After leaving Xu's house, He Yan went straight back to the He family.

He Sui and He Yunsheng hadn't come back yet, and He Yan took out a small box from the box under the table, with a few silver ingots scattered inside. Fu Wang was a greedy man, and if there wasn't a huge benefit, he would never dare to take such a big risk to do something for her.

He Yan's gaze gradually became solemn.

Xu Zhiheng must have been so frightened that he rushed to find Qin Mama's whereabouts. She had to find her before Xu Zhiheng, so she had to make some arrangements.

Looking at the pitiful few silver ingots, He Yan sighed.

Do I really have to go to Letong Village again?

…

A gorgeous carriage stopped at the gate of Shi Jinbo's mansion, and maids walked in, escorting a young lady.

The servants of the Chu family came out to greet her respectfully: "Miss Xu is here."

Xu Pingting held her chin high and walked into the Chu family's gate with her skirt lifted.

When Xu Jingfu occasionally came to the Chu family to look for Chu Zilan, Xu Pingting would also follow him. Everyone in the Chu family knew that Xu Pingting was the apple of Xu Jingfu's eye, and they dared not neglect her at all.

Mrs. Chu followed and saw Xu Pingting, then smiled and said, "It's Miss Xu. Zilan hasn't returned home yet. Please sit in the hall and drink some hot tea while waiting for Zilan to come back."

Xu Pingting glanced at Mrs. Chu and snorted in response.

Her behavior was already very rude, but Mrs. Chu was not angry. She still had a smile on her face and went out to ask the maids to make some snacks. Xu Pingting looked at her busy figure and raised the corners of her mouth with satisfaction.

Shi Jinbo's wife was plain-looking, which was not a big deal. There were many plain-looking women in Shuojing City, but she married Chu Linfeng, a handsome man. The comparison between the two naturally caused people to talk and laugh. Chu Linfeng was also greedy for beauty. He brought concubines to his house one by one, a total of 19, all of whom were beautiful. In this way, Mrs. Chu looked even more pitiful.

However, no one dared to look down on this Madam Chu. In this mansion, apart from Chu Zhao, the concubine, no concubine could give birth to Chu Linfeng's child. Xu Pingting had also heard from Xu Jingfu that Chu Zhao had an awkward position in the mansion. Since she loved Chu Zhao, she wanted to share the same hatred with Chu Zhao. Therefore, every time she came to the Chu family, she would make things difficult for Madam Chu, the stepmother, to vent Chu Zhao's anger.

Today is the same.

Madam Chu asked her maid to bring some snacks and tea. Chu Linfeng was not at home at the time. Madam Chu smiled and said, "I haven't seen Miss Xu for a while. Since His Majesty granted her marriage, I was very happy to hear that Miss Xu was going to marry our Zi Lan. In Shuojing City, only Miss Xu is worthy of Zi Lan's careful treatment."

Who doesn't like to hear good words, especially good words that Chu Zilan loves her? Xu Pingting was a little proud when she heard it, and said, "Of course, no other woman is worthy of Brother Zilan."

Mrs. Chu smiled, picked up the tea and took a sip, her eyes fell on the maid Mo Tai behind Xu Pingting.

Xu Pingting noticed her gaze and asked unhappily, "Why are you looking at my maid?"

"I saw that Miss Xu's personal maid was really pretty." Madam Chu stroked her hair and said slowly, "After you and Zilan get married, Yingxiang, who is by Zilan's side, will also be pretty. If you go out, you will be a family of beauties."

It would have been better if this matter had not been mentioned. As soon as Ying Xiang was mentioned, Xu Pingting's eyes immediately appeared with Ying Xiang's beautiful face.

Mo Tai was pretty, but she was far inferior to Ying Xiang. Let alone Mo Tai, there were countless women in Shuojing City, but only a few could compare with Ying Xiang.

Speaking of which, Xu Pingting suddenly realized that she had seen Chu Zhao these days, but not Ying Xiang.

"Where is that girl now?" Xu Pingting asked.

