People in the Qin Dynasty sought good fortune and avoided misfortune.

Chapter 438, A Bad Choice of Friends Leads to a Brighter Future
As the sun sets, the evening glow paints the sky like red grapes.

The golden sunset cast its glow upon Mount Taiyi, shrouding it in ethereal mist. The majestic Taiyi Palace gained an air of solemnity and grandeur, resembling a celestial palace high above the heavens.

"Junior Uncle." "Uncle."

"Ah."

Disciples from both the Heavenly Sect and the Human Sect greeted Xu Qing, and Xu Qing nodded slightly in response to the greetings.

After leaving Taiyi Palace, Xu Qing rubbed his shoulders, feeling a little tired. Despite his exhaustion, a satisfied smile appeared on his face as he thought about what he had gained that day.

Today, he visited a total of twenty-two sects from the Hundred Schools, eighteen of which either explicitly decided to join Qin or expressed their intention to join Qin.

As for the remaining four families, they either harbored great hatred for the Qin state or were unable to enter Qin for other reasons.

"Eighteen schools are quite a lot; at least they can support the framework of the Qin Academy. But the most crucial thing is to bring Confucianism into Qin."

Xu Qing stretched his shoulders, looking at the golden sunset on the horizon, his eyes sparkling with anticipation.

After glancing at the disciples filing into the Taiyi Palace behind him, Xu Qing turned and headed towards his residence. After walking along a mountain path, he returned to the courtyard of his residence.

The once deserted courtyard gate was now filled with more than twenty people. Most of them were dressed in black tight-fitting clothes, their hair was tied up with simple black ropes, and swords hung at their waists. Xu Qing was naturally familiar with these people. Not only in Taiyi Mountain, but even in the entire martial arts world, only the Mo family had people dressed like this.

Standing at the front of the crowd were none other than the Six-Fingered Black Knight in a black straw hat and Han Shen with a serious expression.

"Why is the Mo family coming to see me at this time? Is it to offer congratulations, or is it about Ji Dan?"

Xu Qing stood still, glanced at the Mo family members, and fell into deep thought.

Although he was either in seclusion to cultivate his Dao or trying to win over the various schools of thought for the Qin state during this time, Taiyi Mountain was only so big. Even if Xu Qing didn't deliberately inquire, he could still hear about some things from other people.

Of all these events, the one that has attracted the most discussion is the fact that the Mohists and Prince Ji Dan of Yan came to Mount Taiyi together. With the deliberate push of certain people, the outside world felt that the Mohists seemed to be supporting Prince Ji Dan, so that the Mohists could return to the court.

Others may not know the relationship between the Mohists and Ji Dan, but Xu Qing knows it very well. As the ambitious Crown Prince of Yan, Ji Dan, in order to expand his power and control the Yan state, intentionally or unintentionally made contact with the Mohists when he was a hostage in Handan.

Later, upon returning to the State of Yan, he, as the crown prince, extensively befriended disciples of the Mohist school, portraying himself as a chivalrous ruler perfectly aligned with the spirit of the Mohists.

However, all of this was a performance by Ji Dan to achieve his own ambitions. When Fei Yan cast the Six-Soul Curse on Six-Fingered Black Knight, it was Ji Dan's scheme behind it.

After the death of the Six-Fingered Black Knight, Ji Dan instigated Jing Ke's assassination attempt on the King of Qin. After Jing Ke's assassination failed, Han Shen entered the Qin palace to see Gongsun Liji. In order to fulfill his promise to Gongsun Liji, he died in battle to protect Jing Tianming from leaving Xianyang. Thus, Ji Dan naturally became the Grand Master of the Mohist School.

It was precisely because of Ji Dan that the Mohist school went from being one of the two prominent schools of thought alongside the Confucian school, known for their black-and-white views, to becoming a terrorist organization, even leading to the destruction of the Mohist Mechanical City, which the Mohist school had spent three hundred years building.

