Springtime Affairs in a Noble Family

Qin Shaoyuan came over to explain, "Brother Xu, don't get agitated. Yunting is drunk, and we just wanted to help him to rest."

"Pah! My brother can drink a thousand cups without getting drunk, how could he possibly get drunk?" Shuanzi shielded his brother behind him. Before they came, his brother had said that the Qin family was a trap, and it turned out to be true!

Qin Shaoyuan was in a real bind, so focused on drugging Xie Yunting that he forgot about Xu Shuanzi, that idiot.

At this point, a direct confrontation is not advisable.

He insisted it was a misunderstanding. "I was really drunk. Don't get agitated. Since you don't trust me, I'll have someone prepare a carriage to take you home, okay?"

Given Xie Yunting's condition, he cannot ride a horse. If he goes out like this, he will definitely be seen.

Xie Yunting already had a bad reputation, and if he appeared on the street in a state of mental confusion, who knows what people would say about him.

Shuanzi was simple-minded to begin with, and seeing that the Qin family was willing to release him, he nodded.

The carriage was quickly prepared, and Shuanzi helped his elder brother onto it.

He nervously patted his elder brother's face, but before the carriage had gone far, he smelled a strange odor and, without thinking, dragged his elder brother and crashed the carriage.

"Hey, where are you going?" the coachman asked, chasing after them.

Shuanzi carried his elder brother on his back and ran very fast. He turned a corner and heard the Qin family's servant chasing after him.

In the chaos, he saw the carriage of the Marquis of Jiangyuan's residence and learned that it was the carriage of Lady Song. He quickly threw his elder brother into the carriage.

"Please trouble you, Madam, to take a detour and escort the General back to the Xie residence. I will explain afterwards!" Shuanzi wasn't very bright, but he understood now that the Qin family must have drugged his elder brother.

He took a shortcut to the Xie residence. Damn Qin Shaoyuan, once he gathers his brothers, he'll smash the Qin family to pieces, or he's not a Xu!

Meanwhile, Cui Lingrong, inside the carriage, looked completely bewildered.

Qiu's mother poked Xie Yunting's arm. Xie Yunting lay motionless on the wooden board. If it weren't for the fact that he was still breathing, he would have looked dead.

"Grandma, General Xie smells strongly of alcohol; he seems drunk?" said Mama Qiu.

When Cui Lingrong looked down, she did smell the alcohol. She took the kettle, intending to moisten Xie Yunting's throat, but Xie Yunting, who was lying down, suddenly grabbed her wrist.

The man's palms were calloused, making her feel itchy and sore. She tried to pull them off, but couldn't budge them, and could only remain in an awkward position.

Aside from Song Shulan, Cui Lingrong had never been held hands by a man before, and her cheeks instantly turned red.

She was too embarrassed to even look at Qiu's mother, so she could only hunch over and call out "General Xie" over and over again, trying to wake Xie Yunting.

Unfortunately, Xie Yunting remained unconscious.

Cui Lingrong was so embarrassed that her back was sweating and her lips were so red they looked like they could bleed.

Mother Qiu was even more embarrassed. She splashed water on General Xie's face, but General Xie only moved his eyebrows and did not wake up.

"General Xie, what's wrong?" Mother Qiu frowned. "Why did you drink so much?"

Cui Lingrong dared not move her hand.

If she moves even slightly, Xie Yunting will grip her even tighter.

This was something Cui Lingrong had never done before in her life, and it was against all propriety. If others saw it, her reputation would be ruined for the rest of her life.

As the carriage slowly came to a stop, the coachman said that they had arrived at the Xie residence. Cui Lingrong went to call Xie Yunting again, but Xie Yunting still did not wake up. When the steward of the Xie residence saw the carriage, he hurried over and said, "Is this Lady Song? The centurion instructed that my general is in your carriage."

No sooner had the steward finished speaking than a servant from the Qin family came chasing after them.

A group of people gathered at the door, and the leader explained with a smile that it was all a misunderstanding, asking if General Xie had returned.

There is no one in charge.

