Bai Weiwei never expected that she could not only match the answer, but do it so well.
The terrace had quieted down without anyone noticing, with only the distant shouts still audible.
Dragon boats on Li Lake race swiftly like the wind, while the sound of gongs and drums echoes through the azure sky.
Brave men row their oars, chasing the waves; their heroic spirit soars to the clouds, reflected in the red sun.
The hollyhocks in the courtyard bloom beautifully, swaying gracefully with countless charms.
Quietly guarding the passage of time adds to the ancient charm, reminiscing about the past brings endless feelings.
Someone recounted the poems the two exchanged in detail and carefully examined them, discovering that the second line of each of the four couplets was actually more outstanding.
"I've heard that Miss Bai is the most talented woman of her age in the capital, so how come she's not as good as Miss Shen?"
"You can't say that. I'm not good at these things. I think both of them are very talented."
"Yeah, and maybe it was all prepared in advance? Didn't we know beforehand that this step was going to happen?"
“But we used to hear each person compose a poem, but now it’s one person composing the first line and the other person composing the second line. This is not easy.”
"That makes sense, and Miss Shen was the one who answered it. It seems Miss Shen is indeed more capable."
The crowd was buzzing with discussion, and the whispers reached Bai Weiwei's ears. Bai Weiwei gripped her small fan tightly and subconsciously looked at Bai Yu's reaction.
Bai Yu's face lit up with delight as she looked at Li Li with great appreciation.
Bai Weiwei also noticed that a hairpin was missing from Bai Yu's hair.
As for where the hairpin went, it goes without saying.
"Sister is so amazing!" Gu Ziqi praised her with admiration, making Lili blush.
"Thank you, Ziqi."
To be honest, Lili felt a little guilty. As a science student, she naturally didn't have the literary talent.
She just had a bit of "good luck"—she could speak eloquently without hesitation.
So what?
If Bai Weiwei hadn't chosen her, she wouldn't have been able to use her cheat code.
Bai Weiwei managed to calm herself down and gave Lili a very sincere smile: "Miss Chen is indeed a woman of great literary talent. I am ashamed to admit that I am not as good as her."
Lili remained unfazed and replied with a smile, "Miss Bai, you flatter me. I must say that Miss Bai's first line was excellent, which is why Lili was able to follow up with the second."
"Not at all, Miss Shen's writing is far superior to Weiwei's. You see, everyone says that Miss Shen's second line is better than the first. Weiwei is just throwing out a brick to startle the jade."
"...Miss Bai is very knowledgeable and experienced, how can Lili compare to her?"
"How could that be? I've long heard that Nanlin County has been changing rapidly in recent years. Today, Weiwei has witnessed it firsthand. It truly is a place where hidden talents abound!"
Lili: "……."
This is never going to end, is it?
Lili smiled and secretly nudged Xia Ning with the tip of her shoe. Xia Ning, who had been holding back her laughter, finally had enough of the show and said, "Alright, alright, stop talking. In my opinion, both of you are wonderful."
After saying that, Xia Ning turned her head to ask Bai Yu for her opinion: "Princess Consort, don't you think so?"
Bai Yu glanced at Bai Weiwei and smiled, "Of course, this has added to the excitement. The dragon boat races are almost over, so let's see which dragon boat will come out on top."
"yes."
Bai Weiwei and Lili said.
The two exchanged a glance; Bai Weiwei's expression was meaningful, while Lili was somewhat speechless.
Lili was too lazy to pay attention and stood back next to Xia Ning.
Bai Yu had been praising Yang Shi repeatedly: "It's been a few years since I last saw Lili, and she's become even more capable."
Madam Yang smiled and said, "I dare not accept such praise. Lili has always been a worry-free child. When her father reads, she stays by his side and keeps him company. Over time, she has also become quite learned."
Lili smiled, and Xia Ning excitedly exclaimed as she pulled her along, "Lili, you won!"
Everyone looked towards the finish line on Li Lake. Sure enough, the dragon boat that Lili had guessed earlier had surged ahead to the finish line, leaving the other four dragon boats far behind.
"Ew, Lili really guessed right."
One side was overjoyed to have guessed the dragon boat correctly, while the other side wasn't so happy.
Bai Weiwei's earlier nonchalance suddenly collapsed just when Lili guessed that the dragon boat had won.
Because she was guessing the dragon boat that was at the very front.
The dragon boat has just barely crossed the line, second to last.
Yu Siting asked with some concern, "Cousin, you..."
Bai Weiwei left the terrace without saying a word, her face expressionless, and walked into the inner room.
Throughout the entire process, she maintained the most appropriate, gentle and elegant smile. Every step and every gesture was exactly the same as that of the young lady from the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion in the capital.
Yu Siting hurriedly chased after her.
