When Yun Xi and the others saw Zongzheng Fengyi and his entourage, they had already left the palace gate and were mounting their horses, ready to head for the post station.
The group exchanged glances. With a tacit understanding, they flipped onto the empty horses beside them and galloped away.
The clattering of hooves echoed through the broad street. Zongzheng Fengyi and his men in front all turned around and saw Hun Yuan leading the way, whipping his horse forward.
In the blink of an eye, he was right in front of them.
The horse neighed loudly, making a hissing sound, and blocked their path exactly.
This made the guards around Zongzheng Fengyi draw their swords one after another and stare warily at Hun Yuan, the one blocking the way.
Zongzheng Fengyi let out a cold laugh, showing no sign of surprise on his face. Sitting steadily on his horse, he remained unmoved and said:
"The master is quite quick. Does this mean you won't let us go?"
Hun Yuan fixed his gaze tightly on the national master, only glancing at Zongzheng Fengyi out of the corner of his eye and saying:
"Cut the crap. Don't you know what I mean?"
"What about my master's Buddhist beads? Why are they in his hands! Where is my master?"
Zongzheng Fengyi didn't answer. Instead, the national master hooked his lips evilly, took off the dark red and golden Buddhist beads on his wrist, and said:
"Take a good look. Is this really Qing Yi's Buddhist beads?"
"Don't you know what color the bone beads are? Mine are red, not pale green and milky white."
As he was speaking, Yun Xi and Yi Yuan had also approached.
Yun Xi had never seen Master Qing Yi's Buddhist beads, but Yi Yuan had seen them when he was a child.
They were indeed pale blue and white, as gentle as Master Qing Yi's character, making people feel close at first sight. Unlike these, they always seemed to have an evil aura.
But Hun Yuan's eyes were bloodshot. He stared fiercely at the national master and said:
"Don't try to quibble. How could I not know my master's Buddhist beads! Although the color is different, the runes on them were written by my master. They are exactly the same as the bone beads he always carried with him."
"These runes were created by my master alone. They are unique and cannot be copied! He only drew these runes on two sets of Buddhist beads. One was the white jade bodhi beads left for my junior sister, and the other was these bone beads."
"How dare you say this isn't my master's thing!"
Oh—
So that's it. No wonder he felt the patterns were familiar before. It turned out he had seen them on the white jade bodhi beads.
Thinking this, Yun Xi gently squeezed her horse's belly with her legs and boldly approached the national master. While raising a smile, she leaned forward and casually reached out her hand to ask for the bone beads:
"The national master refuses to admit it, but Master Hun Yuan is certain that this is Master Qing Yi's thing. Why not take it off and let us take a look? Just to confirm."
"In public, we will surely return it. The national master can rest assured."
After she finished speaking, Yun Xi's slender fingers were about to touch the back of the national master's pale hand, where the blood vessels were clearly visible.
But the national master suddenly withdrew his hand.
They were only about half an inch apart!
Yun Xi was not willing to give up and still stubbornly leaned forward.
The national master's eyes turned cold. He gathered strength in his palm and blocked Yun Xi's fair hand from afar. His voice was as cold as ice:
"Don't think you can touch anyone just because you can read minds now!"
"Why do you think you can read minds? It's the ability I gave you!"
What?!
Yun Xi opened her eyes wide in shock.
"You..."
Just as she uttered the word "you", the national master instantly withdrew his strength. Yun Xi lost her balance and immediately fell forward.
"Junior sister!"
Hun Yuan let out a startled cry. Before he could move, Yi Yuan had leaped over, grabbed Yun Xi's waist, and gently landed her on the ground.
"You're looking for death!"
Yi Yuan roared angrily. A cold light flashed in his phoenix eyes. The next moment, he had attacked.
The national master looked weak and pale, but his martial arts skills were top-notch.
Even with Yi Yuan's martial arts, he didn't fall behind in the fight.
The two of them moved back and forth in front of their eyes, leaving only afterimages. Yun Xi stared blankly, and the national master's words kept echoing in her mind:
It's the ability I gave you!
What did this mean?
Was her ability to read minds given by this national master?
But... how did he do it?
She had obtained this ability to read minds by accident after accidentally falling off a low cliff on the way back from a Buddhist pilgrimage to Sheng Guo Temple with the Ye family a year ago.
During that time, she hadn't met this national master, nor had she encountered any other men.
How did he give her this ability to read minds?
Moreover, for no reason, why did he give her this ability?
Yun Xi couldn't figure it out.
On the other side, the national master was showing signs of defeat. Yi Yuan struck him in the chest with a palm, and he staggered back a dozen steps before barely stabilizing himself.
"Clap, clap, clap..."
A round of applause sounded.
Everyone turned to look, and it was Zongzheng Fengyi who was clapping.
"Prince Yu'an really has good skills."
"Stopping our group in public and injuring our national master..."
The smile on his face froze. Zongzheng Fengyi's voice turned cold and sharp:
"Do you want to declare war on our country?!"
"Humph..."
Yi Yuan wasn't intimidated:
"Then you came all the way from the Ying State. You didn't want anyone else, but specifically asked to marry my wife. Do you really want to form an alliance and end the war with our Great Yin?"
After their words, the atmosphere at the scene became even tenser.
The two sides faced each other across the street, and for a moment, no one said a word.
Hun Yuan couldn't hold back anymore. Following his heart, he darted to the national master's side and reached out to grab the bone beads.
But the national master neither dodged nor flashed. With a "swish", he took off the bone beads on his hand and, without even looking, casually threw them away with a "whoosh". In the blink of an eye, they disappeared.
Hun Yuan was almost furious.
But he didn't have time to deal with the national master. He gathered his inner strength and forcefully stopped his rushing figure. Then he turned around and chased in the direction where the bone beads had gone.
"You're not willing to let her marry me,"
As if he hadn't seen the actions of the national master and Hun Yuan, Zongzheng Fengyi said calmly:
"Then you're willing to sacrifice your beloved's life?"
A bad premonition suddenly flashed through Yi Yuan's mind. He frowned his long eyebrows, his eyes as sharp as swords, and stared intently at Zongzheng Fengyi. But he didn't say a word and just waited for him to continue.
"She..."
Zongzheng Fengyi tilted his chin in Yun Xi's direction and really continued:
"She only has about two months to live at most. Hun Yuan should have told you this, right?"
"Only by marrying me can she survive. Because..."
A confident and slightly mocking smile gradually appeared on Zongzheng Fengyi's face. He dusted off a bit of dust on his clothes and said unhurriedly:
"I am the male gu!"
As soon as these words were said, Yun Xi and the others all opened their eyes wide in surprise.
Yi Yuan's pupils shrank. He stood there stiffly, stunned. Countless thoughts flashed through his mind, but he couldn't find a way to have the best of both worlds.
"Just because you say so?"
Yun Xi quickly came to her senses. While reaching out to hold Yi Yuan's tightly clenched fist, she questioned:
"Where's the evidence?"
"Pfft—"
Zongzheng Fengyi sneered disdainfully, looking like a complete scoundrel:
"Evidence? Even if I don't show it, do you dare to take the risk?"