Yu Shu knew that Xue Rui would definitely return to the capital, but she did not expect that they would meet under such circumstances. Even though her heart ached, she could not restrain herself from grabbing his arm, which was placed on her shoulder.
"Big brother, you're back!"
Xue Rui lowered his head to look at her. When he broke down the door, he saw Liu Yi's disheveled clothes clinging onto her. In a moment of anger, he did not even think before making a move. Seeing that she was safe and sound, he heaved a sigh of relief. His eyes reddened from the lingering fear, he squeezed her shoulder tightly and said in a low voice,
"It's all my fault, causing you to suffer."
She had an unyielding personality, but because of him, she had to suffer the oppression of others. She was a lone woman and had to take the risk to run into a wolf's den.
Yu Shu shook her head. She didn't feel wronged, nor would she complain about Xue Rui. It couldn't be any better that she was able to see him safe and sound, so she patted his back and consoled him. "I'm fine, it's good that you've returned."
Liu Yi lay sprawled on the ground. After recovering from the pain, he opened his eyes and saw the culprit's back facing him, hugging Yu Shu. The two of them were not intimate at all, and did not place him in their eyes at all. Immediately, he spat out a mouthful of blood and shouted, "Where did this dog thief come from?
"Where did this bastard come from? Guards, catch him for me! Guards, come quickly!"
However, no one came to his rescue even after he shouted until his throat was hoarse.
Xue Rui turned around and pushed Yu Shu behind him. He coldly looked at the naked Eleventh Prince on the ground and said, "Liu Yi, you sent people to assassinate the imperial envoy. His Majesty has already banished you from the capital, but you did not repent and disobeyed the imperial edict to enter the capital."
The lights in the room dimmed. Only then did Liu Yi recognize Xue Rui. At first, he was startled, then strangely shouted, "How could it be you? Didn't you flee to escape punishment? "
The Xue family was in trouble, followed by the disappearance of Xue Rui. There were rumors in the capital that Eldest Young Master Xue had fled to seek refuge.
Liu Yi took Xue Rui's words for granted. He had shouted for a long time, but there was no response. His subordinates must have been dealt with by someone else. Liu Yi couldn't help but misunderstand. In the blink of an eye, his expression changed. He pointed at Xue Rui and stammered:
"You, you traitor, could it be that you want to take me hostage?"
Sneering, Yu Shu looked at the frightened and frightened Liu Yi, hating him for thinking of sullying her. She coldly said, "What's the point of holding you hostage? Wouldn't it be better to just kill you?"
Xue Rui nodded expressionlessly. "Since he saw me, why don't we just kill him?"
Liu Yi's eyes widened. He looked like a chicken that had its neck strangled. His face turned green. He actually took their joke seriously and was scared half to death. His prestige as a prince was completely gone.
Yu Shu was about to say a few more words to scare him when Xue Rui walked forward and pulled Liu Yi up from the ground. His slender and powerful fingers spread open and ruthlessly strangled Liu Yi's neck.
She jumped in fright and quickly rushed forward, "Big Brother, what are you doing?"
Xue Rui didn't speak, yet he tightened his grip even more, causing Liu Yi's expression to instantly turn purplish green. He tried to struggle, yet because of the sudden and swift feeling of suffocation, his entire body was powerless, and his head was dizzy. Terror that blotted out the heavens and the earth assaulted him as he faced the two pitch-black eyes.
Yu Shu saw that Liu Yi's eyes were rolling back from Xue Rui's grip and hurriedly grabbed his hand. "Don't! Let go! Let go! Let go! Don't be so anxious!"
Xue Rui turned his head to glance at her before he released his grip. Liu Yi fell limply onto the ground and burped. He held onto his neck as he gasped for air. After that, he started coughing and his entire body was bent over.
Seeing him like this, Yu Shu couldn't help but vent her anger. She waited for him to catch his breath, then kicked his waist and scolded, "Despicable, lowly thing, you deserve to be killed."
Taking advantage of the fact that Xue Rui left the capital to extort money from Wang Ji Loft, he sent a few hoodlums to humiliate her in public. Previously, she swallowed her anger in silence in order to escape unscathed. Now that Xue Rui was back, she naturally didn't have to endure it anymore.
Liu Yi was scared out of his wits by Xue Rui's grip and thought that he was really going to kill him. Thus, he stopped trying to be brave and stammered, "Don't … Don't kill me. Cough, cough, I beg you …"
Xue Rui coldly said, "If I don't kill you today, will you seek revenge on me in the future?"
"No, no." Liu Yi choked and shook his head violently. The moment he opened his mouth, he felt a stinging pain. However, he had to say it. "I can swear that I will never seek revenge on you."
Xue Rui turned to look at Yu Shu. "You decide whether to kill him or not."
Yu Shu did not take his words seriously. She only thought that he was still trying to scare Liu Yi. She had vented her hatred, but she was still a little worried. It would have been fine if Xue Rui did not come tonight, but now that he was here, Liu Yi would make wild guesses. If they turned around, Liu Yi might cause trouble again and accuse Xue Rui of plotting to kill him, a prince.
She thought for a while and still had some things to clarify. She asked Liu Yi, "Tell me first. Today, you came to Wang Ji Loft to create trouble. The first thing you asked for was two hundred thousand taels of silver. Why, Your Highness, are you in need of money?"
"I … I'll talk." Liu Yi felt that his life was hanging by a thread. In order to survive, he didn't care about his face anymore. Previously, he was a big bad wolf but now, he was as obedient as a rabbit.
