Rebirth of a Lost Nation: Princess, Please Respect Yourself

The two stood at the top of the stairs, their eyes met, sparks flying.

Ning Yunxiao was the first to reach out and grab the strap of the winning lantern. Seeing this, Xiao Xingrong suddenly exerted force, blocking with one hand and catching Ning Yunxiao off guard, while the other hand quickly reached out and grabbed the strap to seize the initiative.

Ning Yunxiao's eyes flashed, and he used the opponent's force to counter attack, and cleverly avoided Xiao Xingrong's attack by turning his body to the side. At the same time, his left hand moved as fast as lightning and reached for the strap of the winning lantern again.

Xiao Xingrong was also unwilling to give up, and attacked with both hands alternately, trying to obstruct Ning Yunxiao's movements.

In an instant, the original lantern riddle guessing game somehow turned into a contest of force between the two men.

The onlookers saw this scene and began to talk about it.

"Hey, aren't we supposed to be guessing riddles? Why are we fighting?"

"Yeah, I didn't expect that guessing lantern riddles could be so exciting. It's really eye-opening!"

Some people also joked, "This is not a lantern riddle guessing game, it's more like a martial arts competition to win a bride!"

Jiang Lige held her forehead in silence. Seeing the two of them fighting back and forth, she thought it would not end in a short while. She was really tired, so she winked at Songyue and Fengquan.

The two nodded in understanding and went to the tea stall in front with Jiang Lige.

Find a place to sit and watch. She wants to see how long these two can fight.

As the master and his two servants were talking on their way to the tea stall, they saw a woman rushing towards them and throwing herself into Songyue's arms.

The woman was dressed in rags and her face was pale. The sudden collision made her lose her balance and she fell at Jiang Lige's feet.

The master, servant and two others looked at each other in bewilderment. Were they being scammed?

Jiang Lige was the first to react and reached out to help the woman.

"Is the girl okay?"

The woman tried to stand up with Jiang Lige's strength, but she fell back as soon as she stood up. She gritted her teeth and replied:

"No problem."

Jiang Lige knew very well that women in this world had a hard time, so he felt a little more sympathy for the woman. He leaned over to help the woman again, but when he saw the totem on the jade pendant around her waist, his heart moved.

Just as he was about to speak, he saw a group of big men in guard uniforms chasing after him, looking around for someone.

Jiang Lige acted decisively, untied his cloak and put it on the woman, then stood sideways in front of the woman to block her view and waved to Song Yue.

"Take her to the teahouse in front."

Song Yue was stunned, but didn't ask any more questions. He helped the woman up and walked straight into the dark alley.

Jiang Lige and Feng Quan stayed where they were, pretending to chat. After watching the group of men leave, they turned around and went into the teahouse.

As soon as I entered the teahouse, I saw Songyue coming forward.

"Miss, I have booked a private room on the second floor. The view is great!"

Jiang Lige nodded in understanding, "Let's go."

The master, his servant and his two companions went upstairs to the private room and immediately closed the door. The woman from the street was placed by Songyue at the innermost part of the private room.

"I am Gu, thank you for saving me."

"No need to be polite, young lady."

The woman saw Jiang Lige enter the room and sniffed, about to bow, but Jiang Lige held her back and asked, "Excuse me, young lady, are you from the Gu Taishi Mansion in the capital?"

The woman froze when she heard that, and subconsciously took two steps back in a defensive posture.

"Who are you!"

"Don't be afraid, I mean no harm." Jiang Lige said soothingly, "I am the fiancée of Prince Ning Yunxiao of Zhao Palace, Princess Zhaohua of Nanchu."

If Jiang Lige remembered correctly, the totem on the woman's jade pendant was the family emblem of the Gu Tai Shi Mansion in the capital.

Ning Yunxiao's biological mother is the only daughter of Grand Tutor Gu's family. However, the Gu family, as Ning Yunxiao's maternal family, has always treated him coldly.

Since Jiang Lige has to rely on Ning Yunxiao, he naturally has to consider him.

