Chapter 6, a rather ambiguous place.
Seeing Ruan Xingzhu's terrified expression, Gu Yun'an felt a pang of pity. Sensing that the time was right, he softened his tone and gently offered a few words of comfort.
"Alright, don't be afraid, I'm here." His eyes regained their usual gentleness, and he gently patted Ruan Xingzhu's shoulder.
After saying this, he arranged for someone to escort her back to her residence. Ruan Xingzhu obediently agreed, but just as she was about to turn around, she suddenly remembered Gu Qingxu.
Noticing the questioning look Gu Yun'an gave her, she felt a surge of panic, as if she had been caught red-handed as a thief, and quickly swallowed back the words that were about to come out.
Just a second ago, he claimed to be the one who came. If he were to expose Gu Qingxu now, and if the Cheng family found out, Gu Qingxu would be finished.
Ruan Xingzhu nervously boarded the carriage, hoping that Gu Qingxu had already returned to the manor.
At this moment, from the haystack in the corner of the brothel, the sounds of beating and cursing were coming out. Several men were gathered around a group of people, and the person being beaten in the middle was curled up in a ball, unable to make a sound due to fear and pain.
Gu Qingxu, who came upon hearing the commotion, couldn't stand these acts of bullying the weak.
Her eyebrows furrowed, her almond-shaped eyes widened, and she shouted without hesitation, "Stop! How dare you openly assault people under the Emperor's nose! Do you have no respect for the law?"
Her voice was clear and loud, carrying a sense of righteous indignation, echoing in the narrow corner.
Hearing the commotion, the men who were engrossed in their fight straightened up. One of them, a burly man in yellow with a face full of scars, looked at Gu Qingxu with disdain, spat out a mouthful of saliva, and cursed, "Where did this little brat come from? Get as far away as you can, or you'll regret it!"
His demeanor was extremely arrogant, his eyes filled with contempt for Gu Qingxu, this weak woman.
The man, who had been beaten and curled up in a ball, saw someone standing up for him and struggled to peek out. He cried out in a weak but anxious voice, "Girl, run! They are vicious criminals! Don't worry about me!"
Upon hearing the voice, Gu Qingxu felt it sounded somewhat familiar. She looked in the direction of the voice and saw the person she least wanted to see a second time—Yi Mingyu.
At this moment, Yi Mingyu was nothing like the gentleman he had been a few days ago; calling him a street thug wouldn't be an exaggeration.
His once fair skin was now covered in bruises and welts, making him look utterly disheveled. When he saw Gu Qingxu, his aching muscles twitched involuntarily, and a complex expression flashed in his eyes. He actually felt ashamed towards this person he had only met once. Deep down, he didn't want her to see him in such a wretched state.
Fortunately, he saw her turn and leave. It was good that she left, so she wouldn't know about his more embarrassing side, and she wouldn't be implicated.
He gave a bitter laugh and slowly lowered his head, bracing himself for the beating to continue. But the expected pain didn't come; instead, a scream of agony erupted from the burly man.
He looked up in surprise and saw that Gu Qingxu, whom he thought had left, had not left. Not only had she returned, but she also had a sharp look in her eyes and was wielding a wooden stick, hitting the big man in yellow hard.
Caught off guard, the burly man screamed in pain from the sudden attack.
Enraged, his face flushed red with anger, he roared like an angry bull, "All of you, get her! Beat this woman to death!"
Gu Qingxu snorted coldly, a slight sneer curling her lips. She stretched her arms, which hadn't been exercised in a long time, her eyes sharp as an eagle's, fixed on the men in front of her, like prey waiting to be slaughtered, exuding a chilling aura.
"The last one who called me 'Grandma' and that yellow-haired brat has been lying at home for half a year. Now it's your turn to taste what it's like to be bedridden!"
As soon as she finished speaking, she took the initiative and swung the wooden stick to strike accurately.
In an instant, Gu Qingxu, dressed in a dark red dress, moved with a light and agile grace. Suddenly, she launched a flying kick, accurately striking a man in the chest. The man then crashed heavily into the corner of the wall, the force of the impact causing him to cough up blood.
Then, the wooden stick in his hand drew sharp arcs in the air, each strike carrying immense force.
The men who had been so arrogant and confident just moments before were now being beaten so badly they were staggering and running away, crying out in pain.
Gu Qingxu turned around nimbly, the wooden stick in her hand pointing straight at the ground. The burly men were beaten without any power to fight back, and they immediately knelt down in a row, their faces bruised and swollen, tears streaming down their faces, crying and begging for mercy.
"Grandma, please spare us! We know we were wrong!"
The burly man in yellow cried and wailed, yet he still tried to be clever and find a loophole: "If he hadn't started this trouble beforehand, we wouldn't be in this situation!"
Hearing them turn the tables on him, Yi Mingyu was so angry that his face turned red. He suddenly said, "I didn't cause any trouble. You stole my purse a few days ago, and not only did you not return it, you also gathered people to beat me up."
purse?
Gu Qingsu's brows furrowed, and she couldn't help but recall the day they met, when Yi Mingyu mentioned that his purse had been stolen. So, Yi Mingyu wasn't lying that day; his purse really had been stolen.
Thinking of her previous misunderstanding of him, a slight unease crept into her heart. Her face turned cold, and with a swift movement, she swung the stick, striking the burly man precisely in the back of the knee, and said irritably, "Where's his purse?"
The burly man cried out in pain after being hit, and dared not lie any longer. He trembled as he pulled an empty money pouch from his pocket.
Gu Qingxu weighed the empty money pouch in her hand, her face even more unpleasant than Yi Mingyu's. Her eyes turned cold, and she was about to swing the wooden stick down.
