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  A young man, no more than sixteen or seventeen years old, wore a majestic purple-red satin robe, with a handsome and elegant face, his demeanor and appearance somewhat similar to that of the Zhou Dynasty emperor. However, his eyes were shrouded in gloom, exuding a fierce and icy aura, like a starving wolf. And in front of him was the long-awaited fresh prey he had vowed to devour whole, which seemed somewhat at odds with his slightly effeminate appearance.

  Ming Xuan didn't recognize him.

  She glanced sideways and saw a luxurious carriage parked crookedly beside her, apparently the previous collision was intentional by the man in purple-red robes, with the purpose of forcing to stop the carriage she was riding on, which had the emblem of Anping Wangfu. However, she was certain that she did not recognize this person, so why would he do such a reckless thing in front of the palace gate?

  The one driving was still Chang Rong, he hastily turned around and asked Ming Xuan, "Your Highness, are you alright? Were you hurt?"

  He was assigned by Pei Jingchen to take care of Ming Xuan, and it was his responsibility to ensure her safety along the way. Now that she is pregnant, the impact of the collision might be tolerable for ordinary people, but for a newly pregnant woman, it's a bit too much. Forcing him to stop the carriage was already a dereliction of duty; if the queen were to get hurt or the fetus in her womb were to suffer any harm, he would have no face left to see Pei Jingchen again.

  Ming Xuan gently stroked her abdomen and didn't feel anything out of the ordinary, so she smiled reassuringly at Chang Rong, "I'm fine."

  She turned her face away, catching a glimpse of the man standing in front of the carriage with a sarcastic smile on his lips, neither apologizing nor showing any intention of leaving. She furrowed her brow as she secretly wondered to herself that the carriage was made of extremely rare降香黄檀 wood, and this man could be so arrogant in front of the palace gates, yet after all this time, no guards came to stop him, indicating his extremely high status.

  Suddenly, she slowly raised her head and stared straight at the man, her voice cold. "Young Master Lu is arrogant and reckless, rushing wildly in front of the palace gates, and collided with the carriage of the Anping Wangfu due to his lack of manners. Considering the favor owed to Cheng'en Hou, I don't want to make a fuss about it, but please step aside, don't block my way back to the Wangfu. You should know, this world is ruled by the Zhou family, not the Lu family."

  Throughout the entire Shengjing City, there were not a few young masters who indulged in luxury and extravagance, but those who could afford to use fragrant sandalwood and dared to be so brazen in front of the palace gates were none other than the Fifth Master Lu Cheng of the Cheng'en Marquis Manor. Moreover, he had that face that was so similar to the Emperor's, making it even easier to guess.

  Lu Jing smiled without a care, his face filled with disdain and mockery. "The Princess of Anping has quite the grandeur, but unfortunately, the Prince of Anping is not surnamed Pei or Zhou. Don't be anxious. I, the fifth master, am a straightforward person who will not do anything to a woman in front of the palace gates. It's just that I heard the famous Princess of Anping also entered the palace today and coincidentally exited the palace gate with me, so I wanted to take a look at the seductress who killed my sister and bewildered my brother-in-law."

  He snorted with laughter, his eyes full of disdain, "I see, it's nothing special!"

  Ming Xuan's gaze suddenly froze, and she slowly got down from the carriage. She stood in front of Lu Huo, looked up at him, and said word by word: "Lu Wu Ye is a man who knows what is right and wrong, so he should know that when speaking and doing things, there must be evidence."

  It is said that Lady Han, the elder sister of the emperor, had been suffering from a deficiency disease since she was in her mother's womb. A famous doctor had predicted that she would not live beyond fifteen years old. Later, with devoted care and medical treatment, she managed to prolong her life, but ultimately did not have a long lifespan. Since marrying Han Xiu, the Minister of War, there had been several instances where news of her critical illness had spread. From last winter onwards, she had already fallen seriously ill, and no medicine could cure her.

  She paused slightly, her tone growing even colder. "When I returned to the Yongning Marquis's residence for a family visit on New Year's Day this year, your personal maid handed me an invitation, inviting me to meet with you on the eighth day of the new year. You used your status as a princess to pressure me, and as a commoner, I naturally didn't dare refuse. So on the eighth day, I went to the residence of Minister Han, who is in charge of government affairs, accompanied by my personal maid. The princess and I each told a story, and then I left."

  "These things, I suppose the people around your sister have already informed the Cheng'en Marquis's residence. If Lu Wuya knows the details, he naturally knows that what I said is not false, and there isn't a single word that I spoke rashly. But then I'd like to ask Lu Wuya, where did you see that my sister was harmed by me? And when, where, and how did I harm your sister with what method? According to the law, guilt must be determined based on conclusive evidence. Yet Lu Wuya is so bold as to accuse me of a crime without any basis or evidence, and has already pronounced me guilty of attempted murder. How impressive."

  As for Mrs. Han's death, Ming Xuan felt a little uncomfortable in her heart, but that was all.

  Huian County's mistress was born with a weak constitution, this is her fate, being able to live up to this age is already a miracle. In terms of birth, aging, illness and death, human power can never surpass the will of heaven. Moreover, considering her condition at that time, lingering on her sickbed, saying "barely clinging to life" would not be an exaggeration. Rather than dragging out her body suffering from pain, for Huian County's mistress, dying was actually a kind of liberation.

  All that Ming Xuan could do was to sigh and wish that the Princess of Hui'an would have a healthy body in her next life, and not mistakenly marry a good man.

