Chapter 154: Desperate Times Call for Desperate Measures (Part 3)

"Cousin, please sit."

Ignoring how unsightly Helan Minzhi's expression was, Li Xian calmly waved his hand, pointed to the opposite side of the low table, and said indifferently.

"You, you..."

Helan Minzhi gasped heavily for air, slumped down into the seat, and then glared resentfully at Li Xian, grinding his teeth fiercely. He looked like someone who wanted to fight Li Xian to the death but lacked the courage to do so.

"Would cousin be willing to help Your Servant with a small favor?"

Completely unconcerned by Helan Minzhi's petty actions, Li Xian asked with his usual mild tone.

"You... Very well, whatever the matter is, you must at least tell your older brother first so I can know whether I can help or not. Little Seven, stop playing games. Let's just say your older brother is afraid of you, alright?"

Helan Minzhi had already been completely broken of his temper by Li Xian. With a bitter face and a shake of his head, he asked in a posture of total surrender.

"Cousin should know Wang Chengjia, the Palace Diarist, right?"

Instead of rushing to explain the reason, Li Xian asked with an expressionless face.

"Wang Chengjia? Ha, not particularly well, we've just shared a few drinks together a couple of times. That fellow is such a dull person, completely boring. What is this? Has Little Seven fallen out with him? Surely not. That fellow is just a minor official; could he really have the guts to cross paths with Little Seven? Unlikely, isn't it?" Helan Minzhi looked at Li Xian in complete bewilderment, utterly failing to understand why Li Xian would out of nowhere ask about such an insignificant minor official.

"This man has a daughter named Wang Ping'er. Has cousin ever heard of her?" Li Xian did not answer Helan Minzhi's question and continued on his own accord.

"Wang Ping'er? That fat pig? Little Seven couldn't possibly be... Ah, hahaha, you're killing me, hahaha..."

Helan Minzhi was unlettered and unprincipled. If you asked him about other matters, he might plead complete ignorance, but if you asked him about the daughters of various households, his accuracy was unerring. Sure enough, as soon as Li Xian uttered the name "Wang Ping'er," Helan Minzhi suddenly recalled the purpose for which Li Xian had been summoned to Luoyang. He instantly burst into uncontrollable laughter, tears and snot smearing all over his face.

"Is it that funny?"

Li Xian's tone remained as peaceful as before, but the murderous intent in his eyes suddenly deepened significantly.

"Hehe, don't blame Little Seven, brother was just, ah, hehe, just... There, won't brother stop laughing now?" Helan Minzhi had been enjoying himself immensely, but the moment he felt the wave upon wave of intensifying murderous intent emanating from Li Xian, he instantly found it hard to keep laughing. He forced out a couple of dry, awkward laughs and offered a perfunctory apology.

"Since cousin already knows the origin of this matter, Your Servant won't offer any further explanation. Will you help with this favor or not?" Seeing Helan Minzhi's shameless demeanor, Li Xian could not help rolling his eyes and forced out a sentence through clenched teeth.

"Hold on, hold on. Little Seven should make things clear first, otherwise how is brother supposed to help? Hehe, don't tell me Little Seven is planning to..." Helan Minzhi made a "chopping" gesture and joked with a cheeky grin.

"That won't be necessary. All Your Servant needs is for cousin to invite that Wang Ping'er to a rendezvous at White Horse Temple. You won't need to worry about the rest." Li Xian raised an eyebrow and said casually.

"A rendezvous? Ha, good old Little Seven, isn't this openly trying to ruin your brother's reputation? I won't do it, I won't do it. Heh, aren't you afraid that such a bold and reckless Little Seven will be reported by me?" Although Helan Minzhi was frivolous, he was not stupid. The moment he heard this, he guessed Li Xian's sinister plot, instantly perked up, and turned the tables to threaten Li Xian instead.

"You wouldn't dare!"

Li Xian smiled coldly and said without the slightest bit of concern.

