After the death of the previous emperor, the Empress Dowager became arrogant

The young man holding her stiffened for a moment, then he lowered his voice and said, "Don't be afraid, Miss. The Prime Minister has sent his men to protect you. Take the medicine first."

Yuan Qing couldn't hear what he was saying at all, so she could only let him pry open her mouth and stuff the pill in.

The medicine pills slid down the throat and slowly dissolved in the body, and the stuffy feeling in the chest also eased.

"I'm sorry for the offense." The young man took off his cloak with red ears, covered Yuan Qing with it, held her in his arms, and used his internal energy to regulate his breathing.

A heat flowed along her meridians and surged throughout her body. She felt warm and comfortable.

"Who are you?!" Wen Beixu clenched his fist and took a step forward.

For a prince of a country, having his daughter snatched away from his arms by a strange man was a great shame.

The young man lowered his eyebrows and remained silent, as if he didn't hear what he said.

When the woman in his arms' condition stabilized, he withdrew his inner strength, met Wen Beixu's gaze and replied, "Prime Minister's Guard, Yuan Yi."

Perhaps it was because the boy’s arms were too warm, Yuan Qing gradually moved closer to the heat source, until he completely tucked his upper body into the boy’s arms, and then he fell asleep peacefully.

Yuan Yi became even more stiff and didn't know where to put his hands.

Wen Beixu was jealous, "How dare you, a servant, touch her?!"

Even though he was so sick that he was unconscious, he could still trust others so much and throw himself into their arms. How could he be so heartless to him?

Yuan Qing woke up slowly, grabbed the boy's clothes tightly to prevent him from leaving, turned to Wen Beixu and said, "Your Highness, did you not hear clearly just now? Do you need me to say it again?"

No matter how unwilling Wen Beixu was, he knew that he should not stay for long today, as it would be bad for his reputation if he was discovered.

It's a pity that this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity was missed.

"I will find another chance to rescue you. Wait for me." He said this and turned to leave the cell.

The ear roots are finally clear.

Yuan Qing yawned and snuggled back into Yuan Yi's arms to take a nap.

A human-shaped heater. It would be a waste if you don’t use it.

Just now, while taking a break, she found Yuan Yi's information and took a quick look at it.

In the original book, Yuan Yi occupied almost 60% of Empress Dowager Yuan's entire reign in power.

The book defines this role as:

In the early stage, he was a guard in the Prime Minister's Mansion and had been following Prime Minister Yuan to gain experience. After the Prime Minister's Mansion was destroyed, he was ordered by his master to help Queen Dowager Yuan secretly plan a revenge plan.

In a novel with a strong female protagonist, the space occupied by a guard is comparable to that of the male protagonist.

Even though there is no male protagonist in the book, Yuan Yi is definitely an important supporting character.

But the ending was a bit tragic. After Empress Dowager Yuan seized power, the first order she gave was to execute all her confidants who had followed her in the early days.

These people knew too many of her secrets, and she would be unable to sleep or eat if she didn't deal with them.

Yuan Yi and others did not resist, but drank the poison obediently. They eventually died in the secret prison, completing their mission.

It is indeed tragic that he dedicated his entire life to the Yuan family and ended up like this.

"When are you leaving?" Yuan Qing asked.

Yuan Yi used one free hand to sort the hay, then put Yuan Qing down and answered with his head bowed: "The Queen Mother and the Prime Minister are trying to find a way to rescue the young lady. I will protect you closely tonight to prevent anyone from attacking you secretly."

People who practice martial arts have excellent eyesight and can see clearly even in the dark.

As soon as I turned my head, I discovered that the large area of snow-white skin that could not be covered by the veil around her waist was slightly rising and falling with her breathing.

Yuan Yi took a quick glance and hurriedly lowered his head, reaching out to pull his cloak tighter, but his ears became even redder than before.

Yuan Qing wrapped his cloak tightly around him and leaned closer to him, absorbing the hot warmth from his body.

