One of the men was wearing a cassock. As for the other, who else could it be but Qin Junxing?
When Zhang Yao saw Qin Junxing approaching, she hurriedly took two steps forward, ignoring the monk. "Your Highness..."
Qin Junxing's indifferent gaze swept past Zhang Yao. He nodded at Xie Fengran in the distance. "Miss Xie, we meet again!"
Xie Fengran straightened her dress and curtsied. "Greetings, Your Highness!"
"You don't need to be so polite, miss!"
His tone was gentle, and his attitude was as amiable as could be. Zhang Yao's eyes turned red with envy. She wished she could kick Xie Fengran away and take her place.
But she didn't dare. Instead, she tried to regain Qin Junxing's attention.
She stepped forward to block Qin Junxing's view. With a look of grievance on her face, she said, "Your Highness, that Xie Fengran secretly invited my cousin here late at night. She's really shameless. Don't be deceived by her!"
She then pointed at Zhang's cousin on the other side, who was in a disheveled state. "Look, Your Highness. After her scheme was exposed, she tried to shift all the blame onto my cousin. She even injured him. She's really vicious. Your Highness, you must uphold justice for us!"
Zhang Yao's voice was full of委屈. With teary eyes, she looked at Qin Junxing.
It seemed that she wanted to cry out loud, but unfortunately, her acting skills were not good enough. The few tears on her face just hung there, and she couldn't cry any more. So she had to give up.
She was even worse than the drunkard on the side who let out a couple of groans.
Zhang Yao's words made Lanfang anxious. She was afraid that Qin Junxing would believe such nonsense and convict their young lady.
She wanted to rush forward to explain, but was stopped by Xie Fengran.
"Don't be in a hurry!" With Zhang Yao's crying skills, which were even worse than Xie Yunxi's, did she really think she could fool Qin Junxing?
It was really a joke!
Qin Junxing had good hearing and heard the words "Don't be in a hurry". The corners of his mouth involuntarily twitched upward, and his expression became more vivid. In the flickering firelight, his handsome face gained an extra three points of charm.
Zhang Yao was momentarily spellbound, and even Xie Fengran's eyes flickered.
This prince, without his aura of killing and violence, was truly a flower of earthly wealth!
At this moment, this Qin, the "flower of wealth", was obviously in a good mood. He patiently asked, "I wonder if Miss Zhang has any evidence for what you've said?"
Zhang Yao was still in a daze, not having recovered from the prince's good looks. She replied blankly, "My cousin is here. It's a case of both the culprit and the evidence being present. What more evidence do we need?"
"You're lying! We all saw that you were on top of that drunkard. You must have had an affair with him!"
Hexiang didn't know where she got the courage from. She stepped forward and pointed at Zhang Yao.
"Hexiang, stop talking nonsense! Come back at once." Xie Fengran scolded Hexiang back before Zhang Yao could say anything.
However, because of this sentence, the looks the surrounding guards gave Zhang Yao became a bit strange.
Even Qin Junxing looked at Zhang Yao in surprise. "Miss Zhang, what's going on here?"
Zhang Yao's face flushed red. She quickly waved her hands. "Your Highness, don't listen to that lowly maid's nonsense. They're trying to frame me."
"Right! Hexiang, how can you casually speculate about the relationship between a cousin and his cousin? "
Xie Fengran suddenly spoke up. Her voice was gentle. She gave Zhang Yao a faint smile, but the smile didn't reach her eyes. "Miss Zhang just hugged, touched, and cuddled with her cousin. She's as innocent as can be. How can it be considered an affair?"
"Right, Miss Zhang!"
As soon as these words were spoken, there was a moment of silence. Everyone looked at Xie Fengran in surprise.
What Miss Xie said was really eye - opening.
Could "innocent" be used in such a way?
Zhang Yao wished she could strangle Xie Fengran at this moment. She stared at Xie Fengran with wide eyes, as if her eyes were about to pop out.