Based on his understanding of Ji Dan from the original novel, Xu Qing was quite certain that the Six-Fingered Black Knight had come to find him at this time because of Ji Dan's entry into Qin as a hostage.

"Ji Dan is still the same Ji Dan, ambitious and ruthless in achieving her goals."

After a moment of reflection, Xu Qing continued walking towards Six-Fingered Black Knight and the others. Since the Mo family had come knocking on his door, how could he possibly refuse to see them?
Six-Fingered Black Knight and his companions stood outside the courtyard gate, watching Xu Qing walk over from not far away. They all perked up, and Six-Fingered Black Knight even took off his black straw hat.

"Master, Commander Han Shen, members of the Mohist school, what brings you all here at this hour?" Xu Qing greeted everyone with a smile.

"I apologize for disturbing the Imperial Physician so abruptly," said the Six-Fingered Black Knight, bowing respectfully.

"Greetings to the Imperial Physician."

Han Shen and the other Mohist disciples bowed to Xu Qing in unison, while Dao Zhi in the crowd secretly sized up Xu Qing, his eyes full of curiosity.

"How could that be? You're being too polite, Master. I'm overjoyed that you've come to see me. I apologize for the poor hospitality I received during my previous seclusion to cultivate the Dao."

Xu Qing maintained a peaceful smile on his face, appearing unpretentious and like a carefree knight-errant, which made the Mo family members look at him with even greater warmth.

"Don't wait outside, everyone. Come inside with me."

Xu Qing grabbed the arm of the Six-Fingered Black Knight and invited the Mo family members to his home.

"There's no need to go in and rest. I came to see the Imperial Physician today to say goodbye. There have been some internal matters within my Mo family that I urgently need to return to handle, so I have to go down the mountain ahead of schedule."

Six-Fingered Black Knight removed Xu Qing's hand and said with a somewhat solemn expression.

Looking at the serious yet anxious expressions on the faces of Six-Fingered Black Knight and Han Shen, Xu Qing couldn't help but wonder what could have prompted Six-Fingered Black Knight to lead the Mo family and others down the mountain overnight to return to Yan State? Could it be that the Yin-Yang School launched an attack on the Mo family from Jieshi Palace?

"Is it that serious that the Grand Master needs to lead the Mohist brothers back overnight?"

Xu Qing also put away her smile and said with some worry.

“The matter is very serious, otherwise I wouldn’t have come to say goodbye so suddenly. This matter concerns the safety of my Mo family, so I can only wait until the Imperial Physician has the opportunity to go to Yan State another day, and then I will properly entertain you,” said Six-Fingered Black Knight.

“If that’s the case, then Master, you can lead your men down the mountain. I’ll go and arrange for my disciples to prepare fast horses for you.” Xu Qing nodded and said.

"That won't be necessary. I've already spoken with Master Chisongzi and Master Qilunzi, and Tianzong has prepared fast horses for us. On behalf of the Mo family, I thank the Imperial Physician and Tianzong," said Six-Fingered Black Knight, bowing.

Looking at the Six-Fingered Black Knight's appearance, Xu Qing also felt a little doubtful, wondering if he had guessed wrong before.

Perhaps the Six-Fingered Black Knight came to him only to say goodbye, rather than being misled by Ji Dan to come to him hoping that he could provide Ji Dan with some protection in Xianyang so that she wouldn't suffer a terrible fate.

"Please be careful on your return journey, Ju Zi. If you need anything from me, you can send someone to Taiyi Mountain to let me know," Xu Qing said.

A glint flashed in the eyes of the Six-Fingered Black Knight, followed by a feeling of shame. Xu Qing had treated the Mo family as friends, not as benefactors.

If he were to bring up Ji Dan's matter again at this point, it would make it seem as if the Mo family was not sincere in its treatment of friends.

"I do have something I'd like to discuss with the Imperial Physician."

