In Hua Yuan's eyes, Lu Zheng's actions were a blatant lie. He could not be deceived at all. However, just as Lu Zheng had guessed, Hua Yuan was there to see his old classmate. He had no ill intentions. Since Lu Zheng had stopped him, he would not make a fool of himself.
He shamelessly stayed at Lu Zheng's residence for a few cups of tea. When he did not see his old classmate, Fang Zhi, he stood up and prepared to leave.
At that moment, Lu Zheng suddenly asked a question.
"Do you know what Fang Zhi looks like now?"
The so-called "Liu Xi" was a character that Hua Yuan had imagined after his illness flared up. This character was based on Jiang Pengji's intelligence.
No matter how detailed the words were, they were just words in black and white. Many things only had a general idea.
For example, Hua Yuan remembered that "Liu Xi" and Fang Zhi were schoolmates and had a good relationship. However, he did not know what Fang Zhi looked like. No matter how similar the imaginary character was, it was ultimately fake and could not have the real person's memory.
Hua Yuan could not possibly know Fang Zhi's real appearance. Of course, he did not realize that the "servant" who had just served him tea was actually Fang Zhi.
When Lu Zheng asked this question, Hua Yuan subconsciously tried to recall Fang Zhi's appearance, but it was all blank. He only had a vague idea. Who was Fang Zhi? He was from Zhangzhou's Dongmen County. He had studied in Langye when he was young. He and "himself" were schoolmates and had a good relationship …
There was no other content except for a brief introduction.
Hua Yuan's calm expression immediately turned cold. He looked at Lu Zheng with a murderous look.
Of course, he knew what Lu Zheng wanted to say. Lu Zheng wanted to deny his existence and disturb his emotions. He would not let him have his way!
"I haven't seen my schoolmate for almost ten years. It's been a long time, so I can't remember clearly."
Lu Zheng knew when to stop. He cupped his hands and bid farewell to Hua Yuan. The latter snorted coldly and waved his sleeves before leaving.
After the garden left, Fang Zhi changed into his own clothes and walked out from the back hall. He looked in the direction Hua Yuan had left with surprise.
"Shaoyin, this is …"
Lu Zheng revealed some insider information. "The person who just left is the lord's most trusted subordinate."
Fang Zhi said, "That person just now was Hua Yuan? He looks talented and has an outstanding temperament. No wonder An Cui appreciated him. "
It sounded like a compliment, but it was actually a derogatory remark. It sounded like a compliment, but in reality, it was a sarcastic jab at Hua Yuan for relying on his looks to climb to the top.
Lu Zheng sneered and said, "There's something wrong with Hua Yuan's brain. He always thinks that he studied in Langya County. I don't know where I heard that you were coming, so I came over to take a look. I asked you to appear, but he didn't recognize you at all. He must be crazy … "
Fang Zhi didn't know what was going on, but he learned from Lu Zheng that Hua Yuan had gone "mad."
"How could that be? Just now, I saw that his facial features were clear and upright. How is he insane? "
After all, Fang Zhi had pledged his allegiance to Jiang Pengji. Lu Zheng could not reveal the exact situation of his own camp. Under the premise of satisfying his desire to confide in others, he could disrupt Fang Zhi's judgment. Even if Fang Zhi went back to report to Jiang Pengji, Lu Zheng wouldn't be worried.
"He doesn't look crazy, but his words are incoherent."
Lu Zheng mocked, misleading Fang Zhi's judgment.
As expected, Fang Zhi misunderstood that Hua Yuan was pretending to be crazy. He couldn't help but worry about Lu Zheng's situation under An Cui.
"Hua Yuan is deeply trusted and relied on by An Cui. He can be considered to be in a high position now. Why can't he tolerate even you and make things difficult for you?" Fang Zhi was very worried about Lu Zheng's situation. It was fine if his lord didn't trust him, but there was also a colleague who was eyeing him covetously. How could he live like this? He really didn't know why Lu Zheng was so insistent on going down this path until he died. "Why don't you reconsider what happened earlier? Looking at it coldly, An Duoxi isn't a wise leader, and Hua Yuan can't figure it out either. How can he still be in the mood for internal strife in front of a great enemy? "
Although it was inevitable that there would be internal conflicts within the group, as long as one could distinguish between priorities, it wouldn't affect the overall situation.
If one ignored official matters for personal grudges, such a force would be dissolved and annexed by the enemy sooner or later.
Lu Zheng pursed his lips and chuckled. "Everyone is selfish. Some people forget their personal interests for the sake of the public, but there are also people who neglect the public for the sake of personal interests."
Without a doubt, Hua Yuan was the latter.
Fang Zhi said rather worriedly, "What if he uses our relationship as a ruse to slander you? What will you do?"
If Hua Yuan revealed Fang Zhi's existence to An Cui, not only would Fang Zhi be in danger, but Lu Zheng would also face the risk of being deeply suspected.
Lu Zheng smiled. "Just take care of yourself. My lord still needs manpower for the time being, so she won't do anything."
Just as Fang Zhi said, in front of a great enemy, An Cui wouldn't do anything to Lu Zheng even if his brain had been kicked by a donkey.
It wasn't that An Cui cherished old friendships, but that he still needed Lu Zheng's assistance in many administrative matters.
Lu Zheng had helped An Cui develop the group from nothing to today's scale. He had put in a lot of effort and energy. How could a mistress like Hua Yuan, who had stepped in halfway, completely replace him? An Cui wanted to kick Lu Zheng out, but he had to first find a suitable successor.
Fang Zhi saw that Lu Zheng was confident, so he wasn't worried anymore.
He and Lu Zheng were classmates, after all. How could he bear to see him die a horrible death?
Although he had nothing to do at home, Lu Zheng wasn't under house arrest. He could still secretly send Fang Zhi away safely.
A few days later, Fang Zhi returned to Jiang Pengji along the waterway to report everything. She was silent for a long time after listening.
Fang Zhi couldn't help but put in a good word for Lu Zheng. "Shaoyin's temperament …"
Without waiting for Fang Zhi to finish, Jiang Pengji said, "In any case, we were classmates. As long as he wants to live, I won't kill him. I didn't even do anything to Cheng Jing, let alone Lu Zheng. For the sake of the Buddha, Master Yuanjing is old. He only has four direct disciples. If I can protect them, I will protect them all. Of course, if Lu Zheng takes things too hard and insists on stepping on my bottom line, I can't keep him. "
Fang Zhi stopped talking.
He knew that this was the biggest concession and promise Jiang Pengji could give as a feudal lord.
"If that's the case, I'll be so bold as to thank you on behalf of Shaoyin."
Jiang Pengji smiled. "Buqu has a lot of confidence in me."
Fang Zhi said, "I'm not trying to flatter you, and I don't know much about the situation. On the surface, An Cui has indeed lost."
He didn't believe that An Cui couldn't see that the old faction led by Lu Zheng and the forces led by Hua Yuan were at odds.
As the lord, she didn't think about balancing and mediating, but allowed them to fight. Even if they succeeded, there would be many twists and turns, and they wouldn't be able to protect their foundation in the future. On the contrary, Fang Zhi felt that his old classmate was more reliable. The only shortcoming he had was probably the fact that he had children.
Fang Zhi made this trip on behalf of Jiang Pengji. Of course, it wasn't just to collect debts from Lu Zheng. He had another mission.
According to Fang Zhi's description, a war between the two families would probably break out soon.
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