Richard Howard was the number one martial artist in the Ministry of Rites. His arrival immediately changed the situation at the scene. He stomped his right foot hard on the white marble lotus pillar of the railing, then leapt into the air. Although his posture wasn’t as graceful and elegant as Grace Carter and Helen Morgan, his somersault was still high and floating. In midair, he did a forward flip with a twist, and when he landed, he was already standing protectively in front of Little William. The saber in his hand spun a dazzling arc of cold light before him. With one hand, he lifted his outer robe, and with the other, he held the saber horizontally in front of him, blade facing outward—a classic heroic entrance. He puffed out his chest and shouted with full vigor, “Hah! You brazen scoundrels, with me, Richard Howard, here, who dares harm my young master!”

Originally, Little William was quite grateful for this guy’s timely rescue, but seeing his showy stance and hearing him, afraid others wouldn’t know it was Richard Howard who saved him, flaunt his sense of superiority, he thought, damn, would it kill you not to show off?

Grace Carter didn’t care who he was. All she wanted now was to kill Little William. She tried to charge forward again, but Helen Morgan grabbed her. This time, Helen Morgan had learned her lesson—Grace Carter was seeing red and might even attack her, so she simply hugged Grace Carter from behind and whispered, “Qingxuan, stop it!”

Grace Carter struggled but couldn’t break free. At this moment, John Carter and Steven Carter, her two older brothers, rushed over. Seeing their sister had been rescued, they no longer held back. Steven Carter shouted, “Brothers, go! Kill this lecher and get justice for my sister!”

The hundred or so men they brought, emboldened by his words, shouted in unison, “Kill the lecher, avenge Miss Tang!” The noise of over a hundred people shouting together was truly earth-shaking—anyone within a mile could hear it clearly.

Although Edward Howard had sent his personal guard Richard Howard ahead and appeared calm on the surface, he was actually quite anxious inside. He had little confidence in his son Little William’s intelligence. Although his son had miraculously regained his senses and started speaking half a year ago, Edward Howard still felt the whole thing was odd and worried the illness might return. So when he heard Charles Carter mention this matter today, his first reaction was that his son might have relapsed.

Charles Carter, sitting in Edward Howard’s carriage, was also burning with anxiety. Even though the carriage was moving fast, he wished he could sprout wings and fly straight to the Ministry of Rites to rescue his precious daughter. On the way to find Edward Howard, he had already learned that his two sons had gone ahead to rescue her. Charles Carter sent people to stop his sons from causing trouble while he personally went to find Edward Howard. In his heart, Charles Carter wanted to kill Edward Howard’s foolish son, but since they were both officials in the same court and Edward Howard was the Minister of Revenue, outranking him, he had many concerns. At this moment, Charles Carter didn’t even dare think too much—if his precious daughter’s innocence had been violated by Edward Howard’s foolish son, what would he do?

When the two arrived outside the Ministry of Rites, they happened to hear that thunderous cry.

“Kill the lecher, avenge Miss Tang!”

Charles Carter heard it loud and clear and was instantly shocked, thinking to himself that something terrible had happened. Could it be that his daughter had already fallen victim to the lecher? Oh no, if anything happens to my Qingxuan, I, Charles Carter, will risk everything to demand justice from you, Edward Howard!

Edward Howard was also terrified by the shout. He had only this one precious son, who had been foolish and mute for sixteen years and had only regained his senses half a year ago, yet now had caused such a disaster. What Edward Howard worried about most was not the trouble his son had caused, but whether his son was safe and sound.

For a moment, the crowd was in an uproar, and the situation was on the verge of spiraling out of control. Although Richard Howard was highly skilled, two fists were no match for many hands. The Ministry’s servants, seeing things going badly, were so frightened they scattered and hid.

The Tang siblings and their hundred-plus friends and brothers were about to execute Little William on the spot when Helen Morgan, sensing the danger, hugged Grace Carter tightly and shouted, “Everyone, listen to me! Little William has broken the law and committed evil deeds, and the authorities will punish him. You must not act rashly.” On the surface, she was stopping the Tang siblings from protecting Little William, but in reality, she was thinking of the Tang family’s best interests. After all, Helen Morgan worked in the government and understood the consequences.

In this situation, Little William showed not a trace of fear. He still wore a smiling expression and nodded, saying, “Captain Morgan is right. Impulsiveness is the devil. Dakang has its own laws and regulations. Right and wrong will be decided by the authorities!”

Helen Morgan glared at him fiercely, cursing him inwardly. This good-for-nothing was truly shameless—after doing such disgraceful things, he still had the nerve to say that. How dare you invoke the law when you’re knowingly breaking it!