After hesitating for a moment, Six-Fingered Black Knight suppressed his shame and spoke.

This is a rare opportunity for the Mohist school, and he is unwilling to give it up so easily. If the Mohist school can truly return to the imperial court, he will definitely remember Xu Qing's kindness and repay him doubly.

"As expected, it's all about Ji Dan. What kind of spell did Ji Dan cast on Six-Fingered Black Knight to get him to go to such lengths?"

Upon hearing Six-Fingered Black Knight's words, Xu Qing shook his head helplessly, sighed inwardly, and then asked with an unchanged expression.
"What is it? If you need anything, please just say so. There's no need to hide anything from me."

"Please follow me."

Six-Fingered Black Knight gestured for Xu Qing to follow him to the stream in front of him.

"Actually, I do have something to trouble the Imperial Physician with. My Mohist school is based in the Yan state, so we have no choice but to deal with Yan. The Crown Prince of Yan has always been close to and respectful of my Mohist school. Now that he has come to Qin as a hostage, he hopes to meet with you before heading to Xianyang."

Six-Fingered Black Knight looked at Xu Qing and sighed helplessly.

As the Six-Fingered Black Knight spoke, he glanced unintentionally at the clear stream and saw his reflection being disturbed by several small fish. He felt a strange unease and quickly looked away.

Just as Xu Qing was about to reply to Six-Fingered Black Knight, the ball of light in his mind lit up again, and two fortune sticks flew out from it.

[A moderately auspicious sign. Things may not bloom despite your efforts, but unexpected opportunities may arise. Ji Dan is not seen. Depart for Nanyang tomorrow afternoon. Things will turn around, your wishes will be fulfilled, and you may obtain a third-rank opportunity. A minor auspicious sign.]

[A medium-to-low fortune. Choosing friends poorly is like entering a fish market; you become desensitized to the stench over time. Meeting Ji Dan is like being caught in the crossfire, bringing harm upon yourself. You may obtain a fourth-rank opportunity, but it's a minor misfortune.]

Looking at the two fortune sticks in her mind, Xu Qing swallowed back the words she was about to say.

If Six-Fingered Black Knight really came for Ji Dan, Xu Qing originally planned to meet him. Firstly, it would allow Six-Fingered Black Knight to owe him another favor, and secondly, it would allow him to get closer to this Prince Yan and see if there was a chance to get rid of him.

However, the results of the draw made Xu Qing change her mind.

The saying "When the city gate catches fire, the fish in the moat suffer, and the disaster extends to oneself" makes it very clear. Ji Dan is a jinx that cannot be touched; anyone who gets close to him will mainly bring trouble upon themselves.

However, compared to the second half of the sentence, Xu Qing was more concerned about the part about making friends unwisely.

Does this mean he made a bad choice of friends, or that Six-Fingered Black Knight made a bad choice of friends? Or does it mean that after meeting Ji Dan, he would make this bad friend?
Suppressing his doubts for the time being, Xu Qing glanced at the Six-Fingered Black Knight, whose expression was somewhat complicated. He valued the Mo family as a friend, and even if he had to refuse, he couldn't refuse openly. So he spoke.

“Your Majesty, I have also heard about the matter of the Crown Prince of Yan being sent to Qin as a hostage. The Crown Prince of Yan and my King of Qin were good friends when we were in Handan. Now Your Majesty invites him to Qin as a hostage, firstly to consolidate the friendship between Qin and Yan, and secondly to commemorate our friendship.”

“I know that the Crown Prince of Yan has some concerns, but he is coming to Qin on behalf of the State of Yan. Regardless of his past friendship with Your Majesty, and considering the relationship between Qin and Yan, my State of Qin will treat him well.”

After saying that, Xu Qing silently added in his mind, "They've already sent Ji Dan to find the white-faced crow and the horned horse. Doesn't that indirectly show permission for Ji Dan's freedom of movement? Isn't that preferential treatment?"
(End of this chapter)