The added value of the Thousand King Token was simply too immense. Even if he had decided not to use it himself, he couldn't let others plot against it.
This was Uncle Tuo's most genuine thought at the time.
Besides Uncle Tuo himself, only two other people knew about this thought from beginning to end.
They were his two old flames, Yun Jin and Fan Yixin, who were entrusted with the important task of each keeping half of the Thousand King Token.
To say "keeping" was actually a disguised form of gifting without asking.
Of course, they were unaware of each other.
This was because the timing and circumstances under which Uncle Tuo gifted the tokens were completely different.
Both Yun Jin and Fan Yixin, when they received half of the Thousand King Token, naturally assumed that the other half was most likely in Uncle Tuo's possession.
It wasn't until Yun Jin used the Thousand King Token to invite Fan Yixin, Hua Liang, and other old friends to Wenzhou, asking them to jointly deal with me...
That Fan Yixin finally understood the whereabouts of the other half of the Thousand King Token.
At the same time, combining all the information and intelligence she had gathered, she drew a startling and bold inference.
What Yun Jin wanted to do was likely not as simple as revenge!
She most likely intended to use the matter of revenge to find another person among all of us who were connected to Uncle Tuo, someone who held the other half of the Thousand King Token!
And I was the primary suspect!
That was why Fan Yixin spared no effort to unite with Hua Liang to help me.
Because helping me was equivalent to helping herself clear her name.
I wasn't sure how Fan Yixin managed to persuade Hua Liang, but I only knew one thing now.
That was, Yun Jin had indeed set her sights on me!
And Fan Yixin, the true holder of the other half of the Thousand King Token, had completely cleared herself of suspicion.
...
After learning the truth.
When I looked up at Fan Yixin again, to be honest... I no longer knew whether I should thank her or hate her.
If I were to thank her, she used me as a shield. Although it was done openly, using someone is still using them.
But if I were to hate her, without her, given the old and new grievances, Ying Baolin would never have let me off so easily.
Whether I could have survived leaving the room then was completely unknown.
Seeing my expression fluctuate, Fan Yixin suddenly spoke, "Do you want to know why?"
I remained silent but nodded heavily.
"Because... I'm tired!"
Taking a deep breath, Fan Yixin said with a weary expression, "Once you enter the Thousand Gate, it's like sinking into the deep sea; from then on, you can never see the light again!"
"The profession of a gambler, before retiring with a golden basin, as long as you are still sitting at the gambling table, you will always encounter all sorts of dangers!"
"Ming Tai's death surprised me, angered me, and also made me very fearful!"
After a pause, Fan Yixin's tone shifted, and she suddenly asked, "A tangential question, judging by my appearance alone, do I look like I'm only in my early thirties?"
Upon hearing this, I nodded noncommittally.
"Heh heh~" After a wry smile, Fan Yixin sighed softly, "Actually, I'm already forty-three!"
"The reason I dress myself up meticulously and beautifully every day is because I'm afraid that if one day I capsize in a ditch, and can't escape my fate..."
"At least, I won't die so unattractively!"
"I am old, no longer young!"
"The martial world belongs to you rising stars!"
"I no longer want to be involved in the benefits and disputes of the Thousand Gate's blue path! Especially the matter of the Thousand King Token!"
"No matter what Ming Tai's intention was when he gave me half of the Thousand King Token back then, now, at this very moment... I don't want to have any more entanglement with it!"
"Therefore, take this half of the Thousand King Token!"
"At the same time, I can point out all of Ming Tai's enemies from the past in this circle for you!"
"This is all I can do. As for my request..."
"It's that I hope you can, at the appropriate time, let Yun Jin know that you have the other half of the Thousand King Token."
"Don't blame me for being heartless; if one doesn't look out for oneself, heaven and earth will destroy them! I have to plan for my own future."
"Moreover, I was with Ming Tai for a short time, and he was a man who didn't like to be bound by emotions."
"During the months I was with him, there were never a shortage of women around him."
"This relationship was already very brief, and now that he's dead, I'm not going to die for him, am I?"
When a person dies, the lamp goes out; when a person leaves, the tea cools.
The meaning of these eight characters was vividly embodied in Fan Yixin.
Originally, I thought she had traveled all the way to Wenzhou out of her past affection for Uncle Tuo, to avenge him.
Turns out she wanted to quickly get rid of the half of the Thousand King Token she held, like a ticking time bomb!
Putting aside the right or wrong of emotional matters, she had at least fought alongside Uncle Tuo. I could accept Fan Yixin's actions, but it was difficult to agree with them.
However, it didn't matter.
The path of avenging Uncle Tuo was one I was forging ahead alone.
It was no loss to me that others were unwilling to participate.
With this thought, after my expression returned to normal, I didn't say anything harsh. Instead, I directly reached out and took the half of the Thousand King Token.
Seeing this, Fan Yixin immediately fulfilled her promise and revealed the names and identities of several people who had been enemies with Uncle Tuo without reservation.
Although she added two more names, the most crucial one, the person who stood opposite Uncle Tuo in the off-the-books gambling match in '99...
This woman, Fan Yixin, chose the same approach as Helian Shan back then.
Not only did she remain tight-lipped, but she also cryptically hinted to me that before I could reach Ying Baolin's level, it would be best not to meddle with that enemy!
This kind of evasiveness at a critical moment was very much like those scenes in movies and TV shows where the protagonist's family members, before dying, would repeatedly instruct the protagonist...
Do not easily provoke XXX until your strength reaches XXX.
...
After seeing Fan Yixin off, I quietly put the half of the Thousand King Token back into the envelope and hid it close to my body.
It was safer to carry something that concerned my life and fortune with me.
Next, I took out my phone and called Cheng Minglang, asking him to bring Han Jinlun to the room Fan Yixin had vacated for me to meet.
There was no time to study the Thousand King Token now. After Fan Yixin's revelation, I had to re-examine Hua Liang.
It was true that Hua Liang was Uncle Tuo's former teammate, but I had noticed earlier that the way he looked at Fan Yixin in secret seemed to contain a gaze filled with romantic affection.
If Hua Liang chose to help me out of consideration for Fan Yixin...
Then, after I reached an agreement with Fan Yixin, Hua Liang, having received the hint, might not necessarily continue to protect me.
Therefore, before the cruise ship docked, I had to rely on myself to devise a complete plan to escape...