Su Rong noticed them as well, a group of three women and two men. Among them was a woman she recognized, and figured that she must have forgotten to check her horoscope before stepping out today. Though the Governor of Jiangning was influential, he was still below the Inspector. Jiangning County was overseen by the Inspector of Jiangzhou. She had previously had a run-in with Jiang Yunying, the daughter of the Inspector’s Residence of Jiangzhou. 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦
What was Jiang Yunying, who was supposed to be staying in Jiangzhou, doing in Jiangning?
Su Rong realized that she couldn’t avoid her today. She pulled at Zhou Gu’s sleeve and said, "Zhou Gu."
Zhou Gu was a little uncomfortable being this close to Su Rong. He wondered why she was pulling at his sleeve instead of merely talking. But seeing her wrinkled face, he asked, "Hmm? What’s wrong?"
Su Rong glanced in that direction, "Do you see those people over there? They are looking at us. The woman in the goose-yellow dress, I’ve had a dispute with her. I’m afraid she might cause trouble today."
Zhou Gu never feared trouble, "Are you afraid of her?"
Su Rong shook her head, "Not afraid per se, but her father is Jiangzhou’s Inspector, Jiang Sheng."
Zhou Gu understood, "Are you saying an official rank higher can kill?"
"Yes. My father has a lower rank, so I don’t have much maneuverability when dealing with her."
Zhou Gu was about to ask, "If your father had a higher rank, what would be your move?" But looking at her thin arms and thin legs, he guessed she might just curse someone out? This gentle girl of hers probably wouldn’t resort to physical violence, unlike those tough noble ladies in the Capital City who would physically assault someone. At most, she would engage in a verbal altercation? But with her character, even a verbal fight would probably come off as a gentle conversation, almost as if she were tickling someone.
He asked, "What kind of dispute? A big deal?"
"Kind of." Su Rong said softly, "Three years ago, her fiancé fell for me and went to her home to call off their engagement. Since then, she has despised me."
Zhou Gu: "..."
"How old were you three years ago?"
"I was twelve."
Zhou Gu frowned, "You didn’t provoke anyone, did you?"
"No!" Su Rong felt wronged, "I have a young master from the Duke Residence as my fiancé, why would I court death by messing with others? The fiancé of the Inspector’s legitimate daughter might come from a slightly more prestigious family, but he doesn’t hold a candle to yours."
Zhou Gu chuckled, pulling his sleeve back, he looked at her, arching an eyebrow, "Okay, so you were after the prestige of my house."
Su Rong looked incredulous, "Was I wrong? I had never met you before, so how could I have been after you?"
There was no way to refute that.
Zhou Gu grunted, "Then, have you ever felt that you’re not good enough for me?"
Anticipating this, Su Rong thought to herself that of course, a wealthy household like his would value status and arranged marriages. Zhou Gu was looking down on her lowly status. She nodded sincerely, "Of course, but could I deny the engagement arranged by the old Duke?"
Zhou Gu was silenced, this was an irrefutable truth. He himself couldn’t reject his grandfather’s decision.
He was particularly upset, about to say something else, when he saw the group of people walking towards them instead of getting onto the boat. It was clear they were after Su Rong. He casually said, "Alright, I’m here for you, you just need to wave the tiger’s flag."
These were the words Su Rong had been waiting for. Three years ago, she had been humiliated. Her mother, however powerful, couldn’t cross the line with the Inspector’s lady. She had been scolded a lot by the Inspector’s lady for not controlling her better, and for being unreasonable. The lady didn’t feel that her judgment was flawed for choosing a lecherous man as her daughter’s fiancé. That reproachable person only met her once before canceling his existing engagement. He didn’t even know if she was betrothed to someone else. She felt such a fool to have been troubled by him.
But who could help it? She was the wife of the Inspector. There was no alternative. She had to swallow this public insult. Even though Su Rong had since retaliated behind the scenes, it still felt unsatisfactory. Today, her bad luck turned into an opportunity to fight back.
In the blink of an eye, the group was in front of her. Taking the lead was naturally Jiang Yunying. She saw Zhou Gu clearly, revealing her surprise. However, she remained composed. After looking him over, she raised her eyebrows at Su Rong, "Su Rong, you’re all dressed up today. Are you fishing for a golden turtle husband?"
Su Rong: "..."
She responded seriously: "Sister Jiang, you’re absolutely right. This is indeed my golden turtle husband. He’s been my fiancé since we were both young, betrothed. It has always been him, never changed."
Zhou Gu: "..."
Jiang Yunying had been through two fiancés. One was three years ago when he fell in love with Su Rong and broke off his engagement. The other happened a year ago. The wife of the Inspector made another engagement for her, but after only three months, that family ran into trouble and she had to break off another engagement.
Su Rong’s words hit right to Jiang Yunying’s heart, causing her to instantly harden her face. Her eyes were as sharp as a knife, "You, a mere concubine daughter of a Governor’s Residence, and illegitimate daughter at that, what kind of golden turtle husband could you possibly fish for? Surely he’s also a bastard, like comes with like, right? What are you so smug about?"
Su Rong: "..."
Though she was called illegitimate daughter, it wasn’t inaccurate. She was indeed a low-status common girl, looked down upon by others. But that’s not the case for Zhou Gu.
She thought to herself, it seems Sister Jiang has overstepped today.
As expected, before she could retort, Zhou Gu’s face hardened, and he bellowed, "Impudent!"
He unsheathed his sword in a flash, pointing it at Jiang Yunying’s throat. His entire demeanor radiating coldness from the inside out, like a treasured sword - sharp and piercing, "Do you dare to say again what you just said — to my face?"
Jiang Yunying was shocked, her face turning pale, terrified to even move, "Y-you ..."
She had probably never experienced someone pulling a sword at her for a sentence uttered. The sharp sword blade against her skin hurt. If he were to push his blade just an inch forward, she would be bleeding profusely.
At this point, the two men and two women accompanying Jiang Yunying panicked. The faces of the two women turned white. The two men seemed calm. One of them immediately started talking, "My good man, let’s talk this out nicely, first put down your weapon."
Zhou Gu sneered, "As if I need a reason to kill someone who insults me. Even if she’s the daughter of Jiangzhou’s Inspector, she can be killed. Are you bold enough to offend me?"
Jiang Yunying was extremely frightened, her eyes filled with terror, but she dared not move.
The man mediating was startled, he didn’t think that Zhou Gu would not even care about the Inspector of Jiangzhou. His identity must be extraordinary. He promptly reported his own status, "I am Ning Chi, from the Marquis Nanping Residence. Sister Jiang wasn’t aware of your identity, please forgive any offense made. Please be magnanimous and forget about a small person’s mistake."
"Heir to the Marquis of Nanping?" Zhou Gu gave Ning Chi a look, then scanned him from head to toe, laughing coldly, "Oh really? Are you trying to intimidate me with your status?"
"I dare not!" When Ning Chi saw that Zhou Gu’s sword didn’t move from Jiang Yunying’s neck, he became even more frightened. This man, who didn’t flinch at the Marquis of Namping Residence, must hold a high status.
He then turned to Su Rong, attempting to indirectly diffuse the situation, "Miss Su Qi, violence isn’t for ladies. Even though she spoke improperly, it’s not worthy of death. I beseech Miss Su Qi, plead for mercy."
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