Chapter 43: Always Valuing Rules and Etiquette

Chapter 43: Chapter 43: Always Valuing Rules and Etiquette

Ouyang Zhenzhu’s eyes twinkled. "Really?"

Zhi Wan was taken aback. "What do you mean?"

"It’s not just Wei Jinyi who’s noticed. I also think Mr. Lu treats you differently than he does everyone else," Ouyang Zhenzhu teased.

At these words, Zhi Wan couldn’t help but roll her eyes. "How can you be just like Wei Jinyi? Is your eyesight failing you, too? In what way does my cousin treat me any differently?"

’She hadn’t noticed it in the slightest.’

"Mr. Lu doesn’t look at anyone else, but he looks at you," Ouyang Zhenzhu said.

Zhi Wan laughed. "So he treats me differently just because he looks at me? Compared to you and Wei Jinyi, he’s just more familiar with me; we live in the same mansion, after all. Besides, you and Wei Jinyi are proper young ladies. It would be impolite for him to stare at you. My cousin has always been a stickler for rules and etiquette."

Ouyang Zhenzhu said sullenly, "You do have a point. Fine, I can’t win an argument against you."

Zhi Wan tucked the blankets around her. "It’s late. Go to sleep."

"Mhm."

...

「The next day.」

After the morning court session, Lu Zhan, Duan Ling, and Ouyang Lei left the Imperial Palace together.

Just as they were about to mount their horses, a middle-aged man walked over.

The man was pot-bellied, but his face held a shrewd expression.

He called out to Lu Zhan in a clear voice, "Mr. Lu, a moment please!"

Lu Zhan glanced back and asked coolly, "Mr. Chen. Do you need something?"

Chen Liangcai smiled. "The murderer from the Hundred Flavors Building has been apprehended. My men tell me that we owe our success entirely to Mr. Lu’s assistance."

"Mr. Chen, you exaggerate. I didn’t provide much help," Lu Zhan replied, unconcerned.

"Mr. Lu, you’re too modest. Without the sketch you provided, catching the murderer would have been no easy feat. You’ve saved my Ministry of Punishments a great deal of trouble. I heard the sketch was drawn by one of the ladies of your noble household. I’ve seen it myself—the artistry is truly remarkable," Chen Liangcai complimented.

Lu Zhan’s brow twitched almost imperceptibly. "You flatter me, Mr. Chen. If there is nothing else, I will take my leave."

"After you!" Chen Liangcai gestured with a wide smile.

As they rode away from the palace gates, Duan Ling and Ouyang Lei drew their horses up alongside Lu Zhan’s.

"What was that all about with Chen Liangcai? The Emperor already spoke of this matter in the throne room. Did he really need to come and mention it to our faces?" Duan Ling grumbled.

"He got commended by the Emperor, so he’s just showing off!" Ouyang Lei sneered, full of scorn. "The Ministry of Punishments gets to hog all the glory. Cousin Zhi Wan shouldn’t have gotten involved yesterday and drawn that sketch for them!"

"Ouyang Lei, why are you blaming her?" Lu Zhan snapped his head around, shooting him a displeased glare.

Duan Ling chimed in, "Why are you taking your anger out on our cousin? I was the one who asked if they knew what the killer looked like."

Ouyang Lei mumbled sullenly, "It was a slip of the tongue."

’He really couldn’t blame Zhi Wan for this.’

’He was just so furious.’

The Supreme Court and the Ministry of Punishments had always been at odds.

Especially that Chen Liangcai, who always loved to oppose their Supreme Court.

If not for their group’s intervention in yesterday’s case, the Ministry of Punishments would never have been able to solve it so quickly.

But in the throne room just now, Chen Liangcai hadn’t said a word about it. Now he was putting on a fake show of gratitude for Lu Zhan, when in reality, he was just here to rub it in their faces.

"Catching the killer is what’s important, regardless of who gets the credit," Lu Zhan said coolly.

Duan Ling immediately piped up, "Leizi, you need to be more like Old Lu. Think bigger, look at the big picture. Don’t lose your cool over such petty gains. We’ll let that fat bastard have this one for now."

