"You... You should go quickly."
Ye Xi's cheeks flushed, and she was at a loss.
"Let Lingyan teach me horseback riding today. I'll go to the cloth shop after I come back."
The more he looked at her, the cuter she seemed.
Yi Yuan let out a soft laugh, hugged her again, kissed the newly healed wound on Ye Xi's forehead, and told her to be safe several times before striding away.
Ye Xi touched her forehead. Yi Yuan's soft lips seemed to still be there, warm against the newly grown pale pink flesh.
A sweet feeling welled up in Ye Xi's heart.
Thinking that Jiang Ning was still sad, she called her along. It would be good for her to relax.
Ye Xi had practiced archery very well. Although she couldn't hit the bullseye from a hundred paces away, she could hit it with seven or eight out of ten arrows. But she was a bit afraid of horses and couldn't ride well for a long distance.
It was the same today. After struggling for more than an hour, Ye Xi could only ride about half a li on flat ground.
As soon as it came to accelerating, turning, or jumping over obstacles, Ye Xi was extremely scared. She clung tightly to the horse's back and didn't even dare to open her eyes. She was thrown off the horse many times, scaring Saixing and Jiang Ning into screaming.
Fortunately, Lingyan was good at kung fu, and Yan Gui helped control the horse beside. Otherwise, Ye Xi might have been to the Underworld several times.
"Miss, you've been practicing for half a day. Take a break first."
Seeing Ye Xi, who was clearly terrified but still bravely communicating with the horse, trying to make it less bumpy, Lingyan found it both funny and heart - wrenching.
Rubbing her sore arms and legs, Ye Xi pouted reluctantly but finally gave in.
The group came to a nearby pavilion to rest. Saixing and Lingyan massaged Ye Xi's muscles respectively.
"Woo... Brother, it's all because of that bitch Ye Xi that Father was so cruel to send Mother away. It's all her fault that our family was separated. Woo..."
"That jinx also made Brother miss this year's autumn imperial examination. With Brother's talent, it would have been a sure thing to pass the autumn imperial examination. Now, because of this ugly, stupid, and promiscuous woman, Brother has to wait for another three years. We must not let her go!"
A sharp, venomous female voice suddenly reached the ears of the people in the pavilion, and they all frowned involuntarily.
Then a male voice sounded:
"Humph - What's the point of arguing with such a shameless woman? Fortunately, she's an ugly woman. It was easy for me to break off the engagement. Otherwise, if she really married into our family, who knows how many scoundrels she would hook up with behind my back."
"Haha, I didn't expect that the noble Prince Yu'an would one day pick up the woman I didn't want. Let's see how many men Ye Xi will cheat on with then."
The footsteps were getting closer, and their voices became clearer.
It was none other than Cao Sheng and his sister.
After leaving the Ye family, Ye Xi hardly wore makeup anymore. With her natural beauty, the Cao siblings definitely wouldn't recognize her.
But Saixing had been with Ye Xi all the time. Although Cao Wei might not recognize her very well, Cao Sheng would surely recognize her, and then he would surely be suspicious.
No one had expected to meet these two unlucky people here.
There was only one path in front of them, and there was no cover around the pavilion. The horses were grazing in the forest opposite. Seeing that the two were about to reach the pavilion, they glanced at each other and were a bit flustered for a moment. They looked around for a hiding place.
In a hurry, Yan Gui simply grabbed Saixing, tapped his toes, and the two of them landed on the pavilion roof with a "whoosh".
Just as they concealed themselves, the Cao siblings had already reached the left - front of the pavilion.
Cao Sheng saw a stunningly beautiful woman sitting in the pavilion at a glance. She was looking up. With a high nose, cherry - like lips, willow - leaf eyebrows slightly frowned, long eyelashes like feathers, and black hair like a waterfall. The slanting sunlight cast a layer of light on her face, making her skin look like snow and her appearance like that of a fairy.
She was truly like a celestial maiden descending to the mortal world.
The siblings were instantly stunned.
It was just a momentary thing. Ye Xi was checking if Saixing and Yan Gui had any flaws and hadn't had time to retract her gaze. Lingyan had noticed Cao Sheng's staring eyes and instantly stepped in front of Ye Xi, glaring at the two of them.
The siblings came back to their senses and felt a bit embarrassed.
When did such a stunning girl appear in the capital?
Even Ye Jueyao, who had won the first place in the Qingyun Competition and was both talented and beautiful, or Princess Yi Zhen, known as the most beautiful woman in the capital, would pale in comparison if they were here.
Cao Sheng felt his heart beating faster.
Cao Wei nudged Cao Sheng's arm and whispered:
"Brother, this girl is really beautiful. Even I, a woman, was mesmerized. And judging from her and her fierce maid's clothes, she should be the daughter of a wealthy family."
"There's no news about such a beauty in the capital. She is very likely a newcomer to the capital. Didn't we hear before that General Yun defeated the Ying army on the border and would return to report his duties during the New Year? And now that the autumn imperial examination is approaching, General Yun's eldest son will come back in advance to take the exam. I heard that there is a young lady in their family, who is as fair - skinned and beautiful as a flower."
"This girl might be the second young lady of the Yun family who came back with Young Master Yun first."
The more she thought about it, the more it seemed likely. Cao Wei's eyes sparkled:
"No family in the capital has maids dressed like this and carrying weapons with them. I think only a noble family like the Yun family, which has been prestigious for generations, can raise such imposing maids. I don't know where the other one comes from, but the Yun family has been on the south - western border for more than a decade and must be unfamiliar with the capital. Brother just broke off the engagement with that bitch Ye Xi and saw the true face of Ye Jueyao, who said one thing and did another. It's such a coincidence that we met this young lady. Isn't it a heaven - sent good match?"
"In my opinion, you should go up and say a few words. I heard that she has a very cute and innocent personality, which is just right for Brother. Then Brother can show her around the capital. After a while... If you can marry the second young lady of the Yun family, with the Yun family's heavy troops in hand as your backing, people in the whole capital will envy you, and that bitch Ye Xi will be so angry that she'll die..."
Cao Sheng was greatly tempted.
No matter how tough he sounded, he was still unwilling deep down.
Although he hated Ye Jueyao for deceiving him and looking down on him, Ye Jueyao was really talented and beautiful, and it was normal for her to have high aspirations.
But what made him the angriest was Ye Xi.
In his opinion, Ye Xi was ugly, stupid, and disfigured. She should have been devoted to him whole - heartedly. When he went to break off the engagement, Ye Xi should have cried and begged him not to abandon her.
Instead, Ye Xi quickly accepted the eight - character horoscope, showed no sadness at all, and even scolded him mercilessly in public. And just after the engagement was broken off, Prince Yu'an rushed to propose. The ugly woman he was so confident that no one else would dare to marry was taken fancy to by Prince Yu'an, who was far superior to him in every aspect. How could he not be angry? How could he be willing?
Now that such a good opportunity was in front of him, Cao Sheng hardly hesitated before walking towards the pavilion.
"May I ask, miss,"
Cao Sheng stood outside the pavilion, maintaining his gentlemanly demeanor and thinking he was suave.
"Are you the second young lady of the Yun family, General Yun Weisheng, the Great General Who Pacifies the South?"