Dugu Jingyao is reborn as Li Chu's beloved

Chapter 216 Pavilion Set-up 1

After they stood up, the woman playing the zither said delicately, "I didn't know you were here, and I'm afraid I've disturbed your enjoyment, so I've come here to apologize." Her voice was melodious and graceful, like a yellow oriole singing in a valley, enchanting everyone. However, this beautiful sound did not move Chu Xinghan's heart.

Chu Xinghan was young and straight, so he wasn't impressed by this euphemism. So, he muttered bluntly, "You know you're disturbing our fun, but you're still playing. Besides, it doesn't sound very good." Although his voice wasn't loud, due to the limited space in the pavilion and the close proximity of everyone, his words were clearly heard by everyone.

The woman playing the zither instantly flushed red, like a ripe apple, upon hearing Chu Xinghan's words. She felt immensely ashamed and embarrassed, tears welling in her eyes, threatening to fall at any moment. She lowered her head and whispered softly, "I know I was wrong." There was a hint of grievance and helplessness in her voice.

Chu Xinghan realized his words might have been a bit harsh, and he didn't want to get into any more trouble with these noble ladies. After all, there were so many people present, and if word got out, it could negatively impact his reputation. So, he spoke to lighten the mood, saying, "Miss, I was a bit too blunt. I'm truly sorry." His tone was sincere and gentle, attempting to defuse the minor incident.

The noise here alarmed the people in several other pavilions, but the pavilion where Li Ruo and the others were was quite far away from the pavilion where the incident happened, so they could only hear the noise from that side.

Li Ruo and the others were chatting, but upon hearing the commotion, they couldn't help but frown, a look of displeasure on their faces. She turned to look at Ruyu beside her and said with a hint of dissatisfaction, "Ruyu, go see what's going on over there? It's so noisy, it's really disturbing the peace and quiet." Ruyu quickly obeyed, bowed respectfully, and hurried off.

About a cup of tea later, Ruyu hurried back. She looked anxious and nervous. When she saw Li Ruo, she blurted out, "Princess, something bad has happened!"

After hearing this, Li Ruo frowned slightly and responded unhappily, "What's wrong? I'm fine! Look at you, you're so flustered. How disgraceful!"

Just as Li Ruo was scolding Ruyu, Ruyu calmed down her rapid breathing and continued, "It's His Royal Highness Prince Guangping and his men who have been harassed by a few young ladies from official families. Quite a few people have gathered in the backyard, and everyone has rushed over to watch the fun."

Li Ruo was furious when she heard this. She remembered the two ignorant and careless women who had spoken without thinking. She had never imagined that someone would be so blind as to provoke her brothers again!

She was so angry that she slammed the table, stood up, and shouted angrily: "Why are there always so many people who ruin other people's fun? It's so hateful!"

Although Dugu Jingyao appeared calm on the surface, she was really worried that the men wouldn't be able to handle these weak opponents, so she suggested, "Why don't we go over and take a look?"

Liu Jingyue also echoed indignantly, "Yeah, I don't think these guys can handle those shameless people!"

Chu Xinyu naturally had to go. After all, she was the young mistress of this mansion. If the news from her mother was not timely, she could go over and take a look first.

So they rushed towards the pavilion over there.

When they arrived, they saw three young ladies from official families kneeling on the ground. One of them could be heard crying faintly, and the other two seemed to be cowering. Many other women were gathered around them, whispering to each other from time to time.

Li Ruo felt a surge of anxiety upon seeing this scene, and her pace quickened involuntarily. Before she even made it through the crowd, she couldn't wait to ask, "What happened? Why is it so bustling here? Why are you all gathered here?"

Hearing Li Ruo's voice, everyone looked towards her. The other ladies and young ladies immediately quieted down when they saw Li Ruo and the others arrive, and they all bowed and said, "Greetings to the Princess, the County Master, and Miss Chu!"

When Li Chu and others saw Li Ruo and others coming, they felt as if they had been pardoned, but at the same time they were also worried that Dugu Jingyao and Liu Jingyue would misunderstand them, and they became at a loss for a moment.

Li Neng waved hurriedly, "You're finally here! Come and sit over here!"

