The wicked imperial concubine is courting death again; the comments section teaches her how to win w

It was Liu Ruyan.

To be honest, so much time has passed that Qi Yitang has almost forgotten about Liu Ruyan.

Xie Jingyu's crime on the surface was only adultery, unlike Qin Zhenxiong's treason. The Prince Gong's Mansion was not confiscated, and the old mansion was still preserved. However, all the servants inside were replaced by Xie Ling.

Lin Qianqian and Zhu Xirou, the two concubines, lived there as the widows of Prince Gong.

They had no feelings for Xie Jingyu, and they were set for life, so why not?

But Liu Ruyan was different.

She was deeply in love with Xie Jingyu.

Xie Jingyu hadn't returned home since his last visit to the palace. At first, he could barely find excuses to appease him, but later he completely exploded.

After being taken home by her family, Liu Ruyan's mental illness did not improve; instead, it worsened. She wandered around the streets all day, repeatedly muttering the words "Brother Yu."

Qi Yitang felt a throbbing pain in her head. How could she have forgotten this person?

Xie Jingyu's ashes have been scattered somewhere, so where is she supposed to find a living person to bring back for him?

Before she could even think of a solution, Liu Ruyan pounced on her, shaking the carriage violently, her disheveled hair flying wildly in the wind. "Was it you! Give me back my Yu-gege—"

With a "whoosh," Yuan Shu had already drawn the sword from his waist.

"presumptuous!"

The next moment, an anxious shout came from outside the crowd, "Stop! Stop!"

A richly dressed woman stumbled through the crowd and ran over. Seeing Liu Ruyan being restrained with a gleaming knife held to her neck, she was terrified, all color draining from her face. "Yan'er, Yan'er, are you alright?!"

A middle-aged man followed closely behind her, his robes askew from running; it was none other than the Marquis of Anyang himself.

Marquis Anyang, panting heavily, bowed to Yuan Shu and said, "Stop, chivalrous one! Let's talk this out—"

Yuan Shu remained motionless, his blade still firmly held against Liu Ruyan's neck, and he gave Anyang Marquis a cold glance.

"Offending my wife is courting death!"

"How dare you!" the servant shouted. "Do you know who my master is?"

"I don't care who you are!" Yuan Shu was a former secret guard who had been through countless life-or-death situations. His master's orders were above all else, and his master's safety was the most important thing.

If anything were to happen to the Empress while he was on duty, he would likely have to pay with his head to His Majesty.

The outside was noisy and the crowd was growing. Qi Yitang sighed and stepped out of the carriage.

The moment she stepped out, the surrounding noise subsided somewhat.

Although Qi Yitang doesn't usually dress up in particularly glamorous ways except for palace banquets—after all, she's not an opera singer—her air of pampered elegance is innate, and her mere presence commands respect.

Upon seeing her face, Marquis Anyang's pupils constricted sharply. "Your Majesty—"

Qi Yitang quickly coughed lightly, "Ahem."

Marquis Anyang immediately understood, fell silent, and a layer of cold sweat suddenly soaked his back.

Although he wasn't very familiar with the concubines in the palace, during the grand banquets held during festivals, no one in the entire palace would mistake the one beside His Majesty.

Marquis Anyang felt extremely troubled. Who would have thought that he had just let his crazy daughter out of his sight for a moment, and she would bump into the Empress?

Everyone knows that the empress is the apple of the emperor's eye; even a hundred of his daughters wouldn't be enough to compensate for her.

"Please forgive me, Madam. It was my fault for not disciplining her properly," Marquis Anyang apologized repeatedly. "I will take her back now and make sure she never disturbs you again."

Yuan Shu glanced at Qi Yitang.

Seeing that she didn't intend to order an investigation, he slowly withdrew his knife.

Marquis Anyang smiled apologetically and ordered his servants to drag his disgraceful daughter away.

Unexpectedly, Liu Ruyan, like a slippery eel, broke free from the servants' grasp after only a few steps, turned around abruptly, and pounced towards Qi Yitang.

Her expression was frantic, her eyes bloodshot, and her thin hands reached for Qi Yitang's face. "You must have stolen my Yu-gege! Give him back to me—"

Just then, an old man carrying two buckets of sweet soup passed by.

Caught off guard by Liu Ruyan's sudden impact, the carrying pole slipped from the old man's hand, and he fell to the ground with a cry of "Ouch!"

