The Eldest Daughter Returns: Imperial Uncle, I'm Pregnant!

Seeing the dangerous glint in Gu Qingwan's eyes, A Ning quickly waved her hand and said, "Miss, you've misunderstood. A Ning knows she was wrong earlier. She stopped you to ask if you should leave Siqi behind since the Prince hasn't woken up yet..."

Her voice grew softer and softer, as if she were only speaking up to stop Gu Qingwan for the sake of the prince.

"How can that be! Our young lady only brought me here. What will happen to her if I stay behind?" Siqi was the first to object. From the first day she followed Gu Qingwan, the old Duke told her that she should never leave her mistress's side, and that she could not leave her no matter what.

"Miss Siqi, you misunderstand. I was just thinking that even if Miss goes back, she will still worry about the Prince's safety. Why not let Miss see with her own eyes that the Prince is alright after he wakes up, so that Miss can go back and put her mind at ease?"

"No! That won't do either! The Prince will send Xiao Yi to deliver the message once he wakes up..."

In the end, Gu Qingwan did not take the carriage prepared by Uncle Hua, but returned the way she came. In the Chu Prince's mansion, A Ning saw Gu Qingwan and Siqi's figures disappear into the night, and a sinister glint flashed in her eyes.

Originally, I thought that Siqi, that brat, was skilled in martial arts and I could find a way to hinder her. I also had the servants in the manor drive Gu Qingwan back, which would make things easier for those people. But now it seems that won't work. But even if Siqi is by my side, so what? One hand can't fight four fists. Let's see what they can do!

The night before dawn is the darkest hour, when all the filth and evil spirits emerge.

At this time of day, no one would be out in the capital. The streets were quiet, and even the occasional meow of a cat would seem particularly abrupt.

Gu Qingwan stopped in her tracks. Siqi leaned against Gu Qingwan's back. Yes, she sensed that the atmosphere was a little strange.

“Miss, I think something’s wrong. Why don’t we use our light-footed skills to get back quickly? We’re only two streets away.”

Gu Qingwan listened carefully to the sounds around her. Besides the sound of the wind, she could also hear the panting of four people. What a clever move! She smoothed out the wrinkles on her skirt, crossed her arms in front of her chest, and adopted the demeanor of a well-bred young lady.

"Good girl, it's been a long time since you practiced your kung fu. Can you handle four people?"

When Siqi heard her young mistress's relaxed tone, and heard the implication that her mistress could handle the matter herself without even lifting a finger, then what was there to worry about?

"Don't worry, Miss." Siqi stepped forward happily, speaking in a low, defiant tone into the darkness: "Now that you're here, don't hide anymore. If you keep hiding, things will get complicated when it gets light!"

As soon as she finished speaking, four men in black surrounded her. They were completely covered up except for their eyes. They communicated with each other without speaking. In a short while, two of them surrounded Siqi, while the other two went to Gu Qingwan's side.

Siqi moved her feet and said, "If you want to challenge our young lady, you'll have to get past me first."

"Siqi, you're still young, don't always think about being someone's aunt." Gu Qingwan glanced at the tea shop next door, chose a good spot to sit down, and just then heard Siqi shouting over there.

"Never mind, Miss, this looks more imposing!"

The four men exchanged glances and decided to act quickly and take the person away before dawn.

Siqi wasn't at a disadvantage at the start, but she was still somewhat at a disadvantage against four people. Gu Qingwan sat to the side, squinting as she watched their every move.

I couldn't discern her martial arts style, but recalling what A-Ning said to her at the Chu Prince's mansion, I felt there was a connection. Could that girl really dare to do such a thing?

"Four heroes, I don't know where I have offended you, that you would try to kill me in the street before dawn?"

"Enough with the nonsense. We're paid to do our job. Miss, don't complain. You've just offended someone you shouldn't have."

"Oh? So you hired someone to kill him?"

"Hmph, no comment!"

As the person who had spoken first turned his sword and headed towards Gu Qingwan, Siqi quickly picked up her sword to block it.

"Don't talk like that, sir. Things that can be solved with money aren't really problems. If the other party can hire someone to kill, so can I. I can offer you ten times the price."

"Miss, you underestimate us brothers. In the martial world, integrity is paramount. If you bribe us, who would dare to hire us?"

