Lu Qing Wan did not often visit the courier station, but that did not mean she was ignorant of it.
Xie Shi Luan appeared to be alone and helpless, with no one attending to her.
However, in reality, the flow of letters never ceased, and she had never forgotten her desire for revenge.
Xie Shi Luan was somewhat surprised by her directness and raised an eyebrow. "Rest assured, I will not hide anything from the Regent. What is owed to him, will be given."
Lu Qing Wan remained noncommittal. "Let's hope so."
Then, she stood up with grace. "Then I shall not disturb General Xie's sword practice. Tomorrow, I will send Li Su with people. Remember, General, anyone other than the people Li Su brings has nothing to do with me. If you are tricked by someone else, I will not be responsible."
Xie Shi Luan nodded with pleasure. "Naturally. If I were so careless, I wouldn't need to change the people around me so frequently."
Lu Qing Wan smiled and relayed the excuse she had casually concocted with Hu Yan Che to Xie Shi Luan. "Remember to cover for me and don't let the facade crumble."
"Easy enough."
Xie Shi Luan nodded. "This also provides an excuse for us to meet again. It kills two birds with one stone, and I will cooperate."
Lu Qing Wan smiled and bid farewell, leaving the courier station discreetly.
Only after she left did the courier of the Ba Fang Inn realize such a distinguished guest had been on his premises, and he broke out in a cold sweat.
Upon exiting Ba Fang Inn, Lu Qing Wan immediately instructed Li Yang, "Write to the Prince immediately and tell him to be wary of Western Liang and their spies. If his forces are sufficient, he should prepare for any impending enemy at any moment."
Li Yang had clearly overheard Xie Shi Luan's words. The matter of national importance could not be taken lightly, and he promptly responded, "Your subordinate understands. I will deliver the letter to the Prince as soon as we return."
Because "Feng Xi Wu" was still bedridden, Lu Qing Wan's outings were always brief. She returned to the Prince's manor less than two hours after leaving.
As she stepped off the carriage, Li Jin was there to greet her.
Without thinking, Lu Qing Wan asked, "Which distinguished guest has arrived now?"
Li Jin bowed. "The identity of this distinguished guest is inconvenient to reveal. I request that the Princess meet the guest in the front hall personally."
"Who is so mysterious?" Lu Qing Wan muttered, then stepped towards the main hall.
Li Yang, meanwhile, had already run off to carry out Lu Qing Wan's instructions, moving so fast that Li Jin couldn't catch him.
It was the same spacious hall, and the same Lu Qing Wan.
However, the guest was entirely different.
A man in red, with flowing long hair, and a face as beautiful as a fox demon, took a sip from a teacup and then frowned in disgust. "Tsk, this is the Regent's manor? Not a decent cup of tea to be found. This tea is awful. Can't you provide some normal tea?"
A maid, holding a teacup, scurried out. Upon seeing Lu Qing Wan, she whispered a complaint. "Princess, you're back! This is the seventh cup of tea. If you didn't return soon, I truly would have no tea left to change!"
"Is he that difficult to deal with?" Lu Qing Wan raised an eyebrow. "If there's no tea left, then don't change it. He doesn't look thirsty, so it's a good way to save some."
Having said this, she walked in. The maid weakly looked to Li Jin for help, asking if it was appropriate for such a distinguished-looking guest to be without tea.
Li Jin calmly gestured outside with his chin. "Listen to the Princess. Go down."
The maid darted away, as if released from a great burden.
Lu Qing Wan entered the room and met the man's eyes. Recalling the bizarre naming conventions of the Reincarnation Hall, she suddenly understood. "The Red-Clad Protector of the Reincarnation Hall?"
"I am indeed Red-Clad, but I am not a protector," the man arrogantly lifted his chin. "I am the leader of the Demonic Cult, Xue Hong Yi. You may call me Cult Leader, or you may call me Demonic Venerable Hong Yi."
After speaking, he crossed his legs and tilted his chin, as if expecting Lu Qing Wan to pay her respects.
Lu Qing Wan, however, twitched her lips and directly instructed Li Jin, "Send a message to Cheng Yi for me. Tell her I'm busy and don't have time to coax a fool for her. Have her find someone reliable for me!"
Ever since Feng Xi Wu had mocked her for being illiterate, Lu Qing Wan had memorized the genealogies of the noble families in the capital and the various forces in the martial world. If she remembered correctly, there was indeed a Demonic Cult Leader named Xue Hong Yi in the martial world. But she had asked for him to make Emperor Jing You believe that she could handle the matter of the firearm. Bringing this chuunibyo character before Emperor Jing You, wouldn't that surely result in her being accused of colluding with the Demonic Cult and being executed?
Li Jin did not know if Lu Qing Wan's words were true, but he carried out her orders without question. He immediately replied, "Yes, Princess." He turned to leave.
Xue Hong Yi sprang up. "Wait! Who are you calling a fool? Who are you calling unreliable? You'd rather believe that little girl Cheng Yi than me, are you stupid? And you call yourself a Saintess? Senior Sister is much smarter than you..."
"Shut up!" Lu Qing Wan threw an orange at him, successfully silencing the garrulous Demonic Cult Leader. "I clearly explained everything in the letter. I asked you here to help, not to cause trouble. As the leader of the Demonic Cult, revealing your identity so brazenly, are you trying to help me or harm me?"
Xue Hong Yi blinked his eyes. Lu Qing Wan then noticed that he had a pair of peach blossom eyes, making him seem to gaze at anyone with affectionate longing. Lu Qing Wan was covered in goosebumps. "Why are you looking at me like that? Have I wronged you?"
She shook her head and pounced forward with starry eyes. "The way you spoke just now was like Senior Sister. I felt for a moment as if Senior Sister had possessed you..." He looked at Lu Qing Wan longingly, as if seeing someone else through her.
Lu Qing Wan strongly disliked this feeling. "You're mistaken. I am not Liu Han Yan, and I don't look much like her. Can you get down to business, or should I find someone else?" Feng Xi Wu was away at war, and Emperor Jing You could die at any moment. She truly had no mood for games.
To her surprise, Xue Hong Yi, who had seemed so unreliable at first glance, changed his frivolous demeanor and became serious. "Of course I can handle business. I have read your letter. Isn't it just about the firearm? The Hall Master has already explained to the people of Great Qin that it is a gift from the Hall Master to you, and has nothing to do with Great Qin."
Her words were so casual that Lu Qing Wan found it astonishing. "With just these two sentences, the people of Great Qin believed it?"
"What else?" Xue Hong Yi arrogantly lifted his chin. "The blueprints for Great Qin's firearms division were provided by our Reincarnation Hall. What's wrong with giving you two handguns? Why wouldn't they believe it?"
"The blueprints for Great Qin's firearms division were provided by you?" Lu Qing Wan recalled something. "In that case, you are not unfamiliar with firearms, or even gunshot wounds, are you?"
"Of course. For any disciple of the Reincarnation Hall, playing with guns is like children playing with wooden swords. It can be said that we've been playing with them since we were children. Of course, we are not unfamiliar with them."