Dream of the Red Chamber: After being exiled, I went on a killing spree in Liaodong.

Normally only the daughters of princes are qualified to be called "county princess"! Now that Yingchun, as the half-sister of a duke, has received this honor, all the young ladies in the capital city must be grinding their teeth in fear!

"Of course I saw it right." Jia Yi raised his chin slightly, exuding domineering aura. "My sister, Jia Yi's sister, should be a county princess. No one should be wronged! Let's go—"

With a flick of his sleeve, he strode straight towards Rongqing Hall.

But inside Rongqing Hall, the atmosphere was like an impending storm.

Yingchun, Tanchun, and Xichun had just been summoned and stood with their heads bowed in the hall. Grandmother Jia sat in the main seat, her face ashen, while Granny Lai and others stood with their hands on their hips and chests puffed out, like executioners on an execution ground.

Because Lin Daiyu and Shi Xiangyun were not the young ladies of the main household, they were taken to a side room to "avoid suspicion," leaving the three girls standing alone in the eye of the storm.

For the past few days, Grandmother Jia had been waiting and waiting, but Jia Yi hadn't returned to pay his respects. At first, she thought it was because her grandson was being disobedient, but then Granny Lai uttered a blunt truth—

"Grandma, they weren't going to invite anyone. They were clearly using this as an excuse to go to the Duke of Qin's mansion to have tea and listen to music with Qin Keqing!"

Grandmother Jia nearly choked on her breath.

So, while I'm here longing to be filial, you're out there having a good time?

We must discipline them properly today!

"What? Now you're scared?" Grandmother Jia sneered, her voice like a knife scraping against a porcelain bowl. "You've been so arrogant these past few days, ignoring even your grandmother's words?"

Everyone lowered their heads even further, a chill running down their spines.

Grandmother Jia glanced sideways at Granny Lai.

The meaning is clear: What about the female guards that Jia Yi sent?

Granny Lai shook her head—when Yingchun usually came, she would always have female guards wait outside the courtyard so as not to disturb the elders' peace. Now that there was no obstruction inside the hall, it was the perfect time to make a move.

Grandmother Jia nodded slowly.

The next moment, led by Granny Lai, a group of old women rolled up their sleeves and approached, step by step, their murderous intent palpable.

Xi Chun was so frightened that her face turned pale. She grabbed Ying Chun and Tan Chun's arms, her voice trembling:

"Grandma...grandma..."

Tears welled in her eyes as she looked up at her. "Second sister, third sister... are they... going to hit us?"

Yingchun and Tanchun's lips turned white, their palms were icy cold, and they couldn't say a word. They felt as if a huge boulder was pressing on their chests.

In this deathly, suffocating silence—

"boom!!!"

The tightly closed vermilion gate was suddenly kicked open, the hinges groaning shrilly, wood chips flying everywhere, as if the entire courtyard had been shaken three times by the kick.

"Which blind bastard—" Granny Lai roared as she turned her head, but the words got stuck in her throat.

She saw the person standing at the door.

Dressed in a black brocade robe, with sharp, angular eyebrows and eyes so cold they could freeze bones—it was Jia Yi.

In that instant, her raised hand seemed to be pulled down by an invisible rope, retracting into her sleeve, and she froze on the spot.

Grandmother Jia's heart skipped a beat. She hurriedly stood up from her chair, forcing a smile that looked more like a grimace: "Yi... Yi-ge'er, what brings you here? It's already dark..."

Before the words were finished—

"Third Brother!"

The three girls cried out in unison, rushing towards the door like three startled sparrows, clinging tightly to Jia Yi's arm, their fingertips digging into his sleeve, tears streaming down their faces.

Qin Keqing stood in the corner, watching their trembling backs. Her heart clenched, and the last trace of respect she had for Grandmother Jia turned to ashes.

"Who—" Jia Yi's voice wasn't loud, but it was like a frost-covered knife, each word cutting through everyone in the room, "was about to touch my sister?"

