Fan Xian wanted to laugh but couldn't, the expression on his face as frozen as the wind and snow outside the temple. He stared blankly at Wang Shisanlang before him, at the young friend's calm yet stubborn face, and after a long silence, he sighed deeply, feeling that chill in the depths of his heart.

He knew Shisanlang was speaking the truth; the other was a truly honest person, which was why he felt the cold.

If the future development of events differed from Fan Xian and Si Gu Jian's estimated plan, if to the world it seemed Fan Xian had merely seized the power of Dongyi City without considering the interests of the city's people and merchants, perhaps Shisanlang would really act against him at all costs.

Si Gu Jian's last wish, the Taiping Qianzhuang, the Jianlu disciples had already paid too much in terms of benefits and power for this gamble. If Fan Xian really went back on his word in the future, these people would inevitably be furious and hate him to the bone. Without thinking, Fan Xian knew what a terrifying sight the Jianlu Thirteen's mad revenge would be.

What's more, with this close, extremely friendly young friend by his side, Fan Xian did not want to fight Wang Shisanlang to the death.

Especially Jianlu's mad revenge, even if it couldn't directly harm Fan Xian, who was protected by the Overwatch Council, such assaults by ninth-rank experts would definitely be able to harm Fan Xian's loved ones, friends, subordinates, and the like.

The Qing Emperor could bear such losses because most of the time, he didn't treat most of his relatives and subordinates as human beings. But Fan Xian couldn't; he knew the attitude Wang Shisanlang was displaying at this moment represented the Jianlu disciples' determination, and he couldn't help but feel wary and apprehensive.

Fan Xian narrowed his eyes, the cold glint in them growing stronger, only to gradually dissipate. He looked at Wang Shisanlang and said calmly, "Your senior brothers need to understand one thing: this matter is something your master asked me to do, not something I asked him to do. This so-called cooperation is also just your unilateral idea... I don't accept any form of coercion."

Wang Shisanlang was silent, knowing Fan Xian was telling the truth.

Fan Xian stared into his eyes and said, word by word, "This is what I've always been puzzled about. Si Gu Jian gave me twelve swords. How can I possibly trust your loyalty, and not have to worry every night that you'll stab me in the back?"

"If someone tries to stab you, naturally I will block it," Wang Shisanlang said, looking down somewhat dejectedly, "as long as you don't break your promise."

Fan Xian smiled mockingly and said, "I have Shadow protecting my back. What do I need you for? I just detest this feeling. What kind of person am I? I'm not someone who can be forced to do things. Jianlu needs to adopt a more proper attitude. If Yun Zhilan or Li Bohua don't trust me, then there's no need for us to continue talking. Let's just call it off here. In a few months, I'll lead a large army and we can talk again."

Wang Shisanlang looked up at him with some doubt and pain in his eyes and said, "You're also coercing us."

"It's only polite to reciprocate," Fan Xian said, looking at him seriously. "I'm very troubled by the intentions you're displaying. I don't want anyone using you to control me."

"We don't have such extravagant hopes, but... to be honest, we don't understand our master's last wish. Especially the senior brothers, they haven't had much contact with you. They don't know what kind of person you are. They simply can't believe that you would... disregard the interests of Qing and think of the life and death of Dongyi City."

"Whether they believe it or not is their business. I only need them to accept it." Fan Xian stood up and gently patted him on the shoulder. "We are friends. I don't want you to be a friend who stands by my side, watching my every move."

"Friends should trust and support each other, without asking why," Fan Xian said, looking at Wang Shisanlang earnestly. "You are the attitude that Si Gu Jian displayed to me, and you are also the attitude I display to Si Gu Jian. Because of you, I and Si Gu Jian were able to establish this trust, but I hope that from now on, you will learn to have your own attitude... People must live for themselves. There are already enough people in this world who bear so-called national hatred, family feuds, and the greater good of the people. Your nature is not suitable for doing such things."

"And you are suitable for doing it?" Wang Shisanlang asked faintly, understanding his words.

"I'm forced to do it. I'm driven to extremes." Fan Xian's lips tasted bitter, his heart was filled with sorrow, and his lips curled up. He looked out of the quiet room and sighed, singing, "Look over there, that dark cave, could it be a bandit's nest? What are you doing recognizing them as bandits? Are they really bandits? Am I a bandit? I don't want to rush forward, and I don't want to kill them all."

