The disturbance drew an ever-increasing crowd. Some pointed and gestured at the carriage, whereas others sniffed at the noble children’s uncouth behavior in stopping the carriage.
All sorts of discussion flew in the air as the crowd tightened its radius, surrounding the two parties in the middle. Those who’d heard of Qin Huaiyuan also added the minister’s name in their conversation.
Qin Yining remained calm throughout it all, holding Lian Xiaozhou’s hand and teaching the little girl her characters. It was as if there was nothing outside at all, just the barking of dogs.
New movement rustled outside at this time; the crowd parted swiftly to the sides. Sir Zheng of the eastern Warden’s Office of the Five Wards barged in with his men, separating the two posturing parties.
However, when the warden took a look at the carriage and then at the dead horse on the ground, as well as the unconscious Cheng Yue, he felt his head swell to twice its size.
* * *
1. The raws here say ‘people with uncommon identities. I took a bit of liberty to match the tone of this name-calling.
Chapter 386: A Dogfight
A strong urge to locate a Taoist priest struck the warden. Had he offended some malignant spirits or god lately?? Why did accidents from charging horses keep occurring, and to different factions in which both sides were nobles not to be offended?
“Men, hurry and take Sir Cheng to a hospital.” Sir Zheng couldn’t afford to let any risk come to the young master’s life.
Ever since Minister Cheng Meng’s eldest son died in infancy, the minister had devoted his energies to passing on the family name. Multiple concubines crossed his doorstep, bearing him the ‘Seven Fairies’, but only one Cheng Yue.
Minister Cheng didn’t hope for great accomplishments out of his son; just peacefully carrying on the family name would be enough. Thus, he didn’t impose any strict demands, which gave rise to Cheng Yue’s domineering, brattish behavior.
This arrogant bully only worsened after Cheng Meng was promoted to minister of the Bureau of Military Affairs. The noble scion often gathered with his peers and got into all sorts of trouble. Having been warden of the eastern ward for a long time, Sir Zheng often ran into these noble sons. He’d always let them go with a slap on the wrist, if not, because of his relationship with their fathers.
But who knew that Cheng Yue would do the unthinkable and butt heads with the Qins!
If things had been before, Sir Zheng would naturally sweep everything under the table again. However, the emperor most favored Qin Huaiyuan now, so too was the warden on the emperor’s team.
Since the factional lines were delineated, everyone should keep to their camps and refrain from getting into further trouble. But who would’ve thought that the Lu-backed faction would levy their spears at the emperor-backed Qin Huaiyuan?
Now that public discourse was at such a high and Sir Zheng in charge, he couldn’t protect any side even if he wanted to.
“Miss Qin.” Sir Zheng offered a cupped fist salute next to the carriage. “I’m afraid I’ll have to ask Miss Qin to make a trip to the Warden’s Office.”
“Our miss is the victim and the culprits these unreasonable horse racers!” rebutted Xiaoman. “Why does milord want to take our miss into custody?”
“Please don’t misunderstand, Miss Qin. I’m not arresting you, just need to inquire about a few things.”
This was precisely the development Qin Yining was waiting for, so she responded kindly, “I won’t put you in a difficult situation, milord. I’ll make the trip with you. I’m sure you’ll be able to give me a concrete explanation as well.”
“Of course, that’s my duty as a warden. I impartially handle everything.”
“That would be wonderful.” Qin Yining’s voice was exceedingly gentle, spreading comfort and ease in its wake.
A noble girl talking a walk in the market with the family—that was quite a normal occurrence. But the poor girl had bumped into these unruly noble songs!
Add to that Qin Huaiyuan’s matter from a few days ago and the fact that it was the same group of people, Sir Zheng was certain that this was revenge long in the making.
The noble scions were equally surprised at this moment. None of them had thought that a girl would have such ferocious guards by her side!
However, it was easy enough for the warden to understand. If it was said that Cheng Yue was Minister Cheng’s sole hope, then Qin Yining was also Qin Huaiyuan’s only daughter. He didn’t even have a son!
