This end.
Liu Rongruo received the letter while at the Military Affairs Department.
He read it for a while, then crumpled the letter and burned it in the candlelight, throwing it into the brazier.
He leaned back against the pear blossom chair behind him, closed his eyes, and fell silent.
Inside the room, the silence was so profound that a needle drop could be heard.
A censer in the center burned a batch of ambergris, its wisps rising to add a faint, sharp fragrance to the quiet hall.
When Qilin entered with a stack of secret letters, he felt the air around him turn so cold it sent a chill down his spine.
He quietly put down the files and was about to leave when he heard.
"Stop her medicine."
Qilin paused, not immediately understanding. Upon seeing the indifferent gaze, his mind cleared instantly. He bowed.
"Yes."
Liu Rongruo picked up a teacup and asked in a faint voice, "Have they found the person?"
"Our people have investigated and discovered that he was taken away by the Young Sacrificial Official of the Southern Border. They were seen in Jiangzhou before, and then no trace was found."
Ever since Xuan Qing had escaped with Xia Yun last time, Lord had been sending people to hunt them down, but they hadn't found them yet.
"Send a message to the Governor of Longcheng to pay attention to the movements of the Southern Border."
"Yes."
Chi You stayed at the mansion, rarely going out.
She always took advantage of Liu Rongruo's absence from the mansion to look for the bracelet. However, she had searched many places, even the pavilion where he used to live, but found nothing.
She guessed that he probably carried it with him at all times.
This beast was cunning and suspicious. It seemed he knew she wanted to plant a蛊 on him, so he had taken her bracelet away.
Chi You pursed her lips, thinking about how to get the bracelet back. Lost in thought, she didn't notice the person in front of her and almost bumped into them.
Her body was shoved hard by the approaching person. Unsteady, her back hit a pillar under the corridor, causing her to frown in pain.
She looked up and saw two figures.
"Oh, I thought it was someone blind, but it turns out to be the concubine my elder brother has secretly kept."
Liu Yanyan said this while glancing at Qin Yunshang beside her, covering her mouth with a handkerchief and smiling.
"Sister Yunshang, look at my memory, I forgot. Big brother hasn't given her a proper title, she's not even considered a concubine, is she?"
Indeed, the two approaching were Qin Yunshang and the third young lady of the Liu family, Liu Yanyan.
Qin Yunshang looked at Chi You, who had bumped into the pillar, and sneered inwardly. She coughed lightly and patted Liu Yanyan's hand.
"Yanyan, don't talk nonsense."
"That's the truth."
Chi You straightened up and looked at Qin Yunshang's face, finding it vaguely familiar.
She remembered.
Before, when she was kneeling in Qu You Palace and being bullied, this woman had stepped on her.
Hmph, she's delivered herself.
"Hey, why aren't you paying your respects to Sister Yunshang?"
Chi You withdrew her gaze and turned to look at Liu Yanyan, who was speaking, and asked.
"Why should I pay her respects?"
Liu Yanyan crossed her arms and said haughtily, "Sister Yunshang is the future mistress of our Liu family. You, an outsider who isn't even considered a concubine, why shouldn't you pay respects?"
"Did she marry in?"
"No—but they are already engaged—"
Before Liu Yanyan could finish speaking, Chi You interrupted her.
"Did I marry your brother?"
"Of course not. You, who isn't even—"
Chi You quickly said, "Since neither of us is married in, why should I pay her respects?"
Listening to her sharp, witty words, Qin Yunshang narrowed her eyes slightly. She seemed different from the person she saw in Qu You Palace last time.
Hmph.
Her senior brother dared to bring her back to the mansion, completely disregarding her.
She clenched her palm and looked coldly at Chi You's face.
Liu Yanyan pointed at Chi You angrily, unable to retort for a moment.
This ungrateful woman dared to be so presumptuous in her house, she was courting death.
In her anger, she called out directly.
"Someone."
The maids and wet nurses behind her stepped forward respectfully.
"Miss."
"Hold her down and beat her soundly."
The wet nurses hesitated. Liu Yanyan's personal head maid saw the situation and stepped forward to grab Chi You, while the other maids and wet nurses hurried to follow.
Qin Yunshang watched indifferently, uttering a few lukewarm, provocative words.
"Sister Yunshang is right. She just has a seductive face. Ruin her face and see how she can still seduce my brother."
Qin Yunshang pretended to say, "Yanyan, your brother will scold you if he finds out. Don't go too far."
"Sister Yunshang, let him scold me. Don't be too kind. It's already a favor to beat a woman like this, who is so restless."
Kindness?
Chi You sneered inwardly. This Liu Yanyan was irredeemably stupid, unaware she was being used as a pawn.
She was not one to passively accept abuse and always sought revenge on the spot.
Seeing the wet nurses and maids pounce on her, she dodged subtly and said.
"You don't even dare to use a plank, how cowardly. Stop pretending."
Liu Yanyan was enraged. "Bihe, go get a wooden stick. I will teach this ignorant bitch a lesson today."
The maid immediately went to get a stick.
Seeing this, Chi You took the opportunity to kick away the maids surrounding her, her figure flashing swiftly to the maid. She snatched the stick from her hand and struck her with it, causing the latter to collapse to the ground in pain.
This scene stunned everyone.
Liu Yanyan's eyes widened in shock. After recovering, she pointed at Chi You furiously and cursed.
Chi You played with the stick, walking towards her with a sinister smile.
Her face was already bewitching, and with this smile, she looked quite like a demonic woman.
Liu Yanyan continued to curse disrespectfully, shouting for the maids to beat her to death.
But all the coarse wet nurses who rushed forward were knocked down by Chi You, groaning in pain.
"Stop it! How dare you be so arrogant in our Liu mansion! Are you tired of living!"
Chi You glanced at Qin Yunshang, who remained still, and narrowed her eyes slightly.
She's quite composed.
Hearing Liu Yanyan still cursing, she directly grabbed her and threw her into the lotus pond behind them.
The air instantly fell silent.
Qin Yunshang's calm face cracked slightly, her eyes revealing an undisguised mockery.
"Consort Qing, that is the third young lady of the Liu family, your senior brother's own sister. If you do this, do you not wish to stay in the Liu family anymore?"
Chi You didn't care about anything else. If they had the ability, they should kill her.
Liu Yanyan could swim. Enraged, she climbed out of the pond, completely soaked.
Her eyes turned red as she looked at Chi You and roared, "You wicked woman, you malicious woman! My brother will beat you to death!"
Chi You glanced back at her and deliberately smiled.
"Your brother likes me being this bad. What can you do?"
"You—"
Liu Yanyan was so angry she could barely breathe. She struggled to climb out of the pond, but there were many things in the water. Floating weeds缠住了 her, and her clothes, now waterlogged, were heavy, preventing her from getting up.
She cried in anger.
"Sister Yunshang, please help me."
Qin Yunshang wanted to help but was stopped by Chi You.
"You dare to lay hands on me?"
Seeing her disdainful gaze, Chi You sneered.
"What do you think?"
With that, she kicked out directly.
Qin Yunshang, who had practiced martial arts since childhood, dodged immediately. However, she was wearing a skirt and had returned to the capital for her marriage, usually maintaining the demeanor of a refined lady. Therefore, she wasn't carrying any weapons.
She dodged clumsily, her eyes looking at Chi You sharply.
"If I tell my senior brother, you won't be able to live in Da Liang."