"I don't need to know who it is. You just need to take your brothers and fight your way back. You can make two fortunes in the process, so why not?"

The leaders were clearly not having any of it. They quickened their pace, and Siqi gradually started to struggle. Before she knew it, Siqi was pushed back several steps.

Gu Qingwan shook her head, got up and walked gracefully toward Siqi, leaving behind a silver needle gleaming coldly on the stool.

Gu Qingwan walked into their battlefield as if no one was there, and reached out to help Siqi up.

"Miss, why did you come here!" Siqi asked anxiously. "Miss, be careful!"

Siqi saw someone circle around behind Gu Qingwan, raising a long sword to stab her. Gu Qingwan seemed unaware and calmly bent down to help Siqi up.

In that brief moment when he bent over, somehow the person fell down.

After getting up, Gu Qingwan pulled Siqi around, and another man in black fell down next to them.

Now only two of the four remained. The leader looked into the darkness, his lips pressed tightly together, and continued to intercept and kill Gu Qingwan and the others.

But before he could take two steps, he felt his body go limp and he couldn't even grip the sword properly.

"You poisoned us!"

Gu Qingwan smiled and said, "It's not really a drug, just a house arrest drug. After all, I'm very curious about who hired someone to kill me."

Gu Qingwan squatted down next to the nearest corpse and pulled a long needle from his neck. "Besides, you can't be allowed to use hidden weapons in the dark while we're not allowed to protect ourselves."

As she spoke, Gu Qingwan flicked her hand and shot towards the shadows. With a thud, the surroundings became even quieter.

The darkest night is finally over, and dawn is breaking on the horizon.

"Miss, they're dead." Siqi walked over to the people who had been poisoned by the house arrest drug. When she tried to tie them all up, she discovered that they had already bitten through the poison hidden in their mouths and committed suicide.

"Those bastards, they never revealed who hired the killer until their deaths. What honest businessmen they are! Humph!"

"Didn't someone go back to report the news?" Gu Qingwan looked thoughtfully at the direction the silver needle had been shot.

"Miss, should I chase after them and see who it is?"

"No need, it's already dawn, we should go back."

As they were talking, they heard the sound of horses' hooves coming from the other end of the long street. The two women looked closely and saw that it was the second young master riding over.

"Qingwan, what are you doing here? And what's going on with these people?" Ning Chengze was somewhat surprised to run into his cousin on the street at this time.

Although Ning Chengze had no intention of entering officialdom, he was somewhat powerless to change his situation due to his family background.

The old Duke has retired, handed over his military tally, and allowed his eldest son to inherit the title, which means he will not return to the battlefield. However, the border cannot be left unguarded.

The Ning family father and son have returned to celebrate the old lady's birthday and were even allowed to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival. Now it's about time they went back.

Logically speaking, if the Duke of Ningguo were to take his son back, the Emperor would be extremely suspicious. The youngest son of the Ning family was too young to be considered a threat, so the Emperor, under the pretext of thinking about the future of the Ning family, would give his second son a position in the patrol battalion.

This position wasn't particularly important, nor was it insignificant, and it was quite easy. Furthermore, given Ning Chengze's status, no one dared to offend him. Therefore, Ning Chengze only took the job half-heartedly, and the Emperor, knowing this, would not only not blame him but would also feel even more at ease.

It seems that it won't be long before the Duke of Ningguo returns to the border with his eldest son.

"What are you doing here, cousin?" Gu Qingwan stepped forward, looked around at the people, and whispered, "I just came back from the Chu Prince's mansion."

What are you doing there so late?

"The prince has been poisoned, I'm going to give him an antidote."

Ning Chengze understood. He knew his cousin's medical skills were exceptional. If it were treating the prince, it wouldn't be a problem. However, the presence of four corpses dressed in night clothes on the ground was a different story.

"Then here..."

Gu Qingwan gave a bitter smile, "I don't know who I offended that would send someone to hire someone to kill me."

"Hired a hitman?" Ning Chengze was somewhat surprised. He lowered his head and pulled off the mask from one of the men. "A member of the martial arts world?"

Gu Qingwan shook her head and said, "At first I also thought they were people from the martial arts world, but now I'm sure they aren't, because they all committed suicide by poisoning themselves in perfect unison, and there weren't four people, but five."

