Allure of a Country Maiden
Chapter 520 - 518

Chapter 520: Chapter 518

After Xiao’er was pulled up by Shangguan Xuanjun, Shangguan Xuanyi also easily climbed up.

"Are you injured?" Shangguan Xuanhao eyed the two of them and asked.

"Are you injured?" Shangguan Ruixi and the others asked the same question.

Xiao’er shook her head, "I’m not. But I think Brother Shangguan’s hand must be hurt."

"It’s nothing!" Shangguan Xuanyi shook his head,

"Let’s go up and see what happened!" and then he pulled Xiao’er towards the stairs.

Shangguan Wanru came running over and hugged Xiao’er: "Miss Rui’an, you scared me to death!"

Xiao’er, squeezed against someone’s soft chest, felt like jumping off the building!

"Xiao’er, aren’t you scared?" Fu Ranhui’s face was still pale from the fright, she looked at Xiao’er’s still rosy complexion, held by Shangguan Wanru, her face expressing helplessness, showing no signs of fear, she couldn’t help but marvel at Xiao’er’s inner strength.

"I’m a martial artist, so I don’t get scared easily. Besides, before I could even start to feel afraid, Brother Shangguan had already grabbed me."

"You sure are brave!" Fu Ranhui was speechless.

"Seems like practicing martial arts isn’t totally useless." Shangguan Wanru mused.

Xiao’er: ...

Since when has practicing martial arts become useless!

The sixth floor of the tower was open to officials. At this moment the county magistrate of Cangsheng came over and recognized that Shangguan Xuanhao was the Emperor’s son. He then glanced at the others and noticed that two of them resembled Shangguan Xuanhao. He hurriedly came forward to pay his respects, "The humble official of Cangsheng County greets the princes and dignitaries."

Seeing this man, Shangguan Xuanhao felt a surge of anger, and wished he could stomp on him. "So now you admit that you are the county magistrate of Cangsheng! You are just in the right place! Come with me and see what happened!"

The county magistrate felt a chill down his spine, could this be more than just an accident?

Heaven, are you not awake yet? This is the Emperor’s son! You should be blessing him, how could you let a mishap like this happen?

Everyone quickly went up to the seventh floor, only Princess Ling’er and her maid were standing still.

When she saw that Shangguan Xuanyi had come up without any injuries, her eyes finally moved, "Sixth Prince, it’s wonderful that you are not dead!"

"If you don’t know how to talk, just shut up. No one will mistake you for being mute!" Fu Ranhui glared at her fiercely.

Xiao’er found Princess Ling’er’s stupidity unbearable, and thought it served her right to be scolded.

Shangguan Xuanyi coldly ignored her.

"You must be disappointed that the Sixth Prince is not dead, aren’t you?" Shangguan Wanru was even more angry at her words and couldn’t help but retort.

"That’s not what I meant!" Princess Ling’er was irritated.

"What did you mean then? Wasn’t it to purposely harm the county magistrate of Rui’an and make her fall off the tower?"

"Don’t just talk nonsense, I didn’t do anything!" Seeing the suspicion in Shangguan Xuanyi’s eyes, Princess Ling’er defended herself, she turned to Xiao’er and said: "County Magistrate Rui’an, I didn’t touch you at all. It was not my fault that you fell off!"

Xiao’er nodded, speaking to the point, "True. It was me trying to avoid your waving hand, and that made me lean against the guardrail. Princess Ling’er’s hand did not touch me at that time."

Xiao’er was not a person who would blur the lines between right and wrong. Even though she and Princess Ling’er were on bad terms, she wouldn’t falsely accuse her.

Shangguan Xuanyi shot Princess Ling’er a cold glance, and said nothing. Regardless, it was because of her that the girl fell!

As for her wildly waving hand, whether or not it was deliberate or unintentional, was yet to be determined.

Regardless, whether she was intentional or unintentional in causing this, he would naturally find out!

Princess Ling’er shivered under Shangguan Xuanyi’s gaze.

Xiao’er, on the other hand, was trying to remember whether Princess Ling’er was intentionally or unintentionally waving her hand about.

"The guardrail was hollowed out by termites. When Miss Rui’an leaned against it, it couldn’t sustain her weight and broke." Shangguan Ruixi had examined the broken guardrail and explained.

Everyone rushed over to have a look when they heard this: apparent signs of termite damage could be seen at the broken ends.

The guardrail had been freshly painted, so no one noticed that it had been eaten away by termites.

"Magistrate of Cangsheng County, what’s your explanation for this!" Shangguan Xuanhao’s voice was filled with chilling tones.

Today was the day of Grain Rain, the Lingcang Tower was bound to be open. Before the opening, the guards were supposed to clean and inspect the tower.

Even on regular days, the tower needed periodic maintenance and repairs.

Now with the guardrail hollowed out by termites, and a near fatal accident, responsibility had to be assigned.

Hearing that the guardrail had been hollowed out by termites and caused one county magistrate and one prince to fall from the tower, the magistrate of Cangsheng County felt like he was struck by a thunderbolt.

He was wrong, the heavens were not blind. They had fallen from a seven-story high tower unharmed, wasn’t that a blessing from heaven?

The heavens wanted to harm him, not the Emperor’s son!

He clearly ordered his subordinates to clean and inspect the Lingcang Tower, he had not imagined that they dared to disobey him! This was outrageous! They were trying to murder him!

If something had happened to the prince here today, how many times would he have to die for a crime of such magnitude?

Thinking about this, the magistrate of Cangsheng County immediately knelt down: "I am derelict in my duties, deserving of death and beg for the Second Prince to punish me." The Cangsheng County magistrate did not say anything else to shirk the responsibility, he admitted his guilt directly.

Shangguan Xuanhao’s expression softened somewhat.

"Less talk, arrange someone to look at any other part of the tower that has been damaged by termites. If there is another accident, you will not need your head any longer! And also, this Lingcang Tower is for suppressing river demons, not for fostering rats! If a single rat appears in the tower in the future, I will make you eat it alive!" Shangguan Xuanhao waved his hand and sent him away.

So he won’t be executed? The magistrate of Cangsheng County was overjoyed, he quickly prostrated himself in thanks and then hopped away to arrange things.

The damage caused by termites was huge. If it was not dealt with in time, the whole tower could collapse.

"Just let him go like that?" Shangguan Wanru unsatisfied.

"He must have arranged for someone to come for cleaning and inspection, otherwise the guardrail wouldn’t have been repainted. His only crime is failing control his subordinates properly, it’s not deserving of death! The real criminal who deserves death is the insubordinate subordinate. Once this is resolved, the magistrate of Cangsheng County will give us an answer."

"But he is also responsible!" Shangguan Wanru dissatisfied.

"Of course he will be punished, but good officials are hard to find. He is an upright and honest official. Now he only is a seventh-rank official and if he were to be demoted it would be meaningless, so we can let him continue as a seventh-rank official, unable to receive a promotion for a few years, and make him do some practical things for the people." Shangguan Xuanhao explained.

A county magistrate is like the blue sky above the people’s heads, a good magistrate can bring clear skies to the people, that position can’t be easily abolished!

If this magistrate was a corrupt official, he would have his head cut without second thoughts!

The integrity of this County Magistrate is too good! Shangguan Wanru pursed her lips upon hearing Shangguan Xuanhao, thinking that this disposition was at least tolerable.