"Stop!"
"Stop!"
A strong and weak voice suddenly sounded out. Although Fourth Prince knew that Li Yingluo had been spoiled a little by the empress dowager and the emperor, he had never once beat someone up in public before. Suddenly, his heart tightened. If Jin Lan got hit, then the promised matter would be ruined!
Another voice came from the free Mama Wu. With just a turn, she saw Li Yingluo's hand that was raised high in the air.
Although Jin Lan was just a side branch of the Ye Family and wasn't directly related to it, she was still someone that he brought in. To be surrounded by people at this moment, it was akin to slapping her in the face.
To the Madame Chen who had such a strong reputation, this was an offense!
The two roars caused Li Yingluo's body to tremble, her mind became clearer, but the arrow had already left the bow, and she was unable to stop it!
Jin Lan didn't expect Li Yingluo to be so bold. Although the palm force that had fallen did not stop, the shouts of the Fourth Prince and the Old Ancestor caused Li Yingluo to hesitate, and she instantly retracted quite a bit of her speed and strength, giving her enough time to react.
It was already impossible to completely dodge the attack. The distance between the two was simply too close. Only, in her heart, she had never thought of avoiding this slap. Since the Old Ancestor's shout had reached Li Yingluo's palm, in a split-second, a thought had flashed through her mind.
Seeing that Li Yingluo had already waved his hand towards him with the ring on her finger, Jin Lan raised his hand and blocked. With a sound, she felt a burning pain in her arm. She had still underestimated Li Yingluo's strength.
Although it was made of gold and jade, and was raised with a noble family, Li Yingluo grew up with the princes and princes, and was quite proficient in riding and shooting. Compared to Jin Lan who was young and weak, she was undoubtedly a valiant lord.
Jin Lan sighed helplessly as his arm was about to get bruised, but he still staggered a few steps backwards due to the huge force.
"Be careful!" Fourth Prince, who had originally wanted to stop Li Yingluo, breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Jin Lan block his palm. However, before he could even exhale, he abruptly raised his hand.
Without time to think, he stretched out his hand to try to pull Jin Lan back.
The instant that Jin Lan lost her balance, she closed her eyes. However, the last time she almost drowned in the water due to the Meng Mansion, she experienced the pain of a nightmare again. She didn't even reach the hot spring but found it hard to breathe.
In this critical moment, she instinctively stretched out her hand and wildly waved in the air. Thus, with a "Rip" sound, a tear suddenly appeared on Fourth Prince's sleeve.
"Plop!" "Plop!" Two, a slender figure wrapped around her delicate body and fell into the hot spring!
Everything happened in a blink of an eye. Bai Yifei was stunned, she regained her senses and looked at the stunned Li Yingluo, then anxiously shouted to the palace maids and servants: Come and save them! As she spoke, she gritted her teeth and jumped in as well.
The spring wasn't very deep, and to Fourth Prince, it simply couldn't reach his chest. Even if it was Bai Yifei, it only reached his lower jaw, it wasn't without an end.
However, compared to a nine year old Jin Lan, it was a disaster.
She never thought that this spring would be so deep, that her delicate feet could not penetrate to the bottom!
At the same time that Jin Lan secretly complained, a trace of fear grew in his heart.
Why hasn't anyone come to save them yet?
The Old Ancestor had clearly already arrived. With so many palace maids waiting nearby, one of them should know how to swim, right?
In the blink of an eye, she had already choked on two mouthfuls of water. From her throat to her lungs, it felt as if they were about to explode.
Suddenly, she felt something tighten around her waist, as if something was squeezing her. She felt her body suddenly lift up, and a pungent smell of air rushed into her nose. She couldn't help but cover her mouth and cough violently.
"Are you okay?"
A gentle voice came from the top of his head. Jin Lan's breath caught in his throat as he felt something behind him. Even though they were separated by his jacket, he could feel the warmth of his body. She quickly wiped the water from her face, opened her eyes, looked sideways, and met her eyes.
Fourth Prince!?
The person who had saved her was actually Fourth Prince!
Only now did Jin Lan realize that the thing that was clamped at his waist was a thin, slender arm. However, it was this arm that did not seem to have much strength that held her tightly in his embrace, preventing her from being annihilated.
"Sister Jinlan, Sister Jinlan! Are you okay? " Dong Ri's clothes were much thicker and heavier than before. Bai Yifei spent a lot of effort to only move a few steps, then stood behind Fourth Prince as she asked in concern.
Thank you for Sister Yifei's concern, I'm fine. Only then did Jin Lan regain his senses. He reached out his hand to shove the arm at his waist, indicating him to let go. Unexpectedly, although the arm loosened a little, it didn't pull back and continued to stubbornly wrap around her waist that was still in her grasp.
As they spoke, the palace maids and attendants who were stunned by Bai Yifei's words of "save her" had already been woken up, and rushed forward to save her. Especially the little attendant called Little Road who was by Fourth Prince's side.
was also supported by Mama Wu as she rushed over. It was just that she was old, so although she was anxious, she was not strong enough. In the end, she was still a step too late.
