XH 188
Duke Heng arrived just in time for the show to start. The patrol guards were circling a person that had exited from 《A Pair of Genuine Eye》 pawn shop.
He gotten out of the carriage a street away and discreetly approached the growing crowd with Liu Bing following closely behind him.
His stride was full of confidence as he headed straight to the crowd but his eyes were all around the place, looking for the Third Prince and Xiao Hua. His straying eyes finally stopped at a pair of black dressed couple at the side of the crowd. Trailing his eyes up and down at their figures he confirmed his suspicion and no longer looked around, focusing on the issue.
"What's going on here?" Liu Bing raised his voice.
"Sir Liu Bing!" One of the guards recognized him as the previous prime minister's student. Then he looked beside Liu Bing eagerly. "Duke Heng!"
No one in the Guilin Kingdom had not heard of Duke Heng! Within a minute, the crowd parted to let Duke Heng into the middle of the circle.
"Duke Heng! This man is a spy from Gu Dan!" A soldier quickly informed the important point to Duke Heng.
The captured man previously worn an oversized hat, covering his upper face from view. Previously, one of the soldiers had accidentally bumped into him and the hat fell off, revealed his green eyes.
The guard had wanted to apologize, but upon seeing the pair of green eyes, his apologetic demeanor turned fierce and full of hostility. The green-eyed man knew that his disguise was seen through and wanted to escape but he was not quick enough and stopped by the guards.
"One of us has gone to inform Minister of Justice and ask what we should do, but now that Duke Heng is here, please guide us!" The guard requested politely but his eyes boldly pressured Duke Heng.
If Xiao Hua had not known this was all a planned act, Xiao Hua would have thought that the guard was forcefully passing the hot potato to Duke Heng's hands.
"Is this how you treat visitors?" The green-eyed man yelled angrily. "We really should think twice before visiting this unfriendly country!"
The green-eyed man still tried to escape, but the tall, heavily built guard tightened his grip on his shoulder. The guard used his Qi to lock his movement, posing the green eyed man as a human doll. The remaining three guards stood around him, in a position to stop the spy if he managed to break free.
"Our Guilin Kingdom had never treated our visitors badly, but that is not the case for those with the intention to harm our home," Duke Heng said righteously. "Your eyes are the very symbol of a Gu Dan people! If we had truly wronged you after your innocence is proven, we are not afraid to apologize and compensate you! This soldier, please escort him to Minister of Justice to be investigated."
"Hold on! That's my customer you are harassing!" A feminine boy with fair skin stepped out of the pawn shop with righteous anger. "Just because he has green eyes, he is from Gu Dan country? There are other people in this world with green eyes that are not from Gu Dan country!"
Xiao Hua grinned. That's the heroine! She must have been watching from inside the shop and seeing how that green-eyed man would be dragged away by the guards, she had no choice but to step out.
Her righteous words nearly swayed the crowd, but unfortunately for the heroine, Duke Heng had already known who she was and happily attacked her. "You said he is your customer? Then are you a worker of the pawn shop? You appear at the right time! Please follow the guards and answer some questions. Your help will solve this problem in a shorter time. If the owner of this shop would follow us as well, it will be even more helpful."
The heroine narrowed her eyes coldly, her voice fierce. "Is it not against the law to capture suspicious people without any proof? Not even the Emperor dared to be this unlawful!"
"Gu Dan people are nothing but dangerous!" Someone yelled without caring. But that set off a chain of attack.
"Yeah! Is there even a need for proof?"
"He's definitely here to make trouble!"
"All these are just based on assumptions and not facts!" The heroine said loudly. Her stance was firm and unyielding, believing in her own belief. "I, Yao Bao, would never judge a person simply for their appearance! Could we change our appearance that we are born with? No! But that does not mean we can mistreat those people that look different from us! What you all are doing now is just the same as the strong bullying the weak, narrow-minded and prejudiced!"
The passerby Xiao Hua was engrossed with the brewing drama until a large, warm hand with a touch of intimacy pressed against her lower back. Without needing Long Zhu to speak, and minus out her suspicious of him wanting to cop a feel, she guessed that he wanted her to add oil on the fire!
She side glanced at him, which he would not able to see with the veil covering her, but he sensed her gaze and nodded curtly.
He was right to be worried for the crowd seemed to be moved by the heroine's words despite Duke Heng's effort to suppress her.
Using her long, wide sleeves into her advantage, Xiao Hua hides her trembling hands from view before straightened her back and stepped into the crowd.
"Please let me thru." Her words were polite, but her tone was full of command. It was her tone that had the crowd automatically moved away to create a path. Her expensive attire also let everyone know she was not from a simple background.
