Chapter 89: Innocent Away

Tang Xinuan refused to leave no matter what she said.

At this moment, Chu Yannuo was also extremely heartbroken.

His cousin, whom he raised, not only didn't understand him, but also locked him in a dark and gloomy private prison for three months. He didn't complain once, and even though he was sick, he got out of bed and rushed to find her. Isn't that enough affection?

"Nuan Nuan, in your heart, is our fourteen-year friendship less important than the friendship you and Zhou Chuanxing have only known each other for a few months?"

He clutched his chest, where the pain was even greater than when Grand Tutor Wang had been struck in the back by a hidden weapon.

"From childhood to adulthood, what have you wanted that I haven't given you?"

Every time you're sick, it's me who stays up day and night to take care of you.

What do you want to do? Did I not give in to you?

How could you break my heart like this!

Tang Xinuan only started learning how to handle interpersonal relationships in the last six months.

Even if she has a high IQ and is a mathematical genius, she still can't handle such complex interpersonal relationships all at once.

What her cousin said was true, but she knew in her heart that it was wrong, yet she simply didn't know how to refute it.

"You...you said you're good to me, so why can't you let me be with Erlang?"

Her brain raced, and she could only come up with this one retort to her cousin.

Chu Yannuo reached out to grab her, a flicker of pain in his eyes. "It's not that your cousin can't grant your wish, but you're already with me, you're my woman. No man in the world can accept someone who's been wronged..."

"Big brother," Chu Yanqing said angrily, "what nonsense are you talking about? She is our family, not our enemy!"

My cousin is not a virgin, and she doesn't want outsiders to know about such a private matter.

Chu Yannuo laughed angrily, "So you know how important a woman's chastity is? She has mental problems, but do you have mental problems too? And you still let her escape from the Marquis's mansion!"

"Big brother—"

Chu Yannuo had lost her mind, and Chu Yanqing tried to push her away.

How could Chu Yannuo leave? He pushed the person away forcefully and went to pull Tang Xinuan away.

“Cousin, no man can accept a woman who has lost her true self, especially not Zhou Chuanxing. He won’t cherish you.”

Come with me, only I will treat you well.

From Chu Yannuo's words and everyone's expressions, Tang Xinuan suddenly realized that she had lost something very important.

But she couldn't figure out what it was.

"Cousin, please explain it clearly."

Chu Yannuo was completely going all out.

Do you think that if I marry and have children, I will betray you and Zhou Chuanxing will marry you as his principal wife?

He's the regent's father, a man of great military achievements. He'll have countless women in his harem in the future. With your mindset, you'll be bullied by so many people. Forget about protecting him, it'll be difficult for him to even stand up for you..."

“Prince Chu,” Prince Duan said, showing consideration for Chu Yanqing, but he still couldn’t bear to listen any longer. “You can’t be devoted to Miss Tang. That’s you. My second brother said that he will only marry one princess in his life. Miss Tang will be protected by my second brother in the future!”

These words made Chu Yannuo laugh in anger. "He's protecting him? He can't even protect himself now. He's like a dog chained up at the entrance of the Hall of Mental Cultivation..."

Snap—

This was the first time Tang Xinuan had ever hit someone.

It was my cousin, with whom I've lived for fourteen years.

"Chu Yannuo, from this moment on, you are no longer my cousin. Someone, see him out."

Lianqiao and Baihe could no longer contain their anger. Upon hearing Tang Xinuan's order, they immediately drew their swords from their waists.

The sword's edge was drawn, exuding a chilling aura.

“Young Master Chu, if you continue to disrespect Miss Tang, you will not leave the Duan Prince’s residence alive today.”

Tang Xinuan was so angry that her fingers trembled, her eyes were red, and tears were about to fall, but she bit her lip and tried her best to control herself from going crazy.

Her second son is not a dog.

"You hit me..." Chu Yannuo clutched her chest; the pain on her face was nothing compared to the pain in her heart.

