Qin Heng exclaimed, slapping his thigh with a dramatic flair: "So, that’s why brother-in-law called me to ride horses, he must have listened to my elder sister’s pillow talk."

Qin Yuan: "..."

Xiao Dong was displeased and mocked: "If it weren’t for your sister, would the Marquis even know who you are?"

Qin Heng glanced at Xiao Dong, responding irritably: "I was merely speaking my mind. Being Dingbei Marquis’s little brother-in-law, others would want this title but don’t have the chance."

Xiao Dong pouted angrily, refusing to speak.

Qin Yuan chided: "You talk too much, don’t think you can just brush it all off with nonsensical chatter and fool us."

Si Yuan also chimed in: "Yes, younger sister is right. The Xu family isn’t someone a child like you can handle, you haven’t even known Xu Tang for long, yet you’ve already picked up the ways of the common folk in speech and action."

Gu Baoshu glared, shaking her fist.

"If you don’t explain clearly, don’t blame me for not supporting you. Not only will I not assist you, but I’ll also sabotage you."

Realizing the situation, Qin Heng quickly gave up resisting and pleaded softly: "It’s nothing much, I just thought without entering the tiger’s den, how can one capture the tiger cub? I hang out with Xu Tang to keep an eye on him and prevent him from causing trouble behind our backs while we remain ignorant. Today, I hid in the shadows to avoid letting the Xu family know I’m aware."

His words were quite convoluted. 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

But everyone understood—Qin Heng was playing dumb while secretly mingling with the Xu Family to gather intel.

Si Yuan looked puzzled, staring at him: "Xu Tang likely wants to drag you down so the Qins would suffer damage, how could you possibly gather useful information?"

Qin Heng puffed out his chest: "Who said I can’t? Xu Tang wants to drag me down, he’s trapped in the palace and can’t get out easily. Inevitably, he’ll have people around him recruit me, trying to win me over. Over time, I’ll naturally learn his secrets. Furthermore, his interactions with my second brother-in-law won’t escape my notice. Otherwise, how would I know those people are from the Xu family?"

"Ziqi..." Si Yuan hesitated.

Qin Yuan sneered: "He’s quite adept at finding people, now feeling sour comparing himself with our cousin, he joined in probably with ulterior motives."

"I see it the same way, but second sister disagrees. She thinks we’re always suspecting Xu Tang of bad intentions, saying Xu Tang and his sister have had a hard life being reliant on others since childhood. She told me not to look down on commoners like our parents, said if I don’t study harder, in the future, I might end up like Xu Tang, or even worse. Xu Tang is exceptional at kicking balls and is an in-law of King Jin Mansion, favored by the Emperor, probably destined to rise. Even second brother-in-law praises him, advising me to associate with him and hopefully share in his spotlight."

Qin Heng shook his head and sighed as he spoke.

Resembling Qin Jijiu’s regular disappointment in him.

Qin Yuan, slightly amused, asked: "Did you tell your second sister?"

Qin Heng immediately replied: "I know my boundaries, how could I tell second sister? She’d probably sell me out to second brother-in-law. I merely hinted it lightly, but instead of speaking of second brother-in-law, she lectured me."

The more Qin Heng spoke, the more emotional he became: "Mother was right, second sister’s heart is completely captivated by her in-law’s family, even when they fart, it’s fragrant in her eyes, while we, her own family, mean nothing to her."

Clearly, his fragile little heart had been hurt deeply by Qin Wan.

Qin Yuan couldn’t be bothered with their sibling squabbles, asked: "Xu Tang is close to your second brother-in-law, do you know what they talk about?"

Qin Heng frowned, "Not much, just stirring things up, hyping second brother-in-law’s talent, and mentioning how Si Yuan is increasingly favored by the Holy Emperor, alongside Young Master Nantang, gaining fame. The more he speaks, the worse second brother-in-law’s expression gets. Sometimes, they speak privately avoiding me."

There’s not much said.

Qin Yuan glanced at Qin Heng.

The hardest thing for people is self-awareness.

So people often say, having self-knowledge is a commendable trait.

Lin Ziqi always felt immensely talented, with depth and vision.

In his words—he was learned in a wealth of knowledge, a belly full of poetry, like a sharp awl waiting for the chance to be bagged.

Jade Spring Pond was his carefully planned opportunity to shine, Si Yuan was merely called upon as an extra, unexpectedly gaining fame.

Watching someone who was inferior surpass him, the bottled-up grievance often turns into resentment, easily provoked into action.

Xu Tang already made it obvious he wanted to use Lin Ziqi against Qin Siyuan.

Si Yuan reflected, "I’ll just distance myself from them in the future."

This "them" naturally included Lin Ziqi.

Qin Heng said: "I think second brother-in-law also wants to use Xu Tang to get to know some big figures, Xu Tang is now quite influential among the royal relatives."

Si Yuan smiled silently.

Lin Ziqi envies his opportunity to shine in front of the Emperor, having such thoughts is normal, however, the Xu family harbors ill intent and is close to Lin Ziqi.

It’s better to stay away.

But these words aren’t easy to speak directly to Qin Heng.

Xiao Dong said: "My mentor often says the clear spear is easy to dodge, dark arrows are hard to avoid, Mr. Qin must be careful when coming and going in the future. If they seize the chance when you’re alone, sabotage you, even getting locked up briefly in the Military Department prison, you’d still come out eventually."

"Would Xu Tang stoop so low?"

Qin Heng looked completely disbelieving.

Xiao Dong impatiently rolled his eyes: "So what do you think Xu Tang intends to do? And what can he do?"

"This... this..."

At this moment, Qin Heng lost trust not just in Xu Tang, but also in second brother-in-law. Yet, thinking of them as vile is not something he’s willing to accept.

Xiao Dong coldly snorted, "Why stick with someone like Xu Tang then? He could harm people right under your nose, you’d likely even make excuses for him. Lord Sacrificial Officer is worried you’ll get stuck in the mud and unable to escape, truly understanding the concern of a father for his son."

Si Yuan said: "You’re still young, even the smartest can inevitably be manipulated, this was originally my issue, dragging you into it isn’t right, if something goes wrong, how can I face uncle in the future?"

Xu Zhen is missing, both the Xu family and Marquis Mansion are in turmoil.

If Qin Heng strayed because of him, that’d pose significant trouble.

Brother Kang immediately said: "Yes, my uncle’s family is indeed formidable."

Surrounded by everyone’s comments, Qin Heng looked pitifully at Qin Yuan: "Big sister, say something."

Qin Yuan laughed, "What should I say? I’ve already sent a letter home, you wouldn’t listen, do you expect me to speak on your behalf? Father can’t hold you back, it’s even less likely I can. Just hope you think things through before acting, don’t underestimate Xu Tang or think too highly of yourself, if things seem wrong, make a swift retreat, perhaps it’ll save you a lot of trouble."