"You must call me Second Sister. Your Second Sister is ill, so she couldn't come," Bai Sicheng sighed helplessly.
He wanted to ease the relationship between his two sisters. "A'yi, when you were unwell, your Second Sister took care of you. You..."
"Big Brother!" Bai Shengyi interrupted him. "It's getting late."
"You don't want to listen to your Big Brother, do you?"
Bai Sicheng chuckled helplessly and dropped the subject. "Alright, Big Brother won't say more. I'm leaving now. Be good at home. This is a gift to celebrate you becoming the Young Family Head. I forgot to give it to you yesterday. Take it."
As Bai Sicheng spoke, he handed a box to Bai Shengyi, waved his hand, leaped onto his long sword, and soared away with a dashing elegance.
Bai Shengyi opened the box and found spirit stones again!
Although the quantity didn't seem large, they were all high-grade spirit stones! "Has my impoverished aura become so obvious?" Bai Shengyi couldn't help but exclaim in alarm.
However, despite her alarm, her hands quickly put the box into her storage bag. This was her funding for alchemy!
Furthermore, Bai Sicheng was so young and could give so many high-grade spirit stones; this gift was undeniably generous and worthy of her cherishing.
When Bai Shengyi returned to the Duke of Rong's mansion, Bai Yu Yue and Bai Qiu Niang had also bought back her medicinal materials. She took the materials and secluded herself in her room, beginning to study the techniques described in the pharmacopoeia.
However, it wasn't long before her research was interrupted by an uninvited guest.
The butler personally came to the courtyard to invite Bai Shengyi.
"You say, the Grand Princess wants me to visit her mansion for a chat?" Bai Shengyi frowned tightly.
The butler replied, "Yes, Young Family Head. The Eldest Young Master is also at the Grand Princess's mansion. The Duke's intention is that this is a matter you caused, so you should resolve it yourself."
Bai Shengyi understood instantly!
This wasn't a friendly visit at all, but rather the Grand Princess's mansion had captured Bai Sicheng and intended to use him to threaten the Duke of Rong's mansion into handing her over!
Bai Shengyi's guess was correct. As she walked into the hall designated for guests, she saw the guards of the Grand Princess's mansion arrogantly declare, "Our Grand Princess says, if you want your Eldest Young Master to be safe, only Bai Shengyi is allowed to come alone!"
The servants in the hall kept their heads down, none of them daring to utter a word, clearly having received the Duke of Rong's instructions to stay out of this matter.
The butler hesitated slightly and said, "Young Family Head, the Duke said this is a test for you. Please do not disappoint him."
Bai Shengyi took a deep breath and gritted her teeth. "I understand!"
She made a mental note of this debt to the Duke of Rong!
Truly a loyal minister who devoted himself to the Bai family, even willing to use his grandson's life as a mere test?
As long as this matter did not involve Bai Sicheng, Bai Shengyi would not have been so angry. And regardless of whether the Duke of Rong genuinely wanted to test her or was trying to trouble her due to past conflicts, she would accept it.
However, the current situation clearly indicated that Bai Sicheng's predicament was dangerous, yet the Duke of Rong heartlessly disregarded it? Such indifference truly opened Bai Shengyi's eyes!
"You are Bai Shengyi? Our Grand Princess requests your presence at her mansion!" The guard's eyes seemed to fly to the heavens, his chin held so high as if to ensure no one missed his disdain for Bai Shengyi.
Bai Shengyi let out a cold laugh and whipped the guard with a green vine, binding him directly!
"What are you doing... Mmph!"
Bai Shengyi gagged the guard and dragged him toward the Grand Princess's mansion with fierce determination.
"Young Family Head!" The butler hurriedly followed.
"Butler, don't follow. Go tell the Old Master that I will resolve this matter myself and will absolutely not disappoint him!"
Bai Shengyi paused briefly after speaking. "Bai Yu Yue, Bai Qiu Niang?"
