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  Commander Yang accidentally killed an attendant while pushing and shoving, but if it were someone else, they could have downplayed the incident. After all, in front of so many people, Commander Yang was mostly unintentional, momentarily losing control, and happened to be a bit unlucky. It wasn't intentional harm or murder. As long as the victim's family didn't pursue the matter, it wouldn't be considered a big deal.

  In the Zhou Dynasty, the class hierarchy was strict, and the lives of servants were as worthless as grass. The masters could beat or kill them at will, and sell them off arbitrarily.

  But Guo Gong Yu Keqin was notorious for being stingy, and today he had a dispute with Yang Youzhang, which led to this performance. Now that his personal attendant is dead, how can he let it go?

  Yang Youzheng is a pillar of the court, unfortunately without a noble title. Dingguo Gong, although not involved in state affairs, is a descendant of the meritorious officials who followed Taizu to pacify the country and is a first-class national duke. Yang Youzheng's granddaughter is the empress who has no children but is favored by the emperor, while Dingguo Gong's daughter is the pregnant and favored Consort Hui.

  Considering all these factors, Duke Dingguo is unlikely to let this matter go easily this time.

  Ming Xuan suddenly came back to her senses and saw a pale blue corner of clothing floating out from behind the nearby thicket. She was startled, her eyebrows furrowed, and sharp light flashed in the corners of her eyes. She stopped in her tracks, "The front must be chaotic, it's probably impossible to start the banquet for the time being. With something like this happening, I'm afraid my sister-in-law won't have time for me today."

  A good banquet ended in loss of life, even if it was just a long follower, it's hard to calm down. As the host, Huan sister must feel unlucky and very annoyed, busy arranging for the aftermath, not to mention having time to take care of other things? Although the female guest is far away, she will also be affected by the impact. Today's autumn crab feast has become a real disturbance.

  She hesitated for a moment, looked at the maid carefully, and then said, "I recognize her, she's Xiao Cui, who used to work as a doorman at Ning Xin Temple."

  Xiao Cui seemed somewhat surprised and delighted, nodding repeatedly. "Madam Pei still remembers me..."

  Ming Xuan smiled lightly, "There's a mole at the corner of your mouth, it looks especially good when you smile."

  Her eyes fluttered slightly, but the expression on her face became even more gentle. "I may have caught a chill, and suddenly I feel a bit of a headache, and there's no one else around to help me, could you please go to the flower hall over there and pay your respects to Madame Zhen Guo and the wet nurse for me? Just say that my headache is severe and I'm unable to come over to pay my respects, and ask them to forgive me."

  Xiao Cui was stunned for a moment, thought for a moment and nodded. "Our grandmother has instructed us to take good care of Mrs. Pei, your instructions are like our grandmother's instructions, Xiao Cui will definitely pass them on for you."

  She glanced at the moon-shaped gate not far away, pointed and said, "That side is exactly the west waist door of the Zhongshunhou Mansion. The horse-drawn carriages of various families are parked not far from the door. In theory, you are a noble guest. Entering and exiting should be through the main gate, but it's chaotic in front now, and you're also uncomfortable. So I can only ask you to take the side door. These little maids are all newcomers, I'll personally send you out, then go to the front to report, is that okay with you?"

  Ming Xuan gazed steadily at Xiao Cui, and after a long while, her eyes finally softened. She supported her forehead with her hand and nodded slightly, "Alright then, I'll trouble you."

  Chun Lanting was indeed not far from the west gate, and all the servant girls they met along the way were very respectful to Xiao Cui. No one made things difficult for them, and they left the Zhongshun Marquis's estate very smoothly. Fortunately, Ming Xuan's carriage, which had brought her here earlier, was parked nearby, so it didn't take much effort to get on board.

  Dan Hong's face was full of hesitation, and she didn't speak until the carriage had gone a long way. Then she asked in a low voice, "Big Madam, are we just going to leave like this? Isn't it a bit improper? What if the young master's wife takes advantage of the situation to speak ill of you?"

  Ming Xuan gently shook her head, "Yang Youzheng accidentally killed Di Guo Gong Yu's personal attendant, this matter is not that simple. The front was already in chaos, the young master's wife was busy taking care of herself, how could she still have time to gossip about me?"

  Those noblewomen attending the banquet weren't all as foolish as Yang, and with such a clever arrangement of timing, someone was bound to notice something amiss. Even if Yang Youzhong was still vigorous at over sixty years old, he was still an old man approaching his twilight years; it's impossible that the Duke's personal attendants wouldn't have some skill in martial arts. It wasn't entirely implausible for a life to be lost in all this pushing and shoving, but for it to happen here and now seemed just a bit too coincidental.

  It doesn't matter if things get messy at first.

  Afraid of what might happen next in the chaos.

  She thought of the pale blue clothes beside Chunlanting, and her face became even more solemn. She told Dan Hong about her worries and said, "We can't have a heart that harms people, but we must have a heart that guards against them. Today's autumn crab feast seems to be a place of right and wrong, and the identity of the person who eavesdropped on our conversation is unclear for the time being. We don't need to continue staying at the Meng family home; it's better to go back home where it's quieter."

