! He's making her take the blame again!

But then she thought again, and she was afraid that before she even met Lu Jian, Wang Qingyan would catch her and kick her appendix out with his thirty-six-style spring kick.

"..." Qiu Jiang looked at Baili Ce, whose veins were bulging and who was gritting his teeth, and suddenly realized something.

"I'm so glad I chose you guys back then."

Otherwise, if Lu Jian schemes against us, we won't even have the chance to become dogs, let alone a knife.

"Friend, is it inappropriate for you to show such a relieved expression at this moment?"

"I don't know if it's suitable or not, but I do know that Wang Qingyan must hate you to death right now."

Bai Li Ce shook his head, forcing out a smile that was even more bitter than bitter melon.

The first principle of life is never to show weakness in front of people who want to see you fail.

"Don't worry, everything is going as I expected."

Qiu Jiang, however, had already seen through it all. He took the letter back, put it in his pocket, and walked out.

He left a sarcastic remark, "Alright, instead of bragging, you should think about which table you'd like to sit at during the banquet later."

Which table should we sit at?!

Of course, I'll sit next to the head table!

However, she didn't want to dine with those burly grassland lords; what if...

No! Is this the time to think about where to sit at the banquet?!

Bai Li Ce quickly pulled himself back to his senses.

She was preoccupied with figuring out how to make excuses when she returned in three years, so that she could live a life of dignity and sincerity, pride and politeness, while also managing to survive in Wang Qingyan's hands.

Never mind, I never would have guessed.

The important thing is to attend the banquet.

She wants to sit at the table with the most handsome men and beautiful women...

......

The 21st day of the 11th month is the Winter Solstice.

The army's strength was reduced from 360,000 to 160,000, which suddenly turned the situation at Changming River in favor of the Great Wei.

On the seventeenth day of the eleventh month, the heavily armored cavalry, who had almost broken through the battlefield, gradually became exhausted due to the long battle and were eventually wiped out by the reinforcements.

Without the heavy cavalry, the Hu people's fighting strength was reduced, and they no longer dared to openly drink and eat meat on the banks of the Changming River.

However, Qian Li had traveled a thousand miles to make the raid and fought fiercely with the heavily armored cavalry for several hours, so he was bound to run out of steam.

In the end, both sides retreated to their respective camps, barely managing a draw.

Qian Li knew, of course, that this battle couldn't be won in a day or two, and that it was fortunate that he was able to defend Shacheng in time.

It was also the result of the soldiers defending the city fighting bravely with their beliefs.

Therefore, the first thing Qian Lizhan did after the battle was to distribute some of the food he had brought so that the soldiers who had been holding out for so long could have a full meal.

Once the soldiers had recovered and regained their spirits, they began to take stock of their troops, build fortifications, and send a message to the capital.

At that time, Lu Jian was listening to storytelling at Helizhai in the capital.

"Continuing from the last time, the young master Wang was not only full of talent but also had an elegant demeanor."

"He has not a trace of arrogance or extravagance, and his conduct towards others truly embodies the virtues of a gentleman: upright, honest, and open-minded."

"Tch, bragging. If he were really that capable, how could he have fallen for Young Master Wang's trick?"

The storyteller struck his gavel and exclaimed, "Well said, sir, that's a good question!"

"Logically speaking, someone as astute as Young Master Wang is unlikely to fall into someone else's trap."

"But what if this person is a close relative you grew up with?"

"..."

"This, who can defend against this!"

"But can someone like that really be the head of a family?"

"Exactly, what are those managers even doing?"

"..."

Listening to the guests' enthusiastic discussion, the storyteller sat on the stage, smiling but saying nothing.

Seeing his suspenseful act, someone immediately became unhappy, "Heh, you old man, you always know how to keep people in suspense!"

"Say it quickly!"

"Go on, continue!"

"That's right, if you don't tell me, I'm not listening!"

The brightly lit hall immediately became noisy, and the storyteller quickly raised his hands to calm things down.