Just as Yu Shu guessed, Liu Yi was really in need of money. A few months ago, he was chased out of the capital by an imperial edict. After a few days of peace, he couldn't stand the lonely days in the Daoist temple. He sneaked into the capital and enjoyed himself for a few days before returning to the Daoist temple.
At first, he was afraid that someone would report him to the Emperor. But after a few times, his courage grew. He went to the brothels and looked for women, living a happy life again.
Two months ago, he wandered into a newly opened brothel. Coincidentally, the courtesan of the brothel was looking for a benefactor. He took a fancy to the courtesan's wife and competed with others. In one breath, the price soared to one hundred thousand taels of silver. In the end, when it was time to take out money, he only had one thousand taels of silver. Someone thought that he was a troublemaker and wanted to kidnap him to settle the score.
Liu Yi had no choice but to use his name, intending to keep the peace. Who would have thought that he was a swindler pretending to be a prince and wanted to send him to the yamen. This was bad. If he wanted to see the yamen, the matter would blow up. If an imperial censor went to report him to the Emperor, he would be finished.
Fortunately, the courtesan's wife put in a few good words for him and begged the brothel keeper to let him off.
Liu Yi was a man after all, so he couldn't avoid the common problem of men. He loved his face. Moreover, his life had been smooth sailing for more than ten years. When had he ever been saved by a woman? He couldn't take this lying down. The next day, he bought enough money and went to the brothel keeper's house, saying that he wanted to see the courtesan.
However, the brothel keeper told him that a rich man had come this morning. When he heard that the courtesan didn't get chosen last night, he happily took out ten thousand taels of silver as a deposit and said that he would come back at night to pick her up.
Liu Yi was intercepted by someone, so how could he let the matter rest? When he saw the rich man that night, he waved his hand and gave him ten thousand taels of silver. He told him to take the deposit and scram. The other party refused and they quarreled again. This time, Liu Yi didn't dare to reveal his identity as a prince. The other party wasn't afraid of him either. The stalemate couldn't be resolved and the brothel keeper came up with an idea. Both parties would compete and the highest bidder would win.
Liu Yi only had a hundred thousand taels of silver. How could it be that much? The rich man was generous and threw out a hundred thousand taels of silver. In addition to the ten thousand taels of silver that he had paid earlier, he easily won.
Liu Yi was flustered and exasperated. At this time, the courtesan appeared. She said that compared to the fat rich man, she would rather follow Liu Yi. She took out fifty thousand taels of silver and gave it to the brothel keeper. She wanted to leave with him.
The rich man didn't have any more silver and left in disappointment. By right, Liu Yi should be satisfied with the return of the courtesan, but he refused. How could he use a woman's money to show off? Furthermore, it was the private savings of a prostitute. Thus, he left the hundred thousand taels of silver as a deposit and boasted that he would take her away the next day when he had enough money.
This was the problem. Liu Yi had been chased out of the capital and didn't have that much money on him. The hundred thousand taels of silver he had was given to him by Concubine Lu before the incident. Concubine Lu had told him to buy some belongings outside so that he could build his own residence when he left the palace.
Thus, he set his sights on his family. He went to the Lu Family's Great Exchange Hall and found his eldest maternal uncle. He found an excuse and deceived him into giving him fifty thousand taels of silver. Then, he returned to the brothel and used the money to redeem the courtesan.
At this point, Liu Yi's voice was hoarse and out of tune. He pitifully asked for water. Yu Shu pointed at the table and asked him to pour himself some water. Taking this opportunity, she commented,
"So, you used a hundred and fifty thousand taels of silver to redeem the courtesan? Then, when you ran out of money, you came to our brothel to extort money? "
If Xue Rui wasn't here, she really wanted to poke Liu Yi's head and scold him for being a wastrel! That was a hundred and fifty thousand taels of silver. If it was exchanged for real money, it would be enough to form a small mountain.
Liu Yi gulped down a mouthful of water and turned his head to reveal a pickled face. He miserably said, "What do you know? I was cheated by someone. I'm so miserable!"
It turned out that when he redeemed the courtesan, the courtesan's wife said that she wanted to stay for a day to tidy up her belongings. Liu Yi agreed and did not take her away that day. Instead, he returned to the Daoist temple. Two days later, he returned to the capital. When he arrived at the brothel, it was empty. There was no sign of the courtesan.
"Ha, hahaha. You deserve it. You deserve it." Yu Shu roared bluntly with laughter, and she inadvertently turned around yet saw Xue Rui seeming to be lost in thought.
"Who gave you the idea to extort money from Wang Ji Lou?" Xue Rui suddenly asked.
Liu Yi blankly repeated, "Who gave me the idea?"
"I'm asking you. Who taught you to kill people in my territory?" Xue Rui asked.
Liu Yi was afraid of him. He thought for a moment and said, "It was the idea of my eunuch."
"Did he go with you to Wang Ji Lou today?"
"No." Liu Yi remembered. "That kid had a stomachache before we left, so I didn't bring him along."
Xue Rui frowned. He was sure that this eunuch that gave Liu Yi trouble had already vanished without a trace at this moment.
Yu Shu could tell that something was up. She did not expose him in front of Liu Yi. She wanted to know what was going on. With a plan in mind, she no longer had any misgivings. She kicked Liu Yi and said, "It's fine if I don't kill you, but you have to give me a handle. That way, we won't dare to find trouble with you in the future."
Liu Yi glanced at Xue Rui, who was glaring at him like a tiger. He weakly said, "Speak. What do you want?"
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