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

Early the next morning!

Lu Yuan opened his eyes and found himself tied up and thrown next to a pile of firewood, with a rag stuffed in his mouth.

He turned his head away and spat the rag onto the ground.

"Pooh!"

"That woman is ruthless."

Last night, Zhao Mingzhu struck him with a stick, and he didn't even have a chance to dodge. When he woke up, he was in this state.

Lu Yuan looked down at his left arm.

The wound has been treated with medicine and wrapped with several layers of clean gauze.

Although the bandage wasn't very neat, the bleeding finally stopped.

"Impact first, then treat—that's quite meticulous."

Lu Yuan flexed his wrists and turned to get closer to the woodpile.

He found half a broken iron hoop under a piece of firewood and rubbed the rope against the sharp edge.

Shortly afterward, the rope broke.

Lu Yuan tore off the ropes binding him and first reached for his waist.

The imperial sword has disappeared.

His outer robe was also changed last night, leaving him only with an undergarment that had been washed but not dried.

"They tied up the prince, seized his sword, and even stripped him of his clothes."

"Zhao Mingzhu, your entire family must be quite busy."

Lu Yuan pushed open the door to the woodshed, preparing to climb over the wall to leave, when a figure bumped into him.

Zhao Mingzhu covered her forehead and took two steps back.

She recognized Lu Yuan and immediately pointed to the woodshed.

"How did you get out?"

Lu Yuan looked down at her. "I haven't asked you yet."

"I saved you, and you tied me up in the woodshed? Don't you have any conscience?"

"You dare talk about conscience?"

Zhao Mingzhu raised her hand to press down on her skirt, and the events in the bathtub last night came back to mind.

"You barged into my boudoir, watched me bathe, and even hid in my bathtub."

"You're lucky you weren't handed over to the authorities."

Lu Yuan raised his injured arm.

"I have important matters to attend to and don't have time to play with you."

Zhao Mingzhu grabbed his sleeve and waved towards the outside of the courtyard.

"Someone come here!"

Four maids rushed in immediately.

Someone grabbed Lu Yuan's right arm, someone blocked the door, and two others grabbed his clothes and pushed him into the woodshed.

"Miss, we've caught him!"

"Should we tie it up again?"

"Let's use iron chains this time; hemp rope won't be able to restrain him."

Lu Yuan looked at the few girls surrounding him, his face full of helplessness.

If he really wanted to make a move, these people wouldn't be able to stop him at all.

But these maids had treated his wounds last night, and they didn't have any weapons.

He can't just turn everyone upside down over something like this.

Lu Yuan simply put his hands behind his back.

"Alright, stop talking nonsense."

"You guys have practically torn this dress to shreds."

A round-faced maid stood protectively in front of Zhao Mingzhu.

"Miss, he dared to yell at us."

Another maid immediately retorted, "He wasn't being fierce; you were just gripping him too tightly."

"Whose side are you on?"

"I'm helping the young lady, but her arm is indeed injured."

Zhao Mingzhu glared at the group.

"Take him to the side hall."

Lu Yuan did not resist and allowed the four maids to surround him and lead him into the small hall next door.

Zhao Mingzhu asked someone to close the door and then sat down in the main seat.

She had changed into a long dress with narrow sleeves, and her hair was tied up.

The woman who hid in the bathtub last night, looking embarrassed and annoyed, now exudes the air of a young lady from a security escort agency.

"Name."

Lu Yuan stood in the hall.

"I can't say."

Place of origin.

"I can't say either."

"Who was chasing you last night?"

"have no idea."

Zhao Mingzhu picked up the teacup, but then put it back on the table.

"If you dare to be evasive again, I will have someone report you to the authorities right now."

"Go."

Lu Yuan pulled out a chair and sat down. "By the way, tell the Jingzhao Prefecture that you harbored an assassin last night, knocked him unconscious, and confiscated his sword."

"Tell them to bring more people, so they won't be unable to carry you later."

Zhao Mingzhu laughed in anger, "You barged into my boudoir, and now you're making me a harem assassin?"

Why were those men in black only chasing you?