"Zilan told her not to wait on him and she just did some light work in the yard on weekdays." Madam Chu said with a smile, "Miss Xu also knows that Zilan has a gentle temperament and a kind heart. He is always kind to women. Yingxiang is a maid who grew up with him, so she is more special than other servants."

Mo Tai couldn't help but speak up, "No matter how special she is, she is just a servant!"

Xu Pingting clenched her fists, her nails digging into her palms, and her face looked extremely ugly.

Ying Xiang was a thorn in her heart. How could she feel at ease with such a vixen around Chu Zhao? If it weren't for Chu Zhao's protection, Ying Xiang would have died a thousand times. When she was young, she once joked about selling Ying Xiang. Chu Zilan, who had always obeyed Xu Pingting, ignored her for half a month for the first time.

At that time Xu Pingting understood that Chu Zhao wanted to protect Ying Xiang. If she treated Ying Xiang in the same way as she treated the young lady who was interested in Chu Zhao, Chu Zhao would never forgive her in his life.

Xu Pingting didn't want Chu Zhao to have any rift between her and her, nor did she want Chu Zhao to think that she was a vicious woman. She had endured this for many years. But she and Chu Zhao had not yet been engaged. Could it be that if she became Chu Zhao's wife in the future, she would still have to tolerate a vixen stalking under her nose every day?

Madam Chu took in Xu Pingting's expression, sighed, and said, "Miss Xu is still young and has never been a head of the family. But once you get married, life will be completely different from when you were a girl. Look, there are a total of 19 concubines in the Chu Mansion. Everyone is very respectful to me. It seems that I am not bad. Do you think I really have no grudges?"

"Woman, before you get married you can be jealous and have a bit of temper, but if you still act like this after you get married, people will say you are jealous and rude and you are wasting your duty."

Xu Pingting was furious when she heard this. "Who dares to say that I'm jealous?"

"Even if you don't say it, I still think so." Madam Chu smiled and said, "So, if there is someone that Miss Xu particularly dislikes, you must send him away before you get married. Otherwise, leaving one more person in the mansion will only affect the relationship between husband and wife. You are still young... It would be bad if your relationship was hurt."

She spoke with concern and a smile on her face. Xu Pingting knew that Mrs. Chu was trying to sow discord. But what she said was what she cared about the most. She knew that keeping Ying Xiang was like leaving a thorn in her heart. If she didn't remove the thorn, she would never be happy in her life.

"What if the person I want to get rid of is protected by someone?" Xu Pingting asked.

Chu Linfeng had nineteen beautiful concubines, but none of them, whether smart or dumb, could beat the plain-looking woman in front of him. To be honest, regardless of her status, Xu Pingting still admired Madam Chu. If she didn't have some skills, how could she control such a big Chu family?

"That's not easy." Madam Chu said, "I heard that the Prime Minister was once the mentor of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is just lacking a smart and caring person by his side. If His Royal Highness the Crown Prince asks for it, who dares to refuse?"

Xu Pingting's eyes lit up.

She had actually forgotten about this. She couldn't respond to Xiang, but the prince could. Facing the prince, could Chu Zhao still refuse?

For a moment, Xu Pingting's heart was pounding, and she didn't want to wait even for Chu Zhao. She stood up, glanced at Madam Chu, and smiled for the first time that day. "Thank you, Madam Chu, for clearing up my doubts. I have something else today, so I'll come back another day." She hurried away with her maid.

After Xu Pingting left, the smile on Mrs. Chu's face faded. The maid beside her whispered, "Madam, if the Crown Prince really wants to take Yingxiang away, the Fourth Young Master will have no choice."

"Chu Zilan is used to being cautious and protecting himself. Even if he loves that girl, he would never ruin his future for a slave girl. I never thought that he would deal with the prince."

"Then you..."

Madam Chu picked up the teacup in front of her, took a sip, and said after a while, "It was Xu Pingting's idea that Ying Xiang was taken away by His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. I will naturally let Chu Zilan know about this. The little bastard is very vengeful. He may not show it on his face, but he may be very angry in his heart. I just want him to fight with the Xu family."

"You also know," Mrs. Chu sneered, "the end of the fight with the Xu family is death."