"Five? Where did the other one go?"

"He was hiding in the shadows, preparing to launch hidden weapons. Look." Gu Qingwan pointed to the stool she had just been sitting on; there were indeed several needles on it.

Ning Chengze was immediately enraged. "Hmph, what a clever tactic. Using a two-pronged approach might not be enough to kill you."

Gu Qingwan smiled, "Alright, cousin, I'm fine. Luckily you came, otherwise I wouldn't know what to do with all this, but..."

Gu Qingwan looked at the soldiers behind Ning Chengze with some concern. They were clearly passing by on patrol with Ning Chengze.

Those people were all very observant; their eyes were either on the paving stones beneath their feet or gazing up at the sky. It really made them realize how beautiful the mornings in the capital were.

“Don’t worry about them,” Ning Chengze said confidently. “You should go back now. I’ll handle things here. Someone will come out soon at dawn. We need to deal with it quickly to avoid trouble.”

Gu Qingwan nodded. Now that Ning Chengze was handling the aftermath, she really didn't need to worry about anything.

"Let's go, Siqi."

Siqi followed behind her mistress, still chattering, "Miss, that was really close! I almost couldn't beat those four people. And Miss, you mustn't do that next time."

"What does it look like?"

"You've been watching the commotion from the sidelines, why did you run into the center of the fight? What if you hurt the young lady?"

"Don't worry, even if a few more people come, your young lady won't need to take action herself."

Siqi paused, then asked, "So, in Miss's mind, Siqi is already that remarkable?"

Gu Qingwan was speechless for a moment, "It's because we still have the prince's secret guards around us."

"The prince's secret guards?"

Gu Qingwan looked at her with a hint of exasperation, wondering when Siqi would be able to calm down.

"They're following me from not far away."

"Then why didn't you come out to help just now?"

"They probably think you can handle those small fry."

"That's right, don't you know whose maid I am? The prince's secret guards are certainly powerful, but we're not bad either, are we?" Siqi followed along, babbling and boasting.

Gu Qingwan knew that the guard had been following her since she left the palace. After she took down the fifth assassin, the guard went after him. She believed that news would come soon, and that person would deliver the message to Xiao Jingchen. After that, she wouldn't need to worry.

The fifth assassin who escaped was poisoned. Although he took the antidote in time, he was still very weak, after all, it was a deadly poison.

Fearing he might be followed, he mustered his last strength and took a long detour before finally climbing over into a mansion, thinking he was safe.

However, he was still being followed. The person following him did not get close, because the mansion was not someone else's but the Duke of Wen's mansion. In order not to be discovered, he turned back.

Baoqin waited half the night and finally Gu Qingwan returned.

"My lady is so worried that she hasn't returned until dawn. I was so worried about her."

"I'm sorry to have troubled you. The situation with the Prince is a bit complicated, so I haven't taken up much time."

Gu Qingwan felt very warm inside. Although Baoqin was like a housekeeper, whenever Gu Qingwan went out, Baoqin would always keep the house tightly guarded and would always leave a light on for her.

"My goodness, Siqi, why is your sleeve torn? Who did you fight with?" Baoqin noticed the cut on Siqi's clothes.

"We encountered an assassin..."

"Alright, I'm tired too. You two go back and talk. I don't want to hear Siqi bragging anymore." Gu Qingwan quickly pushed Siqi to Baoqin and went into her room to get a good night's sleep.

Gu Qingwan slept for quite a long time. When she woke up, Meng Yanran came to find her.

"Qingwan, Qingwan, do you know what's happened? Something terrible has occurred!" Meng Yanran rushed in, kicked off her embroidered shoes, and got into Gu Qingwan's bed.

"What's wrong?" Gu Qingwan lay on her side, letting her hair fall down.

"You don't know, there's been a lot of gossip going around about it, it's about your half-sister, Gu Hanjiao."

"Wasn't she waiting at home to become a concubine? What kind of trouble has she caused this time?"

Gu Qingwan's heart lit up; it seemed that the arrangements for Master Huang had been completed.

"That's more than just a little thing, it's a huge bombshell! Let me tell you, it's absolutely bizarre."

This all started when Gu Hanjiao took it upon herself to run to Qingquan Temple that day.