Chapter 98: Fury

Chapter 98: Fury

This is the place.

In the scene, the little girl was knocked into the air and crashed heavily into a patch of wild chrysanthemums.

There were many patches of wild chrysanthemums on the mountain, but this was the only one that matched the scene.

"Ling cousin, let's pick some chrysanthemums."

Duan Yunling happily agreed.

"Miss, slow down."

Xin You heard the voice and saw the little girl named Fu'er skipping and running, with several maids chasing after her.

The mountain was full of people, and the little girl had maids to take care of her, so there shouldn't have been any danger. But accidents often happen in an instant.

Xin You had just straightened up when she saw Dai Ze sprint out from the nearby woods. Whether he saw the little girl or was too panicked to notice anything, he lunged to the side at that moment.

The little girl stood frozen, not moving as the massive creature charged towards her.

Screams erupted from all directions.

At the critical moment, a figure rushed over, grabbed the frozen little girl, and rolled away.

The wild boar charged past, and amidst the screams, the guards who arrived managed to surround it. After a difficult struggle, they finally killed it. The boar was fierce and injured two guards.

"Miss, are you alright?" Several maids rushed over, their faces pale with fear.

Xin You released the little girl and stood up.

The little girl was still in shock, her face blank.

"Miss, are you hurt?" One maid, in a panic, tried to pull the little girl's hand.

The little girl trembled, gripping Xin You's sleeve tightly, but still did not cry or make a fuss.

The maids looked at Xin You helplessly.

Having successfully saved the little girl, Xin You felt quite relieved inside but kept a serious expression. She said, "Your miss might be in severe shock; she needs time to recover."

The maids immediately dared not move her again.

With such a major incident, more people gathered, and Princess Royale Zhaoyang, upon hearing the report from the maids, hurried over.

"Fu'er!" Seeing the motionless little girl from afar, Princess Royale Zhaoyang called out.

Hearing her mother's voice, the little girl slowly turned her head.

Princess Royale Zhaoyang rushed forward and embraced her daughter. "Fu'er, how are you?"

The little girl finally burst into tears. "Mother, I'm so scared. It was so big, such a huge monster."

"Fu'er, don't be afraid. That wasn't a monster, just a wild boar." Princess Royale Zhaoyang comforted her daughter, her gaze sharp as she scanned the maids. "What exactly happened?"

One maid, trembling, replied, "The miss ran towards this direction, and we followed behind. Suddenly, someone came out of the woods and almost collided with the miss but dodged to the side. Unexpectedly, a wild boar chased after him and headed straight for the miss. Fortunately, Miss Kou rushed out and rolled the miss to safety."

Princess Royale Zhaoyang listened with a tumultuous heart and then turned to Xin You.

Xin You curtsied in greeting.

"Thank you, Miss Kou," Princess Royale Zhaoyang expressed her gratitude. This was not the time for further conversation, so she coldly asked the maids, "Who was the one who brought the wild boar here?"

"It was Count Gu Chang's son, Dai Ze."

The shaken Dai Ze, pushed by someone, appeared before Princess Royale Zhaoyang.

Realizing the trouble he had caused, Dai Ze quickly apologized, "I was being chased by the wild boar and couldn't see anything. I didn't notice your daughter ahead."

"How did you provoke the wild boar?"

Dai Ze's eyes flickered as he stammered, "I went into the woods to relieve myself and accidentally startled the wild boar."

Count Gu Chang and his wife also hurried over.

"Useless brat!" Count Gu Chang slapped his son and quickly apologized to Princess Royale Zhaoyang.

Though Countess Gu Chang felt heartache for her son being slapped, she did not dare show any displeasure and followed her husband in apologizing.

They were the brother and sister-in-law of Consort Shu and the uncle and aunt of the Second Prince, but Princess Royale Zhaoyang was the Emperor's only sibling, someone truly not to be offended.

"This foolish child acted recklessly. We will punish him severely once we return. Please forgive him, Your Highness."

The little girl's crying drew Princess Royale Zhaoyang's attention back.

"Fu'er, don't be afraid. Let's go back to the tent." Princess Royale Zhaoyang gave Count Gu Chang and his wife a cold nod and led the little girl away.

Seeing Princess Royale Zhaoyang leave with her daughter, Dai Ze breathed a sigh of relief but was immediately dragged away by Count Gu Chang.

On the way back to the tent, Princess Royale Zhaoyang summoned a guard and whispered instructions.

The dead wild boar still lay on the ground, guarded by two men, and the crowd showed no signs of dispersing. Many even approached Xin You to talk.

"Miss Kou, it was you who saved the Princess Royale's beloved daughter?"

"Just a coincidence," Xin You responded, pulling Duan Yunling away.

Duan Yunling had never been surrounded by so many people before. After escaping the crowd, she breathed a sigh of relief and looked at Xin You with bright eyes. "Cousin Qing, you're amazing. In that situation, I was so scared my mind went blank, but you managed to save her."

"Instinctive reaction, I didn’t even realize my movements were that fast." In front of the Duan family, Xin You naturally couldn’t reveal that she knew martial arts.

"Sister Qing, you saved the daughter of the Princess Royale. She will surely express her gratitude properly, and from now on, no one will dare to slight you." Duan Yunling was genuinely happy for her cousin.

Though she was a flower nurtured within the inner quarters, she understood that a young woman would face many storms outside.

"Saving someone is about saving them; there’s no need to think about anything else. Let’s return to Grandmother," Xin You said calmly, though her heart wasn’t as tranquil.

For her, saving someone purely was the priority, but she didn’t want to reject the benefits that might come afterward.

She needed to enter this circle to facilitate her investigation and revenge.

Back in the tent, Princess Royale Zhaoyang held her daughter in her arms and comforted her gently.

The two guards assigned to investigate returned.

"Did you find anything unusual?" Princess Royale Zhaoyang asked.

The heir of Count Gu Chang had a notorious reputation; she didn’t believe it was just an accidental disturbance of wild boars.

"Reporting to Your Highness, we found a litter of piglets in the forest. Those piglets—" The guard paused, seemingly unsure how to continue.

Princess Royale Zhaoyang’s face darkened. "Speak."

The guard lowered his head. "Those piglets had the smell of urine—"

Even with Princess Royale Zhaoyang’s experience, she was momentarily stunned.

Piglets with the smell of urine—stench!

The other guard directly stated the conclusion: "It seems the heir of Count Gu Chang urinated near those piglets, which attracted the sow."

Princess Royale Zhaoyang’s face darkened further.

That was what that scoundrel called accidentally disturbing the wild boars!

If not for Miss Kou’s rescue, Fu’er might have—

The more Princess Royale Zhaoyang thought about it, the angrier she became. After descending the mountain, she didn’t even return to the Eldest Princess’s Residence but headed straight for the palace.

Emperor Xingyuan had also climbed a mountain today, albeit the Qing Mountain within the imperial city. He had only just returned to rest when an eunuch reported that Princess Royale Zhaoyang wished to see him.

After years of turmoil, excluding later generations, Emperor Xingyuan had only two remaining blood relatives: his elderly mother and his sister. Upon hearing that the Princess Royale sought an audience, he immediately ordered her to be brought in.