Lili guessed the dragon boat correctly, and Xia Ning was even more excited than her.
Lili silently looked away and sighed.
They're still just kids; their minds aren't mature enough yet.
She's a pretty kid, but why does she always seem to be causing trouble?
"We won, we won, we all won."
Xia Ning was as excited as when the two of them used to catch frogs together in the fields when they were children, and she no longer had the dignified demeanor of the Xia family's young lady.
Bai Yu looked in the direction her niece had left with mixed feelings.
She only learned about what happened in Liucheng from the guards yesterday.
Bai Yu was, after all, the wife of the Marquis's heir; how could she not see through her little schemes?
However, Bai Weiwei was, after all, her only niece from her maternal family, and still young. Bai Yu simply assumed that she was just a naive girl, as it was her first time traveling far from the capital.
However, Bai Weiwei did go a bit too far today.
However, Bai Yu didn't think too much about it. Judging by the time, the people who were supposed to come should have arrived by now.
"Everyone, we've had a wonderful time at the Hollyhock Feast today, and the Dragon Boat Race is over. Let's call it a day."
Bai Yu summoned Cui Hong and instructed her to accompany Madam Qin in arranging for the ladies and young women to go downstairs, board their own carriages, and leave.
Madam Qin was initially a little confused, because there was clearly still dinner tonight.
But Madam Qin was also a shrewd person. After meeting Bai Yu's meaningful gaze, she did as she was told without hesitation.
After making arrangements for the others, Bai Yu did not make any arrangements for the people around her.
Instead, Bai Yu had several rocking chairs brought in, a table was placed in the middle, and a chessboard was set up.
Bai Yu stood on the edge of the terrace, his eyes seemingly checking his surroundings for something.
"Does Madam Shen know how to play chess? Play a game with me."
Yang glanced at Lili, and only sat down and picked up the white chess piece when she saw that Lili had no reaction.
After the area was cleared out, only a few people remained, and the two of them continued playing chess.
A sense of danger inexplicably arose in Lili's heart, and she looked at Xia Ning questioningly.
Xia Ning shook her head blankly as well.
As dusk fell, Yang and Baiyu were engrossed in playing chess in the center of the terrace.
Bai Yu stroked the black chess piece in his hand and looked up at the sky.
Cuihong hurried back and whispered in Baiyu's ear, "Madam, everything is arranged. There is no one else in the teahouse."
"Um."
Pear's heart pounded harder and harder.
She suddenly remembered Bai Yu's seemingly casual glance before playing chess, and on a whim, she walked to the edge of the terrace and glanced in the direction Bai Yu had just looked.
To the south of the teahouse lies Li Lake, and to the east, inside a steamed bun shop, several burly men are enjoying their steamed buns with great gusto.
Upon closer inspection, although their expressions were not visible, one could sense the tension in the burly men.
Under the locust tree to the west, several thugs dressed as local ruffians were staring blankly at the entrance of the teahouse.
Seven people.
No, there can't be only this much.
Lili took a half step back and tugged at Xia Ning's sleeve: "Sister Xia Ning, protect Ziqi."
Xia Ning asked, puzzled, "What's wrong?"
Lili remained silent, while Baiyu kept his eyes on the chessboard in front of him. However, the guards in the four corners had their hands on the hilts of their swords at some point, as if they were ready to strike at any moment.
At the same time, a small group of men dressed in uniform black silently entered the inner room below the terrace and were gesturing for people to hide.
Xia Ning followed Li Li's gaze and saw it too. She looked nervous and subconsciously moved closer to Li Li, protecting Gu Ziqi with one hand and tightly gripping Li Li's clothes with the other.
"Lili, what's going on?"
Yang's back was to the inner room, so she knew nothing of what was happening inside. However, Bai Yu was facing the inner room directly, so it was impossible that she hadn't noticed the unusual activity.
Those in high positions of power are most concerned about their own safety.
Unless, Bai Yu already knew.
Lili suddenly realized.
Gu Ziqi looked at Xia Ning, then at Lili. Seeing that his two older sisters looked very serious, he also became nervous and squeezed between them to stay quietly.
Lili frowned, patted Gu Ziqi reassuringly, and said softly, "It's alright, there might be some uninvited guests coming out later."
"ah?"
Xia Ning immediately clung tightly to Lili. She had already witnessed Lili's prowess firsthand. At times like this, clinging to her leg was all that mattered!
Xia Ning hugged Lili tightly, and didn't forget to remind Gu Ziqi: "Ziqi, you must stay close to Sister Lili later, okay?"
Gu Ziqi nodded as if he understood, and then wrapped his little arms around Lili.
The two men's tense demeanor contrasted sharply with Bai Yu's calm and collected chess playing.
Lili chuckled: "It's not that serious, the Crown Prince's wife is quite calm."
