A Man, standing by the second-floor window, tugged urgently at Jiang Si’s sleeve: “Miss, did you hear? Those constables want to beat Er Niu to death. Does its owner have any way to stop this?”
Ever since Yu Qi appeared, Jiang Si had lost her previous composure. She gripped her hands so tightly that her knuckles turned white.
“What?” she asked, distracted.
A Man held her forehead in exasperation: “My goodness, Miss, how can you be so absentminded? Er Niu is about to be beaten to death by those constables.”
“That won’t happen,” Jiang Si murmured.
A Man’s eyes widened: “How can it not? Two fists can’t beat four hands, let alone Er Niu is just a dog. It certainly can’t escape so many constables.”
Jiang Si gradually calmed down: “Let’s watch. Its owner should have a way.”
Yu Qi was different from other princes. Due to some special reasons, he had lived outside the palace since childhood and later went to the South. This year, he should have returned to the capital from the South for a while, and not long after, this little-known Seventh Prince disappeared from the capital like a fleeting epiphany.
In her previous life, she naturally didn’t know Yu Qi at this time. The reason she knew this information was after her wedding.
Yu Qi’s mother, Consort Xian, came from Duke Anguo’s family and was Ji Chongyi’s aunt. By this reckoning, she would have to address Yu Qi as “Cousin” along with Ji Chongyi.
Although she was veiled and unaware of the outside circumstances on her wedding day, she later heard about Yu Qi’s attendance at the wedding from the gossip of maids and servants.
Consort Xian had two sons, the Fourth Prince and the Seventh Prince.
For her nephew’s grand wedding, although Consort Xian couldn’t conveniently return, the Fourth Prince would certainly attend. However, after the Seventh Prince returned to the capital from the South, he rarely appeared in public and had never attended any banquets. People secretly said that this prince had a cold and strange temperament, so when he appeared at the wedding banquet at Duke Anguo’s mansion, it greatly satisfied people’s curiosity.
It was said that the Seventh Prince was happy that day and drank too much.
Jiang Si recalled the past events, hiding behind the window and watching the noble young man on the street below.
Yu Qi had just returned to the capital, and the constables of the Five Districts Command certainly didn’t know his true identity. But he was never one to be taken advantage of. It wouldn’t be easy for others to harm Er Niu in front of him.
Thinking this way, Jiang Si became increasingly calm and even took an interest in seeing how Yu Qi would extricate himself from the situation.
She leaned against the carved window frame, her profile slightly exposed.
The young man below, as sturdy as a pine tree, seemed to sense something and looked up in that direction.
In that fleeting glance, the young man felt his heart pounding, and his jade-like face was tinged with a faint blush.
“Take them away!” Unaware of the underlying currents, the lead constable waved his hand, and immediately many constables surrounded Yu Qi and the big dog with their weapons.
“Letting a dog run amok?” Yu Qi’s expression returned to normal, his slightly raised phoenix eyes carrying a nonchalant smile. “Officer, you’ve just arrived. Which eye of yours saw me letting a dog run amok?”
The lead constable sneered, “We’re not blind. We just saw your dog pin down, Young Master Cui. If this isn’t a vicious dog attacking people, what is it? To ensure the safety of the citizens, such a vicious dog must be put down!”
Hearing this, the onlooking citizens nodded in agreement.
This big dog was indeed scary. Although it was satisfying to watch it rough up these young masters, what if it went mad and bit someone else…
Yu Qi gently stroked the top of the dog’s head and smiled faintly, “Officer, you’ve got it wrong. My dog doesn’t bite people without reason. It was acting in self-defense.”
At this point, Yu Qi’s expression turned stern, and he said coldly, “These two evil servants intended to harm an imperial official. Officer, what crime would you call that?”
“An imperial official?” The lead constable couldn’t help but straighten up, his tone becoming polite, “May I ask who you are—”
In this capital, there was no shortage of officials. A roof tile falling on the street could hit a fifth-rank official. To survive long in this place, one had to be quick-witted.
Yu Qi ignored the lead constable and pinched the thick fur on Er Niu’s neck.
Er Niu stood up, shook off the dust on its fur, and suddenly raised its front legs to rest on the lead constable’s shoulders.
