Chapter 42 "This is a trivial matter; I have the right to act first and report later..."
The cicadas' song gradually faded, and the end of July arrived in a flash. Four or five days had passed since Liang Xizhao and Chen Yuansheng disappeared. Because Qian Yingyi and Yu Cheng had specifically requested it, the yamen runners sent by the prefectural government were quite thorough, knocking on doors and asking questions in detail.
Unfortunately, there was no trace of the two children. The people could only glance at the portraits and then lamented, "Oh dear, what a bright and clever child they were! What has happened to them?"
Liang Xizhao, who was suffering in the eyes of the people, was dozing off in the room with her small body tilted to one side. A beam of morning light shone through the window and swept across her rosy cheeks. When she was asleep, her curled eyelashes covered her eyelids, concealing her usual cunning.
"Hiss... hiss..."
A very faint sound came from inside the room, swam along the base of the wall, and settled under a square table.
Chen Yuansheng was awake at this moment, and the remaining older children huddled together, their eyes wet, clearly having just cried.
Hearing the noise, Chen Yuansheng opened his mouth wide and suddenly reached out his short arm to pat one of the older children, "Brother...brother, did you hear that? What was that sound?"
The older child glanced around sideways, his eyes sweeping under the square table. His eyes widened in horror. "A snake...it's a snake!"
He was on the verge of tears, “It’s a poisonous snake! I’ve seen people get bitten by it before, and they collapse within two steps! We’re locked up here, and if it… if it swims over, we’ll all be bitten to death!”
The conversation woke Liang Xizhao, who was dazed and instinctively called out "Father." She opened her eyes and looked around, only to find herself still locked in this beautiful room. She immediately became a little irritated, "Why are we still here!"
Seeing Chen Yuansheng and the others huddled together in fear, she hesitated for a moment, then her childish voice rang out, "What are you doing?"
Chen Yuansheng swallowed hard, his hand trembling as he pointed behind her, "Xixi...snake..."
Liang Xizhao turned her head in a daze and saw the snake's terrifying skin. She also shrank her shoulders.
Just then, footsteps began to sound outside, and the servant's voice rang out, "Uncle sent someone to reply that he has found a house in the mountains. Let's wash the children clean and change them into new clothes. Master is staying at home today to celebrate Miss's birthday and is currently unavailable. When Master comes over tonight, we'll all leave the city together under cover of darkness. You guys go outside and take another look around to find out where the yamen runners are, and we'll try our best to avoid them."
"yes."
In the blink of an eye, the voice reached the door from around the corner. The next instant, the door opened with a key, revealing the servant's unremarkable face. He looked down at the children inside, then suddenly broke into a smile. "My dears, are you hungry?"
The children just stared at him without saying a word.
Liang Xizhao, showing him great respect, nodded vigorously, "Hungry! Brother, I'm hungry! I want to eat that plate of snacks on the table! Brother, bring it to me!"
The servant looked down at her, and after a long while, he let out a sneer. He thought this little brat was so capable, but it turned out she'd become obedient after just one meal of hunger.
He suddenly took a few steps forward, stopping his legs beside the corner of the square table, and bent down to pick up the plate of pastries for Liang Xizhao. "Then tell your brother, will you behave if you eat these pastries?"
Liang Xizhao stared intently at his legs, nodding vigorously, "I can!"
The servant grinned smugly, took the snacks, and was about to lift his foot when a sharp pain shot through his calf. He groaned, looked down, and his expression changed drastically. "Where did this poisonous snake come from!"
Immediately, a plate of pastries was not held properly and smashed to the ground with a "crack," scattering shards of porcelain everywhere.
In his panic, the servant caught a glimpse of Liang Xizhao's smug smile and immediately realized that she had deliberately led him to stand there, and a chill ran down his spine.
What an amazing baby!
His legs gradually became numb and swollen. He gritted his teeth and thought to himself that he would take someone down with him even if he died. He took a big step and was about to pinch Liang Xizhao's body!
But after taking only a couple of steps, the man collapsed to the ground, trembling for a while before being unable to get up. The snake must have slithered in through the crack in the door at some point, and it was probably a repeat offender, as it bit the man and immediately fled.
The servant's fall sent the key hanging from his waist flying onto the floor tiles not far from Liang Xizhao. She clapped her hands with delight, completely ignoring the servant's gradually turning purple face. Once she had the key, she immediately started thinking about untying the iron chain on her ankle.
Then came Chen Yuansheng and several other older children.
Once she had a chance to unleash her power, Liang Xizhao kicked the servant in the face with all her might, yelling, "You bad guy! You deserve to be bitten by a poisonous snake for tying up Xixi!"
As she moved, she noticed a square plaque fall from the servant's arms. She picked it up and looked at it; the characters were exactly what she recognized: "Wen?"
Chen Yuansheng racked his brains but couldn't figure out what it meant. One of the older children, however, slapped his forehead, his mouth slightly agape, and exclaimed in realization, "This person looks like he's doing odd jobs for a nobleman. I've heard that servants in wealthy households all have waist tags... Wen... his surname is Wen..."