  But now, Lu Jing is loudly accusing Hui'an County's mistress of being the one who harmed her to death. This crime is not small, and if she doesn't strongly refute it, this hat of a wicked woman will be placed on her head. In the future, how can she still take care of herself? She has personally experienced the importance of public opinion in this world. These unfounded accusations, she absolutely refuses to accept, otherwise, there will be endless troubles in the future.

  Ming Xuan saw Lu Quan's mouth wanting to refute, and coldly smiled, continuing to say: "As for what Master Lu said about me bewildering your sister's husband, it's even more ridiculous. Indeed, I had a marriage contract with your sister's husband, but the whole of Zhou Dynasty knew that at the time, he tore up the marriage certificate in front of everyone and soon married your sister. Please ask Master Lu, what virtue or ability do I have to bewilder someone who abandoned me like a worn-out shoe? If you want to accuse me of bewildering your sister's husband, then it means accusing me of being unchaste, so please, Master Lu, say it out loud: when and where did the lady from the Gu family bewitch your sister's husband in what way? If not..."

  She sneered, her eyes gleaming with icy coldness. "A woman's chastity is more important than life itself. Lu Wu knew this, yet he deliberately used these filthy words to slander me. Is he trying to drive me to death? Lu Wu is all talk and no action, spitting blood at people. I, Gu, will not be satisfied unless he apologizes and makes amends. Otherwise, I will never let the matter drop!"

  Joke, Lu Jing's voice was not small, the guards in front of the palace gate must have heard it. If Ming Xuan didn't argue reasonably, then by tomorrow, Lu Wu Ye would surely make a big fuss about Anping Wangfei being a wicked woman or Anping Wangfei plotting against Hui'an Junzhu to confuse Ping Zhang's political affairs. Such news would spread all over the streets.

  She had no grudge against the Cheng'en Marquis Manor originally, and when Han Xiu remarried, although it was a scheme by the Huian County Princess, if Han Xiu hadn't relied on his connections to rise to power with ulterior motives, how could he have felt threatened? So she didn't blame the Huian County Princess for anything, nor did she have any feelings towards the Cheng'en Marquis Manor. But now, the fifth son of the Cheng'en Marquis Manor jumped out in public and tried to pin the crime of killing the Huian County Princess on her, slandering her for bewitching Han Xiu. It was unbearable, and it successfully provoked her anger.

  Lu Jian was speechless for a moment, unsure of how to respond. After a long while, he huffed and puffed, saying, "What a sharp-tongued and cunning woman!"

  But he was just talking nonsense, because if he really had any evidence, he didn't have even half a bit.

  In fact, Princess Hui'an had passed away. Although the people of Cheng'en Marquis's residence were in grief, they were very clear in their hearts. This was just fate, but people all have a psychology of transferring anger.

  The only daughter of the Lu family in Cheng'en Marquis's estate has passed away. When thinking about her seemingly loving but actually distant relationship with Han Xiu over the years, and recalling her grievances and sufferings, it is inevitable that the people of the Lu family will shift this sorrowful feeling onto someone else. As Han Xiu holds a high position and great power, he naturally cannot be blamed for this, so they vented their emotions on Ming Huan instead. Moreover, Ming Huan happened to be the last outsider seen by the Princess of Huian, according to the personal maid's report. The Princess of Huian had a deep conversation with Ming Huan before insisting on dressing up and putting on her bright red wedding dress; she fell onto the dresser before she could finish getting ready.

  Based on this, they have even more reason to secretly shift their anger onto Ming Xuan's body, in order to vent this pain of losing a loved one.

  However, Cheng En Hou and his older sons all knew the weight of the matter, and this sentiment was just a private venting, never to be brought up openly. They all deeply understood that this was fate, and it wasn't Ming Xuan's fault. In truth, Gu Ming Xuan was more of a victim.

  Ke Lu was young and reckless, but he had the deep favor of the emperor. He was always arrogant and often caused trouble, but relying on his identity as the emperor's nephew, he could always turn bad luck into good fortune, making big things small and small things disappear. Therefore, he became even more overbearing and lawless in his actions.

  He is the younger brother of Huan An County Lord, close in age, growing up together since childhood, and naturally having the deepest feelings. His anger towards Ming Xuan was also more intense than others. In his heart, he had decided that it was Ming Xuan who had bewitched Han Xiuxiu, causing Han Xiuxiu to neglect Huan An County Lord, leading to Huan An County Lord not receiving her husband's favor and withering away in sorrow at the peak of her youth.

  He doesn't need the truth at all, he just wants to release his emotions.

  Ming Xuan sneered and said, "If Lu Wuya has evidence, he can naturally sue me at will, and you can even take a statement to the yamen. If I really am the murderer who killed your sister, there is the law of the Zhou Dynasty to punish me. But if you have no evidence and just slander me with blood in your mouth, framing me with these unfounded crimes, I will not let it go."

  She raised an eyebrow, "Forget it. Given Lu Wuye's magnanimity, I suppose it's impossible for him to apologize and compensate me here. I'm not in a hurry, another day I will personally visit your mansion and ask the Duke of En to give me justice. Now, please step aside, Lu Wuye!"

  The woman in yellow in the carriage finally made out what was going on and angrily shouted at Lu Xun, "We're going back to the mansion! Good dog, don't block our way, get out of the way!"

  Lu Jian's face turned red with rage, and he whipped out a soft whip from his waist and lashed it at Ming Xuan. His pale skin suddenly turned bright red, and the veins on his forehead bulged, showing how much force he used.

  This whip came with a loud noise, extremely fast, Ming Xuan dodged and flashed but couldn't avoid it, she could only protect her abdomen, but turned her body over, she closed her eyes and prepared to take this solid and real whip.

  The whip cracked with a crisp sound, but it didn't hit her body.

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