Unаblе to hold baсk, Yе Yuqing burst into laughtеr: "Hahаhа!"
Тhis wаs thе vеry definitiоn of schadenfreude аnd uttеr heаrtlessnеss! In bоth раin and аngеr, Fеng Yuе turnеd and glаred fiercеlу at thе laughing man.
Hеr naturallу seductivе fох-likе еуеs, now tinged with furу, аpреаred еven mоrе caрtivаting. Cаtching his breath, Yе Yuqing wiped awау thе teаrs of laughter аnd ехclаimеd with dеlight, "Аh, isn't this... thаt оne, thе dаncеr!"
Feng Yuе froze, squinting tо makе оut thе faсе оf thе man on horsеback. Her bodу stiffened, and shе raised hеr hands with аn аwkward, fоrced laugh.
Truly, fate plays cruel tricks. The person she desperately avoided somehow ended up entangled with her in the most intimate way, while the one she was determined to seduce always appeared at her most wretched moments, looking at her as if she were a joke.
Yin Gezhi had guessed correctly—she had initially intended to seduce the Crown Prince of Wu Kingdom. Unexpectedly, her plan had failed, forcing her to pretend nothing had happened and deal with Yin first. She had even devised many schemes to reconnect with Ye Yuqing, but who could have imagined running into him here today?
In her current state, there was no need to think about it—she was neither alluring nor charming, stretching out her hands like a zombie trying to ascend to heaven. Better not embarrass herself further.
With this thought, Feng Yue tucked in her neck, buried her face, and endured the excruciating pain in her hand bones as she scurried with tiny steps toward the pharmacy.
"Hey..."
"Your Highness!" Yi Zhangzhu rushed over, visibly flustered. "Why have you left the palace?"
What status did the Crown Prince hold? Countless eyes were watching him in secret—how could he wander about so freely?
Withdrawing his gaze from the distance, Ye Yuqing smiled gently and dismounted. "I heard you were in trouble. I happened to be patrolling nearby and came to check on you."
The rioters had either fled or were injured. Yi Zhangzhu glanced back and sighed. "Zhu'er is fine. Please take better care of yourself and don't always take risks for a mere woman like me."
As Feng Yue stepped over the threshold of the pharmacy, she faintly overheard these words and couldn't help but chuckle softly.
As naive as a little lamb.
She had meant to keep this thought to herself, but somehow it slipped out in a whisper. Unfortunately, her voice was loud enough for the person behind her to hear every word.
"Who are you talking about?" A cold, emotionless voice, like a slab of plaster, struck her from behind.
Feng Yue paused, slowly turned her head, and smiled seductively. "I was talking about myself."
Frowning, Yin Gezhi followed her into the pharmacy, his eyes scrutinizing her from head to toe. "You? Naive?"
Blinking, Feng Yue grinned foolishly. "Aren't I naive?"
"Your eyes aren't clean." Withdrawing his gaze, Yin Gezhi pushed her to sit at the table where the physician was and tossed out this assessment casually.
Not clean? Feng Yue sneered inwardly. Looking around, how many living people had clean eyes? She had witnessed boundless slaughter and the blood of entire families—how could her eyes possibly be clean?
Her palm had swollen to the size of a bear's paw, and she couldn't be bothered to argue with him further. Turning her head, she looked at the physician with tearful eyes. "Please take a look, sir. Has my hand been broken?"
Her coquettish tone startled the old physician, making his white beard tremble. Watching this, Yin Gezhi remarked with disdain, "Can't you be a bit more proper?"
Biting her lip with pearly teeth, Feng Yue blinked innocently. "Young master, have you forgotten what I am?"
Asking a courtesan to be proper? What was he thinking?
Yin Gezhi: "..."After all, he was the one who brought her here, and this sorry state was truly an embarrassment to him!
Once the old physician had finished trembling his beard, he carefully examined her hand. Feng Yue lowered her hand, feeling the blood rush even more intensely to her palm, the pain turning her face pale.
"The bones aren't broken, but there are likely some fractures. I'll prescribe some external ointment along with medicinal tonics for internal use. With a few months of rest, it should heal."
So troublesome? Feng Yue frowned. "Tonics are expensive!"
In this line of work, can she not even afford tonics? Yin Gezhi sneered. "Mama Jin won't let your hand go to waste."
"But that's just taking wool from the sheep!" Feng Yue lamented. "This humble servant at least acted bravely to save a beauty. Doesn't the young master intend to cover some of the medical expenses?"
Still trying to extort money? Yin Gezhi scoffed lightly and was about to respond when someone outside said, "Since the injury was sustained for Zhu'er's sake, I shall naturally offer rewards and compensation."
The hem of a blue robe swept over the threshold as Ye Yuqing entered, smiling with exceptional gentleness. "The tonics and medicinal herbs the young lady needs will be sent by my people. There's no need to worry."
Look! The Crown Prince of a great nation is truly this gracious, this courteous, and this wealthy!
Feng Yue immediately let out a "giggle" and began batting her coquettish eyes at him. "You truly are a good person!"
Implying that he wasn't a good person? Yin Gezhi's expression darkened slightly as he shifted his body, completely blocking her line of flirtatious glances.
"I brought her here, so if anything happens, I will naturally compensate her. Your Highness need not concern yourself." Raising his eyes to meet the person opposite him, Yin Gezhi said expressionlessly, "This place isn't very safe. Your Highness should return to the palace early to spare Zhangzhu from worrying."
Zhangzhu.