The culprit that caused all of this was standing there blankly.
Since Fourth Prince happened to have his back to Li Yingluo, he could not see that the Fourth Brother he admired the most was currently holding Jin Lan in his arms. Her mind was blank as she blankly stared at the hand he had swung down at Jin Lan. Her legs went soft, and she slowly fell to the ground.
"Your Highness, you … are you alright?!" Little Road was so anxious that his eyes turned red. Why didn't he stop the fourth prince in time? In this winter, what if he caught a cold and fell ill?
"I'm fine." When the Fourth Prince saw the palace maids and servants coming over, he slowly loosened his arms.
Jin Lan was immediately supported by the two palace maids and slowly moved to the shore.
His arms suddenly felt empty, and Fourth Prince felt the warmth that was gradually disappearing. He suddenly felt a sense of loss in his heart. In just a short moment, he had completely suppressed the abnormality that had just occurred.
Jin Lan was wearing a fox fur coat, and it was heavy. She nearly couldn't climb out of the water. After a few tries, she was finally able to land with the help of the two palace maids.
The wet brocade jacket and the scholarly dress stuck tightly to her body. Fortunately, it was in the middle of winter and her clothes were very thick. If she wore a thin shirt in the middle of summer, then she really wouldn't have the face to see anyone.
However, even though it was right next to the hot spring, the north wind was still blowing. The fox fur coat that was soaked to the skin had not only lost its original function, it also caused people to feel a chill that seeped into their bones.
Jin Lan couldn't help but shudder.
"Girl Lan!" Madame Chen kept using her walking stick along the way. The thumping sounds of the walking sticks being called out could be heard by the people around. Suddenly, all four of them had different expressions.
Jin Lan held onto the fox fur coat that could be twisted with force. Her clear eyes were filled with misty water. Her tender lips, that had lost their color, slightly parted as if she wanted to say something, but hesitated. Bai Yifei, on the other hand, somewhat panicked as she turned her head to look at the pale-faced Li Yingluo, who was sitting on the ground.
Only Fourth Prince still had a gentle and calm expression on his face as he held onto the small path's hand and swiftly went ashore from the hot spring.
Madame Chen stepped forward quickly. Although Jin Lan's face was pale, he looked to be safe and sound, and his heart was slightly relieved. Glancing at her trembling body, he couldn't help but lower his face, and shouted to the palace attendant who was cowering at the side: "Hurry, go change into some clean clothes for Fourth Prince and the two young misses!"
"Your servant obeys!" The palace maid, who did not even dare to breathe loudly, quickly replied and left.
After sending people to get clothes, Madame Chen ordered the rest of the palace maids to send Jin Lan and Bai Yifei, who had fallen into the water, to the Eastern Warm Pavilion. As for Fourth Prince, he went to the side hall.
After making all the necessary arrangements, only then did Madame Chen raise his head to look at Li Yingluo, who was already being supported up by the palace maids, and stood at her original position with his head lowered.
"I never knew that a County Princess with another surname would dare to run rampant in the palace, actually striking people at Ganquan Hall. Who gave you the guts!"
The reason the late emperor was able to turn the tables on his opponents and gain great fame, with the greatest assistance, was because the Madame Chen, the heroic and unyielding First Princess, was the young sister of the late emperor's first mother, and the most beloved First Princess of the late emperor!
At the beginning of Shaohua, he whipped Ma Jingcheng, which was as beautiful as spring, reflecting the hearts of countless noble children.
If not for the Ye Family she had married, washing her hands to make a soup, her childhood friends, and the years she had spent training all over her body, her spirit would not lose out to any other man. Otherwise, there really wouldn't be many women who could resist the wrath of the Madame Chen. Even the Empress Dowager had to back off a bit.
Even so, the fact that she fell so heavily with the help of a palace maid seemed to have struck Li Yingluo's heart. Her face instantly turned as pale as paper, and if it were not for the support of the palace maid, she would have fallen to the ground once again.
Seeing her terrified look, the Madame Chen looked disgusted, and said coldly: Bring her to the main hall, this old one wants to seek guidance from the Emperor, what do you mean by royal etiquette, what do you mean by palace rules! With that, he turned and walked away, ignoring the trembling Li Yingluo who had opened her mouth and was about to admit her mistake and beg for forgiveness.
The floor dragons were already burning in the East Warm Pavilion. Not long after Jin Lan had entered, the palace maids swiftly prepared hot water and took off all of her wet clothes in a flurry to help her take a bath. She then took a clean and warm coat and changed into it before helping her to wring her hair dry. After that, he placed her in one of the rooms in the East Warm Pavilion. Bai Yifei was the same, but lived in another room nearby.
When Old Imperial Physician Hua hurried back to the Eastern Warm Pavilion, Jin Lan had just finished drinking the steaming hot ginger soup.
The Old Ancestor did not appear during the pulse examination, and in fact, Jin Lan did not see the Madame Chen until he left the palace in the evening.
She laid peacefully in the room. If the Old Ancestor were to step in, she would definitely not lose out.