"No, Your Highness, it's not like that." The woman in white looked up; her forehead was already cut open, and blood was flowing down her cheeks, making her look somewhat ferocious and terrifying in the sunlight.
At this moment, a gentle female voice suddenly came from inside the carriage, “Your Highness, this girl is so pitiful. Why don’t we take her back to see a doctor first, and then make a decision after we have sent someone to investigate this matter?”
Those around were taken aback when they heard the woman's voice from inside the carriage. They guessed that it was likely Princess Nanqing, but they never expected that Princess Nanqing would be inside the carriage.
"Xu Cheng, this girl is already injured. The prince and princess will take her back to the palace to treat her injuries first. You can come and pick her up at a later time."
He Liufeng naturally went along with his wife's wishes.
“Your Highness, this is a matter of the Xu family. She is just a lowly servant girl. Your Highness need not trouble yourself with her.” Xu Cheng became anxious upon hearing what the Prince of Nanqing said.
"Are you questioning me?" He Liufeng's voice turned cold.
"This servant wouldn't dare. Since Your Highness insists on taking her back, then let's hand her over to Your Highness. This servant will bring the indenture to the Prince's residence tomorrow to prove this matter." Upon hearing this, Xu Cheng immediately knelt down.
"Alright, get up. Come with me to the palace." He said this to the woman in white on the ground.
"Thank you, Your Highness, thank you, Your Highness." The woman in white knew that if it weren't for the princess speaking up, she would never have escaped the clutches of evil.
As soon as the woman in white finished speaking, she suddenly felt dizzy, her vision went black, and she lost consciousness, collapsing to the ground.
"Your Highness, the woman has fainted." Ling Mu quickly reported upon seeing the woman in white collapse.
"Take the men back to the manor."
Back at the manor, he summoned Gu Liangsheng.
Gu Liangsheng took the pulse of the woman in white, bandaged her wounds, and then turned to Qu Qingxi, saying, "She is weak and has many bruises from being beaten and abused. She is a pitiful little girl."
Qu Qingxi nodded. "Qingdai, find someone to take good care of this girl. Let me know when she wakes up."
"Yes, Your Highness."
When Qu Qingxi returned, she saw He Liufeng sitting in her room with an unhappy expression. When he saw Qu Qingxi come in, he turned his head away with a haughty look.
"What's wrong? You?" Qu Qingxi looked at him suspiciously. Why was he suddenly angry?
"Why did you bring her back?" He didn't want to get involved, but Qu Qingxi gestured for him to bring her back.
"This whole thing is clearly aimed at you. If you don't give them a chance today, there will be other people next time or the time after that. You might as well take this opportunity to bring them in."
"Troublesome." He Liufeng knew, of course, that someone was doing this on purpose, but he just didn't want anyone to disturb him and Qu Qingxi from going out.
"It seems the Xu family is going to make a move against you." Qu Qingxi glanced at He Liufeng.
"Let him come; I've already prepared coffins for them." He Liufeng snorted coldly when the Xu family was mentioned.
"Let's send someone to investigate first, to see if this girl is truly innocent or did it on purpose." Qu Qingxi didn't want to see people as too malicious, but the facts told her that she had to assume the worst about others.
Especially in this cannibalistic era, in the capital city where scheming is everywhere.
In the afternoon, the maid who was sent to take care of the girl in white came and said that the girl in white had woken up and wanted to see the princess.
Qu Qingxi nodded without saying anything and led Qingdai in that direction.
When Qu Qingxi arrived, the woman had changed her clothes, her head was wrapped in white gauze, and she had washed the dirt off her face, revealing herself to be a pretty young girl.
Upon seeing Qu Qingxi enter, the woman immediately knelt down, saying, "This humble woman greets Your Highness and thanks Your Highness for saving my life."
"Alright, get up. You're still injured, no need for such formalities," Qu Qingxi said with a gentle smile.
"Thank you, Your Highness."
Qu Qingxi walked inside and sat down on a chair. Qingdai quickly poured her a cup of tea. Qu Qingxi took a sip and then looked at the little girl.
"May I have your name?"
"Your Highness, my name is Zhang Xueliu." Zhang Xueliu looked up at Qu Qingxi, then quickly knelt down again.
"Your Highness, please forgive me. This morning on the street, I lied to Your Highness."
"Oh? What did you lie about?"
“Actually, I wasn’t forced by the Xu family. My own father gave me to Lord Xu as a gift.” A hint of embarrassment flashed across Zhang Xueliu’s face.
"My father sells fabric on West Street in the capital. A few days ago, Lord Xu accompanied his wife to buy things and happened to see me helping out in the shop. Lord Xu thought I was quite pretty and wanted to take me as a concubine."
However, Lord Xu is older than my father, how can I possibly agree to this?
However, upon hearing this, the girl's father said he would persuade her to voluntarily enter the Xu family mansion.
The girl's father has always doted on her younger brother, and the Xu family has even said that as long as the girl is sent there, her younger brother will be given an official position.
So, disregarding the girl's wishes, the girl's father forcibly drugged her and sent her to the Xu residence. When the girl woke up and found herself in the Xu residence, she tried to escape, but was discovered by the people of the Xu residence and was beaten up.
Everyone in the manor was busy today, and I seized the opportunity to run away. I happened to run into the Princess's carriage. If it weren't for the Princess's kindness in saving my life, I would probably have been caught and killed today.
As Zhang Xueliu spoke, she kept wiping away her tears, looking incredibly pitiful.
"I see. What a pitiful girl." Qu Qingxi looked at the person on the ground with pity.
"Alright, get up quickly. You're still very weak, so don't stand on ceremony."
"Your Highness, I will not get up. I beg Your Highness to have mercy and save my life. Although Your Highness has brought me back today, the Xu family will certainly not let me go."
"This..." Qu Qingxi looked troubled, hesitating to speak.
"Your Highness, if you are willing to save me, I will repay you even if I have to work like an ox or a horse. I can do a lot of hard work. As long as Your Highness is willing to save my life, I am willing to do anything." Zhang Xueliu kowtowed again, and the white gauze on her head, which was originally clean, was now stained with blood.
"Alright, alright, get up quickly. I'll go talk to the Prince, but the outcome is uncertain, after all, he is the Minister of Personnel." Qu Qingxi hesitated for a long time, but seeing how pitiful Zhang Xueliu was, she couldn't help but speak up.
"This servant thanks Your Highness."
Zhang Xueliu kowtowed to Qu Qingxi again before standing up.
Qu Qingxi felt extremely uncomfortable. Although she was told to do as the Romans do, the fact that someone kept kowtowing to her made her feel like she was shortening her lifespan.
That evening, Qingdai made a special trip over to say, "Miss Zhang, the Princess Consort has pleaded for you, and the Prince has promised to handle this matter. You can rest assured."
"Thank you, Miss Qingdai. Please convey my thanks to the Princess." Zhang Xueliu's face lit up with joy, as well as the excitement of surviving a disaster.
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