In comparison, Minister Cheng had the ‘seven fairies’. It didn’t seem that Qin Huaiyuan doted on Qin Yining any less than Cheng Meng did his only son.
What an irritating mess!
After placating Qin Yining, Sir Zheng turned to talk some sense into the outraged noble scions.
Compared to the well-educated and reasonable Qin Yining, this group wasn’t so easy to handle. After failing to convince them verbally, Sir Zheng had to settle for half coaxing and half threatening the group back to his office.
……
The Qin fourth miss’ carriage slowly rolled to a stop at the office doors. Bingtang, Jiyun, and Lian Xiaozhou alighted first before turning back to help their mistress down.
Meanwhile, several of the noble sons looked curiously their way. It too piqued their curiosity on just what kind of woman could entrance a hardened man like the Faithful Prince of the First Rank. The prince had ignored the blood feud of his father’s death to carry off the girl!
A pale-white, unadorned hand reached out probingly, resting on the maid’s hand. It was followed by a charming face that was as pretty as a peach. The crowd’s gazes clung to her as she alighted from the carriage.
Her adroit and deft movements placed her as average height compared to typical northern women, but above average among southern women. She flicked an aloof glance at the crowd, light sparkling in her limpid, almond-shaped eyes. Not a single word was needed to entrance the mind of everyone present.
No wonder! No wonder that even someone like the Faithful Prince of the First Rank fell victim to this sweet trap!
Some of the noble scions were quite disgruntled. They hadn’t made out with anything for their troubles today! They didn’t cause Qin Yining to alight from her carriage or hear her voice. And now, were they to just silently watch on?
But given the current situation, they really didn’t know how to get their hands on her.
The group arrived at the front hall. Sir Zheng gave orders for tea to be served.
The youth with a swollen cheek, courtesy of Jingzhe, chugged his cup of tea and pointed at the guard standing behind Qin Yining. “Your lordship, that man tried to murder someone in broad daylight. Arrest him!”
Jingzhe, Bingtang, and the others were all standing quietly with their heads down behind their mistress. The guard captain didn’t even raise an eyebrow when he heard the accusation, remaining docilely standing behind the Qin fourth miss.
All of the former Silver Masks now looked like average, everyday servants. Their frightening skill from earlier was the last thing on everyone’s minds. If it wasn’t for concrete evidence in the form of the young man’s face, Sir Zheng would’ve never believed it.
“Did this man really attempt to murder you?”
Chapter 386.2: A Dogfight
Qin Yining raised her eyes to Sir Zheng and responded gently, “My servant just wanted to protect his mistress. The situation today was abominable. We weren’t the ones to start things at all. We were enjoying the weather and minding our business when this group came charging straight at us on their horses. My men know some kung fu and killed the leader’s horse in an effort to protect me.
“As for the noble scion sent to the hospital, he fell from his horse because he lacked riding skills. It has nothing to do with my servant.
“As for this gentleman.” Qin Yining’s beautiful eyes swiveled to the swollen-face youth. The look in them bore straight through to one’s heart, as if she could see the innermost
depths of his mind.
The young man’s face burned with a hot blush, and his cheek didn’t even seem to hurt anymore. It was dizzying to have such a beauty look at him this way.
The Qin fourth miss continued in a measured pace and she explained courteously, “My servant did indeed slap this gentleman, but he didn’t turn violent for no reason at all. Their words were simply too vile.”
“What did they say?”
The girl lowered her head. “Vile, dirty things. It really was offensive and mortifying. It’s alright if you don’t take my word for it, Your Lordship. There were many eyewitnesses on the streets, you can ask any of them.”
Sir Zheng nodded, highly satisfied with Qin Yining’s mild and well-mannered attitude. However, he didn’t have a chance to speak further before another boy closer to Cheng Yue started arguing heatedly.
All of the parties involved were children of officials. The warden was momentarily at a loss of what to do.
