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

Chapter 59: Knowing I Was Wrong

"I know I was wrong, please, please let me go!"

Dong Xiaoyue looked at the man guarding her, tears streaming down her face.

The man, with a blade of grass dangling from his mouth, glanced at her dismissively, saying nothing and ignoring her words.

Dong Xiaoyue was utterly devastated, never imagining that she would experience something like this one day.

I haven't done anything wrong, so why am I going through all this?

Lin Ruqin was awakened by Dong Xiaoyue's distressed voice. She frowned and found that she and Dong Xiaoyue were tied up and thrown on the bed.

Besides the two of them, there were two strong and muscular men in the room.

Dong Xiaoyue's crying was so noisy that Lin Ruqin felt irritated as well.

"Brothers, please have mercy and let us go!"

"We are just two weak women."

Lin Ruqin blinked, her expression innocent and pure, hardly resembling a wicked woman who plotted to frame Lin Rusi.

However, Lin Rusi had given orders that no matter how much the two pleaded, the two men would ignore them.

As the sky gradually darkened, Lin Ruqin's heart became increasingly unsettled.

If Lin Lezheng finds out that he hasn't gone home that late, this matter will definitely cause a big uproar.

If they find out that she and Dong Xiaoyue have been tied up by two grown men, they won't be able to explain themselves even if they have a mouth.

Lin Ruqin neither cried nor made a fuss, trying to use her obedience to get the two thugs to spare her.

But I've tried everything, and they just don't respond.

This made Lin Ruqin very discouraged.

Meanwhile, Lin Rusi was already resting at the Star-Picking Pavilion.

It's almost time, and Lin Lezheng should soon realize that Lin Ruqin is not here.

She didn't hold a grudge against Lin Ruqin for what happened last time, out of consideration for their past relationship.

Unexpectedly, Lin Ruqin conspired with Dong Xiaoyue, an outsider, to deal with her.

Lin Rusi was no pushover and was bullied by Lin Ruqin time and time again.

The reason she kept backing down from Lin Ruqin was because she felt guilty towards her.

She admitted that Lin Ruqin bears some responsibility for how she has become who she is today.

But one thing is one thing.

She would never tolerate Lin Ruqin's attempt to frame her and ruin her reputation.

Soon, the sound of hurried footsteps could be heard outside the door.

Lin Le stormed into the Star-Picking Pavilion, shouting, "Ru Si!"

Lin Rusi hurriedly ran out of the house, looking at Lin Lezheng, whose eyes were burning with fierce anger, with no idea what was going on.

"Father, it's so late, what happened?"

Lin Lezheng's brows were furrowed, and his face was as dark as iron.

Where is your sister?

"It's already this late, and they still haven't returned."

Lin Rusi shook her head. "I don't know."

"I went out for tea with Dong Xiaoyue today, and I don't know where she is."

Lin Le frowned. "Dong Xiaoyue? Wasn't she missing? Minister Dong has been looking for her every day these past few days."

Lin Rusi tilted her head, puzzled, and said, "My daughter knows she's missing."

"However, we have seen her frequently in our mansion these past few days, so we assumed she had already gone home."

"She invited her daughter out for tea today, saying she had something to say to her."

"As for where her sister went, her daughter has no idea."

Lin Lezheng's face visibly darkened, and he exuded a stern aura.

"Red fat!"

His roar rang out, and Hongzhi, with her head bowed, ran forward tremblingly.

With a thud, she knelt on the ground, staring at Lin Lezheng in terror, her body trembling like a leaf.

"Master."

Red-lipped creature lay prostrate on the ground, not daring to breathe.

Lin Lezheng's face contorted in a grimace. "What exactly happened?"

Why is the missing Dong Xiaoyue in our residence?

Hongzhi bit her lower lip and trembled as she said, "Your Highness, Miss went to the temple on the mountain to pray for blessings a few days ago and met Miss Dong on her way back."

"At the time, Miss Dong was covered in injuries, and the young lady helped her out of kindness."

"Miss advised Miss Dong to go home as soon as possible, but Miss Dong seems to have a misunderstanding with the Minister and is unwilling to go back no matter what."

"The young lady had no other choice, so she left her here, intending to wait until she came to her senses before returning home."

Lin Lezheng snorted, "If something happens to Miss Dong while she's staying at our Lin residence, how will she explain it to the Minister?!"

"You! As her maid, you not only failed to remind her, but also indulged her!"

Hongzhi was on the verge of tears, "Master, I know I was wrong!"

"Let's hurry up and find the young lady!"

Lin Le was trembling with anger. "Heh, where did she go? You, a mere maid, don't know? And you come to ask me?"

Hongzhi was worried that something might really happen to Lin Rusi, so she told her everything she knew.

"Master, Miss would never stay out overnight; something must have happened to her."

Lin Le was keeping a straight face, but he was also worried about Lin Ruqin.

He snorted and immediately led a large group of people to find Lin Ruqin.

He didn't want to make a big fuss about this. If he reported it to the authorities, and if Lin Ruqin had really been kidnapped by someone, her innocence would be ruined.

Unfortunately, Lin Ruqin's disappearance was related to Dong Xiaoyue.

After Dong Xiaoyue went missing, Minister Dong hurriedly reported the case to the police.

There are now two groups of people searching for him, and Lin Lezheng just hopes they can find him as soon as possible.

However, to everyone's surprise, the government officials found Lin Ruqin and Dong Xiaoyue first.

When Lin Lezheng returned, Lin Ruqin had already been sent home.

Fortunately, by the time the officials found them, the two men had already left.

Lin Ruqin and Dong Xiaoyue also insisted that the two women had kidnapped them.

"Lin Ruqin, I thought you were obedient and sensible, but I never expected you to be so unruly!"

"Fortunately, nothing unexpected happened today. If something had gone wrong, what would have happened to the Lin family's reputation?! What would have happened to your innocence?!"

Lin Le was furious and wanted nothing more than to slap Lin Ruqin twice.

However, thinking about how frightened she had been outside, I still felt sorry for her and held back.

"Sister, please don't run around like that anymore. If anything happens to you, Father and I will worry."

Lin Rusi offered a perfunctory consolation.

Lin Ruqin glared at Lin Rusi with a sinister look, her eyes bloodshot and her gaze sharp as a knife, as if she wanted to tear Lin Rusi apart and devour her whole.

She met Lin Rusi's concerned gaze and replied through gritted teeth, "Thank you for your concern, sister."

"I will keep my sister's words in mind and will never wander around again, so as not to encounter any bad people."

News of Lin Ruqin and Dong Xiaoyue's kidnapping quickly spread throughout Beijing.

Li Zeyan also heard about this matter and some related rumors.

With a soft thud, black ink dripped onto the white paper. His brows furrowed, and he immediately put down the brush.

"Prepare some gifts, let's go to the Lin residence now!"