"Miss Gu, I trust you and General Gu."
Liu Yunyan used to be a young lady from a noble family. However, she had no choice but to endure humiliation and become a concubine to the son of her family's enemy. How could she not bear hatred in her heart?
But she had no other options. When the former friends of the He family heard that the whole family had been executed, they tried their best to sever ties with them.
She was all alone in the capital. Even if she made this matter public, no one would be willing to believe her. Now, Gu Jiangyue was still willing to help her, and she also trusted General Gu's character.
Regardless of whether it was true or not, she was running out of time. Since that was the case, she was willing to take a gamble.
"Miss Gu, how can I help?"
There was a look of determination in Liu Yunyan's eyes. She carried too much on her back. The wronged souls of the He family were waiting for her to clear their names.
"I need Miss He to gather evidence, evidence related to the He family's unjust persecution and the Lin family's bribery. Only in this way can we completely eliminate them."
Gu Jiangyue said word by word.
Liu Yunyan nodded heavily upon hearing this.
"Miss Gu, the Lin family has already started to suspect me. I need to leave quickly."
As Liu Yunyan spoke, she tilted her chin towards the window. Gu Jiangyue followed her gaze and saw that two servants had come out of the Lin family's mansion and were looking around at the door. They should be looking for someone.
Gu Jiangyue discussed the time and place of their next meeting with Liu Yunyan. Then, Liu Yunyan quickly left the restaurant and headed towards her original destination.
However, this time, there was not a trace of debauchery in her proudly raised head. Instead, it was replaced by toughness and pride. As the only survivor of the He family, she must clear her family's name.
Gu Jiangyue heaved a heavy sigh. She propped her elbows on the table and her eyes scanned the magnificent scenery of the capital outside the window.
Some things seemed magnificent when viewed through the mist, but when one got closer, they turned out to be nothing but a pile of bones.
This country and society had long since changed.
Gu Jiangyue was about to leave. She stood up and walked to the stairs. Just as she was about to go down, someone blocked her way.
"I wonder which family's young lady you are. May I have the honor of making your acquaintance? I am Lin Yeran, the eldest son of the Lin family."
Gu Jiangyue fixed her eyes on him and was surprised to see him.
Lin Yeran was dressed in a dark blue luxurious robe. His small, narrow eyes were shining with a lecherous light as he stared fixedly at Gu Jiangyue.
Gu Jiangyue was wearing a simple and elegant white long dress. Her hair was neatly coiled into a gentle bun. Her small face was fair, making her lips look even more rosy. Although she could not be described as charming, she was still bright and attractive. Her eyes were looking straight ahead without a ripple.
Gu Jiangyue looked downstairs and saw that there was nothing unusual. It seemed that Lin Yeran had not noticed her meeting with Liu Yunyan.
She heaved a sigh of relief. However, she felt uncomfortable being stared at by those disgusting eyes. Her delicate eyebrows furrowed slightly, and she didn't even bother to greet him. Her tone was completely devoid of warmth.
"I am Gu Jiangyue, the eldest daughter of the Gu family and the daughter of General Gu."
Lin Yeran grinned lewdly and rubbed his chin with his hand.
"So you're from the Gu family. How about Miss Gu accompany this young master for a while?"
Gu Jiangyue thought to herself that something was wrong. Lin Yeran was well - known in the capital for his promiscuity. He loved to flirt with innocent girls and frequent brothels. He had already taken in more than a dozen concubines, and Liu Yunyan was one of them. Many girls had suffered a great deal at his hands, but no one dared to resist him because of his status.
The Gu family was definitely no match for the Lin family. Gu Jiangyue thought that by mentioning her father's name, she could intimidate Lin Yeran. However, she didn't expect that Lin Yeran was so lawless. She ignored him and tried to bypass him and leave.
But Lin Yeran directly reached out and grabbed Gu Jiangyue's arm.
Lin Yeran sneered inwardly. He had played with too many submissive women. Now he wanted to play with someone with a temper. He liked women like Gu Jiangyue.
Zhi Yuan, who was standing beside them, didn't care about the difference in status. When she saw this man daring to manhandle her young lady, she was filled with anger and reached out to stop him.
"You can't be disrespectful to my young lady!"
Lin Yeran merely glanced at Zhi Yuan disdainfully and then pushed her aside. His nauseating voice rang out again.
"If you say another word, do you believe that this young master will deal with you too?"
Zhi Yuan was staggered by his push. She wanted to rush up and stop him again, but was blocked by Lin Yeran's guards.
Lin Yeran's hand tightly grasped Gu Jiangyue's arm. Gu Jiangyue tried to break free, but no matter how hard she tried, Lin Yeran's hand on her arm remained unmoved.
"Let go of me! Do you know what the consequences will be if you offend me?"
Gu Jiangyue struggled, but instead of being afraid, Lin Yeran's long, lecherous eyes were shining with a faint excitement. His hand became even more unscrupulous as he tried to touch Gu Jiangyue's waist.
"This young master just doesn't know what the consequences will be, so I want to give it a try."
Gu Jiangyue was so angry that her face turned red. She kept struggling, and her almond - shaped eyes stared fixedly at Lin Yeran.
She didn't expect such a thing to happen. When the original guests on the second floor saw Lin Yeran, they quickly retreated. They didn't want to provoke this domineering Lin Yeran and naturally tried to stay as far away as possible.
Just then, a white figure walked up from the first floor.
Xie Jiuan was dressed in a snow - white robe. His temples were as sharp as if carved with a knife, and his nose was straight. His black eyes were both amorous and cold, adding a touch of coldness that kept people at a distance. His long black hair was tied up behind him, making him look even more elegant and noble, as if he didn't belong to this mortal world.
He casually waved a folding fan in his hand with a gentle smile on his face. His other hand moved to a small wooden table beside him, picked up a cup of tea, and then with a gentle tilt of his well - defined hand, the tea slowly flowed down and all poured onto Lin Yeran's body.
Only then did Lin Yeran let go of Gu Jiangyue. He cursed under his breath and then turned his head. But when he saw who it was, the ferocious expression on his face instantly froze.
Why was it Xie Jiuan? Lin Yeran immediately wilted.
In the capital, Lin Yeran was lawless and had committed countless evil deeds. No one could control him, but there were two people he was most afraid of.
One was the current emperor, and the other was Xie Jiuan.
Xie Jiuan still had a gentle smile on his face, but his eyes were cold, as if they could freeze a person directly.
He slowly walked up to Gu Jiangyue and shielded her behind him.
Lin Yeran retreated to the side, muttering to himself. He was so angry that he wanted to rush up and beat the two of them up. Although there was no one on the second floor, there were many people on the first floor watching the commotion. Xie Jiuan had directly poured a cup of water on him. How could he show his face in public in the future?
He secretly raised his eyes and glared at the two of them fiercely.
But in an instant, this look was noticed by Xie Jiuan. There was a hint of bloodthirsty red light in his eyes. He said calmly and unhurriedly,
"What, is this how you feel, Young Master Lin?" He paused slightly, closed the folding fan in his hand, and gently tapped Lin Yeran's shoulder. His gaze was cold. "Dissatisfied?"