Mei Niang hid from the King of Qi and went into an empty room. When she heard the King of Qi running to the backyard, she hurried out and went up the stairs to her rest room. She breathed a sigh of relief: What is the King of Qi doing? He is chasing women too? Could it be that Zhang Jingyun made a mistake? He is a man of both sexes? She was wearing a mask and dressed like a normal girl. He didn't have a third eye or a clairvoyant eye. How could he tell that it was Qin Er from that day
No matter what, it's not safe here with him here, let's go!
He brought Cui Xi and Cui Si downstairs, got into the carriage, and told Lin Amao to go to the Qin family in the west of the city to visit his mother, his brother Qin Boqing, and his sister-in-law Feng.
The Qin family courtyard was still peaceful and warm. Mrs. Qin couldn't help but be happy to see her daughter. She looked behind Mei Niang. She didn't expect to see the marquis and son-in-law personally send her daughter back, but she saw that except Cui Xi and Cui Si, there were no other entourage from the marquis' mansion. A layer of loss and worry appeared on her face.
Mei Niang did not explain anything to Madam Qin, but just stepped forward to help her walk a few steps, and expressed great surprise that the gout in her legs healed so quickly. Madam Qin patted her hands lovingly and said with a smile: "Thanks to Mr. Zhang, your brother is also well, and your sister-in-law is healthy! My son, you are still the one who has the idea. If we wait for those doctors to treat us, we don't know when we can get well!"
Qin Boqing and Feng came out to greet them. Mei Niang was happy to see that her brother had recovered well and her sister-in-law's belly seemed to have grown a little. The family sat together, drinking tea and talking happily. Qin Boqing said that he had been to the Hou Mansion on the eighth day of the first lunar month and gave Heng'er some holiday gifts. The housekeeper continued, and the Hou went out to pay New Year's greetings. It was the fourth master Junting and the sixth master Junxuan who came out to talk. They originally wanted to meet Mei Niang, but Junxuan dragged her to a gathering of scholars and met many prominent people.
Qin Boqing said with some shame: "I have borrowed the reputation of Lord Marquis and my sister to get the support of many people. Nowadays, whenever there are scholars who have passed the imperial examinations to discuss essays, or when there are gatherings with famous teachers to teach, someone will remember to send me a letter to invite them. Yesterday, I met two people at the poetry gathering, one is the cousin of Duke Dingguo, and the other is the brother-in-law of Marquis Anyuan. They just said that their sister-in-law or elder sister is good friends with my sister, and they must exchange letters with me to facilitate future exchanges..."
Mei Niang said: "Brother, just interact with others according to your own heart. These children of powerful families are not necessarily snobbish. There are many sincere people among them. What kind of character and talent does brother have? Except that our family is poor, how are we inferior to others? Don't belittle yourself. If you interact with others sincerely, you will always gain true friendship."
Qin Boqing smiled and raised his hand to touch her forehead: "You are imitating your father's tone and teaching your brother!"
Mei Niang turned her head away and said with a smile: "Of course I want to learn from my father. I have the same mood as my father, waiting for the moment when my brother wins the first prize in the imperial examination to come soon!"
Qin Boqing looked serious. He looked at Madam Qin, then at Feng who was sitting beside him, and said to Mei Niang seriously:
"I will definitely try my best and pass the imperial examination!"
Mrs. Qin smiled with tears in her eyes and said, "Just do your best, my son!"
Mei Niang said: "Brother, don't be too nervous. You don't have to study until three o'clock every night. After ten years of hard study, it's almost enough. It's okay to eat, drink and have fun. Relax in moderation, but don't overdo it. Save your energy and strength so that you can perform well when you take the exam!"
Qin Boqing smiled and said, "That makes sense. I'll listen to you!"
The family laughed and talked for a while. Feng had already asked the kitchen to prepare lunch, but Mei Niang refused to eat. She had been out for too long and was afraid that Xu Junying would find out when he came back from court. She ignored her mother and brother and sister-in-law's repeated attempts to keep her, and hurriedly said goodbye and left, making the excuse that she had something to deal with at home.
Lin Amao drove the carriage, leaving the west street of the city and turning into another street. It was noon, and there were many carriages on the street. People walking did not follow the traffic rules and crossed the street at will. The carriages stopped and started, which was very annoying. Mei Niang opened the curtains and saw a group of people coming towards them, surrounding a carriage, turning into a wide alley on the left. There was no one walking in the alley, but the carriage drove in unimpeded and went very fast. Mei Niang hurriedly called Lin Amao: "What road is that? Why is there no one walking there? Can we go around it?"
