Her guards

Chapter 63 Make it clear

The hall of the Duke of Ding'an's mansion was brightly lit.

Cheng Yuan sat in the chair, looking left and right with curiosity at the luxurious hall, until he was glared at by Liu Changqing before he calmed down.

Liu Changqing frowned and looked at his daughter Liu Chan sitting on the other side.

The scene was chaotic before. Then the daughter appeared, followed by a stranger also called Liu Chan. Xiu Yi also appeared, and they started shouting and fighting. Suddenly, it turned into a family reunion, and a young man even became the young lady.

The situation was so chaotic that there was so much to say that Xiuyi ushered everyone into the Ding'an Duke's Mansion.

"Sit down and explain this carefully!"

The embroidered-robed captain, holding a knife in his hand, gritted his teeth and said.

"Is this matter so complicated that it can be explained clearly?" Liu Changqing thought to himself.

"What exactly happened?" he asked in a low voice.

Liu Chan glanced at her father and whispered, "Father, please wait a moment. Once A-Sheng comes out, you'll know what she means."

Liu Changqing gave her a deep look, then said nothing more.

A figure moved, and Yang Hui stopped in front of Liu Chan, asking with a questioning look, "Are you Liu Chan? What's going on?"

Liu Chan already knew from outside that this was the young lady from the Duke of Ding'an's mansion, but she wasn't too afraid. She still said softly, "You'll know in a little while."

Yang Hui glared at her, then looked at Wei Jiao, who was sitting in the main seat in the hall, with a row of embroidered clothes standing behind her.

Wei Jiao sat lazily in the chair, swirling the teacup in his hand, seemingly savoring the tea with great interest. He then said to the embroidered maid behind him, "Let's try the tea from the Duke of Ding'an's family now, and later let the Duke of Ding'an try our tea. This is a way of returning the favor."

The woman in embroidery smiled and complimented, "The Commandant is courteous and upholds his principles."

What talk of etiquette and propriety? The young man in front of her was even more radiant under the indoor lamp, and Yang Hui dared not look at him for long. The tea served in the embroidered dress was not something to behold!

She looked terrified and anxious, and hurriedly went inside.

"mother--"

"what's up!"

"Is that person a man or a woman?"

"Who is it?"

"So, I am now Miss Yang Luo?"

In a side room of the Duke of Ding'an's mansion, Mo Zheng looked at Yang Luo and said softly.

"You're a maid, Ah Sheng?"

Under the guise of changing clothes, the two went into a room where they were able to speak in hushed tones.

Yang Luo looked at the young guard in front of her. Perhaps because she knew in her heart that he was a woman, the person in front of her had a more gentle face than before.

"I'm sorry, things happened so suddenly," Yang Luo said in a low voice. "I originally planned to just reveal my identity like this, but when I learned that you are a woman, I suddenly thought of a way to continue to hide my identity."

The solution is for the two to switch identities.

Although the maidservant had entered the Duke of Ding'an's mansion, she was not considered a relative, unlike the young lady.

She can still remain hidden.

Mo Zheng remained silent.

Seeing that she didn't speak, Yang Luo apologized again, "I'm sorry." Then she quickly added, "If you don't want to, they're outside. I'll explain to them right away that I'm still me, and you're still you."

After saying that, he turned to leave.

Mo Zheng grabbed her arm and gently shook her head: "No need, Miss. I promised to be your bodyguard and protect your safety. If changing my identity can keep you safe, then of course it's no problem."

Yang Luo looked at her, tears welling up in her eyes, and murmured, "Ah Sheng."

Mo Zheng smiled: "If anyone should apologize, it should be me first, since I was the one who kept it from you, Miss, and intended to keep it a secret forever."

Hearing this, Yang Luo couldn't help but interrupt: "How did Liu Chan know?"

If it weren't for Liu Chan calling her "sister," she wouldn't have found out.

Mo Zheng said, "I went to persuade her at night after you were asleep. Since it was night, if I, a man, barged in, it would scare Miss Liu. I would make her wary before I could even say anything. So I met her as a woman."

There seems to be some helplessness in this conversation.

"I told her I needed to protect the young lady as a man, but I didn't tell her you didn't know. I was worried that if I told her, she would become suspicious and wary. As a result, she thought you knew, and when she was with you, her behavior and words let it slip." Oh, I see. Yang Luo looked at the boy in front of her—no, the girl.
"Have you been dressing as a man all these years?" she asked softly.

Mo Zheng nodded: "I was picked up and raised by the hunter grandpa and his wife. It's inconvenient for a girl to be a hunter, and she's also easily bullied, so the hunter grandpa made me pretend to be a boy."

