Before long, the steward pushed open the door. Seeing Zhu Er, who looked haggard and disheveled, he thought he was a beggar from somewhere. Covering his nose with his hand, he looked at Zhu Er with disgust all over his face. "Even a beggar dares to pester our prince casually? There are really quite a few bold people in Qinghe City!"
With a swish, Zhu Er took out his big knife, and his eyes instantly turned cold. It seemed that he hadn't been in his role as a killer for a long time!
Zhu Er was secretly delighted, but his face remained expressionless. With just one slash, so fast that the steward didn't even have time to react, his hat was sliced off. Half of the hat, along with his thick hair, slowly fell to the ground.
In the shocked and somewhat amused gazes of everyone, the steward tremblingly touched his crew - cut head with both hands. This man, who was as tough as an eagle, let out the most heart - rending cry of his life.
"My, my hair!!"
Zhu Er impatiently prodded the steward with his knife and said irritably, "If you don't take me to see our girl right now, my next knife will land on your neck!"
The steward gritted his teeth, glaring at Zhu Er with grief in his eyes. Every word was filled with despair.
"You, never, dream!"
"Quickly seize this man!!!"
Suddenly, more than a dozen agile guards rushed out from the mansion. Zhu Er impatiently dug at his ear. The big knife in his hand was shining brightly in the strong sunlight.
---
In the east wing.
The maid held a gilded silver tray and said, "This bowl of sweet milk and red - date soup, girl, drink it while it's hot!"
Unexpectedly, Cui Jintang didn't even glance at it and said, "I don't drink milk. Take it out and pour it away."
"The milk was freshly delivered early this morning. It tastes sweet. Red dates are good for beauty and good for the girl's body. Girl, please drink it while it's hot!"
After being refuted by the maid several times, Cui Jintang lost her patience. She stared straight at the maid and said word by word, "I said throw it out. Can't you understand?"
Hearing this, the maid quickly knelt on the ground. Although scared, she still stubbornly held the gilded silver tray high and presented the bowl of sweet milk and red - date soup in front of Cui Jintang.
"This sweet soup is good for the girl! This servant, this servant is also thinking about the girl!"
The next second, Cui Jintang suddenly stood up, reached out and grabbed the bowl of sweet soup. Just as the maid's face lit up with hope, she saw Cui Jintang suddenly turn her hand and smash it on the ground!
"I most dislike those who think they know best."
The porcelain bowl suddenly smashed on the blue bricks, making the maid tremble all over. The maid quickly kowtowed her head heavily. Even her plea for mercy was filled with sobs.
"This servant is wrong. This servant will never act on her own again!"
When Cui Jintang turned around, the hem of her dress swept across the trembling face of the maid. She knocked over the gilded silver tray as well.
In the extremely regretful gaze of the maid, Cui Jintang coldly said, "From today on, you don't need to come anymore."
At the same time, footsteps came from outside the carved door. Pei Zhaolin's hand holding the jade - bone folding fan suddenly tightened. He had heard everything that had just happened.
Pei Zhaolin glanced at the maid who was shaking like a sieve. For some reason, the words Fu Li had advised him last night suddenly came to his mind, "If you were really good to the girl five years ago, why did the girl try to commit suicide?"
His Adam's apple rolled as he tried to suppress the uneasiness that suddenly welled up in his heart.
"Tangtang."
Pei Zhaolin took a few steps forward and was about to hold Cui Jintang's hand out of habit when he saw her calmly take out a dagger from her sleeve. Her gaze fell on Pei Zhaolin's hand, looking as if she would chop it off if he got any closer.
Pei Zhaolin awkwardly withdrew his hand. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the maid still kneeling on the ground, shivering. He said calmly, "Go and receive thirty lashes yourself."
Immediately, the maid's face turned ashen.
After the maid left, Cui Jintang turned around and said indifferently, "What are you doing here?"
"Your attendant, Zhu Er." Pei Zhaolin paused.
"He's waiting at the side gate now."
Cui Jintang responded and then got up and walked towards the side gate. As soon as she left, Pei Zhaolin subconsciously followed. After walking only a few steps, Cui Jintang turned around and looked at him strangely.
But Pei Zhaolin didn't think there was anything wrong. Instead, he smiled and asked, "What's wrong, Tangtang?"
Seeing that Pei Zhaolin had no intention of saying anything to her, Cui Jintang retracted her gaze and turned away without a word.
---
At the side gate.
When the two of them arrived, the side gate was in a complete mess. More than a dozen guards were lying on the ground in a disorderly manner. Although Zhu Er hadn't taken their lives, all of them had their bones broken and were rolling on the ground in pain.
As soon as he saw Cui Jintang, Zhu Er immediately put away his big knife and said respectfully, "This subordinate has come to rescue the girl!"
Cui Jintang glanced at the mess on the ground, and the corner of her eye couldn't help twitching. Zhu Er, who hadn't noticed Cui Jintang's bad mood, impatiently prodded the shoulder of the steward who was trying to escape with the tip of his knife.
Zhu Er said excitedly, "With them as shields, this subordinate will surely be able to rescue the girl today!"
As he said this, he increased his strength, and the steward's face immediately turned pale with pain.
"Enough!"
Cui Jintang looked ugly. With a shout, she immediately made Zhu Er at a loss. Zhu Er obediently put away his big knife. Seeing this, Cui Jintang's expression looked a little better.
She tried hard to control her temper. "Go back and stay there quietly. Don't act rashly without my order!"
Hearing this, Zhu Er immediately became anxious. "Girl, this subordinate is doing this for your own good!"
"That old thing, the Grand Elder, went crazy in the ancestral hall last night and said that he would remove the girl from the family genealogy to protect the entire Cui clan..."
"Shut up!"
Cui Jintang's face was extremely ugly.
"You've been with me for many years. Don't you know my temper yet?"
Zhu Er's pupils suddenly shrank. The explanation on his lips somehow turned into a dry sentence.
"How much effort the girl has put into the Cui clan! If you just follow the Grand Elder and the others, how wronged the girl will be!"
This sentence seemed to be for Cui Jintang's good at first glance. Even Pei Zhaolin, who was walking slowly over, rarely agreed with Zhu Er. Then he heard a sharp cracking sound of a wrist bone dislocating!
Zhu Er couldn't bear the pain and was trembling all over. Cui Jintang looked at him coldly and asked rhetorically, "Did you ever ask me if I wanted you to do all this today?"
Zhu Er didn't dare to cry out in pain. He just lowered his head. "This subordinate is wrong."
"It's too late."
Cui Jintang flicked her sleeve and turned to leave.
"Since you're so opinionated, you don't need to follow me anymore!"
As soon as the words were out, Zhu Er immediately looked up. This big and tough man was now as lost as a child.
"Girl, I'm wrong! I will never make this mistake again. Please give this subordinate a chance to atone for my sins!"
Cui Jintang turned around and left without showing any mercy. Her determined look made Pei Zhaolin's heart tremble.
Pei Zhaolin stopped in his tracks. Suddenly, he looked back at Zhu Er, who was dragging his dislocated arm, looking only at begging for mercy but not knowing why Cui Jintang was angry -
Pei Zhaolin suddenly felt that it was a bit familiar. Oh no, this look was exactly the same as his before!
Pei Zhaolin's body swayed slightly. His steps towards the east wing suddenly stopped, and he immediately changed his direction and walked to the other side.
--- He suddenly thought that what Fu Li said last night made a bit of sense. He needed to have a good talk with Fu Li!!!