"If others can come, why can't I? I might as well ask the Seventh Prince why he's here, disturbing my enjoyment for no reason."
Su Qingcai remained neither humble nor arrogant, and did not lose any of his composure in the face of Su Qinghe, who clearly had ill intentions.
Su Qinghe feigned an apologetic expression, saying insincerely, "I'm truly sorry, but I only received news that the Ninth Prince, who never comes to places like this, has actually boarded the ship. I just wanted to come and see for myself. We're all brothers, so the Ninth Prince won't blame me, will he?"
As he spoke, he kept a close eye on Su Qingcai's expression, trying to find even the slightest abnormality so that he could arrest him with a legitimate reason.
But Su Qingcai understood Su Qinghe's thoughts. He smiled faintly, without revealing any flaws: "We are all family, so naturally we shouldn't blame each other. But now that a beauty is by my side, is the Seventh Prince really so tactless?"
"You mean this Miss Feng? I thought you were so devoted to Su Xiaoning, but it turns out you're just like this..." Su Qinghe raised an eyebrow, his gaze lingering between Feng Lin and Su Qinghe, and laughed mockingly.
"I never expected that the Ninth Prince would come to a place like this to seek pleasure. Very well, I won't bother you any longer!"
Since she hadn't found a weakness, there was no point in staying any longer. Su Qinghe turned to leave, but inadvertently caught a glimpse of a dark figure behind the screen, vaguely resembling a human silhouette.
He stopped abruptly and asked, "Is someone behind the screen?"
Su Qingcai's heart tightened, and his face immediately became tense. He said in a deep voice, "How could there be anyone? There are just some tools behind us."
"Really? Then what are you blocking?" Su Qinghe stared at Su Qingcai with a half-smile, and took a few steps closer to the screen.
Su Xiaoning, behind the screen, was in her throat. She covered her mouth, afraid to make a sound, lest Su Qinghe pull her out from behind the screen.
The atmosphere in the room grew increasingly tense. Just as Su Qinghe was about to push Su Qingcai aside to see what was behind the screen, Feng Lin suddenly grabbed Su Qingcai's arm and stood in front of Su Qinghe with him.
She gave Su Qinghe a charming smile and said coquettishly, "Seventh Prince, a moment of passion is worth a thousand pieces of gold. Can't you be a little more considerate of us? There are some other people's clothes behind that screen. You'd better not look at them."
Feng Lin was like a completely different person. She nestled affectionately against Su Qingcai's shoulder, her eyes filled with a mixture of reproach and joy, making her exceptionally captivating.
Su Qinghe was so captivated by her smile that he forgot all about what was behind the screen and nodded repeatedly, "You're right. Since it's Miss Feng's clothes, it's indeed inconvenient for me to check. I'll be leaving now. When will Miss Feng have time to come to my residence for a cup of tea?"
"I'm available anytime, Your Highness," Feng Lin replied with a smile. She watched Su Qing and the group leave the room before releasing Su Qing's arm, her smile vanishing.
"Thank you, Miss Feng." Su Qingcai bowed and thanked her, then hurriedly pulled Su Xiaoning and Feng Jiuming out from behind the screen. "I didn't expect him to actually come after us. It's no longer safe here. Let's go back first."
"Okay." Understanding the crisis in the current situation, Su Xiaoning nodded and hurried off.
Before she could even step out the door, Feng Lin's voice suddenly came from outside.
Feng Lin called out to Su Xiaoning. She clenched her fingers, looking a little nervous. She opened her mouth but couldn't say anything else. After a long mental preparation, she finally spoke softly, "You...you and Jiang Lin are very close, right? Could you find a chance for me to meet him a few times in the future?"
She clutched the hem of her clothes tightly, biting her lip lightly, looking quite nervous.
A slight smile appeared on Su Xiaoning's face. This girlish demeanor made Feng Lin seem more approachable and less unapproachable.
"Okay, I promise you."
Su Xiaoning agreed to Feng Lin's request. Time was of the essence, so she didn't say anything more and hurriedly returned to the Prince's Mansion with Su Qingcai.
With the information provided by Feng Lin, the three of them finally got some clues. However, Su Qingcai's expression was very serious the whole way, and it was unclear what he was thinking about.
Su Xiaoning couldn't help but ask, and saw Su Qingcai rub his temples wearily and say in a deep voice, "There might be a spy in the Prince's mansion."
"Why?" Su Xiaoning was taken aback and quickly asked.
“This trip was completely secret. Only people in the manor knew my whereabouts. Su Qinghe actually found out about this, so the information was probably provided to him by a spy. And do you remember the powder from last time? The person who poisoned you might also be that spy.”
After speaking, Su Qingcai fell into thought again. Su Qinghe's sudden arrival this time, Su Xiaoning being maliciously poisoned last time... one thing after another seemed to be reminding him that the Prince's mansion was not clean.
You can guard against thieves day and night, but it's hard to guard against thieves within your own household.
Su Xiaoning's expression was also not good. She knew it might be true, and her expression became preoccupied.
With different thoughts in their minds, the group quickly arrived at the Prince's mansion. As soon as they opened the main gate, they saw a red glow in the courtyard, and people inside were running around in a panic.
"Fire! Help!"
The shouts rang out, and Su Xiaoning realized what had happened. Her pupils contracted, and without saying a word, she ran towards the other courtyard.
The villa is full of children!
Xiao Dao had mentioned before that there were many children like him, and Su Xiaoning kept that in mind. Although she only rescued Xiao Dao from the woodshed, she didn't let her guard down. She would ask any suspicious beggar she saw on the street if they needed help, and she even brought all the complaining little beggars back to the palace.
In just a few days, she saved quite a few people.
All the children were placed in the Prince's villa. They should be fast asleep right now. If they were burned to death in the villa, Su Xiaoning would probably carry this psychological burden for the rest of her life.
Su Xiaoning ran towards the villa. She recalled the happy times she spent with the children, and tears streamed down her face uncontrollably. Su Qingcai and Feng Jiuming followed closely behind her, their hearts also breaking.
The three quickly ran to the villa, where they saw flames soaring into the sky, and the faint sounds of children crying could be heard from inside. Ding Yi and Bing Er were directing people to fetch water to put out the fire, but the fire was too intense, and the water evaporated quickly, proving to be of no use.
Hearing the cries of "Save me!" from within the flames, Su Xiaoning felt as if her heart was being torn apart, and without a word, she rushed into the fire.
Su Qingcai's heart skipped a beat. He grabbed Su Xiaoning tightly and shouted, "You can't go!"
"Then how am I supposed to save them!" Su Xiaoning whispered, struggling to get Su Qingcai to let go, but she couldn't break free at all.
She gazed at the blazing fire in the house through her tears, a profound sense of powerlessness welling up within her.
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