He half-closed his eyes and pondered deeply. Suddenly, a flash of inspiration struck him, and he blurted out, "I know! I know! It's the Wen family! There's only one Wen family in the entire Yingtian Prefecture! One of their officials is a high-ranking official, a vice minister. A few months ago, they had some kind of celebration at their house. I led a group of my younger siblings to their back door to pick up the food that they didn't want!"
Liang Xizhao suddenly remembered Wen Ninglan. Sister Lan also had the surname Wen, there was only one Wen family... So what was Sister Lan's connection with this bad guy?
Just then, Chen Yuansheng raised his hand tremblingly and said, "I wonder if there are still bad guys guarding outside. How can we escape?"
Liang Xizhao's eyes flashed with cunning, and she immediately made up her mind, "Xixi knows Sister Wen! She likes Xixi the most and often helps Dad with his business, so this bad guy is definitely not with her! Didn't someone just say that the bad guy was celebrating Miss's birthday at home? It must be Sister Lan's birthday!"
"When Xixi turned four, she invited a lot of children to play together. Sister Lan's house must be very lively today!"
"Sister Lan probably doesn't know that I've been kidnapped by bad guys," she said, her little fists clenched tightly, a mischievous glint in her eyes. "Listen to Xixi, let's rush to this Wen family! Xixi will expose that bad guy's true colors in public and get the officials to arrest him!"
Before long, Liang Xizhao rushed out the door with all her might. She glanced around and saw that only the gatekeeper was left keeping watch in the distance. She screamed, "Snake! A snake has bitten someone to death!"
The servant's face changed upon hearing the sound. He didn't even have time to think about why she was in the corridor. He rushed over and started circling around her, asking, "Where is the snake? Who did it bite to death?"
The children, who were hiding in the shadows, quickly pulled him into the house. By the time the servant realized what was happening, he had already been locked inside by the children!
Liang Xizhao forced a laugh, grabbed the tokens with her short arms, and immediately shouted, "Take your waist tags and follow Xixi!"
The older kids, with cuts on their lips and clearly seething with anger, grabbed sticks and yelled, "Expose him! Expose him! Put him in jail to die! Die!"
Let's leave that aside for now.
So, which young lady of the Wen family was actually celebrating her birthday with? Naturally, it was Wen Xinyan.
The Wen family's invitation had been sent to the Qian family two days earlier. At that time, the maid presented the invitation while Qian Yingyi and Qian Yuxing were enjoying the cool air with Ren Yuqing.
Qian Yuxing had disliked Mrs. Wen ever since last time, and didn't even give her a second glance. She pouted and said, "I heard that when Lanlan celebrated her birthday, she just rushed through it. She is a proper wife, yet she can't even treat everyone fairly. I'm not going."
Qian Yingyi chimed in with a smile, "If you're not going, I'm not going either. I'm thinking of inviting Lanlan over to our house. Mrs. Wen is probably secretly planning to find a young man of similar social standing to be a husband for Wen Xinyan."
“Alright,” Qian Yuxing was straightforward, and immediately beckoned to the maid, “Find an excuse to inform the servants of the Wen family, and then send two people to the Wen family to invite Miss Wen the Third, saying that you want to invite her to our house for tea.”
Just as the maid was about to leave, Xu Jun led several old women over. After a few words, Xu Jun immediately frowned, first pressing the maid down to stop her from leaving, then sitting down between the three younger women, and shaking her head in disapproval, "I remember the Wen family came to visit us at Yingyi's birthday banquet. How can we not go this time when it's the Wen family's turn?"
She said, "I know you all don't like Mrs. Wen and her two children, and I don't like them much either, but our family can't let people talk about it, right?"
Ren Yuqing always liked to think things through, but seeing her put on a smile, she said, "Auntie is right. I'm not feeling that bad right now, so just take her out for some fresh air."
Therefore, as soon as it was light, Qian Yingyi dressed herself up neatly, wearing a newly tailored pleated skirt, and went to the Wen family with her sister and sister-in-law.
The sun cast a warm glow on the car's shadow, and the beams of light shining through the curtains were a pale yellow. In about 15 minutes, we arrived at the gate of the Wen residence.
Qian Yingyi was the last to get off the carriage. When Qin Lizheng offered her his arm, she grabbed her skirt with one hand and casually put her other hand on it.
While her sister and sister-in-law were ahead, she moved the hand that was on his arm to his waist and whispered, "I want to drink the tofu pudding and jasmine tea from the back of this alley. Go buy it first, and then come find me in the house. There are a lot of people today, and I'll have to talk a lot, so I don't really want to drink tea."
Qin Lizheng subtly hooked her fingertip, a gentle smile in his eyes, "Okay."
After the two whispered to each other, the maid from the Wen family led the way with a smile. Qian Yingyi followed lightly, walking behind Qian Yuxing, and heard the maid from the Wen family say, "Today, Madam has invited many young masters and ladies, set up a banquet in the waterside pavilion, and invited musicians from outside to play the zither. We invite all the noble ladies to relax and have a good time."
