Chapter 154: Need Help?

In the small hall, Yi Yiyi sat upright in the main seat.

She had changed into a light green jacket and skirt, her hair simply combed up. Her face was devoid of makeup, yet due to the earlier events, traces of rouge still remained.

This actually tempered her usual coldness, adding a touch of softness and approachability.

“Greetings, Princess.”

The group bowed in unison. Xie Wuxia was the first to lift his head, a perfectly measured smile surfacing on his delicate, powdered face.

“There is no need for such formalities, please sit.”

Yi Yiyi’s voice was light and indifferent. Her gaze swept over the group politely, not lingering on anyone in particular.

Xie Wuxia assumed the Princess’s hurried glance hadn’t noticed him, so he maintained his perfect smile, chin tilted up, ready at any moment to catch her eye.

At this moment, he was very satisfied.

Zhao Ning’s appearance was truly stunning, and he felt that marrying her would not be beneath him.

“Princess, I heard from my father a few days ago that you had agreed to the literary gathering on the twentieth of the twelfth lunar month. We waited for a long time that evening but did not see your carriage, which was quite regrettable. Later, we heard you had come to Dasheng County for state affairs.”

Since he hadn’t been noticed by the Princess, Xie Wuxia spoke first to attract her attention.

“Dasheng County is remote and crude; I am ashamed to have troubled you all to come here, Zhao Ning apologizes.”

Yi Yiyi spoke perfunctorily; after all, these visitors were the offspring of officials her father relied upon, so she had to maintain proper etiquette.

But as she spoke, the small hand tucked inside her sleeve clenched unconsciously.

She had played around with Ding Suian earlier and cast a Paralysis Spell, but the Holy Sect’s Desire Realm meant that whenever she cast a spell, she would suffer a backlash. At this moment, it was like a waking vine, beginning to coil around her densely.

A restlessness and sense of emptiness originating from deep within her bone marrow, mixed with an unspeakable heat, surged through her limbs like waves, as if countless tiny electric currents were slithering and darting beneath her skin.

It forced her to expend more effort than usual just to maintain her outward composure.

She only hoped to exchange a few pleasantries and send them away as quickly as possible.

“Princess, you are too modest.”

Xie Wuxia sat down elegantly and said in a very soft tone, “To be able to see the Princess’s ethereal beauty, what does traveling a thousand miles matter? Moreover, although this place is simple, because the Princess is here, it shines with brilliance.”

A bit too forward.

Yi Yiyi gave him a strange look, but seeing his burning gaze, she lowered her eyes, immediately understanding his intentions.

She replied indifferently, “Young Master Xie, you flatter me.”

“Ahem.”

Sun Yun, unwilling to let Xie Wuxia steal the spotlight, deliberately coughed and took over the conversation, his tone even more earnest than before. “The Princess toils for state affairs; you are a role model for us all. I just heard from a Soldier in the front courtyard that it is to collect the bones of the Wu Army? Alas, the Crown Prince is worthy of his reputation for benevolence, and the Princess is kind-hearted and intelligent; you are truly the fortune of our Great Zhao and the world. In the past, the Martial God of Xia comforted the lonely souls beyond the pass, and the Ancestor Ning sacrificed to the heroic spirits of the north…”

He quoted classics, intending to show off his erudition and display his compassionate nature, but he noticed Yi Yiyi’s brows knit slightly, almost imperceptibly.

Yi Yiyi felt the inner fire burning more and more fiercely. Sun Yun’s pretentious, long-winded speech was irritating her, and she had to shift her body slightly to suppress the fierce, empty throbbing, barely maintaining the posture of listening.

Although she relaxed instantly, that subtle expression of forced endurance was still captured by Sun Yun.

Xie Wuxia thought Princess Zhao Ning was displeased and only listening out of upbringing, so he chuckled inwardly and immediately interjected, his tone becoming lighter and more intimate.

“Brother Sun is always so concerned about the country and the people. However, Princess, those fighting and killing matters are ultimately too full of Evil Qi. You are a golden branch and jade leaf; you must take care of your precious body. Cloud State has recently arranged several elegant musical pieces. When you return, may I have the honor of inviting you to enjoy them together?”

Xie Wuxia leaned forward slightly, his gaze more focused, waiting confidently for a response.

Yi Yiyi felt that both men were noisy, and their deliberate posturing made her uncomfortable. Not to mention that the unspeakable backlash within her was constantly assaulting her rational defenses; every extra moment she sat there was torture.

The first time she experienced the backlash in the wild, it was just a hazy, instinctive craving.

But now, after the development by Young Master Ding, much knowledge had been imprinted in her mind. The craving brought by that backlash had become incredibly specific—temperature, scent, and even the method.

