Defile
Just as she finally managed to stand up and was about to touch the tightly closed wooden door, someone grabbed her from behind. The maid named Feng Ying was persistent and immediately blocked her way.
"Young lady, judging from your attire, you must be a favored maid in the Lin family. Why are you in such a hurry? Today is your young lady's rare coming-of-age ceremony. Are you going to make a fool of yourself by being so careless and reckless?"
Ignoring the blood still streaming from her nose, Zhu Ling gritted her teeth in hatred and immediately roared:
"That's a ridiculous thing to say. You two, mistress and servant, have been guarding the east room door, yet you've repeatedly and blatantly blocked my way. What are you up to? As the young lady's personal maid, I should be looking after her since she's all alone inside. What business is it of yours?"
Upon hearing this, Yao Suran smiled, a sharp glint flashing in her exquisitely drawn eyes, but her expression remained calm as she lightly said:
"Since you said your young lady is alone in this east room, according to the coming-of-age ceremony procedures, she is simply changing clothes. So why are you in such a hurry? Besides, as a guest invited by your Lin family today, and remembering my past friendship with your young lady, I took on this role as the host and have been working tirelessly here. I should be thanking you, but I haven't heard a single word of thanks. On the contrary, according to you, your words imply that you don't trust the people of the Duke of Xu's mansion?"
Although she had long heard that the young lady of the Duke's mansion was always sharp-tongued, she still broke out in a cold sweat when she heard Yao Suran's few cold words, each one containing hidden sarcasm.
Zhu Ling was intelligent and knew that this was not the time to compete with Yao Suran, so she bent down slightly, enduring the pain all over her body, and said softly:
"Thank you for your esteemed presence and care today, Miss Yao. The entire Lin family is deeply grateful for the Duke's kindness. However, since the auspicious time has arrived, I was worried that my young lady might encounter some problems inside and be delayed. That's why I spoke and acted so hastily. I hope Miss Yao will not mind."
Seeing that she finally had no choice but to give in, Feng Ying immediately sneered and was about to say something more when she heard a clear, leisurely voice ring out from behind them:
"I was already quite lively in the main hall with the constant music, so why is everyone gathered here? Is there some good show going on?"
Zhao Fuchang, fanning himself, had somehow appeared in the courtyard not far from the others.
Zhu Ling had always lived in the inner courtyard and was not familiar with this person. However, she saw that he was dressed in luxurious clothes and had an outstanding appearance. She thought she had seen him once or twice before in the guest section, so she could only guess that he was probably a young master from a noble family who had been invited.
However, Yao Suran beside her seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, a smug look immediately spreading across her face. Feng Ying, on the other hand, bowed respectfully and said sweetly, "Greetings, Young Master Zhao."
As more and more people gathered, these individuals showed no intention of leaving, instead remaining steadfastly guarding the east room door. Zhu Ling's heart pounded with anxiety. She had a gut feeling that Yao Suran was plotting something. What would she do if her mistress were to encounter any misfortune? Beads of sweat beaded on her forehead, but she understood that with outsiders present, she could not afford to make the slightest mistake, otherwise, it would be far beyond what a mere maid like herself could bear.
Just as she was getting anxious, she caught a glimpse of two tall and burly figures standing calmly under the flower wall of the covered corridor in the distance. They were the two guards who used to follow the young master and were now left to take care of the young lady!
Zhu Ling immediately had a bright idea and called out loudly towards the carved wooden window of the east room, "Miss, are you changing your clothes? Or would you like to rest for a while? Let me call Zhou Qi to bring you some tea."
She leaned forward, her eyes constantly darting into the distance, giving the two men meaningful glances. Sure enough, Zhou Qi turned around when he heard his name, and seeing Zhu Ling's face covered in blood and her anxious expression, he immediately frowned, exchanged a glance with Zhou Quan, and the two of them strode into the courtyard with their knives in hand.
Zhu Ling finally calmed down a little, and then she saw Zhou Qi's gloomy face as he asked her in a low voice:
"Has something urgent happened? Is Miss alright?"
Zhu Ling shook her head, but her eyes showed uncontrollable panic. She could only whisper, "In theory, Miss should be changing clothes in the east room right now, but there has been no movement for a long time. Please ask the two elder brothers to help guard the door and allow me to go in and take a look."
Upon hearing this, Zhou Qi nodded. He was tall and burly, with a dark complexion from years of martial arts training. He exchanged a quick glance with Zhou Quan, then glanced at the crowd with a gloomy expression before standing guard on either side of the wooden door, knife in hand.
Feng Ying hesitated, wanting to speak but seeing the two men's ashen faces, she shrank back in fear and dared not utter a sound.
Zhu Ling stepped forward and gently knocked on the tightly closed wooden door.
There was still no response from inside, but the faint sounds of a woman sobbing and the clanging of objects being suddenly knocked to the ground could be heard. Everyone's expression changed upon hearing the sounds. Zhu Ling hurriedly pushed the wooden door with all her might, but the door did not budge; it had been blocked from the inside.
Zhou Quan's expression changed, and he immediately charged straight at the wooden door with all his might. He used all his strength to ram it several times, and after a moment the wooden door finally fell to the ground. Zhu Ling hurriedly ran into the east room.
