Liu Ming'an spent the morning running around, finding a carriage that would go to Jinzhi City tomorrow. He negotiated the price and agreed on the departure time.
Near noon, he went home for lunch, planning to go with Jiang Ning to Jun Yue Restaurant in the afternoon to bid farewell to Zhou Yi. This way, Zhou Yi wouldn't come looking for him to go fishing or for any other reason only to find him gone.
As they were preparing to leave, two groups of people ran into each other in the alley of Late Winter Road.
"Nangong Ya?"
The Lou family group was the first to spot Nangong Ya coming from the other end. They stopped in their tracks, their faces filled with disbelief.
They really hadn't expected Nangong Ya to come looking for Liu Ming'an in person, and with two guards no less. Was he planning to kidnap him?
After the initial shock, anger quickly took over.
"The Prime Minister really thinks highly of our Lou family!" Lou Yuhuan said sarcastically, heavily thumping his cane on the ground. He stood tall with his chest out, his face as cold as water, exuding the aura of a powerful minister.
On the other side, Nangong Ya, who had come with Jin Yao and Jin Hui, looked at the Lou family members with equal surprise on his face.
To use Ling against him, these three generations actually came together! What a grand gesture!
Hearing Lou Yuhuan's mockery, Nangong Ya assumed the Lou family was angry because their scheme had been exposed. He immediately let out a cold laugh, folded his arms behind his back, and retorted, "Grand Preceptor is joking. It's your Lou family who thinks highly of me."
"That's right, Prime Minister's tactics are so impressive, who wouldn't look up to you? But I advise you to give up on this idea! I was already an official when you were still a baby. You're still too green to play mind games with me!"
Lou Yuhuan looked at Nangong Ya with utter disdain, as if he were looking at a clown.
These words infuriated Nangong Ya. They had schemed against him and still wanted him to give up? They even dared to use their years of service to pressure him? The Lou family was truly shameless!
"Grand Preceptor, I've always respected you, thinking you were virtuous and upright. I never imagined you'd stoop so low! Let me tell you, it's your Lou family who should give up. Since I'm here today, you'd better put away those dirty thoughts of yours!"
"You dare accuse us of having dirty thoughts? You're completely twisting black and white, how shameless!"
"I'm talking about your Lou family! You're despicable, behaving like dogs and pigs!"
"You!"
Lou Yuhuan was furious. He pointed at Nangong Ya, his finger trembling uncontrollably, his whole body shaking slightly.
Nangong Ya glared back, not backing down at all.
Lou Baili and Lou Lianyu quickly stepped forward, standing on either side of Lou Yuhuan. Lou Baili reached out to support him, softly persuading, "Father, don't let your anger harm your health. We're all here now, no matter what sinister plot he has, it won't succeed!"
Lou Yuhuan nodded, took several deep breaths, glared fiercely at Nangong Ya a few times, then allowed Lou Baili and Lou Lianyu to support him as he walked towards Liu Ming'an's residence.
"Jin Yao, Jin Hui, follow them!" Nangong Ya said through gritted teeth as he watched the three generations.
Both parties arrived at the courtyard gate almost simultaneously. They stood on opposite sides, glaring at each other, then snorted coldly before each raising a hand to knock on the door.
Jiang Ning and Liu Ming'an were about to set off for Jun Yue Restaurant to find Zhou Yi when the door was knocked with a "thump thump thump".
"Could it be Brother Zhou?" Liu Ming'an said, looking at the door.
"No, when has Brother Zhou ever come without shouting 'Brother Liu'? How could he just knock without saying anything?"
"And..." Jiang Ning narrowed her eyes, her expression showing some wariness, "There's more than one person knocking outside."
Hearing this, Liu Ming'an's heart skipped a beat, but then he sighed helplessly, "Let's go see. It's either the Lou family or the Prime Minister's mansion, it can't be anyone else."