“Thank you both for your kind intentions. However, my official business on this trip is not yet finished, and my return date is uncertain. Moreover, I have always preferred quiet; regarding elegant music and poetry gatherings, I am afraid I must disappoint you.”

She picked up the slightly cool tea beside her and took a small sip, both to try to suppress the thirst in her throat and the restlessness within her, and to politely express that it was time for them to leave.

Serving tea meant seeing guests out—the refusal was subtle yet clear.

“…”

“…”

Xie and Sun were both stunned for a moment, subconsciously looking at each other.

They both probably thought the other had displeased Princess Zhao Ning.

“Princess.”

Xie Wuxia still wanted to say something, but suddenly heard a “creak.”

He turned his head to look. From the Princess’s temporary boudoir in this residence, a tall, handsome Soldier walked out.

Everyone in the room opened their mouths in unison, staring at him blankly.

Even Yi Yiyi widened her eyes, frozen in her seat.

“Who are you!”

Xie Wuxia was suddenly very angry. The feeling was probably similar to having some precious treasure he viewed as his own suddenly snatched away and toyed with by someone else.

At the same time, there was a sense of loss from being betrayed. Although it was his first time meeting Princess Zhao Ning today, Zhao Ning had betrayed him!

However, he naturally dared not question the Princess, so he could only fix his angry gaze firmly on that Soldier.

“Oh? Guests have arrived?”

Ding Suian seemed to have just noticed everyone in the room. After scanning them casually, he turned to Yi Yiyi and said, “According to the Princess’s instructions, the rat in the room has been caught by this subordinate. May I ask how it should be disposed of?”

Everyone in the room then noticed that in his hanging right hand, he was pinching a rather large Gray Rat.

“…”

Yi Yiyi’s scalp tingled; she was extremely repulsed by such furry little things.

She instinctively wanted to scream.

But unexpectedly, just as she opened her mouth, a sharp, miserable howl came out before she could.

“…”

It was the dashing, refined, and gentle Xie Wuxia. “Ah! Ah! Ah! Take it away! Throw it out quickly!”

This scene actually scared Yi Yiyi’s scream back into her throat.

Ding Suian was also startled; his body shook, and his hand loosened. The large Gray Rat immediately fell to the ground.

As luck would have it, once the Gray Rat’s four feet touched the ground, it dashed straight toward Xie Wuxia.

“Ah! Drive it away!”

Xie Wuxia jumped onto the chair with a “whoosh,” his face turning pale, hands holding up his hem, jumping incessantly.

The Gray Rat jumped onto the chair effortlessly and slipped into his pant leg.

“Ah! Help! Save me, Young Master!”

Another earth-shattering shout.

Inside the pant leg, the Gray Rat scurried, causing the silk pants to bulge and rise.

Xie Wuxia was weeping and snotting.

“Quick, take off Young Master Xie’s pants!”

Reminded by Ding Suian, his companions scrambled to surround him.

But then they heard Ding Suian shout angrily, “Bastards! The Princess’s carriage is here; how dare you act so wantonly in this place! Do you not want your lives? Carry him out, go to the street to take them off!”

“Oh, oh, oh.”

Several companions hurriedly agreed and rushed to carry Xie Wuxia out.

“Quick, quick, quick! Ah, quick!”

Xie Wuxia, being carried out spread-eagled, had completely disregarded his image by now, urging them with cries that didn’t sound human, just wanting to find a place to take off his clothes and get the rat out.

The absurd farce ended, and the third courtyard returned to silence.

A Qi clung to the doorframe, watching the figures of Xie Wuxia and the others disappear beyond the moon gate, and finally couldn’t help but let out a low, “kuku” chuckle.

“Need help?”

“…”

Hearing the strange conversation behind her, A Qi couldn’t help but turn her head.

She saw the Princess’s elegant, lovely face was flushed red, even her small earlobes stained with an alluring crimson.

She seemed to have been asked an unanswerable question by Head Ding, biting her lower lip with her pearly teeth, refusing to speak.

“Will you still use tricks on me in the future?”

Ding Suian smiled mockingly, changing the phrasing.

This time, Yi Yiyi finally responded, “No, I won’t!”

As soon as the words fell, she stood up from her seat, her footsteps exceptionally hurried, even bringing with her a gust of fragrant wind, and pulled Head Ding by the wrist toward the inner room.

Yet, her bright red face still wore an expression of cool, aloof reserve.

“Eh?”

A Qi’s gaze fell on Yi Yiyi’s back, and she discovered something interesting.

On the light green silk skirt, she didn’t know when a strange, slightly darker, wet stain had seeped through.