Yi Yuan had long retracted his sword and gently held Ye Xi in his arms, coldly watching to see what Yun Qi, who was comforting Yun Qianying, would do.
Rather than directly exposing Yun Qianying's fake broken bone, he secretly hoped that Yun Qi would blindly side with his sister. After all, first his little Xi had an inexplicable sense of "intimacy" towards this young General Yun, and then Yun Qi had risked his life to save his little Xi from danger.
Seeing the growing bond between them, Yi Yuan felt a sense of crisis deeper than ever before, even exceeding that caused by Shen Zhou.
But Yun Qi disappointed him.
He first carefully examined the arm that Yun Qianying was covering, and then carefully checked the bone. Then he said seriously,
"Xiaoying, your hand is not broken. The pain is mostly due to the abrasion from suddenly hitting the ground. Just ask Liuyun to apply some medicine on it when you get back."
"Brother,"
Yun Qianying was unyielding,
"But I..."
"Miss Xi,"
Before she could finish, Yun Qi had already walked towards Ye Xi and asked with concern,
"Why is the gauze on your hand red? Has the wound reopened? Did you hurt it when you pulled Xiaoying just now?"
"Huh?"
Ye Xi and the others around all looked in the direction of Yun Qi's words and only then noticed that the gauze on her hand was stained with blood.
Just now, when Yun Qianying had said something rebellious and punched and kicked Yi Yuan, Ye Xi had pushed her in anger. Maybe she was too angry and unconsciously used too much force with her right hand when pushing Yun Qianying, so the wound had reopened.
Now that she realized it, Ye Xi felt a dull pain in her palm.
"Brother!"
Yun Qianying stamped her foot angrily. Her own brother had brushed aside her injury with just a few words and instead rushed to care about the person who had hurt her. From the way he was talking, it seemed like he was blaming her, the one who had been pushed, for not cooperating enough and causing Ye Xi's wound to get worse!
Yi Yuan gently held Ye Xi's hand, which was wrapped like a zongzi, and frowned tightly, saying,
"It should be that the wound has reopened."
As he spoke, his icy gaze swept over Yun Qianying, who was filled with resentment and unwillingness beside them. She couldn't help but shiver.
[Really, I was so focused on these two with ill intentions just now that I didn't even notice that little Xi's hand was bleeding.]
[Now it's fine. Yun Qi noticed it first. Doesn't that make me seem so inattentive?]
Yi Yuan was extremely annoyed. He secretly glared at Yun Qi and said in a hurry,
"Did you use too much force just now? Don't do it by yourself in the future. I just told you this last time and you've already forgotten?"
"Come on, let's go to the carriage to apply medicine."
Saying that, he put his arm around Ye Xi, who was confused by his jealous thoughts, deliberately bumped into Shen Zhou, who was approaching worriedly, and then strode towards the carriage with a long stride.
Yun Qi was inexplicably glared at by Yi Yuan and didn't understand why. But as a man, it was inconvenient for him after all, so he had to stop and watch Yi Yuan leave with Ye Xi.
"Brother, Azhou—"
Staring at Ye Xi protectively held in Yi Yuan's arms with hatred, Yun Qianying called out pitifully,
"Xiaoying is in so much pain too."
The two of them looked at each other. Shen Zhou coughed a few times, symbolically comforted Yun Qianying a few words, and then left on the pretext of his own injury.
Yun Qianying was still not willing to give up and was about to follow. But Yun Qi grabbed her,
"Xiaoying, stay away from Shen Zhou in the future. He doesn't have feelings for you. You should know that yourself."
Yun Qianying froze. A flash of pain passed through her eyes, but she still deluded herself and said,
"No, it's not like that. We were new to the capital and didn't know anyone. It was him who helped me drive away the hooligans."
"It was him who took me to visit the capital. It was him who remembered my preferences carefully. It was him..."
"Xiaoying!"
Yun Qi directly interrupted her self - deception,
"Only you know what those things are really like. In any case, Shen Zhou is not someone you can rely on. Also, don't cause trouble for Miss Xi. She can't control other people's feelings for her. Act like a young lady of the Yun family."
Yun Qianying pursed her lips tightly and refused to speak.
How could she cause trouble for that wild girl? She just... wanted her life.
As long as she was dead, Azhou would take a good look at her and fall in love with her.
That low - class person, like a weed by the roadside, didn't deserve her Azhou at all. Azhou should only be matched with her, the legitimate daughter of the Yun family!
At Zhihong Garden—
"Phew~"
Yi Yuan gently blew on Ye Xi's wound on her palm. His eyes were full of pity and self - blame,
"It's my fault. I didn't protect you well and made you worried. I didn't even notice in time that your wound had reopened."
"Yes,"
Ye Xi nodded seriously and looked at Yi Yuan slyly,
"You're doomed. Look at my hand. You have to be obedient to me for the rest of your life and make up for my poor little hand."
Yi Yuan knew that Ye Xi was joking. But his heart skipped a beat. He leaned over and kissed her smooth forehead.
Their noses were almost touching. The warm breath sprayed on her face. Yi Yuan's bright black eyes looked directly into Ye Xi's almond - shaped eyes. His usually cold voice was gentle and serious,
"One lifetime is not enough. For a hundred, a thousand, ten thousand lifetimes, I will only be submissive and indulgent to you."
"Um..."
Yi Yuan gently covered her lips. As their lips and teeth intertwined, Ye Xi felt her body go weak and involuntarily leaned back. But Yi Yuan supported the back of her head with his big hand, blocking her "retreat". As their breaths entangled, she could only let him take more.
"Um... A Yuan..."
The hand on her body was unruly. As it roamed, it brought a tingling sensation. It tentatively moved towards her most secret place, which made Ye Xi let out a soft moan. Her cheeks flushed and she tried to back away.
But her voice was full of lust. The charming voice in Yi Yuan's ears made his lower abdomen tighten even more. He almost lost control.
"Don't move..."
His clear voice was obviously hoarse. Yi Yuan let go of Ye Xi's soft and tender lips and tried his best to restrain the impulse in his body. He buried his head in her neck and gasped slightly,
"Little Xi, don't move... Be careful of your hand. I... won't do anything."
Ye Xi happily stroked Yi Yuan's furry head buried in her neck. She rubbed against him gently and just let out a soft "um" without saying anything else.
He loved her and respected her, so he wouldn't just pursue his own pleasure without a proper marriage. He wouldn't leave her with any handle for others to gossip about.
The lingering love slowly flowed and filled the spacious inner room and every gap.
The restlessness in his body gradually subsided. Yi Yuan's breathing slowed down. He gave Ye Xi a light kiss on the lips like a dragonfly skimming the water and carefully bandaged the wound on her hand that he hadn't had time to bandage just now.
"What should I do, little Xi?"
Yi Yuan sighed deeply,
"I really want to marry you."
Ye Xi smiled sweetly and blinked her eyes, saying,
"Okay. But I don't have a dowry. You'll suffer a loss."
Yi Yuan looked at Ye Xi helplessly and gently bit her fair wrist,
"What loss? The properties of the prince's mansion in your hands are your dowry. I think you know that your real identity is about to be revealed. You know I won't let you marry me so casually, so you just agreed right away."
"Humph—When we find your biological parents in the future, when I come to marry you with the proper wedding rituals, you're not allowed to go back on your word."