The next morning, at daybreak, Zhu Ying used the only silver she had to exchange with an old farmer, hid under an oxcart on its way to the market, and secretly returned to the capital.

Lotus Garden is the residence of Gu Zijun, the eldest son of the Gu family. Since the Gu family mansion is managed by Madam Lu, and he has reached the age of starting a family, his father specially arranged for someone to build a courtyard exclusively for him.

The servants in the courtyard were separated from those in the Gu household, and the servants in the Lotus Garden served the eldest son of the Gu family alone.

That day, Gu Zijun was troubled by the shipment in Huaizhou. He sent someone to communicate with Gu Qianluo, but he still hadn't received a reply from her. Normally, if he tried to contact her, he would never go more than two days without hearing from her.

As the eldest son of the Gu family was feeling melancholy, a series of hurried footsteps came from outside the house.

Liu Yue, the personal guard, stepped forward breathlessly and reported, "Young Master, the Bamboo Shadow Guard requests an audience."

Gu Zijun's eyes narrowed slightly, his expression darkening. He said, "Quickly! Invite him in."

A moment later, Zhu Ying, clutching her injured arm, staggered in and pleaded in a hoarse voice, "..."

"Young Master Gu! Miss Gu was kidnapped yesterday!"

Upon hearing this, Gu Zijun's eyes darkened, and he slammed his large hand on the table with a "bang," knocking the account book to the ground.

He quickly walked to Zhu Ying's side and asked sternly.

"What exactly is going on?"

Zhu Ying was weak and powerless due to excessive blood loss. Gu Zijun helped him sit down at the tea table and asked, "..."

"Bamboo Shadow Guard, have a cup of tea first."

Then, Gu Zijun summoned a servant and instructed him, "Go to the Gu residence and fetch the family physician to examine Zhu Ying's injuries."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Ying quickly raised her hand to stop them, saying, "No, we can't call the imperial physician! I can manage."

Gu Zijun frowned, his fists clenched unconsciously, and he said nervously,

"Bamboo Shadow Guard, what do you mean by this? Who injured you like this?"

"The Second Madam, acting on the Old Madam's orders, took over the Marquis's household accounts. Normally, the First Madam was in charge of managing these accounts, but now that the Second Madam has discovered a problem with the accounts, she plans to go to the estate where the problem occurred to investigate."

Unexpectedly, while we escaped the ambush of bandits, Miss Gu was tricked onto the boat by a fisherman disguised as a villain.

I wanted to rush forward to rescue him, but there was an ambush on the boat. My younger brother's left hand was stabbed, and he was too weak to go forward. He was washed back to shore by the waves.

"I see!"

As soon as she finished speaking, Zhu Ying knelt down with a thud, her eyes red, and pleaded with Gu Zijun for help.

"Young Master Gu, the general repeatedly instructed me to protect Miss Gu's safety before he left. I am not capable enough, so I hope Young Master Gu can help me."

Upon hearing this, Gu Zijun's eyes darkened, his expression gradually dimmed, and he asked in surprise,

"Zhuying, such a big thing has happened, why didn't you go back to the Marquis's residence, but instead came here to beg me?"

"This incident is suspicious. I was afraid of alerting the enemy, so I didn't inform the Marquis's residence. The Second Madam also told me that if something happened to her this time, I shouldn't contact the Marquis's residence."

"I really can't think of a solution, so I've come to ask for your help, Young Master Gu."

"In that case, Guard Bamboo Shadow shall rest and recuperate in my courtyard for now."

After giving his instructions, Gu Zijun turned to Liu Yue and said, "Help me bring Lieyan over. I need to go out and look for Luo'er later."

Upon hearing this, despair welled up in Zhu Ying's eyes, and she pleaded in a hoarse voice,

“Young Master Gu, I don’t want to recuperate. I will go with you to find the Second Madam.”

"Zhuying, you are seriously injured, so you should not participate. The enemy is in the dark while we are in the light. If the news of Luo'er's disappearance gets out, her reputation will be affected."

"Alright, then Zhuying will follow Young Master Gu's arrangements."

"Liuyue, leave the next room empty for Guard Zhuying to recuperate. From today onwards, Lotus Garden will be closed to all visitors."

"Yes, sir!"

Princess's Residence

Princess Zhiya rose early as usual and was feeding the fish in the koi pond in the garden when a series of urgent sounds broke her peaceful moment.

"Your Highness! I've heard that Gu Qianluo has gone missing!"

Upon hearing this, Princess Zhiya's eyes lit up with joy. Her hand suddenly went empty as the fish food fell to the ground, and the carp in the pond thrashed about, vying for the food.

"Disappeared? Do the Marquis and his wife know about this?"

"It seems they don't know yet. According to the spies, Gu Qianluo and the Zhuying guards went on a secret trip yesterday, and there has been no news of their return to the capital since."

"Hehe, Gu Qianluo, as the second wife of the Gu family, actually had an affair with a guard and went on a trip. Now we can't even find a trace of her. I wonder what Chen Jinheng will think when he finds out?"

"Miss, Gu Qianluo dares to be so arrogant and domineering because she has a good relationship with her maternal grandmother and the old lady and is favored by General Chen."

Why don't you take this opportunity to impeach her and let General Chen see her true colors?

Upon hearing this, Princess Zhiya felt a surge of excitement and quickly returned to her desk to prepare her writing materials.

She looked smug, a smirk playing on her lips, and as she wrote, she chuckled, “I wonder if my cousin Jinheng would be furious if he knew how she was behaving? What should I do? I don’t want to see him suffer.”

“Miss, since that’s the case, why not tell General Chen the truth, and then express your feelings of longing?”

When General Chen is troubled and confused, receiving your kind words in time will surely increase his goodwill towards you.

"Really? Then I'll do as you say!"

After speaking, Princess Zhiya quickly wrote on the Xuan paper, then handed it to a guard to deliver to Chen Jinheng in the military camp.

Three days after Gu Qianluo left Beijing, news of her disappearance spread like wildfire.

As luck would have it, ever since the Second Prince fainted and was rescued by Gu Qianluo, his health has been getting better and better, and even his eyes, which were usually covered with a layer of white mist, have gradually become brighter.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!