Yun Chu walked the streets without a destination.
Of the three people accompanying her, Tingshuang and Qiutong had clearly heard the conversation between her and Qin Mingheng. Both their faces showed concern.
Especially Qiutong—she had come to the Xie residence to teach Yun Chu martial arts and hadn’t paid much attention to inner household matters. What she heard this time overturned all her understanding.
“Madam, you must tell the Yun family about this!” Qiutong said in a deep voice. “Xie Jingyu is completely worthless, and Marquis Xuanwu is worthless too!”
For a servant to directly speak the names of her master and a noble—this was great disrespect. Clearly, she was enraged to the extreme.
“Tell the Yun family, and then what? Have the Yun family elders step forward and divorce?” Yun Chu smiled. “If I divorce, wouldn’t that just benefit the Xie family?”
Not to mention what impact divorce would have on the Yun family—even if she agreed, what then? After divorcing and returning to the Yun family, should she have Mother and Elder Brother kill her enemies for her?
She was no longer a three-year-old child. She had long passed the age of running to family to complain when wronged.
However, she would tell her father in detail about what would happen to the Yun family.
She said softly, “Arrange more people to investigate what happened on that snowy night four years ago. No matter how much silver it costs, no matter how much time it takes…”
“Mother!”
Just then, a bright voice rang out.
Even without raising her head, Yun Chu knew whose voice this was.
She looked toward the sound and saw Chu Hongyu in snow-white brocade running toward her, plunging straight into her embrace.
“Mother! Mother!” The little one’s eyes sparkled brightly. “We’re so fated—we can even meet like this!”
Yun Chu touched his head and said, “Yuger, I’m not your mother. Don’t call me that anymore.”
At first, it had been a little secret between just the two of them. But last time at the Yin residence, the Yin family had heard it, Prince Pingxi had heard it too, and now the entourage of servants behind the little one had also heard. When a secret was no longer a secret, more and more people would know.
Then endless rumors and gossip would follow.
There was no need to invite unnecessary trouble.
Chu Hongyu froze for a moment, then stood properly and said with a pout, “Aunt Yun, are you still angry about what happened last time?”
“I know I was wrong. I shouldn’t have falsely accused Miss Tan, shouldn’t have lied, shouldn’t have run away when angry, and especially shouldn’t have deliberately pushed Aunt Yun.” The little one carefully reached out to tug at Yun Chu’s sleeve. “Aunt Yun, Father Prince said that as long as I study well, you’ll forgive me. These past few days I’ve been learning things properly. I’ll recite the Hundred Family Surnames for you—Zhao, Qian, Sun, Li, Zhou…”
He recited it all in one breath, then said proudly, “Because I learn so fast, Father Prince specially permitted me to come out and play. He also said that as long as I keep this up, I can have three days each month to leave the residence. I won’t have to sneak out of the prince’s residence anymore!”
Yun Chu saw that behind him wasn’t just Amao alone, and knew he must have obtained permission to leave the residence.
She also hadn’t seen the little one for a while. Just when her mood was gloomy, this child was like a lamp shining into her chest.
It allowed her to temporarily forget those sad and painful things and have a moment of joy.
She took the little one’s hand and asked, “How about Changsheng? How has her health been lately?”
“Father Prince caught a kitten and brought it back for Changsheng.” The little one’s mouth kept chattering non-stop. “What Changsheng loves most are kittens, but whenever she touches cat fur, her body breaks out in lots of little rashes. She can only look from afar, but being able to see the kitten makes her very happy. Changsheng used to like staying indoors and not going out, but after getting the kitten, she often goes to the courtyard to look at it…”
Yun Chu’s brows and eyes couldn’t help but take on a smile.
She led the little one around the streets for a while and bought a box full of little trinkets. “Half of these are for Changsheng, half are for you, and these few are for the kitten.”
“Thank you, Moth—thank you, Aunt Yun!” Chu Hongyu’s eyes curved with his smile. “Let’s make an appointment to meet again in seven days, okay? I’ll bring Changsheng out together.”
He extended his finger, wanting to make a pinky promise with Yun Chu.
Yun Chu bent down and extended her pinky finger to hook with his.
“Pinky promise, hang yourself, for a hundred years you can’t…”
Before finishing the sentence, suddenly there was a commotion on the street. The crowd grew agitated, and there were sounds of horses neighing.
She raised her head and saw nearly ten people riding tall horses enter the marketplace. The riders moved very fast—many stalls were knocked over, and some people were kicked and rolling on the ground. The street suddenly descended into chaos.
“Protect the Young Lord!” Guard Amao suddenly shouted. Chu Hongyu’s entourage rushed forward in a flurry.
Qiutong and Yu Ke, who had accompanied Yun Chu out, both knew martial arts. They immediately stood in front of Yun Chu. A group of people clustered around Yun Chu and Chu Hongyu, retreating to the wall of a shop by the street.
They thought that by avoiding the horse brigade they would be safe. Who knew the fast-moving tall horses would suddenly stop right in front of them.
The people on horseback suddenly drew the long sabers from their waists and slashed down with swishing sounds. Two guards who had accompanied Chu Hongyu out of the residence were splattered with blood on the spot and fell to the ground.
Immediately after, two black-clothed men leaped down from their horses and came straight for Chu Hongyu.
Yun Chu realized this group was targeting the little one.
She bent down to pick up the child and fled with quick steps.
Qiutong and Yu Ke protected them as they escaped.
Amao led Prince Pingxi’s entourage to block those black-clothed men.
Tingshuang didn’t know martial arts. Fearing she would become a burden, she turned and ran toward Prince Pingxi’s residence. She had to hurry and report this.
Yun Chu was a native of the capital and very familiar with it. She knew that if they went forward a bit more and turned a corner, they would reach the capital’s Court of Judicial Review.
The Court of Judicial Review was a place for handling cases, with many bailiffs. They would be safe once they reached there.
Who would have thought that before they could run to the turning point, the sound of galloping hooves rang out behind them.
“Madam, run quickly!”
Qiutong shouted loudly, turned around, and began fighting with the person on horseback.
Yu Ke had originally wanted to continue protecting Yun Chu and the Young Lord, but when he turned his head, he saw Qiutong’s shoulder had been slashed.
The opponents were mounted on horses, looking down from above, and there were many of them. Qiutong, a single woman, was no match at all. He leaped up and stabbed his blade toward the man on horseback. The black-clothed man screamed miserably and fell from his horse.
The two of them joined forces and barely fought the group of black-clothed men to a standstill.
Yun Chu held the child and ran desperately forward. Just as she reached the turning point, she heard the sound of horse hooves.
She inwardly groaned—there were also some of those people ahead.
She had just turned around when a black-clothed man also appeared behind her. She was caught in a pincer attack from front and back.
Although she had learned martial arts from Qiutong for a while, she was still a dabbler and couldn’t fight them at all, much less while holding a child.
“Young Lord, if you must blame someone, blame your Father Prince for being ruthless and cruel. We were also forced to a desperate situation!” The black-clothed man said coldly. “Capture them!”
Not giving Yun Chu any chance to resist or delay time to wait for reinforcements, the black-clothed man struck the back of her neck with his saber hilt. She immediately fainted.