APSIL -Chapter 173 Scared Away

If Lu Sanlang knew that Zhang Shou had actually made a bet with Zhu Ying, claiming that he could personally deal with the Second Prince, he would have wailed in despair. How could he possibly have the courage? How could he possibly have the ability?

Even though he thought the young lady behind him, Liu, would make a very suitable future wife, the reason he had dared to step forward was because he knew Zhang Shou and Zhu Ying were secretly supporting him from behind!

Therefore, after suddenly revealing the Second Prince’s identity, Lu Sanlang was actually quite frightened inside. But he still lifted his head proudly and tried his best to make himself appear imposing.

“This is the capital, beneath the Son of Heaven’s feet! Even though it is already night, His Majesty’s eyes are as sharp as lightning. Do you think he cannot see you bullying a weak woman in the middle of the street? What’s wrong with this young lady coming out at night? She brought her personal maid, and she has servants and guards accompanying her. Her parents and elders have said nothing, yet you, an outsider, a prince, are pointing fingers and interfering. Aren’t you being a little too nosy? Besides…”

Lu Sanlang paused for a moment, then suddenly raised his voice.

“Besides, the Founding Emperor said in the early years after ascending the throne that the world was still recovering and everything was waiting to be rebuilt. Why should women be confined within their inner chambers? Even the Founding Emperor encouraged women to go out and work. How dare you spout such nonsense? And furthermore, someone else’s marriage concerns what business of yours as an imperial prince?!”

The Second Prince was completely stunned by this unexpected person who had suddenly appeared and fired off several accusations in succession. Only after a moment did he finally recover.

Then he became furious.

Of course, he knew this person.

Lu Sanlang—the shame of the aristocratic young masters back then.

He also knew that this same person had now transformed into a talented scholar personally praised by his father, the Emperor.

And when he thought about how shamelessly Lu Sanlang had become Zhang Shou’s disciple, the anger in his heart immediately soared.

“Lu Sanlang, shut your mouth!”

The Second Prince raised his riding crop and gave a threatening swing in Lu Sanlang’s direction.

“A man whose fiancée was stolen away without doing anything, and who instead went to worship that person as his teacher—you aren’t even a man! Get lost! This place is not somewhere you can speak!”

Being called “Lu Sanlang” no longer bothered Lu Sanlang. He had long since become immune to that.

But being insulted because of Zhu Ying?

That was something he could not tolerate.

He looked at the Second Prince with contempt and sneered.

“Can a sparrow understand the ambitions of a swan? What marriage? That was merely my father’s one-sided enthusiasm. I was only cooperating and putting on an act. Only a fool would have taken it seriously! I don’t even have a marriage contract. Where did this so-called fiancée come from?”

Behind him, Liu Qing finally forgot about the tense atmosphere before her and secretly laughed.

Zhang Shou also smiled and teased Zhu Ying, saying that Lu Sanlang was very skilled at calling people fools.

However, the Second Prince was so enraged by Lu Sanlang that he completely lost his senses.

He finally forgot that this was the middle of a busy street.

He grabbed his whip, urged his horse forward, and swung down heavily.

Yet almost at the exact same moment, Lu Sanlang closed both eyes and suddenly shouted at the top of his lungs: “Someone come quickly! The Second Prince is bullying a common woman in the street! He is whipping a student of the Imperial Academy! Have all the laws of the court been eaten by dogs?!”

The fat man’s sharp voice instantly pierced through the night sky.

The Second Prince’s hand trembled.

At the same time, the tip of his whip seemed to brush against something unknown, causing its trajectory to shift dramatically.

Instead of striking Lu Sanlang, it narrowly passed by him.

However, the fierce wind from the whip genuinely brushed across the fat man’s face.

Even Liu Qing, who had been firmly protected behind Lu Sanlang’s large body, could not help feeling a complicated warmth in her heart.

Even though she and Lu Sanlang were only meeting each other tonight as a possible match, for him to step forward at such a moment was truly rare.

If it were most people, since there was not even an official engagement between them, why would they dare oppose the Second Prince for her sake?

