Chapter 130: The Heavy Stick Strikes Out

“Hmph. This talk of admiring the plum blossoms is merely an excuse to take the princess away for questioning. Throw him out.” Xiao Jingxuan had no intention of allowing the prefect to take Su Jingluo away today. No excuse would change his mind.

“Well... all right.” Shen Zhong could not very well have the man beaten and thrown out at once, but if the other side insisted, a confrontation was inevitable.

“Wait!” Su Jingluo’s face had turned slightly pale. Her mind rapidly sifted through the information, and she felt that such a move would be far too rash.

“If we beat the prefect and throw him out, what will the common people say? The prefect has brought men with him, yet he has not entered the residence and is waiting outside. Could he be waiting for us to strike first, so that he can gain a reputation for seeking justice for the people, only to be bullied by Prince Jing, who relies on his power, and have his yamen runners beaten?” Su Jingluo was different from Xiao Jingxuan. Compared with his reputation, Xiao Jingxuan cared more about protecting her. But Su Jingluo cared about her reputation. If people later learned that the hospital had been founded by the woman who had supposedly driven a loyal servant to death, its prospects would be ruined before it had even begun.

Whenever someone framed Su Jingluo, Xiao Jingxuan’s first instinct was to protect his beloved. Yet after hearing her analysis, he found it entirely reasonable. It seemed the prefect was no good man after all.

“So he is not even afraid of offending me. I beat his men, and the next day he apologizes, claiming that he truly intended only to admire the plum blossoms and, while he was here, discuss how to resolve the matter concerning you. Is that it?” Xiao Jingxuan had merely lost his head out of concern. After thinking it through calmly, he let out a cold laugh. The prefect had dared to scheme against him.

“I never would have thought he was worried about offending you. But it does make perfect sense. That prefect is truly as slippery as he is cunning.” Su Jingluo had not expected the man to be so calculating, and a wave of unease passed through her. For all her lofty ambitions, she was deeply troubled by this incident. With Xiao Jingxuan there, no real disaster would occur, and by temperament she did not care much about gossip. But her plans for her future career depended heavily on her reputation. Besides, in modern terms, was this not the equivalent of being hauled off to the police station? Anyone would feel anxious, regardless of their status.

“Hmph. He was a student of the old Master Song and learned an entire bellyful of slippery official tactics.” The prefect could be said to have been cultivated by the Song family from the ground up, which was why he was so clever. Xiao Jingxuan, having fought his way through countless battlefields, naturally had little regard for such bureaucratic maneuvering.

“Whether they claim they have come to admire the plum blossoms or to question her, the princess will not go. Shen Zhong, you need not fight them when you go out. But if they refuse to take a hint, beat them out of here for me.” Having regained his composure, Xiao Jingxuan reined in his temper somewhat. Even so, he still could not accept the idea of letting his princess go to the prefectural office.

Shen Zhong agreed and turned toward the entrance. His prince truly needed the princess to rein him in. At the slightest provocation, he wanted to fight. A perfectly respectable steward, yet he behaved like the leader of a gang.

“Shen Zhong, wait! I’ll go.” Su Jingluo called him back. She had to face this matter herself. If she refused to go today, people might take it as proof that the gates of Prince Jing’s residence were impossibly high. Besides, she was not afraid to confront them. Most likely, Chunhong and Yanhong knew how haughty everyone in the residence was and would never show their faces.

And in a matter involving suicide, who could truly determine who was guilty? It was nothing more than flinging filth at someone—unable to cause harm, but disgusting all the same. If she refused to go, she would have to carry that filth on her until time dried it away. Su Jingluo valued cleanliness. Anyone who dared smear her would find themselves held down in a latrine.

“You are not going. It would be beneath your dignity. Besides, if you go, would that not give them far too much importance? Why grant them such an honor?” Xiao Jingxuan seized Su Jingluo by the arm. He knew that she was meticulous and thorough in everything she did, but he was still worried. He always felt as though the entire world was plotting against his wife.