As they were speaking, the voices drew nearer. Among them, the most prominent was the shrill and malicious voice of Lady Liu. "Someone, go and invite the eldest young lady out for me!"
"Presumably it's about Ren Ning'er's poisoning," Cheng Xiran stood up and said to Helian Duo, "Remember to hide. Don't let anyone see you."
After saying that, she walked towards the door, and Zhuque quickly followed.
In the courtyard, when Lady Liu saw Cheng Xiran, she sneered sarcastically. "The eldest young lady is really calm. The mansion is in an uproar, yet you still have the heart to stay in the room."
"Not sleeping in the middle of the night. Do you all, like my stepmother, go around scaring people with your servants?" Cheng Xiran retorted. Lifting her eyes and seeing Cheng Zhiyue there, she continued, "Sister is still young and doesn't know the importance of beauty sleep. Look at our stepmother. If you don't pay more attention to your skin care, in a few years you'll look as haggard and prematurely aged as her."
After these words, both Lady Liu and Cheng Zhiyue turned livid.
No woman doesn't want to stay young forever, especially Lady Liu. Since she could always keep Prime Minister Cheng's heart, she always felt self - satisfied that her appearance remained unchanged. How could she bear to hear such words?
"Nonsense!" Lady Liu roared angrily. "Cheng Xiran, your plot to harm Cousin Ren has been exposed. Hurry up and go with me to apologize to Father and Lady Ren!"
Cheng Xiran pretended to be stupid. "What? Something happened to Ren Ning'er?"
"Sister, there's no need to act anymore," Cheng Zhiyue walked forward gracefully, her eyes filled with a sense of pleasure. "Both the witness and the evidence are there. It's no use even if you don't admit it. Father has already said that he will expel you from the family genealogy."
Lady Liu immediately followed up. "Someone, arrest Cheng Xiran for me!"
As soon as the words fell, several servants rushed forward. At the same time, the door behind Cheng Xiran suddenly opened, and a cold and imposing voice resounded.
"I'd like to see who dares!"
Although she was used to his voice, this time was different. His voice was distinctive, more ferocious than usual. Was this ferocity because of her?
Cheng Xiran was slightly dazed, and then she chuckled to herself. Who was she? She was Cheng Xiran. She had the ability to clear the original owner's name. How could a few ordinary people even think of harming her? It was impossible.
So, she slowly suppressed the fleeting warmth in her eyes and looked coldly at Lady Liu. "Maybe I shouldn't have addressed you as stepmother since the last time you framed me for stealing grandmother's beloved bracelet. Well, are you going to play this outdated trick again?"
Lady Liu was stunned, not only because of her question but also because of Helian Duo standing imposingly beside her.
When everyone saw Helian Duo, they seemed to forget about coming to denounce someone and just saluted him in unison. At this moment, the Regent had no time to care about these things because all he could think about was Cheng Xiran.
As the old lady and Prime Minister Cheng entered, Cheng Xiran slightly curled the corner of her mouth, squinted her eyes slightly, and said with a charming smile, "But what my stepmother is best at seems to be the trick of 'killing with a borrowed knife'. Now that you're so proficient at it, aren't you afraid that one day it will backfire on you?"
Lady Liu was momentarily at a loss. Cheng Zhiyue beside her said confidently, "There's no frame - up this time. We all know Ren Ning'er's identity. Who would joke about Cousin's life?"
But Cheng Xiran asked rhetorically without caring. "So was the last time just a joke from you all to me?"
As she spoke, she took out a short dagger from her sleeve, still with a smile in her eyes. But this smile made Cheng Zhiyue shiver, and she even unconsciously took half a step back.