Ye Xi had regained some strength. She gritted her teeth and pressed hard on her wound, wincing in pain.
"A Yuan,"
Ye Xi grabbed the reins again and wrapped them around her arm a few times.
"I'm fine now. You can get off. If you accompany me for the rest of the lap, the result won't count."
"No way,"
Yi Yuan refused without hesitation. He tightened his hold on the person in his arms. His clear voice trembled with fear.
"If anything happens to you now, what's the use of winning that bracelet?"
"It won't,"
Ye Xi comforted him by covering his wrist.
"It's almost over. I've regained my strength. Trust me. Or, should I pinch you to prove it?"
Seeing Ye Xi still in the mood to joke at this moment, Yi Yuan was both angry and scared. He lowered his head and gently bit her fair and delicate earlobe. Ye Xi shivered all over.
"You... you..."
Ye Xi blushed with shame and didn't know what to say for a moment.
Yi Yuan leaned closer to Ye Xi mischievously. His clear voice whispered into her ear.
"Don't be afraid. There's no one on the right. No one can see."
In public, under everyone's noses, she still felt embarrassed even if no one could see! Yi Yuan was such a libertine! Ye Xi was so angry that she pinched him hard.
"Ouch..."
Yi Yuan winced in pain. He knew that Ye Xi had indeed regained her strength. After his "flirtation", she must be even more energetic.
His worried heart eased a little. Yi Yuan let out a low laugh. His soft lips deliberately brushed against the tip of her ear as he said,
"Hold on tight, Xiao Xi. I'm off."
With that, he pushed his big palm against the horse's back and took off.
The young ladies in their brisk outfits rode off one after another. The three people left on the field glanced at each other and then went their separate ways.
The spectator stands erupted in an uproar.
One reason was the accident that had just happened. The other was Ye Xi's appearance, which people could finally see clearly after Yi Yuan left.
"Wow, look! Didn't they say that Miss Xi was ugly and disfigured, too hideous to be seen? How come she's so beautiful, like a fairy?"
"My goodness! No wonder the Prince of Yu'an is so considerate and devoted to her. Cao Sheng actually thought she was plain and insisted on breaking off the engagement to be with Ye Jueyao. Isn't she a hundred times more beautiful than Ye Jueyao?"
"Tsk tsk. Miss Xi is not only good at riding and shooting but also extremely beautiful. She and the Prince of Yu'an are really a perfect match. Fortunately, the engagement was broken off quickly. Otherwise, if she had really married Cao Sheng, I'm afraid I would have been extremely jealous..."
Cao Sheng, who was also in the spectator stand, saw everything clearly. The chattering discussions, the overt and covert ridicule, and the schadenfreude around him naturally reached his ears.
And Cao Wei and Yun Qianying, who were chatting animatedly beside him.
Ye Xi... She was actually the woman he met on the outskirts of the capital that day...
Cao Sheng was so shocked that his mouth hung open. His eyes were twice as wide as usual.
How could this be? Then... that day he said those words, those lies, and introduced himself several times. Ye Xi must have laughed at him hundreds of times in her heart...
But why did Ye Xi deliberately put on such an ugly makeup back then? Since she was so beautiful, shouldn't she show off her beauty everywhere? Why did she hide it?
If, if she hadn't hidden her beauty, if he had known earlier that under Ye Xi's gaudy and disgusting appearance was such a peerless beauty, how could he have been deceived by a fickle woman like Ye Jueyao and ended up breaking off the engagement with her!
If he hadn't broken off the engagement, Ye Xi would be his fiancée now. And it would be him, Cao Sheng, who would be enjoying all these envious and jealous looks!
"Brother, brother,"
Cao Wei rubbed her eyes several times but still refused to admit that the charming and unrestrained woman on the horse was Ye Xi.
"Is that the wild girl Ye Xi? How... how did she suddenly become like this?"
How would he know!
Cao Sheng regretted it so much that he almost vomited blood, but he still had to pretend to be nonchalant on his face. Looking at Yun Qianying's back in front of him, unable to see her expression, Cao Sheng gritted his teeth and said,
"I don't know. Maybe she put on a new makeup. This kind of false beauty created with cosmetics can't even compare to a single hair of Miss Yun beside you."
Cao Sheng tried his best to find an excuse to convince himself. At the same time, he tried to curry favor with Yun Qianying to increase her favor towards him.
But Yun Qianying didn't even notice him at this moment. The moment she saw Ye Xi's appearance clearly, Yun Qianying had dug her nails into her palms until they bled.
She was actually so beautiful. No wonder... no wonder her A Zhou was so concerned about her.
She thought she could outshine Miss Xi in every aspect. Appearance, talent, family background...
But in the past two days of the Qingyun Competition, Ye Xi had shone brightly. Whether it was her piano skills or her knowledge of rituals, and even her horse-riding and archery skills were better than hers, even though she had been exposed to horse-riding and archery since childhood. It made her, the legitimate daughter of the prestigious Yun family, look like a joke. Now she showed such a peerless beauty. Except for her family background, she couldn't compare to Ye Xi in anything!
How could this be! Her A Zhou would be snatched away... She would never allow such a thing to happen!
The emperor, the queen, and the noble concubine in the center were also shocked.
Emperor Zhaohuan said,
"Queen, why did your nephew break off the engagement with such a beautiful girl but claim that she was ugly?"
"Your Majesty,"
Cao Shu was also extremely surprised. She bowed slightly and replied,
"I don't know either. I've only seen this girl from afar a couple of times. In my impression... she did look plain."
"Plain?"
Emperor Zhaohuan joked,
"In my opinion, even Zhen'er, the most beautiful woman in the world, will be outshone."
"Father..."
Yi Zhen gave Emperor Zhaohuan a coquettish look. Then she looked down at Ye Xi, who was riding side by side with Qiao Yan and approaching the finish line. Her thick and long eyelashes drooped slightly, casting a shadow in her eyes.
"Miss Xi's peerless beauty is indeed above mine. No wonder the Prince of Yu'an is so infatuated with her."
Emperor Zhaohuan let out a chuckle and leaned forward with interest.
"Indeed. Earlier, when the Prince of Yu'an said that she was extremely beautiful, I thought he was just being love-struck."
"Now it seems that I was hasty."
"It's not hasty,"
Concubine Shen also interjected with a charming laugh.
"People who have seen Miss Xi outside all said that she was plain. Your Majesty lives in the deep palace and has never seen her. It's normal to be misled."
"Um..."
Emperor Zhaohuan nodded. When he looked down at the competition again, it was already over.
The maids who had counted the rankings of the young ladies presented the final results to the chief judge, Qiao Yiting. Ye Xi was ranked first.
Amidst the congratulations and sour remarks, Ye Xi let out a long sigh. She looked at Yi Yuan in the distance and showed a smile.
Next, the precious bracelet was brought out and presented to Ye Xi.
Amidst all kinds of noises, Ye Xi walked onto the high platform. She bowed and raised her hands, ready to receive the red-painted wooden box with cloud patterns that contained the precious bracelet.
But then she heard a clear and loud shout,
"Wait!"