The Dark Moonlight returns to the capital, and the mad prince is accused of forcing love.

Qiu Zhiqing's face flushed red and then turned pale.

A girl in purple tugged at her sleeve and whispered, "Zhiqing, let it go."

"What do you mean?" Qiu Zhiqing shook off the man. "This kind of lowly person is nothing more than a dog that the Duke's mansion used to keep. He actually dares to act like a guest. He really doesn't know who he is just because he has a different skin."

Xu Qianhui looked at her and smiled calmly.

Whether I am worthy or not is up to the old lady and my aunt to decide.

"If Miss Qiu is dissatisfied, she may wish to ask Ci'an Hall."

"It's also good to let the old lady know that among the noble ladies who came to celebrate her birthday today, there is someone who is better at managing the household than she is."

After these words were spoken, many people in the pavilion fell silent, and no one dared to say another word.

Today is a banquet at the Duke's mansion. Xu Qianhui has brought up the old lady, and even the most arrogant noble lady has to restrain herself.

Qiu Zhiqing, however, couldn't swallow this insult.

The vixen who never dared to utter a sound when he slapped her before actually dared to bare her teeth at him today.

This is truly a reversal of the natural order.

"You vile servant, how dare you slander me!" Qiu Zhiqing raised her hand to slap her. "I'll see who's going to protect you today!"

Xu Qianhui raised her hand and grabbed her wrist, smiling sweetly.

"Yes, I have someone protecting me. Doesn't Miss Qiu have one?"

"Given the prestige of the Minister's family, Miss Qiu should have more confidence than I do."

"Why must you lose your composure the moment you see me?"

"Let me go!" Qiu Zhiqing struggled to break free from Xu Qianhui's grasp. "You, Xu Qianhui, I'm going back to tell my husband! You just wait!"

The higher the social standing of a woman, the more she fears being labeled as having acted improperly.

Especially with so many noble ladies present today.

In the past, she would bully Xu Qianhui in private, but as long as she denied it to the death, no one could do anything to her.

If I lose my composure in front of everyone now, I'll become a laughing stock.

"Zhiqing, that's enough."

Lin Zhiwei slowly stepped forward, but did not help Qiu Zhiqing.

Xu Qianhui then saw clearly that Lin Zhiwei was wearing a moon-white dress and a white magnolia hairpin in her hair, looking like a fairy who had descended to earth.

Just now, she said that Qiu Zhiqing was interrogating her, but she didn't do anything. She waited until now to speak.

As expected of the eldest daughter of the Marquis of Wu'an, she is truly composed.

"Miss Xu, why be angry? Let bygones be bygones." Lin Zhi smiled at Xu Qianhui. "Yesterday, in the rush at Linlang Pavilion, I didn't even recognize you, Miss Xu. So, the one who jumped into the river was you."

Xu Qianhui's fingertips, hanging by her side, twitched, but she did not answer.

Qiu Zhiqing immediately felt confident.

"Sister Lin, you don't know, do you? That little slut caused such a ruckus in the Duke's mansion back then, all because of the young master. Even the Duchess publicly distanced herself from her. I never thought that this shameless hussy would dare to come back. She really is a vixen, always stirring up trouble."

"Zhiqing, you shouldn't say that." Lin Zhiwei covered her mouth and chuckled, "Miss Xu is also a person of strong character."

That noble lady speaks so beautifully.

The previous sentence says that the past is past and should be left alone, while the next sentence is sarcastic and mocking.

Finally, I must do a good deed.

Xu Qianhui shook her head. Qiu Zhiqing should really spend a lot of money to poach the governesses from the Marquis's mansion, so that she wouldn't just do things that embarrass the Minister's mansion all day long.

"Miss Lin is too kind," she said frankly. "When I was young and ignorant, I almost ruined the reputation of my family. Now I feel ashamed."

Lin Zhiwei looked at her: "It's rare to see Miss Xu think this way."

"People always need to improve," Xu Qianhui said. "If three years have passed and you're still using old stories as fresh topics of conversation, then you've lived in vain."

Qiu Zhiqing was about to speak again when Lin Zhiwei raised her hand to stop her.