"Huh?" Xia Ning panicked and her mind went blank. All she could think about was to stick close to Lili, just like she had five years ago.
The commotion caused by the three children left the bewildered Mrs. Yang completely baffled.
For a moment, Madam Yang was so flustered that she couldn't even play her chess game properly: "Princess Consort, what's wrong?"
Bai Yu placed a piece on the board and smiled faintly: "The show is about to begin."
In the blink of an eye, more than a dozen hooks suddenly appeared on the railings around the terrace, wrapped tightly around the railings, and extended downwards with thick ropes attached to them.
"Assassins! Protect the lady!"
The guards at the four corners instantly drew their long swords and swiftly cut off the grappling hooks clinging to the fence.
Xia Ning shuddered. The shadow from five years ago was too great, causing her to tremble uncontrollably whenever she saw such a scene.
Xia Ning buried her head deeper into Li Li's shoulder before she felt a little more at ease.
Lili hugged the two of them tightly, moving closer to Baiyu and Yangshi, her voice soft yet firm: "Don't be afraid, nothing will happen."
The guards moved extremely fast, cutting nearly half of the thick rope in the blink of an eye. However, they couldn't withstand the overwhelming force of the enemy's attack. As soon as the rope was cut, new grappling hooks would wrap around it again, making it impossible to keep up.
There are only four guards on the terrace now, which is no match for them.
As soon as the rope was cut here, people started climbing up there.
The other person was dressed in the coarse linen clothes of an ordinary person, with a black square scarf covering his face. He grabbed a thick rope and climbed up, quickly flipping himself onto the terrace.
The guards, unable to spare any attention, abandoned their attempt to cut the ropes and instead engaged in a fierce battle with the enemy using their swords.
Yang was already pale with fright, but having experienced many big events with Lili over the years, she didn't lose her composure. Instead, she calmly brought the children closer together.
Cuihong stood in front of them, protecting them firmly.
Taking advantage of a moment of silence, Lili glanced at the situation in the middle of the room. The men in black had already hidden themselves away, and Lili couldn't tell at all that there were more than a dozen people hiding in that small room.
"Your Highness, what exactly is going on?"
"I'm sorry, Lili, this wasn't meant to involve you. It's just that His Highness instructed me to prove some things to you."
Lili was very puzzled, but she had no mind to speculate on the ins and outs of the matter, because the four guards were already at a disadvantage. There were too many of them, and no matter how skilled the four guards were, they were powerless to resist.
There were already more than a dozen corpses lying on the ground, and the smell of blood permeated the air. The four guards were all injured to varying degrees, and at this moment they could only retreat and form a circle to protect the others in the middle.
Xia Ning gasped for breath, forcing herself to hold Gu Ziqi tightly despite her fear.
If Lili says it's okay, then it must be okay. This is Lili!
Lili frowned deeply. Wasn't this situation already a dead end? The group of men in black inside must be their own people, so why hadn't they made a move?
Is it that they are still waiting for something?
Or perhaps, he's waiting for someone?
The enemy had already forced the four guards to the very center, but people were still climbing up the teahouse from below using thick ropes.
One of the men, who appeared to be the leader, ripped off the black square scarf covering his face, revealing an extremely rugged appearance.
Bai Yu stood up and calmly asked him, "Who are you?"
Li Ba laughed arrogantly: "I am Li Ba. I heard that Madam went back to her hometown to visit relatives. She did visit her relatives, but unfortunately, I'm afraid she won't live to return to the capital."
"Ha." Bai Yu rebuked coldly, "Insolence! Do you know who I am?"
“I know, she’s the wife of the heir of the Marquis of Chongbo’s mansion.” Li Ba glanced at Gu Ziqi, who was being protected by Lili and Xia Ning. “Oh, this must be the young master. That’s a real shame. It seems that today the heir will not only lose his beloved wife, but also his beloved son.”
"you!"
Bai Yu was finally provoked, her weakness exposed. She abandoned her previous composure and became tense: "Who sent you? I will pay you three times the amount of silver!"
"Silver? Hahahaha..."
A voice came from behind, and a person dressed in fine clothes walked out from the inner room.
Bai Yu narrowed his eyes slightly. This person was actually Zuo Pang, the Left Assistant Minister of the Ministry of War.
Xia Ning covered her mouth and let out a small gasp.
Lili asked her what was wrong.
"This man is Zuo Pang, the Left Assistant Minister of the Ministry of War. He works under the Minister of War. My father, as the Minister of Rites, has good relationships with the ministers of the other five ministries. This man is highly valued by the Minister of War, and my father has some connections with him," Xia Ning whispered.
Lili nodded. "Judging from this, it should be a position like an assistant secretary."
So, the situation is...
Is this Zuo Pang the mastermind behind this?
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