"Not dare? Heh, Little Seven, you..."

Helan Minzhi was the type of ruffian who had never held any sense of reverence for hierarchy or status. Hearing Li Xian speak thus, his expression instantly changed, ready to throw a tantrum. But before he could finish speaking, he saw Li Xian indifferently point to the fragments of the shattered tea bowl on the table. Helan Minzhi involuntarily shivered. The fierce words stuck halfway in his throat and could no longer be uttered. He stared at Li Xian with a shifting expression, his eyeballs darting around like a startled petty thief.

"Since I could easily invite you here, I can just as easily invite you to share a cup of tea with the King of Hell. If cousin doesn't believe me, you are welcome to place a bet on it." Li Xian glanced disdainfully at Helan Minzhi and said chillingly.

"You..." Hearing Li Xian state his threat so plainly, Helan Minzhi's face instantly turned crimson. Furious and desperate to throw a tantrum, he lacked the courage to do so. After trembling violently for a long while, his energy finally deflated. Yet, unwilling to simply admit defeat, after panting heavily for quite some time, he spoke in a muffled voice: "Little Seven, you're being unbrotherly. Why must you make *me* do such a thing? Can't you find someone else?"

Someone else? If someone else would do, why would Li Xian need to go through so much trouble? Li Xian was no longer the lonely and wretched figure he had been five years ago; by now, he was fully equipped with resources. His subordinates were full of capable people, and no trade was lacking among them. If he truly wanted to find an expert in "swindling women of their chastity," it wouldn't be difficult at all. The problem was that pulling it off without arousing suspicion was not easy—at least, it would be very difficult to force Empress Wu to change her mind. What if Empress Wu stubbornly insisted that Li Xian swallow this stinking egg? Wouldn't that literally disgust Li Xian to death? Playing this scene out with Helan Minzhi would yield a completely different result. Even if Empress Wu harbored suspicions, for various reasons, she would still have to desperately protect Helan Minzhi. In this way, the marriage forcibly imposed upon Li Xian would naturally come to an end.

"Because you have a criminal record!"

Naturally, Li Xian was not going to analyze the reasons in detail with Helan Minzhi, and simply replied with concise brevity.

"Hmph, Little Seven, don't push it too far. Your brother is not someone to be trifled with either."

Helan Minzhi possessed a deeply ruffian nature. He did not entirely believe that Li Xian's threats would actually be put into action, so he put on the posture of a dead pig unafraid of boiling water and roared in a mixture of anger and outrage.

"Impudent! Do you really think I wouldn't dare kill you? You little bastard, don't think I don't know what's on your mind. Back then, when you raped Yang Lingyu, was it really for her beauty? Heh, you merely wanted to avenge your mother's murder! You're given face and yet refuse to take it!" Li Xian had long known that Helan Minzhi was extremely troublesome to deal with, but hearing him speak with such arrogance immediately ignited the anger in his heart. He leaped to his feet, reached out with a large hand, grabbed Helan Minzhi by the throat, hoisted him into the air like a little chick, and rebuked him harshly without any courtesy.

"Hiss... hiss..."

Helan Minzhi threw his hands up, desperately trying to pry open Li Xian's grip, but his strength fell miserably short. No matter how hard he tried, he could not shake Li Xian's hand. His legs kicked wildly in the air, leaving only exhalations and no inhalations. His face turned a deep, bruised black, and though he wanted to beg for mercy, he could not open his mouth. Terror caused his pupils to shrink to the size of beans.

"Useless trash!"

Although Li Xian loathed Helan Minzhi, he did not want to kill him right then and there. Seeing that Helan Minzhi was on the verge of suffocating, Li Xian cursed with a cold face and casually tossed him onto the floor.

"Huff, huff, huff..."

Greedily gasping for fresh air, Helan Minzhi stared fixedly at Li Xian with venomous eyes, yet he no longer dared to speak recklessly.

