Zuo Meier spoke first: "Where is Madam Bai? Let her come out and uphold justice."
Upon hearing this, Zhang Changle and Madam Zuo hurriedly tugged at Zuo Meier's sleeve to signal her. Zuo Meier was startled and then remembered the elaborate scheme Zhang Changle had mentioned, realizing that Madam Bai was not in the mansion.
Shen Yu couldn't help but curl her lips, naturally mocking Zuo Meier for not being quick-witted enough. But she firmly believed that evil would not prevail over good. In order to win over the hearts of the people and expose the evil deeds of the Zuo family, she pretended to be respectful and bowed to Zuo Meier, slowly saying, "Your Highness, when Madam Bai saw that Madam Zuo had sent a lot of tonics, she sent them to my family home for my sister-in-law to take. Who knew that my sister-in-law would suddenly miscarry? Madam Bai was so frightened that she has not yet woken up."
Zuo Meier looked displeased and scolded, "What does your sister-in-law's miscarriage have to do with me? You abused your concubine, causing Liu Xiaoniang to miscarry. If you are not properly taught a lesson, it may lead to someone's death."
"Human lives?" Shen Yu feigned surprise, then looked up at Zuo Meier with an air of self-righteousness and asked, "May I ask, Your Highness, isn't the child in my sister-in-law's womb a human life? Isn't the child in Liu Xiaoniang's womb a human life? Now there are two lives lost!"
After a brief pause, she turned and looked around at the refugees, then continued, "They have suffered through war and displacement; aren't they precious human lives? I hope the Crown Princess will prioritize the greater good and not listen to the slanderous words of petty people. Allow me to settle the refugees first..."
"Shut up!" Zhang Changle shouted, pointing at Chen Yu and chuckling, "Hmph! You're just trying to use this opportunity to escape, allowing me to resettle refugees."
Why is Chang Le targeting Chen Yu?
Everyone looked in the direction of the voice and saw a thin man stumbling towards them. He was emaciated and had a sallow complexion. After nodding to Chen Yu, he turned and glared at Zhang Changle, "Yesterday you tortured my second sister so severely that Father was so angered that he fell unconscious and hasn't woken up yet. Instead of repenting, you're causing trouble and acting recklessly!"
This man was Zhang Xiansheng. He had just learned from Fei Cui that Yi Xiang Yuan was besieged by the Zuo family, so he quietly came to help Shen Yu. After all, Shen Yu was Liu Yu's beloved, and Liu Yu had been kind to him. How could he bear to see Shen Yu being bullied?
Unexpectedly, Zhang Changle was not afraid at all. Instead, he laughed wildly and pointed at Zhang Xiansheng, mocking him: "You bastard born of a dancer, how dare you talk back to me? Do you know how your mother died?"
Zhang Xiansheng's eyes blazed with fury as he glared at Zhang Changle and roared, "My mother was beaten to death by your mother, and the ridiculous thing is that you don't even know how your mother died?"
Zhang Changle instantly flew into a rage, grabbed Zhang Xiansheng by the neck, and demanded, "Tell me! How exactly did my mother die?"
Zhang Xiansheng naturally knew that Zhang Lianhua had been poisoned to death by Grand Tutor Zhang. In order to expose Zhang Lianhua's evil deeds, he loudly proclaimed, "Your mother has been poisoning my medicine for many years, causing me to be bedridden for a long time. She died as retribution!"
Slap! Zhang Changle was furious and slapped Zhang Xiansheng across the face, then scratched and clawed at him.
Although Zhang Xiansheng was a few months older than Zhang Changle, he was thin and small, several sizes smaller than Zhang Changle. He was also bedridden for a long time due to illness, so he was naturally weak and powerless. In the blink of an eye, Zhang Changle was riding on his back.
Seeing this, Chen Yu quickly squatted down and tried to stop them, saying, "Don't fight anymore. Young Master Zhang has an illness. If this continues, it might lead to someone's death..."
She and Cuiwei each grabbed one of Zhang Changle's arms, and only felt slightly relieved when they saw Zhang Xiansheng break free and sway as he stood up.