Qian Yuxing glanced at the Wen residence and gave a perfunctory reply.
Ren Yuqing was visiting the Wen residence for the first time and found it quite novel. Her bright, clear eyes looked around. After walking through the large garden and past the corner of the corridor toward the waterside pavilion, she spotted a figure in a pink pleated skirt in the distance and asked softly, "Is that Miss Wen, who is celebrating her birthday today?"
"Yes, yes, Grandma has such good eyesight," the maid of the Wen family nodded with a smile. "The Second Miss is celebrating her nineteenth birthday today."
After a while, they arrived outside the waterside pavilion. Mrs. Wen, who was always trying to please people, turned around at the sound and saw Qian Yuxing. She smiled and rushed over to talk to her. She said that it was a misunderstanding that she had made Qian Yuxing leave the banquet early last time, and she praised Qian Yuxing for taking good care of Ren Yuqing.
As they were talking, two more figures came from the other side and happened to stop next to Wen Xinyan. Qian Yingyi glanced at them and exclaimed, "Good heavens! How strange!" The two were Yan Ruheng and Fan Baozhu!
Strange...
Qian Yingyi hadn't seen Yan Ruheng for a long time, and she was surprised to find that even his entire demeanor had changed. His face was still extremely handsome, but the smile on his lips was very strange, seemingly gentle yet carrying a hint of mockery.
She looked closely and saw that the three of them were standing together. When Fan Baozhu spoke to Wen Xinyan with a smile, Wen Xinyan's expression was flat, as if she even had a hint of disdain.
When it was Yan Ruheng's turn to speak, Wen Xinyan pursed her lips and lowered her made-up face slightly. As a result, Fan Baozhu's smile gradually faded.
"Yingyi, don't you also find it strange?" Two voices suddenly sounded from behind. It turned out that Yan Qiuyan and Wen Ninglan appeared on the left and right sides behind Qian Yingyi.
Qian Yingyi glanced around, blinked, and quickly concluded, "Today's guests are all familiar faces. Lord Yan and Fan Baozhu have come together in public to congratulate Wen Xinyan... could it be..."
This scene seemed somewhat familiar to Qian Yingyi. She lowered her gaze and thought for a moment, then suddenly remembered that she and Yan Ruheng had done the same thing at Qiu Yan's birthday banquet. However, she hadn't realized it then, but now, thinking back...
She nodded knowingly and said with certainty, "Are they going to discuss marriage?"
Yan Qiuyan pouted. "Yes, do you still remember Lord Fan? I was wondering why. Before, they said the illness was difficult to cure, and that Lord Fan was honest and could not afford to pay for treatment, which is why it was delayed again and again. This morning, when I was having breakfast at home, my grandfather told me that Lord Fan's illness was completely cured and he went back to work at the Ministry of Works yesterday."
She gave a mysterious smile. "I guess it was Lord Yan's father, the head of our Yingtian Prefecture government, who devised a clever plan to lend a helping hand to Lord Fan."
In the past, given Yan Qiuyan's personality, she would have spat on Yan Ruheng when she learned that he used to admire Qian Yingyi but was now with Fan Baozhu!
But she had a discerning eye and noticed early on that there was something ambiguous between Qian Yingyi and the guards around her, so she stopped thinking about it.
Yan Qiuyan's words were somewhat ambiguous, and although Qian Yingyi disliked gossiping about such trivial matters behind people's backs, she still smiled along.
For no other reason than that my little heart is happy for my grandfather.
She said that when she woke up this morning, she noticed that her grandfather's steps were so light when he went out. It turned out that Lord Fan had recovered. Her grandfather could stop temporarily supervising the shipbuilding work in place of Lord Fan and return to his duties. Her grandfather was much more relaxed in the blink of an eye!
After the maid had arranged the meal, she invited the group to move into the waterside pavilion. Ren Yuqing felt very comfortable with the warm sunshine on her body, so she suggested that they stand outside the pavilion for a while longer.
Qian Yingyi pulled her foot back after taking a step, and simply hugged her friend and talked happily.
Yan Qiuyan gazed at Yan Ruheng's direction, her smile gradually fading, a hint of sorrow in her eyes. "Seeing Third Brother reminds me of Sister Yan. I heard they haven't found her yet, and I wonder where she is now..."
“It’s better if we can’t find her,” Wen Ninglan chimed in. “It’s been so long. I heard that Madam Lin sent people to the government office to make a scene twice more. She wanted to drag Sister Yan out of the ground, skin her alive, and drink her blood. Lin Yuhu was no good either. What big mistake could Sister Yan have made? Why did it have to come to this?”
As they were talking animatedly, the three of them couldn't help but linger their gazes on Yan Ruheng for a few more moments, which Yan Ruheng naturally noticed.
He noticed the figure he had longed for day and night, paused for a moment, then felt Fan Baozhu gently tug at his sleeve. He then concealed the self-mockery in his eyes, turned his head and smiled slightly at Fan Baozhu.