Yang Luo looked at her. Later, she became a bandit leader and was beheaded by the imperial court. Her true gender was not discovered. Was her head cut off beforehand and her body was not discovered?
Of course, you can't ask that question.

Yang Luo clenched her fists. Ah Sheng had disguised himself as a man and had never been discovered until his death, but at this moment, for her sake, he had exposed his true gender.

"Ah Sheng, thank you," she said softly. "It's all because of me."

Mo Zheng interrupted her: "Won't Miss repay me in the future?"

Yang Luo nodded emphatically.

"That's fine." Mo Zheng smiled and asked decisively, "What do I do next?"

"Change back into women's clothing first to show that you're not lying," Yang Luo said, thinking of Wei Jiao, "otherwise Wei Jiao won't give up."

Mo Zheng nodded and reached out to take off her clothes.

Yang Luo quickly turned around. Although she was a woman, it was not appropriate to stare like that. Listening to the rustling sound, besides the robe, there were strips of cloth that had been taken off and thrown on the ground. They were probably used to wrap the chest and pad the shoulders and back.

Yang Luo was lost in thought when she heard Mo Zheng behind her say that she had changed. She turned around and saw a familiar yet unfamiliar person standing in front of her.

In reality, she had only changed her clothes; her face was still the same. But Yang Luo still felt that the girl in front of him was suddenly radiant.

"How do you comb your hair?" Mo Zheng asked, reaching out to pick up the loose strands of hair.

With that raised hand, her slender waist and graceful figure were revealed. How could she have hidden such a figure? She had never noticed it before. Then she remembered that when she was a beggar in Lu County, Ah Sheng had taught her how to disguise herself as a man. Ah, so these were all tips from experience. Lost in thought, Yang Luo reached out her hand: "Let me do it, let me do it."

Mo Zheng sat down and let her skillfully comb her hair and tie it into a bun.

“I don’t know much about your uncle’s family. They’ll definitely interrogate you about it later,” Mo Zheng said in a low voice.

Yang Luo's voice came from behind: "I can't say much to you in time. I am your maid, so I will speak. You don't need to say anything."

After saying that, Yang Luo reached out and put something around her neck.
Mo Zheng looked down and saw a red string with a jade pendant tied to it.

"This should be a token of my origin. My mother gave it to me when I was little so that I would never lose it."

"Perhaps they won't doubt it once they see this."

Mo Zheng reached out and picked up the jade pendant, seeing a line of dates; this should be Yang Luo's birthday.

Her gaze fell on the carved patterns on it, and her fingers slowly caressed them.

Dragon patterns.

Inside the hall, the Duke of Ding'an and his wife looked at the young girl who came out. Perhaps they had discussed something, because their expressions became calmer.

Mo Zheng lowered her eyes and bowed, saying, "Uncle and Aunt."

"Wait a minute, don't shout yet," Duke Ding'an said in a deep voice, scrutinizing her face. "After my sister left the capital, we never saw her again, nor did we see you. How can you prove that you are her daughter? News came from Lu County that both she and her daughter burned to death. What about you?"

"Miss and I escaped from the back mountain," Yang Luo explained, fulfilling her duty as a maid. "It was Madam and her maid who were burned to death..."

Before she could finish speaking, Mo Zheng suddenly raised her hand to stop her.

“I know you won’t recognize me even if I come. My mother has never mentioned you all these years, nor has she allowed me to come looking for you.” She looked at the couple calmly. “So I didn’t plan to come here. I met Liu Chan on the road and used her identity to help my maid pass the exam to become a study companion, hoping to regain some face and make a living in the capital. But my borrowed identity was exposed, so I had no choice but to come to see you…”

She then curtsied.

"I will leave after I have explained things clearly to the Liu family and Xiuyi."

The Duke and his wife were stunned. Was this really the case? They didn't intend to acknowledge their relatives?
“However, I’m not leaving because I have a guilty conscience.” The girl’s expression became arrogant again. She reached around her neck, pulled out a red string, and handed over a jade pendant. “This was given to me by my mother. She said it was related to my background. You might recognize it…”

The Duke of Ding'an and his wife looked at the jade tablet and immediately noticed the words and dragon patterns on it. Their expressions changed instantly. The Duke of Ding'an made a gurgling sound in his throat, while his wife pressed down on the jade tablet and grabbed Mo Zheng's hand.

"Where are you going! Where are you leaving!" Her voice trembled as she gripped Mo Zheng's hand tightly. "You're not allowed to go anywhere! This is your home!"

After saying that, he raised his hand again and punched Duke Ding'an hard.

"Even if you've never seen her before, can't you recognize her? Why are you asking? This child looks exactly like her sister!"

The Duke of Ding'an's lips moved, and he let out a sob, raising his hand to cover his face.

"My poor... niece."

(End of this chapter)