I only wished to take up my fiefdom, but my elder brother forced me to rebel.

Below the bathtub, Lu Yuan held his breath, supporting Zhao Mingzhu's calf with one hand and pressing down on the wound on her left arm with the other.

Zhao Mingzhu looked down at the water.

Beneath the petals, only half of Lu Yuan's eye was visible.

She pressed her toes against Lu Yuan's shoulder and pushed down hard, forcing a smile onto her face.

"Mother, no one has come in."

"Just now, a mouse scurried past from behind the screen. I hit it with a wooden ladle, but I accidentally knocked over the shelf."

Upon hearing this, Lu Yuan raised his eyes and glared at her.

You are a rat, and your whole family are rats.

Zhao Mingzhu understood his gaze, and pressed her toes against his chest, making him continue to sink.

Lu Yuan released her calf and pinched her waist.

Zhao Mingzhu's body stiffened, and she almost stood up from the bucket.

"what!"

Madam Zhao immediately bent down.

"What's wrong?"

Zhao Mingzhu looked down at the head that was faintly visible under the petals, wishing she could stomp Lu Yuan to the bottom of the bucket.

"fine."

"That wretched rat... seems to have scurried past my feet again."

Madam Zhao glanced behind the screen.

"Have the housekeeper buy a few cats tomorrow."

She didn't press the matter further and walked to the round table to sit down.

"You go ahead and wash, Mom has something to discuss with you."

Zhao Mingzhu's expression changed.

Lu Yuan closed his eyes and submerged his head in the water again.

The assassins outside haven't left yet; if he goes out now, he'll be killed.

"Mother, I'm a little sleepy."

"Let's talk about it tomorrow."

"You get sleepy every time you talk about marriage."

Madam Zhao tidied up her daughter's clothes and placed them on the wooden shelf next to the screen.

"Your cousin came to the mansion again today."

"He is twenty-one years old this year and has already secured a position in the Ministry of Rites. Your uncle said that as long as you get married, he will arrange a position for him as a principal officer next year."

Zhao Mingzhu rolled her eyes. "Wasn't that post in the Ministry of Rites arranged for him by Father?"

"He would only go out for three days a month, and after each shift, he would go to a restaurant to drink."

"Does Mother still expect him to be in charge?"

Madam Zhao frowned and said, "Your cousin is still young, it's normal for him to be a little playful."

"Twenty-one is still young?"

Zhao Mingzhu became increasingly angry as she spoke, "Last month, he lost eight hundred taels of silver at the gambling den in the south of the city, and my uncle paid it off for him."

"A few days ago, he went to a brothel with some bad friends and got drunk, so two girls had to carry him home."

"My mother wants me to marry someone like that?"

Mrs. Zhao looked somewhat embarrassed.

"Men who are playful before marriage will naturally settle down after marriage."

"Why gamble your daughter's entire life on whether he'll ever change his ways?"

"Your cousin knows you well, at least he won't bully you."

"When I was a child, he pushed me into the pond. Last year, he spied on the maid changing clothes at my grandmother's birthday banquet. A few days ago, he even cornered my uncle's concubine in the woodshed."

Zhao Mingzhu counted on her fingers and recounted one by one the outrageous things her cousin had done.

"If someone like that doesn't count as bullying me, then what does?"

Inside the bathtub, Lu Yuan closed his eyes and couldn't help but give her a thumbs up in his heart.

Although this girl has a fierce temper, she's not muddle-headed.

But Madam Zhao sat at the table, showing no intention of leaving.

Lu Yuan's chest felt bloated; he was about to burst.

He slowly raised his head, and as soon as his nose broke the surface of the water, he took a deep breath.

Zhao Mingzhu happened to be looking down.

Eyes facing each other.

She saw a man's head emerge from the middle of the petals and screamed softly in fright.

"what……"

Madam Zhao immediately stood up.

"What's wrong now?"

After taking a deep breath, Lu Yuan immediately sank back underwater.

Zhao Mingzhu pressed her hands against the edge of the bathtub, her chest heaving.

"It's nothing."

"The water is a bit cold."

"Mother, you should go out first."

Madam Zhao did not move.

"You haven't finished talking about your cousin's matter yet."

"What's there to say?"

Zhao Mingzhu quickly interrupted, "My daughter doesn't want to get married right now."

"Even if I were to marry, I wouldn't marry a good-for-nothing who's good at everything from eating and drinking to gambling and whoring."

Madam Zhao's face darkened.

"So what kind of person do you want to marry?"