As the situation dragged on, a large disturbance suddenly erupted outside. A panicked shout sounded from the covered hallway. “Your Lordship! This is very bad! Minister Cheng’s surrounded the yamen with troops!”
“What!?” Sir Zheng shot to his wide, wide-eyed with incredulous disbelief.
Though the minister was in charge of the Bureau of Military Affairs, it wasn’t like he could send out troops at the drop of a hat. All troop deployment necessitated an imperial decree and the proper command token.
Minister Cheng’s personal use of the soldiers was naturally because he’d lost all reason after learning his son was unconscious. He’d thrown all caution to the wind!
A fine layer of cold sweat broke out on Sir Zheng’s back. If he didn’t handle this properly, it could easily evolve into military unrest within the city. The likes of him, a mere warden, wouldn’t be able to answer to the emperor then!
Sir Zheng made to walk outside, but stopped after taking two steps. He turned back to look at the group of wildly gesticulating noble sons and the mundane-looking, but highly skilled guards by Qin Yining’s side.
The two sides wouldn't dare do anything if he was here. But if a fight broke out the second he wasn’t, and he failed to placate the mess outside, his own position would be jeopardized if a few more casualties appeared on the list.
When his thoughts traveled here, Sir Zheng quickly gave orders to his most trusted confidante. “Hurry and go invite Minister Cheng in. Remember to treat him politely.”
“Understood.” The man hurried through the door, through the passageway, to the front door, whereupon he was promptly shocked by the crowd in front of him as soon as he poked a head out!
The yamen wasn’t in an out-of-the-way location as there were a decent amount of houses nearby and bystanders usually in the streets. But today, everyone had been scared off far into the distance.
Minister Cheng had blockaded the entire area around the yamen with five hundred men! There were only roughly one hundred troops at the yamen, and all were ashen-faced at the crowd in front of them.
The man swallowed and bolstered his courage for the task ahead.
Past forty years old, Minister Cheng’s stocky body and fleshy face belied his age. He was rough around the edges to begin with, and now he scowled ferociously due to his rage. He would devour anyone who came at him!
Perhaps out of consideration for Sir Zheng’s face or also knowing that he couldn’t exacerbate the situation, he followed the man into the yamen in the end.
“All of you stand guard outside. No one takes a step without my orders.”
“Understood!” responded the soldier.
Minister Cheng strode quickly to the front hall. Sir Zheng heaved a long sigh of relief when he saw the minister willing to come inside and walked up with a smile.
However, the minister shoved Sir Zheng away with a mighty push and pointed his finger at Qin Yining. “You little bitch! How dare you hurt my son! Pay with your life!” He charged at the girl with brandished fists.
Who would’ve thought that the lofty minister of the Bureau of Military Affairs would resort to violence without forewarning, in the yamen??
Caught off guard, everyone jumped with shock. And how would the four guards allow the minister to harm their mistress? They flew into battle stances.
Chapter 387: Whose Fault Is It
The Qin fourth miss had been able to indifferently watch the fight off to the side due to her complete faith in Silver Mask competency. But when the two groups actually met in battle, she rose with a frown on her face.
Despite the domineering and brutish manner of Minister Cheng, he actually possessed superior martial skills. The four guard had to fight in tandem to just barely contain the minister.
Wide-eyed with a ferocious look of fury, Minister Cheng looked like he wanted to eat Qin Yining alive.
The noble scions brayed with laughter to see the minister so savage. They called out encouragement, but it wasn’t apparent whether they wish to curry favor or further enrage Minister Cheng. The catcalls and insults to Qin Yining grew even more depraved.
A flabbergasted Sir Zheng watched chaos unfold in his office. Tables and stools were wrecked and porcelain tea wares smashed, the pieces scattering all over the ground.
Though Qin Yining’s guards were highly skilled, given previous experience, they didn't dare harm an official. That hobbled their fighting while the minister rampaged like a berserk beast, striving all he could to reach the Qin fourth miss.
If things continued this way, Sir Zheng would be in for a world of hurt if the girl was injured. One injured Cheng Yue already put him at his wits end.
