Chapter 72: Trouble Again

  Qin Yu Xian stepped forward with a gentle pace, neither too fast nor too slow.

  Qin Hao followed behind, his expression seemingly natural, but his heart was racing with anxiety. He felt his throat dry and his tongue bitter, wanting to say something, but opening his mouth for a while only made him feel like there was a lead block stuck in his throat.

  "Yu Xian." Qin Hao choked for a while before finally getting the words out.

  "Hmm." Qin Yuxian's slender eyebrows furrowed slightly, and she tilted her head to the side. Her delicate face was as calm as a still well, but occasionally, a cold glint seemed to flash in her piercing eyes, which sparkled with an unnerving intensity.

  "I said, that was an accident just now." Qin Hao dryly laughed and said in a weak tone: "That thing isn't mine, it was given to me by someone else, I accidentally opened it."

  "What does it have to do with me?"

  A few petals floated down and gently landed on Qin Yuxian's raven-black hair. Standing under the shade of the tree, Qin Yuxian half-turned her body, brushing off the petals to one side. Her slender fingers swept across a strand of hair by her ear, revealing a corner of her sparkling and lovely earlobe.

  Her voice was soft and gentle, like a summer breeze that lightly swept across people's hearts, making them feel a little itchy. But if you paid attention, you could discover that her eyes were as cold as winter, with icy blades flashing in and out of them.

  "Hehe, hehe......" Qin Hao scratched his head, laughing awkwardly.

  He had been coughing for half a day and still hadn't managed to bring anything up. He really didn't know what else to say. He was also somewhat puzzled, this kind of thing shouldn't be a big deal, right? At his current age of almost sixteen, nearing adulthood, occasionally flipping through these things wasn't unusual either.

  Besides, he is also a victim, and this whole thing should be blamed on that evil fat man from start to finish.

  Just looking at Xiaoyuan's expression now, whatever he says next will definitely make people feel sorry for him from the bottom of their hearts.

  "Is there anything else?" Yu Xian glanced at him sideways, with a hint of a smile.

  "No, absolutely not." Qin Hao's answer was extremely concise and decisive, without even a moment of hesitation.

  "Let's keep going then, don't let Father wait for too long." Turning around, he continued to walk forward at a steady pace. Qin Hao reluctantly followed behind him with a sullen expression.

  Along the way, many people saw the siblings and took the initiative to greet them. Qin Hao nodded in response, but Qin Yuxian's expression was somewhat cold and intimidating. Along the way, when Qin Shan and Qin Ze saw Qin Hao, they also wanted to come forward, but after seeing the person in front of Qin Hao, they stopped in their tracks and abruptly retreated to continue practicing martial arts.

  "Hey, have you noticed that Young Master Qin Hao looks a bit strange?" A guard from the clan whispered to the person beside him.

  "Is there? I don't feel that way." Another person looked at Qin Hao's back and reminisced for a while, shaking his head: "I can't tell, it seems no different from usual."

  "Don't you think so? The smile on his face is quite fake." The previous speaker asserted.

  "Really?"

  "Right, very fake." The guard nodded and drew a conclusion that was more affirmative than ever.

  The two thought they had lowered their voices enough, but Qin Hao still heard them. Qin Hao's smile turned a bit more bitter as he walked silently, knowing his current appearance was fake, but what could he do? He raised his eyes and took a stealthy glance at the pale green figure in front of him, and the smile on his face became even more fake.

  "We're here, go in yourself." Qin Yuxian brought Qin Hao to the place, turned around and left, her slender figure gradually disappearing into the distance.

  Qin Hao hesitated for a moment, until her figure had disappeared from view, and he didn't call out to her. The words he wanted to say were stuck in his throat. But this way, he felt that the cold and gloomy atmosphere earlier was finally gone. He couldn't help but wonder if not calling out to her was right or wrong.

  Qin Hao adjusted his clothes and put on a natural smile before pushing open the door and walking in.

  He raised his eyes and found Qin Feng sitting in a chair, holding a cup of tea with both hands, sipping it lightly, but his eyebrows were furrowed slightly.

  Qin Fenglin stood solemnly behind him and nodded when he saw Qin Hao come in: "Qin Hao, you're here."

  Qin Hao smiled and nodded at him, walked to Qin Feng's front, respectfully called out "Father", then pulled a chair and sat down in front of Qin Feng.

  When he sat down, he was still a little puzzled. Qin Feng's expression was too serious, and Qin Fenglin standing behind Qin Feng also looked strange. Qin Hao always felt that Qin Fenglin's gaze seemed to be constantly scanning himself.

  "Hao'er." Qin Feng put down his teacup and said in a deep tone: "There are some things I need to tell you."

  Qin Hao straightened his back and listened attentively.

  "Feng Lin, you tell him." Qin Feng waved his hand and let Qin Fenglin take a step forward.

  "Yes." Qin Fenglin nodded and took a step forward: "Qin Hao, do you remember the scene of Blue Silence hunting beasts?"

  Qin Hao furrowed his brow slightly, his fingers tapping rhythmically on the table: "Remember. What's wrong?"

  Qin Hao carefully thought through every detail, it seemed that the Qin family's children didn't directly confront the demon wolf on that day, so there shouldn't be any trouble. The rest should also not have been a big problem.

  Suddenly, a scene of conflict with Bai Ruo flashed into his mind. Was the Bai family looking for an excuse to cause trouble? However, Qin Hao quickly dismissed this thought, as with the Bai family's status, they wouldn't let Qin Feng get away with it even if they really came looking for him.

  Qin Fenglin didn't let Qin Hao think further, he continued to speak: "After the appearance of the demon wolf, did Changfeng and Yan Yan let you leave first, then you threw down Qin Shan and all the others, and ran away in a panic?"