The Yan and Lin families were at each other's throats day and night because of the disappearance of the eldest sister. The mother cried every day with her handkerchief in her hand, and the father became increasingly impatient, determined to overpower the Lin family. He had already set his sights on the Six Ministries of Southern Zhili.
Not satisfied with winning over Wen Jianzhou, seeing that he refused to approach Qian Yingyi again, and knowing that Fan Baozhu admired him, he had him use the same trick to win over Fan Baozhu.
Yan Ruheng found it utterly ridiculous. It seemed that Yan Yu thought he could manipulate women at will simply because he had a face that women loved. But that wasn't the case at all. What was he? He was nothing more than a puppet being dragged along by his family.
Composing himself, Yan Ruheng glanced at Qian Yingyi again without showing any emotion.
It was as if he had unilaterally broken free from the corrupt world surrounding him and the voices that reached his ears, and was infected by her consistent purity, and simply looked at her.
After separating from Fan Baozhu, she went to the men's section and sat down next to Wen Zhuonan.
Wen Zhuonan was having a drink with someone when he saw him and quickly called out, "Sanlang, come and have a drink."
Yan Ruheng twitched his lips and echoed in a low voice.
Qian Yingyi leaned against the stone railing by the pool, kneading a few of Wen Ninglan's fingers, and asked, "Have Wen Zhuonan and Wen Xinyan bullied you again?"
As soon as she finished speaking, she suddenly remembered something and whispered a few words in Wen Ninglan's ear.
Wen Ninglan's eyes widened, and she chuckled, "So you were the one who caused his injury that time! I was wondering why his walking posture was a little off those days. Your bodyguard named Lin Zheng is really something else."
It refers to the story of Qian Yingyi, who disguised herself as a江湖人士 (jianghu figure) and tricked Wen Zhuonan and Yu Minsen.
When girls get together, they inevitably talk about each other. Wen Ninglan glanced at Qian Yingyi with a slightly ambiguous look and asked, "Don't think that Yan Yan and I can't tell. You like him a lot, don't you?"
Wen Ninglan spoke in a low voice, and Qian Yingyi exclaimed "Ouch!" upon hearing it, gently pinching her arm. Not wanting to discuss this with her, she happened to catch a faint scent and changed the subject, "Let's not talk about me, Lanlan. Have you been out these past few days? Have you been looking for any trace of Xixi outside?"
Wen Ninglan also heard from the wet nurse that the yamen runners were looking for two children. After questioning them carefully, she learned that one of them was Liang Xizhao, which made her terrified.
She shook her head and sighed, "I did go out, and even tried my luck at the places she usually likes to go, but I couldn't find it."
Qian Yingyi sighed along with her, and just as she was about to speak again, she suddenly furrowed her brows slightly.
What's this smell?
She twitched her nostrils for a moment, then asked uncertainly, "...realgar?"
Wen Ninglan smiled mysteriously, pulled her and Yan Qiuyan close, and whispered, "Wen Zhuonan often destroys my flowers. I was so annoyed that I used realgar to poison all the things he likes. Now he's so angry with me every day."
Qian Yingyi was surprised and sighed that she had changed her personality. She half-jokingly said, "You really are a 'venomous snake'!"
"Poisonous snake! Poisonous snake! There's a poisonous snake!"
Suddenly a commotion arose outside the waterside pavilion, and several figures of varying heights rushed in, shouting in childish voices, "Poisonous snakes! Poisonous snakes!"
Qian Yingyi paused, peering through the equally stunned crowd, and recognized the baby leading the group as Liang Xizhao. She was immediately frozen in shock.
How did Xixi end up here!
Not only Xixi, but Chen Yuansheng also followed behind, followed by several older children, all dressed in fine robes and clean all over.
Liang Xizhao was panting as she weaved in and out of the banquet table, chased by the servants and maids of the Wen family, who shouted, "Hey! Who are you? Don't disturb the banquet!"
Liang Xizhao was naturally quick-witted. After glancing around a few times, she knew that the people sitting in the waterside pavilion were all noblemen, so she took the lead and slipped into the skirts of the beautiful women and young ladies.
As a result, the servants and maids who were chasing behind them all stopped and were forced to stay in place.
Children have a natural talent for making up nursery rhymes. Liang Xizhao, despite her young age, already knew quite a few characters and could recite more than three hundred poems. She grinned and popped out from under the skirt of a beautiful woman, then shouted at the top of her lungs:
"The Wen family, how shameless! They picked up a child like a treasure; left foot locked, right foot locked, the child's pleas were in vain; deep are their schemes, deep are their lies, a false venomous snake crawls into the child's body; I beg Heaven, have pity on them, let the true form of the venomous snake destroy their evil!"
She ran and crawled forward, and several children followed behind, singing the nursery rhyme repeatedly.
The ladies and young women at the women's table gasped in astonishment. Some of the young women, still somewhat naive, stood up and looked at the children's backs, whispering to their mothers, "Mother, what does this nursery rhyme mean?"
The woman pondered the nursery rhyme, starting from the first line. By the third line, she suddenly realized something was amiss. Gradually, as if struck by a club, she abruptly stood up and looked over! The nursery rhyme wasn't about a fake snake at all; it was clearly about a man's...things!
