"Why are you making that face?"
Su Qing noticed something and asked.
"Nothing. I just wonder how Chu Ci has been doing lately."
"Master, how did she and the Chen Family get involved in this?"
Qin Lan Shan sighed, then asked in a slightly puzzled tone.
"I thought you would question me and ask whether I had made a mistake."
Su Qing stroked the black-haired beauty's head and said with a smile.
"Since Master brought people here, there must be a problem."
"I just can't figure out whether they did it voluntarily or were forced into it, or why they would do such a thing."
Qin Lan Shan spoke as though it were only natural.
She had already learned to consider matters from her master's perspective, and she had thought it through quite thoroughly.
Since they had come all this way, there had to be a reason!
"Mm, you'll know soon enough."
Su Qing looked pleased.
It seemed that his guidance during this period had been quite effective.
He had to keep it up—he absolutely had to keep it up!
The carriage stopped in front of Linglang Courtyard.
Although quite a few people came and went here, most of them had already entered.
The road was clear, and no one dared to block them, but there were plenty of onlookers.
What family could produce someone who rode in a carriage like this?
The carriage door opened, and two figures stepped out.
The talented young men who had been sizing up the carriage froze when they saw who emerged.
An astonishingly handsome young man was holding the hand of a beauty in a long purple dress.
They glanced at the young man and instinctively frowned.
Whether they knew him or not, none of them liked such a young man with perfect looks.
When their gazes shifted to the woman, however, they could not help showing astonishment.
Her elegant purple dress outlined her full, tall figure.
Her long hair was tied up, and her stunning features radiated a gentle beauty, making her look like a Daughter of a Great Clan.
A gauze scarf hung around her neck, and something dark could vaguely be seen beneath it, though no one could make it out clearly.
"She's the daughter of the Duke of Tang!"
Someone recognized her and immediately shouted.
The talented young men instantly showed disgust when they heard this.
They had thought she was some noble young lady, but she turned out to be a Daughter of a Convicted Official!
Why had a Daughter of a Convicted Official appeared here? Was she hoping the Chen Family would help her?
"I heard that this Daughter of a Convicted Official is very close to the Talented Woman of Chen Family..."
"Could she have come to ask for help? She really has no self-awareness..."
Whispers spread around them.
Clearly, the people here did not welcome this gentle and elegant beauty.
They even felt that... her presence would ruin the gathering.
Qin Lan Shan clearly heard the voices around her.
The happiness she had felt upon seeing such a grand gathering instantly plummeted.
She lowered her head and ignored the rumors around her.
"They look rather displeased to see you. It seems they don't welcome you."
"But don't take it to heart. Relax—we came here to cause trouble in the first place."
"It's only natural that they don't welcome us. Don't burden yourself over it."
Su Qing looked at the dispirited beauty and comforted her gently.
"Master, is that any way to comfort someone?"
Qin Lan Shan was caught between laughter and tears.
With such consolation, she could not possibly feel happy!
Strangely enough, however, much of her gloomy mood dissipated at that moment.
"How noisy. They're practically causing a disturbance as a group... Guards, surround this place!"
Su Qing waved his hand and gave the order.
"Shut the doors—conduct an inspection!"
"Yes!"
After the carriage, a group of burly men immediately surrounded them.
They advanced toward the talented young men, then directly guarded the entrances and exits of Linglang Courtyard.
Su Qing watched their neat, efficient movements and nodded in satisfaction.
They had all come from the military. Every one of them was well trained, and their execution was excellent.
They never asked why. They simply carried out the orders and arranged everything perfectly. They were extremely obedient.
These were exactly the kind of people he needed under his command!
"Zhang Wu, well done. Your brothers moved quickly."
Su Qing praised him.
"Hehe, my pa says you're clever, Young Master. We just need to do as you say."
The honest-looking young man at the front chuckled.
The key was to speak less and do more, and watch and learn more!
In just a few minutes, Linglang Courtyard had become a place where people could enter but not leave.
In an instant, the atmosphere of poetry, prose, and overflowing talent vanished.
The talented young men were surrounded on all sides, and the place became completely impassable.
The sudden commotion brought clear displeasure to their faces.
"Who are you? How dare you run wild here? Don't you know—"
A talented young man in ornate clothing stepped forward, about to rebuke them.
Before he could finish, Zhang Wu slapped him across the face.
"Now, does anyone else have an objection?"
The honest young man's ferocious side revealed itself.
He had come from the military. How could he possibly be harmless?
Su Qing looked at the talented young men around them, now too frightened to make a sound, and showed some satisfaction.
Not bad. A spoiled young master and his lackeys... No, no, this was simply what happened when the righteous gained support.
It was perfectly normal for a righteous person to have followers, right?
The many talented young men fell silent, not daring to say another word.
Their gazes turned hopefully toward a young man surrounded in the center.
Han Lin looked around and straightened his clothes.
As the person with the highest status present, he ought to step forward and handle this, while gaining a wave of prestige in the process.
First, he would see what was going on and who exactly was causing trouble here!
Besides, in the capital, who would dare refuse to show him respect?
Han Lin pushed through the crowd and walked toward the man at the front.
As fewer and fewer people blocked his path, he clearly saw what the leader looked like.
Su Qing was walking toward him.
The Prime Minister's Son trembled all over, then silently shrank back.
Introduce himself?
He would skip the part where he announced his identity.
Based on his previous experience, announcing his background only resulted in him being beaten even more severely.
As for the astonished looks from everyone else, Han Lin ignored them.
If he did not help, people would indeed look down on him, and his prestige would suffer.
But if he stepped in and got slapped twice across the face, wouldn't that be even more humiliating?
If he could not afford to offend them, couldn't he simply hide? This had nothing to do with him anyway!
"Everyone, the Realm Protectorate is handling a case. Does anyone have an objection?"
Su Qing smiled at the resentful talented young men.
His gaze swept across the courtyard, as though he wanted to see who had an objection.
The distinguished figures and talented young men present all trembled and lowered their heads. Not one had any objection left.
How could they possibly afford to provoke the young master of the Realm Protectorate?
Su Qing nodded in satisfaction.
Exactly. That was how it should be!
If you had status, you had to know how to use it. Otherwise, once you lost that status, wouldn't it have all gone to waste?
Before you continue