After refusing marriage, she was pampered by the prince who acted as a shield.

Chapter 476: Departure

"If you continue to spout nonsense, don't blame me for being impolite. You should know that Juan'er has been by the Empress Dowager's side in the palace these past few days."

"Yes, yes, Master Zhuang is right, we don't know any of the people inside."

Zhuang's father's fierce gaze swept over everyone, making them afraid to speak out of turn, and they did nothing but nod repeatedly.

Having received a satisfactory answer, he wouldn't just let the person go; instead, he took out a considerable amount of loose silver and placed it in the hands of his servants.

"I thank you all for saving the girl from danger on her behalf, but this is a matter of a girl's innocence, so please don't talk nonsense."

"Of course."

Those who had received the silver tossed it into the air and then called for everyone to leave.

But not long after the man walked away, Zhuang's father saw a figure that had not left, and his eyes were glued to it.

Lin Rusi hadn't expected things to move so fast when she met those fiery eyes.

But she wasn't afraid at all; instead, she looked at the other person more directly.

"What brings you here, Mr. Zhuang? Why are you staring at me like that? Are you asking me for your daughter?"

"Of course not, but..."

Zhuang's father glanced at the carriage that the servants had brought, then took two steps forward, blocking Lin Rusi's retreat.

His expression grew increasingly ferocious, staring intently at her as if he wanted to tear her to pieces.

Lin Rusi didn't care at all, and even said a few words to the guards next to her before turning around to leave.

"Don't you have anything to say?"

What can I say?

Upon hearing this, and recalling Zhuang Lijuan's disheveled appearance inside, Zhuang's father's face darkened considerably.

Of course, this does not include Lin Rusi.

"By the way, you said Zhuang Lijuan is in the palace, so why did I see her on the road? Is it just because she looks similar?"

"You! It really was you! Why did you treat Juan'er like this? She didn't do anything!"

Did you do nothing?

Lin Rusi's smile was even more sarcastic.

This expression further provoked Zhuang's father, who, disregarding her identity, rushed forward to teach the person who had bullied his daughter a lesson.

But the guards standing nearby wouldn't give him that chance; they raised their hands and shoved him away.

"What do you want to do?"

"Lin Rusi, don't think that you've risen to a higher social status by doing this. The Empress Dowager will absolutely not allow it."

As expected, they have the Empress Dowager as their backer.

But Lin Rusi ignored her and left directly under the protection of the guards.

She couldn't ignore the burning gaze behind her, but she didn't turn around or even change her pace, slowly returning to the courtyard where they were.

"Don't keep this from the Crown Prince, or he'll worry again."

My injuries haven't healed yet; if I deal with these troublesome things, it will be even harder for me to recover.

Thinking of her injuries, Lin Rusi's face grew even more grim, but then, as if remembering something, she turned to look at the bodyguards who were always with Li Jingyang.

"You often accompany the Crown Prince, so what exactly happened to this injury?"

"I don't know, I wasn't by the Crown Prince's side that day."

Just as he felt the gaze leave, he was about to breathe a sigh of relief when Lin Rusi's voice rang out beside him.

"You should know who was there at the time, right?"

The guard almost blurted it out, but luckily he realized something was wrong just as he opened his mouth, coughed twice, and said he didn't know, trying to brush it off.

But now everyone knew that the secret guards were hiding something.

Lin Rusi knew she wouldn't get a clear answer, so she didn't say anything more and turned to go into her room to rest.

Meanwhile, the guards made no attempt to hide anything and turned around to tell Li Jingyang everything.

When he heard that Zhuang's father was still waiting for Lin Rusi, his face darkened slightly, and he wanted to teach the man a lesson himself.

But before she could even get up, the pain in her abdomen reminded her that she couldn't move around right now.

After hesitating for a moment, Li Jingyang closed his eyes and tapped his slender fingers on the edge of the bed.

The muffled sound echoed in the room for a while before his voice came again.

"We'll talk about this after I recover. Right now, all you need to do is protect Madam and make sure she doesn't get hurt in the slightest."

When the topic of injury came up, his eyes slightly opened, revealing a crack, but they couldn't hide the murderous intent within.

The guard who came to explain the situation felt a chill on his neck and immediately knelt down to agree.

Having received a satisfactory answer, Li Jingyang coughed lightly, took the medicine that had been brought to him, and went back to sleep.

His injuries had slightly healed, and he was just about to return to his residence to find Lin Rusi when the Emperor's edict arrived first.

"It's a real hassle, but it can shut a few people up."

Li Jingyang clearly thought of something and turned to look at the guard who had been taking care of him.

Understanding that the Crown Prince had something to say, he immediately knelt down.

"Protect the lady well, and tell her that I will not be able to protect myself and Changning during this time."

"Your subordinate obeys and will certainly convey your verbal order to the Crown Princess."

Watching the guards leave, Li Jingyang quickly followed the eunuch who was waiting on the side.

Lin Rusi looked at the food box she had prepared and Changning, who had changed her clothes and was about to go out, and without saying anything, she took the child into her arms.

"Mom, let's go out and play!"

"If we can't play anymore, how about we catch butterflies in the yard?"

The little guy was very interested in the colorful little things, but he wouldn't let it touch them because of the powder on the butterflies.

He was a little puzzled by this sudden suggestion, but he quickly forgot all about it.

He led Lin Rusi to the back garden and headed towards the most beautifully blooming bouquet.

Now he walks more steadily than at the beginning, but his limbs are still a bit short, and he walks with a wobbly gait, which makes people worry.

The wet nurse quickly followed, which gave Lin Rusi a chance to look at the guards who wanted to follow.

"Did the Crown Prince say where he's going? How long will it take him to return?"

"Let's go to Yangzhou."

The rest was not something a guard should know, so there was no need to say more.

Lin Rusi noticed the guard's meaning and frowned slightly, but quickly composed herself.

"The Crown Prince also advises you to protect yourself."

"I know."

After uttering those three words, Lin Rusi walked straight to Changning's side and wiped the sweat from her forehead with a handkerchief.

The little one had a lot of fun and smiled even more brightly, which made her feel much better.

Seemingly sensing her mother's bad mood, Changning worked even harder afterward, even presenting her with a peony with a butterfly on it.

"Mom, it's beautiful."

"Which is prettier, the flower or Mother?"

Changning hesitated for a moment, then glanced at the butterfly on the flower before finally turning to Lin Rusi and smiling.

"Mom is the prettiest. Dad says flowers go well with beautiful women."

The little hand placed the flower behind Lin Rusi's ear, and then a silvery laugh rang out.