Li Ruo and the others, who had been so imposing before, returned to their usual selves, either dignified and quiet, or lively and lovely. They walked straight towards the pavilion where Li Chu and the others were.

When I got closer, I found that the three young ladies from official families were kneeling on the ground, which was quite a nuisance because they were kneeling at the entrance of the pavilion.

Li Ruo frowned and said unhappily, "Please move aside, you're blocking the road!"

The two young ladies from official families at the back immediately moved aside when they heard this. The young lady at the front who was crying with her face covered was startled when she heard this, but since the other party was a princess, she had no choice but to move. So she put away her handkerchief and slowly moved aside.

Li Ruo and the others were finally able to enter the pavilion. Li Chu and the others who were already inside hurriedly stood up to welcome them to a seat. After everyone was seated, Dugu Jingyao asked, "I wonder what happened? What made this young lady cry?"

Li Neng recounted word for word what had just happened.

After hearing this, Liu Jingyue could only sigh inwardly: "With this level of status, you still want to be the woman of the prince or the crown prince?"

Li Ruo also sighed inwardly: "That's it? Wouldn't it be better to just kick him out?"

When Dugu Jingyao heard what had happened and the subsequent conversation, everyone present suddenly realized that the problem lay with the three women.

Dugu Jingyao took a sip of tea and asked, "Whose families are these young ladies from?"

Several people answered. It turned out that the one in the front was the favored concubine of the Dali Temple Minister, named Gu Shiyi. The two behind her were the daughters of two sixth-rank officials, one named Zheng Wan and the other named Liu Jing.

Dugu Jingyao asked, "Miss Gu, since your father is the Minister of Justice, do you know what it is to slander the prince?"

Gu Shiyi was stunned when she heard this: "Princess, what do you mean?"

Dugu Jingyao smiled faintly and said, "Miss Gu, if I heard correctly, His Royal Highness Prince Jianning just said that you insisted on coming here to apologize. They didn't intend to hold you responsible for any wrongdoing, but you were the ones who stayed here and refused to leave."

Gu Shiyi sobbed a few times and said, "We just want to apologize to the nobles. Let them drink this cup of tea and regard it as forgiveness. What's wrong with that?"

Dugu Jingyao picked up the teacup and sniffed it, then glanced at Gu Shiyi and said, "Miss Gu, I'm giving you the respect you deserve. Do you want me to expose you in public?"

Gu Shiyi was stunned and thought: No, this medicine is colorless and tasteless, she won't know. She quickly recovered her composure and said: "I don't understand what the princess means."

Seeing that she was playing dumb, Dugu Jingyao didn't indulge her. She just took the teacup and handed it to Gu Shiyi, saying, "Well, Miss Gu, please drink this tea. If you drink it, I believe His Royal Highness the Prince of Guangping and the others will forgive you."

Gu Shiyi thought to herself: This tea is laced with that kind of drug. If I drink it, I must find a man. No, absolutely not. So she forced a smile and said, "Princess, this tea is prepared by me for His Highness. It's not okay for me to drink it, right?"

Li Chu thought: It seems that I was right not to let my brother drink it. This tea is indeed problematic! So he followed Dugu Jingyao's words and said: "What Jingyao said is what I said. As long as one of you drinks this tea, we will forgive you!"

Since the words had been passed here, Liu Jing and Zheng Wan looked at each other and both expressed that they were willing to drink. Gu Shiyi was a little anxious. When she saw Si Jian beside Dugu Jingyao about to hand the tea to Zheng Wan, Gu Shiyi suddenly pretended not to kneel steadily and moved towards Si Jian. She probably didn't expect Si Jian to be good at martial arts. He supported her with one hand and held the teacup very steadily with the other hand, and almost spilled the tea.

Si Jian also asked: "Miss Gu, are you okay?"

Gu Shiyi could only shake her head awkwardly and said, "Maybe I've been kneeling for too long, it's okay."

In the end, the cup of tea finally landed in Zheng Wan's hands. Gu Shiyi only thought: I've done my best to help, as long as I don't drink it...

Zheng Wan drank the tea in one gulp. Because Gu Shiyi had given them the drug without their knowledge, the two of them didn't know there was something wrong with the tea.