He first looked at the palace maid lying on the grass, her clothes tattered, naked and unconscious, and then remembered that he had just been performing chest compressions and artificial respiration.

Sun Jian's heart tightened, and he panicked instantly.

In this situation, even if his mother jumped into the Yellow River, she couldn't clear her name...

"No, Princess, please let me explain..."

Sun Jian stood up, wanting to say something, but Princess Li Ganrou thought that Sun Jian hadn't finished picking the palace maids' flowers and wanted to take liberties with her in broad daylight in front of everyone. She was so frightened that she turned pale, backed away, and screamed.

"Ah!! Help! Someone help me!"

"You lecherous monster, you...you stay away from me!!"

Sun Jian was completely speechless, standing there dumbfounded and at a loss for what to do.

Just then, the system's voice rang out in his mind.

[Ding! System detected that Li Ganrou's affection level towards you has decreased by 1...]

[Ding! The system has detected that Li Ganrou's favorability rating towards you has fallen below 1 point, currently at -6.]

[Ding! System notification: When the favorability rating falls below 5, it indicates that the bound party has murderous intent. Please be careful, host.]

Murderous intent?

At that moment, Sun Jian was completely bewildered.

I instantly felt like jumping into the river with the palace maid.

What kind of script is this? How did I end up in this situation?

Princess Li Ganrou's cries for help attracted many palace maids and eunuchs, and even those who had just been watching the scene all ran towards Princess Chang Le's direction.

Princess Chang Le is the eldest legitimate princess of the royal family.

If anything were to happen to her, a whole group of eunuchs and palace maids would probably be buried with her.

"You audacious lecher, who are you? How dare you act so brazenly in broad daylight! Don't you want your head?"

Princess Chang Le's maid and palace maid stood in front of her, their brows furrowed and eyes cold as they pointed at Sun Jian and berated him.

"I……"

Sun Jian was speechless; the words were on the tip of his tongue, but he didn't know what to say.

Lao Tzu said he was saving people, do you believe him?

Although I myself find it hard to believe... but that's just how it is.

"Princess, are you alright?"

"Changle, are you alright?"

"Princess, thank goodness, I'm so glad you're alright..."

Everyone gathered around Li Ganrou and asked her questions with concern.

Most of the attendants were eunuchs and palace maids, including a newly appointed concubine, Consort Yi, whom the emperor had just bestowed upon them.

"Your Highness, I am fine, but it is he!"

Li Ganrou bit her lip lightly, her eyes filled with disgust as she looked at Sun Jian.

She couldn't believe that Sun Jian would do something so despicable and perverted.

Under the clear blue sky, they dared to commit such beastly acts in the Imperial Garden, where so many people were gathered.

"That despicable, shameless, vile, and vile Sun Jian! He's disgusting!"

With more than a dozen people standing around her, including Consort Yi, Li Ganrou instantly felt more confident.

"Chang Le, you don't... you don't know him, do you?"

Consort Yi had naturally witnessed what had just happened. She knew in her heart that this person, who could appear in the Imperial Garden of the inner palace, must not be an unknown person.

"It's more than just knowing each other..."

Li Ganrou's gaze sharpened, and recalling her previous fondness for Sun Jian, she felt a wave of nausea.

"Your Majesty, this man is named Sun Jian. He is the newly appointed Deputy Commandant of the Tiger Guard by the Emperor, and also His Highness the Crown Prince's tutor."

Upon hearing Sun Jian's name, everyone paused for a moment in surprise.

Who doesn't know the name Sun Jian now?

The news has been spreading like wildfire lately, known to everyone in and around Chang'an, the capital city. Even some of the maids and eunuchs in and around the palace have heard about it, not to mention them!

There may be many people named Sun Jian, but there is only one who serves as the Crown Prince's tutor and Deputy Commandant of the Tiger Guard.

"Is he Sun Jian?"

Consort Yi frowned and glanced at Sun Jian, who was soaking wet.

"That shouldn't be happening, how could he do such a thing?"

"The situation today is very different from what was rumored..."

"Yes, Your Highness, I think this person is probably just a fame-seeker."

"This man is incredibly audacious, daring to commit indecent acts against a palace maid right here. He has absolutely no respect for the Emperor..."

"Your Majesty, what do you think should be done now?"

...

Hearing the murmurs from the crowd, Sun Jian felt like crying but had no tears left to shed.

Standing still is not an option, nor is staying still.

They can only be pointed at and criticized like monkeys.

Empress Yi is the most senior and has the highest status among the crowd, so it is natural that she should handle this matter.

Consort Yi took a few steps forward and asked Sun Jian, "Lord Sun, what brings you to the Imperial Garden today? And what were you doing just now?"

Consort Yi's gaze was sharp, and her tone was icy.

Although such an event occurred today and everyone witnessed it, Sun Jian is, after all, a high-ranking official of the court. To arrest him without questioning him would be against the law, and it would be difficult to explain to His Majesty.

Sun Jian respectfully bowed to Consort Yi. Although he did not recognize this beautiful woman, it was not difficult to tell from her clothing and age that she was a member of the imperial harem.

"Your Majesty, this humble subject greets you."

"What happened just now was not what you think. I was saving her, not taking liberties with her!"

"oh?"

What do you mean?

Upon hearing Sun Jian's explanation, Consort Yi frowned, her face still showing disdain.

But she didn't interrupt Sun Jian; she waited for him to finish speaking before making her point.

Sun Jian remained calm and avoided mentioning that he had frightened the woman into the river, saying directly, "When I arrived here, I found that this palace maid had fallen into the water. I cannot swim, and it took a lot of effort to pull her ashore, but she had already swallowed a lot of river water and was unconscious. I am currently trying to save her."

"Your Majesty, please investigate this matter carefully!"

"You're talking nonsense! You're lying!"

Princess Chang Le, Li Ganrou, retorted, "Even if Lu Yan accidentally fell into the water, how could you possibly save someone like that!"

At this point, Li Ganrou recalled Sun Jian's previous actions, her face flushed slightly, but she was still furious.

"You were clearly molesting Lu Yan, attempting to do something immoral in broad daylight, and many people witnessed it!"

"You despicable and shameless scoundrel, how dare you still try to argue here!"

Lu Yan was Li Ganrou's personal maid, and she had personally witnessed everything Sun Jian and Lu Yan had done, so there was no doubt about it.

"Chang Le, don't rush, let him finish speaking."

Consort Yi stopped Princess Chang Le, Li Ganrou, and then looked at Sun Jian once again.

Having already caused so many misunderstandings, Sun Jian didn't care anymore and continued with a straight face: "Your Majesty, I am here today to accompany Princess Chang Le in the Imperial Garden. The location of the Imperial Garden was also shown to me by Eunuch Wang."

Consort Yi nodded; Sun Jian's words were probably true.

Regardless of what he had been doing before, without His Majesty's decree, the mere presence of an official in the Imperial Garden should have been punishable by death!