The evil king and his black-clothed subordinate arrived at the side hall. He flicked his robe and leaned casually on the chair.
"Speak, what is it?"
The black-clothed subordinate knelt on one knee and reported the latest news he had investigated to the evil king.
"Su Cheng was rescued by Gu Qianying. The two of them went to the Yan residence to inquire about Wang Hu's situation. Su Cheng even gave Gu Qianying iris flowers on the street, and their behavior was ambiguous. Later, Gu Qianying and Su Cheng went together to the dungeon where Murong Yun held Ouyang Qinglin and rescued him."
The evil king sat up slightly upon hearing his subordinate say that the real Ouyang Qinglin had been rescued by Gu Qianying and the other. He continued to listen.
"It is estimated that Gu Qianying and the others had already confirmed that Wang Hu, impersonating Ouyang Qinglin, was fake when they went to the Yan residence. After Gu Qianying, Su Cheng, and Ouyang Qinglin returned to the inn, they directly questioned Wang Hu and exposed his identity."
The evil king was furious. He had finally found Wang Hu and trained him to resemble Ouyang Qinglin even more, only for him to be exposed after just a few days.
"This useless wretch, how can he be so incompetent! All my efforts to cultivate him were in vain! Damn it! Damn it!"
He slammed his hand on the chair, unwilling to accept the cost of his efforts over the years. With that single blow, he smashed the sturdy armrest of the chair to pieces!
The evil king's eyes were deep as he commanded his black-clothed subordinate, "Wang Hu cannot be kept any longer. All information about him must also be erased."
The subordinate lowered his head and acknowledged, "Yes, I will attend to it immediately."
However, just as the black-clothed subordinate turned to leave, a crashing sound came from the doorway.
The evil king and his subordinate immediately became alert and flew to the entrance of the side hall.
Standing at the doorway was Gu Yi, holding a food container. His thin lips parted, and his expression was filled with shock and disbelief.
Earlier, in the small courtyard, Gu Yi had been slowly eating the meal prepared by the evil king's subordinates.
But he remembered that the evil king had been busy handling affairs even before finishing his meal, and even while eating in the courtyard, he had mostly been serving Gu Yi.
Gu Yi felt a little embarrassed, so he put down his chopsticks, took a food container from inside, and placed some dishes into it. He thought of bringing it to the busy evil king, so that he would have warm food to eat after he finished working.
Since the evil king had gone to the side hall to handle matters, Gu Yi walked towards the side hall with the food container.
Unexpectedly, as soon as he reached the doorway, he heard the evil king's scolding from inside.
Listening to the conversation between the two inside the hall, Gu Yi suddenly understood everything.
It turned out that the evil king was secretly causing trouble from behind the scenes. Bringing him along this time was not out of genuine desire to help find his sister, but rather to facilitate his various plans and actions with his subordinates.
While Gu Yi was still in shock and disbelief, the evil king's subordinate had already received orders to leave the side hall.
He had no time to hide, and his flustered movements caused the dishes in the food container to collide. This impact alerted the evil king and his subordinate that someone was outside the door.
Thus, Gu Yi, who was outside the hall, was caught red-handed.
Seeing Gu Yi's expression, the evil king felt a surge of panic.
He was extremely worried that Gu Yi would become estranged from him after learning about his clandestine actions.
So, he quickly spoke to Gu Yi, explaining his actions and words: "Gu Yi, listen to me, it's not what you heard."
Gu Yi, however, felt a knot in his heart. He didn't want to see the evil king for the moment and was unwilling to be deceived by him again.
"There's no need to say anything more. I knew I shouldn't have trusted you easily, you wicked person who speaks nonsense."
The evil king waved his hand, signaling his subordinate to leave, not wanting anyone to witness their argument. The subordinate immediately retreated as the evil king gestured.
Hearing Gu Yi's words, the evil king's heart was severely pricked: "I am a wicked person? Gu Yi, others can say that, but you have no right!"
Gu Yi sneered and forcefully threw the food container onto the ground. The wooden food container, upon touching the stone floor, was no match for the impact. The box immediately shattered, and the dishes inside were also thrown out, scattering the food all over the ground. This mess on the ground was exactly like the shattered hearts of the two.
He continued to speak while shaking his head, "Was it I who begged you to treat me well? Evil King, please begin your endless stream of lies and explanations!"
Hearing Gu Yi's sarcastic tone, the evil king felt even more distressed, as if he were being held over a fire and tormented by Gu Yi.
"Apart from this matter, I have hidden nothing else from you. After all the time we've spent together, don't you understand my sincerity?"
Gu Yi continued to shake his head, looking at the black-clothed man before him, whose features were familiar but whose demeanor was now utterly strange, his voice filled with despair.
"Hiding my sister's whereabouts is sincerity? Secretly harming my sister is sincerity?"
The evil king was stumped by Gu Yi's two consecutive questions. He opened his beautiful lips blankly, unsure how to explain these two points.
Seeing the evil king's reaction, Gu Yi's disappointment grew even more. However, he still wanted to give the evil king a chance to explain, so he asked, "Why did you bring me here but not let me see my sister?"
The evil king knew that he could no longer weave more lies to cover up this one, as it would only incur more annoyance from Gu Yi.
So, he revealed his true thoughts: "I wanted to spend more time with you. These past few days, because of Gu Qianying's matter, your attitude towards me has been very good, and I was reluctant to change this situation."
After speaking, the evil king took two steps closer to Gu Yi, allowing him to see the sincerity in his eyes.
Gu Yi, however, was very dissatisfied with this explanation: "Just because of this, you made me worry about my sister's safety every day? Fine, if you don't let me see her, I'll find her myself!"
With that, Gu Yi turned and tried to run towards the main gate of the courtyard, to escape the evil king's sphere of influence.
Seeing Gu Yi's action, the evil king immediately exerted his strength, flashing forward to block Gu Yi's path.
"Be good, don't go yet. I promise you, my subordinates will not endanger your sister's life. I know you want to see Gu Qianying. In another day or two, I will take you, okay?"
The evil king thought that this compromise and gentle words would make Gu Yi obey him, but he did not expect that Gu Yi, who was already enraged, would not comply. On the contrary, his attempt to delay Gu Yi's meeting with his sister only further angered Gu Yi.
"No need for the evil king to go to such trouble, I can find her myself. I want to see Gu Qianying now!"
Gu Yi pushed the evil king away and took a step forward.
The evil king, caught off guard, was easily pushed aside. He stumbled back a few steps, his posture somewhat disheveled. He knew that reasoning with Gu Yi now was useless.
To prevent Gu Yi from acting impulsively, he suddenly moved behind Gu Yi and swung his palm, using his hand like a blade, to knock out Gu Yi, who was in a fit of anger.
The evil king reached out and caught Gu Yi, whose body had gone limp. Looking at his no longer agitated face, he whispered, "If only you could always be this quiet and well-behaved, my Gu Yi."
Then, holding Gu Yi in his arms, he carried him back to the bedroom in the small courtyard.