The young lady is delicate and soft, yet she criticizes the powerful minister for bowing and scrapin

Jade Peak Snow is a carefully trained and well-mannered horse, known for its intelligence and never going berserk for no reason.

After calming down, Qin Wenchang listened carefully to what the other party had to say.

"I saw this horse running wildly in the woods just now, so I stopped it. There were two sharpened kernels between its left forelegs, and it was excruciatingly painful with every step. Let alone a horse, even a person would go crazy if they landed with those hard kernels on their feet, wouldn't they?"

Su Jingran raised his chin and comforted Yu Dingxue beside him with one hand.

"The kernel?" Qin Wenchang's face instantly darkened. "Who did this?!"

Su Jingran's gaze swept over them, then he casually pointed at Wei Ruolan: "Could it be this young lady who did it?"

Wei Ruolan's legs went weak with fright. She hadn't expected the two peach pits to not fall during her run. Her face turned ashen, and she quickly cried out:

"I don't know, I don't know, I didn't eat any peaches!"

Qin Xue countered, "Brother Jingran didn't say it was a peach pit just now, so how did you know it was a peach kernel?"

"I was just talking nonsense, I was just guessing..."

Qin Xue wasn't stupid; she wouldn't be so easily deceived.

"Just now, there were clearly dates, peaches, apricots, longans, and plums on the women's viewing platform. Why did you insist it was peaches?"

Su Jingran feigned surprise: "Miss Wei really guessed right, it really is peach kernels!"

When their beloved daughter fell and was injured, the Duke of Qi and his wife rushed over. Upon hearing this, their faces turned extremely grim.

Wei Ruolan panicked so much that her legs went weak. "I...I..."

The Third Madam quickly came over: "I am truly sorry to Duke Qi and Xue'er. Ruolan is mischievous and unruly. We will definitely discipline her strictly in the future."

The third wife wiped her sweat, wondering if this excuse would be enough to get by.

All the guests noticed what was happening here; Ruolan had gotten herself into trouble again!

Unfortunately, the second wife has been unable to leave the house for half a year, and at today's banquet, she is the only lady of the Wei family!

Wherever Wei Ruolan is, trouble is bound to follow! She glared fiercely at Wei Ruolan.

Qin Xue didn't want things to get too ugly: "Let's just leave it at that."

The Duke of Qi felt sorry for his daughter, but since the other party was from the Wei family, he could only suppress his displeasure.

"Someone come here. The young ladies of the Marquis of Dingyuan's household have been frightened. Send someone to take them back."

"Yes." The servants of the Duke of Qi prepared the carriage.

Wei Ruowei hadn't even had her fill of riding when she was told she had to go back. Carrying a pheasant in one hand and a rabbit in the other, she sheepishly hid among them and boarded the carriage.

He glared at Wei Ruolan relentlessly the whole way, yelling, "It's all your fault! We had to go back before we could even finish the task Grandmother assigned!"

Wei Ruolan was distracted and had no time to think about the mission. She wiped away her tears as she boarded the carriage and left.

Before leaving, Qi Yunli looked at Su Jingran with gratitude.

"Thank you for helping me out of this predicament today, Young Master Su."

Although Su Jingran was of average appearance, he possessed the shrewdness beneath his rough exterior as a military officer: "It's alright. I was just stating the facts, not trying to help you. I've seen plenty of this kind of framing in the army. You'd better be careful in the future. It seems your days aren't going to be easy."

Qi Yunli lowered her head even further: "I'm sorry to have made Young Master Su laugh at me. Today was just an accident. I'll take my leave now."

She walked quickly and hurriedly, not wanting anyone to notice her injured arm. Her long sleeves concealed her arm, and she boarded the carriage with her hand hanging down, without helping anyone.

Completely unaware of Su Jingran behind her, she watched her get into the carriage.

In the fading sunlight, the sound of horses' hooves echoed along the street, and pedestrians hurried to make way.

Wei Jun was still wearing his official robes as he hurried from the palace gates to the hunting grounds on the outskirts of the capital.

A man followed behind, none other than Xie Dongpo: "Didn't you say you weren't going to the hunting grounds? Weren't you interested in the banquet? Why are you riding so fast?"

Xie Dongpo rarely rode a horse; he usually traveled by carriage, and the swaying of the horse gave him a headache.

The clatter of horses echoed through the streets and alleys, raising dust and eliciting another cough.

Wei Jun seemed very anxious, whipping his horse quickly and rapidly.

When Xie Dongpo arrived at the hunting grounds on the outskirts of Beijing, he was completely disoriented.

When Wei Jun arrived, the banquet was almost over, and everyone was drinking tea and eating snacks, having a great time.

When Qin Xue saw him arrive, her arm injury had been bandaged, so she came over.

"Nian'an." Qin Xue walked over shyly and softly called out his name.

"Where are my younger sisters?" Wei Jun asked anxiously.

Qin Xue had injured her arm and had hoped he would come and ask about it. She felt a little disappointed, but still maintained a smile and said:

"They all went back to the manor first. There was a small accident on the way, and the younger sisters were a little frightened, so they went back."

"Were you frightened?" Wei Jun noticed the bandage on her arm out of the corner of his eye. "Are you injured?"

"It's alright," Qin Xue said, suppressing her slight delight.

Xie Dongpo and Su Jingran chatted for a while. Xie Dongpo asked if Miss Wei had come over, and Su Jingran took the opportunity to bring up what had just happened.

Xie Dongpo frowned, secretly leaned close to Wei Jun's ear, and whispered something.

Wei Jun looked displeased, quickly bowed, and said to the Duke of Qi, "I was busy with official duties today and was unable to arrive at the hunting grounds in time to celebrate the Duke's banquet. If there is a banquet next time, I will definitely come."

When the Duke of Qi saw that his future son-in-law was busy with official duties, he still made a special trip from the capital to see him, which showed that he cared about his daughter.

"Go then."

Wei Jun hurriedly mounted his horse and rode away.

The guests, observing this, were now certain of the marriage alliance between the two families. The newly appointed Vice Minister of Revenue had even made a special trip to see his fiancée before the banquet ended, clearly showing his deep affection for her.

Many noble ladies surrounded Qin Xue, praising her enthusiastically. One said she was good-looking, another said she was loyal and righteous, and yet another said she was as steady as a mountain, never revealing her emotions. In short, they praised her more than the heavens could describe it.

Qin Xue listened, increasingly satisfied.

Wei Jun said to the people behind him, "You go back first. I will handle the matters in the Marquis of Dingyuan's residence."

Xie Dongpo was completely baffled. When did Nian'an become so concerned about the affairs of the inner quarters of the mansion? Or was it that someone had harmed his fiancée, and he was now going back to seek justice?

"Alright, I didn't expect you to switch roles so quickly." Xie Dongpo saw that they were almost at the Wei residence, so he found a place to eat nearby and sat down.

As soon as Wei Jun arrived at the mansion, he instructed Ru Feng to bring Qi Yunli to him.

Ru Feng stammered, "Miss Biao hasn't arrived at the manor yet. I heard she got off the carriage halfway and left on her own."

Wei Jun was still wearing his official robes as he rode his horse at breakneck speed, without even taking a break or a sip of water, from the palace to the outskirts of the capital, and then back again.

He was so exhausted, but when he returned, he couldn't find her anywhere!

"As soon as she arrived at the manor, I told her to come find me," he said, his eyes dark and deep.