Having known him for so long, this was the first time she had heard him call someone by their personal name. Feng Yue paused, unable to suppress another low "giggle."
The aloof First Prince Yin, who even referred to his own younger sister by her title without much care. After three years apart, he could now anxiously gallop on horseback for another woman and tenderly call her by her personal name.
The world truly is wondrous.
Yi Zhangzhu stood behind the Crown Prince and, upon hearing this, stepped forward to Feng Yue's side, looking at her hand with deep remorse. "Since it was to save me, I should be the one to cover the medical expenses."
"No need. With me here, there's no reason for you to worry." Ye Yuqing's gaze was filled with affection and indulgence.
"She is neither your person nor the Crown Prince's, so neither of you need concern yourselves." Yin Gezhi said, "I will handle it."
Look at them, all vying like this, making her seem like some fraudster trying to scam money. Feng Yue stopped laughing, her gaze sweeping over the three people before her as she said coolly, "It was just a joke, yet you esteemed individuals took it seriously. This servant was merely trying to save face. I can afford the tonics."
The three of them paused, all looking at her.
The old physician was wrapping medicine around her hand. Feng Yue lowered her eyes, a half-smile playing on her lips as she teased, "If there's nothing else, please leave. With such esteemed figures standing in this shabby clinic, I'm afraid it won't be long before it collapses!"
A strange feeling stirred in his heart. Yin Gezhi found it odd; logically, her words were just playful banter, and there was no anger on her face. Yet, unexpectedly, he could clearly sense that she was upset.
What was going on?Pressing a hand to his chest, Yin Gezhi frowned, unable to resolve his confusion, and glanced at Feng Yue a few more times.
"You're injured like this, how will you get back on your own?" Yi Zhangzhu said, "Let me take you. Where do you live?"
"Flamboyant Street, Dream Return Pavilion." Without the slightest hesitation, Feng Yue replied candidly, "Given Miss Yi's status, it might not be appropriate for you to escort someone like me."
A courtesan? Yi Zhangzhu was startled, her almond-shaped eyes widening in surprise.
Why would Yin Gezhi bring a courtesan out with him? Wasn't he always averse to those with such a strong air of the red-light district?
"I'll take her back," Yin Gezhi spoke up. Seeing her hand was nearly bandaged, he added, "We'll take our leave first."
"Your Highness," Ye Yuqing looked at him, nodding gracefully. "Even as a hostage in our Wu Kingdom, you remain the First Prince of Wei, and many still revere you. Visiting Flamboyant Street in broad daylight may not be wise."
He actually addressed him as "Your Highness." Feng Yue pursed her lips, enduring the pain as she huddled to the side, watching the two of them.
One was a hostage brought back by General Yi, the other the highly influential Crown Prince of Wu. Their statuses were clearly worlds apart, yet Yin Gezhi somehow managed to stand his ground without losing an ounce of presence. Before Ye Yuqing, he still carried that composed, unruffled air—the kind that seemed to say, "Go ahead, hit me if you dare."
Of course, Ye Yuqing was no match for Yin Gezhi. Even Feng Yue from three years ago might not have been able to touch the hem of his robe within a hundred moves, let alone now, when the two kingdoms maintained a facade of peace and conflict was out of the question. Thus, Yin Gezhi spoke calmly:
"Whether it is wise or not, I shall be the judge. If those who revere me distance themselves because I linger in the red-light district, then such reverence is not worth having."
Love me or hate me, revere me or scorn me—if you don't like it, go ahead and hit me!
This was Yin Gezhi, the First Prince of Wei, arrogant and unrivaled in his silence, the undefeated general who once dominated the battlefield. Even without his armor, clad in scholarly white robes, his iron will remained unyielding—the kind of superior bone that wouldn't crack even under a heavy blow!
Feng Yue narrowed her eyes, her expression complex.
Ye Yuqing unfolded his fan, half-covering his face as he chuckled softly. "It seems I worried unnecessarily. Your Highness would hardly care for such mundane reputation and honor. In that case, please go ahead."
Yi Zhangzhu stepped aside to make way. With the Crown Prince present, she refrained from saying much, watching as Guan Zhi helped Feng Yue out, then glancing once more at Yin Gezhi.
A breeze swept through the doorway as he walked out, his white robes fluttering lightly, mingling with his ink-black hair, as beautiful as an immortal in a painting.
But even if he were as beautiful as a blooming flower, Feng Yue had no mood to admire him. The journey back, even with someone supporting her, felt like torture. Though she could endure pain well, damn, this was too much!
By the time they reached the entrance of Dream Return Pavilion, Feng Yue nearly collapsed. Yin Gezhi glanced at her sideways but said nothing, stepping inside to whisper a few words to Mama Jin before leisurely heading upstairs.
Feng Yue dragged herself back to her room, half-dead. The moment Lingshu saw her condition, she shrieked, "Mistress, what happened to you?"
Forcing a dry laugh, Feng Yue lay down on the soft couch and let out a long sigh. "Just bad luck, a minor injury. I'll recover after some rest.""This looks really serious!" Lingshu grew anxious, circling around the soft couch with teary eyes. "I felt my right eyelid twitching all day today—I knew something bad was going to happen. How can you go to Master Li's residence in this state..."
It was already too late to cover the girl's mouth. Feng Yue could only glare at her fiercely, hoping to silence her with her stare.
But it was too late.
Lingshu looked at her innocently with her bright, watery eyes, completely unaware of the shadow looming behind her.
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