"I'm waiting for the day he dies."

…

He Yan knew nothing about what happened in the Chu family. She had not seen Chu Zhao since the celebration banquet. She thought that he was busy with his marriage with Xu Pingting. After all, the Xu family still valued this daughter very much.

On this day, in the evening, He Yan went to pick up He Yunsheng from school.

In early winter in Shuojing, it gets dark early and there are fewer people on the streets than usual. Except for the vendors selling hot soup, people prefer to stay in their warm houses.

A group of young men walked out of Helu Academy. He Yunsheng was surrounded in the middle. He looked completely different from the last time He Yan came.

"Yunsheng, your brother-in-law will be the famous General Feng Yun in the future. You are still amazing!"

"How can this be called Yunsheng's awesomeness? This is called Yunsheng's sister's awesomeness! Can your sister do this? She can't do it!"

He Yan listened by the wall and felt something was not right. Why did it sound like someone was scolding her?

He Yunsheng has gone from being ignored by everyone in the academy to being approached by everyone. It's just that he has a sister who is a female marquis and a brother-in-law who is a general. There are even shameless people who come up to him and say they want to visit his home. Bah! He doesn't even know that person.

After finally getting rid of this group of sticky people, He Yunsheng was walking home with his cloth bag on his back when he was patted on the back. When he turned around, He Yan reached out and rubbed his head, "You're walking so fast, are you competing?"

He Yunsheng was stunned and looked around, "Why are you here?"

"I took care of some official business today," He Yan said seriously, "I passed by your academy on the way home, and I'm waiting for you to go back with me."

"Don't come to the academy to look for me in the future," He Yunsheng walked forward with his head down, looking unhappy, "I don't know what these lunatics will do when they see you."

He Yan smiled, guessing what happened to the boy, and said, "I see. Our Yunsheng doesn't like to be in the spotlight, so I won't come to see you next time. Hey, I guess Dad should go home soon. Qingmei is going to make porridge tonight, so let's go buy some mutton buns to eat."

"You only care about eating." He Yunsheng complained, but still followed He Yan obediently to buy buns.

The mutton buns on the streets of Shuojing have thin skin and big fillings, and the price is not expensive. The hot buns are packed in oil paper bags. Holding them in your arms, you can feel the warmth. He Yan walked home with He Yunsheng, holding the paper bag. Turning into an alley, he took out a bun and gave it to He Yunsheng, "Are you hungry? Do you want to eat one first to fill your stomach?"

He Yunsheng refused, "No, do you want to grow up to be the glutinous rice balls from the Wang family next door?"

Tang Yuan is a pig raised by the Wang family next door. It is also the fattest pig on the street. When it walks, you can only see a round white ball. So even though it is a huge animal, it has a cute name of "Tang Yuan".

He Yan looked him up and down, then took a bite. "You're so young, yet you already know how to pursue beauty. I told you, you're at the age where you need to grow taller. How can you grow taller if you don't eat more? You can get fat and then lose weight. Anyway, with your current appearance, you won't be that bad in the future."

She was talking incoherently and no one knew what she was saying. He Yun was furious and was about to teach her not to speak so casually in the future, but He Yan suddenly frowned and quickly pulled him behind him. Before he could ask what happened, the half bun in He Yan's hand had already come out and hit a shadow on the wall accurately. The next moment, several black shadows appeared from nowhere on the walls on all sides, and rushed towards them with knives in their hands.

"Yunsheng, be careful!" He Yan pushed He Yunsheng to the corner of the alley with a palm. He Yunsheng was stunned by this sudden assassination. When he turned over and sat up, he saw He Yan fighting with the group of black-clothed men. Their target was not him. He Yunsheng shouted: "Help, murder——"

However, this street was already sparsely populated, and at night, there were even fewer people. Even if there were people, the timid ones would not dare to come here. He did not bring any weapons with him to school, so even if he wanted to rush in to help with his bare hands, he was halfway there when a man in black slashed at him with a knife, knocking him to the ground.

