Chapter 24: Ning Rongrong

From atop the horse came a young girl's cry for help, "Someone come and hold this thing down, this young lady is about to be thrown off!"

Had an ordinary person dared to "cause trouble" in front of the Taizi Fu, the guards would likely have taken them down long ago.

Yet, when facing this young girl, the guards appeared quite restrained.

The guards certainly wanted to rescue the girl, but if they injured her, they would be unable to answer for it.

Thus, they could only clear the street while praying for the horse to calm down.

Qiangu Changkong chuckled, "Brother Wu, do you want to go help? With your movement speed, saving the girl shouldn't be a problem."

"Since ancient times, beauties have loved heroes; you might even be able to recruit a great asset for the palace."

There are only two families in all of Tiandou City that the Taizi Fu gives face to; even a fool could roughly guess the girl's background.

Wu Qi shrugged, "Such a good opportunity, I'll leave it to you. Go on, I'll cover for you."

Qiangu Changkong's eyes darted, and he took a mirror from his pocket to fix his hair.

The next moment, he charged through the wall of Taizi Fu guards and blocked the path the galloping horse was destined to take.

The guards were shocked; some wanted to step forward to stop him, but were held back by their leader.

In this situation, no one could guarantee whether the horse would charge into the Taizi Fu. If they blocked the girl and caused her injury, they couldn't afford the consequences either.

Since someone had jumped out to resolve the situation, why not let him?

In any case, if they were held accountable later, it would be of no consequence to them.

A Coiling Dragon Staff appeared in his hand, and Qiangu Changkong leaped forward, pulling the girl from the horse's back and slamming one end of the staff into the bluestone tiles to use as a pivot.

He tugged hard on the girl's clothing to keep her from falling to the ground.

The quality of the clothing seemed insufficient to support such force; a corner of her dress was ripped off, and the girl stumbled to the ground, scraping her knee.

Not far away, Wu Qi covered his face.

Qiangu Changkong was pulling and tugging—this wasn't saving someone, it was clearly trying to embarrass the girl!

With no one riding on its back, the horse's mood gradually stabilized; the guards led it away, one team rushed to the girl's side, while another team surrounded Qiangu Changkong.

"Miss Rongrong, are you alright?" The guard captain glanced at Qiangu Changkong with pity and hurriedly stepped forward to help the girl up.

Rongrong, Ning Rongrong?

Wu Qi thought to himself that it was as expected.

Causing trouble and riding recklessly was something Ning Rongrong's personality would allow, though the greatest responsibility for this accident did not lie with her.

"Hey, what do you mean by this?" Qiangu Changkong's expression turned gloomy.

He had clearly stepped in to save someone, so why was he being treated as the one who caused the injury?

With her knee scraped, Ning Rongrong was in so much pain that tears welled up in her eyes.

Rising with the guard captain's support, she turned back, pointed at Qiangu Changkong, and scolded, "Why did you throw me onto the ground!"

"I..." Qiangu Changkong was unable to defend himself.

His starting point was good, but his method was too ugly.

Since someone needed to be held responsible for Ning Rongrong's injury, the guard team naturally pushed him out to take the blame.

Wu Qi sighed, walked forward slowly, and took a letter from his pocket, "We are friends of the Crown Prince. Big brothers, could you allow the Crown Prince to decide this matter?"

With Qian Renxue's personality, she would certainly favor someone from the Spirit Hall. In the end, this matter would likely be dropped.

Upon seeing the signature on the letter, the guard captain had no choice but to order them released.

From the moment Wu Qi appeared, Ning Rongrong's gaze had not shifted from him.

She even couldn't help but marvel in her heart, "In this world, there is actually such a handsome man."

The commotion outside the residence finally drew the attention of the Crown Prince, Xue Qinghe.

He walked to the gate with a middle-aged man dressed in fine robes and asked, "What is going on?"

"Your Highness..." As he spoke, the guard captain couldn't help but look back at Ning Rongrong.

Who didn't know that the Crown Prince was a disciple of Ning Fengzhi? How could the Taizi Fu pursue trouble caused by Ning Fengzhi's daughter?

Wu Qinan!

Wu Qi noticed the man beside Xue Qinghe; it was the current head of the Wu Family.

Last year, the Wu Family rendered further meritorious service to the Empire, their title had been elevated to Marquis, and the family's status had leaped once again!

Wu Qinan noticed his gaze and felt it was somewhat familiar, but did not recognize his identity.

After so many years, the skinny boy from back then had grown into a sturdy, handsome youth; the change was so great that it was difficult for even those close to him to recognize him.

"Sister Rongrong, are you hurt?"

Without needing to be told, Xue Qinghe knew what had happened and turned to arrange for a Healing Soul Master from the residence to treat Ning Rongrong's wounds.

"Your Highness, those two..." The guard captain reported the situation from just moments ago.

Xue Qinghe sensed the aura of their elders on the two of them and nodded in acknowledgment.

After a pause, he cupped his hands toward Wu Qinan, "Marquis, my two friends have arrived today. As for the matter we discussed, I will give you an answer tomorrow, how about that?"

Wu Qinan did not dwell on it and bowed before leaving.

Entering the Taizi Fu, both sides tacitly avoided discussing the matter of the Spirit Hall.

Xue Qinghe wore a warm smile and asked, "Two geniuses, are you satisfied with the academy life I arranged for you?"

The "script" had long been arranged.

To the outside world, Wu Qi and his companion were geniuses recruited by Xue Qinghe in his early years, who had been arranged to study in secret across the continent for six years.

Wu Qi said respectfully, "Many thanks to the Crown Prince for your appreciation. These six years have been of great benefit to us."

Behind them, Ning Rongrong ignored her own injuries, bypassed the Healing Soul Master, and chased after them.

"Crown Prince brother, who is he?"

Xue Qinghe felt slightly surprised.

Ning Rongrong, usually so headstrong and willful, had actually restrained her temper?

"This is a genius I have recruited, named Wu Qi. Sister Rongrong, is there something you need?"

Ning Rongrong's gaze had not moved from Wu Qi; staring fixedly at his cheeks, she kept feeling that he looked somewhat like the little boy from back then.

Not until Xue Qinghe spoke again did she snap out of it, hurriedly asking: "Wu Qi, did you ever live in Heaven Dou City when you were little?"

Xue Qinghe answered on his behalf: "Sister Rongrong, I am afraid you will be disappointed; little Wu is not a native of Heaven Dou City."

Qiangu Changkong waved at her and explained: "Miss Rongrong, I think there is a misunderstanding between us; just now I—"

Who in Heaven Dou City would dare provoke the daughter of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect?

If he did not explain it clearly, he feared being ambushed in the night.

However, the moment Ning Rongrong heard his voice, a look of displeasure appeared on her face, completely opposite to her attitude when looking at Wu Qi.

Xue Qinghe smiled helplessly, "Sister Rongrong, I have important matters to discuss with these two friends. As for the unpleasantness between you, I will certainly bring people to pay a formal apology another day, how about that?"

Although Ning Rongrong was headstrong and willful, she knew the gravity of matters, so she nodded and took her leave.

……

After Ning Rongrong left, Xue Qinghe glanced at Qiangu Changkong, "How did you provoke her?"

"Ning Sect Master is my teacher; if he were to pursue this, I fear it would be difficult to handle."

When Qiangu Changkong was just born, Qian Renxue had seen him; to her, he was like a younger brother.

Ning Fengzhi was not easy to fool; if he truly pursued this, they would likely have to pay a price.

(End of chapter)