Ouyang Lei laughed, though not from amusement. "Next time that fat bastard is gloating in your face, you’d better remember what you said today."

Duan Ling fell silent.

「Duke Dingguo Mansion.」

First thing in the morning, Wei Jinyi arrived at Yaoguang Pavilion with Lu Lan, inviting Zhi Wan and Ouyang Zhenzhu to fly kites.

Zhi Wan didn’t particularly want to go. She felt she’d already wasted a day and wanted to paint, but with Ouyang Zhenzhu in her room, it was inconvenient. Since Ouyang Zhenzhu was eager to go, however, Zhi Wan had no choice but to agree.

After they finished making their kites, the young women took them out to the Duke Mansion’s garden to fly.

The garden had a grassy clearing, perfect for flying kites.

Zhi Wan and the other girls were caught up in the fun, so they didn’t notice Wei Jinyi’s maid approach and whisper something to her. Suddenly, Wei Jinyi’s grip loosened. She lost hold of her kite, and it broke free, rapidly drifting away.

"Oh, my kite!" Wei Jinyi cried out, quickly gathering her skirts to run after it.

As luck would have it, the kite’s string snagged on a tree branch by the edge of a pond, bringing it to a halt.

Seeing the kite fluttering in the air, Wei Jinyi grew anxious. She was about to climb the tree to free the string when, somehow, her foot slipped, and she tumbled into the pond.

"H-Help me..." Wei Jinyi flailed wildly in the water, screaming.

Zhi Wan and the others were terrified.

Once she snapped out of her shock, Zhi Wan immediately ordered, "Dongxiang, go find a servant woman who can swim! Quickly!"

Dongxiang rushed off at once.

The three of them rushed to the pond’s edge.

"My lady can’t swim! Won’t somebody please save my lady?"

Wei Jinyi’s maid was wiping away tears, but she kept glancing furtively toward a nearby path, her heart pounding with anxiety.

Zhi Wan, however, didn’t notice the maid’s strange behavior. Watching Wei Jinyi struggling in the water, she felt a surge of panic.

’If something happens to Wei Jinyi, it will surely cause trouble for Auntie.’

In her panic, she spotted a branch sticking out from a nearby tree. She rushed over, intending to break it off and use it to pull Wei Jinyi to safety.

Ouyang Zhenzhu guessed her intention and ran over to help.

Just as they were frantically trying to break off the branch, they saw Lu Zhan and his companions appear at the edge of the pond.

"Prince Lu! My lady fell in the water! Please, I beg you, save her!" the maid cried, her voice thick with tears.

Zhi Wan’s heart sank at the sight.

’With so many people watching, if Lu Zhan gets involved, Wei Jinyi will definitely use this as an opportunity to trap him.’

’Wei Jinyi has pulled these kinds of stunts time and again. It’s obvious Auntie has no intention of forging a closer bond through marriage.’

’If Wei Jinyi manages to trap Lu Zhan with this, Auntie will be absolutely mortified.’

Zhi Wan had no time to ponder whether Wei Jinyi’s fall was an accident or a carefully orchestrated setup.

Not wanting to put her aunt in a difficult position, she rushed to the pond’s edge, stretched the branch out over the water, and strained to reach Wei Jinyi. "Jinyi, grab the branch! I’ll pull you up!"

The branch could just barely reach Wei Jinyi.

A flicker of joy went through Zhi Wan, and she urged, "Jinyi, grab it! Quickly!"

But whether it was out of fear or for some other reason, Wei Jinyi suddenly drifted just out of reach.

The branch was only just long enough, so when Wei Jinyi drifted away, Zhi Wan could no longer reach her.

In her panic, she instinctively took a step forward.

"Wanwan, be careful!" Ouyang Zhenzhu cried out from behind her.

Zhi Wan froze, but it was too late to pull her foot back.

Just as she was about to step into the water, a powerful arm shot out, seized her by the arm, and yanked her backward.

"Get back!" a man’s low voice commanded as he snatched the branch from her hand.