"Who knows if you've offended someone and are deliberately hiding in Fuyuan Escort Agency to avoid trouble?"

Lu Yuan leaned back, his expression calming down.

"Miss Zhao, you'd better not know who I am."

Why?

"Because if you release me now, you can be considered innocent due to ignorance."

Lu Yuan held up his arm, which was red from being tied with a rope, to show her.

"Once you know who I am, you can tie me up, impale a sword on me, and lock me in the woodshed. Each of these actions is enough to punish me."

The round-faced maid couldn't help but say, "Miss, is he just trying to scare us?"

The other person scrutinized Lu Yuan's undergarment. Last night, he wore brocade, and the belt still bore subtle patterns left over from the palace, so Lu Yuan was definitely not an ordinary person.

"Things in the palace are not only for members of the royal family."

"But that sword is also very valuable!"

Zhao Mingzhu turned her head towards the maids.

"Shut up, all of you."

She stared at Lu Yuan again, "There are many important people in the capital, and our Zhao family is not someone we can bully."

"Zhao Guoqiang, the Minister of Rites, is my great-uncle!"

"Fuyuan Escort Agency has been operating in the capital for over twenty years. People in the six ministries of the imperial court and various border camps have all done us a favor!"

"If you truly have an identity, then state your name."

Stop playing tricks on me.

Lu Yuan rubbed his still aching head, then reached out his hand to her.

"Give me back my sword."

Zhao Mingzhu made no move.

"On what grounds?"

"You personally deliver the sword to Zhao Guoqiang."

Lu Yuan looked at her. "He has seen that sword before and knows who its owner is."

"Your great-uncle will tell you who I really am without me having to say a word."

The toughness on Zhao Mingzhu's face lessened somewhat.

She examined the sword last night.

The scabbard bears no name, but it is stamped with the mark of being made in the palace.

The blade is sharp, and the material is far superior to the weapons used by the escort agency.

Not everyone is qualified to wear such a sword.

Zhao Mingzhu glanced at his left arm.

"What is your relationship with the palace?"

"You wouldn't believe me even if I told you."

Lu Yuan stood up and walked towards the door.

Several maids quickly stopped him.

Lu Yuan stopped and turned to look at Zhao Mingzhu.

"I advise you to release me now."

"It's easy to invite a god, but hard to send him away."

"Keep me here a little longer. Once my family comes looking for me, things won't be up to you anymore."

"At that time, not only Zhao Guoqiang, but the entire Ministry of Rites will not be able to protect you."

Zhao Mingzhu did not immediately refute.

She got up and walked to Lu Yuan, circling him twice.

"It's not impossible for me to let you go."

Lu Yuan raised an eyebrow.

"Any more conditions?"

"If I hadn't covered for you last night, you would have been found by those assassins long ago."

Zhao Mingzhu pointed to his left arm, "I also had the maid treat your injury."

You owe me a life.

"If it weren't for that blow from you last night, I wouldn't have had to sleep in the woodshed."

"You deserve it."

Zhao Mingzhu raised her chin. "Who gave you permission to peek at me while I'm showering?"

"I've already said it was a misunderstanding."

"You dare bring it up again?"

"Okay, let's not talk about it."

Lu Yuan was too lazy to argue with her. "What exactly do you want me to do?"

Zhao Mingzhu did not answer immediately.

She first sent two maids out to guard the gate, and then had someone fetch Lu Yuan's outer robe and sword.

"After you help me with something, I'll personally see you off."

Lu Yuan took the outer robe and the imperial sword.

"Tell me what it is first."

Zhao Mingzhu glanced at the door and said, "My mother wants to marry me off to my cousin."

"Is that the good-for-nothing we talked about last night, the one who gambles, drinks, and whores, and even peeks at the maids changing clothes?" Lu Yuan asked curiously.

"That's right."

Zhao Mingzhu gritted her teeth, "He will come to propose marriage today."

"My father has gone to escort goods with his bodyguards and won't be back for a while. My mother has already instructed the steward to prepare a banquet, making it clear that she wants to finalize the marriage."

"Help me sabotage this marriage."