At this moment, Cui Lingrong's heart was in her throat. Hearing that the Qin family was chasing after her, she didn't know what had happened, so she could only let the carriage continue to go, so as not to let anyone see Xie Yunting holding her hand.

As a result, a servant from the Qin family stopped the carriage.

"Who's inside?"

Mother Qiu pushed open the wooden window a crack. "Who are you people, daring to stop my lady's carriage?"

"Madam, please don't misunderstand. We're just looking for someone. Why don't you let us take a look?"

"You audacious scoundrels! I've already said there are women in the carriage. If you continue like this, do you believe I'll report you to the authorities? Let everyone see if this is how the Qin family behaves!" Madam Qiu's words were fierce, telling the coachman to ignore these people and leave quickly.

Upon hearing that the authorities had been notified, the Qin family had no choice but to let the carriage leave first.

Cui Lingrong sent the coachman to the cloth shop. The carriage was parked in the courtyard, and Xie Yunting kept holding on.

The two people were in an uncomfortable position, one taller and one shorter.

After a while, Cui Lingrong's back started to ache. Just as she was about to change her position, she heard a muffled groan.

Looking down, I met a pair of dark eyes.

Their eyes met, and Xie Yunting spoke first, as if muttering in his sleep, "Am I dreaming again?"

"What?" Taking advantage of the moment, Cui Lingrong quickly withdrew her hand, not daring to look at Xie Yunting again, and hurriedly got off the carriage.

The moment the curtain was lifted, a gentle breeze drifted into the carriage, seemingly stirring Xie Yunting's heart.

He then realized with a start that he wasn't dreaming.

The actions Cui Lingrong just made...

Just thinking about it made Xie Yunting's breath warm, and he quickly pinched it with his hand.

If it were someone else, their first reaction would be panic, wanting to apologize and make amends for their improper behavior.

But Xie Yunting smiled.

He came from humble beginnings and only started learning to read and write because he was lucky enough to join the army and earn merits.

As for the rules of aristocratic families, well, he despised them the most.

When he heard Qiu Mama's soft voice asking from outside the carriage, Xie Yunting rubbed his temples and got off. "Qiu Mama, I'm very dizzy. Could you pour me a cup of hot tea to help me feel better?"

Aunt Qiu said to wait a moment, then poured some hot tea and briefly explained the situation, "General Xie, we still don't know what happened, but Commander Xu left you there. We're worried something might have happened to him. Would you like to go and check on him?"

Xie Yunting felt much better after drinking the hot tea. "Today, the Qin family hosted a banquet, setting up a trap for me. As you all know, my wedding with the Qin family is imminent, and Qin Shaoyuan, in desperation, drugged me!"

"Poisoned?" Madam Qiu's brows twitched. "Lord Qin is too audacious! Isn't he afraid of losing more than he gains?"

"But if it works out, he will not only be able to marry his granddaughter to me, but he will also have leverage over me. Hehe, what an old scoundrel! I'll trouble Aunt Qiu to apologize to me and Sister Cui. Today, Shuanzi was reckless. I have to go find him, otherwise, with his brain, he won't even know he's being schemed against!" Xie Yunting put down his bowl, asked for a horse, and hurriedly went to the Qin family.

After watching General Xie leave, Qiu Mama went to find her mistress, "Madam, are you alright?"

"Okay, don't tell anyone about what happened today." Cui Lingrong had been taking deep breaths, overwhelmed by feelings of shame and embarrassment. For a moment, she really didn't know what to do.

Mother Qiu comforted her master, "Don't worry, if we don't talk about it, General Xie probably doesn't even realize it. Just pretend it never happened. As long as you can let it go, it's really nothing."

Cui Lingrong said, "It's getting late, let's go back."

She had completely forgotten what she was supposed to do when she went out today.

Meanwhile, Xu Shuanzi and his men caused a scene in the Qin family's courtyard, but Qin Shaoyuan insisted that Xie Yunting was drunk. Xu Shuanzi was also bad at arguing and couldn't win against the Qin family.

Xu Shuanzi was so angry that his face turned red. It wasn't until Xie Yunting rushed over that he said, "Since Lord Qin insists that I'm drunk, let's go to the palace and let the imperial physician see if I'm really drunk or drugged!"