"Yunsheng!" He Yan was anxious. He bent to avoid the blade of the man in front of him, bent his elbow, and hit the man's abdomen. The man was knocked back, and He Yan took the opportunity to snatch his knife and turned sideways to knock over the knives of several people.

Her swordsmanship was pretty good. Although there were many of them, they were not that good in terms of skills. In a short while, they fell under He Yan's sword. He Yan did not kill them. He kicked the last one down. He Yunsheng hurried over with panic in his eyes, "He Yan!"

"You are so disrespectful," He Yan wanted to make him feel more relaxed, so she deliberately joked, "I told you to call me sister."

He Yunsheng didn't care. He just grabbed He Yan's hand and looked her up and down. "Are you not hurt? What happened to you just now? Why did you push me out?"

"You are so small that you can't block the knife." He Yan said, "Go and get the torch on the wall. I want to ask you a few questions."

He Yunsheng was still a little nervous, and He Yan urged him several times before he went to the wall to get a torch. He Yan took the torch, walked to the nearest person, squatted down, and was stunned at first glance. She did not attack the vital points of these people, but this person had dirty blood flowing from the corner of his mouth and was motionless, and it was obvious that he was dead.

She took the torch and looked at the remaining people, and they were all the same.

"What happened?" He Yunsheng was very sensitive to murder because of Fan Cheng's incident. Now that the people lying on the ground were dead, he couldn't help but panic, "How come all these robbers are dead? You clearly..."

"They put poison in their mouths, and if they are caught, they will bite the poison and commit suicide," He Yan stood up, his eyes shining brightly under the torchlight, "They are not bandits, they are assassins."

"Death warriors?" He Yunsheng was stunned for a moment, "Death warriors...why would they come to kill us...no, they want to kill you."

When He Yan pushed him out just now, those people did not take the opportunity to kill him, but kept pestering He Yan. But He Yan had been in Liangzhou before, and had just returned to Shuojing not long ago. She had no enemies, so how could someone deliberately want to kill her?

At this time, there were voices and horse hooves outside, accompanied by firelight, and a large group of people ran over with torches. He Yan looked up and saw that it was the city guard. It seemed that He Yunsheng's loud voice just now had startled the people around, and the smart ones went to look for the nearby city guards.

"What's going on?" The leading officer dismounted from his horse and looked at the corpses all over the ground. His expression suddenly became solemn.

He Yun was afraid that they would suspect He Yan and herself, so she hurriedly said, "Sir, as soon as we got here, these people jumped out and wanted to kill us. My sister fought with them, and when they saw that they couldn't beat my sister, they took poison and committed suicide."

The young man was still a little nervous, but he was much better than the last time he was on the boat. At least he could finish a sentence.

"Sister?" The officer looked at He Yan suspiciously. A woman, facing so many men, and the men were no match for her? It sounded unbelievable.

He Yan did not look flustered. He just took out the seal from his pocket and said, "Marquis Wu'an He Yan."

Upon hearing this, the officer was shocked, and believed He Yunsheng's words 70%. Who doesn't know about Wu'an Marquis? The news of that beautiful woman who was made a marquis and the "dear lover" of the Right Army Commander has spread all over Manshuo Kyoto.

"It turns out to be the Marquis of Wu'an." After confirming that the official seal was genuine, the officer and soldier leader became much more respectful. He only looked at the corpses scattered on the ground, still somewhat puzzled. "You said, these people are ambushing here to attack you and want to take your life?"

He Yan nodded.

"Does Marquis Wu'an know who these people are?"

He Yan shook his head, "If he is a death warrior, he must be someone who wants to take my life. But I don't have any enemies in Shuojing, so I am also very confused."

"Go to the police," she said.

He Yunsheng raised his head.

"This matter is beyond my ability to resolve alone. Someone under the emperor dared to attack court officials. What if the one ambushed today was not me but a helpless civilian? Perhaps the city garrison of Shuojing City was short of manpower, which led to such negligence." The woman was usually friendly in her dealings with others, but when she put away her smile, she looked a little cold. "In my opinion, this matter should be left to the government. What do you think, sir?"

The soldier wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and said with a smile: "Of course, of course."

－－－－－－－A side note－－－－－－－

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