The interior was spotless and impeccably clean. In the center stood a large bathtub, which was where Miss Qingchen had bathed that morning. On the floor beside the screen, several sharp shards of celadon lay scattered. Behind the screen, several garments hung around it. Her heart pounded, and holding her breath, she finally mustered the courage to peer forward.
Behind the screen, on the chaise longue, Lin Xu was pinned down by a tall man. The man, dressed in fine silk, was now disheveled, and blood was gushing from the back of his head.
Seeing that someone had finally come in, Lin Xu couldn't hold back the tears that had been welling up in her eyes and they fell one after another. In her hand, there was still half of the broken double-eared porcelain pot.
Even though Zhu Ling had prepared herself, she couldn't calm down at this moment. She couldn't help but cry out in alarm, followed by a trembling, tearful question:
"Miss...Miss, are you alright?"
Lin Xu pushed the person off her with all her might. Her clothes were also in disarray, revealing half of her thin, light purple arms.
With her push, the man was turned over, his face flushed, his dazed eyes filled with unspoken emotions, and he was muttering something under his breath. His handsome face bore a striking resemblance to the Yao sisters, and he was indeed the man who had sat next to Yao Su'an earlier.
Zhu Ling quickly stepped forward to help Lin Xu push the burning hot man to the ground, and at the same time grabbed a fur blanket from the bed and wrapped Lin Xu tightly.
At this moment, the crowd that had been gathered at the door, hearing the commotion inside, finally couldn't resist coming in, only to be dumbfounded by the chaotic scene. Zhu Ling gently patted Lin Xu's back while instructing several maids who had just arrived to bring hot tea, when she heard Yao Suran exclaim in surprise:
"Brother! What did you do to my brother?!"
She saw Yao Sha lying on the ground covered in blood, surrounded by sharp shards of porcelain. Her delicate face immediately paled. She was about to rush forward when Zhou Quan, whose face was ashen, blocked her way.
"You—" Yao Suran was furious, her eyes widening in anger, and she flung her wide, cloud-patterned sleeves away.
Zhou Quan completely ignored him, not only drawing his knife a little further, its blade gleaming with a chilling silver light, but also puffing out his chest without flinching, and saying:
"The incident happened suddenly. Young Master Yao actually took advantage of the chaos to try to take liberties with my young lady. This is an outrageous and heinous act. I beg Miss Yao to be patient. I will report to the master later and deal with the matter impartially."
Without a word, Zhou Qi grabbed Yao Sha by the collar and yanked him up from the ground. Yao Sha was limp and lifeless, still muttering to himself, looking completely out of his mind and utterly pathetic. Zhou Qi quickly tied his hands behind his back and then kicked Yao Sha hard in the back with his high-top pointed boot.
Upon seeing this, Yao Suran's expression immediately changed, and she cursed loudly, "How dare you! Do you think you filthy people have the right to touch the young master of our Duke's mansion?"
Lin Xu's thin face was deathly pale, and she huddled shivering in the soft, thick blanket. Her dark hair was disheveled, a far cry from her usual elegance and composure. She slowly drank the hot tea offered by the maid, which brought her some relief. Zhu Ling, who had been watching over her, had tears welling up in her eyes, but she could no longer hold back and burst into tears, saying:
“Miss Yao, you are being utterly unreasonable! Just now, I felt something was amiss, and since Miss hadn’t finished changing, I was about to come in to check. But Miss Yao and your maid Feng Ying made things difficult for me, refusing to let me in no matter what. I never imagined that you were deliberately delaying because of your own brother’s improper behavior. If I had arrived even a little later, the consequences would have been unimaginable! Miss Yao, you and my mistress are like sisters, how could you have such a cruel heart!”
Upon hearing this, Yao Suran sneered, crossed her arms, glanced coldly at Lin Xu cowering on the soft couch, and spoke slowly:
"You little brat, you're really good at talking nonsense. It was clearly your young lady who told me to just wait at the door and that she would come out later. She also told me not to bother her. Why are you blaming me now?"
Her voice was neither too loud nor too soft, but it just reached the ears of everyone present:
"Furthermore, everyone knows that my younger brother Yao Sha is a descendant of a third-generation Duke's family, a highly respected and influential figure in the capital. Rather than my brother committing any improper acts, it seems to me that your Lin family deliberately orchestrated this today, forcing Lin Xu to ruin her reputation in order to compel my brother to marry her and make her the precious young mistress of the family..."
Upon hearing this, a hint of ambiguity flashed across everyone's expressions.
Her voice trailed off, her eyes filled with disdain and contempt. Before she finished speaking, a grown woman in the distance shouted:
"Who dares to spout nonsense here!"
It was Madam Yang and Gao Youyi, supporting each other, who slowly walked from the courtyard into the east room. Before them, there were a few other people who had somehow crossed the corridor and gathered in the room following the sound.
That was Yao Su'an, who looked at Yao Sha lying on the ground with a look of surprise and immediately rushed over to check on him, tears welling up in her eyes.
And beside her, the tall, handsome man had stopped in his tracks, his gaze sweeping over the surroundings before settling on Zhou Weikan, who was huddled in a corner, her hair disheveled.
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