Chapter 33

Qin Chu’s voice and the Second Prince’s rang out at the same time.

On the bustling Zhuque Street, pedestrians stopped one after another and looked at the woman who had jumped down from the carriage. She was curled up on the ground, her hair scattered in disarray.

Qiu Jinning’s body seemed to tremble. Facing Qin Chu’s direction, a trace of peace passed through her eyes. “Qin Chu…”

Those two words murmured from the corner of her mouth, which was still bleeding. Immediately after, she coughed up a mouthful of blood.

Qin Chu did not know how to stop the carriage. In her panic, she directly turned it toward the shops on the side of the road and crashed into them. Only then did the horse’s hooves finally stop in front of a storefront.

She jumped straight down from the carriage. Her already inconvenient left foot twisted again, but she could not care about the sharp pain coming from her ankle. She stumbled toward Qiu Jinning.

When she reached her, Qin Chu knelt helplessly beside Qiu Jinning. Looking at the woman whose face and neck were covered in mottled bloodstains, her hands felt as if there was nowhere to put them. Her voice carried a trace of tears as she called, “Qiu Jinning.”

Qiu Jinning threw herself into Qin Chu’s arms, her hands tightly locking around her waist.

As if she were using every bit of strength in her body, she held on tightly, as though she wanted to knead Qin Chu into her very flesh and blood.

Qin Chu trembled as she held her, her eyes staring furiously at the man walking toward them.

Seeing that Qiu Jinning was still alive, the Second Prince released a breath in his heart. It was good that the phoenix maiden had not died. Otherwise, he truly would not know how to explain things to Imperial Mother.

The surrounding commoners did not know what was going on. Seeing that all three of them were dressed in fine clothes and clearly had extraordinary identities, they immediately gathered even closer.

The Second Prince walked over with a face full of concern. “Miss Qiu, how is your body? Should I call a doctor?”

Qin Chu held the person in her arms tightly and looked at the Second Prince. Her tone was heavy. “Second Prince, as the noble Prince Xian, everyone says you love the people like your own children. Today, I have truly learned what that means. In broad daylight, under heaven itself, beneath the emperor’s feet, Your Highness Prince Xian not only seized my Qin residence’s carriage by force, but also pushed someone to this point. I must go to Shuntian Prefecture to seek justice.”

Her words pointed out the Second Prince’s identity. Seeing the surrounding commoners whispering among themselves, the Second Prince’s expression twisted for a moment before he forced a smile. “Miss Qin has misunderstood. This prince saw that Miss Qiu was unwell and wanted to take her to find an imperial physician. Who knew Miss Qiu also misunderstood? It is all a misunderstanding.”

With a few words, he tried to distance himself completely. Qin Chu was just about to speak again when the person in her arms tugged at her collar.

Qiu Jinning brushed aside the messy hair in front of her eyes, revealing her face.

The woman’s face was stained with blood, and her complexion was as pale as snow, yet it ​Read on BaiLianTales​still could not conceal her city-toppling beauty.

She coughed lightly and slowly said, “I am originally the provincial top scholar from Jiuqu County. Thanks to my parents, I was born with a few points of beauty, and the Second Prince disregarded my status as a juren and forcibly tried to take me back to his residence. My body was not unwell before. Now that I am in this state, I truly am unwell, and it is all thanks to the Second Prince.”

Now that things had reached this point, they had already offended the Second Prince. Since they were destined to stand on opposite sides, the only thing to do was seize the initiative and establish her identity as the victim.

Using public opinion, using the convenience of being a scholar, using her status as a juren—only by completely placing the Second Prince at a disadvantage would it benefit them and allow them to reverse the situation.

Hearing Qiu Jinning say this, the Second Prince’s brows darkened. He knew that today, not only had he failed to steal the chicken, he had lost the rice too. Not only had he failed to obtain the phoenix maiden, he had turned her into an enemy. The plan now was to first stop the endless mouths of the commoners.

So he insisted, “You two ladies have truly misunderstood. This prince acted out of goodwill, but in his urgency, he handled matters badly. This prince apologizes to you here. If you are still dissatisfied, you may state any request. As long as this prince can do it.”

Qiu Jinning coughed coldly. Her tone grew even weaker, but each word was clear. “Second Prince, why put on such a hypocritical act? When a prince breaks the law, he is guilty the same as a commoner. This official’s daughter has no requests. I also know that justice is difficult to seek. I only ask to leave the capital alive. This official’s daughter is willing to request that her juren title be abolished. I only hope the Second Prince will show mercy and leave us a path to survive.”

More and more commoners gathered around. Those who did not know the situation listened as those who had arrived earlier explained the cause and effect, then all looked toward the Second Prince.

The person involved had said this much herself. How could the noble Prince Xian still try to argue?

Seeing that the wind was blowing in the wrong [read the original at bailiantales.com]direction, the Second Prince was momentarily at a loss.

