Upon seeing Qin Sang, A-Lian's pupils constricted, and she rushed out without thinking.
She reached out to block the thugs, furious: "What do you want to do! This is my family's shop, all of you get out!"
Qin Sang scoffed, her eyes filled with mockery as she looked at A-Lian, as if she were an insignificant ant.
"You little brat, you've grown up! You even dare to tell me what to do? You know what you did to my daughter. If you've forgotten what we agreed on, I don't mind reminding you! You can't even handle things properly and you still want to keep the restaurant? Dream on!"
Qin Sang gave the thugs a signal, and they immediately shoved A-Lian aside and began smashing the shop without a care in the world. A-Lian staggered and fell to the ground, powerless to stop them, and could only look to Su Xiaoning for help.
Su Xiaoning was furious and was about to rush in and have a good talk with these people when Jiang Lin suddenly reached out and stopped her.
"Go back, I'll handle this."
Jiang Linchong smiled at Su Xiaoning, then immediately put on a stern expression. He strode towards the thugs, his back view filled with the fearless spirit he once had when he went to the battlefield.
Su Xiaoning stared unblinkingly at Jiang Lin's back, feeling a deep sense of security.
Su Qingcai, who was a step too slow, suddenly felt a little uncomfortable. He gave Ding Yi a few instructions, and then pulled Su Xiaoning into his arms.
Let Ding Yi and Jiang Lin handle this head-on; he should focus on protecting Su Xiaoning's safety.
Unlike when facing Jiang Lin, Su Xiaoning nestled obediently in Su Qingcai's arms. In this tense atmosphere, her heart inexplicably calmed down.
Outside the restaurant, Ding Yi and Jiang Lin rushed out. The two were exceptionally strong and coordinated perfectly, and the thugs were no match for them. In no time, they were all beaten black and blue and cowered, too afraid to step forward.
Qin Sang was so angry that she jumped up and down, pointing at the thugs and yelling, "You bunch of useless trash! You're all just good for eating and doing nothing, but now you're too scared to do anything! Get them!"
The thugs looked at each other, clearly terrified by Ding Yi and Jiang Lin, and none of them dared to step forward again.
Jiang Lin chuckled and casually grabbed one of the thugs, tossing him in front of Qin Sang.
"You should know who I am, right? This restaurant is under my protection from now on. If you have the guts, you can try to go against the General's Mansion."
It was only then that Qin Sang noticed who this dashing and sharp-looking young man was. He, who had originally wanted to curse, immediately trembled and couldn't utter a word.
"Why aren't you getting out of here? Are you waiting for me to kick you out?" Jiang Lin stared at Qin Sang with a half-smile, as if he would make Qin Sang become like these thugs at any moment.
Qin Sang trembled like a leaf. With no thugs to protect him, he turned and ran to save his life, stumbling and even losing a shoe in the process, looking utterly pathetic. His escape caused the thugs to scatter, and no one dared to oppose Jiang Lin and Ding Yi anymore.
The farce finally ended with Qin Sang and the thugs escaping. Everyone lost their appetite and didn't return to the table. Instead, they helped A-Lian clean up the restaurant.
By the time everyone had finished packing, dusk was already falling. Seeing that it was getting late, Su Xiaoning and A-Lian hurriedly said their goodbyes, intending to return to their outer residence.
Su Qingcai took Su Xiaoning's hand and said softly, "I'll take you back."
Seeing the two of them like this, Ah Lian wisely decided to leave on her own.
Jiang Lin was a little unhappy, and grabbed Su Xiaoning's other hand, "I'll see you off too."
"What right do you have to escort her?" Su Qingcai slapped Jiang Lin's hand away without any politeness. "This is, after all, a residence prepared for my selection of concubines. It's understandable that I escort her back myself, but if you escort her back and it gets discovered, how are you going to explain it?"
He specifically reminded Jiang Lin that Su Xiaoning was participating in his selection of concubines.
Jiang Lin was speechless for a moment, and could only watch Su Qingcai and Su Xiaoning walk further and further away. He clenched his fists tightly, feeling an immense sense of loss.
...
Su Qingcai escorted Su Xiaoning to a place not far from her house. The two remained silent the whole way until they were about to part ways, when he suddenly said, "Actually, I heard everything you said to Jiang Lin today."
"What words?" Su Xiaoning didn't react for a moment.
Su Qingcai pursed her lips and said softly, "You said you like freedom... I heard everything you said. You've participated in my selection of concubines, and you may be destined to be bound in the future. Will you regret it?"
"So you heard all that." Su Xiaoning said with an indifferent expression. "Then you must have heard what he and I said, so you're definitely not disappointed."
Su Qingcai remained silent, seemingly hesitant.
Seeing his conflicted expression, Su Xiaoning smiled gently. She took Su Qingcai's hand, looked at him earnestly, and her eyes sparkled.
"You don't need to worry about this or that. Although I like freedom, there are many things more important than freedom, such as the feelings between us. I am willing to stay for love, and I hope you can understand that."
"Su Qingcai, I love you."
Su Xiaoning's voice trembled slightly as she uttered those three words.
Having lived in modern society for over twenty years and remained single, this is the first time she has experienced love and the first time she has expressed her feelings so openly.
The starry sky seemed to be reflected in her eyes, but it couldn't compare to her beauty.
A warm feeling welled up in Su Qingcai's heart. He cupped Su Xiaoning's face and gently kissed her lips.
"Su Xiaoning, I love you."
With hearts in harmony, we will stay together forever.
The two confessed their feelings to each other and embraced tenderly for a while. Much later, when it was time for the head maid to patrol, Su Xiaoning reluctantly left Su Qingcai's embrace and walked towards her room.
Su Qingcai glanced longingly at Su Xiaoning's retreating figure before quietly leaving the outer residence.
He had just left when Su Xiaoning, who was walking halfway, was stopped by the head maid.
"What are you doing wandering around on the street so late?"
The head maid looked at Su Xiaoning with suspicion and questioned her sternly.
Su Xiaoning opened her mouth, feeling like crying but having no tears.
How unlucky I was to be discovered by the head maid!
Su Xiaoning made up a few reasons on the spot, but they were not very credible. The head maid's face grew darker and darker. Just as she was about to scold her, Meng Ruqiao suddenly walked over.
She pulled Su Xiaoning aside and said with a smile, "I told you before that I wanted to learn medicine from Su Xiaoning, and now that we've finished, I'm letting her go back. We didn't pay attention to the time and it's so late. We've caused you trouble, Granny, and we hope you'll forgive us."
Meng Ruqiao stepped in to save the day again, and the head maid couldn't say anything to the Prime Minister's daughter. She said a few words to Su Xiaoning symbolically, and then left.
After the head maid left, Meng Ruqiao pulled Su Xiaoning back to her residence. Su Xiaoning hesitated, wanting to ask her what she meant, but Meng Ruqiao suddenly stopped and said in a deep voice, "I saw you having a secret rendezvous with the Ninth Prince."
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