While the Second Prince was still furious, Lu Sanlang began shouting even louder.

“Second Prince! If you have the courage, strike again! The Prefect of Shuntian, Lord Wang, has been constantly restoring order in the capital and hates nothing more than arrogant young nobles who abuse their power! The law applies equally to princes and commoners! Even if you beat me to death today, I will never allow you to cross this line!”

The Second Prince had already been drinking.

That was why he had directly come to cause trouble for Liu Qing.

After being repeatedly scolded by Liu Qing and Lu Sanlang, the alcohol had gone to his head and caused him to lash out.

But now, Lu Sanlang’s endless shouting like a demonic chant suddenly woke him up.

His heart sank.

He realized he had made a huge mistake.

This was not some remote wilderness.

This was the streets of the capital!

With Lu Sanlang shouting at the top of his lungs, if his elder brother later went before the Emperor and twisted the story, wouldn’t he once again be punished and confined?

No, no.

Knowing his father’s temper, it was entirely possible that the Emperor himself might beat him!

The Second Prince knew Lu Sanlang had always been an impossible person to deal with. There was no point trying to silence him.

So instead, he shouted toward Liu Qing, who was hidden behind Lu Sanlang: “Miss Liu, my words earlier were inappropriate. But you should know exactly what kind of terrible person this man in front of you is! Once you become entangled with this piece of sticky candy, you’ll never be able to get rid of him. Think carefully!”

He clenched his fists tightly.

For the first time in his life, the Second Prince lowered his pride.

If Liu Qing truly tried to use this marriage against him, then he could only endure and accept becoming her husband.

At worst, he would find a way to divorce her later.

But the next moment, he saw the petite girl calmly step out from behind Lu Sanlang.

She laughed softly.

“Riding a horse recklessly to frighten people, making unreasonable accusations, and causing trouble—yet the Second Prince now dares to accuse others of having ulterior motives? My Liu family daughters may not possess noble beauty, but we still know right from wrong. Third Young Master Lu, thank you for standing up for justice today. As long as I survive this day, whether I must go to the Shuntian Prefecture Office or even stand before the Emperor in the Golden Hall, I will not speak a single false word!”

The Second Prince was so furious that smoke almost came out of his ears.

He immediately cursed: “What a pair of shameless dogs! You refuse kindness when it is offered! Guards! Capture them!”

He had no other choice.

After all, he had already reached the point where he could not retreat.

If he captured the two of them, he could accuse them of secretly colluding and having an improper relationship, thus clearing himself.

Whether he could truly escape blame afterward was something he no longer cared about.

Seeing that the Second Prince had clearly decided to tear everything apart, Zhu Ying finally smiled proudly at Zhang Shou.

Then she stood up, preparing to go out and save the situation.

But at that moment, she heard a familiar voice.

“I was wondering why there were ghosts crying and wolves howling in the middle of the night. So it turns out my second brother drank a stomach full of wine and came all the way to Chongwenmen Inner Street to throw a drunken tantrum?”

The guards who had been prepared to charge forward on their master’s orders immediately reined in their horses silently.

At the other end of the street, more than ten riders slowly emerged from a small alley.

The person leading them was none other than the usually solemn First Prince.

When the two groups met, the Second Prince’s anger was already enough to burn someone alive.

Yet he still decisively turned his horse around and left.

As for threatening words?

Against Lu Sanlang, that shameless impossible-to-defeat opponent, and Liu Qing, that sharp-tongued girl, any threats would only come back to embarrass him.

And arguing with his elder brother?

How could someone who was clearly in the wrong possibly win?

A wise man avoids fighting when the odds are against him.

Lu Sanlang had never expected that Zhang Shou and Zhu Ying would not even need to appear.

The First Prince had suddenly arrived and scared away the Second Prince.

He secretly let out a huge sigh of relief but still forced himself to maintain a calm appearance.

When he turned around, he saw that Liu Qing, who had just sworn she would advance and retreat together with him, had already put on a veil.

Yet through the thin fabric, he could still see the smile in her eyes.

For a moment, Lu Sanlang was stunned.

But immediately afterward, he nodded to her and hurried over to speak with the First Prince.