"Alright, alright, gentlemen, please don't worry, this old man will explain it to you right away."

The hall fell silent again, and the storyteller, fanning himself with a folding fan, began to speak vividly.

"Although this second young master Wang is also a legitimate member of the Wang family, he was born a step slower than the eldest young master Wang, thus losing the advantage from birth."

Some people wondered, "Don't powerful and influential families value having as many capable descendants as possible?"

“Yes, since we are all members of the Wang family, why fight to the death?” another guest asked loudly.

The storyteller glanced at him and knew that this guest was not from the capital.

"Sir, you may not know this, but it is certainly true that wealthy and powerful families value the success of their descendants."

"But how can we not fight for the position of the head of the family, which is the only one who has the final say?"

The guests in the audience readily agreed.

"Yeah yeah."

"The Wang family is no ordinary family. If given the chance, who wouldn't want to compete for it?"

"That's exactly right!" The storyteller flicked his fan and drew everyone's attention back to himself.

"If Young Master Wang were just an ordinary person, that would be fine."

"But he happens to be a noble young man who excels in both talent and character."

"Tell me, if it weren't for Young Master Wang's underhanded tactics, how could the position of family head, passed down from his biological father, have fallen into his hands?"

"Yeah yeah......"

"Furthermore, the Baili family had been friends with the Wang family for decades and had a very close relationship."

"Both daughters were engaged to the eldest son of the Wang family, but why did neither of them end up together?"

With the storyteller's prompting, the guests immediately chimed in.

"Hey, right, do you guys remember, about three years ago, when that guy from the Wang family brought over a hundred people and stopped the Baili family's young lady in the street?"

"Yes, yes, now that you mention it, I remember now, there was such a thing."

"you do not say!"

"its not right."

"What's wrong?"

"I remember there were more than two hundred people."

"Pah! You're just bragging, there's no way you could have that much!"

"Hey, you don't believe me!"

"Storyteller, tell me, how many people are there exactly?"

"I said there are more than two hundred!"

"You say so, so it is? You saw it with your own eyes, didn't you?"

"Ah! I saw it with my own eyes."

"..."

"Clap!" Seeing everyone arguing fiercely, the storyteller struck his gavel, once again drawing everyone's attention.

Then he stroked his beard and gestured toward the customer who insisted on "more than two hundred people," saying, "You are the closest to the truth."

"But it's still a little short."

"Then how much did you say?"

Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, the storyteller gestured with his hand, "No more, no less, exactly three hundred and sixteen people."

"so much!"

"impossible?!"

"Hahaha, this storyteller is talking nonsense, don't believe him!"

The storyteller laughed heartily, “Hey, everyone, don’t be so sure, my aunt’s son works for the Baili family.”

"That day happened to be him and someone named something like 'Ten'..."

Anyone who recognized Seventeen immediately raised their hand and jumped up, shouting, "Seventeen!"

"Yes! That day, it happened to be my nephew and this guard named Seventeen escorting the young lady of the Baili family out on errands."

"Guess what?"

"What?!" The guests were completely engrossed.

"They were intercepted by this Second Young Master Wang and his men halfway there!"

"Ah, that young lady wouldn't happen to be...?"

The storyteller quickly explained, "Hey, hey, don't worry, everyone, nothing happened."

"Huh~" Several busybodies immediately let out a sigh.

"This young lady is also a remarkable woman with both wisdom and courage."

At this point, the storyteller gave a thumbs-up before continuing, "However, the young lady's innocence remains untainted."

"But after meeting Young Master Wang, he was pale and trembling like a leaf, as if he had been greatly frightened."

"How to say??"

"Tell me quickly, what happened?"

Seeing that everyone's appetite had been whetted, the storyteller's expression became even more mysterious, and he even pretended to tell the waiter to close the restaurant door.

Then, with a serious expression, he warned everyone, "Since you are all interested, I will tell you about this matter."

"But once we're out this door, let's just treat it as a joke and forget about it to avoid getting into trouble..."

The following content is purely fictional.