throwing a tantrum
Upon hearing that thieves had broken in, the nosy students hastily handed in their papers and rushed off to join the commotion.
Quan Zichu also handed in his paper and urged the fake Gu Jinning, "Cousin, let's go take a look."
The fake Gu Jinning rolled her eyes. "No, I'm busy."
Quan Zichu then left on his own. Only the fake Gu Jinning and Quan Zijin remained in the hall.
Quan Zijing moved to sit next to Gu Jinning and told her how to write something that would easily pass the test. The fake Gu Jinning thanked her and then buried herself in writing the essay.
Quan Zijing glanced at Gu Jinning shyly and awkwardly, then handed over a purse.
"Cousin, this is a medicine kit I made. It contains some commonly used wound medicines. Keep it; you might need it."
The fake Gu Jinning glanced at it and said, "Medicine packet? What would I need this for?"
"You..." Quan Zijin hesitated, "Anyway, just accept it. With you getting injured every few days, it's better to have something than nothing."
Quan Zijing was only fifteen years old and was not born to Madam Quan. However, the Quan family did not value birth and raised her on an equal footing with Quan Zichu. So, as soon as she turned fifteen, they arranged for her to enter the academy to study, and she learned very well, much better than Quan Zichu.
She is also very well-behaved. Having been influenced by Quan Zichu, she greatly admires Gu Jinning.
The fake Gu Jinning casually put it away and asked, "Why aren't you going to watch the excitement?"
Quan Zijin replied, "What's so interesting about catching thieves? It just causes trouble everywhere."
A shadow flashed by outside the hall. The fake Gu Jinning stood up and said, "But I'm going to go take a look. Can you help me clean up the mess?"
She placed the pen in Quan Zijin's hand and walked away in a few steps.
"Cousin." Quan Zijing sighed helplessly and silently helped her finish the sentence.
When Xiao Liao and his group caught up, they only saw Quan Zijing. He asked, "Has anyone else been here?"
Quan Zijin was intimidated by his imposing manner and shook her head blankly.
Xiao Liao looked around. The hall was empty, with nowhere to hide. He said, "They can't have gone far. Keep chasing them."
In broad daylight, with experts guarding him from all sides, he had no chance of escape.
"Gather all the students and question them one by one."
In less than the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, about a hundred students stood neatly in the martial arts arena. Xiao Liao ordered his men to check each of them one by one for injuries to their right shoulders and whether their faces were disguised.
On the stage, in addition to Xiao Heng'an and Xiao Liao, even the Hanlin Academy scholars and other accompanying examiners were inspected.
"Oh my, it's rare for this princess to come and take an exam, why is it so lively? Is it like this every year?"
Gu Jinning arrived in a whirlwind, striding arrogantly onto the stage, followed by Qinglian and a guard.
The moment Xiao Heng'an saw Gu Jinning, he immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
Xiao Liao said, "It was just a coincidence. That thief was incredibly audacious to dare to enter the academy."
Gu Jinning exclaimed in surprise, "Ah! Could it be the same group from last time? We haven't caught them yet."
Xiao Liao's face fell for a moment, then he said, "It'll be soon. He won't be able to escape today."
Gu Jinning sat down and smiled slightly, "Then we'll wait and see."
She then turned to Xiao Heng'an, glanced at Ji Lin behind him, and said sarcastically, "His Highness Prince Jin is taking a beauty with him as the examiner, how enviable! Look at how pitiful this beauty looks, she must have been wronged."
Ji Lin lowered her head even further, not daring to speak. The more she said, the more mistakes she would make; she only needed to pretend to be the victim.
After checking the entire field, nothing was found.
Everyone in the academy, including the servants, eunuchs, and cooks—everyone alive—was here. No one was found to have escaped from any part of the academy.
I can't find it, this is really strange.
Gu Jinning asked, "Now that you've finished investigating everything, are you going to investigate me too?"
Xiao Liao hesitated. He always preferred to wrong an innocent person rather than allow any possible suspicion to escape.
“Alright.” Gu Jinning immediately stood up and started to pull at her skirt. “Investigate. If Your Highness Prince Qin wants to investigate, then investigate thoroughly at once. Don’t search people and rooms repeatedly. It makes me, a dignified princess, lose face.”
She moved with lightning speed, ripping off her skirt and removing her outer garment, eliciting gasps from the crowd. Some idle young men, eager for a good show, whistled. Most of the women were both shocked and ashamed, hurriedly lowering their heads, unable to look.