Liu Ming'an held Jiang Ning's hand as they walked to the door. He raised his hand to open the latch, and in an instant, six pairs of eyes from outside fell on the two of them.
Jiang Ning and Liu Ming'an both felt a chill in their hearts.
"Ling!"
Nangong Ya didn't recognize Liu Ming'an, but seeing him holding Jiang Ning's hand, he first glared fiercely, then walked into the house and pulled Jiang Ning to one side. "Ling, come back home with Father. They're in cahoots, they mean you harm. Whatever you have to say, we can talk about it at home..."
The three members of the Lou family were dumbfounded. They had, of course, seen the third young lady of the Nangong family before.
So, the girl Liu Ming'an said he loved was actually Nangong Ling!
The three generations looked at each other, then at Liu Ming'an, then at Jiang Ning on the other side, belatedly realizing that things might not be as they had thought.
Jiang Ning was pulled to one side by Nangong Ya, listening to his incomprehensible words with a bewildered expression.
Liu Ming'an was also confused about the situation, but he couldn't let people stand at his doorstep, so he politely invited the three Lou family members in: "Grandfather, Uncle, Cousin, please come in!"
This small courtyard had never been so crowded. Liu Ming'an and the three Lou family members remained silent, listening to Nangong Ya's earnest words to Jiang Ning.
"Ling, if you hate me, I don't blame you. But Father can't stand by and watch you be in danger. Do you know that the so-called husband you found, Liu what's-his-name, was definitely sent by the Lou family to seduce you? This is the trap they've been meticulously setting..."
Liu Ming'an: "..."
Seduce... Was his father-in-law's choice of words always this exquisite?
"Father, what are you talking about?" Jiang Ning brushed off Nangong Ya's hand, looking at him in confusion.
Jin Hui, standing behind, immediately explained, "Third Young Lady, this Liu Ming'an was sent by the Lou family. They must have evil intentions, wanting to use you against the Prime Minister!"
"Well..." Lou Yuhuan pulled Liu Ming'an over at this point, his face full of a kind smile, and spoke to Nangong Ya, "In-law, haha, I think there's been some misunderstanding between us."
"Who's your in-law?" Nangong Ya looked at Lou Yuhuan, who had suddenly changed his demeanor, with suspicion all over his face.
"Hahaha... It turns out we've been fighting amongst ourselves, family not recognizing family!"
Lou Yuhuan's smile was warm, even the wrinkles on his face exuded a sense of benevolence, making Nangong Ya feel uneasy.
"Grand Preceptor, what trick are you trying to pull now? Let me tell you, if you want to fight, fight me in the court. I'll oblige. Using women and children is too despicable, it's beneath contempt!" Nangong Ya pulled Jiang Ning behind him, looking at Lou Yuhuan vigilantly.
Lou Yuhuan directly pushed Liu Ming'an in front of him: "This is my grandson, my own grandson."
Nangong Ya's eyes widened. He looked at Liu Ming'an, then at Lou Baili beside him.
Lou Baili knew what Nangong Ya was thinking and explained, "He is the child of my second brother, Lou Qingzhi. He's my nephew."
Lou Lianyu added, "He's my cousin."
Nangong Ya certainly remembered Lou Qingzhi. They were in the same batch of examinees. Of course, if the Lou family hadn't fallen from grace causing Lou Qingzhi to disappear overnight, how could he have become the top scholar that year?
Hearing the three Lou family members speak like this, Nangong Ya looked over at Liu Ming'an, examining him carefully from head to toe. He found that he did indeed look very similar to the brilliant second son of the Lou family who had once been the talk of the capital.
Liu Ming'an felt a bit nervous under Nangong Ya's scrutiny. They say that a father-in-law looking at his son-in-law grows more satisfied the more he looks, but he didn't know if that was true or false. He was certainly feeling anxious. After some thought, he bowed respectfully to Nangong Ya: "Father-in-law."
Nangong Ya's face immediately stiffened.