The Gu family is full of literary masters and is highly respected among scholars. It would be a good thing for Ning Yunxiao to ease the relationship with the Gu family.

In other words, even if the Gu family cannot provide any help to Ning Yunxiao, it would be good if Ning Yunxiao could have more places to move around and not be so lonely.

Therefore, when Jiang Lige introduced Ning Yunxiao, he put his fiancée before the title.

What he meant was that the reason he helped her was entirely for Ning Yunxiao's sake.

The woman thought for a moment after hearing what he said, and seemed to react, then she knelt down and saluted.

"Your humble servant, Gu Wangxian, greets Princess Zhaohua."

Jiang Lige gave her a helping hand and asked, "Miss Gu, are you in any trouble?"

Gu Wangxian nodded. "There is indeed an important matter at home. Princess Zhaohua, do you have any way to send me to the capital?"

"Sending you to the capital is certainly no problem, but the round trip will take at least twenty days." Jiang Lige finished laughing and changed the subject, "Miss Gu's family affairs, can they really wait?"

Gu Wangxian's face froze, and after thinking for a moment, tears fell like rain.

"To be honest with Princess Zhaohua, my family really can't wait."

Jiang Lige understood what Gu Wangxian meant and sat down holding his hand.

"Why do you say that? We are all family from now on. If you have any difficulties, Miss Gu, please talk to me."

Gu Wangxian hesitated for a moment, but finally spoke out.

Gu Wangxian's father, Gu Yanru, is the third master of the Gu family. According to seniority, Ning Yunxiao has to call him third uncle.

Jingzhou was dominated by military generals, making it difficult to achieve political achievements, so Gu Yanru stayed in the position of Tongzhi for twelve years.

Some time ago, Gu Yanru accidentally learned some secrets among the military generals. He wanted to submit a letter to the capital, but the generals with many eyes and ears stopped his letter and quickly put the blame on him.

Gu Yanru, who alerted the enemy, is now imprisoned in the Gu Mansion, waiting for the real culprit to make connections and bring the false accusation against him.

Having said this, Gu Wangxian knelt down with tears streaming down his face.

"Now my father, mother, brothers and sisters are all imprisoned in the mansion. Ah Xian, please beg Princess Zhaohua to save my family's lives!"

"Rescue at this time is not appropriate..."

"It's okay if you're having trouble, Princess!"

When Jiang Lige said this, Gu Wangxian suddenly became anxious.

"Please, for the sake of our relationship, lend me a fast horse. I will go back to the capital to invite them!"

"I don't mean to abandon the matter, but rushing into the Gu Mansion right now is not the best strategy. Whether we can rob the person or not is not the question for now. Even if we do, alerting the enemy will only make them more vigilant. By the time we have settled the person, they will have already started to clean up all the traces. Then, we can convict Lord Gu. Without evidence, even if he escapes, he will still be a fugitive!"

"I'm sorry, Princess Zhaohua. I was in a hurry just now..."

After hearing Jiang Lige's explanation, Gu Wangxian realized that he was too excited and lost his composure. He apologized with a red face but was suppressed by Jiang Lige.

"I understand your love for your family, it's okay."

Gu Wangxian looked at Jiang Lige gratefully and asked softly:

"So, what do we do now, in your opinion?"

"My idea is to gather evidence to overturn the verdict first, and then rush into the Gu residence to kidnap people before the trial. They shouldn't resort to lynching before the trial, otherwise they won't be able to explain themselves to the capital alone."

Gu Wangxian turned the corner and thought it was a good idea, so he nodded.

"I listen to the princess!"

Jiang Lige smiled and called Song Yue to go out and find a set of maid's clothes.

"In that case, I'll have to trouble Miss Gu. You can disguise yourself as a maid and stay by my side for the next few days."

Gu Wangxian naturally agreed. She quickly changed her clothes and tied her hair into a bun. Before she could say a word, the door was suddenly pushed open.

A young woman and her maidservant rushed in without any warning.

Oh, it’s Jiang Chuchu.

If she were to see this, it would be bad.