Chapter 253 Offended a Lot of People
Upon seeing Qiu Heng, Uncle Zhang stood up and asked, "Sixth Miss, are you going back?"
"Okay. Uncle Zhang, go to the carriage shop and rent a horse to take the carriage home. I'll head back first."
Uncle Zhang glanced at Xue Han beside Qiu Heng and nodded in agreement.
With Lord Xue accompanying her, the Sixth Miss is safer than if she were traveling by carriage.
The snow showed no signs of stopping, but it wasn't heavy. Qiu Heng walked towards the Yongqing Marquis's residence and asked Xue Han, "What a coincidence today, where are you going?"
"I was just strolling around, I didn't expect to run into you."
"Just strolling around?" Qiu Heng turned her head and looked up, somewhat disbelieving.
Xue Han noticed her suspicion and smiled slightly: "I'm not on duty right now, and I'm all alone. I have nothing else to do but wander around."
As I was leaving, I thought, "Maybe I'll run into Ah Heng at the Prince of Fu's mansion today?"
And it actually happened; I even witnessed that terrifying scene.
Qiu Heng gently kicked at the snow on the road: "Then I must thank Lord Xue for his heroic rescue."
Suddenly her hand was grabbed, and Qiu Heng slowed her pace.
The boy's eyes were as dark as ink, filled with a smile: "Aheng, every time I saved you before, you were cursing me in your heart, weren't you?"
Qiu Heng: "..."
After a moment of awkwardness, Qiu Heng regained her composure: "I truly thank you this time, otherwise I would have had to kill the runaway horse in front of everyone."
Although rumors circulated among the people that she was strong enough to lift a tripod, officials and nobles dismissed the rumors as exaggerated, believing that she only knew some fancy but ineffective martial arts.
This is not a bad thing for her.
If something big is not accomplished, being perceived as a threat can hinder one's actions.
"I don't know if this sneak attack today was meant to test my skills or take my life." Qiu Heng stopped joking and got down to business.
"The situation is a bit chaotic right now, and it's hard to make a judgment. There's little hope of finding the person who shot us in the back today. I'll go and check after I take you back to your residence."
Qiu Heng shook her head: "We didn't catch them back then, so searching again would be like looking for a needle in a haystack. Now that their plan has failed, just like you said, we might as well wait and see what happens next."
If this had happened before her trip to Xijiang, she would have suspected spies from Northern Qi and Consort Yu. But this trip to Xijiang thrust her into the spotlight, drawing the attention of countless people, and things could have been very different.
As they spoke, they arrived at the Yongqing Marquis's residence.
"I'm going in."
"I'll go with you to see the old lady."
Qiu Heng was taken aback.
Shall we go see Grandma together?
"Since you were attacked in the street and I witnessed it, we should go together to inform the old lady, lest—"
"To avoid what?"
"So that the old lady won't think I don't care about your safety and am unreliable."
Qiu Heng looked at Xue Han as if she were just getting to know him, her eyes widening slightly.
Why are you looking at me like that?
Qiu Heng smiled and said, "I thought you wouldn't care about what others thought."
“The old lady is your grandmother, not just anyone.”
He didn't want any more obstacles on his path to marrying Aheng.
"Alright then." Qiu Heng's gaze swept over the horse blood splattered on Xue Han's clothes, and she dared not imagine what the old lady's expression would be if she saw it.
Inside Qiansong Hall, the old lady ate her snacks, feeling warm and cozy.
My granddaughter is safe and sound, but the old man is still in jail. I feel relieved that I won't have to see his gloomy old face during the New Year.
A maidservant came in and reported, "Madam, the Sixth Miss has returned, along with Young Master Xue."
Young Master Xue?
The old lady paused, holding the pastries: "Sixth Miss and Xue Han came back together?"
"yes."
What's going on? Didn't Sixth Sister go to Prince Fu's mansion?
The old lady put down the pastries in a daze, wiped her mouth, and said, "Please come in."