"Lord Duke... it was the old lady... who told us to teach the young ladies a lesson..." Several nannies knelt down with a thud, their foreheads hitting the ground with a loud thud, as if they were afraid that if they were a second late, they would be skinned alive.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

The room was filled with the sound of heads hitting the ground.

Only Granny Lai remained stiff-necked and her knees remained bent.

Out of the corner of her eye, she caught sight of the old women kneeling and begging for mercy, and suddenly realized something was wrong—their gazes were fixed on her inch by inch.

Immediately afterwards, someone spoke in a trembling voice:

"It wasn't us...it was her! Granny Lai said something to the old lady first...that's why the old lady got angry!"

"Yes! It was her! She sneaked into the house, and when she came out, she said the young ladies didn't know their manners and needed to be disciplined!"

"Every wrong has its perpetrator, and every debt its debtor; Your Excellency, please investigate!"

The accusations were like knives, one after another, all aimed at her.

Granny Lai's mind went blank for a moment, and she cursed inwardly: These old fogies are so fickle, they change their minds faster than turning the pages of a book!

But the insults hadn't even subsided yet—

"Smack!!!"

A crisp sound shattered the air.

A large hand slapped her hard across the face, the force of which sent her flying into the air before her back slammed heavily to the ground. Her teeth broke her lip, and blood mixed with saliva dripped from the corner of her mouth.

Grandmother Jia gasped, her fingers trembling.

That slap felt like it had hit her own face, burning with pain.

"You foul mouth of yours," Jia Yi crouched down, his voice as soft as if coaxing a child, but his eyes were cold enough to kill, "what kind of maggots have you been chewing on?"

Granny Lai finally chickened out.

Forget about dignity and seniority, get the hell out of here!

Her face was covered in blood. She trembled as she tried to get up and kneel, but Jia Yi stepped on her wrist, rendering her unable to move.

"I...I just...heard people in the manor saying..." she stammered, struggling desperately.

"Wait a minute." Jia Yi narrowed his eyes, his tone suddenly turning serious. "Did you just say—you heard the news 'from my residence'?"

The air condensed.

Even the wind has stopped.

Qin Keqing's pupils contracted, and she suddenly looked up.

Jia Yi's face could no longer be described as "ugly"; it was as black as the sea before a storm, suppressing a raging tide that was about to overturn the heavens and the earth.

His dignified Qin State Duke's mansion, which was impenetrable and as solid as an iron barrel, was somehow easily discovered by an old servant.

His face was torn off in public and trampled into the mud.

"Yuanyang!" he ordered coldly, his voice devoid of any warmth. "Go, summon every single maid and servant in the mansion to the courtyard, leave no one behind."

"Yes!" Yuanyang responded and left, her steps unsteady.

She knew all too well that the calmer Third Master appeared, the more likely someone was to die.

Grandmother Jia's legs went weak, and she had to hold onto the back of the chair to avoid collapsing.

It’s over.

This matter is beyond repair.

At this moment, Lin Daiyu and Shi Xiangyun rushed out from behind the screen, their faces pale. Seeing that Yingchun and the other two were still safe and sound, they staggered forward to help them up.

Qin Keqing gently beckoned: "Come here and stand next to me."

Not long after—

All the servants of the Duke of Qin's mansion, numbering in the hundreds, were brought to the front courtyard and knelt in a dense, dark mass.

The masters of Rongguo Mansion also rushed over upon hearing the news. When they saw Jia Yi sitting upright in the hall with an iron face and an old nanny covered in blood under his feet, they were immediately terrified.

Wang Xifeng hurried forward and asked Qin Keqing in a low voice, "What happened? The maids' eyes are all swollen from crying. Who caused this?"

She simply couldn't understand it—with Jia Yi backing them up, these young ladies were now so precious that no one dared to touch them, so who would dare to lay a hand on them?