Chapter 186 Kidnapping
Qi Yuxuan smiled and said:
"It is the Crown Prince's wisdom that led the Qilin Guard to investigate when Minister Tao and the other censors impeached you. They discovered that they wanted to make an issue of the legal compilation you were in charge of, in order to deal with you and the other officials."
This was a statement that she and the Crown Prince agreed upon after discussing it.
Knowing that Qi Yuxuan didn't want to reveal why she knew about Minister Tao's treacherous scheme in advance, the Crown Prince deliberately brought up the Qilin Guard as an excuse, and Qi Yuxuan went along with it, completing the lie.
Only in this way would others believe why the Crown Prince was able to find the key to the problem in such a short time, and finally allow Zheng Lao to retire in peace.
Sure enough, Old Zheng had no doubts and nodded seriously.
If the Qilin Guards could even discover that he crawled out of the Zheng residence through a dog hole, investigating that scoundrel Tao Duo would surely be a piece of cake.
He suddenly felt a sense of relief.
Fortunately, he was already old and had never done anything detrimental to the Qi Kingdom in his life; otherwise, if he had run into the Qilin Guard, he would have been in a living hell.
Old Zheng bowed to everyone with his hands clasped and laughed heartily.
"Thank you all for your kindness. Today we part ways, and I don't know if we will ever have the chance to meet again. Please see me off here. From now on, there will be no more Prime Minister Zheng here, only an old man surnamed Zheng."
Everyone readily accepted the good advice and even changed the way they addressed each other.
May Mr. Zheng rest in peace.
The figures at the pavilion grew farther and farther away, eventually becoming a blurry dot in the distance. Only then did Old Zheng lower the carriage curtain and sit back down.
Qi Jun turned his head to look at Qi Yuxuan, who was gazing into the distance, and said gently:
"Let's go, we should head back too."
After the officials returned to their offices, Qi Jun escorted Qi Yuxuan to the Princess's residence before returning to the palace.
"master!"
Ren Shun, who had been waiting at the entrance of the Princess's residence, looked solemn. When he saw Qi Yuxuan get off the carriage, he immediately went to greet her.
"What's up?"
Qi Jun looked at the unfamiliar-looking young man, his eyebrows slightly raised.
He looks like a trained fighter, and his appearance is decent, but his demeanor is a bit arrogant. But when did this young girl get such a bodyguard?
Qi Jun was sizing up Ren Shun, and Ren Shun also turned his gaze back without any hesitation.
Of course he knew who this person was, but even if the Heavenly King himself came, he would only acknowledge Qi Yuxuan as his master and never take anyone else seriously.
"Please come closer, Master."
He looked away, waiting for Qi Yuxuan's reaction.
The boy, who had practiced martial arts for many years, was tall and had an extremely straight back. Standing in front of her, he looked like a tall and straight poplar tree.
Qi Yuxuan felt a growing impatience at his disrespectful attitude towards the Crown Prince.
"Just say it, my cousin is no outsider."
Aside from her rebirth, she now has almost no secrets from the Crown Prince. Since that's the case, she might as well be more open and completely surrender.
Ren Shun pursed his lips, staring intently at Qi Yuxuan, his wheat-colored skin taut, revealing a hint of stubbornness.
He was indeed at Qi Yuxuan's beck and call, but the Crown Prince was just a passerby to him, so why was he allowed to listen in on his reports?
"Never mind."
Seeing that Ren Shun remained silent for a long time, stubborn as a mule, Qi Yuxuan's patience ran out. She could only turn her head to look at Qi Jun and give him a polite smile.
"Cousin, the guard is being disrespectful. I'll teach him a lesson when we get back. You're busy with official duties, so I won't invite you in for tea."
Qi Jun nodded primly: "It's alright. The loyalty of servants is more important than anything else. You can go in first."
As he spoke, he noticed out of the corner of his eye that the boy in plain clothes suddenly clenched his fist at his side, as if he was enduring something.
"Take care, cousin."
Qi Yuxuan watched the Crown Prince ride away on his tallow tree before turning around, her face falling, and heading towards the Princess's residence.
"Why didn't you bow to the Crown Prince just now? The Crown Prince is now my cousin, you should show him some respect."
Ren Shun suddenly stopped, his legs, which had only taken a few steps, also came to a halt.
He stopped behind Qi Yuxuan, his voice harsh:
"I don't care who that person is to you. Other people are none of my business and I don't need to care about them."
"You don't actually think I'm working for you and can be bossed around at will, do you?"
Upon hearing this, Qi Yuxuan stopped and turned to look at him.
"You can't even keep up the act for three years? I thought you were flexible and that you would do your best since you agreed."
"Provocation doesn't work on me!"
"Oh, really?"
The little girl approached him. Even though she was shorter than him and had to look up to see him, her imposing manner made Ren Shun feel a tightness in his back and a strange sense of nervousness arise.
"Then tell me what methods are effective, and I'll learn them."
That delicate, sculpted face was so close that Ren Shun could almost see the fine downy hairs on her soft, white cheeks.
The little girl had a delicate and straight nose, and he could even feel their breaths mingling.
In an instant, Ren Shun's mind went blank, and he completely forgot all the rebuttals he had just thought of. He quickly took a big step back.
"Why are you standing so close to me?!"
"Understood, I will bow to the Crown Prince from now on!"
He finished his loud, boastful speech, then realized why he had been waiting for Qi Yuxuan at the door. He cleared his throat.
"That person from Feiyin Pavilion has been rescued."
As Qi Yuxuan walked inside, she frowned and asked, "When did this happen?"
"Just half an hour ago, you were seeing Prime Minister Zheng off outside the city."
"Still in the same direction as last time?"
Ren Shun paused for a moment before speaking:
"The other side was well prepared, with hidden sentries, counter-tracking, and deception all in place. I was too busy to catch up."
"Okay, I understand."
Qi Yuxuan's reaction was too calm, and Ren Shun glanced at her cautiously.
The girl's eyelashes were long and beautiful, and when they fell down, they could cover all the thoughts in her eyes. She was focused on the road beneath her feet, as if she did not know what was happening at Feiyin Pavilion.
"Isn't Master in a hurry?"
"I already know who rescued them, so why am I in such a hurry?"
"You know that??"
Ren Shun was surprised and couldn't control his voice, which made the maid who was bowing to him look at the guard strangely.
Such a young age and such poor manners, when did Princess Chang Le get such a bodyguard?
He lowered his voice: "Who is it? I couldn't even catch up with them, how did Master know?"
Qi Yuxuan pushed aside the face that was blocking her view. "It's a secret."
"..."
It's hard to guess who's connected to Gu Linyan, but it's not hard to guess who has such power and is trying to get involved in this mess.
Moreover, Ren Ze had revealed some harmless information to her before leaving.
If she's right, Gu Linyan will likely make a high-profile appearance in front of everyone in a few days.
Prince Duan's Mansion.
Since Qi Wenyue was restricted from going out, even her coming-of-age ceremony was simply held at the Prince's residence.
That day, in the back garden of the Prince's Mansion, she picked up the petals of a peony that had just bloomed and idly plucked them off, then tossed them to the ground without a second thought.
"Princess, the sun is getting increasingly strong. Why don't we go and rest in that pavilion over there?"
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