If looks could kill, Xie Fengran would have been dead a hundred times over!
But Xie Fengran acted as if she didn't notice. She added innocently, "Miss Zhang, don't be angry. I just accidentally told the truth!"
Zhang Yao choked on a breath. Her face turned as red as a liver, and she couldn't say a word.
As for Qin Junxing on the side, his heart was already completely biased towards Xie Fengran. He was happy to watch Xie Fengran take revenge.
"Amitabha. Since this female benefactor can't explain clearly, let this benefactor speak."
The abbot couldn't stand it anymore. He recited a Buddhist incantation and pointed at Zhang's cousin, who was half - awake.
Zhang's cousin was suddenly called out. He shivered and squatted down with his head in his hands. "I don't know. I don't know anything!"
He was really a useless person.
The abbot had a bit of a headache. His eyes shifted, and he saw the bald head standing in the middle of the torches. He asked in surprise, "Jinghe, why are you here?"
Jinghe, the monk Zhang Yao had dragged here, bowed slightly to the abbot. "In reply to Abbot Shishu, this female benefactor insisted that I be a witness. But I really never passed a message for Miss Xie. I really can't be a witness!"
The abbot recited a Buddhist incantation. "Amitabha. I wonder if this benefactor has any other evidence?"
Zhang Yao's expression was uncertain. She glanced at the drunkard lying on the ground and cursed him silently for being useless. But before she could figure out how to reply, Jinghe spoke again.
"Abbot Shishu, I may be able to explain this matter."
"Go ahead!"
Seeing that Jinghe was about to speak, Zhang Yao knew something was wrong. But before she could stop him, Jinghe blurted out everything.
"This disciple saw that benefactor drinking in the bamboo forest on the back mountain this afternoon. I stepped forward to dissuade him, but unexpectedly, this benefactor spoke arrogantly. He said that his cousin had told him to come. He also said..."
Jinghe glanced at Zhang Yao and continued, "He also said that his cousin had told him that Miss Xie of the Xie family would be alone tonight. As long as he hugged Miss Xie, his cousin could make him the son - in - law of the Xie family. He told me to get as far away as possible. I couldn't do anything about him, so I had to go find someone. But when I came back, this person was gone."
"Later, Miss Zhang found me and asked me to be a tainted witness. I was afraid, so I pretended to agree. But in the end, I couldn't bear it in my heart, so I decided to tell the whole truth."
The breath that Zhang Yao had been holding in after being angered by Xie Fengran still hadn't subsided. Now she didn't even know who to hate.
At this moment, she finally realized that she had been set up!
"Xie Fengran, you're really something. You have such powerful means. You can even bribe the monks of the Huguo Temple to work for you. I really underestimated you!"
Xie Fengran hadn't even recovered from Jinghe's account when this big accusation was thrown at her. She couldn't help but blink her eyes. "Wasn't this person bribed by you? If the deal didn't work out, shouldn't you blame yourself for not offering a high enough price?"
"You're so glib. Just you wait. I won't let you go!"
Xie Fengran sighed. There were always people who liked to throw accusations around.
Regarding tonight's incident, from the appearance of the drunkard to Jinghe's defection, every step was carefully planned. Zhang Yao, the Huguo Temple, and even herself had all been neatly calculated.
Not only had Zhang Yao been seen cuddling with her drunk cousin in public, ruining her reputation and leaving her with no way to defend herself, but the monks of the Huguo Temple had also been implicated. After all, it was still to be determined how the drunkard had entered the Huguo Temple. In this way, the Huguo Temple would surely keep it under wraps.
Moreover, it had also saved her from trouble. If she didn't know, she might really have been grateful.
The only thing that puzzled Xie Fengran was how the person behind this had arranged things for her.
After all, if there hadn't been someone by her side to kick the drunkard away, just Hexiang alone probably wouldn't have been able to stop him.
Xie Fengran shifted her gaze and met the eyes of the biggest winner of tonight.