Zhuque Street was the busiest street, with many people passing to and fro. He also could not simply arrest everyone here and shut their mouths. At that moment, he could only grit his teeth and insist on his first explanation.

“This prince acted with goodwill for a moment. I did not expect to cause such a deep misunderstanding between the two young ladies…”

“Shut up. Was it not you who seized the carriage by force? Was it not you who forcibly took me back toward your residence? Was it not you who forced me to use death to preserve my innocence? Was it not you who drove me to jump from the carriage and barely keep my life? You…”

“Stop talking. Don’t say anymore. Let’s go back and see a doctor.” Qin Chu’s heart ached as she hugged Qiu Jinning, carefully supporting her back.

At this moment, Guanzi drove another carriage and caught up. Seeing Qiu Jinning in this state, she shoved the reins into Luyao’s hands. “Quickly drive the carriage and take the two young ladies to find a doctor.”

After giving the instruction, Guanzi rolled up her sleeves and stood in front of the Second Prince.

“What impressive might, Second Prince. Today, Commandery Princess Anguo hosted a banquet at Upstairs Tower for the provincial top scholars of each prefecture. Our Miss Qiu attended as the provincial top scholar of Jiuqu County. Who would have thought she would be plotted against by a petty man like you? Not only did you seize our carriage, you even wanted to seize a person! Miss Qiu is a juren of Baiyue, someone who studied hard for decades with the heart to serve the country. Who would have thought that every prince in the capital was a big-tailed wolf? We servants were only trying to protect our master and stopped you for a moment, yet we nearly got kicked to death by you. Weren’t you kicking with great enthusiasm just now? This servant’s cheap life is right here. Come kick me again!”

Seeing Qiu Jinning and Qin Chu leave, the Second Prince said coldly, “Impudent lowly maid. This prince will not lower himself to argue with you. Move aside.”

Guanzi did not move, blocking his path. “Today, I just insist on being impudent. I also insist on going to beat the grievance drum before the upright magistrate and see just how dark the capital’s world is. I want to see whether we master and servants can live to see tomorrow’s sun.”

As soon as the little maid finished speaking, she wiped her tears and ran toward Shuntian Prefecture.

She knew where the Shuntian yamen was. It was right across from the winery. She knew the road well.

How dare he seize Miss Qiu and even kick the skinny maid? She would make this wretch pay.

The Second Prince immediately grew anxious and looked at his guards.

Seeing their master’s signal, the prince’s residence guards drew their blades and went to block Guanzi. Who knew Guanzi would not only refuse to retreat, but would charge straight toward the blade.

“Murder! Murder! The Second Prince failed to seize a common woman by force in the street, so now he wants to kill people to silence them! Is there still any law in the capital? Aunties, grandmothers, sisters, younger brothers, uncles, and elders, all of you saw it! Please, save our master and servants’ lives!”

At this moment, a patrol unit rushed over after hearing the news. They were soldiers under the Ministry of Justice who patrolled the streets. Upon hearing the little maid’s words, they protected her behind them.

When the leader saw clearly that the person committing violence in the street was the Second Prince, he could not help taking a step back.

The moment Guanzi saw this scene, she immediately cried out again. “Officials are all one family! You are colluding like jackals! Even if this servant has to throw away this life, I will go to Shuntian Prefecture to seek justice for my Miss. Move aside!”

The leader had some dealings with the retainers of the Second Prince’s residence. Hearing this, he blocked Guanzi. “Miss, don’t be anxious. If something happened, come with us to the Ministry of Justice. We will definitely uphold justice for you.”

Of course she could not go to the Ministry of Justice. Since this involved the Second Prince, it could not be allowed to grow into a bigger incident. They first had to steady this person and take her away.

Seeing their behavior, Guanzi immediately grew anxious. “Uphold what justice? The Second Prince took a fancy to my Miss’s beauty and seized her by force in the street. Our Miss had to use death to prove her integrity and preserve her innocence. Right now, she may even lose her life. You’re not arresting him, yet you want to take me away? Today, I’m not going anywhere except Shuntian Prefecture.”

The leader was immediately put in a difficult position. His eyes looked toward the Second Prince, waiting for his signal.

How could the surrounding commoners not understand? These people were clearly following the Second Prince’s lead. At once, they faintly moved closer toward Guanzi, intending to protect her.

When lips are gone, teeth grow cold. If common people are bullied by the powerful and you ignore it today, who will send charcoal in the snow for you tomorrow?

Just then, an elderly man in the crowd raised his hand and shouted, “This old man is Censor Wang of the Censorate. Today, I will escort this young lady to Shuntian Prefecture with the common people to cry injustice. Who dares stop us?”

Censor Wang was one of the First Prince’s people. He had been worrying about not finding any fault in the Second Prince. Now, he had finally caught an opportunity.

With his shout, the common people responded one after another. “Go to Shuntian Prefecture to cry injustice! Who dares stop us? Go to Shuntian Prefecture to cry injustice! Who dares stop us?”