Wang Shisanlang looked at him quietly, and suddenly said, "In this world, who else can force you to do these things?"

Fan Xian was silent for a long time, and then said, "I don't know. Maybe, fundamentally speaking, it's just that I want to do it myself."

……

……

Regarding the matter of the Emperor, Fan Xian had already given it deep and far-reaching consideration. Just as he had said to his father, he didn't want to fall out with the Emperor before Wu Zhu returned, and he didn't have any reason to fall out with him either. Although there had been such a tragedy decades ago, as a soul adrift in this world, even if he wanted to avenge that woman, he would still hesitate when facing his biological father.

Moreover, the Emperor was still so powerful, so powerful that he was completely invincible.

Fan Xian just wanted to make this world a little gentler, a little more in line with his own ideas. This was probably the first thing all transmigrators wanted to do after arriving in a completely different world.

He didn't know that Ye Tao had done this, Wu Anguo had done this, and even Ye Qingmei had done this. Perhaps only Shi Yue had not done this.

In fact, this was just the fate of transmigrators, or rather, the fate of excellent transmigrators. A playboy can't be a playboy forever, and enjoyment can't satisfy spiritual needs. Mankind's instinct for knowledge and control will force them to go in that direction, and anyone with enough power and strength will try to use their power to change something.

Living a life in brocade robes at night required the composure of an old monk, but even the old monk couldn't help but ask Shakespeare on his deathbed.

So, a person like Fan Xian, once he had reached a certain position in this world, would always put on beautiful clothes, stand in the sun, and do what he wanted to do according to his own ideas.

For this world, it was not necessarily a good choice, but at least it was a choice he thought was good. History was just a dough that could be kneaded by the strong, except that the strong thought it best to knead it into a delicate little girl, while some thought it should be kneaded into a large dough knife to be chopped up in a bustling market.

Who was right and who was wrong could be left to history to judge. Anyway, before history came to a conclusion, the strong would have long since turned into bones, and they had to do it, so that it would be thorough enough, enjoyable enough, and worthwhile.

——————————————————————

Fan Xian, swinging his life to the fullest in this second life, finally reached the peak he could reach in the late spring of Qingli ten years. At this time, the young and powerful official of Qing had power in his hands, the great power of the Overwatch Council, money, most of the money in the world was under his implicit control, and he also had a reputation, a reputation so resounding that no one else in the world could compare.

Most importantly, he had achievements. When white smoke rose in all directions of Dongyi City, and white banners of mourning waved in the thick late spring wind, Si Gu Jian's funeral was about to take place, and the negotiations between Nanqing and Dongyi City had come to an end. The overall situation of the world had finally undergone a fundamental change. From this day on, the shape of the territorial map became unfamiliar.

Dongyi City had finally nominally submitted to the powerful Qing, and the entire continent, except for a touch of green in the west and that silent country in the north, was all subservient to the iron hooves of Qing.

Moreover, Qing had achieved this goal without sending a single soldier. Naturally, it was Fan Xian who had brought this about. His prestige had reached its historical peak at this moment, and what he had done would inevitably be written into the books of history.

Fan Xian stood calmly at the entrance of Jianlu. Wang Shisanlang stood behind him, and the other eleven Jianlu disciples also stood quietly not far away. The Qing delegation stood on his other side, and the Overwatch Council's secret agents and swordsmen were not visible, vigilantly watching everything around them in all directions.

Today was the opening ceremony of Jianlu in the tenth year of Qingli. Originally, this ceremony had already been held, but Si Gu Jian had been seriously ill and dying, and Jianlu had important matters to announce to the world today, so they had invited many important figures from all over the world.

Too many people came today, and they were too mixed. Recently, there had been subtle factors of unrest brewing around the small vassal states around Dongyi City and in some urban areas within the city, and even insurgent armies had appeared in several places. Therefore, Fan Xian, as the representative figure of the invaders, had naturally become the top priority of the protection work.

But the Dongyi City side was not too worried about Fan Xian's safety, because the person who could kill Fan Xian in this place should not have been born yet.

