Taking her into his tent, he incurred the wrath of a powerful and mad minister, from which he could

After leaving Mingyi's room, Ji Mingzhe returned to the next room, where Fan Jing and Yuegui were both.

Fan Jing was on tenterhooks. This morning, a waiter hurriedly knocked on her door and said that something terrible had happened: Bai Xiang Lou had been surrounded by a group of people.

She was so scared her heart was in her throat.

Thinking the restaurant was involved in a lawsuit, he quickly tidied himself up and rushed to check, only to find that it was a very powerful figure who had come to his door.

The man spent over a hundred taels of gold in one go and even said he wanted to book the entire Bai Xiang Lou restaurant. Fan Jing had never seen so much money in her life!

That amount of money is more than enough to book the entire Bai Xiang Lou restaurant; it could even buy the whole place!

She was secretly delighted at first, thinking that a wealthy customer who preferred the seafood in the restaurant had come to visit. However, she did not expect that this gentleman was not interested in Baixianglou at all, but came for Ji Mingyi!

Fan Jing did not accept the money, but she did not stop the other party either. She had to think about Bai Xiang Lou and her children at home.

Besides, she couldn't stop them; she was powerless to do anything about it and could only watch helplessly as they went upstairs and the man strode into Ji Mingyi's room.

What would he do inside? Fan Jing dared not think about it; someone warned her not to meddle.

Fan Jing was very worried: "No wonder you were in such a hurry to leave the city last night, Yuegui, what important person did you offend?!"

Just as Yuegui was about to speak, she saw Ji Mingzhe enter.

Seeing that his back was empty, her heart clenched, and she hurriedly went over: "Young master, where is Miss? Why didn't she come back with you?"

Ji Mingzhe said, "It's Second Uncle. He's here to talk to Sister. He's not a bad person, so don't worry."

Upon hearing this, Yuegui's heart skipped a beat; it was actually Second Master who had come looking for her!

They discovered they'd run away so quickly!

There was no sign of relief on Yuegui's face; her eyes were full of worry.

Fan Jing was taken aback and pressed for an answer, "Second Uncle? That person is someone you know?"

Laurel nodded worriedly, but said nothing more.

She's going to find a girl!

Yuegui immediately went out, but was stopped by Changyu.

"I want to see my daughter!" Yuegui said anxiously.

"Don't do anything foolish and ruin the masters' plans."

Chang Yu blocked her with one arm, and softened his tone, saying, "Don't worry, Second Master won't hurt Miss. Once Second Master has finished his business, you will naturally be able to see your master."

What could the Second Master possibly ask the young lady for? Yuegui asked Changyu, but he refused to tell her, saying she would understand later.

The laurel tree was too far to cross, so she had no choice but to return home worriedly.

It continued until nearly evening.

Yuegui was finally allowed to go in and see Ji Mingyi, but only she was allowed in.

Upon entering, she smelled an unusual scent in the air and saw the man standing not far from the bed. As Yuegui approached, she quickly glanced at him.

Master Zong was dressed in a dark blue robe, his clothes were neat and tidy, and he had a dignified appearance. He still maintained a cold and self-possessed demeanor.

But upon closer inspection, one can see that his expression at this moment is very relaxed, and even shows a rare hint of contentment.

Seeing the man's gaze sweep over her, Yuegui was startled and hurriedly lowered her eyes, unconsciously becoming respectful: "This servant greets Second Master."

Zong Xian gave only one instruction: "Your young lady is new to this world and is currently unable to move around easily. Go and fetch a basin of warm water and take good care of her."

"Yes."

Despite being mentally prepared, Yuegui was still greatly shocked when she actually witnessed this scene. She lowered her head even further and couldn't help but ponder as she turned to leave:

The second master and the young lady slept in the same bed... So, should they go to Qingzhou to find the young master, or turn back to the clan mansion?

After giving instructions to the maid, Zong Xian didn't leave immediately. Instead, he lingered in the room for a while and sat in the same armchair he had come in.

He glanced at the quiet bed, where a slender, aloof figure could be vaguely seen. Just an hour earlier, the person behind the gauze curtain had been spread out beneath him, enduring the pain with difficulty.

There was no tenderness between them afterwards; the whole thing felt more like a transaction.

Mingyi had no desire to communicate with him and remained silent.

In this tense atmosphere, Zong Xian gradually pulled himself out of it and quickly returned to his normal demeanor, but he was the first to break the silence, speaking gently:

"If you change your mind, I can immediately send someone to carry you back to the clan residence."

Carrying someone back to the clan's residence in a sedan chair—what's the difference between that and becoming a concubine?

Mingyi then spoke, sitting up from the couch with some difficulty: "Please help me prepare the travel documents for Qingzhou, sir. I will not be returning to the Zong residence. I was unable to bid farewell to the old lady, so please apologize to her for me."

Her voice sounded weak and tired.

"Also... please keep today's events a secret, sir, and don't tell the old lady either. Just pretend nothing happened."

After saying that, Mingyi had nothing more to say.

Zong Xian's tone became somewhat indifferent: "As you wish." After saying that, he got up and left without looking back.

Mingyi heard the door open and close and breathed a sigh of relief; at least the door was gone.

Fortunately, Zong Xian was a man of his word and did not force her to become his concubine; she remained a free woman.

She could tell that she must have angered the man. After all, for someone as high and mighty as him to be rejected by a woman for the first time must have been a blow to his pride and he certainly wouldn't feel good about it.

But she couldn't care less about anything else. She had to leave quickly before Zong Xian changed his mind. So what if she offended him? Anyway, she wouldn't have any more contact with him, and he probably wouldn't want to see her again.

Thinking of Xie Huaiyu again, Mingyi began to drift off into thought, feeling very guilty towards him.

When she arrived in Qingzhou, how should she explain it to him?

The room fell silent again.

Before long, Yuegui approached and lifted the bed curtains. She saw her mistress looking dazed and said with concern, "Miss, let me help you wash up..."

After a long silence, Mingyi finally asked, "Have all the people from the Zong family left?"

"They've all left long ago, not a single one is left."

Mingyi nodded, completely relieved. She took the cloth from Yuegui's hand, "I can do it myself."

Her fair skin was rubbed until it turned bright red, as if she wanted to rub off a piece of skin.