After being forced into a marriage with a wealthy family, the virtuous wife caused a huge uproar.

"Yinghong, what happened to them?" Rong Yingluo exclaimed in surprise.

"Miss, they fainted from fright." Yinghong was also terrified, but knowing her young mistress's abilities, she was somewhat confident.

Rong Yingluo was finally relieved.

After taking their pulses, it was confirmed that they had suffered from excessive convulsions.

She used silver needles to stimulate acupoints and woke the two of them up.

"Sister Rong," Ke Miaoran said abruptly as soon as she regained her senses, sitting up and hugging Rong Yingluo. "Are we dead? Are we in the underworld now?"

"Sister Ke, don't be afraid, we are all alive and well. It was Gu Ce who arrived in time to save us." Rong Yingluo gently patted her back.

It's perfectly normal for a woman confined to her home to faint from shock, having never witnessed such carnage.

Last night's fire had already left her shaken.

Although she didn't see it at the time, hearing what happened made her feel terrified.

"Really?" Ke Miaoran reached out to lift the carriage curtain and look outside.

"No, the battlefield outside is being cleaned up." Rong Yingluo immediately stopped her.

It's too gory; she's afraid her sister Ke will have nightmares if she sees it.

Gu Ce directed the guards to move the large rock, clearing the way.

The carriage continued on its journey.

Gu Ce left Zhong Sheng to handle the aftermath, while he rode his horse to protect the carriage.

The group of people sent Yan Miaoran home first.

The Qi family received no news and assumed that Gu Ce had kindly sent the person back.

Upon hearing that Gu Ce and his wife were personally escorting his wife back to the mansion, the second young master Qi immediately went out to greet them.

"Lord Gu, you're too kind. Since you're here, please come in for a cup of tea before you leave," Qi Zishuo said warmly.

The two were the same age and served as officials in the same court.

Now that the Qi family has benefited from what Madam Gu said in front of the Empress, he wants to befriend Gu Ce.

"No need, let's have tea another day. Take good care of your wife." Gu Ce said meaningfully, then turned his horse around and left.

It was nearly dark when they returned to the Gu residence.

Before they even entered the Silver Willow Courtyard, Granny Zhao came to greet them.

"Your Highness, Your Highness's Wife, and the Duchess of the State request your presence."

The two had no choice but to go and pay their respects to Su Jingyi first.

Upon arriving at the main courtyard, they found Su Jingyi sitting in the main hall.

She can get out of bed now.

At this moment, Rong Yingluo regretted letting her recover so quickly.

Since Doctor Qu is still in the manor, she cannot make another move, lest she tarnish Doctor Qu's medical reputation.

"Greetings, Mother." The two bowed.

"A-Ce, Liu-Li, it's good that you're back safe and sound. I was really worried about you for a while." Madam Su pretended to be a loving mother again.

"Thank you for your concern, Mother. But how did you know we were in danger?" Even the Qi family hadn't received the news, so Rong Yingluo wanted to hear what excuse she would use.

"My dear child, this is the first time you've spent the night away from home with your best friend, so your mother will naturally be extra careful. Jing'an Hall sends people to the capital every day to purchase kitchen supplies, and our household cook also needed to make some purchases. That's when we heard the news of the fire at Jing'an Hall last night."

"I originally intended to send someone to fetch you back to the manor, but then I heard that the young master led his men straight to the city gate from the government office, so I knew that A-Ce had gone to fetch you, and I didn't cause any more trouble," Su Jingyi explained.

That's a perfectly plausible excuse.

Rong Yingluo couldn't find an excuse to expose the incident. Su Shi didn't mention the robbery on the way, only talking about the fire.

Could it be that the robbers on the way were not arranged by her?

Rong Yingluo thought about it and realized that setting fire to Jing'an Hall was more like a woman's method, while arranging for robbers was more like a man's method.

Those bandits were not from the vicinity of the capital, and she received Ke Miaoran's invitation three days ago.

It's impossible to get a group of bandits from a hundred miles away to the capital in just three days, and to intercept her on her way back.

Who is it?

"Thank you for your concern, Mother. Fortunately, I was alert last night and escaped the fire." Rong Yingluo said, wiping away tears. "Mother, someone wanted to harm your daughter-in-law."

Rong Yingluo rushed over heartbrokenly, hugged Su Jingyi, and began to sob uncontrollably.

"Mother, you have no idea how scared I was. I've never been in such danger before. I hope you get well soon, and you can take me with you wherever you go. I'll have someone to rely on."

Just as she was holding Su Shi and crying, some powder fell onto Su Shi's head.

Rong Yingluo couldn't wait to deal with her later.

It's better to lay the groundwork in advance, just waiting for Dr. Qu to leave.

Su Jingyi felt uncomfortable being held by Rong Yingluo. She tried to push her away, but after a couple of attempts, she couldn't budge her.

I had no choice but to give up, but I couldn't suppress the frustration in my heart.

The fire at Jing'an Hall didn't kill her; how lucky she was.

She has to think of another way.

"Ugh!" Su Jingyi felt really uncomfortable and dry heaved.

Startled, Rong Yingluo immediately let go and stood up straight: "Mother, what's wrong with you?"

When Su Jingyi smelled Rong Yingluo's scent, she couldn't stop herself and vomited several times.

"Mother, are you pregnant?" Rong Yingluo exclaimed loudly, and even the maids outside the main hall heard her.

Upon hearing this, Gu Ce's eyes instantly curved into a smile: "Someone, quickly go and fetch the imperial physician."

Your wife is so talented.

Who would dare to say such a thing? Yet Rong Liuli said it without any restraint.

"Wait a minute." Su Jingyi waved her hand to stop her. "Liuli, where is this strong smell of blood coming from?"

Rong Yingluo was taken aback; it turned out she was overwhelmed by the smell of blood on her.

"Waaah, Mother." She cried even harder than before, "On our way back, we encountered a large group of bandits. They wanted to rape me and Sister Ke. But Sister Ke and I only had four guards with us."

We were terrified. The daughter-in-law thought she would never see the sun rise again, nor would she ever see her mother again. So she got out of the car and fought the bandits to the death, determined to take some of them down with her.

Just as a large knife was about to fall on me, my husband arrived just in time and saved us.

Mother, your daughter-in-law has never experienced such a thrilling moment in her life. Even after my husband and his men had killed all the bandits, I was still in shock.

Seeing the blood everywhere, the corpses, and the heads rolling off the ground, I felt nauseous and dry heaved for a while.

Rong Yingluo described the scene so vividly that it made the audience feel as if they were there.

She hoped Su Jingyi would have nightmares tonight.

"Stop talking." Su Jingyi gagged again, then her head lolled to the side and she fainted.

"Madam!" Granny Zhao exclaimed in surprise, "Young Madam, look how frightened the Duchess! You mustn't say such frightening things in front of Madam in the future. Madam's health has only just begun to improve."

"Yes, yes, it's all my fault. Quick, let's help Mother to the inner room to lie down." Rong Yingluo was very eager.

"Husband, why don't we call the royal physician to examine Mother?" Rong Yingluo winked at Gu Ce.

Gu Ce clenched his fist, put it to his lips, coughed lightly, nodded, and went out.

Only after stepping out of the main hall did he remove his fist, and the smile on his face could no longer be suppressed.

Rong was a prodigy; he himself was ashamed of his inferiority.

Inside the room, Rong Yingluo and Granny Zhao helped her lie down on the bed.

But Rong Yingluo did not leave. Instead, she sat on the edge of the bed, reached out and pinched Su Jingyi's philtrum, striking her hard.