His cousin stopped calling him "cousin" and started calling him by his name instead. "Am I your cousin? Ha, because I'm your man. You've been with me since you were sixteen. I know every single birthmark on your body."

I was your first man; we've been intimate for a long time.

My dear cousin, do you want me to help you recall which time it wasn't you who initiated it...?

Does Zhou Chuanxing know you're not a virgin? Does he know we slept together...?

Tang Xinuan was completely driven mad by Chu Yannuo.

She quickly unbuckled the weapon from her waist, aimed at Chu Yannuo, and pulled the trigger without hesitation.

Suddenly, a steel needle, even faster than an arrow, was fired.

It went straight for Chu Yannuo's heart.

Chu Yannuo had witnessed the power of hidden weapons at Peach Blossom Slope, and his cousin had murderous intent. Fortunately, he knew martial arts and reacted quickly. Even so, the steel needle still grazed his sleeve.

Tang Xinuan was slow to react because she didn't know martial arts, which gave Chu Yannuo time to react.

However, she continued firing until all eleven steel needles in the weapon were fired.

There were many people in the room, and Chu Yannuo was fast. In addition, Tang Xi was in a hurry and her hands were trembling. Although she fired eleven shots in a row, none of them hit Chu Yannuo.

Tang Xinuan grew even angrier: "Perilla, forsythia, astragalus, lily, kill Chu Yannuo for me."

Chu Yannuo was already outmatched by two opponents, let alone four people attacking at the same time. He was also ill, so he knew that he couldn't take his cousin away today no matter what, and could only leave temporarily.

Lily and Forsythia were locked in a fierce battle, and seeing him about to escape, they both gave chase.

Chu Yanqing felt sorry for her brother and called out to the two girls, "Miss Baihe and Lianqiao, come back quickly, we still have errands to run."

Forsythia and lily can only return.

Tang Xi, whose body was still warm from the heating, asked, "Lian Qiao, are there bounties in the martial arts world for people who can kill for their employers?"

Chu Yanqing quickly stopped her, "Cousin—"

Tang Xinuan finally spared his life, saying, "Help me post this. Whoever can poke a bloody hole in him will be rewarded with one hundred taels of silver. The more holes you poke, the more silver you'll get."

We can spare his life, but we absolutely cannot let him have an easy time.

Lian Qiao replied decisively, "Don't worry, young lady, I guarantee I'll poke a hundred or two hundred bloody holes in him."

In the end, Tang Xinuan stayed at the Prince Duan's residence.

She was so tired that she didn't want to go anywhere.

When Sun Qingzhao left, he comforted Tang Xinuan, "Don't be afraid. Even if you have a child, I can still help you become a princess."

Tang Xinuan is such a good girl, becoming the Princess Consort of Qin is a natural progression for her, there's no need for him to make any moves.

Only with difficulty can his abilities be truly demonstrated.

Tang Xinuan no longer wants to marry Zhou Chuanxing.

So having relations with other men is considered distorted and impure; he deserves better.

"No need," the little girl's voice was full of weakness and helplessness, which made people's hearts ache. "Saving Erlang is enough to help me."

Sun Qingzhao didn't say anything more. "You rest first, I'll come to see you tomorrow."

It was destined to be a sleepless night. Tang Xinu lay in bed, staring blankly at the ceiling.

My cousin knew how important innocence was to a girl, yet he still had sex with her when she knew nothing about it.

Now they're accusing her of being unchaste and that no man wants her.

...

If her parents hadn't been murdered, she would have grown up with them and wouldn't have lived such a confused and foolish life.

Now they want to force her to go back with this kind of thing? Even if she can't get married, she won't let him have his way.

The next day, Tang Xinuan rushed to the Ordnance Bureau early in the morning and found Ambassador Liu.

Some time ago, Ambassador Liu developed a cannon that fires gunpowder, which he called the "Red-Clothed Cannon".

Its range can reach one kilometer.

She had witnessed firsthand the power of the red-coated cannons, which could level a small mountain in an instant.