  Qin Hao was shocked in his heart. At that time, he had thrown down Qin Shan and they were not bad, but the purpose was to lure away that demon wolf. At that time, the situation was clear as long as those present guessed it, why Qin Fenglin would think so.

  "Doubting that I'm afraid of death and ran away with my tail between my legs?" Qin Hao's expression remained calm, but in his heart, it was as if a wave was constantly surging, stirring up ripples.

  Even Qin's family suspects him? Then what's the point of doing all this?

  "Qin Hao." Qin Fenglin suddenly let out a bitter laugh: "I believe you wouldn't, but these past two days the rumors outside have been circulating wildly. They say that when you were in Lan Jinglin, you encountered a ferocious beast and abandoned your comrades to save yourself, turning tail and running away with your life. Now whenever people mention you, it's met with a chorus of curses. Cowardly, afraid of death, unworthy of being a man, all talk and no action, they say all sorts of things."

  "What was Qin Shan thinking?" Qin Hao asked solemnly. His heart felt like it was being pinched, anxious and uneasy, unable to calm down. What others said had nothing to do with him, he only cared about this question.

  "Qin Shan and the others naturally believe you, Qin Ze and Qin Chao even said they want to find a way to expose the rumor-monger, but this is not a solution after all." Qin Fenglin sighed again: "It's not hard to find out who spread the rumors, it's just that proving your intentions at the time to outsiders is a headache."

  Qin Hao let out a long sigh, and his heart felt lighter once again. What others thought had nothing to do with him. As long as the Qin family believed in him, he didn't care how they speculated about him.

  At this moment, Qin Hao's face had a relaxed smile again. I thought it was some big problem, but it turned out to be just that.

  "Qin Hao, think carefully, is there anything that can prove you were trying to lure the wolf away and not running away?" Qin Feng asked sternly, staring at Qin Hao.

  "There isn't." Qin Hao recalled for a moment and replied seriously.

  He had to admit that the person who spread the rumors was indeed formidable. How could he prove it? Why should others believe that he was trying to lure away the monster at that time, rather than running away? This kind of thing didn't have a clear standard of judgment from the start.

  If you want to talk about evidence, then the Four Hearts Fruit Sealing Array is indeed proof. However, that thing has long since turned to dust. Without physical evidence, who would believe that someone who has never left Tianlang City could obtain the rare and unusual Four Hearts Fruit, let alone refine it into a second-grade Sealing Array that can attract demonic beasts?

  I'm afraid when he says this, the only reaction from others is to sneer and despise him even more.

  What if there is no evidence? Does Qin Hao need to care about the opinions of irrelevant people? Does he need others to evaluate whether he is greedy for life or afraid of death?

  What's it got to do with him?

  Now he is really worried about what he thought before, leaving the Qin family to travel outside, maybe it's still got to be put on hold, from this matter, it can be seen that those families who are not in harmony with the Qin family will not let go of any opportunity to take advantage of the Qin family.

  "Was it the Bai family or the Lin family?" Qin Hao pondered.

  "No." Qin Feng shook his head and said, "After Wind Lin investigated for a period of time, it was discovered that it was the Li family."

  "Li's family?" Qin Hao looked puzzled.

  "That's right." Qin Fenglin added: "The Li family is a small clan, the patriarch is Li Yan, and their strength is around the fourth level of Lingxuan."

  "Ling Xuan Fourth Layer?" Qin Hao became even more perplexed. How did this kind of strength come about? The clan leader's strength was only at the Ling Xuan Fourth Layer, and yet this family had deterrent power against outsiders?

  "Very suspicious, right?" Qin Fenglin saw the expression on Qin Hao's face and knew what he was thinking: "Originally, the Li family was extremely weak and basically nobody paid attention to them. Later, Li Yan hooked up with the Lin family and relied on Lin Zhanbei to support him all the way. Otherwise, as a Lingxuan Fourth-Order warrior, how could he stand firm under the pressure of other families in Tianlang City? His family business would have been squeezed out long ago. Lan Jilin hunted beasts, and the White family also attended, that news was spread by White Yan's son, White Zhong."

  "Qin Hao, think carefully again. Is there really nothing that can be proven?" Qin Feng asked.

  This matter can be big or small. For the Qin family, the impact is not significant, but for Qin Hao, from now on he will have to live in the midst of others' ridicule and scorn. Can a 16-year-old boy have enough mental strength to withstand this? The answer is obvious.

  "No." Qin Hao still smiled lightly.

  Qin Feng fell silent for a moment, then let out a sigh: "You'd better stay at home these few days and not go out. I have to go with the First Elder and Second Elder to Yicheng to take care of some things, and when I get back, I'll think of a solution. Also, five days later, Chen Lao will be giving rewards to the young masters of the various families who participated in the beast hunt, so you shouldn't go that day."

  Qin Hao asked faintly, "Why has it been delayed for so long this year?" After hunting down the demonic beast, the old man would usually bestow martial skills upon the participating families as a form of reward. It was just that in previous years, this should have taken place immediately after the hunt. Qin Hao hadn't expected that even after he had been unconscious for several months, this matter still hadn't begun.

  "Chen Lao said that all the young masters of various families were injured, so he simply delayed it for a few months." Qin Feng showed little interest: "Let Qin Shan and the others go that day. Don't show your face outside these days." After finishing speaking, Qin Feng let out a long sigh again.

  Qin Hao himself didn't think much of it, but Qin Shan had a solemn expression, apparently taking it very seriously, and he couldn't say anything.

  Until Qin Hao walked out and closed the door, he could still hear the voices of the two people discussing inside.