"Your subordinates are here."
"Follow me!" Bai Shengyi continued to drag the guard outside.
Bai Yu Yue and Bai Qiu Niang exchanged glances, but both quickly followed. Since they were genuinely convinced, they should treat Bai Shengyi as their true master.
When the master gives an order, how could they dare not obey?
Bai Shengyi was truly furious, not only with the interruption of her research but also with the Duke of Rong's disregard for Bai Sicheng's life, and further with the anger towards the guards and the Grand Princess's mansion.
First it was Princess Ming Yu, then the驸马 Sun Lixing, and now the Grand Princess. Did the Grand Princess's mansion have a vendetta against her!
If so, then she might as well not have it!
"Get out of the way!"
Bai Shengyi threw the guard in her hand to the ground, whipped away the two guards at the entrance of the Grand Princess's mansion with a vine, and kicked towards the mansion's main gate.
"Boom!"
Under the dual coverage of spiritual power and mental power, the gate was directly kicked open, creating a gaping hole!
"Who dares trespass upon the Grand Princess's mansion!"
A roar erupted from within, accompanied by a powerful fire spiritual energy attack directed at Bai Shengyi.
Bai Shengyi's expression remained unchanged. With a wave of her hand, she dispersed the fire spiritual energy and sneered, "Oh, wasn't it the Grand Princess who invited this young lady to visit? Why, are you reneging now?"
"Boom!"
As Bai Shengyi's words fell, another kick landed on the gate, and the gate shattered with a loud crash.
"Bai Shengyi!" The person who appeared was the captain of the Grand Princess's guards. Seeing the situation and the crowd of onlookers gathered outside the mansion, he was stunned.
Bai Shengyi was completely trampling on the Grand Princess's reputation!
What was broken was not just the gate, but the dignity and status of the Grand Princess's mansion!
The captain let out an angry roar, drew his sword, and lunged at Bai Shengyi, "You little brat, how dare you be so presumptuous!"
"Heh!"
Bai Shengyi let out a cold laugh, and her vine whipped fiercely towards the opponent.
Fast! Accurate! Ruthless!
Specifically designed to humiliate!
"Ah!" The dense vines were inescapable, lashing at his face with sharp cracks. In no time, the guard's face was bloody, and he let out a scream.
"Fire Dance!" He attempted to counterattack with a spiritual skill, but saw a wisp of fire light emerge from Bai Shengyi's fingertips, directly extinguishing the fire spiritual energy he had summoned!
Extinguished?
The captain's disbelief bordered on questioning his own existence. In a moment of distraction, he was bound by Bai Shengyi and tossed aside.
Bai Shengyi continued to walk inside.
The crowd of onlookers outside grew larger, with some even openly discussing loudly.
"What heinous crime has the Grand Princess's mansion committed? How else could someone storm in like this."
"You're behind on the news. This person is Bai Shengyi. It's likely Princess Ming Yu has caused trouble again."
"Tsk, I have to say, the Grand Princess's mansion isn't that capable. They boast about being near Golden Core, yet they can't even handle someone at the Foundation Establishment stage. I reckon they were just boasting before."
...
Hearing these words, the captain realized that if Bai Shengyi were to truly barge in, the prestige of the Grand Princess's mansion would surely plummet. He hurriedly shouted, "Brothers, stop her quickly!"
Following his command, countless guards quickly surrounded Bai Shengyi.
However, these guards were all at the Qi Refining stage, none even reaching Foundation Establishment. Bai Shengyi dealt with them one by one, or two by two. In a short while, they were all subdued by Bai Shengyi.
"Grand Princess, this young lady has come alone, why are you afraid to show your face?"
Bai Shengyi raised her chin, looking towards the central courtyard of the Grand Princess's mansion, and silently changed the vine of the Qing Meng Vine in her hand to one made of spiritual power.
The Qing Meng Vine shrunk into two green leaves and, unnoticed by anyone, fell to the ground, quietly departing.