Several officials turned their heads away in shame and indignation, exclaiming, "What kind of behavior is this?"
Quan Zichu and Quan Zijin were extremely anxious.
Not far away, Sun Xianzhu gloated and made lewd remarks to the people around him. Quan Zichu heard this and went over to tell him to shut up, but Sun Xianzhu ignored him and became even more outrageous.
Quan Zichu was furious and started fighting with him. Seeing this, their friends at the academy naturally sided with their own friends, and in the blink of an eye, the two of them turned into two groups fighting.
The scene instantly descended into chaos.
On stage, Gu Jinning threw off her outer robe and was about to take it off as well. Qinglian quickly stepped forward to stop her, "Princess."
Gu Jinning said, "Don't move, don't disturb His Highness Prince Qin's official business."
She hooked her arms around her collar, defiantly challenging Xiao Liao. She really dared to take her clothes off; I wonder if he dared to look.
Xiao Heng'an covered him with his outer robe, saying, "Alright, stop fooling around. Don't delay the King of Qin from doing his business."
Gu Jinning was unmoved, saying, "I'm helping right now." As she spoke, she went to tear off her own face, "Look carefully, it's the real deal, no fakes whatsoever."
Then he went to tear off Qinglian's and the guard's faces, saying, "Look, it's all real. They're from the Gu family, they don't fake it."
Xiao Liao's expression was really bad.
At this moment, Wu Da arrived, carrying a package containing the clothes the thieves had changed out of, as well as a tattered mask.
"This package was found in the dog kennel, and the mask had already been chewed up by the dog when it was found."
"kennel?"
Xiao Liao lifted the clothes to check, and found that it was the same clothes the thief was wearing. Although the mask was tattered, it was still possible to vaguely make out that it was a woman's face.
Wu Da added, "The doghouse is against the wall, with a hole leading outside. Perhaps it escaped through that hole."
Xiao Liao asked, "Is there any movement on the outer wall?"
Wu Da replied, "No, we haven't seen any trace of him yet."
Xiao Liao was going crazy. Even if he escaped through the dog hole, he should have left some traces. How could he just vanish into thin air?
Unless, that person is right here and hasn't run away.
The battle was still raging off the field. The guards couldn't stop the fighting and ended up getting caught in the crossfire and getting beaten up, creating a chaotic mess.
Xiao Liao flew into a rage and shouted, "Stop it, all of you! What kind of behavior is this, fighting and fooling around like this?"
The crowd gradually stopped, sitting on the ground with bruises and swelling on their faces, none of them willing to admit defeat.
Gu Jinning yawned and said lazily, "Your Highness Prince Qin, if there's nothing else, I'll be leaving now. Writing policy essays today has really exhausted me."
She pulled her robe tighter, said to Xiao Heng'an, "I'll return it to you another day," and then left gracefully.
Let her make a scene, it'll have nothing to do with her no matter how big the scene gets.
Seeing that Gu Jinning had left, Quan Zichu pulled Quan Zijin away as well.
Xiao Liao ultimately failed to investigate further, and all his carefully planned schemes had to come to an abrupt end.
He hated the ever-changing young man to the core and vowed to capture him at all costs and tear him to pieces.
Ji Lin followed Xiao Heng'an back to the mansion, anxiously awaiting his questioning.
Xiao Heng asked the Prince of Qin why he had entered the mansion to search it. After learning that the patrolmen had discovered the thieves' tracks nearby and entered the mansion to investigate, they found that Ji Lin had been knocked unconscious. Xiao Heng then stopped asking questions and ordered Ji Lin to return to her courtyard.
The midday sun was exceptionally bright, everything was crystal clear, and even the wind seemed much gentler.
Xiao Heng'an felt relieved for the first time, shedding all his fatigue.
"The ever-changing young man?" He leaned back in the sun-drenched sandalwood chair, chewing on his words with a hint of disdain, and muttered, "What a tacky name."
Yang Yu stood beside the desk, his brows furrowed, without uttering a word.
Xiao Heng said, "Speak plainly if you have something to say."
Yang Yu said, "What happened today is beyond comprehension."
Xiao Heng'an countered, "Is it hard to guess?"
Yang Yu shook his head. "Your Highness is astonished that you would stand up for a petty thief and willingly be taken hostage by her. Just who is this person who could inspire Your Highness to go to such lengths?"
