General Liu turned his head and saw a beautiful face emerge from the carriage.
Zhu Jiayu looked in the direction of the sound, and the next moment, she froze in shock.
Song Jiangmei looked at her and nodded with a slight smile.
General Liu then realized that he recognized the man. It seemed to be the stepdaughter of the Nie family patriarch, surnamed Song.
It's true that the Nie family has had bad luck. The patriarch died suddenly from an unknown illness, and his second wife, a kind and devoted woman, also fell ill from grief. The only remaining legitimate daughter was caught having an affair during her father's mourning period. As a result, the one now in power in the Nie family is the stepdaughter, the one standing before him.
For an ordinary person, such a status would be fine, but this stepdaughter is capable. She holds power in the household, manages things in an orderly manner, and is also adept at social maneuvering. She is on good terms with the ladies and young ladies of many powerful families. Even his wife has privately praised the stepdaughter's character to him several times.
He clicked his tongue, realizing that this was a difficult matter—he could neither disobey the Crown Prince's orders nor easily offend Miss Song in front of him.
The woman could talk about anything from south to north.
If he doesn't handle this matter well today, the Crown Prince's reputation may be ruined tomorrow.
After thinking it over carefully, General Liu smiled and asked, "Miss Song, what brings you here?"
Sitting in the carriage, Song Jiangmei casually said, "I happened to be passing by when I heard a commotion, so I came to see what was going on. General Liu, what are you doing? Could it be that the Ning family has committed some offense, and you've come with the Crown Prince's edict to arrest Lord Ning and his wife?"
General Liu still wore a simple and honest smile on his face, but in his heart he was secretly angry that this little girl was trying to fool him. Who would pass by here in the middle of the night?
It's obvious they heard something and came to make things difficult for him!
Could this little girl be someone of Prince Cheng or Prince Ke? Knowing that he came on the Crown Prince's orders, she came specifically to stop him?
While the two were facing off, Zhu Jiayu was comforting Ning Han: "Uncle, you should go back first, so that Aunt won't worry later. Don't worry, I'm here. I won't let them touch a single brick or tile of the Ning family's property."
Knowing that the Crown Prince's men were going to take action against the Ning family, the Zhenguo Duke's Mansion would certainly not stand idly by. Ning Han was close to Wei Qinglou, and even if it wasn't for her sake, the Ning family was still someone they absolutely had to protect. Otherwise, how could the Zhenguo Duke's Mansion maintain its standing in Yujing City in the future?
After all, the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion is not yet in such dire straits that it cannot even save itself—the Crown Prince's decision to invite Wei Qinglou into the palace and take action against the Ning family proves that he dares not touch the Wei family now. Thus, the Wei family naturally has the resources to help the Ning family.
She only needs to manage the time here.
Even if the worst-case scenario occurs, and the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion chooses to protect itself, that's fine too. When dawn breaks, upright officials in the court will naturally step forward and demand that the Crown Prince produce evidence.
She guessed that the Crown Prince ordered the Xuanwu Guards to act at night because he was too eager for quick results and lacked solid evidence. He had no legitimate reason to arrest the Ning family members. In the end, he would have no choice but to order the Xuanwu Guards to retreat.
Ning Han still refused: "It's alright, they have no evidence and can't do anything to me. I'll go with them. It'll just be hard on you, protecting your aunt in this dangerous place."
Zhu Jiayu said anxiously, "If you go with them, how do you know they won't torture you into confessing? Besides, Aunt is heavily pregnant and can't take any more shocks! If you leave, I won't be able to explain it to Aunt!"
She stood in front of Ning Han, refusing to budge an inch.
General Liu, seemingly tired of arguing with Song Jiangmei, impatiently shouted, "What is Miss Song's status? How dare you interfere in the Crown Prince's affairs? Anyone who didn't know better would probably think you were a concubine from the Eastern Palace!"
"If you know what's good for you, leave quickly, and this general won't make things difficult for you; but if you don't..."
"So what if she doesn't know her place?" The sound of hooves echoed as the young man on horseback rode in under the moonlight. "Does General Liu intend to indiscriminately kill innocent people? Or are you going to label all of us who don't know our place as rebels?!"
General Liu's pupils suddenly contracted.
Why is Lin Zhi here too! After the Lin family was exonerated, this troublesome person, who was the most unpredictable and scheming, has become the most influential new minister in the court. The emperor appreciates him, and ministers who have a past with the Lin family take care of him in every way. Even ministers who dislike him can't say anything to him when they think about how many years of injustice the Lin family has suffered.
He finally realized that things were getting a bit tricky.
After Lin Zhi finished speaking, without waiting for his reaction, he dismounted and went to the gate of the Ning residence. He bowed to Ning Han and said, "Uncle, it's getting late. You should go back and rest. Leave the rest to us."
As he spoke, he looked at Zhu Jiayu again and said, "There is some kinship between us, after all. I can call your uncle 'uncle,' is that too much to ask?"
Zhu Jiayu nodded slightly, stood shoulder to shoulder with him, and looked at General Liu in front of them.
"You...you really are!" General Liu frowned deeply, and the horse beneath him seemed to sense its master's anxiety, swishing its tail.
After a moment of silence, he calmed down, hardened his heart, and said, "The Crown Prince's order cannot be disobeyed. All irrelevant personnel, stand back, or you will all be arrested!"
"Liu the Barbarian, you're so powerful! Why don't you take me, the princess, down with you too?"
As soon as the sedan chair landed, the 120 guards following behind it also stopped in unison. Then, the princess sitting in the sedan chair clapped her hands, and the 120 guards lined up to the left and right, surrounding the Xuanwu Guard!
General Liu wiped the sweat from his brow and began to wonder if he had forgotten to pay respects to the Three Pure Ones before leaving home today. Otherwise, how could he be so unlucky? It was just a small errand, yet it had alarmed so many important figures.
Even Princess Yuan Hui has come!
He closed his eyes briefly, sighed heavily, and turned to say with a forced smile, "Your Highness, you may not know, but this humble general is acting on the orders of the Crown Prince..."
Gu Jinshu spoke slowly through the brocade curtain: "I know, you were ordered by your cousin to arrest the Ning family traitors, but does Miss Zhu belong to those Ning family traitors?"
General Liu didn't understand what she meant, and shook his head seriously: "Of course not."
Gu Jinshu hummed in agreement: "That's settled then. I'm not trying to protect the Ning family, I'm just protecting Zhu Jiayu alone, is that not enough?"
"This..." General Liu scratched his head, but before he could speak, the young girl in the sedan chair spoke first:
"What is this? Why don't you take over the position of princess? If you ask me, you shouldn't do this job for now. Let's go and talk to the Empress Dowager first. Since when did it become your place to make excuses for my orders, you Liu barbarian?"
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