"Ambassador Liu, how many did you build in total?"

Ambassador Liu replied truthfully, "Three."

Tang Xinuan is simple-minded and doesn't think about too many things.

The only two things on her mind were her brother, who was going to take up a post in the northern region, and her second son, who was trapped in the palace.

The Northern Region is located on the frontier, and her brother needs to settle 100,000 refugees. She had heard Erlang's worries that trouble could break out at any time.

Ten thousand refugees turned into ten thousand rioters, and they could quickly conquer many nearby cities.

Her second brother did a good job; by the time winter arrived, the people's basic needs for food, clothing, shelter, and transportation were all taken care of.

But I'm afraid someone might have bad intentions and try every means to cause trouble.

Are they all easy to use?

Ambassador Liu patted his chest and said, "Young Master Han, rest assured, it will definitely work. It has been tested."

Tang Xinuan turned to Zisu and asked, "Is there a way to get it to the Northern Region?"

Transporting two iron lumps to the Northern Region is quite easy.

Zisu laughed and said, "Although the prince is imprisoned in the palace, his men are not to be trifled with. They are just a few lumps of iron and can be moved away at any time."

Tang Xinuan then asked Ambassador Liu, "Will taking it away cause you trouble?"

Ambassador Liu was somewhat embarrassed, but he and Tang Xinuan hit it off immediately.

Tang Xinuan also played a part in the fact that the Red Cannon was built so quickly.

"Of these three cannons, only one was recorded. The other two have not been reported to the higher authorities. Moreover, they do not believe in the power of the cannons. Apart from the King of Qin, no one takes them seriously."

Tang Xinuan was delighted: "Then let's send two to the Northern Region."

She drew up the instructions for use on blueprints and placed them together with the cannon, instructing Zisu to immediately contact her connections and have them transported to the Northern Region.

Tang Xinuan saw off the two cannons and was about to leave the Ordnance Bureau when Sun Qingzhao stopped her at the door.

"Tang Mei," Sun Qingzhao asked, "where's the cannon?"

Tang Xinuan said with difficulty, "The Red Cannon has records that Erlang is no longer the Regent. Ambassador Liu is in a difficult position."

Unauthorized removal of documented weapons could implicate the entire family if investigated.

Sun Qingzhao had his own plan.

He pulled Ambassador Liu aside and whispered a few words to him, and Ambassador Liu suddenly became very agitated.

"Lord Sun, where do you intend to transport the cannons?"

Sun Qingzhao looked at Tang Xinuan.

Tang Xinuan had calculated that "the range of the arrows from the front of Yao Taifu's house on East Street is exactly enough to cover the Prince Rui's mansion."

"Then let's do it at the entrance of the Yao residence." Sun Qingzhao was afraid that the disaster wouldn't be significant enough.

At this crucial moment, Tang Xinuan became cautious, "Won't this cause trouble for Erlang?"

Sun Qingzhao told her to rest assured, "Would I ever harm you? Listen to me, I guarantee the King of Qin will come out soon."

Tang Xinuan had not seen Zhou Chuanxing for four days.

Unfortunately, the emperor suspended all his privileges, and even his waist token became useless.

Hearing that bombarding Prince Rui's mansion would allow Erlang to be released, Tang Xinuan, who had a grudge to settle, said, "Prepare immediately."

An hour later, the red cannon was pushed to the door of Yao Taifu's house, with its muzzle pointed directly at the Prince Rui's residence.

Fill it with gunpowder.

Tang Xinuan held up the torch, ready to light it at any moment.

The red-coated cannon was a newly developed gadget, and few people had witnessed its power.

As soon as it stopped in front of Yao Taifu's house, many people, seeing its novelty, came over to join in the fun.

What is this thing?

"It looks really weird."

"Like a lump of iron, heavy and clumsy, for grinding tofu?"

"How could a stone mill look like this? It looks like a large firework tube. The New Year is coming soon, so it must have been invented by the imperial court to celebrate the New Year."

...

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