Yang Yu pretended to think hard, then suddenly became certain, "You already knew it was her."
He knew Ji Lin was different, but he never imagined it would be Gu Jin Ning herself.
Impersonating Ji Lin and kidnapping Zuo Wenzhong, she escaped without a trace right under Xiao Liao's nose more than once, her methods were impeccable. Such deep scheming and audacious actions were truly impressive.
Xiao Heng'an said, "I know her too well, better than anyone else."
So familiar with her that I can easily see through her thoughts and guess her every move.
Yang Yu asked, "What are your plans for Ji Lin's accommodation?"
A breeze rises, blowing down a few green leaves, which drift leisurely into the window and land on the corner.
Xiao Heng'an gently brushed it away and said, "It's getting cold, let's renovate the old house as soon as possible."
Now that things were out in the open, he had no interest in continuing the charade with Ji Lin.
Yang Yu still had one question: where exactly did Gu Jinning hide Zuo Wenzhong? Even Xiao Heng'an didn't know.
The wind blew in gusts, and the leaves fell with a rustling sound. As the carriage moved forward, it stirred up a flurry of fallen leaves, making a crisp, clear sound.
Qinglian cracked her whip and spurred her horse, galloping along the road.
Inside the carriage, Gu Jinning leaned against the wall, swaying leisurely to the rhythm of the carriage.
"Master, today was quite a close call. You're amazing!"
After witnessing Gu Jinning's domineering and shrewish nature, Chu Lang was utterly impressed by her. She truly embodied every role she played; it was incredibly realistic.
Gu Jinning asked, "What are your thoughts on dressing me up for the first time?"
Chu Lang said proudly, "It feels amazing. There's a thrill of being afraid of being discovered, and a sense of accomplishment in hiding from everyone."
Gu Jinning crossed her legs and said, "That's right, I never lie. Disguise is the ultimate secret art, the most sophisticated of all."
Chu Lang touched his face and chuckled foolishly, "But the original skin isn't bad either. Wearing a mask for too long gets really stuffy."
He was on duty at the Prince of Jin's residence early in the morning. Although he wasn't wearing a mask, it was still a face carefully made up by Gu Jinning so that he could blend in with the servants and not attract attention.
Now that all the makeup has been removed, his face looks much fresher. Upon closer inspection, he is a handsome young man with fair skin, thick eyebrows, and big eyes, possessing a certain charm.
"Oh, right, Master, here's my cousin from the Quan family for you..."
He reached into his sleeve, only to find nothing. He reached into his bosom, still empty. He froze, his mind blank.
"It's over, Master..."
Gu Jinning said disdainfully, "What did you leave behind?"
Chu Lang nervously gestured wildly, "It's a sachet of medicine that your cousin from the Quan family gave you."
"Quan Zijin? Why did she give me this sachet?"
"I'm just concerned about you. Who told you to be injured all the time?"
"Just accept it if she gives it to you."
"I'd feel bad if I didn't accept it, so I thought I'd bring it to you on the way."
Gu Jinning flicked his head and waved her hand, saying, "It's common for things to go missing at the academy. It's not a big deal if a sachet is found. You should remember not to accept things randomly in the future."
"knew."
Chu Lang also regretted it.
The carriage stopped at the gate of the Duke of Dingguo's mansion. Gu Jinning jumped off the carriage and handed the reins from Qinglian to Chu Lang, asking him to change to another carriage to leave the city.
Once Chu Lang left, no matter how hard Xiao Liao racked his brains, he couldn't figure out how she had managed to escape from the academy.
The ever-changing young man became Xiao Liao's inner demon.
Xiao Liao searched every inch of the academy grounds again and again, trying to find any traces left behind by the ever-changing young man.
A person cannot simply vanish into thin air, nor is there any sign of them crawling through a dog hole. Therefore, they must be hiding among the people they met today; they must have been overlooked somewhere.
Xiao Liao's gaze was fixed on the various small items he had collected. He called over the black dog and had it sniff the clothes of the versatile young man, and then sniff the pile of scattered items.
The black dog wagged its tail and went out, then wagged its tail again and came back, showing no interest in anything.
It lay back on the dress and used it as a nest.
Suddenly, it shoved its nose into the ground to sniff, then jumped into the pile of junk and pulled out a small sachet.
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