Zhao Mingzhu looked down at the water.

The abyss hidden underwater has started to bubble up.

She grabbed a bath towel and covered the petal even more tightly.

"At the very least, one should have a sense of responsibility and accountability."

"He can protect his wife when things happen, instead of just going home to cry to his parents."

"It would be best if he knew some martial arts, so that when he wanders around aimlessly, he doesn't just know how to sneak into women's boudoirs!"

Zhao Mingzhu said the last sentence almost entirely through gritted teeth.

Madam Zhao was somewhat puzzled.

"Why are you bumping into things everywhere?"

"It's nothing."

Zhao Mingzhu immediately added, "My daughter was just giving a random example."

"Mother, let's talk about the marriage later."

Let me think about it some more.

Madam Zhao sighed.

"You've always had a strong sense of self-reliance since you were little."

"However, marriage is a matter of parental arrangement, and you can't do whatever you want."

"Although your cousin has some flaws, the marriage between the Zhao family and your uncle is beneficial to both families!"

Zhao Mingzhu looked displeased. "Then let Dad marry him."

"What nonsense are you spouting now, child?"

"Anyway, my daughter won't get married."

Knowing that she couldn't reason with her tonight, Madam Zhao had no choice but to walk towards the door.

"Go to bed early after you take a shower."

"Also, it seems a thief has broken into the courtyard. Don't run around anymore. Mother has ordered the guards to send more people to keep watch outside."

Zhao Mingzhu was very nervous and asked her mother, "Mom, did you see those people?"

"No!"

Mrs. Zhao turned to her and said, "But someone just mentioned that there are footprints on the backyard wall."

"Your father isn't home tonight, and most of the bodyguards are out escorting goods. If anything happens, leave through the secret passage behind the bed. Don't try to force your way out!"

Zhao Mingzhu nodded.

"My daughter knows!"

Madam Zhao left the room with two maids, closing the door behind her.

Lu Yuan waited a while longer, until the footsteps of those people had faded into the distance, before emerging from the water.

"call……"

He lifted his head and breathed heavily, his hands bracing against the edge of the bucket, his soaking wet hair plastered to the sides of his face.

To think that he, the dignified ninth prince of the Great Yong Dynasty, wielding the Imperial Sword, was being chased and killed outside the palace gates, was already humiliating enough.

Now they have to hide in girls' bathwater.

If this gets out, how will he ever be able to live in the capital again?

But despite the frustration, the bathtub wasn't a complete waste of time.

Lu Yuan wiped the water off his face, his gaze involuntarily drifting towards Zhao Mingzhu.

This girl looks young, but she has a very well-developed figure.

The area below her shoulders looked like it had been modified, and her skin was snow-white.

What's even more outrageous is that she is also very individualistic.

The type of girl that all men like!

Whoever marries her in the future will probably lose half their life in bed.

Zhao Mingzhu noticed his gaze and immediately covered herself with a bath towel.

"Are you still watching?"

"I couldn't see clearly underwater just now."

"lecher!"

"Alright, stop yelling."

Lu Yuan stood up, holding onto the edge of the tub. His wet clothes clung to his body, and blood was still seeping from the wound on his left arm.

"If you dawdle any longer, the assassins outside will come in and gouge my eyes out for you."

Zhao Mingzhu turned her face away.

"Get out of here right now!"

"Put your clothes on first."

"How am I supposed to dress if you're here?"

"Then I'll turn my back."

Lu Yuan stepped out of the bathtub, his shoes and socks completely filled with water.

He picked up the imperial sword and stood by the screen with his back to Zhao Mingzhu.

"hurry up."

"If I bleed to death and faint here, you'll be responsible for burying me."

Zhao Mingzhu grabbed her nightgown and quickly stepped out of the bathtub.

She wiped the water off her body, put on her undergarments, and then took out a light blue long dress.

After getting dressed, she glanced at Lu Yuan's back and quietly picked up the wooden stick used to prop open the window by the wall.

Lu Yuan was looking down to examine the injury on his left arm.

"Are you done?"

"alright."

"Have the people outside left?"

"How would I know?"

Zhao Mingzhu held the wooden stick and tiptoed toward him.

Lu Yuan was still speaking when he said, "I'll lure them away through the back window later. You go and tell your mother to take everyone in the mansion and hide."

"If those assassins are truly connected to the Fuyuan Escort Agency, then your Zhao family is not safe either."

"And one more thing, I have a question for you."

Zhao Mingzhu had already come up behind him, raised the wooden stick with both hands, and brought it down directly.