After inquiring about the location of General Long'an's Mansion, Wei Shuxuan took a carriage to the Ge Mansion.
While Wei Shuxuan was still dawdling in the Fenghe Palace, a gorgeously decorated carriage left the palace and rushed straight towards the east.
As soon as Wei Shuxuan got on the carriage, she said to the coachman, "Go to General Long'an's Mansion."
Then the coachman showed a somewhat embarrassed expression. "Young Master Wei, um... where is the general's mansion?"
"Don't you know?" Wei Shuxuan looked at the somewhat elderly coachman in surprise. Fortunately, she had inquired about the location of General Long'an's Mansion from Chief Eunuch Li before she came out. "Just keep going east. The mansion with two stone lions in front of the gate is it."
"Sure thing."
The carriage galloped all the way east. Wei Shuxuan occasionally lifted the curtain of the carriage to look at the scenery outside. The morning market in the capital was no less bustling than the night market.
After leaving the palace, they soon arrived outside the gate of General Long'an's Mansion. Wei Shuxuan got off the carriage and took a look at the general's mansion described in the novel. Although the decoration looked simple, it faintly exuded a sense of majesty.
As soon as Wei Shuxuan walked up to the gate, the two guards standing in front blocked her. "Who are you? You can't enter casually without the token of the general's mansion."
"I'm really sorry. It's my first time here and I don't know the rules. Could you two guard brothers please inform General Ge Zian for me? Just say that Wei Luo is here to request an audience and has something to discuss with him."
The two guards felt that the name Wei Luo sounded familiar, but they couldn't remember it for a moment. However, they didn't think this person seemed to have ill intentions. "Then please wait a moment. I'll go in and inform the young general. You stay here."
One of the guards trotted in, and Wei Shuxuan obediently sat on the stone steps and waited.
Inside the general's mansion, Ge Zian looked at the young girl in front of him somewhat awkwardly. He pulled the girl's hand off his arm. "Princess Nine, please respect yourself. You are of noble birth. You mustn't have too much intimate contact with a military man like me."
"Brother Zian, you're saying such things again," Xuan Ruoling pouted and stamped her foot. "You know I like you, but you always use various reasons to reject me. I've even learned martial arts for you. Why can't you like me a little?"
Before Ge Zian could answer, a guard ran in from outside. Ge Zian dodged Xuan Ruoling and walked up to the guard who knelt down on one knee. "What's the matter?"
"Reporting to the young general, there's a young master named Wei Luo waiting outside the general's mansion. He said he has something to discuss with you, young general."
Ge Zian was overjoyed and said to the guard, "Quickly invite him in!"
After the guard left, Ge Zian turned to look at Xuan Ruoling. "Princess Nine, I have some official business to attend to. Please go back to the palace earlier, princess."
However, Xuan Ruoling had only been there for a short time. She didn't want to leave so soon. She still wanted to see Ge Zian a few more times. "I won't go back for now. I want to stay here and go back to the palace later."
Ge Zian was also at a loss with this willful Xuan Ruoling. He had no choice but to let her stay in the mansion. He told her not to come to the study to harass him while he was discussing things with others. Xuan Ruoling nodded obediently in agreement.
Not long after, Xuan Ruoling, sitting in the pavilion in the courtyard, saw a handsome and valiant young master with a somewhat familiar face coming in with the guard.
Why does this person look so familiar? Where have I seen him? Xuan Ruoling wanted to see the young master's appearance clearly, so she got up and quietly followed behind them.
"Young Master Wei, this way please."
"Okay."
Wei Shuxuan took a few steps and then stopped. She tilted her head slightly. As soon as Xuan Ruoling, who was quietly following behind, saw Wei Shuxuan stop, she immediately hid behind a pillar and just peeked secretly.
"What's the matter, Young Master Wei?" The guard seemed to notice that Wei Shuxuan wasn't following behind, so he turned around and saw Wei Shuxuan standing there.
"Is it a common practice in your mansion for the guards to walk in front while the maids secretly follow behind?" Wei Shuxuan asked the guard.
The guard looked blank, but he followed Wei Shuxuan's gaze and saw someone hiding behind the pillar. He immediately walked over. "Who is it? How dare you act recklessly in the general's mansion?"
Xuan Ruoling seemed to know that she couldn't hide anymore, so she walked out generously from behind the pillar. "It's this princess. It's this princess who is acting recklessly in the general's mansion. What can you do to this princess? You're so bold!"
The guard didn't expect that the person following behind was actually Princess Nine. Being shouted at by Xuan Ruoling, he was so scared that he immediately knelt down. "Princess Nine, please spare my life! This servant didn't know it was you following behind, so I spoke rashly. Please spare this servant!"
"No! How dare you speak rashly to this princess? You're unforgivable!" Xuan Ruoling gave Wei Shuxuan a vicious look.
"He didn't do it on purpose. Why do you have to make such a big deal out of it? This is the general's mansion. Don't you even ask the host's opinion before acting so maliciously in someone else's mansion?"
Hearing this familiar voice, Xuan Ruoling carefully sized up Wei Shuxuan in front of her. Suddenly, she remembered what happened that night. "Oh, I wondered who it was. It's you. So now you want to excuse this little guard? I've already greatly forgiven you and your friends last time. Do you still want to come looking for trouble?"
This woman is really sharp - tongued. Wei Shuxuan pursed her lips and looked impatient. "It was you who followed me first, and now you're slandering me. Don't you know any sense of propriety, righteousness, integrity and shame?"
"You! Do you know who I am? I'm Princess Nine. How dare you talk back to me? I'll sentence you to death!" Xuan Ruoling found that her mouth was not as sharp as this handsome young master in front of her. Flushed with anger, she said she would sentence her to death.
"You're so shrewish. No man will like you!" Wei Shuxuan didn't care who she was. Anyway, it was this woman who provoked her first.
Unexpectedly, Wei Shuxuan's words really hit a sore spot for Xuan Ruoling. She was so angry that her willow - leaf eyebrows stood on end. "You! I'll go back to the palace and tell Father Emperor to sentence you to death!"
"Who do you want to sentence to death?" Ge Zian's voice came coldly from behind.
Xuan Ruoling was stunned. Obviously, she didn't expect Ge Zian to appear. She turned around and saw the cold and disdainful expression on Ge Zian's face. She bit her lip, and tears welled up in her eyes.
Wei Shuxuan thought, oh no, this sharp - tongued little pepper has stopped talking. It seems there's really something going on between these two.
"Young Master Wei, I'm really sorry. Please go to the study and wait for me. I'll come over soon."