Xu Qianting, fearing he might upset Lin Xiuyan, changed the subject, saying, "Don't be afraid. No matter what others say or do, I will always stand by your side."

Lin Xiuyan looked at his sunny face and bright smile, and felt a little dazed.

Her tone softened unconsciously: "Thank you, but this is a family matter, so please don't get involved."

"This isn't meddling!" Xu Qianting's voice rose slightly. "I'm upholding justice!"

"That shameless Zhou guy did such a disgraceful thing. Not only did he refuse to annul the engagement, but he even dared to threaten you!"

"Does he really think that just because he's the city lord, he can control everything? Does he really think the Prince of Pingnan is dead?"

Lin Xiuyan glared at him: "Don't talk nonsense, or you'll get into trouble!"

Xu Qianting was somewhat unconvinced, but his voice eventually softened: "I'm just telling the truth!"

He was overjoyed: She cares about me! She really does like me! Should I like her back?

Lin Xiuyan was unaware of what he was imagining, and simply said, "The Lin residence is currently a troubled place, you should go home first."

She didn't want Xu Qianting to be dragged down by her this time.

Given the current situation, it's best for them to keep some distance from each other.

Xu Qianting said with some concern, "How about I go home and talk to my dad, and ask him for help?"

Lin Xiuyan didn't want the Xu family involved at all, and hurriedly said, "Really, there's no need. I can really handle this. You should go home!"

Xu Qianting asked her, "Are you concerned about me?"

Lin Xiuyan paused for a moment, fearing he might misunderstand, and quickly said, "Although we are good friends, this matter involves too much, and it has nothing to do with you..."

"You're just concerned about me." Xu Qianting said happily, "You said it yourself, we're good friends, how could I not care?"

"Don't worry, I'll go back and talk to my dad right now and ask him for help."

He practically skipped away after he finished speaking.

Lin Xiuyan: "..."

She was simply unbearable to look at!

But then he thought of the Xu family's traditions and Commander Xu's habit of resorting to corporal punishment at the slightest disagreement. (www.cascoo.net)

She felt that even if Xu Qianting didn't get his legs broken when he went home this time, it would be pretty much the same.

Lin Yunzhi looked at Xu Qianting, then at Ye Junfei. No matter how he looked at them, he felt that Ye Junfei was superior to Xu Qianting in both appearance and demeanor.

His only regret was that Ye Junfei's origins were unknown. Although he knew that Ye Junfei had no ill intentions towards the Lin family, Ye Junfei seemed to be of extraordinary status.

Furthermore, Lin Xiuyan seemed somewhat afraid of Ye Junfei. She was usually very polite to Ye Junfei, but she lacked any sense of closeness.

Seeing such a golden catch standing in front of him, yet unable to snag him, he grew anxious and immediately glared at Lin Xiuyan.

Lin Xiuyan was bewildered by his glare. He hinted to her, "That kid Qian Ting is always causing trouble. You're making everyone stupid by hanging out with him."

"Someone as smart as Xiaoye will become smarter if you spend more time with him."

Lin Xiuyan: "..."

She couldn't respond to that! After all, she couldn't deny that Ye Junfei was intelligent.

She made an excuse to slip away, and Lin Yunzhi sighed inwardly.

He knew this wasn't the time to dwell on these things; he needed to find a way to help her break off her engagement with Zhou Chenyang.

Seeing Lin Xiuyan and Xu Qianting together, Ye Junfei's eyes were deep, but he said nothing. He gently fanned himself and said a few words to Lin Yunzhi.

After listening, Lin Yunzhi gave him a thumbs up: "Xiao Ye is so thoughtful. I'll go prepare right away!"

A hint of depth appeared in Ye Junfei's peach blossom eyes.

Jiang Xinrou's maid, Hongxiu, came out from the corner and quickly returned to her room.

As soon as she entered the door, Jiang Xinrou asked, "How did it go?"

Hongxiu briefly recounted what had happened that day, her expression somewhat grim.

Hongxiu asked softly, "Miss, what should we do now?"

Jiang Xinrou clenched her fist: "I can't just sit here and wait to die!"

She has always been extremely ambitious, wanting both the Lin family's wealth and marrying Zhou Chenyang.

What happened in Qizhen Garden was completely beyond her expectations.

She asked Hongxiu, "Have you found the man we were looking for, the one covered in sores?"

Hongxiu shook her head: "He vanished into thin air, Miss. This is too strange!"

Jiang Xinrou also found this matter too strange. Although she had always wanted to take Zhou Chenyang away from Lin Xiuyan, she absolutely did not want to do it in this way.

Her brow furrowed slightly: "Are you sure you brought someone into Qizhen Garden?"

Hongxiu replied, "I'm sure. I hid the person in the attic of the room where Lin Xiuyan was staying."

“As soon as the city lord leaves, he will come out of the attic and have sex with Lin Xiuyan. I also had someone light aphrodisiacs in the room, so this will not go wrong.”

Lin Xiuyan kicked the door open: "So this plan really is flawless. It sounds pretty vicious."

Jiang Xinrou and Hongxiu's expressions changed drastically at the same time, and they both looked at Lin Xiuyan.

Jiang Xinrou reacted quickly, immediately saying, "Cousin, Hongxiu did all this, it has nothing to do with me!"

Hongxiu: "..."

She was a little stunned when Jiang Xinrou pinned all the blame on her.

Jiang Xinrou glanced at her, and just as she was about to admit it, Lin Xiuyan looked at Jiang Xinrou and said, "Do you think I'm stupid?"

“She is your maid and obeys you without question. She wouldn’t dare to do such a thing without your permission.”

Upon seeing Lin Xiuyan like this, Jiang Xinrou suddenly came to her senses: "It's you! You're the one who put me in the city lord's bed!"

Lin Xiuyan smiled slightly: "You figured it out already? You're not so stupid after all!"

Jiang Xinrou stared at Lin Xiuyan in shock and said, "You... how could you do such a thing?"

Lin Xiuyan said calmly, "I allow you to seduce Zhou Chenyang, I allow you to use that disgusting man to smear me, but I'm not allowed to expose your affair with Zhou Chenyang?"

At this point, the two had completely broken off relations.

Jiang Xinrou met Lin Xiuyan's ambiguous smile. Even if she was stupid, she already knew that Lin Xiuyan had known about her relationship with Zhou Chenyang for a long time.

She gritted her teeth and asked, "When did you find out?"

Lin Xiuyan glanced at her sideways and said, "Guess."

Jiang Xinrou took a deep breath and said, "Since you already know, I won't hide it from you."

"The city lord has never liked you; he likes me!"

Lin Xiuyan agreed with her: "Wow, that's wonderful! Should I wish you a long and happy life together?"

Jiang Xinrou: "..."

She originally intended to provoke Lin Xiuyan, after all, Lin Xiuyan loved Zhou Chenyang so much, but she didn't expect Lin Xiuyan to be so unmoved.

Her expression changed, then she looked pitiful again: "Cousin, I beg you, please grant us your blessing, for the sake of our true love!"