The crowd quickly scattered the Ministry of Justice patrol and surrounded Guanzi as they headed toward Shuntian Prefecture, leaving only the Second Prince and his people standing there with ashen faces.

The leader from the Ministry of Justice looked awkwardly toward the Second Prince. “Your Highness, what do you think…”

The Second Prince’s face darkened.

What did he think? He had not expected people from the Censorate to run into this. Those old censors all prided themselves on purity and integrity. Every day, they were as stubborn as donkeys, and whenever they heard of injustice, they impeached someone.

He would inevitably have to expend some effort to suppress this. The urgent matter was to enter the palace first, go to Imperial Mother and make up for things, then send people to smooth things over with the Censorate. Otherwise, this would be difficult to end.

On Shuntian Prefecture’s side, they accepted the case but did not dare act rashly. Prefect Zhang pondered for a long while, then silently submitted a memorial upward.

The next day in court, led by Censor Wang, half of the censors jumped out one after another, accusing the Second Prince of improper conduct, lawless violence, and even attempting to bribe the censors.

The female emperor, Zhou Xun, pressed down the memorials and announced the court’s dismissal with a dark face.

After returning to the imperial study, she threw the entire stack of memorials impeaching the Second Prince to stolen content the ground. “Is this what you called doing bad things out of goodwill yesterday? Is this what you called being misunderstood? Were you misunderstood for forcibly seizing a good woman? Misunderstood for persecuting one of my Baiyue’s provincial top scholars?”

“Imperial Mother, please calm your anger. This son drank too much yesterday and was muddleheaded for a moment, which was why I committed such a great mistake.”

The female emperor supported herself on the desk with one hand and pointed at the Second Prince with the other. She closed her eyes heavily. “That female provincial top scholar you persecuted, Qiu Jinning, is the phoenix maiden, isn’t she? And you still dare say you were muddleheaded for a moment? Do you think I do not know what you were planning? Get out and go back to your residence to reflect behind closed doors.”

After dismissing the Second Prince, the female emperor rubbed her forehead and looked toward her chief steward. “Tell me, how should this matter with Second Son be brought to an end?”

The chief steward knew the female emperor valued the Second Prince the most, so he answered cleverly, “The Second Prince is young and loyal. It is understandable that he was confused for a moment. Your Majesty has already punished him to reflect behind closed doors overnight. Presumably, the ministers will say no more.”

The female emperor sighed and slowly shook her head. “You do not understand. What I worry about is not the mouths of the ministers, but the mouths of the common people. Pass down the order. The Second Prince lacks virtue and disregards the law. Demote him to Commandery Prince Ping. He is to reflect behind closed doors for one year and may not leave his residence without an imperial decree.”

If it were ordinary times, she might still be able to handle it lightly. But now that Imperial Elder Sister had returned to the capital, Bai Zhi was someone whose eyes could not tolerate sand. Not only was she deeply beloved by the people, she valued the people’s hearts most of all.

If the emperor did not steel her heart and punish him now, she would have no face to meet her elder sister.

At Prince Xian’s residence, the Second Prince knelt on the ground and listened to the imperial decree. For a long while, he could not come back to himself.

The eunuch delivering the decree reminded him, “Commandery Prince Ping, receive the decree.”

The Second Prince suddenly returned to himself. He snatched the decree and read through it in disbelief. Nearly frantic, he said, “Impossible. Imperial Mother would never treat me this way. This prince wants to see Imperial Mother. This prince wants to see Imperial Mother…”

The eunuch who delivered the decree shook his head and led the others away. From Prince Xian demoted to Commandery Prince Ping—the Second Prince’s future would be difficult. The throne had always been passed to a prince. When had it ever been passed to a commandery prince?

At the Qin residence, Qin Chu guarded Qiu Jinning the entire night without closing her eyes, until Qiu Jinning woke.

“Qin Chu…”

Qin Chu hurriedly held her hand and softly responded, “Mm, I’m here. It’s all right. I’m here.”

Qiu Jinning looked at her. Seeing the person her heart was tied to, she blinked tiredly and then fell heavily asleep again.

Qin Chu guarded her for a while longer. Seeing that Qiu Jinning had fallen deeply asleep, she finally rose and walked out the door, looking toward the doctor waiting outside. “Doctor, her leg…”

Halfway through speaking, Qin Chu could no longer ask.

“Miss Qiu’s right leg is likely not good. In the future, it is best she not get out of bed.” The stolen contentdoctor spoke tactfully. What he meant was that the leg had already broken from the fall and was difficult to treat. In the future, she would no longer be able to stand or walk.

Qin Chu stood frozen in place, her heart sinking to the bottom of a valley.

Qiu Jinning had come to the capital to take the exam. Her heart was full of ambition, and her goal was next year’s metropolitan examination. Now that one of her legs was broken, how could she still enter court and become an official?

She stood there blankly, suddenly remembering the phoenix painting the Second Prince had shown them back in Jiuqu County.