Chapter 279 Arrest

And they disappeared in the direction of Luo Qingge's palace.

He was pretty sure that Madam Cai and her maid were hiding in the Crimson Moon Palace.

Madam Cai stood inside the room, and the conversation between Zhao Defa and Linglan reached her ears loud and clear.

Her expression remained as calm and composed as ever, but her heart sank.

It seemed that Luo Qingge had not lied to her; Consort Li had indeed publicly claimed that she had hit and scolded them, and had sent people to capture her.

Jian Lan had blocked Lianye outside earlier and she had not entered Weiyang Palace, so she didn't know what had happened inside.

Even so, she understood that given Madam Cai's temperament, as long as she stayed level-headed, she would never do anything to harm herself or the Duke Rong's estate.

Let alone doing something that treasonous in the palace—striking Consort Li and the Tenth Princess. Given her character, it was impossible, so this must be a false accusation.

Thinking of this, Lianye said indignantly, "Madam, Consort Li and the Tenth Princess are way too much. Why not ask the Ninth Princess for help and have her get a message to the Duke?"

"As long as the Duke can come to the rescue, Consort Li and the Tenth Princess won't dare lay a finger on you."

Madam Cai gave a faint, mocking smirk.

"It's too late!"

She knew the Imperial Guard answered only to Emperor Jingyang; Consort Li and Luo Qianxue could not possibly command them.

Then the only possibility was that after she left, Consort Li and Luo Qianxue had gone to see Emperor Jingyang.

And the fact that the Imperial Guard came to arrest her wasn't just Consort Li's idea—the Emperor ordered it.

You can't defy an imperial order. Madam Cai closed her eyes and sighed.

When she opened them again, she seemed to have made up her mind, and she moved to open the door.

"What are you doing?" Luo Qingge lunged and grabbed her wrist.

"Do you know that going out now means walking straight into a death trap? Consort Li and Luo Qianxue are two mad dogs. Since they dared to frame you and even convinced the Emperor to send people to arrest you, they've got a full plan. If you go out, they absolutely won't let you off."

Seeing the worry in Luo Qingge's eyes, Madam Cai smiled slightly and said to her, "This is a personal grudge between me and Consort Li. I wish to resolve it myself."

Luo Qingge lowered her voice and asked, "Resolve it? How?"

"She has the Emperor backing her; who backs you?"

"Though I don't know exactly what happened between you and Consort Li and Luo Qianxue, I said I'd keep you safe, and I keep my promises. Just rest easy and stay here with me."

Madam Cai hadn't expected Luo Qingge to stick her neck out like this. She was grateful, but she didn't want to drag Luo Qingge into trouble.

"I really appreciate your kindness, Your Highness, but if I stay here, you'll get dragged into it..."

Before she could finish, Luo Qingge interrupted her.

"Do I look like someone who's scared of dying? If I cared about being dragged in, I wouldn't have helped you in the first place."

"Compared to Consort Li and Luo Qianxue, I believe you didn't touch them. But your word alone won't convince anyone. So stay here with me, let's piece together what happened, and then I'll come up with a solution with you."

"If nothing works, I'll go to Fengyi Palace and ask the Empress to help you."

Warmth flooded Madam Cai's heart, washing away her anger.

She had seen too much deceit and intrigue in the palace, but she never thought she'd meet someone like Luo Qingge—fearless and bold.

What's more, the Duke Rong's estate, to avoid suspicion of being aligned with the Crown Prince, had always kept a distance from the Empress's faction, keeping a formal lord-minister distance without excessive interaction.

Madam Cai felt that she and Luo Qingge weren't all that familiar, having met only a handful of times.

And today, it was only because of Ji Yuntang that they'd met and formed a connection.

Luo Qingge's protectiveness made Madam Cai feel guilty.

Her lips parted, as if to speak, but she saw Luo Qingge put a finger to her lips, making a "shush" gesture.

"Alright, no more talk. This is settled!"

"I'll handle the Imperial Guard outside. Don't make any sound and don't come out. Leave everything to me."

After saying this, Luo Qingge pulled Madam Cai and Lianye behind a screen and gave them a few more instructions.

"Remember, no matter what happens outside, don't come out."

Madam Cai didn't speak, but her expression seemed to hold countless words that she didn't know how to express.

Luo Qingge glanced at Lianye, who immediately said, "Don't worry, Your Highness. I will keep Madam here and won't let her go out."

Luo Qingge gave Lianye a look that said 'good thinking', feeling relieved.

Before opening the door, she purposefully messed up her hair and clothes, making it look like she'd just woken up.

Then, she opened the door and walked out.

In the courtyard, ten maids and eunuchs under Linglan were arguing with thirty guards led by Zhao Defa, the Imperial Guard commander.

They went back and forth, neither side backing down.

Even though Zhao Defa was there on the emperor's orders, he didn't dare lay hands on Linglan, because Luo Qingge had the Empress behind her—he dared not offend her.

Linglan argued till she was blue in the face, but Zhao Defa wouldn't budge. She got pissed.

"I keep telling you, our princess is asleep! When will you quit?"

"Are you going to take the blame for waking Her Highness from her nap?"

Zhao Defa's face was cold and hard. "I'm here on His Majesty's orders to find somebody. If you don't want to get hurt, little maid, you'd better move aside, or else don't blame us for not being careful."

As he spoke, the guards behind him all drew their swords at once.

Linglan went pale, but she forced herself to stay calm. "How dare you! Drawing swords here in Crimson Moon Palace? Aren't you afraid the Empress will punish you?"

Luo Qingge shook her head from behind the pillar. Linglan was way too weak in a fight!

They'd drawn swords on her, and she was still arguing, her tone had zero bite.

If it were her, she'd have fought back!

Fight?

Luo Qingge chuckled. Just last night, she had promised the Empress that she would be a quiet and refined lady from now on, speaking as little as possible and never laying a hand on anyone.

Moreover, she had to present a painting or a piece of calligraphy to the Empress every day to have her practice checked.

Now it seemed she was about to break her word!

To hell with being a refined lady and a talented woman!

As it turned out, if she didn't stand up for herself, she would be treated like a pushover.

She had no interest in putting up with that kind of treatment!

Luo Qingge crossed her arms and stepped out from behind the pillar. Her gaze swept over Zhao Defa's gloomy face, and her clear, cold voice carried an imposing dignity without anger.

"What's all this noise? Can't a person get any sleep around here?"

Zhao Defa was taken aback. He had been so focused on arguing with the young palace maid in front of him that he had completely failed to notice when Princess Jiu had come out.

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