Now, Ye Xi's words had put Ye Jueyao in a difficult position. It was awkward for her to leave, and equally awkward to stay.
[What's going on? How has this little brat become so sharp - tongued?]
[Could it be that she knows her true identity?]
[Or... does she only know about my private dealings with Cao Sheng?]
Eyeing Ye Xi suspiciously, Ye Jueyao always felt that this younger sister, who was supposed to take the fall for her, had changed.
"It's just a trifle," Ye Jueyao's face had regained its composure, but the coldness had crept into her eyes.
"Since we've run into each other here, let's choose together."
Ye Xi pretended not to notice their expressions and happily started to pick out jewelry.
Anyway, with Ye Jueyao and Cao Sheng around, it would never be her turn to pay.
She picked the heaviest gold bracelet and happily put it on her hand.
"Elder sister, I've made my choice."
Glancing at the bulky and old - fashioned bracelet on Ye Xi's hand, Ye Jueyao could hardly suppress the mockery and disdain in her eyes.
[Sure enough, she's still that ignorant girl. Among so many nice things, she picks such an ugly bracelet!]
Ye Jueyao chose an elegant silver hairpin with peach blossom patterns. She thought her taste was unparalleled. Feeling a bit more content, she smiled faintly and said,
"Sister has good taste. I've also made my choice. Let's go and settle the bill..."
"Yo, Brother Cao!" Before she could finish, her words were suddenly interrupted by a voice from upstairs.
Cao Sheng's face darkened.
The man upstairs was Zhou Hao, the apple of the eye of the Marquis of Shen. He was Cao Sheng's classmate in the academy. A good - for - nothing, he was most fond of visiting brothels. He always liked to oppose Cao Sheng and compete with him over everything.
When Cao Sheng was engaged to Ye Xi, Zhou Hao had laughed at him for a long time. Whenever they met, Zhou Hao would always make a few sarcastic remarks. Now that he had seen Cao Sheng with Ye Xi, God knows how much he would mock them.
Cao Sheng took a couple of steps and subconsciously tried to block Ye Xi. But Zhou Hao had already seen her and sneered,
"Brother Cao is really considerate, blocking Miss Ye so tightly. Are you afraid I'll snatch her away?"
The mockery in his words was quite obvious.
After all, with Ye Xi's appearance and dressing, it was hardly possible for her to be "snatched away".
Cao Sheng's act of blocking her was quite thought - provoking.
Ye Xi pretended not to understand and deftly stepped out from behind Cao Sheng, smiling,
"Lord Zhou, don't tease. I'm engaged to Lord Cao. I only have eyes for him. Even if Lord Zhou is interested in me, I can only decline."
As she was speaking, Zhou Hao had already come downstairs. There was a gaudily - dressed girl behind him. No one knew whose daughter she was.
Seeing Ye Xi's heavily - made - up face, looking like a brothel madam, and having the audacity to reject him, Zhou Hao's face was full of contempt.
"Ha! You actually take it seriously? I gave you some face, but you really took it! "
"There are so many mirrors here. Why don't you take a look at your old and ugly face? Who would take a fancy to you!?"
Among the well - known young masters and ladies, everyone usually spoke circumspectly because of their status. Even though they knew about Ye Xi's appearance, they only whispered and mocked her in private.
Zhou Hao was the first one to openly mock and belittle her like this.
Ye Xi's face flushed instantly, and tears welled up in her eyes.
Saixing couldn't bear this and immediately wanted to step forward and scold this blind Lord Zhou.
But unexpectedly, Ye Xi tightly grabbed the corner of her clothes.
Ye Xi lowered her head and winked at Saixing desperately. Saixing was stunned for a moment and immediately understood. Changing her angry look, she showed a look of both anger and anxiety and said,
"You... How can you talk like this..." Then she stepped forward and stood in front of Cao Sheng, anxiously saying,
"Lord Cao, please say something for my lady!"
"I..."
As soon as Cao Sheng opened his mouth, Zhou Hao laughed exaggeratedly and mocked,
"Say what? Your Lord Cao can't say a word! The truth is right in front of everyone. Am I wrong?"
"Maybe your Lord Cao actually agrees with me!"
Everyone in the store looked at Cao Sheng. Ye Xi also looked at him tearfully, waiting for Cao Sheng to refute.
In public, Cao Sheng of course had to protect Ye Xi's face.
Putting on an angry look, Cao Sheng scolded,
"What are you talking nonsense about! Miss Ye is kind - hearted, gentle and modest. How can someone like you, who only cares about appearance and is fond of visiting brothels, understand!"
"Tsk! It's easy to talk. " Zhou Hao rolled his eyes. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Ye Jueyao, who had been silent all this time. Immediately, his eyes lit up.
"Yo~ Miss Ye is here too." A smile quickly appeared on his face. Zhou Hao stepped forward.
"I'm rude. I don't know if Miss Ye needs anything. I'm willing to help."
Cao Sheng's expression changed. He reached out and grabbed Zhou Hao, pulling him back and away from Ye Jueyao.
"Lord Zhou, please be respectful! This is the daughter of an official, not some girl you meet in the red - light district!"
Zhou Hao didn't expect Cao Sheng to suddenly make a move. He was caught off - guard and stumbled. The servants behind him rushed forward to support him.
"You dare to push me!?" Zhou Hao felt that he had lost face in front of Ye Jueyao. As soon as he regained his balance, he rushed up again and started to tug at Cao Sheng.
Everyone quickly stepped forward to stop them. For a moment, it was a complete mess.
Ye Xi and Ye Jueyao were right beside them. In the scuffle, no one knew who bumped into whom. The two sisters let out a scream and fell backward in unison.
Behind them were the complete sets of headdresses displayed by the store for decoration. The hairpins and hairpins were very sharp. If they really hit them, they would surely be bleeding and disfigured.
Their faces turned pale, and they exclaimed simultaneously,
"Lord Cao, save me!"
These two exclamations rang out at the same time. In the blink of an eye, without thinking, Cao Sheng turned around and caught Ye Jueyao, who was a bit farther away.
Lingyan appeared like a ghost and reached out to support Ye Xi. However, Ye Xi leaned to one side and rammed into the headdresses herself.
It all happened in an instant. No one could tell what had happened.
"Ah!"
The sharp hairpin cut diagonally across her forehead. Crimson blood gushed down, staining Ye Xi's cheeks bloodily and horribly.
Everyone was stunned.
The noisy store fell silent for a moment.
Then it exploded like water into a hot oil pan.
"Wow! Did you see that? Lord Cao instinctively went to catch Ye Jueyao..."
"Tsk tsk tsk. I noticed just now that Lord Cao and Miss Ye seemed to have something going on. They really do..."
"My goodness, Miss Ye is so pitiful. She's probably really disfigured this time. Those hairpins are so sharp. It must be extremely painful..."
"Look, this is the fate of being ugly. Even her fiancé would take care of someone else first..."
The crowd's comments were made without any restraint and fell into the ears of the people at the center of the topic.
No one had expected Ye Xi to be so seriously injured. Although Ye Xi's appearance was already not very good, if she was really disfigured, it would be a whole new story.
The color drained from Cao Sheng's and Zhou Hao's faces. For the first time, they had the same thought:
It's over.
In public, there was no way to cover it up.