Ruo Liang's face was pale and devoid of color, but his steps were extremely steady. When he saw Lou Si, his eyes erupted with overwhelming hatred.
Lou Si slightly raised the corners of her lips, revealing an extremely attractive arc, which was earlier than the planned time by an entire hour.
"General Xiao, are you here for the case?" Pei Yan's face had already returned to its usual warmth.
Xiao Ren drew his gaze back, looking at him and saying, "Yes, I have come regarding the assassination incident at the General's Mansion."
"Assassination?" Pei Yan's eyebrows slightly furrowed, looking at Lou Si, he said in a deep voice, "General Xiao, wasn't it reported that the Long Princess used excessive force? How can it be assassination now?"
"Yes, Xiao Jun, it was the Grandmother Xiao who said it was your Highness' doing, right? How can it be called an assassination now? Could it be that your mansion has received some favor from others and is framing your Highness?" Lou Si watched Xiao Ren with a smug expression, completely disregarding her title.
Xiao Ren's hand in his sleeve tightly clenched into a fist, suppressing the urge to strangle Lou Si, speaking calmly, "My mother was mistaken. This matter has nothing to do with the Long Princess. It's just that I have offended people in my daily life, which has led to trouble for my family."
If he had known that Grandmother Xiao was beaten nearly to death and thrown back to the General's Mansion, even if Lou Zheng wanted to destroy his entire family, he would kill Lou Si today.
Unfortunately, he arrived at a time when he missed Grandmother Xiao, so he was unaware of these events.
"I'm sure it's because Grandmother Xiao is old and worried," Lou Si said with a sarcastic expression, "But it's better for you to say less evil things and do more good. Otherwise, who knows when the retribution will come." Lou Si looked at Xiao Ren and said this with a smile.
Xiao Ren was so angry that his hands were trembling. He gritted his teeth and said angrily, "Princess Nümandan's teaching is correct. I will certainly remember it in my heart."
"So that's all right." Lou Si smiled particularly gently, but the smile didn't reach her eyes: "I was worried, Princess, that Xiao Jun might not remember what he has done."
Pei Yan is not an idiot, how could he not see the tricks in this? He looked at Xiao Ren, his expression serious, and said, "General Xiao, this matter is not a joke. I hope you can truthfully inform me."
Xiao Ren took a deep breath and said, "I am telling the truth. The assassin has already been caught and is outside. Sir Pei can question him."
After saying that, he paused for a moment, looking at Lou Si with a clenched jaw and said, "My main reason for coming here today was to prevent Sir Pei from unjustly blaming the Princess."
After he finished speaking, he bowed to Lou Si and Sir Pei, then turned and walked out quickly. However, his wound that had been wrapped tightly began to ooze blood because of the movement.
He was afraid that if he stayed any longer, he would be unable to resist squeezing the life out of Lou Si. He wasn't afraid of death himself, but he feared that if he died, Lou Si would torment Yao'er and his grandmother and mother.
Until Xiao Ren's back disappeared through the door, Lou Si finally shifted her gaze back to Pei Yan, her smile half-hearted and half-real as she said, "Shall we continue with the interrogation, Sir Pei?"
Pei Yan met Lou Si's gaze, although he didn't want to believe it, but this time he had indeed been defeated by power.
He drew his gaze back and said, "General Xiao has already said it was an assassin. As a humble official, I don't have much else to question. However, I would like to say one thing to Princess Nümandan: where possible, let others go."
"Let others go where there is room?" Lou Si couldn't help but laugh out loud. She walked forward and sat on the desk, resting her hands on the surface behind her, casually swinging her legs. The hem of her skirt swayed with each movement, giving her an air of elegance.
"Then, please, Sir Pei, teach me what 'Let others go where there is room' means."
Pei Yan had never seen a woman behave so unceremoniously. He turned his head away from her and said, "The case has nothing to do with the Princess, and the Princess can leave."
