Mo Li

A...A-Yao, what did I just see?

After a long silence, a stammering voice echoed through the dimly lit forest once more. Three figures emerged from the trees, and Feng Zhiyao's image as an elegant young master shattered yet again as he gaped at the unconscious unlucky fellow lying on the ground.

Mo Xiuyao observed the scene with a calm expression and said indifferently, "Exactly what you just saw."

"I stayed up all night running around with you, worried that something might happen to Miss Ye! But now it seems like the only ones in danger are everyone else, huh?" If not for barely maintaining his dignity, Feng Zhiyao might have shrieked like a woman. What had he just witnessed? After receiving news that someone was plotting against Ye Li, he had crawled out of a beauty's warm embrace in the dead of night and rushed over—only to see Ye Li take down Mo Jingli with a technique even he couldn't follow. Sure, Mo Jingli was a bit of an idiot, but he was still considered one of the capital's most promising young talents, wasn't he?

Walking over to Mo Xiuyao, Feng Zhiyao circled him in imitation of Ye Li's earlier movements before propping his chin lazily on his hand and asking, "So, what do we do now?"

"Throw him into that pond over there," Mo Xiuyao replied without batting an eye.

"That's a freezing cold pool—he'll die," Feng Zhiyao offered a half-hearted warning.

"Strip his clothes too," Mo Xiuyao added coolly.

"Probably not possible. Your future wife is very skilled at tying people up." Feng Zhiyao crouched down to examine the knots binding Mo Jingli. "A-Yao, don’t ever make Miss Ye angry in the future. Women are terrifying." After a long moment of contemplation, Feng Zhiyao still couldn't figure out how he would free himself if tied up like this without outside help. Still, the technique was worth learning.

"A Jin."

"Yes, Your Highness." The young man standing behind Mo Xiuyao, pushing his wheelchair, responded before stepping forward to grab the unconscious figure and drag him deeper into the woods. A loud splash soon followed—clearly, someone had been tossed into the water.

Feng Zhiyao couldn't help but jump in agitation. "A-Yao, you're going to corrupt this kid! What if Mo Jingli drowns? A prince dying in the capital—especially the emperor's own brother—isn't exactly a small matter!"

Mo Xiuyao calmly studied his hands resting on the wheelchair's armrests and replied, "A Jin has always known his limits."

"Limits? Does A Jin even have the concept of limits in his head?" Feng Zhiyao stomped his foot and rushed over to check, only to be rendered speechless.

Mo Jingli had been thrown into the pond on his back, with his chest and above still propped against the shore, keeping his head above water. Most importantly, the rope binding him was clearly much longer than necessary—and the excess length was now tied securely to a tree by the pond's edge. This ensured Mo Jingli wouldn’t be dragged into the center of the pool by any accident.

Truly impeccable limits.

"A Jin, I'll escort His Highness back. You stay here and keep watch. Once it's close to dawn, wake up the men he brought with him. Don’t actually let him soak to death."

A Jin furrowed his brows slightly but nodded after a brief hesitation. Feng Zhiyao cast a somewhat sympathetic glance at Mo Jingli before finally turning away, fan swaying contentedly as he headed back toward Mo Xiuyao.

"A-Yao, I’m starting to get really curious about your future wife," Feng Zhiyao mused as he strolled back into the woods. Mo Xiuyao remained seated beneath the trees, his expression unreadable in the dim night, lost in thought.

Mo Xiuyao lifted his head and said calmly, "We should head back."Feng Zhiyao looked at Mo Xiuyao curiously—was he really going to let him off so easily? Despite Mo Xiuyao’s years of self-cultivation and seemingly mild temperament, Feng Zhiyao, who knew his true nature well, was fully aware that Mo Xiuyao had never been a kind-hearted man. A cold glint flashed through Mo Xiuyao’s gentle eyes. "Tomorrow is Jing Li’s wedding. It would be quite a disappointment if something unfortunate happened to the groom."

Feng Zhiyao sighed inwardly. I thought you wouldn’t want Mo Jingli to have any ties with the Ye family. Don’t forget, if he marries Ye Ying, you and he would become… brothers-in-law? Not exactly a pleasant relationship, is it?

Mo Xiuyao snorted lightly and, with a slight push, turned his wheelchair toward the edge of the woods. Feng Zhiyao arched his handsome brows, shrugged, and followed. Who knows what interesting things might happen at tomorrow’s wedding? Best to secure a good spot early to enjoy the show.

