Chapter 74 Rescuing Jiang Ying The Duke of Ruiguo's mansion wasn't far from the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion...

The Duke of Ruiguo's mansion is not far from the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion, so why hasn't Jiang Ying finished her business yet?

Sure enough, as soon as the old woman straightened up, Zhao suddenly stood up and began to cry and complain to Eunuch Liu and the old Duke about her.

Jiang Zhuoying listened with her head down to her ramblings, saying that Jiang Ying originally did not want to leave the courtyard, but she brought people and forcibly took her out, and that she beat the two maids who wanted to protect their mistress until they were black and blue...

Jiang Zhuoying: "..."

At first glance, this fabrication skill is indeed not bad, but compared to her, it still lacks a bit of finesse.

"Please, Your Excellency and Eunuch Liu, do us justice for my daughter, Aying!"

The old Duke looked furious, slamming his teacup down on the table: "A-Zhuo, is what your aunt said true? Why did you steal your sister?"

Jiang Zhuoying immediately stood up, took a few shaky steps forward, and knelt down in the center of the room.

She lowered her head, her voice trembling with sobs: "A-Zhuo didn't..."

"You still say you didn't? Luckily, those two old women regained consciousness and came to report to me, which allowed me to expose your true colors, you little slut!"

Zhao bared her teeth, her eyes gleaming with a fierce light.

She loathed the girl before her most; her features were strikingly similar to her mother's, and she was even more beautiful than her deceased mother.

"……I……"

The girl murmured, her eyes red, as if she was terrified by Zhao's fierce appearance. She shrank her shoulders and stammered, unable to speak.

"Madam Jiang is truly well-educated and reasonable, able to frighten her own niece to such an extent."

Liu Li couldn't bear to watch any longer and spoke up for the trembling girl in a shrill voice.

At this age, having lost both parents, life in this cannibalistic Duke's mansion is truly difficult.

I had previously heard that the second daughter of the Duke's mansion was quite spoiled, but now it seems that the rumors were wrong.

Where is she being spoiled?

She was clearly obedient and timid, making her extremely endearing.

He had seen too many women who relied on their looks or family background to act spoiled and arrogant, or those from humble backgrounds who acted subserviently.

But with such a face, and being a young lady from the Duke's mansion, she is timid and prone to crying—she is the only one like this.

After pondering the girl's background for a moment, Liu Li couldn't help but sigh inwardly.

Just a moment ago I thought she was too timid, but after only a short while, that thought has almost completely vanished.

After Liu Li spoke, even if Zhao was still dissatisfied, she dared not act recklessly any further.

The old duke coughed a few times, took a few sips of tea, and then slowly asked in a deep voice, "What exactly happened?"

The frail girl knelt on the ground and slowly said with a sob in her voice, "It has been almost half a month since A-Zhu returned to the Duke's mansion, but I have not seen Sister Ying even once. A-Zhu just misses Sister Ying, so I went to her courtyard to look for her."

"If you went to see someone, why did you take them away?"

The old Duke exuded an aura of authority even without being deliberately angry; he possessed a commanding presence.

“It wasn’t A-Zhu who took it away. It was Sister Ying who took the initiative to come and see my courtyard. If Grandfather doesn’t believe me, he can ask the servants we met on the way.”

"I remember that we met some of the maids in the laundry room."

The girl spoke slowly and gently, her voice soft and pitiful yet obedient.

"Then what about those two old women who were said to have been beaten black and blue?"

"This... Waaah, Grandfather, it's all because they mocked A-Zhu for not having parents. Sister Ying couldn't stand it and had someone beat her up."

Zhao gripped the armrest tightly: "According to you, where is Aying? If she went to your courtyard, where is she?"

The girl looked up timidly at her, then immediately lowered her head: "It was Sister Ying who left by herself, saying she was going out of the manor to see someone."

"Nonsense!"

Zhao had already stood up, pointing her finger in Jiang Zhuoying's direction: "In my opinion, it was you who kidnapped my Aying!"

Jiang Zhuoying: "..."

She pretended to tremble with fear, but inwardly she was speechless at her stupid and wicked behavior.

"The Zhao family!"

Jiang Yun's expression was not good, and she finally scolded her angrily.

He had never thought highly of this daughter-in-law since they got married, but his eldest son insisted on getting close to the Prime Minister!

Suddenly, the girl mustered her courage and raised her head, her eyes flashing with stubbornness: "Aunt, why do you say that? Although A-Zhuo is all alone in this mansion now, my father has spent his life on the battlefield, and I am not someone who can be bullied."

"They say A-Zhuo kidnapped Sister Ying, but is there any evidence? On the other hand, A-Zhuo has the maids in the laundry room as witnesses."

Liu Li's eyes flickered slightly upon hearing this.

“Mrs. Zhao, you can’t just make baseless accusations against a young girl.” A high-pitched voice slowly reminded her.

“Eunuch Liu, this is not just a baseless accusation by me. As you know, Aying has such a good marriage prospect. It’s understandable that a young girl might have some impure thoughts.”

Jiang Zhuoying: "???"

If the timing weren't so bad, she would have loved to stand up and spit on her.

Would she be interested in a debauched playboy like the Third Prince?

The girl straightened her back, her expression serious, a stark contrast to her previous timidity: "Azhuo swears here that she had no such intention!"

No sooner had he finished speaking than Steward Zhang rushed in from outside the door and reported that someone from the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion had arrived.

"The Duke of Zhenguo?" Liu Li's eyes lit up, and she immediately asked.

Zhao panicked on the spot and hurriedly gave Jiang Jun a meaningful look. The latter was also puzzled and then gestured to the servant beside him.

