Sure enough, it was Yun Qianying.
"Xiliu, what's going on?" Yun Qianying poked her head out and asked. "Why haven't you managed to get through after all this time?"
"Miss Yun, wuwu..." Xiliu replied with teary eyes, covering her face as she sobbed. "These commoners are so unruly! I told them it was the princess's carriage and asked them to make way, but they were so slow and reluctant. Just now, when their carriage was moving aside, they accidentally had an accident. I kindly stepped forward to console them, but who would have thought that they, filled with resentment and not wanting to make way, actually attacked me!"
"Wuwu... Princess, Miss Yun, you must avenge this humble maid!"
"Really?" Yun Qianying turned to look at Yi Zhen, who was sitting gracefully and leisurely in the carriage, reading a book. She said sweetly, "A Zhen, please wait a moment. I'll go down and have a look. Don't worry. I won't let those ignorant people disturb you."
"Okay," Yi Zhen looked up at Yun Qianying and replied with a gentle and kind smile. "You go. I'll take a little nap. But since we've been delayed for so long, we need to hurry up a bit. Otherwise, if we're late, cousin might leave."
Blushing shyly, Yun Qianying nodded and got out of the carriage with Liuyun's support.
Coincidentally, Ye Xi and Liu Mengxian had also gotten out of their carriage because it had tilted.
When the two groups met each other's eyes, Yun Qianying's face instantly changed.
Xiliu continued to fan the flames. "Miss Yun, it's them. They were so slow. They didn't even show the slightest respect to the princess."
"Especially that lowly maid of hers. She's as fierce as a Shura ghost."
Ignoring Xiliu, Yun Qianying glared angrily at Liu Mengxian. "Cousin, why do you always hang out with her? You're the legitimate daughter of the Liu family, my blood-related elder sister. How can you lower your status by being with a wild girl from who knows where? It'll bring shame to the entire Liu Mansion."
Xiliu immediately shut up.
Since Ye Xi had established her own estate, she often took the simple and unadorned carriage of her Zhihong Garden, which had no special markings. And Xiliu had just been selected to serve under the Fourth Princess, so many people didn't recognize Ye Xi and the others. They thought they were just ordinary commoners, which was why they were so arrogant.
They never expected that just after she had twisted the truth and reported the matter, Miss Yun would come down and call one of them "cousin".
But it was okay because the other one seemed to have no background at all and was not liked by Miss Yun. Xiliu quickly glanced at Ye Xi and was glad that the person she had mainly reported was Ye Xi and her maid, not involving too much of Miss Yun's cousin.
Liu Mengxian naturally didn't know Xiliu's little schemes.
When she heard Yun Qianying's rude words, her face immediately turned cold.
"Qianying, watch your words," Liu Mengxian said coldly. "The only thing that will bring shame to the Liu family is associating with those with evil intentions and a vicious heart. Xiao Xi is as pure as jade and has both talent and beauty. I'm glad to be her friend, and all the people in the Liu family will fully support me."
"What do you mean, cousin?" Yun Qianying was extremely angry. Her words seemed to be insinuating about her. She said hatefully, "Are you going to side with her and be an enemy of your own cousin?"
"Enemy or not, what's the big deal?" Liu Mengxian snorted. "You're my younger sister, and Xiao Xi is my good friend. You should all get along well. I really don't understand why you always have to target Xiao Xi?"
"Qianying, you weren't like this when you were a child..."
"Get along well?" Yun Qianying interrupted Liu Mengxian as if she had heard the biggest joke in the world. "Don't you even look at what her status is! Does she deserve it?"
"Forget it. If you want to degrade yourself, it's your business. I'm busy today. I don't have time to argue with you."
Saying that, she pointed at Ye Xi and said fiercely, "Come here. This woman has offended the princess and despised the royal family. Arrest her immediately and throw her into prison!"
Lingyan's eyebrows tightened. With a "swish", she drew her sword and stepped sideways to block in front of Ye Xi. Saixing also tightly grabbed Ye Xi's arm, her eyes full of vigilance.
"No!"
"Miss Yun, please wait!"
Two voices rang out at the same time. The first one was from Liu Mengxian, and the second one was from Ren Jiao, who had rushed over after leaving the carriage. He said anxiously, "It's broad daylight. How can you arrest people without distinguishing right from wrong?"
"We did make way. It's just that the carriage got stuck temporarily..."
Yun Qianying waved her hand impatiently and glared at Ren Jiao. "Who are you? This is not the place for you to talk."
"Miss Yun, you're wrong," Ren Jiao said with a disapproving look on his face. "I'm Ren Jiao, the son of Ren Ji, the Langzhong of the Ministry of Personnel. Throughout history, even if the emperor acts unjustly, scholars all over the world can offer advice. Now..."
"What are you showing off for? You're just the son of a fifth-rank official." Yun Qianying rolled her eyes disdainfully and waved her hand. "Arrest him!"
"Qianying!" Liu Mengxian shouted. She grabbed Ye Xi's arm and wanted to pull her behind her.
Yi Zhen hadn't made a grand show of this trip, so there weren't many guards accompanying her. Lingyan, together with Yan Xuan and Yan Gui in the dark, could handle the situation easily.
The problem was the opponent's identity.
If they took action casually, they might end up being in the wrong even if they were originally in the right.
Ye Xi was still thinking hard about a better solution when a clear and sonorous male voice came from behind. "Miss Yun has quite a lot of official authority."
Everyone was stunned. They turned their heads and saw Shen Zhou striding over with a hint of anger in his eyes.
"A, A Zhou? Why are you here?" Yun Qianying's eyes flashed. Her face instantly turned pale.
She quickly explained, "No, it's not like that. It was she who offended A Zhen first. It was they who attacked first..."
Saying that, she quickly pulled Xiliu over and pointed at the red mark on her face. "A Zhou, look. It was her maid Lingyan who did it. They attacked first!"
By the end, her voice had become shrill.
Walking up to Ye Xi, Shen Zhou silently blocked her behind him. He looked at Yun Qianying coldly, his eyes icy. "What does the matter between two maids have to do with Miss Ye?"
"On the street, without asking the reason, you casually arrest people and abuse your power to take revenge. Is this how you, the daughter of the Yun family, behave?"
Shen Zhou was always gentle and polite to others and rarely showed a cold face. This was the first time he had said such harsh words.
Not only Ye Xi and the others but also Sheng Yu, who had always been by Shen Zhou's side, was surprised and turned to look at Shen Zhou a few times.
Having her little thoughts mercilessly exposed by the man she admired, Yun Qianying's face instantly lost all its color.
Seeing Shen Zhou still protecting Ye Xi, her jealousy and hatred almost drowned her completely.
Yun Qianying turned her head away and said stubbornly, "A Zhou, you can say whatever you want. Anyway, she made a mistake today, and I'm definitely going to take her away."
"A Zhen is a noble princess, the pride of heaven. How can she suffer the slightest bit of grievance? Logically speaking, you're also A Zhen's cousin. A Zhou, don't be confused and side with outsiders. You'll hurt your own family's feelings!"
After saying that, she waved her hand and shouted, "What are you still standing there for? Hurry up and arrest that lowly maid who offended the princess!"