Not only this lady, but the ladies in other households also gradually came to their senses. After being shocked, they recalled the "crawl into the baby's body" and there was nothing they didn't understand.
Some of the ladies were younger and had several five- or six-year-old children under their wing. When they understood the meaning of the nursery rhyme and who it referred to, an indescribable anger welled up in their hearts. Their eyes immediately blazed with fire, and they followed the children with a flick of their sleeves!
Liang Xizhao twisted and turned wildly, her hair, which was draped behind her head, was like a victory flag growing from her body, dancing in the wind and boosting the morale of all her comrades.
She stepped down the wooden stairs, panting heavily, and passed through layers of landscape screens. Soon she found Wen Zhuonan's figure at the end of the men's section.
Suddenly, she grabbed the jade plate from the banquet table, sprinted forward with all her might, took a deep breath, and hurled the jade plate at Wen Zhuonan, shouting in a slightly shrill child's voice, "Xixi will kill you! Kill you! You poisonous snake!"
The children followed suit, and without hesitation, they grabbed cups, saucers, and porcelain bowls and smashed them all at Wen Zhuonan.
Yan Ruheng was too close and was hit on the shoulder unexpectedly. He immediately pinched his forehead and decisively left the spot.
With that step back, nothing was blocking Wen Zhuonan's view anymore. He'd only vaguely heard the commotion at the women's table earlier, with people chanting something about "poisonous snakes." Now, he'd been hit on the forehead, and when he touched it, he saw half his palm was covered in blood. Enraged, he didn't care where the child's voice had come from, and hurriedly looked over—
At that glance, he was struck dumb, frozen in place as if by lightning.
Why did all these perfectly normal people suddenly appear?!
Wen Zhuonan was suddenly filled with fear, his eyes darting around frantically. He caught sight of the servant following closely behind and shouted sternly, "Where did these little brats come from? How dare you let people who don't know where they came from? What are your eyes for! Get them out of here right now!"
The servants rushed forward to pull the children away.
Unfortunately, the children were quick to imitate, and seeing Liang Xizhao smiling and hiding behind a nobleman, they all hurriedly ran to hide behind the nobleman closest to them.
Immediately, the children exchanged glances, raised their voices again, and recited the nursery rhyme in unison!
The men's section was eerily silent. After hearing the contents of the nursery rhyme, all the male guests stared at Wen Zhuonan with varying expressions.
Wen Zhuonan's anger suddenly turned into a deep panic after he noticed their change.
He remained seated, swallowed hard, and forced a smile. "Who gave you permission to make up these things? Why are you talking nonsense at such a young age?"
Liang Xizhao was furious that she had been tied up for so long. She suddenly stepped onto the banquet table, stomped her little foot, puffed out her chest like an actress, and pointed at Wen Zhuonan, saying, "You, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you dare to do it but not admit it, you tied my feet, you forced me to change my clothes, and you still bullied me, why don't you dare to admit it?!"
Then, his eyes darted around, and he looked at everyone in the pavilion, shouting, "Xixi never lies! He was bitten on the left arm by Xixi. Whether it's true or not, you can tell at a glance!"
The silence on the men's side lasted so long that Wen Zhuonan's anger surged up again, and large red spots gradually appeared behind his ears.
As luck would have it, among the male guests was Wen Zhuonan's former classmate. The young master adopted a spectator's attitude and sneered, "Oh, such a big thing, Wen Zhuonan, how dare you do it? Putting aside the fact that you knowingly broke the law, how old are these kids? Can you face your conscience? Can you face the teachings of the prefectural school in the past?"
"I didn't!" Wen Zhuonan's eyes were bloodshot. "Don't talk nonsense!"
The young master glanced at Yan Ruheng, his smile growing even more shameless. "Among our classmates, isn't there a righteous official like you? He was just toasting you a moment ago. Sanlang, aren't you going to help investigate? Whether it's true or false, just roll up Wen Zhuonan's sleeve and take a look. If not, these kids are lying; if they are..."
"If I remember correctly, under the laws of this dynasty, imprisoning a young child with the intention of committing violence is punishable by death, isn't it?"
Liang Xizhao was overjoyed to hear this, and the children who had suffered at Wen Zhuonan's hands were also excited about taking revenge themselves. The children rushed out again, shouting, "Heads off! Heads off!"
As soon as she finished speaking, Liang Xizhao spotted Qian Yingyi and Wen Ninglan rushing over. Her eyes lit up, and she hurried over as if she were in her own home.
When they got closer, she hugged them both and said proudly, "Sister Yingyi, Sister Lan, Xixi dealt with the bad guys! Isn't Xixi amazing!"
Qian Yingyi and Wen Ninglan were both shocked and quickly grabbed Liang Xizhao to look around.
Meanwhile, the ladies who had followed indignantly arrived at the pavilion where the men's seating area was located. They picked up where the young master had left off and exclaimed, "Exactly! Young Master Wen, whether these children are lying or not, you only need to prove it yourself!"