The lead constable was terrified.
“Don’t panic, Officer. Look at the bronze tag on its neck,” Yu Qi gently reminded.
The lead constable, pale-faced, lowered his gaze to the dog’s neck. Only then did he notice that the big dog was wearing a collar. Due to the dog’s thick fur, the collar of the same color as its fur was easily overlooked.
Seeing the lead constable’s lack of reaction, Er Niu impatiently shook its head vigorously, causing dog hair to fly everywhere. A small bronze tag attached to the collar fell out from somewhere.
The lead constable reached out and flipped the bronze tag, only to see written on it: “Imperial Bestowed Fifth-Rank Howling Sky General…”
The lead constable’s hand trembled, and the bronze tag fell back.
Er Niu let out a disdainful “Woof.”
The lead constable’s gaze at the big dog was now beyond words. For a good while, he couldn’t speak.
Damn it, this lowly dog outranked him!
Cui Yi, his face covered in blood, was about to explode with anger: “What’s going on? Are you going to arrest them or not?”
The lead constable snapped out of his extreme shock and waved his hand: “Arrest them! Take away these two who are carrying concealed weapons!”
“What?” Cui Yi was stunned.
This wasn’t how the script was supposed to go!
Seeing several constables start to make arrests, Cui Yi grabbed the lead constable’s sleeve and berated him in a lowered voice: “I say, did you take the wrong medicine today? You’re arresting my people too?”
For young masters like Cui Yi and Yang Shengcai, who were at the top of the spoiled rich kids, these constables were old acquaintances. There had never been a time when they were so disrespectful.
The lead constable smiled bitterly: “Young Master Cui, with so many citizens watching, we have to go through the motions. Otherwise, not only will I lose my job, but those censors might also cause trouble for the General.”
If this troublemaking child were his son, he would have drowned him in the toilet long ago.
“Fine then, you can take my people away, but this dog must be killed!”
“That’s not possible—”
“Why not? Even if this guy is some kind of imperial official, does that mean his dog gets to ascend to heaven too, making you act like such a bootlicker?”
The lead constable was also getting annoyed and said coolly, “Young Master Cui, please don’t make things difficult for this lowly official. The imperial official is this esteemed dog.”
“What?” Cui Yi looked bewildered.
To avoid further complications, the lead constable stepped forward and whispered a few words in Cui Yi’s ear.
Cui Yi suddenly widened his eyes, looking not at the big dog, but at Yu Qi.
In the whole world, only one person’s dog was a fifth-rank official. The identity of the person before him was now obvious.
For a spoiled young master who had been living comfortably while bullying others, what was most important? Of course, it was having access to inside information!
Cui Yi’s lips trembled, and he suddenly forced a smile at the big dog: “Well, I’ve greatly offended you today. My apologies.”
“Cui Yi, have you gone insane?” Yang Shengcai nearly dropped his jaw in shock.
Cui Yi wiped the dried blood on his face and pulled Yang Shengcai away: “You carry on with your business. I’ll take this idiot away first.”
“Are you itching for a beating?”
…
The two quickly walked away, and the thugs scattered, leaving only the two old personal guards on the verge of tears.
Following such an idiotic master was truly the worst luck!
“You—” The lead constable opened his mouth.
Yu Qi shook his head imperceptibly and patted the big dog’s head: “Er Niu, let’s go.”
“Miss, Er Niu is fine. Everyone has left,” A Man patted her chest in relief, her curiosity rising. “Is Er Niu’s owner such a young imperial official?”
The people downstairs had deliberately lowered their voices when speaking, so others couldn’t hear clearly.
Thinking of a certain possibility, Jiang Si smiled: “Perhaps. Let’s go too.”
After the crowd of onlookers gradually dispersed, the mistress and servant pair went downstairs and walked unhurriedly towards the East Peace Marquis’s mansion.
From Tianxiang Tea House to the East Peace Marquis’s mansion, they had to pass through several streets. As the mistress and servant reached near Quezi Hutong, they suddenly heard a familiar “Woof.”
Jiang Si’s footsteps faltered.
A Man watched the big dog running towards them with a sapphire blue purse in its mouth, exclaiming with delight: “Miss, Er Niu has come to bring you money again!”