Yuan Yi gradually relaxed his body and let her lean more comfortably, but he never loosened his fists clenched on his knees.

The two of them stayed like this until late at night.

Yuan Yi held up Yuan Qing's head which was about to fall and gently placed it back on his shoulder.

There were faint sounds of footsteps in the empty corridor.

He moved the man onto the haystack and hid in the dark.

Someone secretly opened the door and the iron chain rattled, but the sound was not very loud.

Yuan Qing had woken up just now. When she noticed Yuan Yi's movements, she lay there without moving.

The cell door was pushed open and two people came in.

"Hurry up, the nobleman is waiting for news!" one of them whispered.

He was on the lookout, while the other one sneaked towards where she was, holding a piece of rope in his hand.

The man who was watching the wind growled impatiently, "What are you dawdling about? Hurry up and finish the job and report to the noble master!"

"This is the daughter of the Prime Minister. I have never been in close contact with these young ladies in my life. Wait a minute, let me see what she looks like."

"A nose, two eyes, and an ordinary appearance. Could it be that he has three heads and six arms, and a sharp mouth and fangs?" A faint voice sounded, echoing in the prison, making people's scalps numb.

The thief inside didn't react and said with a smile: "Hey, when did you learn to joke?"

There was silence in the cell for a moment, and then another person's weak voice came: "Brother... who... who are you talking to?"

"I and——"

At this time, both of them realized that something was wrong. Before they could react, Yuan Yi had already taken the man down and pressed him to the ground. At the same time, he threw a stone out, and the man outside fell to the ground.

Yuan Qing held his cloak tightly and sat up, staring at the figure on the ground with a heavy look, "Who sent you here?"

Her voice was like a cold pond, calm and without ripples, yet it could penetrate into one's bones and make one shudder.

The thief was originally a street thug, and he took on the job because he was tempted by money.

The owner didn't seem like someone to be trifled with, so he immediately said, "I don't know who that person is. He just gave us some silver and said that he had ruined your reputation."

He kowtowed quickly and said, "I know I was wrong..."

Yuan Qing ignored it.

It is impossible for just two petty thieves to know the mastermind behind the incident.

If someone came only for her reputation, nine out of ten times he or she was related to the political enemies of the Yuan family, or to be more precise, the enemies of Empress Dowager Yuan.

During this critical period of change in imperial power, no one wanted to see the Yuan family alone hold power.

Yuan Qing signaled with his eyes, and Yuan Yi understood and raised his knife to knock the man unconscious.

"Send him to Jingzhao Prefecture at dawn." Yuan Qing returned to his nest in the haystack. "And let others see what kind of thief is able to ignore the many experts in the capital's government office and sneak into the inner prison of the royal family's women."

As for how to preserve his reputation and justify Yuan Yi's existence, that is something that the Prime Minister should consider.

"Yes."

After tying up the two men and throwing them in a corner, Yuan Yi sat beside them and watched over them.

Yuan Qing sighed softly and looked at the young man in the corner several times.

Yuan Yi was nervous because of her look and asked, "Miss, do you have anything to tell me?"

"fine."

I just miss the human-shaped stove.

Yuan Qing lay down wrapped in his cloak, and fell into a deep sleep in the grass.

When she woke up, the cell was empty, with only her left, covered with the cloak that Yuan Yi had left behind last night.

It’s different having a big boss next to me. I sleep especially soundly in the second half of the night.

It’s not that she is careless, but in a situation like the current one, she can only wait and see.

Just as I finished my thought, I saw the jailer coming to open the door.

The two in the middle put down their chains and walked straight towards her.

One of them took out a key from his pocket and uncuffed her feet.

As he got closer, Yuan Qing moved his gaze and found the unique identity badges of government officials on them.

Their identity information is registered with the Ministry of Justice, so they should not dare to murder openly unless they are instructed by someone of higher status than Empress Dowager Yuan.

The man who unlocked it swung the chain and said, "Lady Toffee, please."

Yuan Qing stood carefully, "Where are you taking me?"