Chapter 76

Fifty thousand seemed indeed too much, so Dou Qing thought for a moment and said, “I won’t haggle with you. I’ll settle for twenty thousand taels, and we’ll call it even.”

Suddenly, a voice, neither cold nor warm, drifted in on the wind:

“Truly a generous offer.”

Upon hearing this voice, Shen Yu was suddenly shocked. Wasn’t he supposed to be in the palace today? How could he be here?

The crowd parted to make way, and soldiers cleared a path as a carriage slowly approached the door.

The carriage looked quite ordinary from the outside, probably not belonging to a high-ranking official, at most a fifth or sixth-tier official.

Dou Qing didn’t pay any attention to it, disdainfully glancing over and saying, “Who are you?”

As if he hadn’t heard Dou Qing’s words, Xian Feng stepped out of the carriage, lifting the curtain.

Inside the carriage, Xie Tingzhou wore a plain blue robe, his face somewhat pale as he leaned against the carriage wall, his gaze toward Shen Yu carrying a faint chill.

Shen Yu hesitated for a moment before whispering, “Your Highness.”

Dou Qing was startled, stuttering, “Wh-which Your Highness?”

There were more than ten princes in the capital, and Dou Qing hadn’t seen most of them. It was possible he had encountered one of the imperial relatives by chance.

Xie Tingzhou glanced sideways and said, “Bind him.”

Shen Yu was shocked.

The next moment, she saw Dou Qing’s hands being tied behind his back by someone.

“Eh, hey, you’ve got the wrong person… Ouch, that hurts…” Dou Qing howled like a pig being slaughtered.

Xie Tingzhou raised his hand to press his temple, “Tie him up.”

The bailiffs swiftly took action, and soon there was only Dou Qing’s muffled cries left.

Xie Tingzhou had originally gone to the palace, but feeling unwell at the banquet, he had to return to the mansion first. On the way, he coincidentally encountered the bailiffs from the Dou Mansion, who had been informed of a disturbance and came to handle it.

This was the route Xie Tingzhou had to take back to the mansion, and he didn’t expect the troublemaker to be Shi Yu.

The bailiffs had already recognized this person as an acquaintance of the Prince of Beilin.

A bailiff walked up to Shen Yu, “Please come with us to the yamen, young master, and explain this matter.”

Feeling the piercing gaze from Xie Tingzhou, Shen Yu slowly reached out her hand to help the bailiff tie Dou Qing up. “Thank you for your trouble, brother bailiff.”

Xie Tingzhou’s gaze turned even colder, pursing his lips. “Get in the carriage.”

Shen Yu hesitated.

“Do I have to ask you nicely?” His voice grew colder, and after speaking, Xie Tingzhou lightly coughed twice.

Xie Tingzhou’s face looked very pale today, and Shen Yu was afraid of angering him, so she quickly climbed into the carriage, sitting at the front by the door, not daring to look at Xie Tingzhou.

As the curtain was lowered, the light dimmed slightly inside the carriage. The interior was quite spacious, with a small table in the middle, and a small stove underneath emitting heat.

Xian Feng flicked the reins, and the carriage gently swayed.

The interior of the carriage was unusually quiet, so Shen Yu had to lift a corner of the curtain and pretend to look outside.

“You’re throwing out tens of thousands of taels of silver just like that. Are you going to rob the rich and help the poor?” Xie Tingzhou asked.

Shen Yu lowered the curtain and sat up straight, awkwardly saying, “You know very well where the money came from.”

Xie Tingzhou let out a light snort, sounding a little unhappy. It seemed someone had offended him again.

Xie Tingzhou remained silent, just looking at her calmly. After a moment, he asked, “I heard you’re acting as a relative for Jiang Lianzhi?”

Shen Yu looked at Xie Tingzhou, puzzled. “What?”

Xie Tingzhou said, “Dou Qing’s father is Jiang Lianzhi’s uncle. If you’re his father, aren’t you Jiang Lianzhi’s uncle too?”

Shen Yu said, “…If I were his father, I’d have angered him to death long ago.”

Xie Tingzhou’s eyes narrowed slightly, his face stern, his lips pressed into a straight line.

She was really bold, daring to make up such nonsense in front of him, and she counted on him not exposing her lies directly?

Feeling his heavy gaze, Shen Yu suddenly had a flash of insight and said with a smile:

“Your Highness has sharp eyes and discernment, and nothing escapes your sight.”

“Your flattery has reached a new level,” Xie Tingzhou said. “Speak plainly.”

“Yes,” Shen Yu sat up straight, saying, “I wonder if Your Highness still remembers when we were in the inn woodshed. Actually, I wasn’t pretending to be gay, I really am. If someone as worldly charming as Your Highness rejects me, I can only settle for second best. I heard that Mr. Jiang is not bad, so I wanted to leave a good impression on him.”

In addition to excelling in flattery, she was also a master at making up nonsense.

A girl telling him she’s gay? Where did she cut it off? With what?

Xie Tingzhou’s face turned iron-gray, giving her a headache. He closed his eyes, pressing his temples, and said, “Get out.”

“Sure thing.” Shen Yu lifted the curtain and realized they had arrived at the capital’s yamen.

Since they were involved in this matter, they had to go through the courtroom.

When Shen Yu and Xie Tingzhou arrived in the hall, Dou Qing had already been untied and was even given a seat. He sat on one side of the courtroom, sipping tea with his legs crossed.

In the hall was a middle-aged man with gray hair, dressed in official robes washed to a pale white, giving the impression of a clean official. But just looking at him untying Dou Qing and then serving him tea, the water here seemed a bit muddy.

Seeing Xie Tingzhou, Liu Fu rushed to greet him and bowed, “Greetings, Your Highness. Please take a seat.”

Xie Tingzhou declined politely, “Mr. Liu, there’s no need for formalities. I’m just here to observe.”

After speaking, he looked at Dou Qing, who quickly put down his tea and stood up.

Just now, when Dou Qing called him “Your Highness,” who else in the capital could make this ordinary-looking man behave like this except Xie Tingzhou?

Today was probably going to be troublesome, so he quickly signaled the servant standing at the door to bring reinforcements.

Liu Fu returned to his seat in the hall and slammed his hand on the table, “Who are you people?”

Shen Yu glanced at Xie Tingzhou, then bowed and said, “Greetings, sir. I am Shi Yu, a commoner.”

Dou Qing met Xie Tingzhou’s cold gaze and hurriedly said, “My name is Dou Qing.”

Without beating around the bush, Liu Fu asked directly, “What’s the matter with you two?”

Dou Qing immediately exclaimed, “This young master… I was just walking down the street peacefully when he suddenly attacked and killed my horse. He not only injured me but also drew his sword against me. Sir, such audacious behavior cannot go unpunished.”