Lin Amao smiled and said, "Miss, once you enter that alley, you will go to Duke Dingguo's Mansion. We dare not enter without permission!"
It turns out that the Duke of Dingguo's Mansion is in this place! Mei Niang couldn't help but look at the alley twice more: Duke of Dingguo Sun Liduan, the elder brother of Queen Sun Huiyun, and Duke of Dingguo's wife Pang, invited her to visit the Duke of Dingguo's Mansion. Someday, she might really walk along this alley.
As they were driving slowly, a brown horse rushed out from the side and hit Mei Niang's carriage. Everyone in the carriage was caught off guard. Lin Amao was thrown to the ground on the spot. The people in the carriage were also pushing each other and screaming in pain. A young man wearing a red robe, who looked like a fat and noble young man, was riding the brown horse. He was fine, but he pointed a whip at Lin Amao who had climbed up from the ground and cursed:
"You are blind! You dare to block my way. If you hurt my red shadow, you will not be able to pay for it with your life!"
Lin Amao patted the dust off his body and muttered unconvincedly: "What red shadow and white shadow? It's you who didn't walk properly and rode your horse and hit someone. If you hurt my girl, you can't afford to pay for it!"
"What did you say? You bastard! I offended your grandfather, and you still dare to be stubborn!"
The fat young man in red was furious and whipped Lin Amao. He screamed in pain. Cui Xi's head was broken in the car and a little blood came out. Mei Niang asked Cui Si to bandage her and she lifted the curtain to go out. Cui Si couldn't stop her. Mei Niang was already outside the car. The fat young man in red saw her and whipped her non-stop. He even whipped Mei Niang on the head. Mei Niang squatted to avoid it. She grabbed the tail of the whip with both hands and pulled hard. She moved quickly and the fat young man in red was caught off guard. The whip slipped out of his hand and was taken away by Mei Niang. There were two cracks of the whip and the fat young man was whipped twice on his body. He screamed in pain and jumped up like thunder. He pointed at Mei Niang and shouted:
"Where did you come from, you savage girl? Are you going to die? How dare you hit your grandfather! Come on, catch her. If I don't skin you alive, I won't be named Zhang!"
Mei Niang saw many people gathered around and hurriedly said to the car: "You two, don't come out, it will be terrible if someone sees you. Don't be afraid, I can handle it!"
Lin Amao stood in front of Mei Niang, looking at the group of servants rushing towards him like wolves and tigers, and said timidly: "Miss, what should we do? There are so many of them."
Mei Niang said: "Don't be afraid, A-Mao, just move aside!"
She raised her hand and pointed at the servants, saying, "Who dares to move? If anyone dares to die, come forward and I'll crush your head!"
The fat young man in red touched the place where he was beaten. It hurt a little but there seemed to be no bleeding. He breathed a sigh of relief, looked at Mei Niang with a squint, and pointed at her with his hand and said:
"You are such a delicate little girl, you acted so cruelly. People all over the street are watching you. Who will dare to marry you in the future? Why don't you follow your Fourth Master back home and serve him well? You will have wealth and glory!"
Mei Niang laughed strangely: "Look at your appearance, the girl will not be able to sleep at night if she looks at you for one more time! There are many hens and ducks in the street market, coax one back to be your wife!"
The onlookers burst into laughter. The fat young man in red shook his hands and scolded the servants:
"What are you waiting for? Drag the little bitch down here!"
Mei Niang didn't dare to fight them head-on. There were seven or eight servants, all of them strong. Although she felt that she had some strength, she was not sure if she could deal with so many men at once.
"Wait!" Mei Niang shouted.
The fat young man in red sneered, "Are you scared now? I'm telling you, it's too late! Let's see how you can jump out of my palm today. Go ahead!"
Mei Niang swung the whip and said, "If you dare to touch me, I will chop off your head. Do you believe it?"
The fat young man in red was so angry that he yelled, "Little guys, come on!"
Mei Niang had already seen several servants from the Duke of Dingguo's mansion in blue clothes watching the fun at the entrance of the alley on her left. She was just about to bring up the names of Duke Dingguo's Sun Liduan and the Duke's wife Pang to stabilize the situation, but suddenly she saw a person flash out from the side, which scared her instead. She couldn't help but glance at the curtain of the carriage nervously, really afraid that the two girls would run out at this time.