Upon seeing this, the burly man was so frightened that he hurriedly shouted, "I'll return it! I'll go back and get it!"
However, Gu Qingxu didn't give him a chance. With a cold look in her eyes and a playful tone, she said, "People with thick skin like you, how can you know you're wrong if you don't go to the yamen to get your skin peeled off?"
They handed the person over to the patrolling officials.
She then turned to look at Yi Mingyu, who was still slumped on the haystack. Seeing his weak and frail appearance, she couldn't help but feel a little disgusted.
But she still reached out and pulled him up, unable to help but say with disgust, "A grown man like you, beaten like this, don't you know how to fight back?"
Yi Mingyu's face flushed at her words, and he lowered his head unconsciously like a child who had done something wrong. Looking at him like this, anyone who didn't know better would think she had bullied him.
Gu Qingxu glanced at him sideways, reached out to brush the grass clippings off his clothes, and said irritably, "Alright, stop acting like I'm bullying you!"
As Yi Mingyu felt her gentle yet somewhat domineering movements, he felt a surge of panic and was momentarily at a loss.
He had originally planned to send the silver to the Gu family after returning home that day, but an emergency occurred at the academy, so he had no choice but to wait a few days before going.
He hesitated for a moment, then wiped his dirty hands clean. He fumbled around and handed over the silver he had prepared, his voice tinged with caution: "This is to return the money to the young lady."
A dark blue money bag was handed to him. Gu Qingxu glanced at it indifferently and did not reach out to take it. He simply waved his hand casually and said, "Never mind, I don't need it. Consider it my treat."
Yi Mingyu didn't retract his hand, but he was at a loss for what to do. Gu Qingsu's bold approach made him, a person who always followed the rules, feel awkward and completely unsure how to respond.
Seeing him being so hesitant and repeatedly touching her sore spots, Gu Qingxu grew impatient. She frowned, raised her voice, and said, "Alright, I said I'd treat you, so I'll treat you. I hate hesitant people the most."
It's unclear what words touched him, but the usually rigid Yi Mingyu twitched his fingers and silently put his money pouch away.
He raised his eyes, seemingly wanting to change the subject, and asked, "What brings Miss Gu here?"
This question made Gu Qingxu suddenly remember her purpose for coming, and Ruan Xingzhu, whom she had left alone in the brothel!
Given Ruan Xingzhu's soft nature, if she were to be seduced into doing something disgraceful, Gu Yun'an would surely devour her!
She was extremely anxious and hurried back to the brothel.
Fortunately, she was relieved to learn that Ruan Xingzhu had left, but then she suddenly heard a gloomy voice behind her: "Xiao Wu".
Gu Qingxu felt her heart, which had just been at ease, jump again. Gu Yun'an's power was no less than that of the Cheng family.
In the past, when Cheng was away on business, it was her fourth brother who disciplined her. He was always cautious and meticulous in his words and deeds. If he didn't make a mistake, everything was fine, but if he did, she would be very anxious.
Feeling a little awkward, she stammered, "Fourth Brother."
Gu Yun'an, however, seemed unfazed. His expression remained cold and stern, his eyes radiating an unyielding authority. He coldly warned, "If I find out you've brought Xingzhu to these shady places again, watch out for your legs."
Upon hearing this, Gu Qingxu simply lowered her head and obediently admitted her mistake.
"Aren't you going back to the manor?" Seeing that Gu Qingxu didn't move, Gu Yun'an spoke up dangerously again.
Gu Qingxu quickly raised her head and nodded repeatedly, like a chick pecking at rice, "I'll go back, I'll go back right away."
Without daring to delay any longer, she quickly fled from Gu Yun'an's sight.
I wonder how Xingzhu is doing. Was she caught by Gu Yun'an and punished?
Upon returning to the manor, Gu Qingxu rushed to find Ruan Xingzhu, only to discover that Ruan Xingzhu was even more anxious than she was.
"Fifth Sister, something terrible has happened!" Ruan Xingzhu exclaimed in a panic, her voice trembling slightly.
Gu Qingsu thought it was because Gu Yun'an had discovered her going to the brothel, and she said somewhat sullenly, "Alright, I know, so what if Fourth Brother saw you?" Her tone was tinged with helplessness and indifference.
Ruan Xingzhu was taken aback and exclaimed in surprise, "Fifth Sister, you also ran into Fourth Brother?"
"Yeah, I even got a scolding!" Gu Qingsu said listlessly.
Ruan Xingzhu didn't expect that she still couldn't keep this a secret for Gu Qingxu, but that's not what she wanted to talk about.
She stamped her foot in frustration and exclaimed, somewhat angrily, "No, it's not this!"
Gu Qingxu was a little confused. If it wasn't this, then what could be considered a big deal? She hadn't done anything else these past few days.
"It's Young Master Yi. Madam Yi came to visit today. After hearing what you said, she said she wants to go back and question you thoroughly!"
Ruan Xingzhu finally spoke, and after saying it all in one breath, she was slightly out of breath, her eyes full of anxiety.
Gu Qingxu became a little anxious. If she were exposed, given Cheng Shi's temperament, she would be confined for another half a month. She didn't want to go back to that place.
Having made up her mind, Gu Qingsu left the mansion without saying a word or looking back. She planned to use the life-saving grace she had shown him today to get his help before Yi Mingyu was questioned.
She rushed to the gate of the Yi residence, but when she saw the imposing main gate, she knew she couldn't enter through it.
She glanced at the courtyard wall beside her and a smile played on her lips; climbing walls was her specialty.
After looking around, Gu Qingxu used a tree near the courtyard wall as a springboard, pushed off the trunk with both feet, and climbed to the top of the wall.
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