Suddenly, the grassland woman lunged at her with a dagger. She tried to dodge, but Zhang Changle held her arm tightly. At that critical moment, Zhang Xiansheng stepped forward to block the dagger and fell down.
"Cuiwei, quickly help Young Master Zhang to his guest room!"
She and Cuiwei helped Xiansheng leave when they suddenly heard a scream behind them. Turning around, they saw the grassland woman lying on the ground with a dagger stuck in her abdomen.
It turned out that when Chen Yu, Cui Wei, and Fu Xiansheng were leaving, Zhang Changle snatched the grassland woman's dagger and stabbed Chen Yu in the back. At the critical moment, the grassland woman stepped forward to protect Chen Yu.
Seeing the woman from the grassland bleeding profusely from her abdomen, Chen Yu quickly knelt down to help stop the bleeding, while shouting to the crowd, "Someone, quick! Take this woman to a guest room."
The words were spoken, but no one responded. The people of Yixiangyuan were imprisoned, and the Zuo family remained indifferent. Under these circumstances, only the refugees could save the woman from the grasslands.
The refugees were restless, but Zuo Meier waved her hand, and the guards immediately rushed over and surrounded the refugees.
"Ha!" Zhang Changle chuckled, and slanderous words spilled out, "Today! Bai family's eldest daughter, Mu Chenyu, lured refugees into Yixiang Garden under the pretext of distributing food, causing Liu Xiaoniang to miscarry. When the Zuo family came to visit, Mu Chenyu attempted to assassinate her, but fortunately, the refugee, Su Ma, stepped forward and saved my life..."
With a thud, Shen Yu knelt before Zuo Meier, tears streaming down her face. "Shen Yu begs Your Highness, please send someone to take Su Ma to a guest room immediately. If she is not rescued soon, she may not live much longer!"
Upon hearing this, the Zuo family was secretly delighted. Since someone had died at Yixiang Garden, Chen Yu, as the matriarch, was to blame. With some money to bribe the refugees, Zhang Changle's fabricated rumors could become fact.
Therefore, in response to Chen Yu's request, Zuo Meier smiled coldly and turned to the guards, ordering, "Go and fetch the doctor."
"It's too late to call a doctor!"
Chen Yu shouted and ordered Cui Wei to put Xian Sheng down. The two of them, master and servant, helped Su Ma away.
Zuo Meier waved her hand, and the guards quickly surrounded the three of them. "Mu Chenyu murdered Su Ma! Guards! Arrest her immediately and send her to the Imperial City Guard!"
"This is outrageous!"
"Utter nonsense!"
"Save Miss Mu!"
"Go!"
At this moment, the refugees rioted, and the guards tried their best to suppress them, drawing their swords in response, and the refugees fell to the ground one after another.
Upon seeing this tragic scene, Chen Yu cried out in a hoarse voice, "Stop! Stop..." Unfortunately, the courtyard was in chaos, and her voice was drowned out by the screams.
The Zuo family, however, watched coldly from the sidelines, wishing all the refugees would die, and at worst, they would blame the tragedy entirely on Chen Yu.
Fortunately, some of the refugees managed to escape.
A moment later, a deafening sound rang out, and looking around, more refugees poured into the courtyard, surrounding the guards.
As expected, good triumphs over evil. These refugees had all fled from the northern border, seeking only to fill their stomachs, but unexpectedly, they were manipulated by Zhang Changle. As the daughter of General Mu, Shen Yu was upright and kind to the refugees, unlike the Zuo family, who treated the lives of refugees as worthless.
Therefore, the refugees revolted.
The Zuo family panicked. Zuo Meier, Madam Zuo, and Zhang Changle hugged each other tightly as they were surrounded by the refugees.
Zuo Meier panicked, her hand trembling as she pointed at the refugees and shouted, "Get out of the way! You audacious scoundrel, how dare you offend me! I will sentence you to death!"
"How dare you presume to sentence someone to death!"
The voice was as loud as thunder, and everyone turned to look, only to find that the Emperor had arrived.
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