Zhu Qing's senior brother got up from the ground, lowering his head and saying, "The Bloodthirsty Guards have their own set of inherited rules. Each generation has a leader who selects orphans without parents to teach martial arts, and this has been passed down. Whether the master activates the Bloodthirsty Guards or not, we always adhere to our rules and wait for the master's call."
"So, you and Zhu Qing are both orphans?"
"Right. We were all orphans picked up by our master."
Xie Fengran just felt something strange in her heart. She asked again, "Where is your master now? Is he also in the manor?"
When mentioning the master, a look of pain flashed across the face of this tall and strong man, but it quickly disappeared. He shook his head. "The master has passed away."
Since he entered, this man had always kept a straight face, as if this was not the Marquis's Mansion but an enemy camp.
Xie Fengran thought that the man who could train such people must be extraordinary. Maybe he was the person in charge behind the scenes. But unexpectedly, it turned out to be such a result.
For a moment, she couldn't react. "Passed away?"
The man realized his gaffe. He adjusted his expression and said, "If the leader of each generation of the Bloodthirsty Guards hands over his position, he will die. So did my master after he handed the leadership to me!"
"Ah!"
"Senior brother!"
Lan Fang couldn't help but let out a soft exclamation. Zhu Qing stared blankly at her senior brother.
Xie Fengran subconsciously tightened her grip on the token and was stunned for a moment.
Seeing this, Zhu Qing's senior brother quickly knelt down to plead guilty. "This subordinate deserves to die for scaring the young lady."
Xie Fengran slowly loosened her grip on the token and tried to calm her voice. "It's okay. It's not your fault. Get up first."
"Yes!"
By this time, if Xie Fengran still didn't understand how extraordinary these guards were, she would be extremely stupid.
The capital was under the feet of the emperor, with good public order. Even petty thieves didn't dare to set foot in the East City.
The guards of aristocratic families were just for guarding the house or following playboys to the street to rob civilian girls.
The guards of the Marquis of Dingguo's Mansion were the same. No wonder Qin Junxing came to remind her after he found out that it was she who did that thing.
Now it seemed that it was really a waste of their talents for her to let them watch the people of the Li family.
"Speaking of which, I really wronged you all for the thing I asked you to do last time!"
"This subordinate wouldn't dare." Zhu Qing's senior brother lowered his head and clasped his fists. "This subordinate and the others will follow all the master's orders and only wait for the master's instructions."
"Good. Since it's so, I'll ask you. Have the successive masters of the Marquis's Mansion known about your inheritance?"
"Yes!"
"Does my grandmother know?"
"Back when the master was alive, the old madam once summoned the master. This subordinate guesses that the old madam should know."
Xie Fengran nodded. "Since it's so, I'll ask you again. Do you want to change the fate of the Bloodthirsty Guards?"
"Young lady..."
Zhu Qing's senior brother seemed to have heard something extraordinary. He widened his eyes. "What does the young lady mean?"
"You should know the origin of the Bloodthirsty Guards. You don't have to answer me now. I'm just asking if you want to change. I'll give you three days to think about it."
After saying that, without waiting for his answer, she continued, "During these three days, you should have your men check all the servants in the East Courtyard of the Marquis's Mansion to see if there are any problems. I'll have more use for you in the future. If you're truly loyal to me, I'll surely find a way to change your fate so that you won't be trapped in the manor for a lifetime. Go back and think it over clearly before coming back to answer me."
After Xie Fengran finished speaking, she got up and walked out.
Lan Fang threw a look at Zhu Qing and followed her out.
Only Zhu Qing and her senior brother were left in the meeting hall.
Zhu Qing's senior brother looked at Zhu Qing and asked, "Is the young lady good to you?"
"Yes. The young lady is kind. She has never beaten or scolded the servants, nor does she look down on me."
"That's good." Zhu Qing's senior brother stroked Zhu Qing's head, and a hint of warmth flashed in his eyes.
No matter what his ending would be, he would be relieved as long as Zhu Qing could have a good destination.
Zhu Qing dodged to the side uncomfortably. She looked at her senior brother and asked, "Senior brother, will you agree to what the young lady said?"
"Now we're loyal to the Marquis's Mansion. Naturally, senior brother will agree to what the young lady said."
"Senior brother, don't lie to me. I don't believe you don't understand what the young lady means! If you don't agree to the young lady, you'll die in the future, right?"
Zhu Qing stared at her senior brother with wide eyes, as if she wouldn't give up until she got an answer!
"Don't worry. Senior brother won't die so easily."
"I don't believe it!"
"Senior brother hasn't taken in an apprentice yet! How could it be so easy to die!"
"But I want senior brother to live a long and prosperous life in the future, instead of just dying silently for no good reason."
The tears that Zhu Qing had been holding back finally flowed down. This was what she couldn't accept.
Although she was picked up by the master, it was her senior brother who had been raising and protecting her. Just thinking that her senior brother would die in his prime like the master in the future, she couldn't accept it.
The senior brother sighed. The child had grown up and was not easy to fool anymore.
"Senior brother will think it over carefully. You should stay by the young lady's side well. As long as you're loyal to the young lady, the young lady won't make things difficult for you!"
Although Zhu Qing was reluctant to part with her senior brother, she also understood that there were some things she was powerless to change.
When she returned to the courtyard, Lan Fang was airing the clothes. She walked over to help.
Seeing Zhu Qing come back with red eyes, Lan Fang felt quite sympathetic to her.
Inside the room, Xie Fengran was lying in bed, tossing and turning with the master's token in her hand. She always felt that things had gone beyond her knowledge.
After thinking for a while, she got up and walked to the study. She wrote a letter and called Zhu Qing over. "You go and send this letter to the Prince of Qin. If you can't find him, send it to the steward of the Princess's Mansion."
Zhu Qing quickly took it. Then she saw her young lady take out a thick stack of papers from the secret compartment of the drawer. "Send this to Miss Sun of the Sun Mansion."
"Yes!"
"Go."
After doing these two things, Xie Fengran couldn't lie down anymore. She simply went to the study to read books.
In a blink of an eye, three days had passed, and the entrance examination for the Women's College officially began.
Xie Fengran got up to get ready before dawn. The old Madam Xie also sent Nanny Su over to help.
The exam started at 8 a.m. Xie Fengran left the mansion early.
During these days, besides the Women's College, the new story in the Lingfeng Teahouse was also a hot topic among the people in the capital.
No one knew which expert dared to openly write the Prince of Qin of the Princess's Mansion into the storytelling.
Although his name and identity were hidden, it was really easy to recognize the prince. Even those who knew him could tell at a glance.
Especially the first story was about the things that the prince and the daughter of the Prime Minister's Mansion had to say.
Although in the end a third party intervened and the daughter of the Prime Minister's Mansion left the prince, the charm of the prince described by the storyteller still attracted a lot of people's discussion.
As soon as this new story came out, it seemed that it was a foregone conclusion that the daughter of the Prime Minister Zhang's family would marry her cousin. Most people believed it.
Just as the Women's College was holding the entrance examination, some busybodies waited at the gate of the Women's College, wanting to see what the daughter of the Prime Minister's Mansion looked like, that she would abandon the prince for her cousin.
But unexpectedly, by the time everyone had entered the college, they still didn't see the carriage of the Prime Minister's Mansion coming.
Zhang Yao didn't come to take the exam!