Ruan Xi narrowed his eyes upon hearing this and looked over.
Indeed, he saw palace attendants arriving on horseback.
Not many officials lived on this street.
So, it was most likely for the General's mansion.
"It should be for the General's mansion," Ruan Xi said coldly.
The waters in this capital were truly dark.
The palace attendants stopped before the General's mansion's gates and loudly announced to the gatekeeper, "Is Miss Yun Er in the mansion? By imperial decree, Miss Yun Er is requested to enter the palace!"
Ruan Xi and Gu Zhiruo exchanged glances.
They had already stepped aside.
"Why would the Emperor want to see Yun Shu?" Gu Zhiruo felt something was amiss.
Ruan Xi sneered, his lips curling. "I heard the Emperor's favorite concubine was bitten by a venomous snake. Perhaps he wants Yun Shu to examine that concubine."
This Emperor was truly heartless. That concubine had previously seduced Zhan Tianye, and recently, she had done other things. What great conspiracy was brewing in his mind? Yet, under such circumstances, he still wanted to summon Yun Shu to the palace?
He cursed silently in his heart. Yun Shu truly had poor judgment back then. Why did she have to save such a heartless Emperor?
Noticing Ruan Xi's displeased expression, Gu Zhiruo said nothing more.
She looked into the distance.
"Let's go then," Gu Zhiruo said.
Ruan Xi grunted, "Let's go."
A moment later.
The two of them arrived at the Gu residence.
This morning had been a series of challenges.
They exchanged a look, and Gu Zhiruo said, "My parents are not easy to deal with. You need to perform well."
"Don't worry! I guarantee I can make them nod in approval," Ruan Xi was full of confidence. There was nothing he couldn't achieve if he set his mind to it, and if he wanted to deceive someone, no one could escape.
Just as they were about to enter the mansion.
A black figure darted out from the shadows.
He spread his arms and blocked their path.
"You ungrateful woman, Gu Zhiruo, no wonder you insisted on breaking off our engagement, coming up with so many excuses. Turns out the crucial reason was that you fell for someone else! Are you looking down on me now? Do you know how much I lost face because you broke off our engagement?"
The two of them looked closely and saw that the person blocking their path was Qu Shujie.
Qu Shujie's demeanor was extremely arrogant.
As soon as he spoke, he shifted the blame back to Gu Zhiruo.
Seeing Qu Shujie, Gu Zhiruo immediately frowned.
She hadn't expected Qu Shujie to be secretly watching her every move!
Seeing that Gu Zhiruo didn't refute him immediately, Qu Shujie thought he had caught her at a disadvantage and became even more arrogant. "I hit the mark, didn't I? Now, go immediately and tell everyone in the capital that it was you, Gu Zhiruo, who was unchaste, and you had an affair with someone else while engaged to me!"
Because his and Gu Zhiruo's matter had caused a stir in the capital, he was lectured by his father and grandfather upon returning to the Qu family, which might prevent him from becoming the next family head.
He now hated this bitch Gu Zhiruo to the bone!
Ruan Xi crossed his arms and watched the arrogant Qu Shujie with amusement.
Qu Shujie noticed Ruan Xi looking at him and laughing. For some reason, he felt a prickle on his scalp. "What are you looking at? You, a pretty boy, dare to look at me? Believe it or not, I'll make sure you can't stay in the capital?"
He dared to threaten Ruan Xi so arrogantly because he had never seen this person before. He knew all the influential figures in the capital.
He simply didn't deign to notice people from humble backgrounds.
He could easily push someone from a small family to a corner.
Ruan Xi found it incredibly amusing and couldn't help but burst into laughter. "Hahahaha."
Gu Zhiruo looked at Qu Shujie with a blank expression. For a moment, her heart had wavered, but upon hearing Ruan Xi's laughter and seeing Qu Shujie's groundless arrogance, she only felt how foolish and naive she had been in the past.
"Qu Shujie, get lost!" she ordered coldly.
She didn't want to look at such a despicable and shameless person again!
Otherwise, she would constantly remind herself of how foolish she had been, being deceived and used by Qu Shujie repeatedly!
"You actually told me to get lost? Gu Zhiruo, do you truly not regret it? Breaking off our engagement, breaking off with our Qu family. Look at the man you found now; he's from a humble background! Aren't you afraid of being ridiculed when you go out with him?" Qu Shujie was furious.
A woman he, Qu Shujie, didn't fancy, and who had been jilted, should hang herself! She should be ashamed of herself!
Instead, she was unchaste and sought another pleasure!
If this news spread in the capital, he could imagine that a crowd would laugh at him again!
The mere thought made Qu Shujie grind his teeth, making a clacking sound.
Ruan Xi snorted and uttered two words from his lips, "Scoundrel."
"Who are you talking about?! Who gave you the courage! You dare to curse me? Do you know who I am? Do you think you can do whatever you want with this woman backing you? Is your vision too shortsighted? Your Gu family is nothing compared to our Qu family! Believe it or not, I'll have you and your family thrown out of the capital tomorrow?!" Qu Shujie roared in anger, shouting furiously.
This was not him boasting!
The Qu family had the capability!
Gu Zhiruo looked at Qu Shujie as if he were an idiot. She never knew he was so ill. She didn't want to waste words on him and said coldly, "He is Young Master Ruan of the Ruan family. Qu Shujie, if you can drive the Ruan family away, and ensure he can never set foot in the capital again, I will be deeply impressed. Perhaps I'll even kneel before your Qu family and beg you to marry me, how about it?"
The Qu family indeed held a prominent position in the capital.
But how did they compare to the Ruan family?
Ruan Ji disdained to stay in the capital for long.
However, all the prestigious families in the capital knew of the Ruan family's existence and dared not, nor would they, make an enemy of them.
Ruan Xi chuckled twice, clapped his hands, and looked at Gu Zhiruo with deep affection. "Zhiruo is right. Why don't you try to drive my Ruan family out? You are the first person to say such a thing in many years. Tsk tsk, I admire your courage. I vaguely recall my grandfather saying that decades ago, your grandfather knelt before my grandfather and licked his shoes, begging the Ruan family to go easy on you."
"Look, in just a few decades, your Qu family has become quite bold."
This statement astonished Qu Shujie, and Gu Zhiruo as well.
Gu Zhiruo was somewhat taken aback. She hadn't expected such a past to exist for the old master of the Qu family.
The Qu family had been quite high-profile in the capital in recent years.
Qu Shujie's eyes widened, and he didn't recover for a long time. "You, what did you say? You are from the Ruan family?"
His grandfather had told him not to provoke anyone from the Ruan family.
But he had provoked someone from the Ruan family and said those words.
Instantly, his legs went weak.
"Get lost!" Ruan Xi narrowed his eyes and coldly commanded.