The bucket was overturned, the spoon was dropped, and the floor was a mess.

"Madam, are you alright?"

Qi Yitang was unharmed because Yuan Shu was quick-witted and struck Liu Ruyan on the back of the neck with a chop, knocking her unconscious.

Marquis Anyang felt his head swaying precariously, and repeatedly begged for forgiveness, "Madam, please forgive me..."

Seeing that he was quite old and his back was bent so hunched over that it was almost broken in two, Qi Yitang didn't want to scold him too much.

Ultimately, her previous arrangement of marriage for Xie Jingyu, fulfilling Liu Ruyan's infatuation, could also be seen as using Liu Ruyan's madness to cause trouble for Xie Jingyu.

Now that Liu Ruyan has become even more insane, she is not entirely without guilt.

She waved her hand, "Take her home. Keep a close eye on her and try to keep her home as much as possible."

Marquis Anyang and his wife, feeling as if they had been granted a pardon, thanked them profusely and carried the unconscious Liu Ruyan away as if their feet were greased.

The crowd gradually dispersed, leaving only the old man sitting on the ground with a sorrowful expression, saying that his whole family relied on selling sweet soup to make a living.

Qi Yitang couldn't bear it, so he had Yunzhu compensate him with some silver.

"Madam, your skirt..." Yunzhu looked at the hem of her skirt with difficulty.

The collision just now splashed sugar water all over Qi Yitang's cloak and skirt.

It's fine in summer; it dries quickly with a little airing.

But it's winter now, and the clothes are thick. The sticky sugar water seeped into the fabric, clinging to my calves, and the cold wind chilled me to the bone.

If the Empress goes back soaking wet, she'll catch a cold... His Majesty will definitely be angry.

Qi Yitang looked around and said, "There's a clothing store over there. Let's go buy some clothes and change into them."

The carriage stopped at the street corner, and the three of them, master and servants, walked toward a clothing shop.

With this delay, the time to return to the palace is getting closer and closer.

Qi Yitang was preoccupied with something, so when she entered the shop, she was too lazy to choose carefully. She had Yunzhu grab a piece of clothing that fit her perfectly, and then she lifted the curtain and went into the fitting room in the backyard.

Yuan Shu subconsciously followed him into the fitting room, but was stopped by the shopkeeper—

"Hey, young man, your wife is changing clothes, what are you doing following her in?"

Yuan Shu's attire clearly indicated he was a guard or servant; anyone with eyes wouldn't mistake them for a married couple. The shopkeeper cautioned, "Men and women should be treated differently. If your master finds out, he'll likely be displeased."

Yuan Shu stopped in his tracks, his brows furrowing slightly.

His Majesty's possessiveness towards the Empress is indeed very strong.

To avoid having his eyes gouged out, Yuan Shu had no choice but to retreat to the outer room and wait, keeping an eye on what was happening inside.

The shopkeeper, a talkative man, struck up a conversation with Yuan Shu while fiddling with his abacus, "By the way, young man, your wife is so beautiful, may I ask which high-ranking official in the capital she is?"

Yuan Shu asked warily, "Why are you asking this?"

"Young man, what you're saying is unbelievable. We open shops to do business and make a living. We're just trying to develop a few regular customers. Actually, our shop's goods are no worse than the three major shops in the capital. We often have top-quality fabrics from the south. If your lady needs anything, we can have them delivered to your residence regularly..."

Yuan Shu was not good with words, and he barely responded to what the shopkeeper said, only focusing on waiting. The shopkeeper, feeling awkward, awkwardly retreated.

Time passed little by little.

It was quiet inside, with no sound of people talking, and Qi Yitang didn't come out after changing her clothes.

Yuan Shu's nerves tightened, and his expression hardened.

wrong!

He jumped up and walked straight to the backyard, ignoring the shopkeeper's repeated calls to stop him.

The fitting rooms in ordinary shops are small and only covered by a curtain, but many ladies value their privacy and will change their clothes in a more spacious room if they pay money.

But when Yuan Shu rushed in, he saw Yun Zhu with her eyes closed, slumped softly against the wall, still clutching the old cloak that had been stained with sugar water.

The room was empty; there was no sign of Qi Yitang anywhere.

Yuan Shu's vision went black—it was all over.