The old lady went to the main hall and had just sat down when Qiu Heng and Xue Han came in.
"Madam," Xue Han bowed respectfully.
The old lady scrutinized the young man who bowed to her.
Could it be that Sixth Sister used the pretense of visiting Prince Fu's mansion to secretly meet with Xue Han?
Why bother? She didn't stop them from having a secret rendezvous.
etc--
The old lady's eyes narrowed, and her expression suddenly changed: "Lord Xue, why are there bloodstains on you?"
Xue Han looked down and explained, "This is horse blood."
"Horse blood? Where did you get horse blood?"
Xue Han glanced at Qiu Heng and brought up the matter of the startled horse: "...I didn't expect the startled horse to belong to the Earl's mansion, and Aheng was in the carriage."
A hidden arrow? A startled horse? A near-collision?
As Xue Han recounted the story, the old lady's expression changed continuously, and finally she clutched her forehead, feeling dizzy.
He's gotten into trouble again!
"Heng'er!" the old lady shouted angrily.
Qiu Heng looked completely innocent: "Grandmother?"
The old lady paused for a moment.
Forgot, it's always someone else who gets into trouble and suffers the consequences.
"Were you scared?" The old lady managed to offer a comforting remark, remembering that Xue Han was still present.
"Oh... I was a little nervous at the time, afraid that I would crash into the carriage of Minister Cheng and cause trouble for my family."
The old lady's lips twitched violently.
If that were to happen, I'm afraid people would come knocking on our door again, just like the time the First Madam of the Prime Minister's residence did.
But later, almost everyone in the Prime Minister's residence died...
The old lady suddenly calmed down and gave Xue Han a gentle smile: "I am very grateful to Lord Xue for today's events. Have you had lunch yet, Lord Xue? Please stay for a simple meal so that I can express my gratitude."
"You're too kind, Madam. Even a junior would have stepped in to help in such a situation, let alone Ah Heng."
The old lady's smile faded slightly.
They're calling each other so affectionately, why don't you send a matchmaker to propose marriage?
"The matter of Aheng being attacked on the street has been reported to the Jingtian Prefecture and the Imperial City Guard. I will take my leave now and go inquire about any progress."
Xue Han took his leave, and the old lady exchanged a few polite words before instructing her head maid, Chuncao, "See Lord Xue off for me."
After Xue Han left, the old lady's face darkened: "Tell me, who did you offend that would commit such a heinous act?"
Qiu Heng honestly shook her head: "I can't think of anything."
"Isn't there anyone you suspect?"
"Previously, while soaking in the hot springs, she was kidnapped by spies from the Northern Qi, but they managed to expose the Crown Prince of Chen. I heard that the Northern Qi paid a considerable price to ransom the Crown Prince of Chen... Xi Jiang must also hate her granddaughter quite a bit, as well as the officials and merchants who suffered losses due to the downfall of the treacherous minister, and some ministers who advocated peace and were against Xi Jiang..." Qiu Heng looked troubled, "It's hard to say which side it is."
The old lady felt a sudden tightness in her chest.
The Xia, Northern Qi, and Western Jiang dynasties—that's quite a complete list.
"Go back to your room and rest," the old lady said, waving her hand wearily.
The news of Qiu Heng's attack was quickly reported to Emperor Jingping.
"Why does this Princess Suiyun have so many problems?"
Although Emperor Jingping released Qiu Heng from Dali Temple prison, he was still dissatisfied and did not care much about her being attacked. He said indifferently, "Then investigate it thoroughly."
Seeing Emperor Jingping's attitude, both the Jingtian Prefecture and the Imperial City Guard breathed a sigh of relief.
There's little hope of finding that scoundrel; I'll be at ease as long as I don't incur the emperor's wrath.
For Emperor Jingping, beset by internal and external troubles, Qiu Heng's attack was a trivial matter, but little did he know that after a few days of rumors, the story had changed among the people of the capital.
(End of this chapter)
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