No matter how unacceptable Lin Ji found it, since it had disappeared, it was gone. He had no choice but to go back and report.
Strangely enough, Jiang Ning'an seemed to have anticipated this: "Alright, just act as if you never did anything tonight and know nothing about it."
Hearing this, Meng Chun beside her widened her eyes in surprise: "My Lady, what on earth is going on? Could Chu Yu be some kind of evil spirit?"
Jiang Ning'an couldn't help but laugh.
An evil spirit?
She was the female protagonist of this world. If she heard Meng Chun's words, she'd probably be so angry that she'd spit blood.
"She's a celestial being," Jiang Ning'an said, but her tone was full of disdain.
A celestial being?
If she dared to harm her, even a celestial being would not escape death!
---
In the servants' courtyard.
Chu Yu, who had just vanished into thin air, suddenly reappeared on the bed.
Still in a state of shock, she saw the obvious traces of a sword strike on the bed and instinctively sprang away.
Fortunately, she had the system. Otherwise, she might have died here tonight!
How dare Jiang Ning'an send someone to kill her? Was there no justice?
Furious and terrified, Chu Yu called out to the system again: "Jiang Ning'an has already tried to kill me! Can I erase her now?"
[Don't panic, Host. The system has already submitted an application for direct erasure. Please wait patiently for the news!]
Only then did Chu Yu breathe a sigh of relief: "Do you still have enough energy? What if something like this happens again?"
[Host, don't worry. Although the plot has deviated a bit, the impact is not significant. So the system's energy is very abundant, which can fully guarantee your personal safety!]
"… That's good."
Chu Yu patted her chest, but she was completely sleepless.
Knowing that the system could protect her, Chu Yu put on a robe and went to the yard.
The fragrance of flowers filled the yard, calming Chu Yu's heart for the time being.
She looked up at the moon hanging high in the sky, her eyes firm.
Jiang Ning'an had already shown her intention to kill. Once there was a first time, there would be a second. She must move out as soon as possible.
But if she was going to live on her own, she must have a residence that suited her taste.
She wouldn't be satisfied with an ordinary house. It didn't match her status as the female protagonist. So she would only live in a good one.
Chu Ming had been cut by Jiang Ning'an not long ago and had to hand over 70,000 taels of silver. He was still in a daze. If she asked him, she might end up living in an ordinary civilian house.
Chu Yu's eyes fell on the rare flowers and plants in the yard. Her eyes flickered slightly.
If it was Fu Qingya, he would surely find her the best house in the capital.
It seemed that she had to find an opportunity to meet Fu Qingya.
---
Even though she knew the system could protect her, Chu Yu still had a sleepless night. It wasn't until dawn that she heard that Jiang Ning'an had gone out. Then she hastily ate a few mouthfuls of breakfast and went back to her room to sleep.
On the other side, Jiang Ning'an took a carriage out and went straight to the place where the poetry gathering was to be held.
From a distance away from Bamboo Garden, she could see many poor scholars in simple clothes walking in groups. Judging from their direction, they were heading for Bamboo Garden.
Jiang Ning'an took the carriage and arrived there one step ahead of them. When she got off the carriage in front of Bamboo Garden and turned her head, she saw several poor scholars walking towards her.
The scholars were not abrupt. They stopped at a distance from Jiang Ning'an and respectfully bowed to her.
Jiang Ning'an raised her eyebrows.
In the past two years, her reputation had been in tatters. Wherever she went, people were polite on the surface but couldn't hide their disgust. It had been a long time since she had seen such a respectful look.
"My Lady, last time we were misled and showed disrespect to you. You were magnanimous and even invited us to tea and dinner... After we went back, we always wanted to find an opportunity to thank you. But our status is humble. Since we met you here today, please accept our bow."
After saying that, they bowed deeply to Jiang Ning'an.
"Get up. Just think carefully before you act in the future," Jiang Ning'an said.
Then she stepped into Bamboo Garden.
The scholars exchanged a look and didn't follow immediately. They waited until Jiang Ning'an had walked a certain distance before they followed her in.
The scenery of Bamboo Garden was a rare wonderland in the eyes of those poor scholars, but in Jiang Ning'an's view, it was just ordinary.
Her mind was not on these bamboo plants.
Just as she was about to find a place to rest, a voice suddenly came from behind her: "My Lady? Princess Zhaoyang!"
The voice was charming, obviously belonging to a young girl.
Jiang Ning'an turned around and saw a girl in a pink dress not far away, smiling and walking quickly towards her.
But before she could get close to Jiang Ning'an, she was stopped by a maid. She had no choice but to curtsy to Jiang Ning'an on the spot.
Meng Chun lowered her voice and said, "My Lady, this is the legitimate daughter of the Marquis of Xuanping's Mansion, Jiang Wenlan."
"The legitimate daughter? Jiang Ye's younger sister?"
Jiang Ning'an's eyes suddenly became dangerous.
She still remembered being tricked by Jiang Ye the night before last!
If this girl was Jiang Ye's younger sister...
"Of course not," Jiang Wenlan said, "I heard that the Marquis of Xuanping's Mansion was going to hold a poetry gathering in Bamboo Garden. But I asked my father and mother, and they said there was no such thing. So I came here today to see who on earth dared to use our Marquis's Mansion's name!"
Jiang Wenlan turned her head: "My Lady, look, my father is here too!"
Jiang Ning'an followed her gaze and saw a man about the same age as the emperor standing not far away, frowning and looking around.
As soon as he saw Jiang Ning'an, the Marquis of Xuanping quickly walked over and bowed to her: "Greetings to My Lady."
"Um," Jiang Ning'an nodded casually, "Holding a poetry gathering is a good thing. Why does the Marquis look so worried?"
The Marquis of Xuanping looked a bit embarrassed: "This..."
He couldn't say it, so Jiang Wenlan said it for him: "My Lady, holding a poetry gathering costs a lot of silver. Just the prizes alone will cost more than 200 taels of silver. This is a considerable expense!"
Jiang Wenlan was right. The total cost of holding a poetry gathering, inside and out, would probably be several hundred taels of silver.
However, in fact, with the financial resources of the Marquis's Mansion, it was not impossible to hold this poetry gathering. The real reason why the Marquis of Xuanping and Jiang Wenlan were here was due to a little thought of the Marquis's wife.
The silver could be spent, but the Marquis of Xuanping should know that his eldest son, Jiang Ye, didn't respect him at all. He even spent such a large sum of money without even saying a word to the family in advance!
Why should such a disobedient son still keep his position as the heir?
Now the Marquis's wife had her own son, only three years younger than Jiang Ye. As a mother, she naturally had to plan a future for her son.
As for those who got in the way, she would kick them all away!
Jiang Ning'an raised her eyebrows and looked behind the Marquis of Xuanping: "Has your family been reduced to such poverty?"