Hearing the voice, Xie Xiu narrowed his eyes slightly.
He looked at Xie Jingchu seriously, his face full of suspicion. "What do you mean?"
Ruan Jiu couldn't help laughing. "Fourth Master is praising you for your excellent acting."
"Miss Biao, it's this critical moment. How can you still laugh?" Xu Qing said anxiously.
Didn't Ruan Jiu realize that they were about to be imprisoned?
What should they do!
It was said that the wood - shed was full of snakes, insects, rats, and ants, which was extremely creepy!
"Xie Jingchu, don't think you're still the Fourth Master Xie. Now that your only bargaining chip is gone, let's see how you can fight me!" Xie Xiu said angrily.
But Xie Jingchu wasn't in a hurry. He propped his head up and curled his lips into a smile. "Xie Xiu, haven't you ever wondered why there have been no guards in the mansion for all these years?"
Hearing this, Xie Xiu was stunned.
Yes, the Xie family was a wealthy merchant family in the south of the Yangtze River, with countless gold and silver treasures.
But the mansion had never raised any guards for protection.
Thinking of this, a look of panic flashed across Xie Xiu's eyes.
Holding onto the last shred of hope, he said, "That's because you never thought this day would come!"
"Oh? Really?" Xie Jingchu looked playful.
Xie Jingchu slowly stood up and walked towards Xie Xiu step by step.
Xie Xiu took several steps back and stammered, "What... What are you going to do?"
Xie Jingchu pointed at the guards in the room and then asked Xie Xiu, "You just clapped your hands, and then they came in, right?"
"Xie Jingchu, don't think you can buy them over!" Xie Xiu snorted.
He had promised these people that after the matter was successful, he would give them a generous reward, allowing them to live a worry - free life for the rest of their lives.
Xie Jingchu waved his finger. "No, I just want you to see what will happen when I clap my hands."
After saying that, Xie Jingchu raised his eyebrows and then clapped his hands.
Just then, a group of black - clothed men suddenly dropped from the sky and landed neatly in the yard. Each of them held a sharp sword in their hands.
Looking around, the rooftops across were densely filled with them.
Taking a closer look, those black - clothed men all held bows and arrows in their hands, aiming at the room.
Seeing this, Xie Xiu immediately froze, his face full of shock.
Shen Tang's pupils dilated slightly. She shrank in panic behind Xie Xiu and anxiously asked, "Husband, where did these people come from?"
Xie Xiu frowned, his expression solemn.
How could he have known that Xie Jingchu had this trump card up his sleeve!
Xie Jingchu raised his eyebrows and smiled. "Tsk, it seems my secret guards are more powerful."
As soon as he said this, the guards in the room immediately panicked.
How could their wooden sticks compete with the sharp swords in the hands of those black - clothed men!
Seeing the intention to retreat in the guards' eyes, Xie Xiu immediately exclaimed, "If you surrender now, Xie Jingchu won't spare you! Hurry! Capture Xie Jingchu first!"
The guards looked panicked.
Weren't they just trying to earn some silver?
How did it become a situation where they were doomed either way!
Suddenly, one of the guards gritted his teeth and said viciously, "Fourth Master, I'm sorry!"
He didn't want to die!
Taking a chance might still give him a glimmer of hope!
"Fine, then let's see if you want to die alone or let your whole family die with you." A strange smile appeared on Xie Jingchu's lips.
The guard's hand that was holding the wooden stick froze in mid - air, his eyes full of horror.
This meant sacrificing the lives of his whole family!
Then, all the guards in the room successively threw away their wooden sticks.
They knelt on the ground, constantly begging Xie Jingchu for mercy.
At this point, Xie Xiu knew that he was now like a fish on the chopping block.
He instantly lost all his strength, and the family head seal in his hand fell to the ground as his hands drooped.
His legs went weak, and his body couldn't hold on any longer. He slumped to the ground, his eyes empty.
Xie Jingchu stepped forward, crossed his arms, and looked down at Xie Xiu who was sitting on the ground.
He sneered, "It seems you won't be the head of the Xie family."
Seeing this, Xie Jing beside him finally let out a sigh of relief.
Xie Wen leaned over and whispered in Xie Jing's ear, "I think Fourth Brother just disdained to compete with you before. Look at his secret guards. They could kill you as easily as crushing an ant."
After hearing this, Xie Jing wiped the sweat from his forehead and nervously swallowed his saliva.
He had been too self - assured.
If Xie Jingchu had been a bit more despicable, his tombstone would probably have been overgrown with grass long ago.
In the end, the old master of the Xie family was completely disappointed in Xie Xiu. He gritted his teeth and removed Xie Xiu and Xie Yanzhou from the family genealogy.
From then on, the three of them had nothing to do with the Xie family.
After a moment, only Xie Jingchu and Xie Xiu were left in the main hall.
Xie Xiu sneered. "You've won."
"I never thought of competing with you for victory or defeat." Xie Jingchu frowned.
"Of course you can say that! From childhood to adulthood, you've always been the center of attention. Even though your background was unknown, Father still doted on you.
But what about me?
Just because my mother was a lowly maid, Father also despised me. Father never even gave Zhou'er a second look!
But what did I do wrong! What did Zhou'er do wrong!"
After hearing this, Xie Jingchu took a deep breath and said in a calm voice, "Then I'll tell you why.
You said you weren't loved by Father since childhood. But have you ever thought about what you've done all these years!
The tabby cat that Eldest Brother loved the most was strangled to death by you, wasn't it?
And when Second Brother was taking the provincial examination, he almost missed it because he overslept. That was also your doing, wasn't it?"
Hearing Xie Jingchu list his past misdeeds one by one, Xie Xiu couldn't help but widen his eyes. "How do you know?"
Xie Jingchu sneered. "Do you think you hid it well? But Father knew all about these things you did!"
"What?" Xie Xiu exclaimed.
His eyes were full of disbelief as he shook his head repeatedly. "No, if Father knew, how could he..."
How could he still tolerate him?
Actually, Xie Jingchu didn't know about these things at first.
Once, after he saw that the Third Branch was living in poverty, he suggested to the old master to give Xie Xiu a few shops to subsidize the family expenses of the Third Branch.
After careful consideration, the old master told him that Xie Xiu had been dark - minded since childhood. Once he had other ideas, the Xie family would be in chaos.
But out of family affection, the old master didn't drive Xie Xiu out of the mansion.
But he would never give Xie Xiu any hope either.
Xie Jingchu continued, "Actually, Father gave you many chances.
You always complained about Father's unfairness, but you never thought that you had ruined all this with your own hands.
Third Brother, you're being foolish!"
That was all he had to say.
The family affection ended here.
In this internal strife among the high - ranking families, there was no winner.
But Xie Xiu must be the biggest loser.
After leaving the Xie family, he would surely have a hard time in the future.
Xie Jingchu let out a long sigh and cast a final glance at Xie Xiu with downcast eyes.
Then he flicked his sleeve and left.
Xie Xiu watched Xie Jingchu's departing back, his expression pained.
That call of "Third Brother" seemed to awaken Xie Xiu's last bit of conscience.
But so what?
They could never go back to the past.