"Alright, I believe you, Ning Beichen. If you really want to be with her, remember to tell me. I won't keep you."
Although Liu Yilin verbally said she believed him, her tone was still tinged with jealousy.
"Boss, you can rest a hundred percent assured. I'm not going anywhere. I'll stay by your side. Even if someone points a gun at my head, I won't leave, okay?"
Ning Beichen reassured her again.
Liu Yilin's dejected expression finally eased, looking as if he had done the sensible thing.
For Liu Yilin, this strange banquet that had made her very angry ended abruptly. Even if she were foolish, she knew that Fan Qiu had invited her precisely because of Ning Beichen, and she had merely been a tool.
After Ning Beichen left Fan Qiu's villa, he casually glanced back at a certain spot before getting into the car with Liu Yilin.
He was certain that the Seven-Eyed Buddha was inside, watching him in secret the entire time. However, Ning Beichen had shown no outward reaction while he was there.
"Ning Beichen, is that thing of Fan Qiu's very important to you?"
On the way, Liu Yilin couldn't help but ask.
She was worried that if the item was crucial to Ning Beichen, Fan Qiu might use it to coerce him.
"It's something relatively important. It would be best if I could get it, but if not... it's not the end of the world," Ning Beichen replied after some thought.
"What exactly is it that's so important to you?"
Liu Yilin was very curious.
"A book. You wouldn't understand even if I told you."
Ning Beichen answered casually.
"How can I understand if you don't tell me?"
Liu Yilin gave him a look that clearly conveyed he was insulting her intelligence.
"It's an ancient text called the Nine Palaces Strategy. There are nine volumes in total. My senior sister has three, and she's given them all to me. Fan Qiu also has one, so I wanted to get it from her."
"However, we couldn't reach an agreement. Fan Qiu is clearly also very interested in the Nine Palaces Strategy and wants to know the whereabouts of the other volumes from me. Boss, do you really think she was interested in me?"
Ning Beichen said to Liu Yilin.
"No? Is it because of the Nine Palaces Strategy? But how did she know you had it?"
Liu Yilin quickly grasped the crucial point.
"No, before I brought up the Nine Palaces Strategy, she didn't know I had it. The reason she wanted to recruit me was because she wanted me dead."
Ning Beichen said with a cold laugh.
Although Fan Qiu had hidden it well, Ning Beichen still caught the killing intent in her eyes.
"What? She… she wants you dead! Didn't she say she admired your talent and wanted you as her bodyguard?"
Liu Yilin was shocked and even trembling with anger.
"Boss, can her words be trusted? They're just lies to fool children. Before this, she didn't even know me."
"I didn't even know I had talent, so how could she appreciate it? It was just a fabrication. If I had been foolish enough to agree, I probably would have been sunk in the river by the next day."
Ning Beichen said dismissively.
"I'm sorry, Ning Beichen, I didn't know."
After hearing Ning Beichen's explanation, Liu Yilin realized that things were not as she had perceived them to be, and she had even blamed him.
"Boss, it's not your fault. That Fan Qiu is a viperous widow and a good actress. Most people can't see through her. If she invites you again in the future, just refuse her."
Ning Beichen told her.
"I understand. I won't deal with her anymore."
Liu Yilin nodded, but she still had one question that bothered her, so she asked Ning Beichen.
"Ning Beichen, why does Fan Qiu want you dead? Do you have any past grievances with her?"
"No, it's not her who wants me dead, it's the Seven-Eyed Buddha."
Since things had been brought out into the open, Ning Beichen decided to stop hiding anything and told her about the Seven-Eyed Buddha.
"Ning Beichen, I didn't expect my affairs to cause such big trouble. You're suffering this undeserved disaster just to protect me. I'm really sorry."
Liu Yilin said guiltily to Ning Beichen.
"Boss, you don't need to apologize to me, nor do you need to feel guilty. Since I've taken on this job, I need to bear all the consequences. This is also a bodyguard's responsibility."
Ning Beichen told her.
"Ning Beichen, why do these people have to kill each other? Isn't it better for everyone to live in peace?"
Liu Yilin said sentimentally, looking at the night view outside the car window.
"Boss, since ancient times, whether it's humans or animals, whether it's now or in the past, or in the future, wherever there are people, it's inseparable from the word 'interest.' Small people have their disputes, big people have their disputes, countries have their disputes. As long as humanity exists, these things are unavoidable."
"There is no true utopia in this world. If one day, humans stop fighting, animals stop fighting, and all beings live in harmony, it will be close to extinction."
Ning Beichen told her.
Liu Yilin sighed deeply. She understood these principles, but even though she understood, she still found them hard to accept.
"Ning Beichen, if Fan Qiu wants to kill you, aren't you in great danger?"
After sighing for a while, Liu Yilin suddenly began to worry about Ning Beichen.
"Boss, don't worry. Have you ever seen me, Ning Beichen, suffer a loss? Whether it's Fan Qiu or the Seven-Eyed Buddha, if they want me dead, they should prepare their coffins."
Ning Beichen said with a cold laugh.
"I know you're capable, but no matter how capable you are, you still need to guard against these scoundrels. They might not be able to defeat you head-on, but who knows if they'll resort to some treacherous schemes?"
Liu Yilin rolled her eyes at him, but she liked Ning Beichen's confidence. It made her feel a sense of security that reassured her.
"I will. There are ways to deal with scoundrels, and ways to deal with gentlemen. I'm not that kind of rigid person."
Ning Beichen replied.
"Ning Beichen, as long as you have it figured out, that's good. I can't help you much with these matters. I just hope these things can pass quickly."
Liu Yilin nodded and said to him.
"They will. As long as we find out who is behind trying to deal with you, Boss, and deal with them all in one fell swoop, this matter will be over."
Ning Beichen said confidently. He also wanted to return to the side of those beautiful models in Yamaroya and enjoy himself, instead of suffering here every day.