Yi Yaofeng grinned like a little fox, his chubby face beaming with pride.
"I heard them. They were talking and didn't see me."
With an expression that seemed to say "Aren't I smart?", Ye Xi couldn't help laughing again.
"Have you told anyone else, Yaofeng?" Ye Xi asked gently.
"No." Yi Yaofeng shook his head without hesitation.
"Uncle Yuan said I shouldn't tell others."
"Yi Yuan said that?" Ye Xi was truly taken aback.
Why? Did Yi Yuan know something?
"Yes," Yi Yaofeng nodded again. "Uncle Yuan said Auntie wanted to keep it a secret."
Now Ye Xi was certain that Yi Yuan must have known about her and the Ye family. Otherwise, he wouldn't have acted like this.
Then what was the reason for his help? Just for Yi Yaofeng?
Ye Xi always felt there must be more to it.
Staring blankly at the swaying green branches in the courtyard, Ye Xi felt a bit dazed.
How many days had Yi Yuan been away? Why wasn't he back yet?
Ye Mansion—
"Did the fortune - teller really say that?" Qian Fangxue raised her eyebrows slightly. "But out of the blue, why did she mention you? Weren't they there to discuss Ye Xi's marriage with Cao Sheng?"
"It's because the fortune - teller thought I was the one betrothed to Cao Sheng."
Ye Jueyao looked disdainful. Then her expression changed, and a hint of pride flashed across her face.
"She stared at me for a while before saying those things. I guess she saw that I have a good fate and wanted to curry favor with me in advance."
"After all, she offended the State Uncle's Mansion today. It's always good to find more backers for herself."
After pondering for a while, Qian Fangxue hesitated and said,
"But the fortune - teller only said that you'll have a collateral descendant. The Cao family is backed by the Queen. Although it's a long way off, it still has a touch of imperial aura. Yaoyao, we can't give up on the Cao family that we've been planning for so long just because of an uncertain remark."
"What do you mean, Mother?"
Ye Jueyao thought it made sense and asked.
"In my opinion, we should make two - pronged plans. First, we need to figure out Prince Yu'an's attitude. Anyway, the Cao family has already set their eyes on you. If things don't work out with Prince Yu'an, we can join hands with Cao Sheng to change Ye Xi's marriage to you."
"Although the State Uncle's Mansion is gradually declining, it has the Queen as its backer, and there's also the three - dynasty grand councilor, Lord Cao, above. Cao Sheng's father has also been appointed as the Gold - Purple Grand Master. It's already quite remarkable. It's just that in Cao Sheng's generation, there's no outstanding figure. But with the family's accumulated power and wealth over the generations, it's still very impressive."
As she said this, Qian Fangxue's eyes suddenly lit up.
"Do you think... could the fortune - teller mean..." She pointed upwards meaningfully and lowered her voice.
"After all, the Queen has the Third Prince, and the only one who can compete with her in the harem is Concubine Shen. But the concubine only has the Fourth Princess. So in the future, the throne..."
Qian Fangxue didn't continue, but Ye Jueyao already understood her meaning.
Yi Yuan was only a cousin of the current emperor. Although he was highly regarded by the emperor, the relationship was already two generations removed. If the Third Prince ascended the throne in the future, as the Queen's nephew, Cao Sheng would obviously be closer than Yi Yuan. At that time, with blood relations taken into account and a new emperor bringing in new officials, Yi Yuan might not be as prosperous as Cao Sheng.
"Mother is absolutely right." Ye Jueyao's eyes sparkled.
"But just guessing won't get us a definite answer. Why don't we secretly find the fortune - teller to take a look so that we can have a conclusion."
Qian Fangxue highly approved of Ye Jueyao's words. So the two of them sent someone to look for the trace of the Fortune - teller Manping.
The next day, after waking up, Ye Xi first went to the prince's mansion as usual. Then she changed her disguise, went to the martial arts school to pick up the martial artists she had hired, and finally headed to the location left by the second person on the registration list.
The second client was a wealthy merchant who wanted to know if his business partner had deceived him.
This matter was resolved relatively quickly. Then Ye Xi took Saixing to the next client. After "reading fortunes" for several families in a row, Ye Xi made a fortune. Her eyes were filled with the glint of silver.
"Miss," Saixing's eyes also sparkled. Her miss was really promising! She had earned so much money by herself. Soon they would be able to get away from that suffocating "home", right?
"You're so amazing. I'm so lucky to be with you, Miss."
"Spit, spit, spit. Don't talk about death," Ye Xi spat three times in succession. "You should say that being with your miss, we'll be 'lucky and wealthy'~ Haha..."
"Oh, right," Saixing giggled. "Miss is right."
The mistress and the maid laughed merrily, showing only their teeth.
Suddenly, there was a whooshing sound. A four - cornered dart shot through the curtain from the side and firmly stuck into the inner wall of the carriage.
The assassination by Lady Cao had come!
Both Ye Xi and Saixing were startled. Then they quickly reacted and crouched down against the inner wall of the carriage, trying to make their bodies as low as possible.
There was a clattering sound outside. The two sides should be fighting.
Saixing was so scared that she tightly grabbed Ye Xi's hand and kept trembling.
In the chaos, someone startled the horse. The red - chestnut steed neighed and galloped forward.
"Miss!"
The two of them were caught off guard and were suddenly thrown to one side. Ye Xi was close to the window and almost fell out, which made Saixing scream.
Ye Xi's body ached from the fall. She managed to steady herself with difficulty and squeezed out the words "I'm okay" through gritted teeth.
Saixing stumbled towards Ye Xi, but Ye Xi stopped her.
"Go and drive the carriage," Ye Xi tried to calm herself down. "The sound of the fight is getting quieter. The martial artists should have entangled those people. After this alley, we'll reach the North Street of the Horse Market. There are many entertainment places and people there. Don't let the frightened horse hit anyone!"
"Okay..." Saixing's voice was still trembling, but she still tried to move towards the carriage door.
The carriage was bumping violently. Saixing finally reached the door after much stumbling. Just as she was about to grab the reins, the carriage reached the street intersection.
Suddenly seeing the frightened horse charging wildly, the pedestrians screamed and dodged.
Screams and curses filled the air. Saixing became even more flustered. The more she wanted to grab the reins, the more she missed.
"Miss..." Saixing's voice was on the verge of tears. "I... I can't grab them..."
Ye Xi was also very anxious, but she didn't know how to drive a carriage. So she slowly moved towards Saixing while trying to comfort her.
"Don't be afraid, don't be afraid. We're okay for now. Aim and grab them. It'll be okay..."
Before she could finish her words, another carriage appeared in their field of vision ahead.
Saixing's face turned ashen. It seemed they couldn't avoid it.
Suddenly, a figure flew out from the side. With a few swift sword strokes, the figure cut the ropes connecting the carriage and the horse. Then the figure jumped onto the horse's back lightly, with the clothes fluttering in the wind, and just managed to stop the frightened horse in front of the other carriage.
Because the carriage and the horse were suddenly disconnected, Ye Xi and Saixing rolled out of the carriage head - first and fell into a heap.
Fortunately, their veiled hats were tied tightly, so their identities weren't exposed, but the hats were all askew.
Without having time to tend to their injuries, Ye Xi quickly put on her veiled hat properly and then helped Saixing tidy up hers. Just as they were bustling around, the young man who had tamed the frightened horse had already come to their side.
All Ye Xi saw was the hem of his black robe embroidered with gold. Suddenly, her heart skipped a beat.