Of course, this judgment naturally excluded the only Grandmaster in the world today, the Qing Emperor, because everyone believed that the Qing Emperor would not suddenly go crazy and assassinate his own illegitimate son, who had just made great contributions.

No one dared to stand side by side with Fan Xian. The weather today was extremely clear, the spring was bright, and the sun was shining brightly, even producing some faint heat.

Wang Shisanlang was the person closest to Fan Xian, half a step behind Fan Xian.

Fan Xian's face was calm, welcoming the giant merchants and wealthy businessmen who had rushed over from all over the world. At the same time, he received the delegations from Nanqing and Beiqi as half a host. The officials of the Nanqing delegation had an undisguised joy on their faces, while the faces of the Beiqi officials were extremely ugly.

A large shed had been set up in the open space in front of the Jianlu gate, and countless white paper flowers and curtains were hung on it. It didn't look festive at all, and it was completely inconsistent with the opening ceremony and the nominal declaration of allegiance.

Fan Xian didn't care about this. The Qing Ministry of Rites officials were a little unhappy, but they didn't dare to express anything, because everyone knew that the opening ceremony this time should actually be regarded as Si Gu Jian's funeral. The Ministry of Rites officials didn't want to anger the powerful figures in Jianlu at this critical moment.

The sun slowly moved to the middle of the sky, and the air gradually became hot. Fortunately, Dongyi City was on the coast of the East Sea, and the sea breeze blew non-stop day and night, so it was still bearable. In addition, the shed blocked most of the scorching sunlight, and the guests from all over the world who came to watch the ceremony didn't have too many complaints, except for wiping their sweat.

Suddenly, firecrackers sounded outside Jianlu. I don't know how many strings of firecrackers exploded at this moment, the paper scraps were shaken up high, and smoke began to fill the air.

It seemed to be a signal. In the entire vast Dongyi City, firecrackers that had been prepared long ago were lit at the entrance of every merchant's house and every civilian's house. Even those brothels that usually hung red lanterns and sang and danced all night long had replaced their lanterns with white ones and set off firecrackers in front of their buildings.

The girls had changed into plain clothes, and looked at the direction of Jianlu with a trace of anxiety and a trace of disappointment.

The merchants and common people stood under the white banners of mourning in front of their homes, watching the firecrackers explode into pieces.

The babies in the arms of the women were awakened by the loud firecrackers that sounded from all directions in Dongyi City, regardless of north, south, east, or west, and cried loudly.

The entire Dongyi City was filled with the sound of firecrackers and the sound of crying, and the slightly dazzling smell of sulfur enveloped the entire city with smoke.

The fragments of firecrackers were like a person's life, and the rising smoke was like a gradually departing soul.

Fan Xian quietly looked at this scene, and suddenly thought of the firecrackers he heard outside the capital of Beiqi many years ago. He was silently lost in thought, thinking that whether it was Zhuang Mojie or Si Gu Jian, they were equally noble to these ordinary people.

Under the shed outside Jianlu, at the voice of Yun Zhilan, everyone knelt down towards the black coffin.

Fan Xian also knelt down, and then heard Si Gu Jian's last wish that Yun Zhilan announced on his behalf.

Unsurprisingly, Si Gu Jian had finally forgiven Yun Zhilan's past dissenting intentions at the time of his death, and ordered him to take over as the City Lord of Dongyi City. Yun Zhilan had always been in charge of Jianlu's affairs, was proficient in worldly affairs, and with his dissatisfaction in his heart, his succession as City Lord would certainly form a more complete check and balance with the Nanqing people who came to take over Dongyi City.

Fan Xian didn't care about this. He listened silently, only thinking that only by passing Jianlu on to Shisanlang would he be able to use the close relationship between the two to truly control the terrifying twelve swords.

Just as he was thinking about this, he heard Yun Zhilan's last sentence, and his eyes couldn't help but narrow.

……

……

"Fan Xian's ancestral home is Dongyi. I personally taught him sword skills. He is truly a great talent. I order him to preside over... the opening ceremony of Jianlu."

……

……

(I said I would make up for a chapter today, hehe, well, I can't escape it, I'll write after I finish eating, and I'll update it after I finish writing, I don't know when I'll update it, anyway, it should be before twelve o'clock, I wish everyone a happy weekend.)