With many spectators already gathered around, he did not continue accusing the Second Prince.

Instead, he gave the First Prince a deep bow and sincerely thanked him for arriving at just the right moment.

The First Prince himself seemed completely satisfied merely by driving away his younger brother.

He did not even bother going over to comfort Liu Qing.

After exchanging a few words, he left with his followers.

Only after both groups of imperial nobles had departed did Lu Sanlang hurry back.

He discovered Liu Qing had not entered her carriage yet.

Instead, she stood waiting in front of it.

Feeling awkward, Lu Sanlang slowly approached.

Then Liu Qing suddenly bowed deeply.

He hurriedly reached out to help her up, but the moment his hand moved, he quickly withdrew it again and awkwardly bowed instead.

“Miss Liu, there’s no need for this. I merely did what any person with a sense of justice would do.”

“But in this world, there are many people who see injustice and simply walk away.

“Very few people are as warm-hearted and righteous as Third Young Master Lu.”

“Ah… haha…”

Lu Sanlang laughed foolishly twice.

Then he suddenly realized this was his chance.

Pretending to be embarrassed, he lowered his voice.

“The Second Prince’s words were truly hateful! Especially when he publicly called us… that kind of thing. It was simply too insulting. In any case, Miss Liu, please rest assured. I will take responsibility!”

Zhu Ying nearly covered her forehead in disbelief.

Being called that by a foolish person, and taking it seriously?

Taking responsibility?

What responsibility?!

Seeing that Zhang Shou was struggling desperately not to laugh, she whispered: “This Lu Sanlang guy… he really knows how to take advantage of an opportunity!”

Zhang Shou watched as Liu Qing stammered awkwardly before saying goodbye.

The girl then practically fled into her carriage.

He could imagine that beneath her veil, her face must have been completely red.

Soon afterward, the servants who had been so frightened that they had never managed to help at all hurriedly escorted the carriage away.

Zhang Shou then quietly said: “A-Liu, escort them for a while. Just in case someone loses their mind and tries some trick on the road.”

Zhu Ying turned her head.

She saw A-Liu, who had been sitting at another table the entire time, immediately leave.

Only then did she look at Zhang Shou and mutter unhappily: “That bet counts as your victory. Who would have thought your luck would be so good? The First Prince actually happened to appear!”

“Not a coincidence.”

Zhang Shou chuckled softly.

“You told me earlier that Miss Liu from the Liu family was a popular candidate for becoming a prince’s consort. But you never said which prince. Since that is the case, the Second Prince suddenly appearing must mean someone deliberately encouraged him and set him up. And if someone arranged such a thing, wouldn’t that person come here to show their existence?”

Zhu Ying froze.

Then suddenly—

Bang!

She slapped the table.

Fortunately, Zhu Hong had already reserved this small teahouse completely for them, and even the workers had been sent away.

So no one noticed.

“It must be that Yongping girl! I told her to provoke the First and Second Princes into fighting among themselves and make the Empress furious. But she acted before I even started! That cunning girl… she is truly ruthless. She doesn’t care about anyone else’s lives!”

Zhang Shou was stunned.

This matter actually involved Princess Yongping?

Thinking about it, Zhu Ying and Princess Yongping were joining hands to fight against the Empress?

What had the Empress done to offend them?

Or perhaps some previous incidents had actually been caused by that mysterious ruler of the imperial harem whom he had never met?

Just then, Lu Sanlang suddenly sneaked back into the teahouse.

He looked around.

Then he immediately grabbed the teapot from the table where Zhu Hong and the guards had been sitting.

He gulped down several mouthfuls.

Only then did he come over and collapse into the seat opposite Zhang Shou.

He wiped the sweat from his forehead with lingering fear.

“I was scared to death. That was really close!”

The next moment, Zhu Ying rolled her eyes at him.

“Enough. You got all the benefits and are still pretending to suffer! Later, A-Shou and I will send you home. Since you publicly said you would take responsibility just now, hurry up. Tomorrow, have your father go to the Liu family and propose marriage. Better to act quickly before anything unexpected happens!”