Wen Zhuonan could no longer suppress the restless blood in his body. Blood flowed from the wound on his forehead, and the porcelain shards lying on the hem of his robe reflected his stiff face.
He could hear everyone around him waiting for his answer. The silence was so profound it seemed to carry a deathly aura that seemed to be demanding his life. He knew that everything he had was gone.
He slowly raised his eyes and scanned the crowd one by one, facing eyes that were like stripped naked—eyes filled with ridicule, contempt, disgust, anger, and fear.
Lift up his sleeve? If anyone sees that wound, his life is over. His plan to cheat on the exam was thwarted, and his secret for venting his emotions was exposed. In less than half an hour, after the banquet, the entire city of Jinling could see him naked.
He's going to jail, he's going to lose his head. Even though his father is the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel in Southern Zhili, with so many eyes watching and so many powerful figures involved... he has no way out.
Wen Zhuonan's gaze swept over the group of children led by Liang Xizhao, and gradually moved past them to look at Liang Xizhao, who was standing next to Qian Yingyi and Wen Ninglan.
When did this little girl become acquainted with Wen Ninglan?
And Qian Yingyi.
The Qian family...
But why would the government go to such lengths to search for a missing child? Qian Yingyi's brother-in-law, as the governor of Jiangnan, often stayed at the government office. If Qian Yingyi discovered the little girl was missing, she might beg her brother-in-law to help search for her...
Wen Zhuonan lowered his eyes in silence, concealing the sinister look within them.
I see, I see.
If he can't survive, then we'll die together!
Suddenly, he sprang up, leaping out of the waterside pavilion and arriving in front of Qian Yingyi in the blink of an eye. He raised his hand to grab her and Wen Ninglan.
The sudden turn of events caused everyone's hearts to pause for a moment.
Qian Yuxing was shocked to see this. She quickly untied the soft whip from her waist and lashed it at his hand, shouting, "You dare to lay a hand on me in public! It seems this nursery rhyme is true! You beast! I'll take you to the authorities!"
Without a master like Qin Lizheng around, Wen Zhuonan's skills were not bad at all. He dodged Qian Yuxing's soft whip with a flip and noticed a pregnant woman standing next to him, looking at him with fear in her eyes.
The moment their eyes met, she looked away as if she were dirtying herself, and kept rubbing her belly as she backed away.
He suddenly felt as if he had been stabbed hard by that gaze. He remembered who this woman was and what her relationship was with the Qian family that had ruined him. He immediately chuckled twice, turned around and dodged Qian Yuxing, heading straight for her!
Yes, in Wen Zhuonan's mind, if it weren't for the Qian family's interference, he would still be sitting comfortably in the waterside pavilion, drinking and chatting, instead of facing imminent death. In the blink of an eye, he was filled with boundless rage and hatred for the Qian family.
He had completely lost his mind.
Ren Yuqing was shocked and instinctively wanted to scream, but Wen Zhuonan's movements were too fast. In the next instant, she was grabbed by Wen Zhuonan, her feet left the ground, and she flew into the air towards the roof!
The wind suddenly became piercing, mixed with Wen Zhuonan's shrill, maniacal laughter, "Being able to take two people down with me before I die, two lives lost, it's not in vain that I've lived so many years! The Qian family knows this little girl, so you like to meddle in other people's business, huh? Then I'll kill your Qian family's daughter-in-law and descendants, and they'll all be buried with me!"
He immediately pressed Ren Yuqing's body down and fled!
Qian Yingyi and Qian Yuxing's expressions changed drastically, and they immediately mustered all their strength to chase after her, calling out, "Sister-in-law—!"
It was only at this moment that Wen Jianzhou, his wife, and Wen Xinyan came to their senses. Mrs. Wen was so shaken that she fainted.
When Wen Jianzhou remembered who Wen Zhuonan had abducted, a wave of panic washed over him. He no longer cared about the guests in the mansion and shouted at the top of his lungs, "Where are the guards! Where are the servants! Hurry up and chase after them! Bring back this wretched child, bring back the young mistress of the Qian family! Now!"
He was so terrified that his legs went weak, and he couldn't help but try to protect the head on his shoulder. He quickly gathered his strength and ran outside.
After Wen Zhuonan flew out of the house, he casually untied a carriage, slashed the coachman on the back of the neck with a gust of wind, and then shoved Ren Yuqing inside.
He moved with lightning speed, hooking the two corners of the carriage curtain tightly to the wooden board, letting out a cold laugh, and immediately steered the carriage toward Jubao Mountain.
Hmph, you want him dead? Dream on! My uncle is a mountain king, and he's gathered hundreds of men under his command in the martial arts world!
How could he not know someone was chasing him? He was deliberately leading them there; with his uncle around, he wouldn't die! He intended to use his uncle to kill them!
At worst, I'll have to live as a fugitive! That's better than losing my head right away!
He drove the carriage very fast and swiftly, making it bounce around a lot, heading straight for the main street.
Just as Qin Lizheng was returning with the tofu pudding, he saw Qian Yingyi rushing out, looking so anxious she was about to cry. His expression changed, and he hurried after her, calling out, "Yingyi!"