"Are you referring to me, Miss Xu?"

Xu Qianhui glanced at the winding corridor in the distance, then looked at the group of noble ladies with their backs to the corridor, and smiled.

"Miss Lin is of noble birth and is engaged to the young master. Your bringing up the past is naturally out of concern for the young master."

"But there are many guests in the mansion today. If others hear about those old stories, gossip will inevitably spread."

"Miss Lin is destined to be the Crown Prince's wife, and will later become the mistress of the Duke's mansion. She surely wouldn't want her husband's reputation to be repeatedly discussed by others."

The smile on Lin Zhiwei's lips faded slightly.

This woman is indeed quick-witted and sharp-tongued.

Qiu Zhiqing said urgently, "You little bitch, first it was the old lady, now it's the young master, is all you can do is use people to intimidate others?"

"Miss Qiu, you misunderstand. I'm just thinking of Miss Lin, after all, Miss Lin is the one who will stand with the young master in the future." Xu Qianhui turned to her: "Miss Qiu, you're in such a hurry, it's hard to tell who cares more."

Qiu Zhiqing's face completely fell.

Everyone knows how crazy she used to be about Lin Zuoqing.

Taking advantage of his good relationship with Lin Zuoqing's younger sister, Lin Rulan, he would frequently visit the Duke's mansion.

Today I'll send you a handkerchief, tomorrow I'll send you food.

It's all stuff that's beneath my notice.

People used to laugh at her for this, saying that if she really loved the prince, why didn't she show some sincerity? Even if she didn't say much, a few thousand taels of gold would be enough to express her feelings.

As the daughter of the Minister of Revenue, if Qiu Zhiqing were to send three to five thousand taels of gold, her father would likely be summoned to the palace by the afternoon of the day she sent the gold.

After that, Qiu Zhiqing stopped sending gifts.

But she kept writing letters every day, showing no regard for a young woman's dignity, and every word was filled with love, affection, and longing for her beloved.

Even when she was eighteen, Lin Zuoqing still refused to marry her, so the Minister of Revenue finally married her off to a general.

What no one knew was that during that time, Lin Zuoqing showed his letters to Xu Qianhui for a whole year.

He would often lean on her shoulder and say sweetly, "Ah Hui, look how many people like me, you'd better hold on tight."

Xu Qianhui held on to him desperately.

But he let go first.

They even wished they could die themselves.

The girls around them suppressed their laughter, but because Lin Zhiwei was there, they all covered half of their faces with handkerchiefs.

Xu Qianhui bowed again and said, "Ladies, please continue your conversation. I shall take my leave now."

Unexpectedly, just as she walked past Qiu Zhiqing, a pair of hands suddenly shoved her.

Behind those hands was Qiu Zhiqing's ferocious face.

"Xu Qianhui, you bitch! Go to hell!"

The push was extremely forceful, and Xu Qianhui suddenly felt a loss of weight as her center of gravity shifted backward, causing her to fall straight towards the pond.

The next second, her dangling hand was tightly grabbed by a large hand.

Lin Zuoan pulled her up into his arms, still feeling lingering fear.

Just an inch away, just an inch away, Ah Hui almost fell into the water!

After confirming that the person was in his arms, he suddenly turned around and looked at Qiu Zhiqing.

"You're asking for it!"

As he spoke, he raised his leg to kick.

Xu Qianhui's face turned pale, and she quickly stopped him: "Zuo An, don't."

After saying that, she added, "There are many guests today, so it's not advisable to cause trouble."

Lin Zuo'an found it difficult to retract his foot, and after several breaths, he finally said, "I'll listen to you."

The noble ladies had never seen such a public display of violence before. They all turned pale and retreated, fearing that they would be implicated.

Qiu Zhiqing was quite frightened by Lin Zuoan's fierce appearance. She tried to suppress her fear as she worked.

"Second Young Master is so unreasonable! It was clearly that little bitch Xu Qianhui who offended me. Can't I even punish her a little?!"

"Who do you think you are, giving you the right to speak here?" Lin Zuo'an gritted his teeth and looked behind the women. "Brother, I had no idea that the Duke's mansion was now ruled by an outsider?"