“I admit that I was nice to you before because Jiang Bailu disliked you. Jiang Bailu also disliked me and always felt that I wanted to compete with her for His Highness the Crown Prince. The enemy of my enemy is my friend, so I was nice to you. Now I know that you are different from Jiang Bailu. You are a good person and very capable. I have decided that I will stand on your side from now on.”

Jiang Jiulu spoke very sincerely.

Yuan Qi saw that she did not appear to be a wicked or cunning person, and that her life was full of hardships. Although she was born into wealth, she was destined to suffer. He wanted to help her.

"Really?" Yuan Qi asked coldly, tilting his head.

Seeing that she wasn't angry, Jiang Jiulu felt less guilty: "Really, really. But you'd better go to the front yard now and show your face, otherwise everyone will think you've really been kidnapped and lost your innocence."

Yuan Qi snorted: "Are they spreading rumors that I've lost my innocence?"

Jiang Jiulu nodded emphatically: "Mother keeps saying that we shouldn't spread this, but she speaks louder than anyone else, as if she's afraid the servants won't know."

Yuan Qi remained calm: "That's all they've got. Let's teach them a lesson."

Jiang Jiulu was very excited and asked her maid to call Li Guifei to support and cheer them on.

Xiangli Mingzhu was not favored by the emperor, and Jiang Zhengqing was very indifferent to her. The couple treated each other with cold indifference. Jiang Zhengqing could only visit Xiangli Mingzhu's room a few times a year. He either stayed at Li Gui's place or had the women of Xuan Chun Guang Courtyard serve him in his own courtyard.

Therefore, Consort Li and Prime Minister Mingzhu had been fighting each other openly and secretly for many years, and they couldn't stand each other.

Xiangli Mingzhu, taking advantage of her status as the mistress of the house, often bullied Concubine Li.

Upon hearing that Yuan Qi was going to teach Xiangli Mingzhu a lesson, Concubine Li arrived very quickly, almost at the same time as Yuan Qi, at the front yard.

Xiangli Mingzhu was directing her servants in the front yard: "I told you to hurry up! You're all dawdling. Don't you know that Seventh Miss has been kidnapped by villains? What if something happens to Seventh Miss if you keep dawdling like this? What if Seventh Miss loses her innocence?"

Jiang Zhengqing entered from outside with an imposing expression. As soon as he got off the carriage, his confidant reported on the events of the day. He frowned and walked inside.

Before even reaching the square in front of the hall, we saw Xiangli Mingzhu shouting loudly.

Xiangli Mingzhu quickly stepped forward to explain, "My lord, Seventh Sister was playful and got off the carriage halfway while we were asleep. I don't know where she went. It was my carelessness. I only realized that Seventh Sister hadn't followed us after we got back to the manor. I was worried that she would be captured by villains and have her reputation ruined, so I quickly sent people back the way they came to look for her."

"Don't worry, no matter what happens to Xiaoqi, I will take care of her for the rest of my life and find her a good marriage."

Jiang Bailu also chimed in with her "explanation": "Father, with the status of our Jiang family, even if Seventh Sister loses her innocence, we can still find her a good marriage. Let's see who dares to gossip."

Jiang Zhengqing just stared at Yuan Qi across from him with a cold smile, revealing a composure and calmness that was beyond his years. He was also staring at him coldly, as if to say, "See? They really want something to happen to me."

A very strong feeling arose within him: his own daughter was mocking him for being lax in managing the household and for being terrible at disciplining his wife and daughter.

"Smack!"

"Smack!"

Jiang Zhengqing slapped the mother and daughter once each: "What do you mean by innocence? Do you really want something to happen to Xiaoqi?"

Jiang Bailu didn't dare to say a word, not even cry, because she was always afraid of her stern father.

Xiangli Mingzhu was furious and argued with Jiang Zhengqing: "Why did you hit me? Your good daughter is unruly and disobedient, running around everywhere. If something happens to her, won't I be the one to cover for her? Aren't the women of the Jiang family also embarrassed along with her?"

Concubine Li and Jiang Jiulu walked over gracefully, covering their mouths with handkerchiefs and giggling, "Madam, what are you saying? You know how capable Seventh Miss is, and even if you don't, you should be able to guess a little, right? How could something have happened to her?"

Xiangli Mingzhu hadn't even seen Yuan Qi behind her yet, and she scoffed dismissively, "Don't flatter her. She can only draw a talisman. Do you really think she has extraordinary abilities and can even beat the villains in the forest? She's just a child after all. She'll only suffer when she encounters bad people."

Concubine Li was adept at seizing on loopholes in her words, and asked in great surprise, "Madam, you wouldn't have bribed some villain to harm Miss Seven, would you? Oh, Miss Seven is an illegitimate daughter, and it's a bit shameful, but Madam can't be so narrow-minded and intolerant."

Jiang Zhengqing slapped her again, causing both sides of her face to swell up and she to fall to the ground.

Xiangli Mingzhu then noticed that Yuan Qi was standing quietly not far behind her, staring at her coldly with a gaze like a venomous snake.

She instantly felt guilty and avoided eye contact.

Yuan Qi walked over, hands on his hips: "I know Mother doesn't like me. At the entrance of Wuxiang Temple, she clearly knew I hadn't boarded the carriage, but she lied to my second and third brothers, saying I had, deliberately leaving me behind. She even sent people to bribe bandits and beggars, just in case something happened to me. Father, you saw how vicious she is, didn't you? She wanted to have my innocence ruined. This matter cannot be left like this."

Jiang Zhengqing was also annoyed by the insistence on him by a child.

They've embarrassed themselves in their own home.

Xiangli Mingzhu shouted in defense: "You're talking nonsense, Lord Marquis! Don't believe her. She has never been raised properly and is sure to lie all the time. You can't believe a word she says. Ask Bailu and Songlu. They were in the same carriage as me. Xiaoqi was asleep when we got in. She's lying through her teeth."

Jiang Zhengqing lowered his eyes and stared at Xiangli Mingzhu. In his memory, although Xiangli Mingzhu was strong and had very strict control over the women in the inner quarters, she had hardly ever lied.

He didn't know who was lying for a moment.

Yuan Qi calmly pulled a talisman from his cloth bag, holding it between two fingers: "See this? This is a truth talisman. Just stick it on your forehead, and you'll tell the truth. It's free, want to try it?"

Ignoring the pain in her cheek, Xiangli Mingzhu scrambled to her feet and cried out, "No, that's all crooked and evil! Don't even think about harming me!"

Jiang Zhengqing walked over and pressed Yuan Qi's hand down: "Xiao Qi, I know you've been wronged. Give me this Truth Talisman and I'll buy you some nice things as compensation. As for your mother, she was just worried about you and didn't really want to frame you."

Yuan Qi knew that Jiang Zhengqing wouldn't let Xiangli Mingzhu lose face too much, but today she lost face in front of everyone... that's still not enough!

Hmph, do you think she's so easy to bully? If she swallows her anger this time, won't Xiangli Mingzhu be even more outrageous next time?

She wouldn't tolerate those arrogant people. With a flick of two fingers, the mantra talisman landed on Xiangli Mingzhu's forehead. She tried to grab it, but the talisman vanished instantly.

"You shameless little bitch!"