Upon seeing him, Qian Yingyi clung to his arm, stamping her feet anxiously, tears welling in her eyes. "Sister-in-law! Sister-in-law has been kidnapped by Wen Zhuonan!"
She was already somewhat confused about the cause and effect. Qin Lizheng's heart skipped a beat. He immediately threw away the tofu pudding, then swung his sword to cut the reins of a carriage, grabbed her waist, and mounted the horse.
While quickly observing the expressions of the people to determine which direction Wen Zhuonan was going, he spurred his horse, and the horse's hooves instantly galloped off.
Qian Yuxing also promptly mounted his horse and followed closely behind.
The whistling wind made Qian Yingyi's eardrums ache, but perhaps because Qin Lizheng was there, she felt a little more at ease.
While she could still speak coherently, she quickly explained the whole story in a few words, crying, "Hurry, hurry! My sister-in-law is pregnant with Tuanjie'er. That Wen Zhuonan is heartless and ruthless. She absolutely cannot be harmed!"
Qin Lizheng suddenly pressed her body down, his voice mingling with the sound of the wind, "Hold on tight to the horse's neck!"
Knowing that Ren Yuqing was almost eight months pregnant and would be greatly alarmed by this, Qin Lizheng gritted his teeth, urging his horse forward while pulling out a few signal flares from his pocket.
With a "whoosh," fireworks, specifically used for communication between superiors and subordinates of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, burst open in the air.
Every half stretch of road thereafter, a burst of sound would erupt in the air.
Chu Zhiyan, who was leisurely listening to a tune on the riverbank, immediately changed his expression upon hearing the noise. He hurriedly jumped out of the window, scaling walls and rooftops, took out his whistle and blew it. Suddenly, many figures appeared on the riverbank, all following behind him and rushing towards Qin Lizheng's direction!
The carriage driven by Wen Zhuonan was extremely bumpy, and Ren Yuqing had been silenced by acupuncture, so she could only do her best to protect her stomach, praying that Wen Zhuonan would be stopped by the garrison when they left the city.
Unfortunately, Wen Zhuonan took the Jubao Gate, which was relatively remote, so the South City Military Command was a bit lax, and Wen Zhuonan deliberately took a detour.
When they arrived at Jubao Gate, Ren Yuqing was so anxious that he kicked the carriage wall with both feet. It seemed that Wen Zhuonan often went out of the city, and the guards recognized his face. They only asked him a couple of questions about the injury on his forehead before letting him leave the city.
Ren Yuqing's heart sank suddenly, her jaw trembled uncontrollably, and just as she was about to lose her composure from fear, she bit her tongue hard, and instantly calmed down.
No matter what, she has to live, she absolutely has to live!
Qin Lizheng spurred his horse at full speed toward Jubao Gate. The guards, seeing him from afar, shouted, "Who dares to ride a horse in Jinling City? Are you out of your mind? Rein in your horse at once!"
Qin Lizheng didn't stop; instead, he made the horse run even faster. He reached into his robes and pulled out the waist badge of the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, which he then hung high. The guard saw the gleaming badge and vaguely made out the three large characters "Embroidered Uniform Guard" on it. Although he was a little confused, he still hurriedly opened the city gate.
Once outside the city, dust swirled, making it easier to spot the carriage.
Gritting his teeth and pressing forward, Qin Lizheng finally caught sight of the carriage. He stared intently ahead, his voice cutting through the wind to Qian Yingyi's ears, "You can ride a horse, can't you?"
Qian Yingyi nodded repeatedly.
Qin Lizheng's palm, stroking her head, conveyed a sense of reassurance. He said, "When we get closer, I'll dismount and deal with him. Don't be afraid to sit on the horse alone, understand?"
"I'm not afraid as long as I can save my sister-in-law!" Qian Yingyi quickly sat up and stared intently at the carriage in front of her, her hands unconsciously gripping the reins tightly.
The closer they got to Jubao Mountain, the more bumpy the path became. As they drew nearer, Qin Lizheng seized the opportunity and was about to leap over when Wen Zhuonan, as if he had eyes in the back of his head, hurriedly shouted, "Uncle! Quickly come out and save your nephew's life!"
In a short while, several figures emerged from a row of closely adjacent houses not far away. The one in the lead was a refined and cultured man. If you didn't ask him, you would never guess that he was a master of the martial arts world!
He was Wen Zhuonan's nominal uncle, named Yuan San.
When Mrs. Wen was young, she went out of town for fun and happened to save Yuan San's life. Yuan San fell in love with Mrs. Wen, but Mrs. Wen disliked that he was not an official. However, she wanted to take him under her wing, so she pretended to be sworn siblings and they became a brother and sister.
Because of his admiration for Mrs. Wen, Yuan San also extended his affection to her two children.
Seeing Wen Zhuonan with blood all over his head and people chasing after him, he immediately called out to his twenty or thirty men, and a group of them charged straight at him with knives!
Seeing this, Qin Lizheng frowned, flipped over and leaped onto the roof of the carriage, grabbed it with both arms, and made a move to kick Wen Zhuonan.