"Leave?" Lou Si laughed. "I believe I told you, Sir Pei, that it's easy to invite a deity but hard to send it away."
"Princess Nümandan, what...?" Pei Yan's sentence was cut short as his personal attendant walked in quickly.
"The palace has sent someone, saying that the emperor wants you to go to the palace immediately."
Pei Yan's handsome brows furrowed into a deep groove. He glanced at Lou Si, who appeared to laugh with an innocent demeanor.
"Princess Nümandan, I'm sorry, but I can't accompany you to the palace. My family is in need of my assistance. Please forgive me."
"Sir Pei, sometimes one must admit that power, status, and wealth are the most useful things."
Pei Yan stepped back two steps, putting some distance between them, his face still wearing a gentle smile, but his voice was very faint: "Princess Nümandan is right; these three things are indeed important, but not everyone likes them."
As he finished speaking, he bowed to Lou Si and then turned quickly, leaving the Great Hall and heading towards the palace.
Lou Si watched his straight back, her lips curling unconsciously. She was getting more and more fond of this Sir Pei.
She liked him so much that she would have liked to cage him in a golden pen right away, to play with him day after day.
However, one must not be in too much of a hurry. People like Sir Pei, who appear gentle on the surface but have a strong heart, will commit suicide if pushed too far. She did not want a corpse.
She wanted Sir Pei to voluntarily step into her golden cage, to be dependent on her.
"Your Highness, shall we return to the Princess' Mansion?" Wanxiang asked carefully.
Lou Si turned her gaze back and said, "Let's go then. The people are all gone, there's no point in staying any longer."
"Yes." Wanxiang rushed up to support her as she left the Great Hall and got on a carriage to return to the Long Princess' Mansion.
Just as they left, Xu Jingxuan arrived on his heels. He dismounted and hurried into the Great Hall, only to find out that Lou Si had already returned to her mansion.
In the end, he chose to return to the Marquis of Jing's Mansion instead of the Long Princess' Mansion.
-
Lou Si fell asleep on the bed upon returning to the mansion, and she woke up in the evening.
At first, she thought that Xiao Ren would come to her mansion and question herself for the sake of her mother's fate, but she was surprised to find out that not only did he not come to the Long Princess' Mansion, but he had also suppressed this matter.
"Aoxi, it's time for dinner." Chu Xiu walked in with delicious food.
Lou Si smiled, got up, and sat down at the table without immediately picking up the chopsticks to eat. Instead, she inquired about what Chu Xiu had investigated.
Chu Xiu sat opposite her and recounted what he had investigated about Xu Jingxuan: "Although he is a leisurely Prince, he does have some troops at his disposal. However, I haven't been able to determine how many they are yet."
Lou Si, with one hand under her chin, said, "The exact number doesn't matter. As long as we find out he has troops, that's all we need."
Chu Xiu remained silent, just staring at her. He wasn't a fool; he knew what she had in mind. But no matter what she wanted to do, he would help her without reservation.
Lou Si didn't say anything else. She looked at the table of food, lost in thought.
At this moment, Wanxiang entered from the doorway.
"Your Highness, Grand Eunuch Zhao from the emperor's court is here. He says the emperor has urgent matters to inquire about regarding the General's Mansion."
Lou Si didn't show any surprise. She stood up and said, "Let's go. Don't make the emperor wait too long."
They walked in silence, and soon arrived at the YANGXIN Hall.
As soon as Lou Si entered, Lou Zheng quickly ordered everyone to leave, including Chu Xiu. This time, he was extremely firm and gave no chance for Lou Si to speak.
Chu Xiu looked at Lou Si and didn't say anything, following them out.
After the door was closed, Lou Zheng moved forward and pushed Lou Si up against the window. One hand caressed her white neck, while the other gently slid over her cheek.
His face wore an extremely gentle smile, but his eyes were as cold and venomous as a snake that could strike down its prey at any moment.
"Aoxi, Xu Jingxuan has told me that he wants to marry you. What do you think of this?"