It was clear that people had been sent to guard the various entrances and exits of the mansion, and if they saw the eldest young lady return to the mansion, they would immediately take her back to the courtyard and keep her under guard.

Instead of waiting, Jiang Ying was greeted by the Duke of Zhenguo's men.

Jiang Jun's heart sank, and he and Zhao Shi shook their heads in secret, realizing that the matter was unlikely to succeed.

In the blink of an eye, the servant sent by the Duke of Zhenguo had already stepped into the hall.

Jiang Zhuoying, who was kneeling on the ground, immediately recognized him. He was Fu Ce's personal attendant and the one who had been delivering messages these past two days.

Seeing that he was polite and that the others in the hall greeted him one by one, Jiang Zhuoying loudly reported to him.

"Miss Jiang heard that my young master was seriously injured, so she came to the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion to visit him. On her way, she accidentally sprained her ankle, and the imperial physician has been summoned to treat her. The Duke sent me here to inform everyone so that no one in the mansion would worry."

Although she didn't mention the arranged marriage at all, Jiang Ying's personal visit to Fu Ce at this critical juncture already revealed her true feelings.

Zhao took a deep breath and immediately stood up to retort: ​​"Father-in-law, Eunuch Liu! You may not know, but my daughter Ying and that Young Master Fu have known each other since childhood. Now that she heard he was injured, she was just going to visit him out of childhood affection."

"Father-in-law, please don't take this seriously!"

Liu Li glanced at her and chuckled, "Madam, don't worry. I'll go to the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion right away and find out what Miss Jiang thinks."

Zhao choked on her words and took another step forward, as if to say something more.

Liu Li, who had already taken two steps outside, suddenly turned back: "We are also acting in accordance with His Majesty's orders."

With that one sentence, Zhao suddenly lost her strength and slumped back in her chair.

If this marriage is cancelled, what should we do if the Imperial Concubine is angry?

She slammed her hand on the arm of the chair, and Jiang Jun, who was standing next to her, glared at her: "How did you keep an eye on Aying? You knew she was interested in that boy from the Fu family."

At this point, he suddenly stopped talking, turned around, gave a perfunctory bow to the old Duke, and left without looking back.

As if suddenly remembering something, Zhao abruptly stood up and chased after Jiang Jun, even forgetting the proper etiquette of retiring to the old lord.

...

Jiang Zhuoying sat at the old Duke's place for a while before returning to her own courtyard. Later, through inquiries from Xiangyue and the others, she learned that Jiang Ying had returned to the mansion before dark.

Upon returning to the mansion, Zhao locked him in the courtyard, where dozens of old women guarded the entrance, preventing anyone from entering.

"The eldest daughter's marriage should be a done deal, so what's the point of Zhao keeping her under house arrest?"

Jiang Zhuoying took a sip of tea: "Who said it's a done deal? There's no room for negotiation until the imperial decree arrives."

"Don't forget, her marriage to the Third Prince was practically a done deal before, wasn't it?"

Xiangyue was slightly taken aback: "If Zhao Shi colludes with the Imperial Concubine to plot something sinister, wouldn't the eldest young lady be in danger right now?"

Even tigers don't eat their cubs; no one else would do such a thing to their own daughter.

However, Zhao is extremely foolish and ruthless. To achieve her goals, she might do something even more vicious.

Jiang Zhuoying nodded: "Didn't we send Wujiu to keep an eye on things? Right now, Fu Ce is the most anxious person in the whole world, so let's leave it to him."

...

Not long after Jiang Zhuoying had settled down for the night, Xiangxing came to report in a low voice that Wujiu had returned. Zhao Shi had publicly locked Jiang Ying in the ancestral hall, but in reality, she planned to secretly send her out of the mansion overnight.

The drowsiness that Jiang Zhuoying had managed to cultivate vanished instantly.

She pinched the bridge of her nose and propped herself up: "Is she really possessed by an evil spirit?"

"Have someone follow her carriage and immediately send someone to the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion to inform Fu Ce."

"yes."

Xiangxing quickly stepped back to make arrangements, and Jiang Zhuoying didn't rest any longer. With Xiangyue's help, she changed into her nightgown and waited for news in her room.

As the tea cooled, the longer she waited, the more uneasy she became.

Her heart was pounding wildly until her subordinates came with a message saying that Prince Fu had gone to the palace overnight to express his gratitude and had not yet returned home. He left behind his two right arms, who could be at Jiang Zhuoying's beck and call.

"Never mind." The girl stood up decisively. "Come with me to stop the Zhao family's carriage."

Xiangxing and Xiangyue immediately followed her out of the room...

After leaving the mansion, she successfully met the familiar attendant, as well as another guard she had never seen before.

It seems that these two are both Fu Ce's confidants.

"Miss Jiang." The two bowed respectfully to Jiang Zhuoying.

Jiang Zhuoying nodded slightly: "We can't delay any longer, let's set off immediately."

"yes!"

The night was dimly lit, and Jiang Zhuoying, straddling the horse, was extremely uneasy. She clutched her chest, feeling her heart pounding much harder than usual.

"Miss?"

It was Xiangyue behind her, her tone tinged with worry.

Jiang Zhuoying lowered her hand, trying to calm her racing heart: "It's alright, watch where you're going."

Strangely enough, she wasn't this flustered on the day she returned to the Duke's mansion with Granny Cui.

What's wrong with me?

The group of men rode their horses and took a shortcut through the alley. When the carriage came into view, Fu Ce's men immediately spurred their horses forward and blocked it.

"Who dares to block our way here?"

Jiang Zhuoying remained hidden in the shadows, not uttering a sound for the time being, intending to observe the situation first.

"I have come to protect my master on the orders of the heir of the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion."