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

The young eunuch trembled with fear and quickly called another companion to move the stretcher to a shady spot under a pillar.

Lu Cheng was finally free from the sun, but just as he breathed a sigh of relief, he heard hurried footsteps coming from inside the palace.

Before I could even turn around, I saw a figure rush out of the small hall entrance at incredible speed, like a wild dog that had broken free of its reins.

Lu Yuan hummed a little tune and ran down the steps in two quick steps, without even glancing to the side.

Bang.

Lu Yuan's knee hit the side of the stretcher.

The force was unimaginable; the stretcher was thrown off, and both the person and the stretcher tumbled down the steps, crashing headfirst onto the stone ground after rolling seven or eight steps.

Lu Cheng rolled down the steps with his stretcher, bounced twice on the ground, and let out a howl.

"Ah... my legs! My legs!"

The two eunuchs turned pale and stood there trembling, unable to move for a long time.

Lu Yuan paused for a moment, then peered down the steps at the overturned stretcher and even lifted his leg to loosen his knee.

"Whoa, what's blocking the way?"

He leaned closer to the steps and looked down. Under the stretcher was a hand wrapped in gauze, which twitched slightly.

"Second Imperial Brother?"

Lu Yuan slapped his forehead and waved to the two stunned eunuchs.

"What are you standing there for? Didn't you see the Second Prince fall down the steps? Get him to the Imperial Hospital right away! If you dawdle any longer and something serious happens, can you two take the blame?"

The two eunuchs then realized what was happening and hurriedly ran down the steps to turn the stretcher over.

Lu Cheng's face was covered in purplish-blue marks, and blood seeped through the gauze.

He was still muttering something indistinctly, but his voice was so soft that others could hardly hear him.

After watching them carry the stretcher away, Lu Yuan patted the dust off his clothes.

"If such a useless person really becomes the crown prince, how miserable will the common people be?"

……

On the other hand, after leaving the palace, Lu Yuan rode his horse to the gate of the Yongning Earl's Mansion.

The Yongning Earl's Mansion is located in the south of the capital. It is not large in area, nor is its facade.

If it weren't for the two stone lions at the entrance with the words "Yongning" engraved on their bases, passersby probably wouldn't recognize this as the Earl's mansion.

Since the founding of the Dayong Dynasty, the Yongning Marquis's family has been passed down for four generations.

The first-generation Earl followed the founding emperor in conquering the country, earning his title through hard work and battles.

The second and third generations of the Su family's male members joined the battle one after another.

To date, all nine sons and grandsons of the Su family have died in battle.

The eldest son died in the northern frontier, the second son died in the western Liang, the third and fourth sons died on the way to quell a rebellion, the eldest and second grandsons died in the southern barbarians, the third and fourth grandsons died in Liaodong, and the youngest grandson, who had just turned sixteen last year, died in the southwestern border region while suppressing a rebellion by a chieftain.

Nine lives, nine coffins—these filled the entire Su family ancestral hall back then.

Half of Yongning Bo Su Tan's hair was white, and his back was hunched, but his waist was still very straight.

He now has only one granddaughter, named Su Yuling.

He is the only bloodline of the Su family.

"A family of loyal martyrs!"

After dismounting, Lu Yuan sighed for a moment, then went to knock on the door.

At this moment, the door to the ancestral hall of the Earl's Mansion was bolted shut from the inside.

Su Yuling knelt before the ancestral tablets, holding a white strip of cloth in her hand, which she then hung on the roof beam.

There were no tears on her face, and her eyes were calm, as if she had made a very ordinary choice.

Su Tan, who was outside the door, paced anxiously, tapping his cane on the ground with a loud thud.

"Yu Ling, open the door for Grandpa!"

Su Tan's voice was hoarse from shouting, and there was a tremor in his aged voice.

"Listen to your grandfather, our Su family is a family of military generals, we don't respect any pedantic scholars. If anyone dares to gossip, I'll snap their head off!"

On the path next to the ancestral hall, several aunts and sisters-in-law of the Su family were weeping.

Aunt Zhao's eyelids were swollen badly, and she kept crying while leaning against the door frame.

"Yu Ling, why are you so stubborn? This isn't your fault, hurry up and open the door!"

Aunt Li, standing nearby, also cried, "Yes, Yuling, you are the only bloodline of the Su family. If something happens to you, how will your grandfather live?"

Inside the ancestral hall, Su Yuling knelt on a prayer mat, facing the door.

When she heard people crying and trying to comfort her outside, she did not show any emotion.

"grandfather."

Su Yuling's voice came from the small crack; it was very calm, not like that of someone who was about to die.

"The matter at the Ninth Prince's residence has already spread throughout the entire capital. My granddaughter's innocence is gone; whether she lives or dies in the Earl's mansion, it's all the same."

Su Tan tapped the ground twice with his cane.

"Nonsense, you were drugged, it wasn't your own choice. Who would dare to gossip like that?"

"Whether you are innocent or not depends not on whether you are willing to do it, but on the final result."

Su Yuling's voice was very calm.

"The news that the eldest daughter of the Yongning Marquis's family and the Ninth Prince were trapped in a room, disheveled, has spread throughout the entire capital. As long as the granddaughter is alive, those rumors will haunt the Marquis's family for the rest of their lives."

Su Tan gripped his cane tightly, the veins on his fingers bulging.

He had fought battles his entire life, killing countless people on horseback, but now, faced with his granddaughter's words, he couldn't refute a single one.

Because Su Yuling is right.

People in the capital really speak so harshly.

"Even if I don't marry the Second Prince, I can marry the Ninth Prince!"

The ancestral hall was quiet when Su Yuling spoke again.

"Grandpa, the Ninth Prince Lu Yuan has no ambition and only knows how to indulge in pleasure. How can I, your granddaughter, marry him and bring shame to the Earl's mansion?"

Su Tan's eyes were all red.

"He can't die. If he's hopeless, I'll personally plaster him onto the wall."

He whirled around and shouted to the butler, Su Fu, who was following behind him, "Go! Break down the door!"

Su Fu hesitated for a moment, looking somewhat troubled.

"Lord, the ancestral hall's main gate has been damaged; this is disrespectful to our ancestors..."

"Respect my ass!"

Su Tan struck Su Fu on the shoulder with his cane, the force so great that Su Fu staggered back two steps.

"They can't possibly have any divine power! If our ancestors could truly manifest, they wouldn't have stood by and watched their descendants die on the battlefield. Let's run them over!"

Su Fu suppressed the pain in his shoulder, gritted his teeth, and called over two burly old women and three servants, who together slammed the door panel against the gate of the ancestral hall.

Tap tap tap, thud, thud.

One, two, three.

The door remained motionless.

The door of the Su Family Ancestral Hall is made of ironwood. It was very sturdy when Su Tan's father built it, just like a city wall.

Su Tan was so anxious that he picked up his cane and banged on the door. After banging on it three or four times, the cane was bent.

Inside the ancestral hall, Su Yuling knelt before the memorial tablet. After hearing the sound of someone banging on the door outside, she slowly kowtowed.

"Ancestors, your unfilial granddaughter has come to join you today."

At this moment, a errand boy came running from the direction of the mansion gate, shouting as he ran.

"Master, Master, the Ninth Prince has arrived. He's at the gate and says he's here to see you and Miss."