Catch
Yu Linlang shook Yu Zhihu slightly and spoke with intimidation. On her way back to her room, she encountered several confused people, which delayed her return.
Not long after she reached her room, she saw Jiujin, a little girl with a round face, rushing in.
Yu Linlang had just picked up a teacup. She glanced at Jiujin curiously and asked, "What's wrong?"
Did something go wrong with the medicine?
Baliang pulled Jiujin down playfully and handed her a cup of tea. "Was the medicine delivered?"
"The prince wasn't there," Jiujin huffed. "The servants at the mansion said he went to the west of the city with Lord Chen to catch the murderer."
"The prince suspected that if the murderer wanted to sneak out of the city, he would choose the west gate. It's the most convenient exit, and while the defenses seem strict, they're actually quite loose."
Yu Linlang nodded. "Since you didn't see him, why are you so angry?"
Jiujin clenched her fists. "I ran into the prince's brother! That annoying young master kept talking to me! He was just out walking his birds, but he had the audacity to talk nonsense to me!"
"He even questioned the medicine you made! I didn't want to give it to him and tried to leave, but he had no sense and kept stopping me!"
A bad feeling crept into Yu Linlang's heart. She looked at the little girl silently. "And then?"
"I hit him with a fire stick!"
Yu Linlang: …
---
Mufu Pavilion
Mu Feng was carried into the living room by two gatehouse servants, wailing in pain.
"Where is my elder brother? I need to see my elder brother! Big brother, big brother! Your dear little brother has been bullied!"
"There is no justice in Weizhou City! A stinky little girl dared to hit me! Someone, bring me a mirror! Check if there are two bumps on my head! Ah, it hurts so much!"
The two servants exchanged glances, suppressing their laughter, and carried him to the couch. One of them hurriedly brought over a bronze mirror.
Mu Feng examined his face with distress, sighing dramatically. "My face! Did you see it? My mouth looks bruised! That dead girl's fists were like iron!"
He sniffled, almost crying. "Where is my elder brother? Bring him to me! I won't accept this humiliation!"
The servants looked helpless. One of them consoled him. "Young Master, the prince left early this morning to calm the refugees. Later, he followed Lord Chen to the west of the city to capture the murderer. He won't be back for a while."
"I don't care! Find my elder brother! How can someone bully me right under his nose? This is unacceptable!"
Everyone had headaches just looking at him. They could only try to calm him down. "Young Master, the prince will return soon."
As they were speaking, another servant ran in, panting and excited. "The prince, Lord Lu, and the others are back!"
Mu Feng's face brightened, but when he saw the servant's expression, he frowned. "Kawaichi, why are you grinning? Huh? You're laughing while I've been beaten? Come here! I promise I won't beat you to death!"
The servant named Kawaichi shrank his neck. "Young Master, stop fooling around. The prince is coming this way."
Mu Feng immediately sat up, covering his bruised mouth and hissing in pain. "Did they catch the culprit?"
"Of course! If the prince leads them, who could possibly escape?"
Mu Feng's eyes lit up. He was about to jump off the couch when Mu Zhao strode into the room.
"What happened?"
Mu Feng immediately collapsed dramatically onto the couch, stretching out his fingers weakly. "Big brother! I was nearly beaten to death!"
Mu Zhao quickly walked over and dismissed the other servants with a wave of his hand. Mu Feng grabbed the mirror and pointed at his head and mouth.
"Brother, look! Look at this! And this! She beat me up!"
Mu Zhao looked at him expressionlessly, then suddenly reached out and flicked his forehead. "You actually have the nerve to say that. As soon as I returned, I heard you got beaten up by a little girl in front of the mansion."
Mu Feng gasped. "Brother, she wasn't just any little girl! She was ruthless! She knocked me around like a rag doll! I couldn't even dodge! Later, the guards had to carry me away while I climbed up a tree to escape her fire stick!"
Mu Zhao chuckled.
Mu Feng's eyes widened. "Brother! You're laughing! You don't care about me anymore!"
Mu Zhao originally wanted to smack him on the head but remembered the injury. Instead, he sighed. "What do you expect me to do? Cry for you? I've told you many times—you're too weak. You need to train more."
"Look at you now. You can't lift anything heavy, and you can't even fight off a little girl who supposedly 'can't even tie up a chicken.'"
Mu Feng gaped. "Brother, that's slander! She's strong! She lifted me with one hand and shook me three times!"
Mu Zhao gave him a cold stare. "So, was today another one of your 'bird-walking' outings?"
Mu Feng shrank back.
Mu Zhao sighed. "You fool around all day. Our father sent you to act like a weakling in public, not to actually become one. How many times have I warned you? If you want to play the pig to eat the tiger, don't actually turn into a pig! You must have provoked that girl first."
Mu Feng pursed his lips, refusing to argue.
Mu Zhao flicked his forehead again. "Do you think the daughters of respectable families are like the girls at Qinlou Chuguan? You finally met someone who could put you in your place."
Mu Feng yelped and held his head. "That hurts!"
Mu Zhao shook his head. "When we return to the capital, I'll find you a proper job. You have too much free time."
"Huh?" Mu Feng wailed. "Brother, what kind of job?"
"Guarding the city gates. At least then you won't be causing trouble at home."
Mu Feng's face fell. Guarding the city gate? Sun, wind, and endless dust?
He felt wronged and pouted.
Mu Zhao reached out his hand. "Give it to me."
"What?"
"The medicine. The servants told me Miss Jiujin came to deliver it. You stopped her just to tease her, and she beat you up."
Mu Feng groaned but reluctantly pulled a porcelain bottle from his robes and handed it over. "At least let Fang Mingli test if it's safe first!"
Mu Zhao raised a hand, and Mu Feng instinctively shrank back.
"Stay in the mansion tonight. The governor's office might call for me anytime. And stop writing letters to our mother complaining about me!"
Mu Feng grumbled. "Brother, can I at least go see what's happening?"
Mu Zhao shook his head. "Who knows how long the interrogation will last? Don't get involved. I'll tell you if there's news."
Mu Feng sighed. "Fine."
But in his heart, he had already decided—he would write to their mother immediately, telling her how hard his brother was working, interrogating criminals all night without sleep.