"What about the guy who kidnapped the Third Miss Ye?"

"Capture him. Send one of his hands and a leg to Mo Jingli as a wedding gift."

Though the city gates had long been closed, Ye Li managed to return to the Minister’s residence before dawn with a little effort. The moment she climbed into her room through the window, Qingshuang and Qingyu rushed to greet her, their anxious expressions melting into relief.

Qingyu, as composed as ever, handed Ye Li a cup of tea, as if her usually elegant and dignified young mistress scaling the window in front of her was nothing out of the ordinary. Qingshuang patted her chest and exhaled. "Miss, you’re finally back! Qingshuang was so worried!"

Ye Li smiled faintly. "What’s there to worry about when someone was following me? Right, Qingluan?"

A figure drifted down lightly outside the window—it was Qingluan, who had come with Qingyu from the Xu family. Qingluan pressed her lips together in a smile. "Miss is truly remarkable. Qingluan followed the entire way without being noticed, yet I couldn’t hide from you in the end."

Ye Li chuckled. "Actually, I didn’t notice you either. But the whole way, I kept catching a faint, very distinctive and familiar fragrance. The person who kidnapped me… probably didn’t notice because he was already heavily scented himself."

Qingluan’s shoulders slumped slightly in disappointment, silently resolving never to use any incense again. In truth, the scent she used was already extremely light—most people wouldn’t even detect it. But who could have guessed Ye Li’s senses were far sharper than the average person’s?

"Did anything interesting happen in the woods after I left?" Ye Li asked as she sat down and sipped her freshly brewed tea.

Qingluan mimicked Ye Li’s earlier action and climbed in through the window, grinning. "That… person was thrown into a deep pond in the woods."

"Prince Ding?"

"Miss is brilliant." Qingluan’s mood brightened as she recalled the sight of someone being tied to a tree and flung into the pond, looking utterly disheveled. Tonight’s worry wasn’t in vain. She was certain the Eldest Young Master would be delighted to hear this news. "This servant also saw someone accompanying Prince Ding—they seemed quite close."

Ye Li raised a brow at Qingluan, who didn’t keep her in suspense. "It was the famous Third Master Feng of the capital."

Ye Li hadn’t expected Feng Zhiyao and Mo Xiuyao to be connected. This explained Feng Zhiyao’s obvious curiosity toward her during the Hundred Flowers Festival.

"So Prince Ding went to rescue Miss too? Did Miss not see him?" Qingshuang blinked, her curiosity piqued.Ye Li shook her head. She knew there were others in the woods at that time and could vaguely guess who they were, but she had no intention of meeting them, so she paid no attention. Since Mo Xiuyao didn’t have anyone stop Qingluan, he must have understood her meaning. Dealing with intelligent people really saved a lot of unnecessary words—how convenient.

Casually tossing a jade pendant to Qingluan, she said, "Give this to Eldest Cousin and ask if he can trace the owner of this pendant."

Qingluan caught it and chuckled with malicious delight, "Then this servant had better hurry. Prince Ding has reserved one of his hands and a leg as a congratulatory gift for Prince Li. If he hadn’t run fast, he’d be in trouble tonight."

"His Light Body Skill is decent. If there’s still time, find a way to keep him. He might be useful to us. If it’s too late, then never mind." She didn’t believe someone who would sneak into a residence in the dead of night to kidnap an innocent woman was any kind of virtuous person. However, the fact that he knew she was awake yet still delivered her to Mo Jingli—without the slightest warning—suggested he was quite an interesting character. More likely, Mo Jingli had unwittingly offended him at some point.

Qingyu stood to the side, glancing between them with a peculiar expression before asking, "Will tomorrow’s wedding still proceed as scheduled?"

Qingluan waved a hand dismissively. "It should be fine. I heard Feng Zhiyao instruct Prince Ding’s guards to let Prince Li’s men rescue their master just before dawn." Qingyu nodded. "In that case, Miss should rest while there’s still time. If you look tired tomorrow, it’ll invite gossip."

Qingshuang nodded vigorously in agreement. She didn’t want anyone seizing another opportunity to tarnish their young lady’s reputation.

…

Did no one consider how exhausting a wedding could be? What if the groom fainted during the ceremony tomorrow… Ye Li mused irresponsibly as her maids changed her clothes and ushered her into bed.

–––––– Author’s Note ––––––

Did I just spoil it? Tomorrow… the most disastrous wedding in history~