  Those rumors in the community still haven't been suppressed, currently whether it's her or Pei Jingchen, all they can do is keep a low profile. She doesn't want to get caught up in the vortex of right and wrong, and withdrawing in time is the best solution. Once she gets on her own carriage, that's half the battle won.

  Ming Xuan quietly lifted the curtain of the carriage and saw the grayish straight back of the coachman, slightly relieved.

  The coachman who drove the carriage was called Chang Rong, and he was one of Pei Jingzhen's subordinates.

  Since Ming Xuan was kidnapped by Han Xiuzhi, Pei Jingchen had been paying attention to her escort when she went out. Not only were the coachmen top-notch masters, but also two guards followed secretly. However, these people who protected her safety were not allowed to enter the Zhongshun Marquis's mansion. So, when she was in Chunlanting, her anxiety and fear were because she was afraid of being harmed again. But once she got on this horse-drawn carriage, she suddenly felt calm.

  Ming Xuan returned to Jingyi Courtyard when it was still before noon, and Pei Jingchen was still painting.

  His eyes were filled with surprise and a hint of worry, "How did you come back so early? Did you have lunch?"

  Ming Xuan sat down beside him, let out a low sigh and said, "Yang Youzhong accidentally killed the personal attendant of Prince Dingguo at the autumn crab banquet. I'm afraid something else might happen, so I made an excuse that my body wasn't feeling well and came back first."

  She told everything she saw and heard today, without hiding a single detail. When it came to the owner of the light blue fabric, her face showed some anger. "At that time, there were only Dan Hong by my side, and the other maids didn't understand much, so I didn't dare to rashly reveal the person's identity. I don't know how long that person had been hiding, what they heard, but such a big living person was right next to me, yet none of those standing maids saw it, and I'm also a bit unbelievable."

  So she used words to probe Xiao Cui.

  Pei Jingchen's eyes deepened, and he immediately pulled Ming Xuan into his arms to comfort her softly. After a long while, he said in a low voice, "Maybe it was just a coincidence, and that person may not have any malicious intentions. What we discussed with Shimei wasn't confidential, and some influential families in the capital might already know about it. There's no need for that person to eavesdrop on us."

  He paused for a moment, but held the person in his arms even tighter. "Don't think too much about it, if you really mind, just be more careful when doing things in the future. Come, take a look at how well your husband has painted."

  Ming Xuan nodded obediently and turned sideways to look at the people on the paper.

  Bai Jingchen painted slowly, cherishing every stroke and dot, but the beautiful outline had already taken shape on paper, carving out a face that was 70-80% like his imagination. Her lips were slightly pursed, not yet dotted with color, but her proud and independent demeanor could already be seen, identical to the woman in the painting at Baiyun An, with an added hint of elegance and spirit.

  She had a lot of feelings in her heart, the Princess Yongjia, with a golden branch and jade leaves, was the proud daughter of the imperial family, with all the favors and privileges concentrated on her person. It's a pity that she married the wrong man, and ended up like this. It's really "those who love her are sad, those who hate her are happy". For those who loved her, it's a regret, but for those who didn't love her, it's just a fleeting cloud, passing by without leaving any impression.

  Pei Jingchen saw Ming Xuan's distracted expression, as if he understood what she was thinking. He reached out and tightly grasped her hand. Before she could react, he spoke in a low tone, "Ah Xuan, when we have a daughter, we must raise her well and carefully choose her husband. We can't be careless at all. If he's not good-looking, no. If his talent and knowledge are shallow, no. If his temper is bad, no. If he has a roving eye, no. If he likes to fool around with the maids in the house, no. If he has someone else on his mind and can't let go of that person, no. If he doesn't treat our daughter as precious and unique, no."

  His voice sank as he spoke, "If we can't find one that's completely satisfactory, then we'll just have to raise her for a lifetime."

  It's as if I've already had a daughter in the palm of my hand, and by the end, there's even a hint of sulking emotions.

  Ming Xuan smiled and said, "Old Master Pei thinks too far ahead, I don't know when he'll have a daughter, yet he's already thinking of these things."

  The two of them had been married for some time, but due to the current complicated situation, it wasn't a good time to get pregnant yet. So, the couple also had some tacit understanding between them, although they hadn't used any medicine to avoid having children, they were also being careful with their timing. She originally thought that having children at eighteen was too early and not good for her body. These things weren't explicitly stated, but they both understood each other without needing to say it out loud.

  Pei Jingchen's gaze was a flame, his ink-black eyes written with a different emotion, fiery and scorching. Before Ming Xuan could think much, he leaned in and pinned her to his chest for a long kiss, only leaving her face after a while.

  His eyes were piercing, and his voice was laced with temptation. "Ah Xuan, trust me, even if my legs can't walk, I won't become a useless person. I have enough ability to protect you and our children, and let us live a life of happiness and security."

  This voice was quite moving, causing Ming Xuan's body to tremble slightly.

  She was somewhat surprised that men in the world, whether in the Zhou Dynasty or in her previous life, were very rare to be so brave and confident in facing physical disabilities and welcoming the future with an open mind. Her husband had done it, even if it was just a promise that had not been fulfilled yet. These ordinary words were enough to move her to tears.

  Ming Xuan's lips trembled slightly as she took his earlobe in her mouth and whispered, "I believe."

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