Minister Cheng possessed a boorish personality, which made his mind easier to guess. The warden risked running afoul of the wily Qin Huaiyuan if Qin Yining was hurt. Sir Zheng wouldn’t know a day of peace if that happened!
His thoughts traveling to this point, Sir Zheng quickly summoned his men and waded in as well, physically pulling the two sides apart and mouthing every conciliatory word he knew.
Sweating profusely from his exertions against Jingzhe and the others, Minister Cheng pointed at Qin Yining and roared furiously, “You bitch! I want your life for you commanding your men to hurt my son! Ram yourself dead right now if you know what’s good for you! That’ll leave you a full corpse in death. If not, I’ll separate your head from your body!”
The man’s enraged shout rang like a bell, vibrating painfully in his audience’s ears. Lian Xiaozhou was white as a ghost and clutching Bingtang for assurance. Jiyun shielded her mistress behind her. Though there was no fear on the guard’s face, her expression was exceedingly ugly.
Completely calm, Qin Yining responded, “Though Minister Cheng loves his son greatly, you can’t slander innocent people like this, without knowing right from wrong. Why would my guards have leapt into action if it wasn’t Sir Cheng steering his galloping horse in my direction and threatening my life? My family’s just arrived in the capital and I don’t know Sir Cheng. I really don’t understand why he’d threaten my life!”
“F*ck you, motherf*cking bitch! My son charged his horse at you because you say so huh? How about it’s more like you’re not satisfied after getting a kid exiled last time—you’re out for more revenge! None of you Qins are anything good. Your father’s written the book on craftiness, and you’re no pure, good girl either. Still looking to talk yourself out of this? Dream on!”
“Watch your words, Minister Cheng. Setting aside the fact that I haven’t done anything today and have been hit by disaster out of nowhere, even if I’d committed a crime, there’s a place called the yamen in the Great Zhou capital, and the emperor even higher than that. Or is Great Zhou a lawless wilderness that you can deploy troops and kill as you wish?”
“You! That’s just perverted logic!” Minister Cheng had nothing to say when questioned about his use of troops.
Qin Yining continued coolly. “I’m sure His Majesty will make his own judgment on whose logic is perverse here. I was just wonderin
g if I should beat the Petitioner’s Drum again and lodge an imperial lawsuit. But it looks like that’s not needed. With the minister’s personal use of the army, I’m sure the emperor will look into this matter quickly enough and deliver justice.”
“You’re the daughter of that fox alright, with your glib tongue! You’re a baby fox, a vile vixen!”
Minister Cheng’s infuriated form looked like a fighting rooster in Qin Yining’s eyes. She couldn’t be bothered arguing with someone like this, so stopped talking after she’d made her points.
Meanwhile, the rest of the noble sons and Sir Zheng off to the side were stunned by Qin Yining’s valiant act. It was only then that some of the boys recalled that whether it was faced with charging horses or requested to testify at the warden’s office, the Qin fourth miss had remained calm all along. It was as if nothing in the world was worthy of her attention.
It was that she was different, but that she was greatly self assured. That she could keep her composure in such an ugly situation meant that either her blind courage was too great, or that she was much too shrewd.
Looking at her now, it was obviously that the latter was more true.
An awkward silence descended on the scene.
Having let loose with offensive, vile insults, panic crept in after Minister Cheng reflected on his impulsive actions in deploying the troops for his personal use.
His son was important, but so too was his title!
If it wasn’t for the black gauze cap, a manifestation of the trappings of office, who would protect his family?
What had happened to the last fellow to privately send out troops was still fresh in his mind. Even someone as formidable as the Faithful Prince of the First Rank had to docilely hand over his position as the Valiant Tigers commander when charged with his crimes!
Sir Zheng took a look at the quiet noble scions and contemplative Minister Cheng, finally able to breath a sigh of relief. He really had to acknowledge the girl’s skill. She’d used just a few cantankerous words to smooth over a fight waiting to break out.
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