Wen Zhuonan took a hard kick to the shoulder and back, his hand slipped, and the carriage swayed wildly from side to side for a while before finally stabilizing.
Knowing that he was limited in controlling the carriage, Wen Zhuonan looked at the twenty or thirty experts led by Yuan Santong who were almost upon him. He gritted his teeth, pulled hard on the reins, and before the carriage had even come to a complete stop, he flipped himself onto the ground and shouted, "Uncle, these people are trying to kill me! Kill them for me!"
The group of experts immediately swarmed forward. In order not to disturb Ren Yuqing, Qin Lizheng quickly drew his sword and killed one of them, causing all the martial arts figures to come after him.
Qian Yingyi was extremely anxious. She finally stumbled off the horse and hurriedly scrambled into the carriage.
Qian Yuxing also rushed over at this moment and followed him into the carriage to check on Ren Yuqing's situation.
Wen Zhuonan, with his sharp eyes, saw this and his face became almost ferocious. He took the knife from Yuan San's waist and rushed towards the two sisters.
Just as they were filled with fear, a group of people arrived closely behind, each dressed in a dark-patterned arrow-patterned robe. One of them took the brunt of Wen Zhuonan's attack head-on, while the rest quickly moved to Qin Lizheng's side, taking down one of them in a few swift moves. Each of them was more ruthless than the last.
Having gained this assistance, Qin Lizheng handed over the group to his subordinates and headed straight for Qian Yingyi. Seeing Wen Zhuonan trying to climb into the carriage during their exchange, a cold glint flashed in Qin Lizheng's eyes. He grabbed the longsword beside the corpse, rushed forward, and slashed horizontally—
With a "thud," hot blood splattered everywhere. Wen Zhuonan's body was severed from his head, which rolled twice on the ground, his unwilling eyes still unable to close.
Yuan San was initially shocked, then filled with boundless rage. He roared and was about to take Qin Lizheng's life when Chu Zhiyan blocked his way and stabbed him in the ribs with a backhand.
At this moment, Wen Jianzhou arrived with all the guards of the Wen family. Upon seeing Wen Zhuonan's dismembered body from afar, he was horrified. He stared at the young man wiping blood from his face, his voice trembling, "You dare to kill my son? The court will decide right and wrong for my son. How dare you kill him?!"
"Men, surround him!"
A group of guards immediately stepped forward, swords in hand.
Qin Lizheng glanced at Wen Jianzhou, walked towards him step by step, and slowly picked up the waist token from his pocket, holding it in front of Wen Jianzhou.
With a cold expression, his voice, like a drumbeat, struck Wen Jianzhou's heart, "The yamen? Wen Zhuonan has already confessed to his crimes and should be executed according to the law. This is a trivial matter, and I have the right to execute him first and report later."
“Protecting such a beast is not a good thing for the Wen family. Once we enter the city, I will ask you to go to the Imperial Prison of the Embroidered Uniform Guard in Southern Zhili. It is much better than the yamen.”
"What does Lord Wen think?"
Wen Jianzhou stared wide-eyed in disbelief. His body swayed on the horse and he fell to the ground in a few tumbles. His mouth was slightly open and his eyes trembled as he stared at the young man who was looking down at him.
Why would the commander of the Imperial Guards, who serves the Emperor, be in Jinling? And why is he working as a lowly guard for Miss Qian? What is his purpose in coming to Jinling? Is the Emperor suspicious of them... or am I just overthinking things?
Wen Jianzhou felt as if he had been hit on the head with a stick, and was completely stunned.
A hint of disdain flashed in Qin Lizheng's eyes. He didn't want to waste any more words with him and turned to look at his subordinates who were subduing a group of martial arts figures.
The Imperial Guards quickly brought several prisoners to Qin Lizheng's side and said respectfully, "Commander, these people look like bandits."
That would be considered collusion between officials and bandits.
Qin Lizheng was about to speak when Qian Yingyi suddenly cried out from inside the carriage, her voice trembling with tears, "Sister-in-law! Sister-in-law, what's wrong!"
Qin Lizheng's expression changed drastically, and he shouted sharply, "Chu Zhiyan!"
Chu Zhiyan was just pulling out the knife that had been stuck in Yuan San's ribs when he heard the sound. He quickly walked to the carriage with a solemn expression and lifted the curtain to look.
Ren Yuqing's face was as white as gauze on the table, her whole body was trembling uncontrollably, her hands were tightly wrapped around her lower abdomen, and even her temples were covered in sweat.
He didn't bother to notice Qian Yingyi's astonished expression as she stared at him. His gaze traveled downwards, and when he saw a glaring red, he quickly grabbed Ren Yuqing's wrist.
In just a moment, his expression changed repeatedly. He looked at Qian Yingyi and asserted, "She's not pregnant enough, and her pregnancy is in trouble. She's about to give birth!"
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Author's note: OK, congratulations to Wen Zhuonan on losing his head.
Indecent assault deserves to die!
Don't worry, your sister-in-law will be fine.
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