"What? Still thinking of playing along with this prince for now, only to turn around and file a malicious complaint with the Empress Mother? Fine, if that's what you want to do, I'll let you go ahead. Even so, the Empress Mother can't do anything to me. Heh, unless you can hide in the palace for the rest of your life, otherwise..." Completely unbothered by Helan Minzhi's malicious gaze, Li Xian curled his lip in disdain and directly exposed the scheme hidden in Helan Minzhi's heart.

"You, you... Fine, I'll do this task!"

Thinking of how he had been brought here earlier by Li Xian without a sound or shadow, Helan Minzhi naturally knew that Li Xian possessed the absolute ability to take his life. How could he dare to remain stubborn any longer? He could only swallow his defeat in frustration.

"Very good, that's more like it. I'll give you three days. If you fail to accomplish this task, as for the consequences... Heh, you can imagine them yourself. Of course, if the task is successfully completed, I won't be stingy with heavy rewards. I'll give you three thousand strings of cash as remuneration." Li Xian possessed an exceptionally strong ability to read expressions. With just a glance, he knew that Helan Minzhi was now meat on the chopping block and could no longer cause any trouble. Thus, he smiled faintly and dangled a heavy reward as bait.

"Five thousand strings! Anything less won't do!"

Helan Minzhi was an unprincipled villain with a severe greed for money. The moment he heard there was money to be made, his eyes lit up and he shamelessly raised the price by two thousand strings.

*Damn it, what kind of person is this? A guy who wants money more than his life!* Seeing Helan Minzhi perk up the moment money was mentioned, Li Xian could not help but feel between laughter and tears, though he was too lazy to argue with him. Besides, in Li Xian's view, anything that could be bought with money was not a difficult problem. After all, Li Xian's wealth could now rival a nation; though five thousand strings was a lot, Li Xian did not take it to heart. However, considering the discretion of the matter, Li Xian did not directly agree to Helan Minzhi's asking price. Instead, he nodded and said: "Five thousand strings? Very well, but I cannot give it all to you at once. How about this: I will first give you one thousand five hundred strings as a deposit. Once the matter is accomplished, I will give you another one thousand five hundred strings. As for the remaining two thousand strings, that will have to wait until the end of the year to be paid."

"No... Ah, fine, your older brother will take this job!"

Helan Minzhi was just about to object, but seeing Li Xian sweep his gaze over him like a blade, he was so frightened that he hurriedly changed his words.

"Good, I believe cousin can accomplish this matter. Someone come!" Without wasting any more words, Li Xian clapped his hands and called out loudly.

"This subordinate is here!"

As soon as Li Xian's voice fell, a shadow flashed within the room, and the fierce-looking man who had previously escorted Helan Minzhi here stood in a bow before Li Xian.

"Luo Tong, from now on, within three days, you must ensure the safety of Duke Helan without fail!"

Li Xian glanced with satisfaction at the newcomer and gave the deep-voiced command.

"Understood, this subordinate obeys!"

Luo Tong was originally a hero of the jianghu who had later offended the powerful, fallen victim to a frame-up, and nearly died in prison. Fortunately, Li Xian had intervened, allowing him to survive. Having been dispatched to Luoyang two years ago as the head of the action team, he had always been utterly loyal to Li Xian. Hearing this instruction now, he did not ask for the reason, but immediately and without hesitation bowed in assent, then gestured to Helan Minzhi: "Duke Helan, please!"

"Little Seven, your older brother has taken this job. Just wait for your older brother's good news. Farewell!"

Helan Minzhi naturally knew what Li Xian's purpose was in sending Luo Tong along with him, but he did not dare to raise any objections. Putting on a grandiose facade, he dropped those parting words and hurriedly left the room to return to his estate, escorted by Luo Tong.

Li Xian did not see Helan Minzhi off. Instead, he stood expressionless in the room, motionless like a statue...