Ye Xi turned around and saw that it was Liu Mengxian, who had just won the first prize today.
She had rosy cheeks and almond - shaped eyes, and her demeanor was dignified.
"What can I do for you, Miss Liu?"
After they exchanged greetings, Ye Xi asked straightforwardly.
Liu Mengxian gave a gentle smile and said, "This might be a bit abrupt. It's just that the dress you're wearing is really beautiful. I've never seen such a one before. I like it so much that I'm being so bold as to ask. Could you tell me which cloth shop the material of this dress is from? Or did you buy this ready - made dress from a tailor shop?"
So she just wanted to ask about the dress.
Ye Xi relaxed her vigilance a little. Just as she was about to answer, she heard Yi Yuan's voice beside her:
"What's going on?"
"Oh, Miss Liu likes my dress and wants to know where to buy the material."
Ye Xi replied with a smile. She naturally leaned a bit towards Yi Yuan, then turned to Liu Mengxian and said,
"This material has just come out and is on sale, so you might not know about it. This kind of yarn is called Floating Mist. You can buy it at the newly - opened Xining Cloth Shop on Nanguijie Street in the capital."
"Xining Cloth Shop?"
Liu Mengxian's eyes lit up.
"I've heard of it. It is said that the fortune - telling place of Immortal Maiden Manping is also there, and she has a very good relationship with the owner of the cloth shop. Although Immortal Maiden Manping is currently taking a break and not accepting customers, there are still a constant stream of people going to that cloth shop."
"About Immortal Maiden Manping,"
Suddenly, a delicate voice interrupted. Yun Qianying walked over cheerfully, stood beside Liu Mengxian intimately, and hooked her arm. She said,
"Although I haven't been in the capital for long, I've heard a lot about her. Cousin, are you going to ask her for a fortune - telling?"
"No."
Liu Mengxian still looked gentle and graceful, but her body stiffened noticeably. After all, although Yun Qianying was her cousin, one grew up in the capital and the other in the south - western border, and they had little contact. Yun Qianying's familiar act of hooking her arm made her feel uncomfortable for a moment.
But she still simply explained that she had taken a fancy to Ye Xi's dress and wanted to buy some material to make a dress.
"Oh—"
Yun Qianying gave a sweet smile as if suddenly enlightened. She seemed not to notice Liu Mengxian's discomfort at all. With a pure and cute look, she said,
"This dress does look nice."
Blinking her innocent eyes, Yun Qianying said seriously and sincerely,
"But I've heard that Miss Ye doesn't have a very good - looking face. If the dress is too eye - catching, sometimes it won't make your face look better. Instead, it might have the opposite effect."
These words were really rude. Everyone present frowned.
"Say that again."
"Qianying."
Yi Yuan and Liu Mengxian spoke up at the same time. One had cold eyes like stars, which made Yun Qianying shiver involuntarily and she subconsciously shrank behind Liu Mengxian; the other hurriedly scolded Yun Qianying. Her slender eyebrows almost knitted into a knot as she apologized,
"I'm so sorry, Miss Ye. My younger sister grew up on the border. She has been running wild with Cousin Yun Qi. She never knows how to measure her words. Please don't take it to heart."
Ye Xi wasn't surprised by Yun Qianying's malice towards her. After all, her admiration for Shen Zhou was so obvious. It was just pitiful that she and Shen Zhou were innocent. So far, she still didn't know what had happened between her and Shen Zhou, but she had to bear such a big blame.
But it was just a little girl being jealous and talking nonsense. She wasn't that petty. So she gave a shallow smile and said,
"Never mi—"
"Xiaoying,"
The word "mind" got stuck in Ye Xi's throat.
Yun Qi strode over. His upright and tough face showed a just look:
"Apologize to Miss Ye."
Yun Qianying was not afraid of others, but she both loved and feared her elder brother. Seeing Yun Qi give the order, she had no choice but to obey. She pouted unhappily and reluctantly said,
"Okay, okay. I'm sorry, Miss Ye. But... I just wanted to give you a reminder."
As she spoke, tears began to well up in her eyes.
"It's okay, it's okay,"
Ye Xi felt a bit of a headache. Yun Qianying's teary - eyed look made it seem as if she had bullied Yun Qianying.
"Miss Yun is just straightforward and sincere."
Since the person involved didn't mind anymore, Yun Qi naturally wouldn't say anything more. He just nodded slightly and said to Liu Mengxian,
"Congratulations, Cousin Mengxian, for winning the first prize."
Liu Mengxian gave a generous smile, exchanged a few words with Yun Qi, and then they bid farewell to each other.
Yi Yuan's face was as cold as ice. One would think that Yun Qianying's words were aimed at him if they didn't know. His discontent made Ye Xi can't help but laugh. She quietly pulled Yi Yuan's big hand and comforted him softly.
The two walked back side by side. Their intimate little actions overflowed with sweetness, which made the Cao siblings, who had been staring at Ye Xi and waiting for her to have bad luck, so jealous that their eyes turned red.
Cao Wei spat angrily and said venomously,
"Such public displays of affection. They're really shameless!"
"Keep your voice down,"
Cao Sheng was also full of envy and hatred.
"Let's see how long they can be happy. Humph—Tomorrow's the equestrian and archery competition. It won't be as peaceful as today. Maybe something unexpected will happen. Just wait and see."
On the other side, Shen Zhou, who had also been paying attention to Ye Xi, was much calmer. At least his extremely charming face showed no trace of emotion.
"Sir?"
Sheng Yu called out worriedly.
"Let's go."
Shen Zhou's peach - blossom eyes were bottomless, and his voice showed no sign of joy or anger.
"Go to the Qiwantang and pick a gift for Yingying. She'll most likely be the champion tomorrow."
Sheng Yu looked at Shen Zhou in surprise. Although he didn't know how his master knew what hadn't happened yet, his master had always been infallible in his calculations. He didn't need to ask too much, just do as he was told.
At this moment, Qiao Yan was quietly sneaking into the stable prepared for tomorrow's competition...
The next day, the sky was clear and the wind was high with few clouds.
The young ladies in their neat riding outfits had much less of their gentle charm and had a bit of heroism in their eyebrows.
Since it was the first time that equestrian and archery competitions were added to the women's events, the number of spectators today was almost twice as many as yesterday. Even Emperor Zhaohuan came with two concubines from the harem, and the princes and princesses followed closely behind.
The scene suddenly became lively. The young ladies from various families whispered to each other, and their beautiful eyes kept glancing at the high platform where the emperor and the princes were sitting. Their faces were blushing shyly.
Emperor Zhaohuan glanced at the beautiful young ladies lined up neatly below and asked jokingly,
"Prince Yu'an, which one is your beloved Miss Ye?"
With a smile in his eyes, Yi Yuan pointed at Ye Xi and said,
"Your Majesty, the one wearing the veil is her."
"Why is she wearing a veil? I remember this girl didn't use to wear a veil."
Empress Cao Shu on the left asked.
"Mother doesn't know,"
Yi Zhen walked over gracefully with a plate of fresh fruits and said coquettishly,
"Miss Ye indeed didn't use to wear a veil. But since her face was disfigured by the young master of the Cao family and she was mocked for her bad looks and not being liked, Miss Ye seems to have been greatly affected. That's why she either wears a veiled hat or a veil every time she goes out."