Noticing a new person entering the fray, Duke Heng's eyes flashed with amusement before it was concealed.
"If you and that gentleman are innocent, why would you need to be afraid? The Minister of Justice in Guilin will naturally release him when he's proven innocent." Everyone easily caught the mockery from her words.
Seeing this newcomer with unknown identity, but her attire and poise that could only belong to a strong background, Liu Chu Chu grew guarded, instantly disliking this female. "This madam, your words sound wrong. Why are you trying to make us, a pawn shop with clean reputation, as the villains and traitor to our dear country? From your attire, you are clearly not a citizen of Guilin, are you here with the intention of sowing discord among ourselves?"
Xiao Hua and Long Zhu were wearing the style of Xuanwu Kingdom's clothes to keep in line with their disguise. The Guilin Kingdom was not unfamiliar with foreign visitors and never minded it as the foreigners played a large part in helping their economy bloom. That boy's words might be spoken in his own defense, but it was still improper to accuse their visitor of committing crime!
The charming lady was not cowered, instead, she grew even bolder. "Whether we are innocent or not will be decided by the law and court. Why is a little boy yet to reach adulthood try to act like an adult and be the judge? Your actions make Guilin look bad." With a black metal fan in her hand resting on her chin, she did not bother toning down her mocking tone. "Sowing discord? My guard, enlighten this boy what I, an adult, had just said earlier."
The masked guard with reverence gaze dedicated only for his young miss obeyed like a loyal puppy. However, his infatuated demeanor immediately changed to a condensing one once his eyes left his beloved mistress.
His gaze was one that looked at a trash. The trash before his eyes was the Liu Chu Chu in disguise.
"Your brain is underdeveloped. Go back to your mother and drink milk. Don't meddle with adult business," Long Zhu said coldly, purposely making his voice deeper.
Xiao Hua: '...' As a good employer, it is only natural that she would support her own bodyguard!
"My guard is still the one that understands me the most." Xiao Hua cooed and caressed Long Zhu's chest. She not wanting to destroy her cool image by stretching her arms high up to touch his head as she originally intended to do. "In Xuanwu, we never let children speak in such manner towards adults, much less allowing their undisciplined children running around the street with an unrestrained mouth. Am I not right, my guard?"
Long Zhu's eyes glittered with trust and worship. "Everything my lady said is right."
Why do they, the onlookers, feel stifling to watch this guard and his miss' shameless display of affection? Hey, the father of this miss! Do you know this guard is trying to entrap your precious daughter?!
"If everyone thinks the same way as you, it's no wonder there are so many unnecessary arguments in the world!" Liu Chu Chu said with a frown. It was a wonder if she truly does not care if her words would bring trouble upon her or she just does not care, proudly looking down on everyone and confident of her own strength.
Xiao Hua smiled widely until her mouth revealed a small gap of her white teeth, which contrast sharply with her bright red lips. "So defensive! If one does not know anything, they will think you are trying to hide something!"
Unfortunately for Liu Chu Chu, the crowd no longer reacted positively to her words. Even if Xiao Hua's words were a bit too much, they were still reasonable. The crowd started to scold Liu Chu Chu with their eyes and mouths. It was quick to get noisy and some even wanted to attack Liu Chu Chu.
The shopkeeper of the pawn shop knew that things have gotten bad and hurried out with an apologetic expression.
He truly regretted that he had not stepped out to clear the matters earlier when Lord Yao Bao told him to. He had refused, for even if the green-eyed guy was truly innocent, he was not truly ignorant of what Lord Yao Bao and the green-eyed guy were doing under the roof of his shop. But this young boy was not from simple background if the Second Prince allowed these to happen and the shopkeeper must not offend him to safeguard his life.
However, the shopkeeper was not able to utter a word when a guard spoke up coldly.
"A few days ago, we have caught a person with green eyes as well, and in his bag contained a secret scroll with Guilin's affairs. We believe this person is an ally of that spy!"
Duke Heng snapped his fan shut with a serious expression. "Then it's decided. Soldiers, please bring that man to Minister of Justice, along with that young boy! Whoever interferes, bring them along too!"
The shopkeeper quickly approached Duke Heng with an uneasy expression. "Duke Heng, Lord Yao Bao is not involved in the matter, there is no need for him to go as well. I am the one that does business with that client, so I'm the one that should go."
Duke Heng stared at the shopkeeper indifferently. "If that's the case, then you certainly need to be questioned. But that boy will need to be questioned as well. He defended a Gu Dan people so passionately, which is not something most of us dared to do when everyone learned to be wary of Gu Dan!"
The shopkeeper could no longer defend Yao Bao.