The one who walked forward with a sullen face and pushed aside several servants was Bai Zhan, who pointed at them and said, "Let this girl go, and whoever dares to stop you will have to pay with my fist!"
The fat young man on the horse yelled, "Where did this brat come from? Beat him up!"
"Zhang Si, don't be rude!"
The familiar voice made Mei Niang lower her head and bite her lips.
Xu Junying came over from the other side of the car, followed by Baoju, leading three sturdy horses. Apparently, the master and his two servants had just come down from the court and passed by here, and happened to see Mei Niang, who was wearing a mask, arguing with someone.
When Mei Niang snatched the whip and lashed out at Zhang Si, Xu Junying had already arrived. He was shocked when he saw the girl. The girl was dressed as a girl, but her figure and stature were too similar to Mei Niang. When he looked at her face carefully, he breathed a sigh of relief. She was just an ordinary, pretty girl, nothing like Mei Niang at all.
Unable to tolerate Zhang Si's wildness, he signaled Bai Zhan to step forward to prevent the girl from getting hurt. The girl started to curse the young man, which shocked him, Bao Ju and Bai Zhan: How could they be so similar? There are people in the world who look alike, and their voices can be exactly the same. It's incredible!
The master and his servants stood aside, watching Mei Niang and Zhang Si quarrel. Their clear and beautiful voices were ruthless, scathing, and merciless. Xu Junying stared at the girl's face in confusion. He could not think of this weak but sturdy chivalrous girl in front of him as the same as the elegant, gentle and graceful grandmother Qin Mei Niang. He thought of disguises and masks, but was that possible? Qin Mei Niang, who was pampered and fell down at the slightest touch, was a bit strong-willed. She was going to manage the household affairs, but she would get dizzy at the slightest breeze. She asked for leave and did not go to Ziyun Hall. How could she have the confidence to go out alone without her attendant? According to her face-saving and vain character, how could she give up the honor guard of the waiting lady and wander around the city in this civilian carriage? She definitely did not have the skills and strength to fight against the evil young man!
When Zhang Si's servants were about to attack, Bai Zhan stepped forward to stop them. Zhang Si saw Xu Junying and had to slide down from his horse. He bowed and said, "Greetings, Marquis Weiyuan!"
Xu Junying frowned and looked at him: "Why don't you make any progress? I spared you last time, but this is the second time. If it happens a third time, I won't be the one to talk to you! Your elder brother is in Beijing these days, and you don't care about the reputation of the Duke of Jingguo's Mansion. At least give him some face and stop causing trouble!"
Zhang Si snorted, "He said he is not from the Duke of Jingguo's Mansion. He doesn't recognize me, and I don't recognize him either!"
Xu Junying said, "He is not from the Duke of Jingguo's mansion, so why are you only ranked fourth? Don't talk nonsense, go back to the mansion and reflect on your mistakes. I will tell the Duke tomorrow, otherwise, you will not escape a beating today!"
Zhang Si's fat face twitched. He glared at Xu Junying, then turned around and stared at Mei Niang fiercely. In the end, he said nothing and walked away in disgrace with a few servants.
Xu Junying watched him walk away, turned around and said to Mei Niang: "Where do you live, young lady? If the journey is still far, I can ask someone to take you back. When you go out in the future, at least go with your family. If you meet this kind of playboy again, don't fight him head-on, or you will suffer!"
Mei Niang wanted to ask him: What should I do? If I fight hard, I will suffer a loss, but if I show weakness, I won't suffer a loss
In the end, she did not dare to talk to him much. She just pretended not to know the etiquette, lowered her head, and said, "Thank you for helping me! I am used to traveling alone. I have a coachman to accompany me. I think it will be fine. There is no need to trouble you!"
After saying that, he turned around and went back into the carriage, he breathed a sigh of relief, and saw the two maids, Cui Xi and Cui Si, hugging each other tightly, their faces turning blue, with cold sweat on their foreheads. He knew that they had already seen Xu Junying through the gap in the curtain, otherwise, based on their personalities, they would have run out to protect themselves.
Xu Junying stood there, watching Lin Amao drive away, and then took Baoju and Baizhan to Xiankelai. The King of Qi was hosting a banquet, so Weiyuan Hou was indispensable. (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to vote for recommendations and monthly tickets on Qidian. Your support is my greatest motivation.) (To be continued)